On the Way to Gaza
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For April 28, 2024:
On The Way To Gaza
by Chris Keating
Acts 8:26-40
Luke tells us that shortly before Jesus ascends into heaven, he makes it clear that the mission of the church will expand like ripples on the Sea of Galilee. In Acts 1:8, Jesus stands among the apostles to give them his final instructions. He makes it clear that their mission is going to involve crossing all sorts of boundaries and borders, similar to the pattern he set during his own ministry.
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you,” Jesus tells them. “And you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Translation: this church is meant for walking and you better grab your hiking boots now.
Pretty soon, the apostles find themselves in Samaria, which might not have been their first choice. But when the Spirit says move, you move, which is why after he wraps up things in Samaria, Philip is back on the road. This time, the Spirit is sending him out on a dusty wilderness road that leads to Gaza.
The church is going places, but only as it crosses boundaries and navigates borders. It’s going to lead to a crisis — something all too familiar to Americans. Out on that wilderness road to Gaza, Philip falls into his own border crisis as he encounters an Ethiopian eunuch.
The story evokes reminders of contemporary conflicts surrounding borders and immigrants, as well as boundaries regarding sexuality, gender, power, and geography. Out there on the road to Gaza, Philip is confronted with change.
Likewise, this year more than 8 in 10 Americans see illegal immigration as either a very serious or somewhat serious political issue. Meanwhile, religious groups continue to be fractured over acceptance and inclusion of LGBTQ persons. In some ways, it feels as though the American church may be facing its own “Gaza road” moment.
In the end, the eunuch wonders, “What’s to prevent me from being baptized?” It’s not a bad question to ask ourselves. Perhaps he has discovered what it means to be chased by God’s grace.
In the News
After crisscrossing the United States for the past five months promoting a book, writer David Brooks notes that in his opinion, the prevailing mood in the country when it comes to politics is exhaustion.
“I’ve probably been to 35 or 40 states,” Brooks said, “And I would say the predomination emotion I have heard when I ask people about politics during my travels is exhaustion — a sense of fatigue, a sense of discouragement, a sense of passivity, and especially among Democrats, a pessimism about the election.”
In Brooks’ opinion, much of this exhaustion has been harvested from the rapid growth of global populism. This sort of “us versus them” mentality has settled into America’s core self, and has emerged from the widespread class conflict that has embroiled much of the world. In 2019, more than two billion persons lived under governments governed by populist leaders — an increase from 120 million in 2002. “All these different forms of populism,” wrote Brooks, “are all based on zero sum thinking.”
In other words: If you succeed, then I will decline. It’s ‘us’ versus ‘them.’
“Us-versus-them” thinking distorts our conversations on any number of issues. A feeling that “they” (immigrants) create more crime leads “us” to shut down the border. (Even though most studies show that an increase in immigration does not lead to more crime.) “Us-versus-them” leads to the unscientific conclusion that students are safer in school if we force trans students to use the bathrooms corresponding to the gender assigned at birth. Yet that is simply not the case.
Nex Benedict, a 16-year-old from Owasso, Oklahoma, died in February following a brutal assault in a school restroom. Benedict was a trans student who was born female. They had been the object of months of bullying in a girl’s restroom which began after Oklahoma passed a bathroom bill last year.
Even Republican Speaker of the House Mike Johnson has become targeted by his own party for piecing together a bipartisan coalition to pass the $95 billion foreign aid bill last weekend. Apparently working with “them” (Democrats) is perceived as an offense against “us” (the slender GOP majority).
“Us” thinking happens in churches as we focus on ministries that generally benefit members who are currently attending, rather than developing a more missionally-focused outreach.
It is also the sort of impulse that harbors division on the biggest issues of this election year such as immigration, reproductive rights, taxation, healthcare, and the wars in Ukraine and Gaza. As the election issues come into greater focus, the boundaries between “red” and “blue” America grow even more sharp.
The struggle is to see how a zero-sum mindset leads away from the sort of mutuality Brooks says is a “better mindset” for life. “Life is competition, creativity, innovation, productivity, and sort of a measured sort of competition to add to each other’s benefit,” said Brooks. “And in many ways, our politics is a struggle to embrace this liberating idea against the darker angels of our nature, which want to really undermine it with us/them thinking.”
An angel sent Philip chasing down the Gaza Road. Rather than allowing himself to fall prey to faulty “us-versus-them” thinking, however, Philip began to see the breadth of God’s grace. It was a disruptive, unexpected encounter that led to an even more unexpected and disruptive request.
In the Scriptures
Acts is jammed packed with surprising and dramatic stories. Of course, as Matthew Skinner remarks, perhaps this is not surprising since the “overall story is about a man raised from the dead.” The invitation offered by Luke is to join the apostles on this wild and crazy ride that leads them from Jerusalem to Judea, across Samaria, and into the “ends of the earth” just as Jesus ordered in Acts 1:8.
Allowing Philip’s encounter with the Ethiopian to be set in the greater context of Luke’s sequel is vital. Stephen’s martyrdom and Saul’s increased persecution of the church have scattered the apostles across the Judean countryside (8:1) and on into Samaria. Saul’s rage rushes through Jerusalem, “entering house after house; dragging off both men and women” into prison (8:3), making a retreat from Jerusalem a wise decision.
Philip lands in Samaria, where he is greeted by crowds who are astonished by his proclamation and miraculous acts. His preaching is a moment of great joy in Samaria, surpassing the sideshow antics of a magician named Simon. It’s clear that the boundaries and borders between Jews and Samaritans are being stretched by news of Jesus’ resurrection, no doubt prompting the home office to send a delegation to see what is happening.
It is interesting to note how Luke portrays Simon the Magician in comparison to the Ethiopian in verse 26-40. In contrast to the Ethiopian’s humility in receiving Philip, Simon the Magician wonders if the apostles will give him the Holy Spirit in exchange for money. He is the practitioner of ersatz faith, a show off entertainer who has earned his living by enthralling audiences with his “power.” In contrast, the eunuch carries some diplomatic prestige, and perhaps even some measure of power. Yet his condition renders him an anomaly — certainly excluded from admission into the temple rituals or from full acceptance in Israel’s community.
There’s no dodging the way God’s grace works against the grain of exclusion in this passage. We may try to euphemistically describe the Ethiopian as “an official,” indeed a person of great rank. But that is just part of the story. Luke introduces him by a variety of identities. He is a man, a foreigner, a eunuch, and a court official. Luke sets the man as the quintessential “other,” emphasizing his place in the story of Acts as a dark-skinned man who comes from the “ends of the earth.” (See “Ethiopian Eunuch from a Queer Perspective” by Sean D. Burke.) We’re left with few complete answers about the Ethiopian’s identity — but perhaps that is the point Luke is conveying.
The questions, says Sean Burke, arise quickly. Is he a drag performer? A man performing as a eunuch? Is he powerful but performing as an enslaved individual? Is he male or female, or a sort of hybrid? Burke concludes, “The Ethiopian eunuch’s performance reveals that sex, gender, and sexuality (along with other identities) are unstable, contingent social constructions rather than stable, natural essences, thus undermining their use as a basis for exclusion.”
Philip comes to a similar, albeit far less technical conclusion. The Spirit has led him to encounter the Ethiopian as one seeking to understand the ways of God. To everyone’s surprise, the Ethiopian is reading from Isaiah as Philip runs up to his chariot. The point here is that the Ethiopian is doing more than light reading. He’s not just thumbing through the James Patterson novel he picked up at the airport. He is, to everyone’s surprise, engaging with scripture.
Clearly, this official is an unlikely church member. His location on that road mimics the other boundary crossing aspects of his personhood. He is a “them,” and clearly not an “us,” yet unlike the magician, is willing to humbly engage in a faith conversation. In this position of vulnerability, he spots another anomaly — water in the desert. Amazing! The question becomes: how will Philip answer his request to be baptized?
In the Sermon
God has scattered the apostles, removing them from the comfortable environs of Jerusalem. Now the church must wrestle with what it means to carry the good news into the world as Jesus has instructed. The good news of the resurrection has brought healing to those whose bodies carry marks of pain and illness, and hope to those who have been excluded. The good news is reworking the boundaries and borders that had long been accepted and considered wise.
So, preacher, what do we do with the Ethiopian’s request. What is to prevent the eunuch from being baptized? He was foreigner, an Ethiopian, and a eunuch. We might say an immigrant, an African, a queer man. Or perhaps he is a college student, tattooed and pierced, nonbinary. What is to prevent them from being baptized?
Rather than argue denominational policy, a sermon could arise from the details Luke has provided. Jesus has indicated that the ever-expanding ripples of the Gospel shall lead from Jerusalem into the world. I believe it was Joy Moore who said the movement is from our home, to our neighbors, to our enemies, to the entire world. This is a challenge for any congregation to confront. Thanks be to God we are not the first to be called to discern who should receive baptism.
A retired pastor who is well into his 90s once told me about a time when he was asked to officiate at a marriage between two persons of the same gender. This happened decades before such weddings were sanctioned by either state or church. The marriage created a bit of a stir, prompting a phone call from a denominational official. The official told my friend, “You’re skating on thin ice here.” My friend responded, “Perhaps that is true. You must do what the denominational rules tell you, and I need to do what the Spirit is telling me. Frankly, I like my odds better!”
The sermon could explore the way Philip responds to the nudge of the Spirit in his life, prompting the church to consider the boundaries and borders that surround its ministries today. It could also provide for reflection on the gift of baptism, and what it means for the church to baptize those who profess faith in Jesus Christ. Finally, in a world filled with division and riddled by “us and them” thinking, it reminds us of the power of the good news to bring unity even in our diversity.
Let the Ethiopian’s question lead you out to your own road to Gaza this week. Consider the people you may meet. What’s to prevent them from being baptized?
* * * * *
SECOND THOUGHTS
Abiding
by Katy Stenta
John 15:1-8
Jesus promises a deep abiding if we abide with him. In a world where possession is nine-tenths of the law, the idea of abiding holds a deep attraction. Dwelling, and claiming where you dwell, makes sense. The idea of property and how that plays out can have positive and negative ramifications. A movement happened during Covid where multiple moms moved into abandoned properties together, fixed them up, and then laid claim to them. The movement started in Oakland, Ca where the housing crises is visible to all. The movement is called “Moms 4 Housing.” However, sometimes houses can be taken without a person’s knowledge. In this story a Spanish speaking family almost lost their house through a loophole in the law.
The idea that one can dwell, continue, stay in a way that is not just being stubborn but also meaningful, is the crux of the relationship. I picture this text being given from Jesus not as a sermon, but as a loving pastoral conversation — changing the entire tone of the word. Digging deep into its definition — the context of how one stays in the world is that the continual saying of the word — the depth of the abiding is what makes it meaningful.
Abiding comes from knowing one another and existing in the community. Jesus says that because we know him and his word, the abiding has begun. The pruning that needed to happen has already started. When we live in community with one another — then we will live in true community with one another, loving in community, staying, abiding, being with one another. Understanding the culture that is present and belonging.
The deep roots of belonging are clearly a part of abiding in an ecosystem of dwelling. On the heels of Psalm 23, where we are invited to dwell in the house of the Lord forever, the need to grow together with Christ and prune in a more relational way seems to speak to the intricacies of dwelling and belonging. The idea of continuing in a space or place in a way that is not only a sprawl but instead becoming fruitful is to be in deep relationship with one another and Christ.
