Race To The Rear?
Children's sermon
Illustration
Preaching
Sermon
Worship
Object:
One of the most fundamental aspects of American culture is competition. In many arenas of life, from sports to business to social status, we are taught from a very young age that healthy competition is the key to success and a vital part of motivating ourselves to stand out from the crowd and "keep up with the Joneses" -- with the holy grail, of course, being crowned as "number one." Everyone wants to be a champion and our obsession with rankings can be seen in a wide variety of places beyond than just the political and sports pages... witness lists of the most livable cities, the best universities, or the world's richest people, to cite just a few examples. It's even considered newsworthy to report each week on the ranking of which movies did best at the box office. In this installment of The Immediate Word, however, team member Dean Feldmeyer suggests that the lectionary's Old Testament and gospel passages for this week indicate we ought to rethink the centrality in our lives of rankings and unhealthy competition. In God's world, these texts remind us, such an obsession is utterly pointless. But as Dean notes, our tendency to compare ourselves against others is so ingrained that it's even tempting for us to misread Jesus' dictum that "the first shall be last and the last shall be first" -- using it as a justification for a race to the back of the line, to be last so that we're in position to get heaven's first draft choice. While we may constantly think about how our status stacks up against others in ways both large and small, Dean points out that our texts this week emphasize not being "number one" but being part of the community of the kingdom -- in which all are students of the one great Teacher.
All Saints Day is on Tuesday, November 1, and some congregations will observe the occasion this week while others will wait for next week (the first Sunday in November). Team member Mary Austin offers some thoughts related to All Saints Day, as well as some worship resources that you may find valuable. In addition, our installment includes the customary worship resources, illustrations, and children's sermon.
Race to the Rear?
by Dean Feldmeyer
Joshua 3:7-17; Matthew 23:1-12
The commercial begins with a cityscape at night, then it moves into a montage of images, one quickly following another: a child walking, boys playing basketball, a track star, Martin Luther King Jr. giving a speech, a motorcycle jumping competition, and so on.
Over all this, a voiceover intones: "Nobody ever set their sights on second place. Who aspires to be almost remembered? There's a reason there are no giant foam fingers that say 'We're number 3.' No one wants to tell an average joke, make an underwhelming entrance, or go out with a whimper. No one ever stood in front of a mirror with a hairbrush pretending to be the tambourine player. And there are definitely more kids dressed as Batman than Robin. We all aspire."
I'd say the copywriter who wrote that commercial for the Samsung Galaxy SII pretty much has us pegged.
Being "Number One" is important to 21st-century Americans. We want to know who is best. And yet, our Lord reminds us that all of this competition, this ranking, this ordering by importance is, in his kingdom, meaningless.
THE WORLD
The World Series is being played this week as we read these words. The Texas Rangers and the St. Louis Cardinals are in fierce competition to determine the champion not just of the United States but of the whole world. One wonders how that claim can be made when the vast majority of countries are not involved in the competition. Japan, for instance, is a pretty formidable baseball country but they aren't invited. Cuba and Puerto Rico are noticeably absent. But there it is.
Quick! Who won the Super Bowl last year? Probably three out of five Americans can't answer that question but come February most of us will be gathered with friends around the nachos and the chili dogs watching to see who will be crowned the number one football team in the NFL.
Fans of college football weren't content to let coaches and sportswriters pick the number one college football team in the country, so a few years ago we were given the Bowl Championship Series. Now a variety of computer ratings are a major component of the ranking system and the teams ranked one and two get to duke it out in a special game that concludes the college football season and declares one team number one.
Hockey has the Stanley Cup. Tennis has Wimbledon. Golf has its "majors." Soccer and rugby have their World Cups. There's a World Series for Little League Baseball -- and it really does involve teams from all over the world.
Even singing and dancing have been turned into competitive sports on television. Dancing with the Stars and The Sing-Off are currently airing opposite each other on Monday nights and both pull huge audiences. Next year, the World Choir Olympics will be held in Cincinnati, Ohio.
When we need serious surgery we might be willing to accept the second best surgeon in that particular specialty, but when it's our child on the operating table we want number one. We want to know who the best surgeon in the country is. We will travel as far as we must and no amount of money, no sacrifice will stop us from getting that person if we can.
As the election year begins to unfold, we are hearing more and more about how the United States has in the past few years begun to slip from its place as the number one country in the world -- number one in education, number one in standard of living, number one in economic growth, and number one in military power. We have become used to being the leader of the free world, and we instinctively understand that it's hard to lead from second place.
Rarely do we stop to ask if it's healthy to be so obsessed with rank.
What does the constant striving for first place do to our mental and emotional health? How much stress does it cause and how does that stress affect our physical health? And does such intense and constant competition affect our relationships with our friends, our neighbors, our coworkers, and our families?
While competition may sharpen our performance in the short term, what effect does it have on us in the long term? What does God have in mind for us? Is it God's wish that we always be number one, regardless of the cost?
THE WORD
Joshua 3:7-17
The Children of Israel have finally reached the Promised Land and are ready to cross the Jordan River but there are two problems that they hadn't anticipated.
First, the Promised Land is already occupied and the people who live there are not going to be happy about moving over and making room for these newcomers. Second, it's harvest time and the Jordan River is at flood stage, as it always is at this time of year.
Joshua calms the anxieties of the people with an object lesson to prove that God is going to go not with but before them into Palestine. He has the priests carry the Ark of the Covenant into the river and as soon as their feet touch the water, it parts just as the Red Sea parted. As they left Egypt, so they will enter Canaan.
The priests, however, cannot pass through the river. They are required to stand there, holding the Ark and keeping the water at bay, while all of Israel passes through. They, the first to enter the Promised Land, will be the last to emerge from the Jordan River. And God, YHWH of Hosts, who abides in the Ark and who went before them, will also come after them.
First and last are embodied in the same God and thus rendered meaningless.
Matthew 23:1-12
Here, Jesus takes on the scribes and the Pharisees and their constant striving for status.
These men were once the good religious people of their community. They were the champions of the poor and the leaders of their churches. But all of that has been lost in their effort to be more religious than anyone else. They are all about the "should" and the "ought." They are clear about what others should do but hesitant to apply those same rules to their own lives.
They like to be called "father" and "rabbi" and sit at the head of the table when they go to the church potluck dinner. They swell with pride when people come to them with questions about vague and esoteric points of theology. They look down their nose at the regular folks who are so busy feeding their families that they don't have time to argue about how many angels can dance on the head of a pin.
They are the number one religious club in the community and everyone knows it.
However, Jesus reminds his listeners that in the kingdom of God, which is both at hand and to come, there is no head of the table, no place of honor, no seat of Moses. Those who trample others to be first will, in fact, be last. And those who have been pushed to the back of the line will find themselves at the front.
CRAFTING THE SERMON
Indicative
The greatest danger in preaching this passage from Matthew (and others like it) is that we create what a seminary professor of mine called "a race to the rear."
When we hear that the last will be first, our inclination is always to dash to the rear so we can be last... so we will be first. We will jostle each other and push and shove each other, competing to see who can be "lastest" because we know that person will be first. Being last is just another way to be first.
Of course, this perfectly illustrates the paradox that Jesus has placed before us to show us how silly and futile it all is. It isn't about first and last. In fact, these words don't even exist in God's kingdom. First and last, best and worst, winner and loser are all concepts that have lost their meaning to those who are committed to "kingdom living."
The whole idea of status is a foreign one. Rank is pointless. A hierarchy is an empty concept.
