Pick Your Witnesses
Children's sermon
Illustration
Preaching
Sermon
Worship
Object:
In this week's lectionary epistle passage, the author of Hebrews takes us on a mini-tour of the Old Testament faithful's "hall of fame," and points out that because we can draw strength from being "surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses" in addition to the example of Jesus ("the pioneer and perfecter of our faith") it is our duty to "lay aside every weight and sin" and "run with perseverance the race that is set before us." The use of the "witness" image is striking -- not only does it convey the testimony of the travails experienced by our forebears in the faith, but it also (analogous to the role of witnesses in courtroom dramas) indicates how they bear witness to the ultimate truth of the gospel. Many people focus on the comforting aspects of this text -- but witnessing also suggests that we are held to a higher standard, and that we should not become complacent but take the "race that is set before us" as a call to action. In this installment of The Immediate Word, team member Mary Austin notes that we need to choose wisely when looking for contemporary witnesses of the faith, because the role models we adopt has an important influence on the testimony of our faith as reflected in the actions of our everyday lives -- and our place in the "great cloud of witnesses" that binds Christians together across the centuries.
Team member George Reed shares some additional thoughts on the "seeds of division" theme from the gospel text. Jesus is clearly trying to impress on his followers the costs of discipleship; but George also points out that when division is the result of our actions it's all too easy for us to assume that our narrow self-interests are really God's interests. If Jesus is really functioning as the great divider, then we need to ask ourselves what is really at the root of that separation -- is it because we are standing on God's principle, or is it because we're unable to separate the cause of Christ from our cultural allegiances?
Pick Your Witnesses
by Mary Austin
Hebrews 11:29--12:2
The letter to the Hebrews speaks to a church grown weary, discouraged by the pressures of the world around them and the unrelenting bad news of the time. We and the early church share an environment suspicious of our faith and filled with class distinctions and economic hardship for many people.
Into the world of the early church and into our world comes the assurance that we are "surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses" that we are enabled to press on in faith. Not just any witnesses will do either -- the writer of Hebrews includes a formidable list of those who have lived their faith in hard times. The heroes and saints of the past are always available to us, but who in our contemporary world might we pick as witnesses to the faith?
As politicians and sports stars reveal themselves to be the fallible human beings we really should have known they were, as scandal engulfs the Roman Catholic church and disputes about the role of gay and lesbian people mark other denominations -- where do we look for witnesses in our lives? How does our faith change, depending on who we hold in our lives as witnesses and examples? And what is our place in the great congregation of witnesses?
THE WORLD
Our world challenges us to constantly evaluate the credibility of people, both in public life and in our own lives. Once upon a time, certain people and professions had unquestioned respect and deference -- pastors, police officers, public servants among them. The church itself, as an institution, had a central place in many people's lives and schedules. But the abuse of power entrusted to those who serve has eroded our automatic trust and left many people not knowing where to turn for people to admire.
Admirable people still live and work among us, but we may need to look for them in unusual places. The killing of a group of medical aid workers in Afghanistan last week highlighted the vital and unsung work they had been doing. The group, including six Americans, four Afghans, a Briton, and a German, had completed a three-week journey, primarily on foot, to deliver medical care to a remote area of Afghanistan. The New York Times reported that "the attack, the largest massacre of in years of aid workers in Afghanistan, offered chilling evidence of the increasing insecurity in the northern part of the country and added to fears that the insurgency has turned even more vicious in recent months." The team, who worked for the Christian aid group International Assistance Mission, was well aware of the dangers around them. "This expedition will require a lot of physical and mental resolve and will not be without risk," wrote British surgeon Dr. Karen Woo on her blog. Engaged to be married at the time of her death, she still felt that "the effort is worth it in order to assist those that need it most."
The mission's leader, Dr. Tom Little, had worked in Afghanistan for the last 40 years and spoke the local language. He "raised three daughters with his wife in Afghanistan, avoided kidnappings during the Russian occupation, hid in his basement for months during the Taliban rule in the 1990s, survived rocket attacks, and endured arrests for one reason -- friends and family members said: to provide eye care for indigent Afghans." Little's brother noted that, "He consciously put his life on the line for his beliefs. He had had so many close calls before. He wasn't fearless, but he was at peace with danger."
Other people who make a difference in our lives may be found closer to home. A recent study affirmed the importance of a strong kindergarten teacher in the shape of our adult lives. According to the New York Times, economists have generally not attached much importance to how teachers change our lives -- thinking that "great teachers and early childhood programs can have a big short-term effect. But the impact tends to fade. By junior high and high school, children who had excellent early schooling do little better on tests than similar children who did not -- which raises the demoralizing question of how much of a difference schools and teachers can make."
Previous research was based on test scores. The new study looked at almost 12,000 children who had participated in an experiment in the 1980s and who are now close to 30. As in previous studies, some teachers were found to be better than others. Yet, looking at the adult lives of the former students, the difference became clear. The study revealed that "the legacy of kindergarten had re-emerged. Students who had learned much more in kindergarten were more likely to go to college than students with otherwise similar backgrounds.... Perhaps most striking, they were earning more. All else equal, they were making about an extra $100 a year at age 27 for every percentile they had moved up the test-score distribution over the course of kindergarten. A student who went from average to the 60th percentile -- a typical jump for a 5-year-old with a good teacher -- could expect to make about $1,000 more a year at age 27 than a student who remained at the average."
As the article continues: "The economists [conducting the study] don't pretend to know the exact causes. But it's not hard to come up with plausible guesses. Good early education can impart skills that last a lifetime -- patience, discipline, manners, perseverance."
A starting teacher's salary -- roughly $25,000-$35,000, according to teacherportal.com. The impact on your life -- priceless.