ILLUSTRATIONS
From team member Mary Austin:
Acts 8:26-40
Modern Day Eunuch
The current version of the eunuch might be our unhoused neighbors, who live outside of our norms and are overlooked by many of us.
Sharon Salzberg recalls walking with a friend when they were approached by “a man who had clearly been living on the streets. My friend was newly sober and was concerned the man might use the money to buy some booze. She said, “I won’t give you money, but let’s go into this deli and you can choose whatever you want to eat. I’ll pay for it.” The three of us entered, and I watched the man go through stages of disbelief, intimidation, dawning acceptance, and finally delight. He kept checking, “Really anything I want? Anything? I can choose extra cheese?”
I was once again struck by the toxic humiliation and powerlessness society often pairs with poverty, binding them together and sealing them tight: “If you can’t afford much, you’re pretty worthless. You don’t look tight, nicely prosperous, or predictable.” I thought a lot about choice, [and] about belonging…”
Like Philip, “The man in the deli could not have looked more elated. Having so little choice in his life, he seemed to savor the novelty of being treated with respect, as an individual with his own needs and desires. I learned a lot watching this powerful exchange: a moment of paying attention to someone can often switch on a glimmer of self-worth in another who seems completely bereft.” (from Real Change)
* * *
Acts 8:26-40
Church for Outsiders
Jessica Grose, who examines religion for the New York Times, writes about people who feel outside what’s expected in churches. She observes, “As the authors of The Great Dechurching: Who’s Leaving, Why Are They Going and What Will It Take to Bring Them Back? all of whom are pastors, comment that “America is largely built for a specific type of person. If you belong to a nuclear family, graduate from college, and have children after marriage, America’s institutions tend to work better for you. If you get off that track (or never started on it), the US is a more difficult place in which to thrive.” They go on to say that church culture can feel unwelcoming and even shaming to people who are struggling financially or have family structures outside of the model they describe.
Grose surveyed readers about why they stopped going to church and says, “Many readers who replied to my query mentioned leaving churches that rejected them during their divorces. Others talked about being constantly hit up for money they couldn’t afford to donate.”
Grose shares, “[Author] Burge told me a story about his church that illustrated organized religion at its best. He described a section of the service where they asked for “prayers of the people,” where members of the congregation would describe a tough situation and ask for prayers. A young man, probably in his early 20s, with a baby, said he had just lost his job and wouldn’t make rent that month, and asked if the congregation would pray for him. Burge said an older man in the congregation went up to the young man after the service and said, “Son, if you need a job, you can come work for me tomorrow.” While that might sound like a scene from a Frank Capra movie, church really does wind up being one of the few places that people from different walks of life can interact with and help one another.”
We can learn from Philip about being open to people outside our typical path, and making them welcome in God’s name.
* * *
1 John 4:7-21
Another Kind of Love
“God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them,” the epistle encourages. Author Elizabeth Gilbert notes that we have a distressing tendency not to see ourselves as part of God’s creation, and to be more unloving to ourselves than we would be to anyone else. She says, “My best tool against my distorted habit of self-hatred is to write myself daily letters from love. I have done this for nearly twenty-five years. This practice has carried me through a quarter of a century of challenges — through two marriages and two divorces, through losing the love of my life to cancer, to facing my own addictions and shortcomings. I have certainly had plenty of opportunities to pick up burdens of despair and shame. Through it all, I have managed to find (if only I listen openly and carefully enough) a compassionate voice within that I can tap into, when I need to hear words of love, compassion, and reassurance.”
She doesn’t call the source of this love God, although she might. Gilbert adds, “I believe there is a voice of love that is constantly available to all of us — and that it dwells within. I believe that love is our default setting. I believe that simple affection and a stance of unguarded self-friendliness is the natural state of a human being toward herself: Why would it be otherwise? We are the one person we will spend our entire lives with! Why would we be wired to hate the one we are always with, the one we are?”
This love flows in our lives as a gift from God, like all the other kinds of love.
* * *
John 15:1-8
Shrinking Vines
Jesus offers us an image of abiding together, vines connected to each other, and to God as our source of life. We’re doing that less and less in our current society.
In her book about friendship, author Dr. Marisa Franco notes that we are less connected and more lonely than ever. “A 2013 analysis of 177,653 participants across 277 studies found that friendship networks have been shrinking for the past thirty-five years. Someone living in the 2000s has four fewer friends, on average, than someone living in the early 1980s. Another analysis found that four times as many people have no friends in 2021, compared to 1990. Circumstances are more dire for men, with five times as many men reporting no friends in 2021, compared to 1990.” (from Platonic: How the Science of Attachment Can Help You Make — and Keep — Friends)
* * *
1 John 4:7-21, John 15:1-8
Abide in Love, Or Else
We need every loving interaction we can have, according to business guru Bob Sutton, because the impact of negative interactions is much stronger than positive ones. He urges, “Bad apples do so much damage, and more broadly destructive emotions and incompetence undermine performance and well-being so much, that the first order of business for any boss is to eliminate the negative rather than accentuate the positive.” As we’re connected with each other in networks, he says, “while bringing and breeding great people, and encouraging civility, competence, effort, and other kinds of goodness is an important part of the job, such efforts will be undermined if you aren’t constantly vigilant about eliminating the negative.”
The way we abide with each other matters, especially when it’s negative. “Close relationships are more deeply and conclusively affected by destructive actions than by constructive ones, by negative communications than positive ones, and by conflict than harmony. Additionally, these effects extend to marital satisfaction and even to the relationship’s survival (vs. breakup or divorce). Even outside of close relationships, unfriendly or conflictual interactions are seen as stronger and have bigger effects than friendly, harmonious ones. Bad moods and negative emotions have stronger effects than good ones on cognitive processing.”
Another argument for living together as lovingly as we can!
* * *
1 John 4:7-21, John 15:1-8
Knowing Our Connections
One way to be more loving and to abide with each other as connected parts of the same whole, is to look into each other’s lives.
Sharon Salzberg tells the story of a video that takes us toward each other. She says, “A very effective video from the Cleveland Clinic, created for both patients and practitioners, is called Empathy: The Human Connection to Patient Care. It begins with a quotation from Henry David Thoreau: “Could a greater miracle take place than for us to look through each other’s eyes for an instant?” Then without any dialogue the camera follows people moving through a hospital, with text appearing that simply portrays their situation: Fears he’s waited too long. Tumor was benign. Tumor was malignant. They saw … something … on her mammogram. He’s worried about how he is going to pay for this. Too shocked to comprehend treatment options. Wife’s surgery went well.”
Watching the video, “People come together on an elevator, pass each other on adjacent up and down escalators, and sit together in waiting rooms. The video closes with this question: If you could stand in someone else’s shoes, hear what they hear, see what they see, feel what they feel, would you treat them differently? That hits home. The hospital setting reveals humanity in so many of our stages of delight and grief and worry and love. So does every street corner, and airport, and classroom, and home.”
We could do the same as we walk down the street, or pass our neighbors and colleagues. (from Real Change: Mindfulness to Heal Ourselves and the World)
* * *
John 15:1-8
Being Part of the Vine and Branches
The Rev. Dr. Yolanda Pierce says she goes to church even when she doesn’t want to because she needs to sustain the connection of vine and branches. She explains, “I often attend church when I would rather be somewhere else. There are Sundays when the weather seems too perfect to be inside, when I’d rather sit outdoors at my local pancake house and read the paper. There are Sundays when my mind is racing or there are too many things on my to-do list. And there are Sundays when I’m just tired of church, of the hypocrisy of religion. I confess that there are plenty of Sundays when my doubts outweigh my beliefs. But I show up.
Sometimes I attend church out of duty and obligation. As a minister and a dean of a theological institution, I’m expected to go to church. Church is an extension of my workplace. As a Christian parent, I felt obligated to raise a child “in the way she should go.” There are plenty of Sundays when the service is boring, the minister preaches for way too long, and the ushers act confused. There are Sundays when the announcements, which are broadcast on a screen, are repeated ten more times anyway simply because people like to hear themselves talk on the mic. But I show up.”
She continues, “I show up because God always meets me when I am faithful. God always shows up. Sometimes God shows up in the parking lot, in the person who greets me with a firm handshake or a hug. Sometimes God shows up in laughter over bagels during coffee hour. Sometimes God shows up in the face of the impossibly cute toddler who wants to play peekaboo with me all service long.”
On one Sunday, she says, “God showed up in the comments of a woman whose name I didn’t even know. A creature of habit, I often sit in the same pew, as do many others in my church. I had seen her many times before; we had shared a hug and passed the peace on multiple occasions. As I arrived at my familiar pew after a few Sundays of being on the road for work, this woman leans over to me and says, “I missed your smile for the past few weeks. I want you to know I’m praying for you and miss you when you’re gone.” Tears welled in my eyes. The service hadn’t started. The praise and worship team hadn’t sung a single note, nor had the pastor even arrived at the pulpit. But surely God was present in that moment of deep human connection. She saw me, and she reminded me that God sees me.”
* * * * * *
From team member Tom Willadsen:
Acts 8:26-40
What is a eunuch?
The term eunuch only appears in the New Testament in today’s passage from Acts and Matthew 19:2. In Matthew, Jesus is teaching the disciples about divorce and says, “Not everyone can accept this teaching, but only those to whom it is given. For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by others, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Let anyone accept this who can.” Matthew 19:11-12, NRSVUE
It’s not exactly germane to Jesus’ point, which perhaps is “marriage can be difficult.”
Eunuchs, as Jesus indicated, can be born that way, have it imposed on them by accident or by someone else, or choose to undergo the procedure. Eunuchs can be those whose testicles have been removed surgically, or those whose penises and testicles have been removed surgically. Chemical castration can occur when drugs are administered, deactivating the testicles. It is not clear which of these scenarios apply to the Ethiopian eunuch.
* * *
Acts 8:26-40
Eunuchs in the Bible
The earliest explanation of the term eunuch in something like a dictionary was in the 5th century CE, in Etymologicon by Orion of Thebes. The Etymologicon gave two possible origins for the term: “guardian of the bed chamber” and “being good with respect to the mind.”
Eunuchs appear frequently in the book of Esther, where they carry messages to and from the many bed chambers and concubines King Ahasuerus possesses.
In Leviticus 21:20, eunuchs, along with hunchbacks, dwarves, and those with itching diseases, or scabs, are forbidden from making offerings at the Temple. In Deuteronomy 23:1, eunuchs are forbidden from entering the assembly of the Lord.
These prohibitions are overturned in Isaiah 56:4-5:
For thus says the Lord:
To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths,
who choose the things that please me
and hold fast my covenant,
I will give, in my house and within my walls,
a monument and a name
better than sons and daughters;
I will give them an everlasting name
that shall not be cut off.
This is the only prohibition in the Torah that is explicitly ended by a subsequent prophesy.
* * *
Acts 8:26-40
Who is Candace
The only place in scripture Candace appears is in today’s lesson from Acts. Candace is not a name, but a royal title, similar to “The Shah of Iran” or “The Pharoah of Egypt.”
* * *
Acts 8:26-40
The Big Eunuch, Randy Johnson
Randy Johnson, a Hall of Fame lefthander was dubbed “The Big Unit” by sportswriters. He stood 6’10” and was the tallest man to play professional baseball. Prior to a World Series between the New York Yankees and Johnson’s Arizona Diamondbacks, in 2001, Yankee fans held up signs that read “Unplug the Big Unit,” and “The Big Eunuch.” The latter implying that Johnson was somehow less than manly.