Most people live in a three-dimensional world that requires people to get in line, first to last. But the kingdom of God is a world of infinite dimensions where everyone inhabits first place simultaneously.
Imperative
The result of this lack of rank and status is that in the kingdom we have tremendous freedom. We need not strive always to be first. There is no advantage to being number one because there is no such thing. We are free to play second fiddle.
When Leonard Bernstein was asked which was the hardest seat in the orchestra to fill he immediately answered second fiddle. Everyone, he explained, wants to be first violin, the leader, the star of the orchestra. No one wants to be second chair. But, in fact, without second fiddle there is no harmony -- just endless, monotonous melody. It is the second fiddle that gives the music its richness and depth.
Several years ago I learned the truth of Bernstein's observation when I took up playing the fiddle myself. I play old time and Celtic music, mostly by ear, and I learned very quickly that first fiddle must play the melody -- and in the melody there's only one note that is correct. Playing first fiddle is hard.
Second fiddle plays the harmony. If the first fiddle is playing the correct melody, there are any number of notes that can be played to complement it with harmony. The second fiddle is often free to create, to improvise, to play from the heart. It's more fun. It's more creative. It's freer.
Only when we stop worrying about rank and class and status are we finally free to fully play second fiddle and in playing to make that sweet, rich, delicious harmony that God so loves and for which we have been created.
ANOTHER VIEW
All Saints Sunday
by Mary Austin
Revelation 7:9-17; Matthew 5:1-12; 1 John 3:1-7
Inevitably, All Saints Day is deeply meaningful to some members of the congregation and deeply puzzling to others. In most Protestant traditions, everyone who has died is called a saint. In observing All Saints Day, we honor the saints known to us and we also make a wider connection, trusting that all the names of the dead are known to God. We also honor the continuity between heaven and earth and the enduring connections with those who aren't physically present. We celebrate the gifts of the past and look to God's future when all of us will join in heaven's feast.
November 1 is All Saints Day on the church calendar and can be observed on either the last Sunday in October or the first one in November. (The Eastern church celebrates it on the Sunday after Pentecost.) Some churches celebrate in October so they're not adding to an already full service on the first Sunday of the month. Many other churches like the symbolism of celebrating communion with those who are already at the heavenly table and celebrate on the first Sunday in November.
Many churches celebrate by reading the names of those who have died in the previous year. Some churches include only members and others invite the names of anyone connected with the congregation. Some churches invite families to bring photographs or make PowerPoint presentations of pictures collected ahead of time. Some churches light a candle for each person and others ring a bell. While poignant for many, it can be alienating for those who don't know the names on the list. For people who have lost loved ones outside the congregation, or whose losses are unknown to the church, this may evoke painful feelings also.
We feel losses at different times and All Saints Day offers another chance to reflect on people who have been valued members of a congregation. Family members who attend other churches may return for the day and be supported by the congregation. It affirms the faith of the church in a life beyond this one, and reassures people of faith that we are not forgotten by God or the people who travel with us in faith.
The text from Revelation gives us a vision of God's inclusive and triumphant realm. The great multitude, more people than can be counted, comes to worship. People who have been through turmoil and been bloodied and battered now come in clean robes, the blood washed out. Hunger and thirst are over, heat and the scorching sun are no longer a threat, because the Lamb is their shelter now. God's mercy isn't limited to the famous 144,000 -- the whole multitude appears to worship.
Interestingly, this passage suggests that this great host shares in the creation of heaven's glory. They have washed their own robes -- done part of the work themselves. A sermon for this day might recall how the saints who are named today contributed to the realm of God in this community.
The words of the familiar Beatitudes sound different on a Sunday like this one. Instead of individual virtues, these are now qualities of spirit that build up the whole community. None of us can manage all of them, but as a community we have them all in our common life. Each different gift enhances the whole gathering. Echoing Paul, a sermon for today might recall how the body of Christ needs peacemakers and mercy-bringers, the meek and the hungry. Even those who grieve are blessed in the realm of God. All of those people named as blessed stand before the throne of Revelation in bright clean robes, meek and hungry and tearful no more.
First John 3 recalls us to our vocation as children of God. The future is unknown but we are children of God right now. The future grows from the present, and we can be sure that we will continue to be children of God, even in the unknowable future. Our hope for the future comes from this identity.
This Sunday -- and these texts -- point us both back and forward. We look back to remember the gift of loved ones gone and forward to the time when God's glory is revealed to us too. We look backward to time together and forward to time together. This is a Sunday for everyone, whether we know the people who died in the past year by name or not. All of us are people who share in the work of creating God's realm. All of us are welcome there, for we are all God's children, now and always.
ILLUSTRATIONS
There's a great illustration of our motivation to "race for the rear" in the sports pages currently -- i.e., what sports columnists are referring to as the "Suck for Luck" sweepstakes. Steve Politi explains:
"Turns out, Vince Lombardi was wrong. Winning isn't the only thing. In some NFL cities this season, losing matters even more. From Miami to Indianapolis, from Minnesota to St. Louis, some fans want their team to lose as many games as possible to get the No. 1 pick in the next NFL draft, which would give them an opportunity to draft Andrew Luck -- the player who is widely regarded as the most polished prospect at quarterback in years to enter the league. Or, to use the rallying cry that's becoming popular, they want their team to 'Suck for Luck.' "
In other words, a race to the back of the line... in order to get first dibs on the next superstar that can alter a team's fortunes for years to come. It's exactly this sort of incentive to teams to intentionally lose games that led the NBA some years ago to institute a weighted lottery system for determining the order of selections at the top of its draft. Yet the rewards of the race to the rear are very alluring -- @SuckForLuck has become a popular Twitter handle "imploring the Miami Dolphins or the terrible NFL team of your choice to tank for the #1 overall pick." As Politi sums it up: "It may be stupid, but it'll be one of the most-watched storylines of the 2011 season. While the teams at the top chase a Super Bowl title, ultimately the biggest winner could end up being this year's biggest loser."
Who says that we can't be just as competitive in our race to the rear as we are to be number one? Isn't this type of incentive exactly the sort of thing Jesus is trying to wean us from?
* * *
Christian psychologist M. Scott Peck, in his book People of the Lie, summarizes some traits found common in perfectionists. His words could very well apply to the Pharisees whom Jesus condemns in Matthew 23: "Utterly dedicated to preserving their self-image of perfection, they are unceasingly engaged in the effort to maintain the appearance of moral purity. They worry about this a great deal. They are acutely sensitive to social norms and what others might think of them... they intensely desire to appear good. Their 'goodness' is all on a level of pretense. It is, in effect, a lie... They cannot or will not tolerate the pain of self-reproach. The decorum with which they lead their lives is maintained as a mirror in which they can see themselves reflected righteously."
Peck is saying that the only way perfectionists can deal with their negative self-worth is to declare that others are worse than they are. And isn't that also another way our innate competitiveness asserts itself? How often do we try to shore up our self-esteem by denigrating others?
* * *
John Ambrose Wood, father of author Catherine Marshall, was a pastor who served mostly rural churches throughout his lifetime. One day he made a pastoral call on a new member in Keyser, West Virginia. The man of the house worked on the B & O Railroad, and when Pastor Wood extended his right hand upon greeting him, the worker apologized: "Can't shake hands with you, Reverend. They're too grimy."
The pastor then bent down to rub his hands in coal dust and offered his blackened hand to the worker. "How about it now?"