THE WORD
The writer of Hebrews, writing to encourage perseverance and courage in our faith, also notes the impact that people can have on our lives. The writer lists the faithful who have gone before us, first by familiar names and then by evoking the great "cloud of witnesses" that surrounds us. The great names and heroes of faith stand before us, but also the unnamed saints who were martyrs for the faith. Our faith is enriched by their example and made more dynamic by their encouragement.
As David E. Gray notes in Feasting on the Word, "We do well to focus on the idea that we have realistic faith for our future because of what God has done in the past... [this text] focuses our lives on staying faithful to the God who is faithful to us." Yet, as Gray sees it, there is also an emphasis on the future, not just the past. We are not to ignore our pain or wallow in it, but to keep our eyes on the God of grace and on running the race before us. Even seasons of pain, persecution, and setbacks do not negate the work God calls us to do. [Feasting on the Word, Year C, Volume 3, p. 356]
CRAFTING THE SERMON
This text invites us to look at who we hold as examples of our faith. The examples in our heads and hearts will shape the kind of faith we have. Witnesses to rules or to narrow-mindedness will cultivate the same in us, as will witnesses to the easy path, or faith that fits nicely into the world. Picking witnesses of creativity, bold action, risk-taking, love, and energy will cultivate the same in us.
For me, the great cloud of witnesses has always been a source of solace in the rough patches of faith. The idea that those who had traveled this road before me -- and endured much more than I ever have -- are gathered around us was a source of strength. A colleague suggested recently, though, that the witnesses have more in mind than comfort. This collection of strong figures of faith, examples of courage, imagination, and perseverance, also have a calling for us, he suggested. They are not just figures from the dim recesses of faith, but living examples who call us to get off the couch and be similar witnesses in our world. The text holds an implicit call not just to look at the witnesses to our faith, but also to serve as faith-filled witnesses for others.
Paradoxically, in this context, a witness is more than an observer. These witnesses are doers, people who live their faith instead of watching from the sidelines. We are invited to be the same kind of witnesses in our own time and place -- to be not merely watchers, but people who live our faith. This summons comes even when we grow weary, and even when times are difficult. In doing so, we live in the great continuum of faith, enriched by the cloud of witnesses around us, and are thereby able to be witnesses ourselves in turn, and to touch the lives of others.
ANOTHER VIEW
Jesus, the Great Divider?
by George Reed
Luke 12:49-56
We often think of Jesus in terms of "turning the other cheek," "give to those who ask," "pray for your enemies," or even "love your enemies" -- so how is it that Jesus can talk about himself in this passage as one who has come to bring division?
For many of us who have preached from the principles of Jesus' teachings like those mentioned above and have connected them with current events that have an emotionally charged connection with our congregations, we know the answer. The gospel is divisive, and Jesus is the Great Divider. He comes and brings each of us to a point of decision: "Are we going to stand in the Reign of God or not?" The answer is a simple yes or no; either we stand with Jesus and God against the powers of evil, or we do not. We also know that, even having made the decision to stand with Jesus, we often fail and find ourselves standing in the enemy camp. That is part of our fallen nature that Jesus helps us deal with -- but he doesn't offer an equivocating answer as an option to his call.
When we apply Jesus' teachings to our lives and the real world, we quickly discover they are at odds with many of the teachings of society. Compassion, justice, and equality are fine in theory -- but when we begin to apply them, especially to those we are not overly fond of, it can cause a real problem for us. When we stand shoulder to shoulder with Jesus on the important issues of life, we often have to make decisions that others don't understand and sometimes actively oppose.
Of course, that is where the real rub is: deciding if we are truly standing with Jesus and whether the issues we have chosen are really important. The gospel is easy to understand: Love God and your neighbor with your entire being. Doing it is the hard part.
We have equated Christianity with the "good American life" for so long in this country that it is difficult for us to separate them now -- but it is very important that we do so. We need to know which of our stands we are taking because we are championing the cause of Christ, and which we are taking because we are Americans. We can do both as long as they don't collide, but when they do collide, Jesus tells us we have to step over the line and choose one side or the other. We either stand with him or we don't. This is true for all allegiances, whatever our nationality, culture, family traditions, or the like.
ILLUSTRATIONS
On June 18, 1983, Sally Ride became the first American woman in space as a crew member on the space shuttle Challenger. In elementary school she became excited about space travel as she watched the Mercury program. It was an excitement that was contagious among all her classmates, both boys and girls. She said, "When I was growing up science was cool. So we need to make science cool again."
Ride is particularly concerned about the lack of interest that many girls have in science. Middle-school girls want to be popular and going to an astronomy class is not a peer-enhancing proposition. Further, what young lady wants to aspire to be a scientist when they are often depicted as "some geeky-looking guy who looks like Einstein, [and] wears a lab coat and pocket protector"?
In order to promote the image of scientists as being normal and family-centered individuals who pursue a career of exciting adventures and discoveries, she started the Sally Ride Science Academy. The academy shares with teachers methods to present math and science in creative, innovative, and exciting ways so that those subjects can become more "real and relevant" to the students.
Sally Ride wants to move science forward by surrounding young girls with positive role models. That is the same dynamic that the author of Hebrews speaks to when he invokes the great cloud of witnesses that thunders forth Christianity.
* * *
Six years ago an Illinois physician, Dr. Jeremy Krock, started the Negro League Grave Marker Project. Many of the former baseball players in the Negro Leagues have died in poverty and been buried anonymously. These were outstanding ballplayers whose graves and names had been lost to American culture. The goal of the project is to locate where these men have been buried and place on the graves a stone marker. Then the organization will record the players' exploits both on the field and in the community. Larry Lester, a Negro League historian, said of the project: "It brings some dignity in death so that these individuals are recognized for their contributions to the game of baseball."