During his prime, Randy Johnson more than lived up to his nickname. He won the pitching triple crown in 2002, leading the National League in wins, strike outs, and earned run average. That year he won the last of his five Cy Young awards, given to the best pitcher in the league. Johnson won three World Series games in 2001, leading the Diamondbacks to the title in just their fourth year of existence.
He was truly not to be confused with a Big Eunuch. Johnson is best known for this incident, when a dove flew in front of one of his blazing fastballs. I’m not proud of it, but that video makes me laugh every time I see it.
* * *
John 15:1-8, 1 John 4:7-21
Abide
In the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) the term “abide” appears 39 times in the New Testament. Twelve of those appearances are in John’s gospel and ten in John 15. Eighteen of them are in 1 John. It also appears 20 times in the Old Testament.
The Greek root rendered into English as “abide” is μενω. Like the English word “abide” it can mean “remain,” “stay,” “endure,” and “dwell.”
The Hebrew word rendered as “abide” in the NRSV is גור, it is often rendered as “dwell” or “sojourn,” very similar to the English term.
Clearly, the authors of John’s gospel and 1 John have a much deeper and more nuanced definition of abide. To those authors there is a sense of indwelling that is not implied in the more prosaic uses of the term. Permitting the Holy Spirit to abide in one’s heart is profoundly different than letting a breakfast burrito into one’s stomach to indwell.
* * *
John 15:1-8
I am divine
Theologians debate the extent of Christ’s divinity and humanity. Orthodox Christian theology argues that Christ was “fully divine and fully human” — that both those natures reside in one person.
In today’s reading, John 15:5, we find proof that Jesus is divine: “I am duh-vine, you are the branches.”
This also proves that Jesus is from Brooklyn. Some translations render that same verse, “I am duh-vine, youse are the branches.”
* * * * * *
From team member Dean Feldmeyer:
1 John 4:7-21 — In these 14 verses John uses some form of the word “love” 35 times (NRSV). Probably worth a sermon or two, huh?
Something You Do
Not just something we feel, love is something we do. Do love and the feeling will follow.
A woman came into her pastor’s office seething and full of hatred toward her husband. “I do not only want to get rid of him, I want to get even. Before I divorce him, I want to hurt him as much as he has me.”
The minister suggested an ingenious plan: “Go home and act as if you really love your husband. Tell him how much he means to you. Praise him for every decent trait. Go out of your way to be as kind, considerate, and generous as possible. Spare no efforts to please him, to enjoy him. Make him believe you love him. After you’ve convinced him of your undying love and that you cannot live without him, then drop the bomb. Tell him that you’re getting a divorce. That will really hurt him.” She smiled with a glint in her eye. “Beautiful, beautiful. Will he ever be surprised!” And she did it with enthusiasm. Acting “as if.” For two months she showed love, kindness, listening, giving, reinforcing, sharing. When she didn’t return to the pastor’s office, he called her. “So, how’s the divorce going?” he asked.
“It isn’t,” she said. “I discovered that I really do love him.” Her actions had changed her feelings. Motion resulted in emotion. The ability to love is established not so much by fervent promise as often repeated deeds.
* * *
Agape — A New Word
According to James Packer, in Your Father Loves You (Harold Shaw Publishers, 1986) the Greek word agape (love) is a Christian invention — a new word for a new thing (apart from about twenty occurrences in the Greek version of the Old Testament, it is almost non-existent before the New Testament). Agape draws its meaning directly from the revelation of God in Christ. It is not a form of natural affection, however intense, but a supernatural fruit of the Spirit (Galations 5:22). It is a matter of will rather than feeling (for Christians must love even those they dislike — Mattew 5:44-48). It is the basic element in Christ-likeness.
* * *
A Twisted Kiss
In his book Mortal Lessons: Notes on the Art of Surgery (1978), Richard Selzer, M.D., recalls this story:
“I stand by the bed where a young woman lies, her face postoperative, her mouth twisted in palsy, clownish. A tiny twig of the facial nerve, the one to the muscles of her mouth, has been severed. She will be thus from now on. The surgeon had followed with religious fervor the curve of her flesh; I promise you that. Nevertheless, to remove the tumor in her cheek, I had to cut the little nerve. Her young husband is in the room. He stands on the opposite side of the bed and together they seem to dwell in the evening lamplight, isolated from me, private. Who are they, I ask myself, he and this wry mouth I have made, who gaze at and touch each other so generously, greedily?
“The young woman speaks. ‘Will my mouth always be like this?’ she asks.
“ ‘Yes,’ I say, ‘it will. It is because the nerve had to be cut to remove the tumor.’
“She nods and is silent. But the young man smiles. ‘I like it,’ he says, ‘It is kind of cute.’ All at once I know who he is. I understand and I lower my gaze... Unmindful, he bends to kiss her crooked mouth and I am so close I can see how he twists his own lips to accommodate to hers, to show her that their kiss still works.”
* * *
Show Them Love
The story is told of the famous physician and psychologist, Dr. Karl Menninger, noted doctor and psychologist, that he was trying to figure out why his patients seemed to stay overly long in his clinic. One day he called his staff together and introduced them to a plan for developing, in his clinic, an atmosphere of creative love. All patients were to be given large quantities of love; no unloving attitudes were to be displayed in the presence of the patients, and all nurses and doctors were to go about their work in and out of the various rooms with a loving attitude. At the end of six months, the time spent by patients in the institution was cut in half.
* * *
Sacrificial Love
On May 2, 1962, a dramatic advertisement appeared in the San Francisco Examiner: “I don’t want my husband to die in the gas chamber for a crime he did not commit. I will therefore offer my services for 10 years as a cook, maid, or housekeeper to any leading attorney who will defend him and bring about his vindication.”
One of San Francisco’s greatest attorneys, Vincent Hallinan, read or heard about the ad and contacted Gladys Kidd, who had placed it. Her husband, Robert Lee Kidd, was about to be tried for the slaying of an elderly antique dealer. Kidd’s fingerprints had been found on a bloodstained ornate sword in the victim’s shop and every attorney the woman had contacted had refused to take the case, as they found it to be hopeless. During the trial, however, Hallinan proved that the antique dealer had not been killed by the sword, and that Kidd’s fingerprints and blood on the sword got there because Kidd had once toyed with it while playfully dueling with a friend when they were both out shopping. The jury, after 11 hours, found Kidd to be not guilty. Attorney Hallinan refused Gladys Kidd’s offer of 10 years’ servitude.
* * *
Acts 8:26-40 — The Ethiopian official is a person of color, a person of non-binary gender, a foreigner, wealthy, and powerful. He is a walking contradiction and, in first century Jewish culture, he would be unacceptable. Philip, however, reaches out to the official, accepts and welcomes him into the Christian faith.
* * *
Acceptance From A Surprising Source
Speaking in a short-short story slam on The Moth and published in Reader’s Digest, by Randi Skaggs, Louisville, Kentucky:
“Get me some money, lady. You wouldn’t be the first person I killed.” I considered running, but I’m slow. So, I did what I do best when I’m nervous; I just started talking. I said, “I don’t have it as bad as you do, sir, but I am sleeping on my floor right now, and all I ever eat are ramen noodles, not that I lost any weight or anything.
“You know, people from Kentucky call and they say, ‘Oh, my God, New York City.’ I don’t have the heart to tell them I’m just a cliché, the kid who moves up here to change the world with her theater. I’m not gonna change the world. My theater stinks, really. I miss my mom, and I miss porch swings and sweet tea.
“So would you please not kill me, so I can just go back home where I belong?” He looked at me funny, and then he pulled me into a bear hug. It was my first human contact in months, actually.
* * *
Instant Acceptance
Another short-short story from The Moth, published in Reader’s Digest. “Hooray for Hollywood,” by Carlos Kotkin, Los Angeles, California:
When I was 20 years old, I dropped out of college and got a job as a chauffeur to an old‑school Hollywood producer. My main responsibility was to drive him around town, but he would take me to his meetings and introduce me as his associate.
And he would encourage me to speak up.
He had a script that he was developing at 20th Century Fox. We had many meetings there. After two years of chauffeuring, I wrote to the Fox executive I had grown to know during those script meetings and told him I was looking for something new. Not realizing that I was this producer’s driver, the executive set up an interview for me with the president of the studio as a candidate for a job as the newest studio executive.
To my surprise, when the president of the studio found out I had dropped out of college, we got into a debate about the importance of college degrees. It ended with me telling him, “You kind of sound like my mother.”
And he hired me.
* * *
John 15:1-8 — Where we live can influence who we are and how we live. Using the metaphor of the vine and the branches, Jesus encourages us to be mindful of where we choose to live and, to the degree that we are able, choose to live (abide) in him.
It Matters Where You Live
According to Psychology Today, research by Shigehiro Oishi and colleagues at the University of Virginia suggests that introverts tend to be happier in mountainous settings compared to beaches.
Residents of mountainous states like Washington, Idaho, and Montana exhibit higher tendencies toward introversion, while flatter terrain states like Iowa, Ohio, and Michigan show less introversion.
However, it’s essential to note that there’s no conclusive evidence that our surroundings directly change our personality. Instead, the mix of individual variables and physical surroundings can influence how we feel and what we think about our lives.
Adaptation and Change:
Changes in where you live can stem from basic survival needs. For instance, you might need to change your residence due to job relocation or other life circumstances. These fundamental changes often necessitate other adjustments, impacting your daily routines, social interactions, and overall well-being.
Integration with Environment:
Rather than merely passing through different backdrops, consider that we are in and of the world.
Our well-being, self-concept, and state of mind integrate with and are influenced by our surroundings at any given moment.
In summary, while your environment doesn’t fundamentally alter your personality, it does shape your experiences, preferences, and overall quality of life. So, whether you’re surrounded by mountains or beaches, your surroundings play a role in how you perceive and interact with the world around you.
* * *
About Grapes And Grape Vines
Ten Interesting facts about grapes and grape vines — according to Mental Floss.
1. Grapes are used to make synthetic leather.
In the quest to find cruelty-free and more environmentally friendly synthetic leather, Vegea, an Italian company founded in 2018, has made a fully recyclable and biodegradable product from the grape waste left over from winemaking. The grape leather’s environmental credentials surpass those of many typical synthetic alternatives made from the petrochemical industry.
2. Grapes can be deadly to your pet.
Grapes and their derivatives (raisins, currants, sultanas, wine, and grape juice) are toxic to dogs: They can cause kidney failure, which can ultimately be fatal.
3. The grapes you eat are different from the ones used in winemaking.
The seeds and thicker skins on wine grapes lend more flavor and color to the wine, while their greater sweetness aids the fermentation process. Wine grapes are also harvested later, when their sugar concentrations have increased. The most popular wine grape is the Cabernet Sauvignon, followed by Merlot. Table grapes tend to be larger and more palatable: juicy with firmer flesh and a less concentrated flavor, with a thinner skin and fewer seeds.
4. China leads the way in table grape production and consumption.
Thanks to its favorable climate and growing conditions, China has been growing grapes for more than 2,000 years.
China doesn’t just consume a lot of grapes. The country’s expected table grape production in 2022-2023 is 12.6 million tons — more than half of the world’s grape production — making it the world’s top grape producer as well.
5. People have been eating grapes and influencing their evolution for 22,000 years.
In 2017, scientists sequenced and compared the genomes of wild and domesticated grapes. They found that the samples diverged during the last Ice Age, around 22,000 years ago — thousands of years before humans started to cultivate them.