The pastor had captured the spirit of Jesus' words "All who exalt themselves will be humbled and all who humble themselves will be exalted." Jesus not only taught humility but he demonstrated it, most notably when he assumed the servant's task at the Last Supper and washed his disciples' dirty feet.
* * *
We learn some of our most powerful lessons in life -- both positive and negative -- from other people who serve as role models for us. This week's epistle lesson and gospel lesson serve as bookends touching on that theme.
In 1 Thessalonians, Paul fearlessly holds himself and his associates up as role models: "You know what kind of persons we proved to be among you for your sake" (2:5). In other words, "Did we not demonstrate for you the true way of Christian living?" In Matthew 23, Jesus has some harsh words for certain Pharisees who have been serving as negative role models, distracting God's people from true discipleship by their emphasis on the minutiae of obedience to the law.
Paul and Matthew speak from hard personal experience. Both of them had been trying to advance the Christian gospel but had been hindered at times by the recalcitrance of certain traditionalist elements within their religious communities. These people had heard the good news but had not fully internalized it. While they have taken on some of the outward trappings of Christian life, they continue to live as though they are enslaved to legalistic teachings.
Perhaps we ought to think about the example we set for others -- are we demonstrating the true way of Christian living or are we merely following a slavish devotion to a set of principles that we use as a cudgel to determine whether someone is being a "good Christian"?
* * *
Almost three quarters of Americans who haven't darkened the door of a church in the last six months think it is "full of hypocrites," and even more of them consider Christianity to be more about organized religion than about loving God and people -- according to a 2007 survey conducted by LifeWay Research.
Almost half of those surveyed -- 44% -- agreed that "Christians get on my nerves."
The findings echoed a previous study by the Barna Group that found the vast majority of young non-Christians view Christianity as anti-gay, judgmental, and hypocritical.
-- Adele M. Banks, "Survey: 'Unchurched' Americans Say Church Is Full of Hypocrites," Religion News Service, January 9, 2008
* * *
When Pilgrim John Winthrop, aboard the Arbella, first sighted the new world in June 1630, he declared that "We shall be as a City upon a Hill, the eyes of all people are upon us." This land that would become the United States of America was viewed as the New Jerusalem. These idealistic voyagers commissioned themselves as the keepers of biblical truth, guiding all foreign adversaries into Christendom. With all sincerity and selfless dedication, they perceived themselves as restoring the covenant God made with Abraham. It was upon this conviction that the country sallied forth for multiple generations, only to have the hill made low and barren within our idolatrous lifestyle.
The priests held aloft the ark as they stood in the parted water of the Jordan River. They too had a vision of restoring the covenant God made to Abraham. What was unknown to them at the time was how often, as the centuries passed, trust in the covenant would be discarded for idols and foreign gods.
* * *
"Our rabbis taught: The poor, the rich, the sensual come before the [heavenly] court -- They say to the poor: 'Why have you not occupied yourself with the Torah?' If he says: 'I was poor and worried about my sustenance,' they would say to him: 'Were you poorer than Hillel?' It was reported about Hillel the Elder that every day he used to work and earn one coin, half of which he would give to the guard at the House of Learning, the other half being spent for his food and for that of his family. One day he found nothing to earn and the guard at the House of Learning would not permit him to enter. He climbed up and sat upon the window, to hear the words of the living God from the mouth of Shemayah and Abtalion -- they say that day was the eve of Sabbath in the winter solstice and snow fell down upon him from heaven. When the dawn rose, Shemayah said to Abtalion: 'Brother Abtalion, on every day this house is light and today it is dark, is it perhaps a cloudy day?' They looked up and saw the figure of a man in the window. They went up and found him covered by three cubits of snow. They removed him, bathed and anointed him, and placed him opposite the fire, and they said: This man deserves that the Sabbath be profaned on his behalf."
This story circulated orally for a millennium prior to being recorded in "The Tractate Yoma" chaptered in the Talmud. The message emphasized the importance of providing youth with a religious education. As no student should ever suffer as Hillel did and certainly no child should be denied an education for lack of coin, this tale was repeated from generation to generation, maintaining the established practice of free education for all Jewish children.
Jesus understood the importance of being educated in the meaning and interpretation of the scriptures. This is why he did not discard the knowledge of the Pharisees, only their hypocritical lifestyle. This is why Jesus asserted himself by saying, "for you have one teacher, and you are all students."
Let us always keep prominent before us the importance of Christian education.
* * *
During the Babylonian exile of 587 BCE, the Hebrew people became known as the Jews and the synagogue was established. Separated from the temples of Judah, the Jews needed a gathering place for study. At first the synagogue was a house only for instruction, not worship. As a natural gathering place for believers, the synagogue eventually evolved into a place of worship.
Jesus both studied and taught in the synagogue. On all of his missionary journeys, Paul would first visit the synagogue to share the message of the Messiah. In this sacred hall Jewish children listened to and memorized the stories of their heritage.
The story of the synagogue should remain one of our inspirations to maintain an active Christian education program.
* * *
All followers of Jesus are saints in the New Testament sense of this word. We have been set apart and called to live a life of holiness and devotion to Christ. Evangelicals, with all Protestants generally, have emphasized the priesthood of all believers to show that we are all redeemed by God's grace and that none of us can claim any special favors on the basis of ordination or office. But doesn't this same theology compel us to declare "the sainthood of all believers"? We are called to live lives that reflect the character of Christ in a world that knows all too little of God's love and grace. Evangelical spirituality is "for all the saints," that is, for all who know Jesus Christ and wish to make him known to others, even if we acknowledge with Martin Luther that we are saints and sinners at the same time (simul justus et peccator) and thus ever in need of God's mercy and forgiveness.
-- Timothy George, For All the Saints: Evangelical Theology and Christian Spirituality (Westminster John Knox, 2004), p. 7
* * *
One of my favorite stories is of Saint Teresa of Avila. She's sitting in the kitchen with a roasted chicken. She has it with both hands and she's gnawing on it, just devouring this chicken. One of the nuns comes in shocked that she's doing this, behaving this way. She said, "When I eat chicken, I eat chicken; when I pray, I pray."
If you read the saints, they're pretty ordinary people. There are moments of rapture and ecstasy, but once every ten years. And even then it's a surprise to them. They didn't do anything. We've got to disabuse people of these illusions of what the Christian life is. It's a wonderful life, but it's not wonderful in the way a lot of people want it to be.
-- Eugene Peterson, interviewed in Christianity Today, March 2005
* * *
A man does not have to be an angel in order to be a saint.
-- Albert Schweitzer
* * *
The only difference between the saint and the sinner is that every saint has a past and every sinner has a future.
-- Oscar Wilde, A Woman of No Importance
WORSHIP RESOURCES
by George Reed
N.B. This Sunday could be an appropriate time to do a renewal of the baptism vows with special emphasis on our becoming dead in Christ as the only way to become alive.
Call to Worship
Leader: O give thanks to God, for God is good;
People: for God's steadfast love endures forever.
Leader: Let the redeemed of God say so,
People: those God redeemed from trouble.
Leader: For God satisfies the thirsty,
People: and the hungry God fills with good things.
OR
Leader: Come and worship the God above all gods.
People: Our God is number one, so we are number one!
Leader: Come and worship the God who becomes a slave.
People: Our God is a slave so we are slaves?
Leader: Only in sacrificial service is there true glory.
People: We are God's people. We shall strive to be like God.