The author of Hebrews testifies to the importance of being inspired by those who have gone before us. Be it in sports, religion, or any other endeavor, we can only move forward if we honor and are inspired by those who have preceded us.
* * *
A missionary in China once spoke to a group of people in a town far in the interior. He was the first one to tell them the story of Jesus, and when he had talked a while, someone said: "Oh yes, we knew him; he used to live here."
The missionary was somewhat surprised, and said: "Oh no, he lived centuries ago in another land."
But the native still insisted that he had seen Jesus, saying: "Not so, he lived in the village, and we knew him."
And then the crowd led the missionary to the village cemetery and showed him the grave of a medical missionary who had lived, served, healed, and died in that community. Just one more member of the great cloud of witnesses....
* * *
Our command tells us that we are to be witnesses. We are not reporters. What is the difference? A reporter and a witness differ in their relationship to their information: A reporter has no personal relationship to the facts he is working with; a witness must have personal experience with them. The reporter knows nothing firsthand, but no witness is called to the stand unless he has personal involvement with the information. (He saw the accident; he knows the defendant or plaintiff, and so forth.) The Christian has experienced the new birth; he or she knows the Savior, and this will inevitably be an important inference in the mind of the receptor. It is a part of the message.
-- T.W. Hunt, Music in Missions: Discipling Through Music (Broadman Press, 1987), pp. 48-49
* * *
Salt crystals cannot give flavor to food unless they dissolve. If we dissolve the salt in a pot, it disappears but it does not cease to exist. Indeed, it can then give flavor to thousands of grains of rice.
-- Sundar Singh, Wisdom of the Sadhu (Plough Publishing, 2000)
So it is also with the cloud of witnesses, who are "the salt of the earth."
* * *
We like to make a distinction between our private and public lives and say, "Whatever I do in my private life is nobody else's business." But anyone trying to live a spiritual life will soon discover that the most personal is the most universal, the most hidden is the most public, and the most solitary is the most communal. What we live in the most intimate places of our beings is not just for us but for all people. That is why our inner lives are lives for others. That is why our solitude is a gift to our community, and that is why our most secret thoughts affect our common life.
Jesus says, "No one lights a lamp to put it under a tub; they put it on the lamp-stand where it shines for everyone in the house" (Matthew 5:14-15). The most inner light is a light for the world. Let's not have "double lives"; let us allow what we live in private to be known in public.
-- Henri J.M. Nouwen, Bread for the Journey (Harper Collins: New York, 1997)
* * *
In our gospel text Jesus says that he came to bring division among people. But this divisiveness would be between those who believe and those who do not. For those who live within the church, there is to be cooperation and harmony. When we allow disputes to infect our congregations, then growth and ministry will cease.
The United Methodist church recently spent several hundred thousand dollars to discover what factors contribute to making a church a living and vital congregation. Most noticeably absent from these churches was internal strife.
In outlining a vital congregation, the report determined it did not matter if the pastor of the church was a seminary graduate or not, nor did it matter how long a minister had been at a church. The report identified four key areas that created a church with a meaningful ministry: 1) small groups and programs; 2) worship services that mix traditional and contemporary styles with an emphasis on relevant sermons; 3) pastors who work hard on membership and cultivation of the laity; 4) an emphasis on effective lay leadership.
We ought to realize that if a congregation is experiencing internal turmoil it is not mirroring the message of Jesus. It is only when conflict arises from those outside the congregation who are exposed to the gospel message of social justice that it is the conflict of one that puts neighbor against neighbor.
* * *
The immune system is a network of cells that recognize and attack foreign invaders. The system asks one profound question: What is self, and what is not self? The community needs an immune response to determine what is self and not self. The community needs to ask, for instance, if a certain action continues, whether it will enhance the mission of the congregation or detract from it. Does an individual's or a group's behavior contradict or serve the congregation's purpose? Is there clarity about who is responsible for what and accountable to whom?
-- Peter Steinke, Healthy Congregations: A Systems Approach, p. 91
* * *
Jess Sullivan is a Creek Indian residing in a small town in Oklahoma. He is also a minister of the gospel, and with his wife serves several churches in the Oklahoma Indian Missionary Conference.
Upon becoming a Christian, Reverend Sullivan was immediately ostracized by members of his family and tribe who tenaciously cling to Native American religious beliefs. Reverend and Mrs. Sullivan are no longer included in tribal celebrations nor are they permitted to participate in tribal observances. A middle wall or partition has been flung down between them and members of their own larger family.
Regardless of culture, to declare for Christ and embrace his way in the presence of others who are not so inclined creates an unavoidable division -- whether it's the Christian mother who abides with an infidel father, or the husband who attempts to witness to an unbelieving wife, or the child who learns things at Sunday school that unredeemed parents regard as unintelligible.
The division of which Christ spoke is not maliciously intentional but rather the consequence of choice.
WORSHIP RESOURCES
by George Reed
Call to Worship
Leader: Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel.
People: Stir up your might and come and save us.
Leader: Let your hand, O God, be upon us.
People: Then we will never turn back from you.
Leader: Restore us and let your face shine upon us.
People: Let your face shine upon us that we may be saved.
OR
Leader: Take courage, the witnesses are all around us.
People: We give thanks for those who have been faithful.
Leader: They have lived their faith in all conditions.
People: They are like beacons calling us to faithfulness.
Leader: Will others find us to be the light they need in dark times?
People: In humility, we will strive to live so that they will.
OR
Leader: Jesus calls us to come to him.
People: We answer the call and come for healing.
Leader: Healing you will receive -- and much more.
People: What else does Jesus have for us?
Leader: He calls us to stand with him against hatred and evil.
People: We will stand against these with the Christ.