6. Grapes were probably the first fruit domesticated by humans.
According to archaeological evidence in the form of trace quantities of winemaking acids found on clay pottery fragments, people were growing grapes for harvest in the Middle East around 6000 BCE. But we may have domesticated the fruit long before then.
7. Most wines originate from a single domesticated grape species.
The Eurasian Vitis vinifera is the single domesticated species of grape responsible for the most popular wines — whether Chardonnay, Merlot, Pinot Noir, or Cabernet Sauvignon. Each grape variety has a specific name, but the species behind them is the same. Varieties of Vitis vinifera are considered best for producing world-class wines due to their high sugar content and moderate acidity.
8. Grapes grow in amazing places.
Wineries are often synonymous with particular settings (think: Napa Valley, the Loire, Tuscany) but there are also some unique and dramatic environments associated with grape growing.
9. Ancestral grapes had much less variation in color.
Anthocyanins are the chemicals found in grapes that determine their pigment (usually in the skin), with a particular family of genes responsible for the variation in anthocyanin content. The many grape color variations, from yellowy-green through shades of pink and red to purple and black, are due to the concentration of anthocyanins in the grapes. It’s thought the wild ancestor of modern-day wine varieties was likely black, similar to modern-day wild grapes.
10. An introduced pest nearly destroyed the world’s vineyards.
Sometime in the 1850s, an aphid native to North America known as grape phylloxera made its way across the Atlantic and promptly set about destroying European viticulture. Things became so desperate that families who had been tending vineyards for generations burned them to the ground in a somewhat futile attempt to stop the spread. Everywhere the European vines grew — from Europe, itself, to South Africa and the US — faced destruction.
France was particularly affected in an event that became known as the Great French Wine Blight. With thousands of hectares of vineyards lost and many families facing financial ruin, the French government offered a generous financial reward to anyone who could find a cure. The holy grail for curing phylloxera infestations remains elusive to this day, but people did find a way to curb its progression by grafting European vines to phylloxera-resistant American rootstock.
* * *
Ten Quick Facts About Grapes And Grape Vines
Facts about grapes and grape vines:
Biblical Rules For Growing Grapes
From the Bible Gateway Encyclopedia of the Bible:
The OT contains suggestions as to the regulations of viticulture. In accordance with the tithe the first tenth of every crop of grapes belonged to God. The Levitical instructions were that the farmer should leave the corners of his field unharvested for the poor. “And you shall not strip your vineyard bare, neither shall you gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the poor and for the sojourner” (Levitcus 19:10).
The gleanings were to be left for the needy. Another regulation said, “When you go into your neighbor’s vineyard, you may eat your fill of grapes, as many as you wish, but you shall not put any in your vessel” (Deuteronomy 23:24). One may take enough to satisfy immediate needs, but no more.
The regulations required that the vineyards were to lie fallow in the year of the sabbath (Exodus 23:10, 11; Levitcus 25:3-5). Other kinds of seeds were not to be planted in the vineyard (Deuteronomy 22:9). This was in accordance with the general principle of guarding against unnatural combinations, which violate the purity of the species (Levitcus 19:19). Occasionally this regulation was ignored as in the case of the man whose vineyard contained a fig tree (Luke 13:6).
* * * * * *
From team member Elena Delhagen:
Acts 8:26-40
This story of Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch is perhaps one of my favorites in all of scripture. The eunuch is such a complex and deeply multifaceted character that I think we all, in our own ways, recognize a piece of ourselves.
It’s clear that they are powerful, educated (as evidenced by their ability to read the scroll of Isaiah) with financial means enough to have their own chariot and driver.
Yet, perhaps the thing I love most about the eunuch is that, for all their power and riches, they are still humble enough to do what many of us even today struggle with: The eunuch asks for help. ‘I can read the scroll,’ the eunuch essentially says, ‘but I cannot understand it unless someone explains it to me.’ Which Philip is more than happy to do.
Modern millennials — those born between the years of 1981 and 1996 — are currently the most educated generation in the United States, though Gen Z (born after 1996 through 2012) are on track to overtake that distinction. Yet the sharp divide in our current political climate and the increase in religious, racial, and gender-based discrimination, coupled with the climate crisis and fight for human rights across the country, show us that, for all our knowledge, things are still not okay. We need help. The overwhelming majority of people in our country are dissatisfied with how things are going, and things only appear to be getting worse.
The eunuch realized that they were not able to go it alone; they needed Philip. Perhaps there’s a lesson in their story — that we need each other, too.
* * *
Psalm 22:25-31
The act of kneeling is a powerful part of liturgical worship. It represents submission, reverence, the act of making one’s self smaller in the presence of greatness and majesty.
The majority of Psalm 22 is thought to have been written in the pre-exilic period of the Israelite people, though the later part (from v. 23, approximately, onward) is believed to have been added later, post-exile. During the time of the Babylonian exile, many Jews were forced to assimilate, to the point where they were made to kneel before the king and, likely, statues of other deities.
This is what happens when, to quote this article, the holy act of kneeling becomes a weapon.
* * *
1 John 4:7-21
Thomas Merton — a Trappist monk, scholar, mystic, and writer — once had a spiritual experience in downtown Louisville, at the corner of 4th and Walnut. Now, you might be saying to yourself, “Big deal!” People have spiritual experiences all the time, which is true, of course. But I don’t know of any other spiritual experiences that are marked by a bonafide historical marker erected at the spot.
The story, as Merton writes in his book, Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander, began on an ordinary day while he was out doing some shopping. Suddenly, Merton was swept up in a vision that showed him with startling clarity how connected he was to his fellow man (and, ahem, woman.) Merton writes:
“In Louisville, at the corner of Fourth and Walnut, in the center of the shopping district, I was suddenly overwhelmed with the realization that I loved all those people, that they were mine and I theirs, that we could not be alien to one another even though we were total strangers. It was like waking from a dream of separateness, of spurious self-isolation in a special world, the world of renunciation and supposed holiness… This sense of liberation from an illusory difference was such a relief and such a joy to me that I almost laughed out loud… I have the immense joy of being man, a member of a race in which God Himself became incarnate. As if the sorrows and stupidities of the human condition could overwhelm me, now I realize what we all are. And if only everybody could realize this! But it cannot be explained. There is no way of telling people that they are all walking around shining like the sun.”
Whenever I read these words of Merton, I am struck by how similarly they ring to John’s, who tells us that though none of us have ever seen God face-to-face, we see God — albeit in glimpses — when we love one another (1 John 4:12). Think about all the things you do out of love for another person. Perhaps you cook meals for your family. You take out the trash. You let someone go in front of you in line. You bite your tongue. You kiss your spouse. You say, “I’m sorry.” That is what God looks like!
* * *
John 15:1-8
The imagery of vine and grapes is an ancient one, and when Jesus spoke of it during this Johannine passage, it would undoubtedly have been familiar to his disciples — Jews who knew the Torah — as well. At many points throughout what we call the Old Testament scriptures, Israel was spoken of as a vine, perhaps most famously in Psalm 80. Vines that needed pruning in order to bear fruit were familiar metaphors during the time of Jesus in the region now known as Palestine.
Today, grapes are still crucial to economic stability, traditions, and cuisine in Palestine, but with the seemingly never-ending conflict in the region that has only increased since October 7, 2023, many Palestinian farmers have been cut off from their land and crops. In the most fertile land of Palestine, where approximately 85% of the region’s grapes are grown, Israeli forces have restricted travel for Palestinians, restricting farmers’ access to their land. Additionally, grape (and olive) groves are regularly burned by Israeli forces, thereby cutting off Palestinians from their harvests.
Grape vines are fascinating plants. They’re comprised of both vegetative organs (like the roots, trunk, canes/branches shoots, leaves, and tendrils) and reproductive organs (clusters with flowers or berry fruit). Yet all of the organs, vegetative and reproductive alike, are interconnected via the plant’s vascular system.
The temptation is to read this passage from John as if there is only a singular branch — us, and it alone is connected to the vine. In actuality, because of the interconnectedness of the plant, multiple canes grow at the same time. That means that if one part of the plant is diseased or dying, the entire plant is affected.
It is, quite simply, foolish to think that the suffering of our Palestinian brothers and sisters exists in a vacuum, having nothing to do with us. We are connected to the same vine. Our branches grow together. And just like a grape vine, when one part of the plant hurts, we all do.
* * * * * *
WORSHIP
by George Reed
Call to Worship
One: Dominion belongs to our God who rules over all the peoples.
All: Even those who have entered death shall bow to God.
One: The poor shall eat and be satisfied.
All: May our hearts live forever in God’s realm!
One: All shall serve our God but now for future generations.
All: God proclaims deliverance even to those not yet born.
OR
One: God comes among us and we gather together today.
All: We rejoice in a God who abides among us.
One: God grounds us in the eternal embrace of divine love.
All: Without God’s love we would be lost.
One: God seeks to embrace all creation through us.
All: We will be God’s arms reaching out to all.
Hymns and Songs
Praise to the Lord, the Almighty
UMH: 139
H82: 390
GTG: 35
AAHH: 117
NNBH: 2
NCH: 22
CH: 25
ELW: 858/859
AMEC: 3
STLT: 278
Renew: 57
All My Hope Is Firmly Grounded
UMH: 132
H82: 665
NCH: 408
CH: 88
LBW: 757
Abide with Me
UMH: 700
H82: 662
PH: 543
GTG: 836
AAHH: 459
NNBH: 247
NCH: 99
CH: 636
LBW: 272
ELW: 629
W&P: 307
AMEC: 495
STLT 101
Alleluia, Alleluia
UMH: 162
H82: 178
PH: 106
GTG: 240
CH: 40
W&P: 291
Renew: 271
Take Time to Be Holy
UMH: 395
NNBH: 306
CH: 572
W&P: 483
AMEC: 286
Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing
UMH: 400
H82: 686
PH: 356
GTG: 475
AAHH: 175
NNBH: 166
NCH: 459
CH: 16
LBW: 499
ELW: 807
W&P: 68
AMEC: 77
STLT: 126
For the Healing of the Nations
UMH: 428
GTG: 346
NCH: 576
CH: 668
W&P: 621
Lead On, O King Eternal
UMH: 580
PH: 447/448
GTG: 269
AAHH: 477
NNBH: 415
NCH: 573
CH: 632
LBW: 495
ELW: 805
W&P: 508
AMEC: 177
Renew: 298
Blessed Jesus, at Thy Word
UMH: 596
H82: 440
PH: 454
GTG: 395
LBW: 248
Renew: 93
Wonderful Words of Life
UMH: 600
AAHH: 332
NNBH: 293
NCH: 319
CH: 323
W&P: 668
AMEC: 207
People Need the Lord
CCB: 52
I Am Loved
CCB: 80
Music Resources Key
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982
PH: Presbyterian Hymnal
GTG: Glory to God, The 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
W&P: Worship & Praise
AMEC: African Methodist Episcopal Church Hymnal
STLT: Singing the Living Tradition
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day/Collect
O God who abides with your creation:
Grant us the wisdom to know how to abide with one another
that we may be deeply rooted in you and open to our neighbors;
through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We bless your Name, O God, because you are the one who abides with all of your creation. Help us to also be able to abide with you and with others. Root us firmly in our connection with you so that we can freely dwell in love with all around us. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
One: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially failure to abide with God and with each other.
All: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We come to visit you most every week but we seldom spend time abiding in your presence. We are more concerned whether or not we know a particular piece of music. We are more concerned about the flower arrangements at the altar than we are about the deepness of our relationship with you. We find it difficult to be around people we don’t agree with and find it incomprehensible that we are expected to abide with them. Forgive us our selfish ways and open us to your loving presence so that we may be a loving presence to others. Amen.