Hymns and Sacred Songs
"All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name"
found in:
UMH: 436
H82: 154/155
PH: 450/451
AAHH: 292/294
NNBH: 3/5
NCH: 304
CH: 91/92
LBW: 328/329
ELW: 634
Renew: 45
"Be Thou My Vision"
found in:
UMH: 451
H82: 488
PH: 339
NCH: 451
CH: 595
ELW: 793
Renew: 151
"More Love to Thee, O Christ"
found in:
UMH: 453
PH: 359
AAHH: 575
NNBH: 214
NCH: 456
CH: 527
"Lord, Speak to Me"
found in:
UMH: 463
PH: 426
NCH: 531
ELW: 676
"Make Me a Captive, Lord"
found in:
UMH: 421
PH: 378
"Jesu, Jesu"
found in:
UMH: 432
H82: 602
PH: 367
NCH: 498
CH: 600
ELW: 708
CCB: 66
Renew: 289
"Cuando El Pobre" ("When the Poor Ones")
found in:
UMH: 434
PH: 407
CH: 662
ELW: 725
"God, Whose Love Is Reigning o'er Us"
found in:
UMH: 100
"Live in Charity"
found in:
CCB: 71
"Lord, Be Glorified"
found in:
CCB: 62
Renew: 172
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
ELW: Evangelical Lutheran Worship
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Presentation Music
Stephen Curtis Chapman has a song called "The Human Race" that applies directly to the theme of this week's main article, and so you may want to use it in some way during the service and/or sermon. The lyrics to the refrain are:
We are running in a human race,
Where nobody wants to settle for second place;
But we've got to run it at a different pace,
'Cause the first will be last and the last will be first
At the end of the human race.
Prayer for the Day / Collect
O God who is perfectly revealed in Jesus of Nazareth: Grant us to also lay aside our "glory" and become servants to your creation so that all might be enfolded in your realm; through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We have come into your presence, O God, to worship and adore you and yet you are the one we know as the lowly and humble Good Shepherd who lays down your life for your sheep. Help us to understand the true glory of being a servant so others can know the glory of your salvation. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
Leader: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially the ways in which we reject God's idea of glory in favor of our own ideas about being number one.
People: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We have looked for fame and glory, and we have reaped only shame and damnation. We have deserted our Savior, Jesus, and sought after the vain things of this world. Where he has come upon us and laid aside his glory, we have lowered ourselves in attempts to be seen as being better than we really are. We are, of all people, most ridiculous. Forgive us and renew us with the Spirit of Jesus that we may truly become your image as we empty ourselves in service to others. Amen.
Leader: Jesus came among us to offer us life instead of death. He comes in the same way today. Know God's life as you offer yourselves to death in baptism unto Christ.
Prayer for Illumination
Send your light upon us, O God, that we may truly see the difference between glory and being number one as we hear the gospel anew this day. Amen.
Prayers of the People (and the Lord's Prayer)
We offer our praise and worship to you, O God, because you are the God of glory. There is no beauty or comeliness that is not part of your being.
(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 have looked for fame and glory, and we have reaped only shame and damnation. We have deserted our Savior, Jesus, and sought after the vain things of this world. Where he has come upon us and laid aside his glory, we have lowered ourselves in attempts to be seen as being better than we really are. We are, of all people, most ridiculous. Forgive us and renew us with the Spirit of Jesus that we may truly become your image as we empty ourselves in service to others.
We give you thanks for the ways in which you share your glory with your creation. You have placed within each part of your works your own beauty. You have placed within us your own Spirit.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for one another in our needs. We pray for those who have been hurt or destroyed by our mad rush to be number one. We have left a trail of broken lives in our paths.
(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.
Children's Sermon Starter
Have a race for the children. Set up a start and finish line. Tell them that they are to go from the start to the finish line by taking very small steps. When it is over, congratulate the winner -- who is NOT the first one over the finish line. You can make it the last one or the one who took the smallest steps, or better yet (if it happens) the one who helped someone else. Then talk about how we always think it is important to be first and to win, but Jesus reminds us that is not important for us. What is important is following Jesus.
WORSHIP RESOURCES FOR ALL SAINTS SUNDAY
by Mary Austin
Call to Worship
Leader: When we remember, God remembers with us.
People: Today we remember the saints of the church, well-known and unknown, of our time and the ages before.
Leader: When we remember, our loved ones are here with us.
People: Today we remember grandparents and parents, spouses and partners, family and friends.
Leader: When we remember, we live in faith.
People: Today we remember teachers and leaders, the outspoken and the quiet, the wise and the simple.
Leader: When we remember, God is here in our midst. Let us worship God in spirit and in truth.
Opening Prayer / Collect for the Day
O God, we come to you today with gratitude for all who traveled the way of faith before us. Our memories bring praise and pain as we celebrate mothers and fathers in the faith, honor brothers and sisters who were our companions, and call to mind our teachers and examples. Our common faith is deeper for their witness and our shared life richer for their presence. In the name of the resurrection and the life, we give you thanks for the gift of loved ones and praise you that they now find their home in you. In the name of our risen Lord, Amen.
Prayer of Confession
God, giver of life,
forgive us, for we forget.
We forget that love, once given, never ends.
We forget that our grief is a sign of love,
and we try to bury it in busyness.
God, giver of hope,
forgive us, for we despair.
We forget to mix our grief with hope,
and think our tears are ours alone.
God, giver of the life to come,
forgive us, for our faith is limited.
We doubt your surpassing goodness,
and refuse to embrace what we can't see.
Forgive us, and make us your own,
now and forever, we ask. Amen.
Hymn Suggestions
"Abide with Me"
"Breathe on Me, Breath of God"
"Called as Partners in Christ's Service"
"Come, Children Join to Sing"
"Crown Him with Many Crowns"
"For All the Saints"
"Holy, Holy, Holy"
"I Love to Tell the Story"
"Lord of Light, Your Name Outshining"
"Love Divine, All Loves Excelling"
"O for a World"
"Seek Ye First"
"Song of Hope"
"The Church's One Foundation"
"We Are Your People"
"Ye Watchers and Ye Holy Ones"
Children's Sermon Starter
Bring pictures of people in your church or in your family who have died. Explain who they are and how we still remember them. Explain why we call them saints -- that being a saint is not about perfection but about God's goodness in calling us all God's children. Invite the children to reflect on people in their families who have died but whom they remember (if there are any). Be prepared for surprises and recent losses.
CHILDREN'S SERMON
Practice What You Preach
Matthew 23:1-12
Object: some peanuts in shells
Good morning, boys and girls! I want to ask you about a big word today to see if you know what it means. The word is "hyprocrisy." Can any of you tell me what it means? (let the children answer) Instead of telling you what it means, I'm going to show you.
Do you see what I have here? (Show the peanuts and let them answer.) Yes, these are peanuts. Most people like peanuts and there are times when it is nice to have peanuts to eat. For instance, most people like to eat peanuts at a ballgame. But there are some times and places where you should never eat peanuts. For instance, you should never eat peanuts in church. (As you speak, break open a peanut, drop the shell on the floor, and eat the peanut.) If you eat peanuts at church it's disrespectful, and the shells get on the floor and it bothers the people sitting around you. (At some point as you speak they are going to start telling you that you are doing what you told them not to do.) Yes, you're right. I was doing the very thing I told you not to do. That's hypocrisy: doing the thing that you tell others not to do, pretending to be something that you are not.
