"If God Didn't Give Us..." Genesis 2: 4b-9; John 17: 20-26

This sermon begins a series on Stewardship that is guided by the question:  "What if I didn't give..."
Of course, before arriving at the question about our own giving, we have to go to the foundation for our giving, god, and ask that same question  about God.  What if God didn't give us the gift of life?  Or the gift of Jesus Christ?  or the ongoing gift of the Holy Spirit?

That's a lot to unpack in one sermon, but it reminds us that our ability to give is predicated on God having first given to us and having modeled what it means to give.

As I reflect on the sermon, I am reminded of the great Christmas movie, It's a Wonderful Life. As you may recall, part of the movie is the reliving of life in Bedford Falls if George Bailey had not been born.  AS the movie unfolds, we learn that George's presence has been instrumental in the development of Bedford Falls and new life for many of its citizens.

Obviously, it would be a short sermon if we read the Genesis story of creation, note that we would not be here if God had not breathed the breath of life into us, and then end the sermon.  I won't do that.  I hope the sermon will help us consider all that God has given us.

Reflections on "Finding Believers" Acts 28: 1-15

Doing the review in the introduction reminded me of how much I have enjoyed working through Acts over the last four months.  One of the great things about doing sermon series on different books or themes in the Bible is that I get to really dig into a particular aspect of the biblical text for an extended period of time.  

i was intentional about doing the collage of images as the introduction to help remind people of the stories we have read, and perhaps send some people back to Acts to read about the stories they had missed.

I thought the sermon was sort of flat, particularly during the Chapel service.  I made a minor change for the Sanctuary service:  instead of quoting directly the two long quotes from N. T. Wright and Nevada Barr, I sort of paraphrased and used on a portion of the longer quote.  I think that may have worked better, but not sure the quotes were as effective being spoken as they are when being read with time to digest the quote. 

"Finding Believers” September 28, 2014; FPC, Troy; Significant Moments in Acts; Acts 28: 1-15

Introduction: End of series on Acts. Collage of images:

drawing lots;

enthusiasm;

people being healed

Saul on his knees on the road to Damascus;

Eutychus falling out of a window – sitting on window sill; snoring away while the sermon was droning on; mid-air as he falls out of window; lying dead on the ground; being hugged and healed by Paul.

the animals from Peter's dream that instructs him about how the church will be inclusive of Jews and Gentiles

leadership chart that shows the development of the offices or elders, deacons, and teachers, as the early church develops its infrastructure

women at the river on the Sabbath morning talking and praying

leaders gathering at Jerusalem to decide important matters concerning what the church will look like;

a pair – reminder of Paul and Barnabas; or Saul and Ananias

Stormy seas that finish with a ship wrecked on a barrier reef

Big snake hanging from Paul's arm

lots of powerful images from Acts.

As we finish, three themes that run run throughout Acts: power of prayer; important role of community; desire to serve God.

Move 1: Power of prayer

a. Every story we read from Acts during the past four months has included some mention of prayer.

1. sometimes it might have been prayers of desperation like, “I'm in the middle of a storm at sea, God, so come help me!” but mostly the prayers were for guidance and direction.
2. The early church believed that in order to do what God wanted them to do, they had to be people of prayer.
3. They can cast lots to choose the next leader because they pray to God for to answer them through the choosing of lots.
4. They can dare to change – Saul to Paul or Peter changing his position on eating restrictions – because they are in pray about what to do.
5. they can heal because they have asked for God to use them as instruments of healing.
6. Prayer undergirds everything they do.
b. N. T. Wright in his book Simply Christian offers this description of prayer: “….Christian prayer is about standing at the fault line, being shaped by the Jesus who knelt in Gethsemane, groaning in travail, holding heaven and earth together like someone trying to tie two pieces of rope with people tugging at the other ends to pull them apart. “ Simply Christian, N. T. Wright (163-164).

1. I like that image – prayer what the church does as it stands in the world, pulled in different directions, but choosing to seek God's guidance.

2. We pray in part because we recognize that the world is not what God desires it to be and we need guidance to help change it.

3. Korean prayer article – this past August, a joint prayer service between the South Korean church and the North Korean church gathered to pray for peace and reunification of the two Koreas (Presbyterian Outlook, Sept 29, 2014, 6).


4. 49 years since N. Korea and S. Korea split into two countries.


5. Hopeless and helpless.

6. Church and its people turn to God in prayer.l

Power of prayer.

Move 2: Power of community.

a. Many of the stories in Acts are about the community of faith.

1. some of the stories are explicitly about community as they seek to define what the community of believers will look like.