Leader: Sometimes that will mean standing against family and friends.
People: God, grant us the courage to stand with Jesus always.
Hymns and Sacred Songs
"Ye Servants of God"
found in:
UMH: 181
H82: 535
PH: 477
NCH: 305
CH: 110
LBW: 252
"Hope of the World"
found in:
UMH: 178
H82: 472
PH: 360
NCH: 46
CH: 538
LBW: 493
"Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus"
found in:
UMH: 514
H82: 561
AAHH: 476
NNBH: 409
CH: 613
LBW: 389
"Am I a Soldier of the Cross"
found in:
UMH: 511
AAHH: 482, 483, 603
NNBH: 259
"Are Ye Able"
found in:
UMH: 530
NNBH: 223
CH: 621
"Filled with the Spirit's Power"
found in:
UMH: 537
NCH: 266
LBW: 160
"Must Jesus Bear the Cross Alone"
found in:
UMH: 424
AAHH: 554
NNBH: 221
"Take Up Thy Cross"
found in:
UMH: 415
H82: 675
PH: 393
LBW: 398
"Shine, Jesus, Shine"
found in:
CCB: 81
Renew: 247
"God, You Are My God"
found in:
CCB: 60
Music Resources Key:
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982 (The Episcopal Church)
PH: Presbyterian Hymnal
AAHH: African-American Heritage Hymnal
NNBH: The New National Baptist Hymnal
NCH: The New Century Hymnal
CH: Chalice Hymnal
LBW: Lutheran Book of Worship
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day / Collect
O God who sent Jesus to announce and bring your Reign: Grant us the courage to stand with him even when it is unpopular; through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
O God who has given us the witness of countless faithful ones: Grant us the courage to so live that we too can be faithful witnesses for you; through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
As we come into your presence, O God, to offer our worship and praise, we are aware of the presence of your faithful ones all around us. Help us to clearly hear your word to us this day so that we may choose true witnesses to help us model our lives for you. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
Leader: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins, and especially the ways in which we honor people whose stance is not that of our Savior.
People: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We look with admiration on those who have amassed great wealth or power or popularity, without regarding how they have gained these things. We honor sports figures who live lifestyles that abuse their bodies and other people. When we hear of those who have given themselves in the causes of the Reign of God, we may be amazed for a short time but we feel no desire to be like them. Forgive us our double-mindedness and call us once more to stand with Jesus as bearers of your gracious reign. Amen.
Leader: Jesus opens the Reign of God to all, even those of us who have wavered in our faithfulness. Welcome into God's world. Live always as God's ambassadors.
Prayers of the People (and the Lord's Prayer)
We praise and worship you, the God who brings all creation to its completeness. Your gracious desire is always for the abundant life of your creation and your creatures.
(The following paragraph may be used if a separate prayer of confession has not been used.)
We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We look with admiration on those who have amassed great wealth or power or popularity, without regarding how they have gained these things. We honor sports figures who live lifestyles that abuse their bodies and other people. When we hear of those who have given themselves in the causes of the Reign of God, we may be amazed for a short time but we feel no desire to be like them. Forgive us our double-mindedness and call us once more to stand with Jesus as bearers of your gracious reign.
We thank you for all the signs you send us to help us live into the fullness of your reign. We thank you especially for those saints who will never be remembered in history books but who made such a difference in our lives.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for those who face great opposition to their faithfully living in your reign. We pray for those who are imprisoned or martyred for your sake. We pray for those who are mocked and ridiculed for standing up for your standards. We pray for ourselves and the courage to follow their example.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
All these things we ask in the Name of our Savior Jesus Christ, who taught us to pray together, saying:
Our Father... Amen.
(or if the Lord's Prayer is not used at this point in the service)
All this we ask in the Name of the Blessed and Holy Trinity. Amen.
Visuals
Pictures of things divided -- everything from a print of the Civil War with two armies facing each other to an apple split in two.
Children's Sermon Starter
Ask the children, "Who's the best... (basketball player, superhero, and so on)?" Then ask them, "Who's the best Christian?" (They probably won't have a ready answer -- use that. Don't give them so much time they begin to make up answers.) Tell them it is neat that some people are so good at sports and such, but what is really important is being a good follower of Jesus. Invite them to talk at home with their families about what makes a person a good Christian and how they can be good examples for others.
CHILDREN'S SERMON
My Heroes
Hebrews 11:29--12:2
Object: pictures of heroes like George Washington, John Glenn, and Michael Jordan; pictures of Christian heroes like Billy Graham, Mother Teresa, and Martin Luther King
Good morning, boys and girls! How many of you have a hero? (let them answer) Tell me the name of your hero. (let them answer) I am sure they are wonderful people. I brought along some pictures of some people that we call heroes. Tell me if you know who they are. (hold up your pictures and see if they can identify them) Some of you recognize George Washington and Michael Jordan. John Glenn was the first American to fly in space, and he did it twice. These are only a few of our heroes.
When Saint Paul wrote the book of Hebrews he mentioned his heroes: Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and all of the prophets.
I thought about some of our great Christian heroes. Have you ever heard of Billy Graham? Billy Graham preached around the world for many years and led many people to Jesus. I would call him a great hero. There was a woman who lived in India among the poorest people in the world. Her name was Mother Teresa, and she shared the love of Jesus with people who were very poor. She gave them medicine, taught them how to read, and fed them when they were hungry. She made the whole world think more about the poor. She was certainly a hero. How about Martin Luther King Jr.? He was a great preacher who lived and died to bring all of God's people together. He taught that the love of Jesus was for all people. Martin Luther King Jr. was a great Christian hero. Some of us have heard of Wenzao Han, a Chinese leader who was the first president of the Christian church in China. It isn't easy to be a Christian in China, but Wenzao Han was a superhero of the church. There are other heroes like a Japanese man named Kagawa and a Catholic pope named John the 23rd. They gave great leadership and taught that the church should be kind to the poor and to respect each other as children of God. Christians all around the world are sharing the love of Jesus. They are real heroes.