Jesus talked a lot about hypocrisy and warned us against it. There are a number of churches around the world this Sunday who are commemorating the Reformation, the reforming of the church that took place over 400 years ago. At that time there was a lot of hypocrisy in the church, and one of the reasons for the Reformation was to get rid of hypocrisy in the church. Do you think it's important to be honest with people and always do what you tell them it is good to do? (let them answer) Good! I certainly agree with you, so let's pick up these peanut shells and ask God to help us be the kind of people he wants us to be.
Prayer: Dear Father in heaven, we know that you want us to be honest and faithful and to act the way we teach others to act. Help us to be faithful to all of your teaching and to live the way you want us to live. Amen.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
The Immediate Word, October 30, 2011, issue.
Copyright 2011 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.
All Saints Day is on Tuesday, November 1, and some congregations will observe the occasion this week while others will wait for next week (the first Sunday in November). Team member Mary Austin offers some thoughts related to All Saints Day, as well as some worship resources that you may find valuable. In addition, our installment includes the customary worship resources, illustrations, and children's sermon.
Race to the Rear?
by Dean Feldmeyer
Joshua 3:7-17; Matthew 23:1-12
The commercial begins with a cityscape at night, then it moves into a montage of images, one quickly following another: a child walking, boys playing basketball, a track star, Martin Luther King Jr. giving a speech, a motorcycle jumping competition, and so on.
Over all this, a voiceover intones: "Nobody ever set their sights on second place. Who aspires to be almost remembered? There's a reason there are no giant foam fingers that say 'We're number 3.' No one wants to tell an average joke, make an underwhelming entrance, or go out with a whimper. No one ever stood in front of a mirror with a hairbrush pretending to be the tambourine player. And there are definitely more kids dressed as Batman than Robin. We all aspire."
I'd say the copywriter who wrote that commercial for the Samsung Galaxy SII pretty much has us pegged.
Being "Number One" is important to 21st-century Americans. We want to know who is best. And yet, our Lord reminds us that all of this competition, this ranking, this ordering by importance is, in his kingdom, meaningless.
THE WORLD
The World Series is being played this week as we read these words. The Texas Rangers and the St. Louis Cardinals are in fierce competition to determine the champion not just of the United States but of the whole world. One wonders how that claim can be made when the vast majority of countries are not involved in the competition. Japan, for instance, is a pretty formidable baseball country but they aren't invited. Cuba and Puerto Rico are noticeably absent. But there it is.
Quick! Who won the Super Bowl last year? Probably three out of five Americans can't answer that question but come February most of us will be gathered with friends around the nachos and the chili dogs watching to see who will be crowned the number one football team in the NFL.
Fans of college football weren't content to let coaches and sportswriters pick the number one college football team in the country, so a few years ago we were given the Bowl Championship Series. Now a variety of computer ratings are a major component of the ranking system and the teams ranked one and two get to duke it out in a special game that concludes the college football season and declares one team number one.
Hockey has the Stanley Cup. Tennis has Wimbledon. Golf has its "majors." Soccer and rugby have their World Cups. There's a World Series for Little League Baseball -- and it really does involve teams from all over the world.
Even singing and dancing have been turned into competitive sports on television. Dancing with the Stars and The Sing-Off are currently airing opposite each other on Monday nights and both pull huge audiences. Next year, the World Choir Olympics will be held in Cincinnati, Ohio.
When we need serious surgery we might be willing to accept the second best surgeon in that particular specialty, but when it's our child on the operating table we want number one. We want to know who the best surgeon in the country is. We will travel as far as we must and no amount of money, no sacrifice will stop us from getting that person if we can.
As the election year begins to unfold, we are hearing more and more about how the United States has in the past few years begun to slip from its place as the number one country in the world -- number one in education, number one in standard of living, number one in economic growth, and number one in military power. We have become used to being the leader of the free world, and we instinctively understand that it's hard to lead from second place.
Rarely do we stop to ask if it's healthy to be so obsessed with rank.
What does the constant striving for first place do to our mental and emotional health? How much stress does it cause and how does that stress affect our physical health? And does such intense and constant competition affect our relationships with our friends, our neighbors, our coworkers, and our families?
While competition may sharpen our performance in the short term, what effect does it have on us in the long term? What does God have in mind for us? Is it God's wish that we always be number one, regardless of the cost?
THE WORD
Joshua 3:7-17
The Children of Israel have finally reached the Promised Land and are ready to cross the Jordan River but there are two problems that they hadn't anticipated.
First, the Promised Land is already occupied and the people who live there are not going to be happy about moving over and making room for these newcomers. Second, it's harvest time and the Jordan River is at flood stage, as it always is at this time of year.
Joshua calms the anxieties of the people with an object lesson to prove that God is going to go not with but before them into Palestine. He has the priests carry the Ark of the Covenant into the river and as soon as their feet touch the water, it parts just as the Red Sea parted. As they left Egypt, so they will enter Canaan.
The priests, however, cannot pass through the river. They are required to stand there, holding the Ark and keeping the water at bay, while all of Israel passes through. They, the first to enter the Promised Land, will be the last to emerge from the Jordan River. And God, YHWH of Hosts, who abides in the Ark and who went before them, will also come after them.
First and last are embodied in the same God and thus rendered meaningless.
Matthew 23:1-12
Here, Jesus takes on the scribes and the Pharisees and their constant striving for status.
These men were once the good religious people of their community. They were the champions of the poor and the leaders of their churches. But all of that has been lost in their effort to be more religious than anyone else. They are all about the "should" and the "ought." They are clear about what others should do but hesitant to apply those same rules to their own lives.
They like to be called "father" and "rabbi" and sit at the head of the table when they go to the church potluck dinner. They swell with pride when people come to them with questions about vague and esoteric points of theology. They look down their nose at the regular folks who are so busy feeding their families that they don't have time to argue about how many angels can dance on the head of a pin.
They are the number one religious club in the community and everyone knows it.
However, Jesus reminds his listeners that in the kingdom of God, which is both at hand and to come, there is no head of the table, no place of honor, no seat of Moses. Those who trample others to be first will, in fact, be last. And those who have been pushed to the back of the line will find themselves at the front.
CRAFTING THE SERMON
Indicative
The greatest danger in preaching this passage from Matthew (and others like it) is that we create what a seminary professor of mine called "a race to the rear."
When we hear that the last will be first, our inclination is always to dash to the rear so we can be last... so we will be first. We will jostle each other and push and shove each other, competing to see who can be "lastest" because we know that person will be first. Being last is just another way to be first.
Of course, this perfectly illustrates the paradox that Jesus has placed before us to show us how silly and futile it all is. It isn't about first and last. In fact, these words don't even exist in God's kingdom. First and last, best and worst, winner and loser are all concepts that have lost their meaning to those who are committed to "kingdom living."
The whole idea of status is a foreign one. Rank is pointless. A hierarchy is an empty concept.
Most people live in a three-dimensional world that requires people to get in line, first to last. But the kingdom of God is a world of infinite dimensions where everyone inhabits first place simultaneously.
Imperative
The result of this lack of rank and status is that in the kingdom we have tremendous freedom. We need not strive always to be first. There is no advantage to being number one because there is no such thing. We are free to play second fiddle.
When Leonard Bernstein was asked which was the hardest seat in the orchestra to fill he immediately answered second fiddle. Everyone, he explained, wants to be first violin, the leader, the star of the orchestra. No one wants to be second chair. But, in fact, without second fiddle there is no harmony -- just endless, monotonous melody. It is the second fiddle that gives the music its richness and depth.