2. But many other stories are not about defining community, but about living as community.

b. We see the power of community in the passage we read this morning about Paul arriving in Rome.

1. The extended community of faith has heard that Paul is about to arrive as a prisoner in their midst.
2. They do not know what to expect, but certainly he is not coming to be their next minister or to lead a revival (although he does end up getting to preach a bit while imprisoned in Rome).
3. They cannot welcome Paul into their homes or their community of faith because he is under that guard of the Romans soldiers.
4. And yet, they still trek at least a day's journey to arrive to greet Paul.
5. To show their support and solidarity for this man brother in the faith.
6. Notice how their presence impacts Paul 0 he immediately gives thanks to God and finds courage to face what is waiting for him in Rome.
7. William Willimon comments on this verse:  "IN a narrative filled with accounts power, miraculous deliverance, and divine intervention, this is perhaps the greatest power the Christian faith puts at the disciples' disposal -- the power of brothers and sisters in the church" (William Willimon, Acts from the commentary series Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching, 186).
   
   

c.   Nevada Barr, Seeking Enlightenment Hat by Hat (191): She offers the answer to her father’s question: why go inside with a bunch of hypocrites instead of staying outdoors in God’s country. “Because God made we hypocrites, too. Because when Jesus said, ‘Wherever two or more gather in my name, I am there’ He wasn’t whistling Dixie. The mountain is for finding and adoring God in the wilderness. Church is for finding and adoring God in community: with others, through others, because of others, in spite of others. Only by finding this place of human interaction focused around the need for the spiritual was I able to recognize God in other people, and so, in myself. Without community, how would I share. Who would I help? How would I learn to accept help? Would I learn to serve others without others to serve? And could I know how if I wasn’t taught? To what would I, a human being, belong to if not to a group of human beings?”

1. The faith community for the early church and for us is where we are nurtured, shaped and formed.

2. Father died late on a Saturday night. I was scheduled to preach and lead worship the next morning.

3. called a colleague late that night to talk about what to do – didn't want to take away from worship with my own personal situation.
4. Colleague – do what you want about preaching and leading worship, but where else should you be in your time of need if not in the community of faith you serve.

5.  As I looked out at the gathered community, I discovered again the community of faith that nurtures us and the place where we gather to claim our hope.

The power of community.

Move 3: Finally, desire to be a part of what God is doing.

a. Paul found believers.

1. Paul arrives in a strange place and finds people who believe in Jesus Christ and want to serve him.
2. the Book of Acts is story after story of people who are living out their desire to follow Christ.
3. The story, of course, is God's story, but it's played out by the faithful whose enthusiasm for serving God send them into the world.
b. If Paul were to somehow arrive in our midst, I believe he would write that he had arrived in Troy and found believers.
Conclusion: The Acts of the Apostles does not end in chapter 28 but continues through us as we follow the resurrected Christ into the world.

"Finding Believers" Acts 28: 1-15

This sermon concludes the series on the Acts of the Apostles.  In part, I am reflecting on running themes that we have uncovered as we read through Acts (This would be a great time for you to send me info about what themes have been meaningful to you in this series!),  One of those themes is prayer.  In fact, that is such a dominant theme that I have to include it in this week's sermon.

I am also struck by the way the waiting community arrives to greet Paul.  I suppose it reflects in part how small their community of believers was relatively speaking.  To get a group, they had to travel.  But, it also may reflect their commitment to supporting each other.  They hear Paul is arriving, so they go to great lengths to support him.

We certainly see how the arriving Christians impacted Paul as vs. 28:15 indicates that "on seeing them, Paul thanked God and took courage."  Willimon comments on this verse:  "IN a narrative filled with accounts power, miraculous deliverance, and divine intervention, this is perhaps the greatest power the Christian faith puts at the disciples' disposal -- the power of brothers and sisters in the church" (William WIllimon, Acts from the commentary series Interpretation:  A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching, 186).

Reflections on "Storms" Acts 27: 13-44

Another really fun story that had so much material for the sermon.  I included the comparison to Jonah in the introduction even though it really did not have much to with this particular sermon. But, it seemed so interesting to me that I wanted to share it!

"Storms” September 14, 2014; FPC, Troy; Significant Moments in Acts; 2014 Acts 27: 13-44

Introduction: Paul and his shipmates are caught in a nasty storm. A northeaster that has blown in and threatens to sink their boat.

I was on a lake once in a small boat during a thunderstorm, and I've seen a tropical storm roll and its huge waves rolls onto Port Aransas, but I've never been caught on the high sea in storm.