I hope that someday we will hear your name mentioned as a great Christian hero who brought Jesus Christ to all the people in the world.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
The Immediate Word, August 15, 2010, issue.
Copyright 2010 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to The Immediate Word service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons and in worship and classroom settings only. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
Team member George Reed shares some additional thoughts on the "seeds of division" theme from the gospel text. Jesus is clearly trying to impress on his followers the costs of discipleship; but George also points out that when division is the result of our actions it's all too easy for us to assume that our narrow self-interests are really God's interests. If Jesus is really functioning as the great divider, then we need to ask ourselves what is really at the root of that separation -- is it because we are standing on God's principle, or is it because we're unable to separate the cause of Christ from our cultural allegiances?
Pick Your Witnesses
by Mary Austin
Hebrews 11:29--12:2
The letter to the Hebrews speaks to a church grown weary, discouraged by the pressures of the world around them and the unrelenting bad news of the time. We and the early church share an environment suspicious of our faith and filled with class distinctions and economic hardship for many people.
Into the world of the early church and into our world comes the assurance that we are "surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses" that we are enabled to press on in faith. Not just any witnesses will do either -- the writer of Hebrews includes a formidable list of those who have lived their faith in hard times. The heroes and saints of the past are always available to us, but who in our contemporary world might we pick as witnesses to the faith?
As politicians and sports stars reveal themselves to be the fallible human beings we really should have known they were, as scandal engulfs the Roman Catholic church and disputes about the role of gay and lesbian people mark other denominations -- where do we look for witnesses in our lives? How does our faith change, depending on who we hold in our lives as witnesses and examples? And what is our place in the great congregation of witnesses?
THE WORLD
Our world challenges us to constantly evaluate the credibility of people, both in public life and in our own lives. Once upon a time, certain people and professions had unquestioned respect and deference -- pastors, police officers, public servants among them. The church itself, as an institution, had a central place in many people's lives and schedules. But the abuse of power entrusted to those who serve has eroded our automatic trust and left many people not knowing where to turn for people to admire.
Admirable people still live and work among us, but we may need to look for them in unusual places. The killing of a group of medical aid workers in Afghanistan last week highlighted the vital and unsung work they had been doing. The group, including six Americans, four Afghans, a Briton, and a German, had completed a three-week journey, primarily on foot, to deliver medical care to a remote area of Afghanistan. The New York Times reported that "the attack, the largest massacre of in years of aid workers in Afghanistan, offered chilling evidence of the increasing insecurity in the northern part of the country and added to fears that the insurgency has turned even more vicious in recent months." The team, who worked for the Christian aid group International Assistance Mission, was well aware of the dangers around them. "This expedition will require a lot of physical and mental resolve and will not be without risk," wrote British surgeon Dr. Karen Woo on her blog. Engaged to be married at the time of her death, she still felt that "the effort is worth it in order to assist those that need it most."
The mission's leader, Dr. Tom Little, had worked in Afghanistan for the last 40 years and spoke the local language. He "raised three daughters with his wife in Afghanistan, avoided kidnappings during the Russian occupation, hid in his basement for months during the Taliban rule in the 1990s, survived rocket attacks, and endured arrests for one reason -- friends and family members said: to provide eye care for indigent Afghans." Little's brother noted that, "He consciously put his life on the line for his beliefs. He had had so many close calls before. He wasn't fearless, but he was at peace with danger."
Other people who make a difference in our lives may be found closer to home. A recent study affirmed the importance of a strong kindergarten teacher in the shape of our adult lives. According to the New York Times, economists have generally not attached much importance to how teachers change our lives -- thinking that "great teachers and early childhood programs can have a big short-term effect. But the impact tends to fade. By junior high and high school, children who had excellent early schooling do little better on tests than similar children who did not -- which raises the demoralizing question of how much of a difference schools and teachers can make."
Previous research was based on test scores. The new study looked at almost 12,000 children who had participated in an experiment in the 1980s and who are now close to 30. As in previous studies, some teachers were found to be better than others. Yet, looking at the adult lives of the former students, the difference became clear. The study revealed that "the legacy of kindergarten had re-emerged. Students who had learned much more in kindergarten were more likely to go to college than students with otherwise similar backgrounds.... Perhaps most striking, they were earning more. All else equal, they were making about an extra $100 a year at age 27 for every percentile they had moved up the test-score distribution over the course of kindergarten. A student who went from average to the 60th percentile -- a typical jump for a 5-year-old with a good teacher -- could expect to make about $1,000 more a year at age 27 than a student who remained at the average."
As the article continues: "The economists [conducting the study] don't pretend to know the exact causes. But it's not hard to come up with plausible guesses. Good early education can impart skills that last a lifetime -- patience, discipline, manners, perseverance."
A starting teacher's salary -- roughly $25,000-$35,000, according to teacherportal.com. The impact on your life -- priceless.
THE WORD
The writer of Hebrews, writing to encourage perseverance and courage in our faith, also notes the impact that people can have on our lives. The writer lists the faithful who have gone before us, first by familiar names and then by evoking the great "cloud of witnesses" that surrounds us. The great names and heroes of faith stand before us, but also the unnamed saints who were martyrs for the faith. Our faith is enriched by their example and made more dynamic by their encouragement.