Several years ago I learned the truth of Bernstein's observation when I took up playing the fiddle myself. I play old time and Celtic music, mostly by ear, and I learned very quickly that first fiddle must play the melody -- and in the melody there's only one note that is correct. Playing first fiddle is hard.
Second fiddle plays the harmony. If the first fiddle is playing the correct melody, there are any number of notes that can be played to complement it with harmony. The second fiddle is often free to create, to improvise, to play from the heart. It's more fun. It's more creative. It's freer.
Only when we stop worrying about rank and class and status are we finally free to fully play second fiddle and in playing to make that sweet, rich, delicious harmony that God so loves and for which we have been created.
ANOTHER VIEW
All Saints Sunday
by Mary Austin
Revelation 7:9-17; Matthew 5:1-12; 1 John 3:1-7
Inevitably, All Saints Day is deeply meaningful to some members of the congregation and deeply puzzling to others. In most Protestant traditions, everyone who has died is called a saint. In observing All Saints Day, we honor the saints known to us and we also make a wider connection, trusting that all the names of the dead are known to God. We also honor the continuity between heaven and earth and the enduring connections with those who aren't physically present. We celebrate the gifts of the past and look to God's future when all of us will join in heaven's feast.
November 1 is All Saints Day on the church calendar and can be observed on either the last Sunday in October or the first one in November. (The Eastern church celebrates it on the Sunday after Pentecost.) Some churches celebrate in October so they're not adding to an already full service on the first Sunday of the month. Many other churches like the symbolism of celebrating communion with those who are already at the heavenly table and celebrate on the first Sunday in November.
Many churches celebrate by reading the names of those who have died in the previous year. Some churches include only members and others invite the names of anyone connected with the congregation. Some churches invite families to bring photographs or make PowerPoint presentations of pictures collected ahead of time. Some churches light a candle for each person and others ring a bell. While poignant for many, it can be alienating for those who don't know the names on the list. For people who have lost loved ones outside the congregation, or whose losses are unknown to the church, this may evoke painful feelings also.
We feel losses at different times and All Saints Day offers another chance to reflect on people who have been valued members of a congregation. Family members who attend other churches may return for the day and be supported by the congregation. It affirms the faith of the church in a life beyond this one, and reassures people of faith that we are not forgotten by God or the people who travel with us in faith.
The text from Revelation gives us a vision of God's inclusive and triumphant realm. The great multitude, more people than can be counted, comes to worship. People who have been through turmoil and been bloodied and battered now come in clean robes, the blood washed out. Hunger and thirst are over, heat and the scorching sun are no longer a threat, because the Lamb is their shelter now. God's mercy isn't limited to the famous 144,000 -- the whole multitude appears to worship.
Interestingly, this passage suggests that this great host shares in the creation of heaven's glory. They have washed their own robes -- done part of the work themselves. A sermon for this day might recall how the saints who are named today contributed to the realm of God in this community.
The words of the familiar Beatitudes sound different on a Sunday like this one. Instead of individual virtues, these are now qualities of spirit that build up the whole community. None of us can manage all of them, but as a community we have them all in our common life. Each different gift enhances the whole gathering. Echoing Paul, a sermon for today might recall how the body of Christ needs peacemakers and mercy-bringers, the meek and the hungry. Even those who grieve are blessed in the realm of God. All of those people named as blessed stand before the throne of Revelation in bright clean robes, meek and hungry and tearful no more.
First John 3 recalls us to our vocation as children of God. The future is unknown but we are children of God right now. The future grows from the present, and we can be sure that we will continue to be children of God, even in the unknowable future. Our hope for the future comes from this identity.
This Sunday -- and these texts -- point us both back and forward. We look back to remember the gift of loved ones gone and forward to the time when God's glory is revealed to us too. We look backward to time together and forward to time together. This is a Sunday for everyone, whether we know the people who died in the past year by name or not. All of us are people who share in the work of creating God's realm. All of us are welcome there, for we are all God's children, now and always.
ILLUSTRATIONS
There's a great illustration of our motivation to "race for the rear" in the sports pages currently -- i.e., what sports columnists are referring to as the "Suck for Luck" sweepstakes. Steve Politi explains:
"Turns out, Vince Lombardi was wrong. Winning isn't the only thing. In some NFL cities this season, losing matters even more. From Miami to Indianapolis, from Minnesota to St. Louis, some fans want their team to lose as many games as possible to get the No. 1 pick in the next NFL draft, which would give them an opportunity to draft Andrew Luck -- the player who is widely regarded as the most polished prospect at quarterback in years to enter the league. Or, to use the rallying cry that's becoming popular, they want their team to 'Suck for Luck.' "
In other words, a race to the back of the line... in order to get first dibs on the next superstar that can alter a team's fortunes for years to come. It's exactly this sort of incentive to teams to intentionally lose games that led the NBA some years ago to institute a weighted lottery system for determining the order of selections at the top of its draft. Yet the rewards of the race to the rear are very alluring -- @SuckForLuck has become a popular Twitter handle "imploring the Miami Dolphins or the terrible NFL team of your choice to tank for the #1 overall pick." As Politi sums it up: "It may be stupid, but it'll be one of the most-watched storylines of the 2011 season. While the teams at the top chase a Super Bowl title, ultimately the biggest winner could end up being this year's biggest loser."
Who says that we can't be just as competitive in our race to the rear as we are to be number one? Isn't this type of incentive exactly the sort of thing Jesus is trying to wean us from?
* * *
Christian psychologist M. Scott Peck, in his book People of the Lie, summarizes some traits found common in perfectionists. His words could very well apply to the Pharisees whom Jesus condemns in Matthew 23: "Utterly dedicated to preserving their self-image of perfection, they are unceasingly engaged in the effort to maintain the appearance of moral purity. They worry about this a great deal. They are acutely sensitive to social norms and what others might think of them... they intensely desire to appear good. Their 'goodness' is all on a level of pretense. It is, in effect, a lie... They cannot or will not tolerate the pain of self-reproach. The decorum with which they lead their lives is maintained as a mirror in which they can see themselves reflected righteously."
Peck is saying that the only way perfectionists can deal with their negative self-worth is to declare that others are worse than they are. And isn't that also another way our innate competitiveness asserts itself? How often do we try to shore up our self-esteem by denigrating others?
* * *
John Ambrose Wood, father of author Catherine Marshall, was a pastor who served mostly rural churches throughout his lifetime. One day he made a pastoral call on a new member in Keyser, West Virginia. The man of the house worked on the B & O Railroad, and when Pastor Wood extended his right hand upon greeting him, the worker apologized: "Can't shake hands with you, Reverend. They're too grimy."
The pastor then bent down to rub his hands in coal dust and offered his blackened hand to the worker. "How about it now?"
The pastor had captured the spirit of Jesus' words "All who exalt themselves will be humbled and all who humble themselves will be exalted." Jesus not only taught humility but he demonstrated it, most notably when he assumed the servant's task at the Last Supper and washed his disciples' dirty feet.
* * *
We learn some of our most powerful lessons in life -- both positive and negative -- from other people who serve as role models for us. This week's epistle lesson and gospel lesson serve as bookends touching on that theme.
In 1 Thessalonians, Paul fearlessly holds himself and his associates up as role models: "You know what kind of persons we proved to be among you for your sake" (2:5). In other words, "Did we not demonstrate for you the true way of Christian living?" In Matthew 23, Jesus has some harsh words for certain Pharisees who have been serving as negative role models, distracting God's people from true discipleship by their emphasis on the minutiae of obedience to the law.