One: God does abide with us even when we are distracted and focused on all the wrong things. God forgives us and offers us the chance to live as God’s likeness. Receive God’s grace and share it with others.
Prayers of the People
Praise and glory to you, O God who abides in grace and love with all your creation. You have never deserted us nor left us with your comfort.
(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 come to visit you most every week but we seldom spend time abiding in your presence. We are more concerned whether or not we know a particular piece of music. We are more concerned about the flower arrangements at the altar than we are about the deepness of our relationship with you. We find it difficult to be around people we don’t agree with and find it incomprehensible that we are expected to abide with them. Forgive us our selfish ways and open us to your loving presence so that we may be a loving presence to others
We give you thanks for all the ways in which your share your presence with us. We thank you that you root us in your own self so that we can know our place in your reign. We thank you for those who abide in your and share your love with us.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for those who find it difficult to sense your presence because of the difficulties of their lives. We pray for those who struggle for their daily bread, a drink of clean water, shelter from the elements, or decent clothing. We pray for those who face hatred, violence, and anger every day. We pray for those who walk among these in need and seek to be your abiding presence to them.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
Hear us as we pray for others: (Time for silent or spoken prayer.)
All these things we ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ who taught us to pray saying:
Our Father....Amen.
(Or if the Our Father 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
Love Takes Effort
by Quantisha Mason-Doll
1 John 4:7-21
Themes
Next, ask the children if there has ever been a time when they did something selfless just because they felt like it. Maybe they took the time to meet the new kid? Or they gave their sibling the last of something just because they wanted to see them happy.
This next point is about trust in something intangible. This can be tricky to try and visualize since children tend to work in absolutes. Think of the ways we trust or take faith that something is going to happen even though we can not prove it will happen until it does. Faith and trust are feelings that need to be exercised just like our bodies and mind.
The final point is one that is important for children in today’s political climate. John is not afraid to call out hypocrites. Children are masters at telling right from wrong — the good from the bad. This is why we are asked to have faith like children. Children mimic what is shown to them. Ask them about a time when they talked to someone different from themselves. If they don’t have a story, ask them why they avoid the stranger. This is a perfect time to address how differences make us stronger as a collective.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
The Immediate Word, April 28, 2024 issue.
Copyright 2024 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.
- On The Way To Gaza by Chris Keating based on Acts 8:26-40. On the way to Gaza, Philip discovers the startling ways the Spirit of God moves across borders, boundaries, customs, and traditions.
- Second Thoughts: Abiding by Katy Stenta based on John 15:1-8.
- Sermon illustrations by Mary Austin, Tom Willadsen, Elena Delhagen, Dean Feldmeyer.
- Worship resources by George Reed.
- Children’s sermon: Love Takes Effort by Quantisha Mason-Doll based on 1 John 4:7-21.
On The Way To Gazaby Chris Keating
Acts 8:26-40
Luke tells us that shortly before Jesus ascends into heaven, he makes it clear that the mission of the church will expand like ripples on the Sea of Galilee. In Acts 1:8, Jesus stands among the apostles to give them his final instructions. He makes it clear that their mission is going to involve crossing all sorts of boundaries and borders, similar to the pattern he set during his own ministry.
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you,” Jesus tells them. “And you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Translation: this church is meant for walking and you better grab your hiking boots now.
Pretty soon, the apostles find themselves in Samaria, which might not have been their first choice. But when the Spirit says move, you move, which is why after he wraps up things in Samaria, Philip is back on the road. This time, the Spirit is sending him out on a dusty wilderness road that leads to Gaza.
The church is going places, but only as it crosses boundaries and navigates borders. It’s going to lead to a crisis — something all too familiar to Americans. Out on that wilderness road to Gaza, Philip falls into his own border crisis as he encounters an Ethiopian eunuch.
The story evokes reminders of contemporary conflicts surrounding borders and immigrants, as well as boundaries regarding sexuality, gender, power, and geography. Out there on the road to Gaza, Philip is confronted with change.
Likewise, this year more than 8 in 10 Americans see illegal immigration as either a very serious or somewhat serious political issue. Meanwhile, religious groups continue to be fractured over acceptance and inclusion of LGBTQ persons. In some ways, it feels as though the American church may be facing its own “Gaza road” moment.
In the end, the eunuch wonders, “What’s to prevent me from being baptized?” It’s not a bad question to ask ourselves. Perhaps he has discovered what it means to be chased by God’s grace.
In the News
After crisscrossing the United States for the past five months promoting a book, writer David Brooks notes that in his opinion, the prevailing mood in the country when it comes to politics is exhaustion.
“I’ve probably been to 35 or 40 states,” Brooks said, “And I would say the predomination emotion I have heard when I ask people about politics during my travels is exhaustion — a sense of fatigue, a sense of discouragement, a sense of passivity, and especially among Democrats, a pessimism about the election.”
In Brooks’ opinion, much of this exhaustion has been harvested from the rapid growth of global populism. This sort of “us versus them” mentality has settled into America’s core self, and has emerged from the widespread class conflict that has embroiled much of the world. In 2019, more than two billion persons lived under governments governed by populist leaders — an increase from 120 million in 2002. “All these different forms of populism,” wrote Brooks, “are all based on zero sum thinking.”
In other words: If you succeed, then I will decline. It’s ‘us’ versus ‘them.’
“Us-versus-them” thinking distorts our conversations on any number of issues. A feeling that “they” (immigrants) create more crime leads “us” to shut down the border. (Even though most studies show that an increase in immigration does not lead to more crime.) “Us-versus-them” leads to the unscientific conclusion that students are safer in school if we force trans students to use the bathrooms corresponding to the gender assigned at birth. Yet that is simply not the case.
Nex Benedict, a 16-year-old from Owasso, Oklahoma, died in February following a brutal assault in a school restroom. Benedict was a trans student who was born female. They had been the object of months of bullying in a girl’s restroom which began after Oklahoma passed a bathroom bill last year.
Even Republican Speaker of the House Mike Johnson has become targeted by his own party for piecing together a bipartisan coalition to pass the $95 billion foreign aid bill last weekend. Apparently working with “them” (Democrats) is perceived as an offense against “us” (the slender GOP majority).
“Us” thinking happens in churches as we focus on ministries that generally benefit members who are currently attending, rather than developing a more missionally-focused outreach.
It is also the sort of impulse that harbors division on the biggest issues of this election year such as immigration, reproductive rights, taxation, healthcare, and the wars in Ukraine and Gaza. As the election issues come into greater focus, the boundaries between “red” and “blue” America grow even more sharp.
The struggle is to see how a zero-sum mindset leads away from the sort of mutuality Brooks says is a “better mindset” for life. “Life is competition, creativity, innovation, productivity, and sort of a measured sort of competition to add to each other’s benefit,” said Brooks. “And in many ways, our politics is a struggle to embrace this liberating idea against the darker angels of our nature, which want to really undermine it with us/them thinking.”
An angel sent Philip chasing down the Gaza Road. Rather than allowing himself to fall prey to faulty “us-versus-them” thinking, however, Philip began to see the breadth of God’s grace. It was a disruptive, unexpected encounter that led to an even more unexpected and disruptive request.
In the Scriptures
Acts is jammed packed with surprising and dramatic stories. Of course, as Matthew Skinner remarks, perhaps this is not surprising since the “overall story is about a man raised from the dead.” The invitation offered by Luke is to join the apostles on this wild and crazy ride that leads them from Jerusalem to Judea, across Samaria, and into the “ends of the earth” just as Jesus ordered in Acts 1:8.
Allowing Philip’s encounter with the Ethiopian to be set in the greater context of Luke’s sequel is vital. Stephen’s martyrdom and Saul’s increased persecution of the church have scattered the apostles across the Judean countryside (8:1) and on into Samaria. Saul’s rage rushes through Jerusalem, “entering house after house; dragging off both men and women” into prison (8:3), making a retreat from Jerusalem a wise decision.
Philip lands in Samaria, where he is greeted by crowds who are astonished by his proclamation and miraculous acts. His preaching is a moment of great joy in Samaria, surpassing the sideshow antics of a magician named Simon. It’s clear that the boundaries and borders between Jews and Samaritans are being stretched by news of Jesus’ resurrection, no doubt prompting the home office to send a delegation to see what is happening.
It is interesting to note how Luke portrays Simon the Magician in comparison to the Ethiopian in verse 26-40. In contrast to the Ethiopian’s humility in receiving Philip, Simon the Magician wonders if the apostles will give him the Holy Spirit in exchange for money. He is the practitioner of ersatz faith, a show off entertainer who has earned his living by enthralling audiences with his “power.” In contrast, the eunuch carries some diplomatic prestige, and perhaps even some measure of power. Yet his condition renders him an anomaly — certainly excluded from admission into the temple rituals or from full acceptance in Israel’s community.
There’s no dodging the way God’s grace works against the grain of exclusion in this passage. We may try to euphemistically describe the Ethiopian as “an official,” indeed a person of great rank. But that is just part of the story. Luke introduces him by a variety of identities. He is a man, a foreigner, a eunuch, and a court official. Luke sets the man as the quintessential “other,” emphasizing his place in the story of Acts as a dark-skinned man who comes from the “ends of the earth.” (See “Ethiopian Eunuch from a Queer Perspective” by Sean D. Burke.) We’re left with few complete answers about the Ethiopian’s identity — but perhaps that is the point Luke is conveying.
The questions, says Sean Burke, arise quickly. Is he a drag performer? A man performing as a eunuch? Is he powerful but performing as an enslaved individual? Is he male or female, or a sort of hybrid? Burke concludes, “The Ethiopian eunuch’s performance reveals that sex, gender, and sexuality (along with other identities) are unstable, contingent social constructions rather than stable, natural essences, thus undermining their use as a basis for exclusion.”
Philip comes to a similar, albeit far less technical conclusion. The Spirit has led him to encounter the Ethiopian as one seeking to understand the ways of God. To everyone’s surprise, the Ethiopian is reading from Isaiah as Philip runs up to his chariot. The point here is that the Ethiopian is doing more than light reading. He’s not just thumbing through the James Patterson novel he picked up at the airport. He is, to everyone’s surprise, engaging with scripture.
Clearly, this official is an unlikely church member. His location on that road mimics the other boundary crossing aspects of his personhood. He is a “them,” and clearly not an “us,” yet unlike the magician, is willing to humbly engage in a faith conversation. In this position of vulnerability, he spots another anomaly — water in the desert. Amazing! The question becomes: how will Philip answer his request to be baptized?
In the Sermon
God has scattered the apostles, removing them from the comfortable environs of Jerusalem. Now the church must wrestle with what it means to carry the good news into the world as Jesus has instructed. The good news of the resurrection has brought healing to those whose bodies carry marks of pain and illness, and hope to those who have been excluded. The good news is reworking the boundaries and borders that had long been accepted and considered wise.
So, preacher, what do we do with the Ethiopian’s request. What is to prevent the eunuch from being baptized? He was foreigner, an Ethiopian, and a eunuch. We might say an immigrant, an African, a queer man. Or perhaps he is a college student, tattooed and pierced, nonbinary. What is to prevent them from being baptized?
Rather than argue denominational policy, a sermon could arise from the details Luke has provided. Jesus has indicated that the ever-expanding ripples of the Gospel shall lead from Jerusalem into the world. I believe it was Joy Moore who said the movement is from our home, to our neighbors, to our enemies, to the entire world. This is a challenge for any congregation to confront. Thanks be to God we are not the first to be called to discern who should receive baptism.