As David E. Gray notes in Feasting on the Word, "We do well to focus on the idea that we have realistic faith for our future because of what God has done in the past... [this text] focuses our lives on staying faithful to the God who is faithful to us." Yet, as Gray sees it, there is also an emphasis on the future, not just the past. We are not to ignore our pain or wallow in it, but to keep our eyes on the God of grace and on running the race before us. Even seasons of pain, persecution, and setbacks do not negate the work God calls us to do. [Feasting on the Word, Year C, Volume 3, p. 356]
CRAFTING THE SERMON
This text invites us to look at who we hold as examples of our faith. The examples in our heads and hearts will shape the kind of faith we have. Witnesses to rules or to narrow-mindedness will cultivate the same in us, as will witnesses to the easy path, or faith that fits nicely into the world. Picking witnesses of creativity, bold action, risk-taking, love, and energy will cultivate the same in us.
For me, the great cloud of witnesses has always been a source of solace in the rough patches of faith. The idea that those who had traveled this road before me -- and endured much more than I ever have -- are gathered around us was a source of strength. A colleague suggested recently, though, that the witnesses have more in mind than comfort. This collection of strong figures of faith, examples of courage, imagination, and perseverance, also have a calling for us, he suggested. They are not just figures from the dim recesses of faith, but living examples who call us to get off the couch and be similar witnesses in our world. The text holds an implicit call not just to look at the witnesses to our faith, but also to serve as faith-filled witnesses for others.
Paradoxically, in this context, a witness is more than an observer. These witnesses are doers, people who live their faith instead of watching from the sidelines. We are invited to be the same kind of witnesses in our own time and place -- to be not merely watchers, but people who live our faith. This summons comes even when we grow weary, and even when times are difficult. In doing so, we live in the great continuum of faith, enriched by the cloud of witnesses around us, and are thereby able to be witnesses ourselves in turn, and to touch the lives of others.
ANOTHER VIEW
Jesus, the Great Divider?
by George Reed
Luke 12:49-56
We often think of Jesus in terms of "turning the other cheek," "give to those who ask," "pray for your enemies," or even "love your enemies" -- so how is it that Jesus can talk about himself in this passage as one who has come to bring division?
For many of us who have preached from the principles of Jesus' teachings like those mentioned above and have connected them with current events that have an emotionally charged connection with our congregations, we know the answer. The gospel is divisive, and Jesus is the Great Divider. He comes and brings each of us to a point of decision: "Are we going to stand in the Reign of God or not?" The answer is a simple yes or no; either we stand with Jesus and God against the powers of evil, or we do not. We also know that, even having made the decision to stand with Jesus, we often fail and find ourselves standing in the enemy camp. That is part of our fallen nature that Jesus helps us deal with -- but he doesn't offer an equivocating answer as an option to his call.
When we apply Jesus' teachings to our lives and the real world, we quickly discover they are at odds with many of the teachings of society. Compassion, justice, and equality are fine in theory -- but when we begin to apply them, especially to those we are not overly fond of, it can cause a real problem for us. When we stand shoulder to shoulder with Jesus on the important issues of life, we often have to make decisions that others don't understand and sometimes actively oppose.
Of course, that is where the real rub is: deciding if we are truly standing with Jesus and whether the issues we have chosen are really important. The gospel is easy to understand: Love God and your neighbor with your entire being. Doing it is the hard part.
We have equated Christianity with the "good American life" for so long in this country that it is difficult for us to separate them now -- but it is very important that we do so. We need to know which of our stands we are taking because we are championing the cause of Christ, and which we are taking because we are Americans. We can do both as long as they don't collide, but when they do collide, Jesus tells us we have to step over the line and choose one side or the other. We either stand with him or we don't. This is true for all allegiances, whatever our nationality, culture, family traditions, or the like.
ILLUSTRATIONS
On June 18, 1983, Sally Ride became the first American woman in space as a crew member on the space shuttle Challenger. In elementary school she became excited about space travel as she watched the Mercury program. It was an excitement that was contagious among all her classmates, both boys and girls. She said, "When I was growing up science was cool. So we need to make science cool again."
Ride is particularly concerned about the lack of interest that many girls have in science. Middle-school girls want to be popular and going to an astronomy class is not a peer-enhancing proposition. Further, what young lady wants to aspire to be a scientist when they are often depicted as "some geeky-looking guy who looks like Einstein, [and] wears a lab coat and pocket protector"?
In order to promote the image of scientists as being normal and family-centered individuals who pursue a career of exciting adventures and discoveries, she started the Sally Ride Science Academy. The academy shares with teachers methods to present math and science in creative, innovative, and exciting ways so that those subjects can become more "real and relevant" to the students.
Sally Ride wants to move science forward by surrounding young girls with positive role models. That is the same dynamic that the author of Hebrews speaks to when he invokes the great cloud of witnesses that thunders forth Christianity.
* * *
Six years ago an Illinois physician, Dr. Jeremy Krock, started the Negro League Grave Marker Project. Many of the former baseball players in the Negro Leagues have died in poverty and been buried anonymously. These were outstanding ballplayers whose graves and names had been lost to American culture. The goal of the project is to locate where these men have been buried and place on the graves a stone marker. Then the organization will record the players' exploits both on the field and in the community. Larry Lester, a Negro League historian, said of the project: "It brings some dignity in death so that these individuals are recognized for their contributions to the game of baseball."
The author of Hebrews testifies to the importance of being inspired by those who have gone before us. Be it in sports, religion, or any other endeavor, we can only move forward if we honor and are inspired by those who have preceded us.
* * *
A missionary in China once spoke to a group of people in a town far in the interior. He was the first one to tell them the story of Jesus, and when he had talked a while, someone said: "Oh yes, we knew him; he used to live here."
The missionary was somewhat surprised, and said: "Oh no, he lived centuries ago in another land."