This I do know. I would not want to be on the sea during a nasty storm in a huge modern ship, much less a boat in Paul's time.

This story from Acts gives us lots of details about the storm and what is happening on the boat as Paul interacts with the pagan sailors to get safely shore.

As an aside, William Willmon (Acts from the commentary series Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching by William Willimon) draws an interesting parallel between Paul's experience on the ship and Jonah's experience.

The storm in Jonah's case reveals God's anger; the storm in Acts reveals how God approves of Paul and supports Paul's work.

If your remember, Jonah gets tossed into the sea to appease God and save the ship; in this story, Paul stays on board and is able to share his faith and save the ship.

Fascinating story.

Move 1: We all find ourselves in storms.

a. think about the storms in your life.

1. Not just the rainstorm that floods your basement or brings down tree limbs.

2. The difficult challenges you face.

2. Medical journeys we find ourselves traveling.
3. job situations.
4. broken relationships.

5. Dealing with your kids, or your parents, or both.

6. Sometimes the storms are of our own making, but seldom are they of our own choosing.

b. Being a faithful person does not keep us out of storms.

1. coming to church every Sunday does not keep us out of storms.

2. Being Paul does not keep him out of storms.

3. He a great leader of the early church, doing God's work, and he still finds himself in the midst of storm, both literally and figuratively.

Not whether we find ourselves in storms or not; but how we handle ourselves in those storms.

Move 2: Paul's faith and hope reveal themselves in the midst of the storm

a. “All hope of being saved was at last abandoned.”

1. So goes the story.
2. But then Paul steps forward.
3. He has a word for them in the midst of their crisis.
4. a word of hope.
5. Okay, Paul being Paul, first he has to remind them that he had told them not to start out on this trip.
6. But then he gives a word of hope and encouragement.

b. There are lots of stories in antiquity of boats being caught out in storms.

1. This story in Acts has many similarities with those those other stories, including having a main character like Paul make a speech to everyone in the midst of the crisis.
   2. But there is one critical difference.
   3. In the other stories, the person making the speech generally expounds about the dangers confronting them and exhorts them to prepare for their impending doom.
   4. But not Paul. Paul tells them that an angel of the Lord has appeared to him telling him that they will be saved.
   5. In the midst of the storm, Paul proclaims a message of hope and trust in God to save them.
   From the depths of their despair. (Witherington, 767).

6. Paul acts out of his faith.

b. You have probably heard of Dr. Elizabeth Kubler Ross who wrote her famous book on death and dying. Dr. Tom Long shares a story about what she discovered while doing her research.

Part of her research involved interviewing dying patients in the hospital, trying to find out how they felt and thought as they faced death.

As she went from room to room in the hospital, she began to notice a remarkable pattern. Sometimes she would go into a dying person's room and the person would be calm, at peace, and tranquil. She also began to notice that often this was after the patient's room had been cleaned by a certain hospital orderly.

One day, Dr. Ross happened to run into this orderly in the hospital corridor, and she said to her, "What are you doing with my patients?"

The orderly thought she was being reprimanded by the doctor, and she said, "I'm not doing anything with your patients."

"No, no," responded Dr. Ross. "It's a good thing. After you go into their rooms, they seem at peace. What are you doing with my patients?"

"I just talk to them," the orderly said. "You know, I've had two babies of my own die on my lap. But God never abandoned me. I tell them that. I tell them that they aren't alone, that God is with them, and that they don't have to be afraid." Long, Rev. Dr. Thomas G. “What’s the Gift?” Day 1. The Alliance for Christian Media. 27 May 2012. http://day1.org/3822-whats_the_gift. 7 June 2014; found in sermon preached by Matthew Miller, FPC,

1. A word of hope in the midst of a storm

2. God calls us to be people of hope.

3. we may not be able to avoid the storm, but we can turn to our faith and share out faith in the midst of the storm.

Move 3: We also see in this story God's desire to save (and that includes the pagan sailors)

a. We see the first instance in the middle of the night when some of the sailors decide their only chance is to set out in a small boat.

3. Paul discovers what they are doing and realizes that the only way they can be saved is to be on board the ship that God has promised to save.
4. They will die on their own on the sea.
5. So Paul reports what's happening to the centurion.
6. The centurion gets the sailors back on board and cuts the little boat loose so that no one can escape the boat, which they do not yet realize, would also means escaping God's saving grace.
7. 
   

I bet Paul was popular with the sailors in the a moment!

b. Then, as the they run aground, the soldiers in charge of the prisoners, including Paul, decide that it would be better to kill the prisoners than let them escape as they swim ashore.