Paul and Matthew speak from hard personal experience. Both of them had been trying to advance the Christian gospel but had been hindered at times by the recalcitrance of certain traditionalist elements within their religious communities. These people had heard the good news but had not fully internalized it. While they have taken on some of the outward trappings of Christian life, they continue to live as though they are enslaved to legalistic teachings.
Perhaps we ought to think about the example we set for others -- are we demonstrating the true way of Christian living or are we merely following a slavish devotion to a set of principles that we use as a cudgel to determine whether someone is being a "good Christian"?
* * *
Almost three quarters of Americans who haven't darkened the door of a church in the last six months think it is "full of hypocrites," and even more of them consider Christianity to be more about organized religion than about loving God and people -- according to a 2007 survey conducted by LifeWay Research.
Almost half of those surveyed -- 44% -- agreed that "Christians get on my nerves."
The findings echoed a previous study by the Barna Group that found the vast majority of young non-Christians view Christianity as anti-gay, judgmental, and hypocritical.
-- Adele M. Banks, "Survey: 'Unchurched' Americans Say Church Is Full of Hypocrites," Religion News Service, January 9, 2008
* * *
When Pilgrim John Winthrop, aboard the Arbella, first sighted the new world in June 1630, he declared that "We shall be as a City upon a Hill, the eyes of all people are upon us." This land that would become the United States of America was viewed as the New Jerusalem. These idealistic voyagers commissioned themselves as the keepers of biblical truth, guiding all foreign adversaries into Christendom. With all sincerity and selfless dedication, they perceived themselves as restoring the covenant God made with Abraham. It was upon this conviction that the country sallied forth for multiple generations, only to have the hill made low and barren within our idolatrous lifestyle.
The priests held aloft the ark as they stood in the parted water of the Jordan River. They too had a vision of restoring the covenant God made to Abraham. What was unknown to them at the time was how often, as the centuries passed, trust in the covenant would be discarded for idols and foreign gods.
* * *
"Our rabbis taught: The poor, the rich, the sensual come before the [heavenly] court -- They say to the poor: 'Why have you not occupied yourself with the Torah?' If he says: 'I was poor and worried about my sustenance,' they would say to him: 'Were you poorer than Hillel?' It was reported about Hillel the Elder that every day he used to work and earn one coin, half of which he would give to the guard at the House of Learning, the other half being spent for his food and for that of his family. One day he found nothing to earn and the guard at the House of Learning would not permit him to enter. He climbed up and sat upon the window, to hear the words of the living God from the mouth of Shemayah and Abtalion -- they say that day was the eve of Sabbath in the winter solstice and snow fell down upon him from heaven. When the dawn rose, Shemayah said to Abtalion: 'Brother Abtalion, on every day this house is light and today it is dark, is it perhaps a cloudy day?' They looked up and saw the figure of a man in the window. They went up and found him covered by three cubits of snow. They removed him, bathed and anointed him, and placed him opposite the fire, and they said: This man deserves that the Sabbath be profaned on his behalf."
This story circulated orally for a millennium prior to being recorded in "The Tractate Yoma" chaptered in the Talmud. The message emphasized the importance of providing youth with a religious education. As no student should ever suffer as Hillel did and certainly no child should be denied an education for lack of coin, this tale was repeated from generation to generation, maintaining the established practice of free education for all Jewish children.
Jesus understood the importance of being educated in the meaning and interpretation of the scriptures. This is why he did not discard the knowledge of the Pharisees, only their hypocritical lifestyle. This is why Jesus asserted himself by saying, "for you have one teacher, and you are all students."
Let us always keep prominent before us the importance of Christian education.
* * *
During the Babylonian exile of 587 BCE, the Hebrew people became known as the Jews and the synagogue was established. Separated from the temples of Judah, the Jews needed a gathering place for study. At first the synagogue was a house only for instruction, not worship. As a natural gathering place for believers, the synagogue eventually evolved into a place of worship.
Jesus both studied and taught in the synagogue. On all of his missionary journeys, Paul would first visit the synagogue to share the message of the Messiah. In this sacred hall Jewish children listened to and memorized the stories of their heritage.
The story of the synagogue should remain one of our inspirations to maintain an active Christian education program.
* * *
All followers of Jesus are saints in the New Testament sense of this word. We have been set apart and called to live a life of holiness and devotion to Christ. Evangelicals, with all Protestants generally, have emphasized the priesthood of all believers to show that we are all redeemed by God's grace and that none of us can claim any special favors on the basis of ordination or office. But doesn't this same theology compel us to declare "the sainthood of all believers"? We are called to live lives that reflect the character of Christ in a world that knows all too little of God's love and grace. Evangelical spirituality is "for all the saints," that is, for all who know Jesus Christ and wish to make him known to others, even if we acknowledge with Martin Luther that we are saints and sinners at the same time (simul justus et peccator) and thus ever in need of God's mercy and forgiveness.
-- Timothy George, For All the Saints: Evangelical Theology and Christian Spirituality (Westminster John Knox, 2004), p. 7
* * *
One of my favorite stories is of Saint Teresa of Avila. She's sitting in the kitchen with a roasted chicken. She has it with both hands and she's gnawing on it, just devouring this chicken. One of the nuns comes in shocked that she's doing this, behaving this way. She said, "When I eat chicken, I eat chicken; when I pray, I pray."
If you read the saints, they're pretty ordinary people. There are moments of rapture and ecstasy, but once every ten years. And even then it's a surprise to them. They didn't do anything. We've got to disabuse people of these illusions of what the Christian life is. It's a wonderful life, but it's not wonderful in the way a lot of people want it to be.
-- Eugene Peterson, interviewed in Christianity Today, March 2005
* * *
A man does not have to be an angel in order to be a saint.
-- Albert Schweitzer
* * *
The only difference between the saint and the sinner is that every saint has a past and every sinner has a future.
-- Oscar Wilde, A Woman of No Importance
WORSHIP RESOURCES
by George Reed
N.B. This Sunday could be an appropriate time to do a renewal of the baptism vows with special emphasis on our becoming dead in Christ as the only way to become alive.
Call to Worship
Leader: O give thanks to God, for God is good;
People: for God's steadfast love endures forever.
Leader: Let the redeemed of God say so,
People: those God redeemed from trouble.
Leader: For God satisfies the thirsty,
People: and the hungry God fills with good things.
OR
Leader: Come and worship the God above all gods.
People: Our God is number one, so we are number one!
Leader: Come and worship the God who becomes a slave.
People: Our God is a slave so we are slaves?
Leader: Only in sacrificial service is there true glory.
People: We are God's people. We shall strive to be like God.