But the native still insisted that he had seen Jesus, saying: "Not so, he lived in the village, and we knew him."
And then the crowd led the missionary to the village cemetery and showed him the grave of a medical missionary who had lived, served, healed, and died in that community. Just one more member of the great cloud of witnesses....
* * *
Our command tells us that we are to be witnesses. We are not reporters. What is the difference? A reporter and a witness differ in their relationship to their information: A reporter has no personal relationship to the facts he is working with; a witness must have personal experience with them. The reporter knows nothing firsthand, but no witness is called to the stand unless he has personal involvement with the information. (He saw the accident; he knows the defendant or plaintiff, and so forth.) The Christian has experienced the new birth; he or she knows the Savior, and this will inevitably be an important inference in the mind of the receptor. It is a part of the message.
-- T.W. Hunt, Music in Missions: Discipling Through Music (Broadman Press, 1987), pp. 48-49
* * *
Salt crystals cannot give flavor to food unless they dissolve. If we dissolve the salt in a pot, it disappears but it does not cease to exist. Indeed, it can then give flavor to thousands of grains of rice.
-- Sundar Singh, Wisdom of the Sadhu (Plough Publishing, 2000)
So it is also with the cloud of witnesses, who are "the salt of the earth."
* * *
We like to make a distinction between our private and public lives and say, "Whatever I do in my private life is nobody else's business." But anyone trying to live a spiritual life will soon discover that the most personal is the most universal, the most hidden is the most public, and the most solitary is the most communal. What we live in the most intimate places of our beings is not just for us but for all people. That is why our inner lives are lives for others. That is why our solitude is a gift to our community, and that is why our most secret thoughts affect our common life.
Jesus says, "No one lights a lamp to put it under a tub; they put it on the lamp-stand where it shines for everyone in the house" (Matthew 5:14-15). The most inner light is a light for the world. Let's not have "double lives"; let us allow what we live in private to be known in public.
-- Henri J.M. Nouwen, Bread for the Journey (Harper Collins: New York, 1997)
* * *
In our gospel text Jesus says that he came to bring division among people. But this divisiveness would be between those who believe and those who do not. For those who live within the church, there is to be cooperation and harmony. When we allow disputes to infect our congregations, then growth and ministry will cease.
The United Methodist church recently spent several hundred thousand dollars to discover what factors contribute to making a church a living and vital congregation. Most noticeably absent from these churches was internal strife.
In outlining a vital congregation, the report determined it did not matter if the pastor of the church was a seminary graduate or not, nor did it matter how long a minister had been at a church. The report identified four key areas that created a church with a meaningful ministry: 1) small groups and programs; 2) worship services that mix traditional and contemporary styles with an emphasis on relevant sermons; 3) pastors who work hard on membership and cultivation of the laity; 4) an emphasis on effective lay leadership.
We ought to realize that if a congregation is experiencing internal turmoil it is not mirroring the message of Jesus. It is only when conflict arises from those outside the congregation who are exposed to the gospel message of social justice that it is the conflict of one that puts neighbor against neighbor.
* * *
The immune system is a network of cells that recognize and attack foreign invaders. The system asks one profound question: What is self, and what is not self? The community needs an immune response to determine what is self and not self. The community needs to ask, for instance, if a certain action continues, whether it will enhance the mission of the congregation or detract from it. Does an individual's or a group's behavior contradict or serve the congregation's purpose? Is there clarity about who is responsible for what and accountable to whom?
-- Peter Steinke, Healthy Congregations: A Systems Approach, p. 91
* * *
Jess Sullivan is a Creek Indian residing in a small town in Oklahoma. He is also a minister of the gospel, and with his wife serves several churches in the Oklahoma Indian Missionary Conference.
Upon becoming a Christian, Reverend Sullivan was immediately ostracized by members of his family and tribe who tenaciously cling to Native American religious beliefs. Reverend and Mrs. Sullivan are no longer included in tribal celebrations nor are they permitted to participate in tribal observances. A middle wall or partition has been flung down between them and members of their own larger family.
Regardless of culture, to declare for Christ and embrace his way in the presence of others who are not so inclined creates an unavoidable division -- whether it's the Christian mother who abides with an infidel father, or the husband who attempts to witness to an unbelieving wife, or the child who learns things at Sunday school that unredeemed parents regard as unintelligible.
The division of which Christ spoke is not maliciously intentional but rather the consequence of choice.
WORSHIP RESOURCES
by George Reed
Call to Worship
Leader: Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel.
People: Stir up your might and come and save us.
Leader: Let your hand, O God, be upon us.
People: Then we will never turn back from you.
Leader: Restore us and let your face shine upon us.
People: Let your face shine upon us that we may be saved.
OR
Leader: Take courage, the witnesses are all around us.
People: We give thanks for those who have been faithful.
Leader: They have lived their faith in all conditions.
People: They are like beacons calling us to faithfulness.
Leader: Will others find us to be the light they need in dark times?
People: In humility, we will strive to live so that they will.
OR
Leader: Jesus calls us to come to him.
People: We answer the call and come for healing.
Leader: Healing you will receive -- and much more.
People: What else does Jesus have for us?
Leader: He calls us to stand with him against hatred and evil.
People: We will stand against these with the Christ.
Leader: Sometimes that will mean standing against family and friends.
People: God, grant us the courage to stand with Jesus always.