1. 1. Of course, that would also mean killing Paul.
2. 2. The soldiers' plan to kill all the prisoners to keep them from escaping.
3. 3. But the centurion wants to save Paul – maybe because he is grateful for what Paul has done; maybe he knows that Paul is a Roman citizen.
4. 4. we do not know why – we just know that the centurion decrees that no prisoners be killed, which saves Paul and all the other prisoners.

c. Fascinating how God works.

1. Paul acts as a tattle-tale and saves some of the sailors.

the Roman centurion wants to save Paul, so he has to save all the prisoners.

I suppose that means that God's desire to save can be lived out by you and me.

1. Conclusion: Can we live our lives and never encounter storms? Probably not.Can we reveal our faith as we live in the midst of those storms. We can, with God's help.
2. Does God desire to save? Absolutely, and God is looking to us to be a part of that saving work.
3. Amen.

"Storms" Acts 27:13-44

This passage details Paul's experience of being on a ship that has to deal with a nasty storm and ends up shipwrecked on shore.

Not sure where to go with the sermon.

1.  Willimon (Acts  from the commentary series Interpretation:  A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching by William Willimon) draws an interesting parallel between Paul's experience on the ship and Jonah's experience.

       The storm in Jonah's case reveals God's anger; Paul's survival of the storm might be Luke way of showing God's approval of Paul's work.

        Jonah gets tossed into the sea to appease God and save the ship; Paul is the one who seems to hold it together on the ship and help get the crew through the storm (to give further credence to God's approval of Paul, Paul soon will be bitten by a viper in Malta and survive)

I find that an interesting parallel.

2.  Witherington (the Acts of the Apostles: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary by Ben Witherington, III) focuses on how this story compares with other sea/storm stories in antiquity.

       There are lots of similarities.

       One very interesting difference:  in storms stories there is usually a speech from someone like Paul in the midst of crisis, but it usually is a speech describing the danger and preparing them for their impending doom; Paul, however, exhorts the sailors with hope in the midst of their despair (Witherington, 767)

3.  Paul notes that an angel of the Lord had appeared to him to give him hope.  This is unusual since previously Paul is met by the Risen Lord himself.  Witherington suggests this means that Paul knows that those with him are all pagans (766).  I'm not sure what to make of it.

4.  The soldiers' plan to kill all the prisoners to keep them from escaping, but because the centurion wishes to save Paul, all the prisoners end up being saved.  Hanging out with Paul worked out well for them.

What do you find worthy of a sermon in this story?

Reflections on "ON and On" Acts 20: 6-12

I had a lot of fun with this text.  It has some humorous aspects and the power of resurrection all in one story, which made it fun to preach.  

I am also preparing a sermon to preach at Mario's (former seminary intern) ordination and installation service later this month, and I have hos

"On and On” September 7, 2014; FPC, Troy; Significant Moments in Acts; 2014 Acts 20 7-12

Introduction: As many of you know, we have been reflecting on significant moments in Acts over the summer. I saved this story from Acts for today because it is such a fascinating, bizarre story.

I offer it to you to both intrigue you about the stories in the Bible and to invite you to make reading the Bible part of your daily pattern as you begin the fall schedule.

I also hope you will make being in worship with us part of that fall pattern as we explore God's Word together.

Move 1: Story begins as if it's going to be a funny story.

a. Starts out as sort of a comedy --

1. Paul is preaching late into the night.
2. In fairness, Paul probably did not start preaching until sunset, the beginning of the Sabbath, as would have been the custom.

3. But it's getting late, and Paul is still preaching.

b. A young man names Eutychus is one of the ones listening.

1. Eutyches literally means lucky! How lucky he must have felt to be there as Paul preaches on and on. Wouldn't you like to be so lucky!

2. There is mention of the lamps burning and the people being gathered upstairs, which is like there to help excuse what is about to happen by suggesting that it is stuffy and hot in the room as they listen to Paul.

3. Eutychus falls asleep.

4. If you have ever dozed off during a sermon, or caught yourself stifling a yawn and wondering when the sermon might end, you have been there with Eutychus.

5. When I was growing up in St. Andrew Presbyterian Church in Denton, TX, they had a sound system located on the back pew of the balcony.
6. They trained youth to work the system. Rather simple – hit the record button and then adjust volume on two different microphones.

I was one of the youth trained to operate the sound system. It was located on the back pew of the balcony.

One Sunday morning I was working the sound system, so I was sitting by myself on the back row of the balcony. I'd like to think I was in Jr. High, but I might have been in high school already.