Hymns and Sacred Songs
"All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name"
found in:
UMH: 436
H82: 154/155
PH: 450/451
AAHH: 292/294
NNBH: 3/5
NCH: 304
CH: 91/92
LBW: 328/329
ELW: 634
Renew: 45
"Be Thou My Vision"
found in:
UMH: 451
H82: 488
PH: 339
NCH: 451
CH: 595
ELW: 793
Renew: 151
"More Love to Thee, O Christ"
found in:
UMH: 453
PH: 359
AAHH: 575
NNBH: 214
NCH: 456
CH: 527
"Lord, Speak to Me"
found in:
UMH: 463
PH: 426
NCH: 531
ELW: 676
"Make Me a Captive, Lord"
found in:
UMH: 421
PH: 378
"Jesu, Jesu"
found in:
UMH: 432
H82: 602
PH: 367
NCH: 498
CH: 600
ELW: 708
CCB: 66
Renew: 289
"Cuando El Pobre" ("When the Poor Ones")
found in:
UMH: 434
PH: 407
CH: 662
ELW: 725
"God, Whose Love Is Reigning o'er Us"
found in:
UMH: 100
"Live in Charity"
found in:
CCB: 71
"Lord, Be Glorified"
found in:
CCB: 62
Renew: 172
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
ELW: Evangelical Lutheran Worship
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Presentation Music
Stephen Curtis Chapman has a song called "The Human Race" that applies directly to the theme of this week's main article, and so you may want to use it in some way during the service and/or sermon. The lyrics to the refrain are:
We are running in a human race,
Where nobody wants to settle for second place;
But we've got to run it at a different pace,
'Cause the first will be last and the last will be first
At the end of the human race.
Prayer for the Day / Collect
O God who is perfectly revealed in Jesus of Nazareth: Grant us to also lay aside our "glory" and become servants to your creation so that all might be enfolded in your realm; through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We have come into your presence, O God, to worship and adore you and yet you are the one we know as the lowly and humble Good Shepherd who lays down your life for your sheep. Help us to understand the true glory of being a servant so others can know the glory of your salvation. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
Leader: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially the ways in which we reject God's idea of glory in favor of our own ideas about being number one.
People: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We have looked for fame and glory, and we have reaped only shame and damnation. We have deserted our Savior, Jesus, and sought after the vain things of this world. Where he has come upon us and laid aside his glory, we have lowered ourselves in attempts to be seen as being better than we really are. We are, of all people, most ridiculous. Forgive us and renew us with the Spirit of Jesus that we may truly become your image as we empty ourselves in service to others. Amen.
Leader: Jesus came among us to offer us life instead of death. He comes in the same way today. Know God's life as you offer yourselves to death in baptism unto Christ.
Prayer for Illumination
Send your light upon us, O God, that we may truly see the difference between glory and being number one as we hear the gospel anew this day. Amen.
Prayers of the People (and the Lord's Prayer)
We offer our praise and worship to you, O God, because you are the God of glory. There is no beauty or comeliness that is not part of your being.
(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 have looked for fame and glory, and we have reaped only shame and damnation. We have deserted our Savior, Jesus, and sought after the vain things of this world. Where he has come upon us and laid aside his glory, we have lowered ourselves in attempts to be seen as being better than we really are. We are, of all people, most ridiculous. Forgive us and renew us with the Spirit of Jesus that we may truly become your image as we empty ourselves in service to others.
We give you thanks for the ways in which you share your glory with your creation. You have placed within each part of your works your own beauty. You have placed within us your own Spirit.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for one another in our needs. We pray for those who have been hurt or destroyed by our mad rush to be number one. We have left a trail of broken lives in our paths.
(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.
Children's Sermon Starter
Have a race for the children. Set up a start and finish line. Tell them that they are to go from the start to the finish line by taking very small steps. When it is over, congratulate the winner -- who is NOT the first one over the finish line. You can make it the last one or the one who took the smallest steps, or better yet (if it happens) the one who helped someone else. Then talk about how we always think it is important to be first and to win, but Jesus reminds us that is not important for us. What is important is following Jesus.
WORSHIP RESOURCES FOR ALL SAINTS SUNDAY
by Mary Austin
Call to Worship
Leader: When we remember, God remembers with us.
People: Today we remember the saints of the church, well-known and unknown, of our time and the ages before.
Leader: When we remember, our loved ones are here with us.
People: Today we remember grandparents and parents, spouses and partners, family and friends.
Leader: When we remember, we live in faith.
People: Today we remember teachers and leaders, the outspoken and the quiet, the wise and the simple.
Leader: When we remember, God is here in our midst. Let us worship God in spirit and in truth.
Opening Prayer / Collect for the Day
O God, we come to you today with gratitude for all who traveled the way of faith before us. Our memories bring praise and pain as we celebrate mothers and fathers in the faith, honor brothers and sisters who were our companions, and call to mind our teachers and examples. Our common faith is deeper for their witness and our shared life richer for their presence. In the name of the resurrection and the life, we give you thanks for the gift of loved ones and praise you that they now find their home in you. In the name of our risen Lord, Amen.
Prayer of Confession
God, giver of life,
forgive us, for we forget.
We forget that love, once given, never ends.
We forget that our grief is a sign of love,
and we try to bury it in busyness.
God, giver of hope,
forgive us, for we despair.
We forget to mix our grief with hope,
and think our tears are ours alone.
God, giver of the life to come,
forgive us, for our faith is limited.
We doubt your surpassing goodness,
and refuse to embrace what we can't see.
Forgive us, and make us your own,
now and forever, we ask. Amen.
Hymn Suggestions
"Abide with Me"
"Breathe on Me, Breath of God"
"Called as Partners in Christ's Service"
"Come, Children Join to Sing"
"Crown Him with Many Crowns"
"For All the Saints"
"Holy, Holy, Holy"
"I Love to Tell the Story"
"Lord of Light, Your Name Outshining"
"Love Divine, All Loves Excelling"
"O for a World"
"Seek Ye First"
"Song of Hope"
"The Church's One Foundation"
"We Are Your People"
"Ye Watchers and Ye Holy Ones"
Children's Sermon Starter
Bring pictures of people in your church or in your family who have died. Explain who they are and how we still remember them. Explain why we call them saints -- that being a saint is not about perfection but about God's goodness in calling us all God's children. Invite the children to reflect on people in their families who have died but whom they remember (if there are any). Be prepared for surprises and recent losses.
CHILDREN'S SERMON
Practice What You Preach
Matthew 23:1-12
Object: some peanuts in shells
Good morning, boys and girls! I want to ask you about a big word today to see if you know what it means. The word is "hyprocrisy." Can any of you tell me what it means? (let the children answer) Instead of telling you what it means, I'm going to show you.
Do you see what I have here? (Show the peanuts and let them answer.) Yes, these are peanuts. Most people like peanuts and there are times when it is nice to have peanuts to eat. For instance, most people like to eat peanuts at a ballgame. But there are some times and places where you should never eat peanuts. For instance, you should never eat peanuts in church. (As you speak, break open a peanut, drop the shell on the floor, and eat the peanut.) If you eat peanuts at church it's disrespectful, and the shells get on the floor and it bothers the people sitting around you. (At some point as you speak they are going to start telling you that you are doing what you told them not to do.) Yes, you're right. I was doing the very thing I told you not to do. That's hypocrisy: doing the thing that you tell others not to do, pretending to be something that you are not.
Jesus talked a lot about hypocrisy and warned us against it. There are a number of churches around the world this Sunday who are commemorating the Reformation, the reforming of the church that took place over 400 years ago. At that time there was a lot of hypocrisy in the church, and one of the reasons for the Reformation was to get rid of hypocrisy in the church. Do you think it's important to be honest with people and always do what you tell them it is good to do? (let them answer) Good! I certainly agree with you, so let's pick up these peanut shells and ask God to help us be the kind of people he wants us to be.
Prayer: Dear Father in heaven, we know that you want us to be honest and faithful and to act the way we teach others to act. Help us to be faithful to all of your teaching and to live the way you want us to live. Amen.
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The Immediate Word, October 30, 2011, issue.
Copyright 2011 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.