Hymns and Sacred Songs
"Ye Servants of God"
found in:
UMH: 181
H82: 535
PH: 477
NCH: 305
CH: 110
LBW: 252
"Hope of the World"
found in:
UMH: 178
H82: 472
PH: 360
NCH: 46
CH: 538
LBW: 493
"Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus"
found in:
UMH: 514
H82: 561
AAHH: 476
NNBH: 409
CH: 613
LBW: 389
"Am I a Soldier of the Cross"
found in:
UMH: 511
AAHH: 482, 483, 603
NNBH: 259
"Are Ye Able"
found in:
UMH: 530
NNBH: 223
CH: 621
"Filled with the Spirit's Power"
found in:
UMH: 537
NCH: 266
LBW: 160
"Must Jesus Bear the Cross Alone"
found in:
UMH: 424
AAHH: 554
NNBH: 221
"Take Up Thy Cross"
found in:
UMH: 415
H82: 675
PH: 393
LBW: 398
"Shine, Jesus, Shine"
found in:
CCB: 81
Renew: 247
"God, You Are My God"
found in:
CCB: 60
Music Resources Key:
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982 (The Episcopal Church)
PH: Presbyterian Hymnal
AAHH: African-American Heritage Hymnal
NNBH: The New National Baptist Hymnal
NCH: The New Century Hymnal
CH: Chalice Hymnal
LBW: Lutheran Book of Worship
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day / Collect
O God who sent Jesus to announce and bring your Reign: Grant us the courage to stand with him even when it is unpopular; through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
O God who has given us the witness of countless faithful ones: Grant us the courage to so live that we too can be faithful witnesses for you; through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
As we come into your presence, O God, to offer our worship and praise, we are aware of the presence of your faithful ones all around us. Help us to clearly hear your word to us this day so that we may choose true witnesses to help us model our lives for you. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
Leader: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins, and especially the ways in which we honor people whose stance is not that of our Savior.
People: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We look with admiration on those who have amassed great wealth or power or popularity, without regarding how they have gained these things. We honor sports figures who live lifestyles that abuse their bodies and other people. When we hear of those who have given themselves in the causes of the Reign of God, we may be amazed for a short time but we feel no desire to be like them. Forgive us our double-mindedness and call us once more to stand with Jesus as bearers of your gracious reign. Amen.
Leader: Jesus opens the Reign of God to all, even those of us who have wavered in our faithfulness. Welcome into God's world. Live always as God's ambassadors.
Prayers of the People (and the Lord's Prayer)
We praise and worship you, the God who brings all creation to its completeness. Your gracious desire is always for the abundant life of your creation and your creatures.
(The following paragraph may be used if a separate prayer of confession has not been used.)
We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We look with admiration on those who have amassed great wealth or power or popularity, without regarding how they have gained these things. We honor sports figures who live lifestyles that abuse their bodies and other people. When we hear of those who have given themselves in the causes of the Reign of God, we may be amazed for a short time but we feel no desire to be like them. Forgive us our double-mindedness and call us once more to stand with Jesus as bearers of your gracious reign.
We thank you for all the signs you send us to help us live into the fullness of your reign. We thank you especially for those saints who will never be remembered in history books but who made such a difference in our lives.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for those who face great opposition to their faithfully living in your reign. We pray for those who are imprisoned or martyred for your sake. We pray for those who are mocked and ridiculed for standing up for your standards. We pray for ourselves and the courage to follow their example.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
All these things we ask in the Name of our Savior Jesus Christ, who taught us to pray together, saying:
Our Father... Amen.
(or if the Lord's Prayer is not used at this point in the service)
All this we ask in the Name of the Blessed and Holy Trinity. Amen.
Visuals
Pictures of things divided -- everything from a print of the Civil War with two armies facing each other to an apple split in two.
Children's Sermon Starter
Ask the children, "Who's the best... (basketball player, superhero, and so on)?" Then ask them, "Who's the best Christian?" (They probably won't have a ready answer -- use that. Don't give them so much time they begin to make up answers.) Tell them it is neat that some people are so good at sports and such, but what is really important is being a good follower of Jesus. Invite them to talk at home with their families about what makes a person a good Christian and how they can be good examples for others.
CHILDREN'S SERMON
My Heroes
Hebrews 11:29--12:2
Object: pictures of heroes like George Washington, John Glenn, and Michael Jordan; pictures of Christian heroes like Billy Graham, Mother Teresa, and Martin Luther King
Good morning, boys and girls! How many of you have a hero? (let them answer) Tell me the name of your hero. (let them answer) I am sure they are wonderful people. I brought along some pictures of some people that we call heroes. Tell me if you know who they are. (hold up your pictures and see if they can identify them) Some of you recognize George Washington and Michael Jordan. John Glenn was the first American to fly in space, and he did it twice. These are only a few of our heroes.
When Saint Paul wrote the book of Hebrews he mentioned his heroes: Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and all of the prophets.
I thought about some of our great Christian heroes. Have you ever heard of Billy Graham? Billy Graham preached around the world for many years and led many people to Jesus. I would call him a great hero. There was a woman who lived in India among the poorest people in the world. Her name was Mother Teresa, and she shared the love of Jesus with people who were very poor. She gave them medicine, taught them how to read, and fed them when they were hungry. She made the whole world think more about the poor. She was certainly a hero. How about Martin Luther King Jr.? He was a great preacher who lived and died to bring all of God's people together. He taught that the love of Jesus was for all people. Martin Luther King Jr. was a great Christian hero. Some of us have heard of Wenzao Han, a Chinese leader who was the first president of the Christian church in China. It isn't easy to be a Christian in China, but Wenzao Han was a superhero of the church. There are other heroes like a Japanese man named Kagawa and a Catholic pope named John the 23rd. They gave great leadership and taught that the church should be kind to the poor and to respect each other as children of God. Christians all around the world are sharing the love of Jesus. They are real heroes.
I hope that someday we will hear your name mentioned as a great Christian hero who brought Jesus Christ to all the people in the world.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
The Immediate Word, August 15, 2010, issue.
Copyright 2010 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to The Immediate Word service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons and in worship and classroom settings only. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