I'm sure it was no reflection on the sermon, but I was a bit tired so I stretched out on the back pew to rest while I listened to the sermon.

I rolled right off the pew and with a loud thump hit the floor.

No injuries; just a startled preacher, irritated mother, and embarrassed son!

5. Eutychus, despite his name, was not as lucky.

6. When he fell asleep, he fell out the window where he was sitting, down three stories, and is dead.

100. Now the story really gets bizarre.
     1. Paul stops preaching long enough to go out and see the dead young man.
     2. gives him a hug.
     3. Then has a bite to eat.
     4. The he goes back to preaching and does not stop until dawn.

If you ever hear someone talk about how boring the Bible is, direct them to this story.

Two thoughts.

Move 2: Paul persistently proclaims the gospel.

a. Paul goes on and on and cannot be stopped.

1. One of the people listening falls to his death.

2. I suspect that would end most sermons.

3. but not Paul – take a moment to heal the man, grab bite to eat, and back to the preaching.

4.  He understands his task to to preach the good news of Jesus Christ and nothing is going to stop him.

b. In part, because Paul really believes what he is preaching.

1. Paul preaches resurrection.

2.  Paul preaches about the God who can turn death into life.

3.  Offers a pretty good sermon illustration – Eutychus is brought back to life.

4. Paul not only preaches gospel, but he believes it and lives it.

c. Our calling as the church is to be focused like Paul on proclaiming the good news.

1. Lots of distractions in our world.

3. easy to get caught up in what worship style works best, or how can we appeal to this demographic or that demographic, or the latest fad in mission work or youth ministry

3.  But there were lots of distractions in Paul's world as well. We read in the first scripture lesson about the collision of the business world that is making money on engraving silver idols and the new Christians who turn away from idols. It is described as “no small disturbance.”

4.  There will always be distractions in our world.

WE cannot comment the world to stop being distracted, but we can live out our calling by persistently proclaiming and living out God's life-changing, life-saving claim on our lives.

1. Move 3: Church exists in the midst of life and death.
2. a. That night when Paul is preaching offers a microcosm of what it means to be the church in the world.

1. A gathering of the faithful; everything seems right with the world; then surprise – tragedy strikes.

We can imagine how that community of faith felt because we know what it means to be caught by surprise by the unexpected and unimaginable.

1. 
   
2. b. In response to the tragedy, Paul acts.
3. 1. He reaches out to the young man and offers God's healing powers.
4. 
   
5. 2.  From the story, it does not appear that everyone gathered there immediately knows that Paul brings Eutychus back to life.
6. 
   
7. 3.  they will discover that later and have another “aha” moment then.
8. 
   
9. 4.  But immediately in that moment, Paul returns to his message of hope and resurrection.
10. 
    
11. 5. that is the solid ground on which he stand when all around him appears to be sinking.
12. 
    

That is the church's role in our world today [Willimon (Acts from the series Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching, 154) notes how tragedy can strike in a moment's notice. And in the face of that, we speak the God news of God's sovereignty].
when we see those in need, we go to them like Paul went to Eutychus.

In the face of death and tragedy, we proclaim the good news and offer hope.

1. We may not understand the how and the why of what is happening in our world, but we know the God in whom we hope an we proclaim that God to the world in word and deed.
2. 
   
3. Conclusion: Turns out Eutyches was very lucky. Lucky that he had Paul around to proclaim the gospel and live out the gospel.
4. 
   
5. Our calling is to show the world how lucky it is as we proclaim the life-saving, life-changing love of God.
6. 
   

"On and On" Acts 20: 7-12

I chose to include this story because I thought it might be an interesting and fun story to preach on the Sunday we have Rally Day.  On the one hand, it seems sort of fun -- the preacher preaches too long, someone falls asleep, and then they fall over and out the window.  On the other hand, the young man dies.  Of course, Paul hugs him, has a bite to eat, and then goes back to preaching until dawn, and the young man is apparently ok after all.   Bizarre story.  Is it funny? or a serious look at resurrection?  What do we do with Paul's insistence at preaching until late into the night, and then starting right back up again after checking on the young man?

I am struck by the fact that Paul really believes this stuff he is teaching and preaching about resurrection. He puts that belief in play as he brings the young man back to life.

Also, I notice that Paul goes on and on and cannot be stopped.  He is compelled to speak and share his message.

Willimon (Acts from the series Interpretation:  A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching, 154) notes how tragedy can strike in a moment's notice. And in the face of that, we speak the God news of God's sovereignty.

Willimon also notes that this story connects Paul with the great prophets Elijah and Elisha, who also brought people back to life (154-155)

What do you think of this story?