A retired pastor who is well into his 90s once told me about a time when he was asked to officiate at a marriage between two persons of the same gender. This happened decades before such weddings were sanctioned by either state or church. The marriage created a bit of a stir, prompting a phone call from a denominational official. The official told my friend, “You’re skating on thin ice here.” My friend responded, “Perhaps that is true. You must do what the denominational rules tell you, and I need to do what the Spirit is telling me. Frankly, I like my odds better!”
The sermon could explore the way Philip responds to the nudge of the Spirit in his life, prompting the church to consider the boundaries and borders that surround its ministries today. It could also provide for reflection on the gift of baptism, and what it means for the church to baptize those who profess faith in Jesus Christ. Finally, in a world filled with division and riddled by “us and them” thinking, it reminds us of the power of the good news to bring unity even in our diversity.
Let the Ethiopian’s question lead you out to your own road to Gaza this week. Consider the people you may meet. What’s to prevent them from being baptized?
* * * * *
SECOND THOUGHTSAbiding
by Katy Stenta
John 15:1-8
Jesus promises a deep abiding if we abide with him. In a world where possession is nine-tenths of the law, the idea of abiding holds a deep attraction. Dwelling, and claiming where you dwell, makes sense. The idea of property and how that plays out can have positive and negative ramifications. A movement happened during Covid where multiple moms moved into abandoned properties together, fixed them up, and then laid claim to them. The movement started in Oakland, Ca where the housing crises is visible to all. The movement is called “Moms 4 Housing.” However, sometimes houses can be taken without a person’s knowledge. In this story a Spanish speaking family almost lost their house through a loophole in the law.
The idea that one can dwell, continue, stay in a way that is not just being stubborn but also meaningful, is the crux of the relationship. I picture this text being given from Jesus not as a sermon, but as a loving pastoral conversation — changing the entire tone of the word. Digging deep into its definition — the context of how one stays in the world is that the continual saying of the word — the depth of the abiding is what makes it meaningful.
Abiding comes from knowing one another and existing in the community. Jesus says that because we know him and his word, the abiding has begun. The pruning that needed to happen has already started. When we live in community with one another — then we will live in true community with one another, loving in community, staying, abiding, being with one another. Understanding the culture that is present and belonging.
The deep roots of belonging are clearly a part of abiding in an ecosystem of dwelling. On the heels of Psalm 23, where we are invited to dwell in the house of the Lord forever, the need to grow together with Christ and prune in a more relational way seems to speak to the intricacies of dwelling and belonging. The idea of continuing in a space or place in a way that is not only a sprawl but instead becoming fruitful is to be in deep relationship with one another and Christ.
ILLUSTRATIONS
From team member Mary Austin:Acts 8:26-40
Modern Day Eunuch
The current version of the eunuch might be our unhoused neighbors, who live outside of our norms and are overlooked by many of us.
Sharon Salzberg recalls walking with a friend when they were approached by “a man who had clearly been living on the streets. My friend was newly sober and was concerned the man might use the money to buy some booze. She said, “I won’t give you money, but let’s go into this deli and you can choose whatever you want to eat. I’ll pay for it.” The three of us entered, and I watched the man go through stages of disbelief, intimidation, dawning acceptance, and finally delight. He kept checking, “Really anything I want? Anything? I can choose extra cheese?”
I was once again struck by the toxic humiliation and powerlessness society often pairs with poverty, binding them together and sealing them tight: “If you can’t afford much, you’re pretty worthless. You don’t look tight, nicely prosperous, or predictable.” I thought a lot about choice, [and] about belonging…”
Like Philip, “The man in the deli could not have looked more elated. Having so little choice in his life, he seemed to savor the novelty of being treated with respect, as an individual with his own needs and desires. I learned a lot watching this powerful exchange: a moment of paying attention to someone can often switch on a glimmer of self-worth in another who seems completely bereft.” (from Real Change)
* * *
Acts 8:26-40
Church for Outsiders
Jessica Grose, who examines religion for the New York Times, writes about people who feel outside what’s expected in churches. She observes, “As the authors of The Great Dechurching: Who’s Leaving, Why Are They Going and What Will It Take to Bring Them Back? all of whom are pastors, comment that “America is largely built for a specific type of person. If you belong to a nuclear family, graduate from college, and have children after marriage, America’s institutions tend to work better for you. If you get off that track (or never started on it), the US is a more difficult place in which to thrive.” They go on to say that church culture can feel unwelcoming and even shaming to people who are struggling financially or have family structures outside of the model they describe.
Grose surveyed readers about why they stopped going to church and says, “Many readers who replied to my query mentioned leaving churches that rejected them during their divorces. Others talked about being constantly hit up for money they couldn’t afford to donate.”
Grose shares, “[Author] Burge told me a story about his church that illustrated organized religion at its best. He described a section of the service where they asked for “prayers of the people,” where members of the congregation would describe a tough situation and ask for prayers. A young man, probably in his early 20s, with a baby, said he had just lost his job and wouldn’t make rent that month, and asked if the congregation would pray for him. Burge said an older man in the congregation went up to the young man after the service and said, “Son, if you need a job, you can come work for me tomorrow.” While that might sound like a scene from a Frank Capra movie, church really does wind up being one of the few places that people from different walks of life can interact with and help one another.”
We can learn from Philip about being open to people outside our typical path, and making them welcome in God’s name.
* * *
1 John 4:7-21
Another Kind of Love
“God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them,” the epistle encourages. Author Elizabeth Gilbert notes that we have a distressing tendency not to see ourselves as part of God’s creation, and to be more unloving to ourselves than we would be to anyone else. She says, “My best tool against my distorted habit of self-hatred is to write myself daily letters from love. I have done this for nearly twenty-five years. This practice has carried me through a quarter of a century of challenges — through two marriages and two divorces, through losing the love of my life to cancer, to facing my own addictions and shortcomings. I have certainly had plenty of opportunities to pick up burdens of despair and shame. Through it all, I have managed to find (if only I listen openly and carefully enough) a compassionate voice within that I can tap into, when I need to hear words of love, compassion, and reassurance.”
She doesn’t call the source of this love God, although she might. Gilbert adds, “I believe there is a voice of love that is constantly available to all of us — and that it dwells within. I believe that love is our default setting. I believe that simple affection and a stance of unguarded self-friendliness is the natural state of a human being toward herself: Why would it be otherwise? We are the one person we will spend our entire lives with! Why would we be wired to hate the one we are always with, the one we are?”
This love flows in our lives as a gift from God, like all the other kinds of love.
* * *
John 15:1-8
Shrinking Vines
Jesus offers us an image of abiding together, vines connected to each other, and to God as our source of life. We’re doing that less and less in our current society.
In her book about friendship, author Dr. Marisa Franco notes that we are less connected and more lonely than ever. “A 2013 analysis of 177,653 participants across 277 studies found that friendship networks have been shrinking for the past thirty-five years. Someone living in the 2000s has four fewer friends, on average, than someone living in the early 1980s. Another analysis found that four times as many people have no friends in 2021, compared to 1990. Circumstances are more dire for men, with five times as many men reporting no friends in 2021, compared to 1990.” (from Platonic: How the Science of Attachment Can Help You Make — and Keep — Friends)
* * *
1 John 4:7-21, John 15:1-8
Abide in Love, Or Else
We need every loving interaction we can have, according to business guru Bob Sutton, because the impact of negative interactions is much stronger than positive ones. He urges, “Bad apples do so much damage, and more broadly destructive emotions and incompetence undermine performance and well-being so much, that the first order of business for any boss is to eliminate the negative rather than accentuate the positive.” As we’re connected with each other in networks, he says, “while bringing and breeding great people, and encouraging civility, competence, effort, and other kinds of goodness is an important part of the job, such efforts will be undermined if you aren’t constantly vigilant about eliminating the negative.”
The way we abide with each other matters, especially when it’s negative. “Close relationships are more deeply and conclusively affected by destructive actions than by constructive ones, by negative communications than positive ones, and by conflict than harmony. Additionally, these effects extend to marital satisfaction and even to the relationship’s survival (vs. breakup or divorce). Even outside of close relationships, unfriendly or conflictual interactions are seen as stronger and have bigger effects than friendly, harmonious ones. Bad moods and negative emotions have stronger effects than good ones on cognitive processing.”
Another argument for living together as lovingly as we can!
* * *
1 John 4:7-21, John 15:1-8
Knowing Our Connections
One way to be more loving and to abide with each other as connected parts of the same whole, is to look into each other’s lives.
Sharon Salzberg tells the story of a video that takes us toward each other. She says, “A very effective video from the Cleveland Clinic, created for both patients and practitioners, is called Empathy: The Human Connection to Patient Care. It begins with a quotation from Henry David Thoreau: “Could a greater miracle take place than for us to look through each other’s eyes for an instant?” Then without any dialogue the camera follows people moving through a hospital, with text appearing that simply portrays their situation: Fears he’s waited too long. Tumor was benign. Tumor was malignant. They saw … something … on her mammogram. He’s worried about how he is going to pay for this. Too shocked to comprehend treatment options. Wife’s surgery went well.”
Watching the video, “People come together on an elevator, pass each other on adjacent up and down escalators, and sit together in waiting rooms. The video closes with this question: If you could stand in someone else’s shoes, hear what they hear, see what they see, feel what they feel, would you treat them differently? That hits home. The hospital setting reveals humanity in so many of our stages of delight and grief and worry and love. So does every street corner, and airport, and classroom, and home.”
We could do the same as we walk down the street, or pass our neighbors and colleagues. (from Real Change: Mindfulness to Heal Ourselves and the World)
* * *
John 15:1-8
Being Part of the Vine and Branches
The Rev. Dr. Yolanda Pierce says she goes to church even when she doesn’t want to because she needs to sustain the connection of vine and branches. She explains, “I often attend church when I would rather be somewhere else. There are Sundays when the weather seems too perfect to be inside, when I’d rather sit outdoors at my local pancake house and read the paper. There are Sundays when my mind is racing or there are too many things on my to-do list. And there are Sundays when I’m just tired of church, of the hypocrisy of religion. I confess that there are plenty of Sundays when my doubts outweigh my beliefs. But I show up.
Sometimes I attend church out of duty and obligation. As a minister and a dean of a theological institution, I’m expected to go to church. Church is an extension of my workplace. As a Christian parent, I felt obligated to raise a child “in the way she should go.” There are plenty of Sundays when the service is boring, the minister preaches for way too long, and the ushers act confused. There are Sundays when the announcements, which are broadcast on a screen, are repeated ten more times anyway simply because people like to hear themselves talk on the mic. But I show up.”
She continues, “I show up because God always meets me when I am faithful. God always shows up. Sometimes God shows up in the parking lot, in the person who greets me with a firm handshake or a hug. Sometimes God shows up in laughter over bagels during coffee hour. Sometimes God shows up in the face of the impossibly cute toddler who wants to play peekaboo with me all service long.”
On one Sunday, she says, “God showed up in the comments of a woman whose name I didn’t even know. A creature of habit, I often sit in the same pew, as do many others in my church. I had seen her many times before; we had shared a hug and passed the peace on multiple occasions. As I arrived at my familiar pew after a few Sundays of being on the road for work, this woman leans over to me and says, “I missed your smile for the past few weeks. I want you to know I’m praying for you and miss you when you’re gone.” Tears welled in my eyes. The service hadn’t started. The praise and worship team hadn’t sung a single note, nor had the pastor even arrived at the pulpit. But surely God was present in that moment of deep human connection. She saw me, and she reminded me that God sees me.”
* * * * * *
From team member Tom Willadsen:Acts 8:26-40
What is a eunuch?
The term eunuch only appears in the New Testament in today’s passage from Acts and Matthew 19:2. In Matthew, Jesus is teaching the disciples about divorce and says, “Not everyone can accept this teaching, but only those to whom it is given. For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by others, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Let anyone accept this who can.” Matthew 19:11-12, NRSVUE
It’s not exactly germane to Jesus’ point, which perhaps is “marriage can be difficult.”
Eunuchs, as Jesus indicated, can be born that way, have it imposed on them by accident or by someone else, or choose to undergo the procedure. Eunuchs can be those whose testicles have been removed surgically, or those whose penises and testicles have been removed surgically. Chemical castration can occur when drugs are administered, deactivating the testicles. It is not clear which of these scenarios apply to the Ethiopian eunuch.
* * *
Acts 8:26-40
Eunuchs in the Bible
The earliest explanation of the term eunuch in something like a dictionary was in the 5th century CE, in Etymologicon by Orion of Thebes. The Etymologicon gave two possible origins for the term: “guardian of the bed chamber” and “being good with respect to the mind.”
Eunuchs appear frequently in the book of Esther, where they carry messages to and from the many bed chambers and concubines King Ahasuerus possesses.
In Leviticus 21:20, eunuchs, along with hunchbacks, dwarves, and those with itching diseases, or scabs, are forbidden from making offerings at the Temple. In Deuteronomy 23:1, eunuchs are forbidden from entering the assembly of the Lord.
These prohibitions are overturned in Isaiah 56:4-5:
For thus says the Lord:
To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths,
who choose the things that please me
and hold fast my covenant,
I will give, in my house and within my walls,
a monument and a name
better than sons and daughters;
I will give them an everlasting name
that shall not be cut off.
This is the only prohibition in the Torah that is explicitly ended by a subsequent prophesy.
* * *
Acts 8:26-40
Who is Candace
The only place in scripture Candace appears is in today’s lesson from Acts. Candace is not a name, but a royal title, similar to “The Shah of Iran” or “The Pharoah of Egypt.”
* * *
Acts 8:26-40
The Big Eunuch, Randy Johnson
Randy Johnson, a Hall of Fame lefthander was dubbed “The Big Unit” by sportswriters. He stood 6’10” and was the tallest man to play professional baseball. Prior to a World Series between the New York Yankees and Johnson’s Arizona Diamondbacks, in 2001, Yankee fans held up signs that read “Unplug the Big Unit,” and “The Big Eunuch.” The latter implying that Johnson was somehow less than manly.
During his prime, Randy Johnson more than lived up to his nickname. He won the pitching triple crown in 2002, leading the National League in wins, strike outs, and earned run average. That year he won the last of his five Cy Young awards, given to the best pitcher in the league. Johnson won three World Series games in 2001, leading the Diamondbacks to the title in just their fourth year of existence.
He was truly not to be confused with a Big Eunuch. Johnson is best known for this incident, when a dove flew in front of one of his blazing fastballs. I’m not proud of it, but that video makes me laugh every time I see it.
* * *
John 15:1-8, 1 John 4:7-21
Abide
In the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) the term “abide” appears 39 times in the New Testament. Twelve of those appearances are in John’s gospel and ten in John 15. Eighteen of them are in 1 John. It also appears 20 times in the Old Testament.
The Greek root rendered into English as “abide” is μενω. Like the English word “abide” it can mean “remain,” “stay,” “endure,” and “dwell.”
The Hebrew word rendered as “abide” in the NRSV is גור, it is often rendered as “dwell” or “sojourn,” very similar to the English term.
Clearly, the authors of John’s gospel and 1 John have a much deeper and more nuanced definition of abide. To those authors there is a sense of indwelling that is not implied in the more prosaic uses of the term. Permitting the Holy Spirit to abide in one’s heart is profoundly different than letting a breakfast burrito into one’s stomach to indwell.
* * *
John 15:1-8
I am divine
Theologians debate the extent of Christ’s divinity and humanity. Orthodox Christian theology argues that Christ was “fully divine and fully human” — that both those natures reside in one person.
In today’s reading, John 15:5, we find proof that Jesus is divine: “I am duh-vine, you are the branches.”
This also proves that Jesus is from Brooklyn. Some translations render that same verse, “I am duh-vine, youse are the branches.”
* * * * * *
From team member Dean Feldmeyer:1 John 4:7-21 — In these 14 verses John uses some form of the word “love” 35 times (NRSV). Probably worth a sermon or two, huh?
Something You Do
Not just something we feel, love is something we do. Do love and the feeling will follow.
A woman came into her pastor’s office seething and full of hatred toward her husband. “I do not only want to get rid of him, I want to get even. Before I divorce him, I want to hurt him as much as he has me.”
The minister suggested an ingenious plan: “Go home and act as if you really love your husband. Tell him how much he means to you. Praise him for every decent trait. Go out of your way to be as kind, considerate, and generous as possible. Spare no efforts to please him, to enjoy him. Make him believe you love him. After you’ve convinced him of your undying love and that you cannot live without him, then drop the bomb. Tell him that you’re getting a divorce. That will really hurt him.” She smiled with a glint in her eye. “Beautiful, beautiful. Will he ever be surprised!” And she did it with enthusiasm. Acting “as if.” For two months she showed love, kindness, listening, giving, reinforcing, sharing. When she didn’t return to the pastor’s office, he called her. “So, how’s the divorce going?” he asked.
“It isn’t,” she said. “I discovered that I really do love him.” Her actions had changed her feelings. Motion resulted in emotion. The ability to love is established not so much by fervent promise as often repeated deeds.
* * *
Agape — A New Word
According to James Packer, in Your Father Loves You (Harold Shaw Publishers, 1986) the Greek word agape (love) is a Christian invention — a new word for a new thing (apart from about twenty occurrences in the Greek version of the Old Testament, it is almost non-existent before the New Testament). Agape draws its meaning directly from the revelation of God in Christ. It is not a form of natural affection, however intense, but a supernatural fruit of the Spirit (Galations 5:22). It is a matter of will rather than feeling (for Christians must love even those they dislike — Mattew 5:44-48). It is the basic element in Christ-likeness.
* * *
A Twisted Kiss
In his book Mortal Lessons: Notes on the Art of Surgery (1978), Richard Selzer, M.D., recalls this story:
“I stand by the bed where a young woman lies, her face postoperative, her mouth twisted in palsy, clownish. A tiny twig of the facial nerve, the one to the muscles of her mouth, has been severed. She will be thus from now on. The surgeon had followed with religious fervor the curve of her flesh; I promise you that. Nevertheless, to remove the tumor in her cheek, I had to cut the little nerve. Her young husband is in the room. He stands on the opposite side of the bed and together they seem to dwell in the evening lamplight, isolated from me, private. Who are they, I ask myself, he and this wry mouth I have made, who gaze at and touch each other so generously, greedily?
“The young woman speaks. ‘Will my mouth always be like this?’ she asks.
“ ‘Yes,’ I say, ‘it will. It is because the nerve had to be cut to remove the tumor.’
“She nods and is silent. But the young man smiles. ‘I like it,’ he says, ‘It is kind of cute.’ All at once I know who he is. I understand and I lower my gaze... Unmindful, he bends to kiss her crooked mouth and I am so close I can see how he twists his own lips to accommodate to hers, to show her that their kiss still works.”
* * *
Show Them Love
The story is told of the famous physician and psychologist, Dr. Karl Menninger, noted doctor and psychologist, that he was trying to figure out why his patients seemed to stay overly long in his clinic. One day he called his staff together and introduced them to a plan for developing, in his clinic, an atmosphere of creative love. All patients were to be given large quantities of love; no unloving attitudes were to be displayed in the presence of the patients, and all nurses and doctors were to go about their work in and out of the various rooms with a loving attitude. At the end of six months, the time spent by patients in the institution was cut in half.
* * *
Sacrificial Love
On May 2, 1962, a dramatic advertisement appeared in the San Francisco Examiner: “I don’t want my husband to die in the gas chamber for a crime he did not commit. I will therefore offer my services for 10 years as a cook, maid, or housekeeper to any leading attorney who will defend him and bring about his vindication.”
One of San Francisco’s greatest attorneys, Vincent Hallinan, read or heard about the ad and contacted Gladys Kidd, who had placed it. Her husband, Robert Lee Kidd, was about to be tried for the slaying of an elderly antique dealer. Kidd’s fingerprints had been found on a bloodstained ornate sword in the victim’s shop and every attorney the woman had contacted had refused to take the case, as they found it to be hopeless. During the trial, however, Hallinan proved that the antique dealer had not been killed by the sword, and that Kidd’s fingerprints and blood on the sword got there because Kidd had once toyed with it while playfully dueling with a friend when they were both out shopping. The jury, after 11 hours, found Kidd to be not guilty. Attorney Hallinan refused Gladys Kidd’s offer of 10 years’ servitude.
* * *
Acts 8:26-40 — The Ethiopian official is a person of color, a person of non-binary gender, a foreigner, wealthy, and powerful. He is a walking contradiction and, in first century Jewish culture, he would be unacceptable. Philip, however, reaches out to the official, accepts and welcomes him into the Christian faith.
* * *
Acceptance From A Surprising Source
Speaking in a short-short story slam on The Moth and published in Reader’s Digest, by Randi Skaggs, Louisville, Kentucky:
“Get me some money, lady. You wouldn’t be the first person I killed.” I considered running, but I’m slow. So, I did what I do best when I’m nervous; I just started talking. I said, “I don’t have it as bad as you do, sir, but I am sleeping on my floor right now, and all I ever eat are ramen noodles, not that I lost any weight or anything.
“You know, people from Kentucky call and they say, ‘Oh, my God, New York City.’ I don’t have the heart to tell them I’m just a cliché, the kid who moves up here to change the world with her theater. I’m not gonna change the world. My theater stinks, really. I miss my mom, and I miss porch swings and sweet tea.
“So would you please not kill me, so I can just go back home where I belong?” He looked at me funny, and then he pulled me into a bear hug. It was my first human contact in months, actually.
* * *
Instant Acceptance
Another short-short story from The Moth, published in Reader’s Digest. “Hooray for Hollywood,” by Carlos Kotkin, Los Angeles, California:
When I was 20 years old, I dropped out of college and got a job as a chauffeur to an old‑school Hollywood producer. My main responsibility was to drive him around town, but he would take me to his meetings and introduce me as his associate.
And he would encourage me to speak up.
He had a script that he was developing at 20th Century Fox. We had many meetings there. After two years of chauffeuring, I wrote to the Fox executive I had grown to know during those script meetings and told him I was looking for something new. Not realizing that I was this producer’s driver, the executive set up an interview for me with the president of the studio as a candidate for a job as the newest studio executive.
To my surprise, when the president of the studio found out I had dropped out of college, we got into a debate about the importance of college degrees. It ended with me telling him, “You kind of sound like my mother.”
And he hired me.
* * *
John 15:1-8 — Where we live can influence who we are and how we live. Using the metaphor of the vine and the branches, Jesus encourages us to be mindful of where we choose to live and, to the degree that we are able, choose to live (abide) in him.
It Matters Where You Live
According to Psychology Today, research by Shigehiro Oishi and colleagues at the University of Virginia suggests that introverts tend to be happier in mountainous settings compared to beaches.
Residents of mountainous states like Washington, Idaho, and Montana exhibit higher tendencies toward introversion, while flatter terrain states like Iowa, Ohio, and Michigan show less introversion.
However, it’s essential to note that there’s no conclusive evidence that our surroundings directly change our personality. Instead, the mix of individual variables and physical surroundings can influence how we feel and what we think about our lives.
Adaptation and Change:
Changes in where you live can stem from basic survival needs. For instance, you might need to change your residence due to job relocation or other life circumstances. These fundamental changes often necessitate other adjustments, impacting your daily routines, social interactions, and overall well-being.
Integration with Environment:
Rather than merely passing through different backdrops, consider that we are in and of the world.
Our well-being, self-concept, and state of mind integrate with and are influenced by our surroundings at any given moment.
In summary, while your environment doesn’t fundamentally alter your personality, it does shape your experiences, preferences, and overall quality of life. So, whether you’re surrounded by mountains or beaches, your surroundings play a role in how you perceive and interact with the world around you.
* * *
About Grapes And Grape Vines
Ten Interesting facts about grapes and grape vines — according to Mental Floss.
1. Grapes are used to make synthetic leather.
In the quest to find cruelty-free and more environmentally friendly synthetic leather, Vegea, an Italian company founded in 2018, has made a fully recyclable and biodegradable product from the grape waste left over from winemaking. The grape leather’s environmental credentials surpass those of many typical synthetic alternatives made from the petrochemical industry.
2. Grapes can be deadly to your pet.
Grapes and their derivatives (raisins, currants, sultanas, wine, and grape juice) are toxic to dogs: They can cause kidney failure, which can ultimately be fatal.
3. The grapes you eat are different from the ones used in winemaking.
The seeds and thicker skins on wine grapes lend more flavor and color to the wine, while their greater sweetness aids the fermentation process. Wine grapes are also harvested later, when their sugar concentrations have increased. The most popular wine grape is the Cabernet Sauvignon, followed by Merlot. Table grapes tend to be larger and more palatable: juicy with firmer flesh and a less concentrated flavor, with a thinner skin and fewer seeds.
4. China leads the way in table grape production and consumption.
Thanks to its favorable climate and growing conditions, China has been growing grapes for more than 2,000 years.
China doesn’t just consume a lot of grapes. The country’s expected table grape production in 2022-2023 is 12.6 million tons — more than half of the world’s grape production — making it the world’s top grape producer as well.
5. People have been eating grapes and influencing their evolution for 22,000 years.
In 2017, scientists sequenced and compared the genomes of wild and domesticated grapes. They found that the samples diverged during the last Ice Age, around 22,000 years ago — thousands of years before humans started to cultivate them.
6. Grapes were probably the first fruit domesticated by humans.
According to archaeological evidence in the form of trace quantities of winemaking acids found on clay pottery fragments, people were growing grapes for harvest in the Middle East around 6000 BCE. But we may have domesticated the fruit long before then.
7. Most wines originate from a single domesticated grape species.
The Eurasian Vitis vinifera is the single domesticated species of grape responsible for the most popular wines — whether Chardonnay, Merlot, Pinot Noir, or Cabernet Sauvignon. Each grape variety has a specific name, but the species behind them is the same. Varieties of Vitis vinifera are considered best for producing world-class wines due to their high sugar content and moderate acidity.
8. Grapes grow in amazing places.
Wineries are often synonymous with particular settings (think: Napa Valley, the Loire, Tuscany) but there are also some unique and dramatic environments associated with grape growing.
9. Ancestral grapes had much less variation in color.
Anthocyanins are the chemicals found in grapes that determine their pigment (usually in the skin), with a particular family of genes responsible for the variation in anthocyanin content. The many grape color variations, from yellowy-green through shades of pink and red to purple and black, are due to the concentration of anthocyanins in the grapes. It’s thought the wild ancestor of modern-day wine varieties was likely black, similar to modern-day wild grapes.
10. An introduced pest nearly destroyed the world’s vineyards.
Sometime in the 1850s, an aphid native to North America known as grape phylloxera made its way across the Atlantic and promptly set about destroying European viticulture. Things became so desperate that families who had been tending vineyards for generations burned them to the ground in a somewhat futile attempt to stop the spread. Everywhere the European vines grew — from Europe, itself, to South Africa and the US — faced destruction.
France was particularly affected in an event that became known as the Great French Wine Blight. With thousands of hectares of vineyards lost and many families facing financial ruin, the French government offered a generous financial reward to anyone who could find a cure. The holy grail for curing phylloxera infestations remains elusive to this day, but people did find a way to curb its progression by grafting European vines to phylloxera-resistant American rootstock.
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Ten Quick Facts About Grapes And Grape Vines
Facts about grapes and grape vines:
- Grapes grow on vines and can grow up to 50 feet long.
- Each grapevine can normally produce 40 clusters.
- The leaves are big, green, and partially lobed.
- Wine grapes require warm weather to grow.
- One bottle of wine requires 2.5 pounds of grapes.
- Around 25 million acres of land on the planet are covered with vineyards.
- 72 million tons of grapes are produced each year.
- 71% of produced grapes are used in the manufacture of wines, 27% are sold as fresh fruit and 2% are turned into raisins.
- Grapevines should be planted in early spring after the date of the last hard freeze has passed.
- Most grape varieties are self-fertile.
Biblical Rules For Growing Grapes
From the Bible Gateway Encyclopedia of the Bible:
The OT contains suggestions as to the regulations of viticulture. In accordance with the tithe the first tenth of every crop of grapes belonged to God. The Levitical instructions were that the farmer should leave the corners of his field unharvested for the poor. “And you shall not strip your vineyard bare, neither shall you gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the poor and for the sojourner” (Levitcus 19:10).
The gleanings were to be left for the needy. Another regulation said, “When you go into your neighbor’s vineyard, you may eat your fill of grapes, as many as you wish, but you shall not put any in your vessel” (Deuteronomy 23:24). One may take enough to satisfy immediate needs, but no more.
The regulations required that the vineyards were to lie fallow in the year of the sabbath (Exodus 23:10, 11; Levitcus 25:3-5). Other kinds of seeds were not to be planted in the vineyard (Deuteronomy 22:9). This was in accordance with the general principle of guarding against unnatural combinations, which violate the purity of the species (Levitcus 19:19). Occasionally this regulation was ignored as in the case of the man whose vineyard contained a fig tree (Luke 13:6).
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From team member Elena Delhagen:Acts 8:26-40
This story of Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch is perhaps one of my favorites in all of scripture. The eunuch is such a complex and deeply multifaceted character that I think we all, in our own ways, recognize a piece of ourselves.
It’s clear that they are powerful, educated (as evidenced by their ability to read the scroll of Isaiah) with financial means enough to have their own chariot and driver.
Yet, perhaps the thing I love most about the eunuch is that, for all their power and riches, they are still humble enough to do what many of us even today struggle with: The eunuch asks for help. ‘I can read the scroll,’ the eunuch essentially says, ‘but I cannot understand it unless someone explains it to me.’ Which Philip is more than happy to do.
Modern millennials — those born between the years of 1981 and 1996 — are currently the most educated generation in the United States, though Gen Z (born after 1996 through 2012) are on track to overtake that distinction. Yet the sharp divide in our current political climate and the increase in religious, racial, and gender-based discrimination, coupled with the climate crisis and fight for human rights across the country, show us that, for all our knowledge, things are still not okay. We need help. The overwhelming majority of people in our country are dissatisfied with how things are going, and things only appear to be getting worse.
The eunuch realized that they were not able to go it alone; they needed Philip. Perhaps there’s a lesson in their story — that we need each other, too.
* * *
Psalm 22:25-31
The act of kneeling is a powerful part of liturgical worship. It represents submission, reverence, the act of making one’s self smaller in the presence of greatness and majesty.
The majority of Psalm 22 is thought to have been written in the pre-exilic period of the Israelite people, though the later part (from v. 23, approximately, onward) is believed to have been added later, post-exile. During the time of the Babylonian exile, many Jews were forced to assimilate, to the point where they were made to kneel before the king and, likely, statues of other deities.
This is what happens when, to quote this article, the holy act of kneeling becomes a weapon.
* * *
1 John 4:7-21
Thomas Merton — a Trappist monk, scholar, mystic, and writer — once had a spiritual experience in downtown Louisville, at the corner of 4th and Walnut. Now, you might be saying to yourself, “Big deal!” People have spiritual experiences all the time, which is true, of course. But I don’t know of any other spiritual experiences that are marked by a bonafide historical marker erected at the spot.
The story, as Merton writes in his book, Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander, began on an ordinary day while he was out doing some shopping. Suddenly, Merton was swept up in a vision that showed him with startling clarity how connected he was to his fellow man (and, ahem, woman.) Merton writes:
“In Louisville, at the corner of Fourth and Walnut, in the center of the shopping district, I was suddenly overwhelmed with the realization that I loved all those people, that they were mine and I theirs, that we could not be alien to one another even though we were total strangers. It was like waking from a dream of separateness, of spurious self-isolation in a special world, the world of renunciation and supposed holiness… This sense of liberation from an illusory difference was such a relief and such a joy to me that I almost laughed out loud… I have the immense joy of being man, a member of a race in which God Himself became incarnate. As if the sorrows and stupidities of the human condition could overwhelm me, now I realize what we all are. And if only everybody could realize this! But it cannot be explained. There is no way of telling people that they are all walking around shining like the sun.”
Whenever I read these words of Merton, I am struck by how similarly they ring to John’s, who tells us that though none of us have ever seen God face-to-face, we see God — albeit in glimpses — when we love one another (1 John 4:12). Think about all the things you do out of love for another person. Perhaps you cook meals for your family. You take out the trash. You let someone go in front of you in line. You bite your tongue. You kiss your spouse. You say, “I’m sorry.” That is what God looks like!
* * *
John 15:1-8
The imagery of vine and grapes is an ancient one, and when Jesus spoke of it during this Johannine passage, it would undoubtedly have been familiar to his disciples — Jews who knew the Torah — as well. At many points throughout what we call the Old Testament scriptures, Israel was spoken of as a vine, perhaps most famously in Psalm 80. Vines that needed pruning in order to bear fruit were familiar metaphors during the time of Jesus in the region now known as Palestine.
Today, grapes are still crucial to economic stability, traditions, and cuisine in Palestine, but with the seemingly never-ending conflict in the region that has only increased since October 7, 2023, many Palestinian farmers have been cut off from their land and crops. In the most fertile land of Palestine, where approximately 85% of the region’s grapes are grown, Israeli forces have restricted travel for Palestinians, restricting farmers’ access to their land. Additionally, grape (and olive) groves are regularly burned by Israeli forces, thereby cutting off Palestinians from their harvests.
Grape vines are fascinating plants. They’re comprised of both vegetative organs (like the roots, trunk, canes/branches shoots, leaves, and tendrils) and reproductive organs (clusters with flowers or berry fruit). Yet all of the organs, vegetative and reproductive alike, are interconnected via the plant’s vascular system.
The temptation is to read this passage from John as if there is only a singular branch — us, and it alone is connected to the vine. In actuality, because of the interconnectedness of the plant, multiple canes grow at the same time. That means that if one part of the plant is diseased or dying, the entire plant is affected.
It is, quite simply, foolish to think that the suffering of our Palestinian brothers and sisters exists in a vacuum, having nothing to do with us. We are connected to the same vine. Our branches grow together. And just like a grape vine, when one part of the plant hurts, we all do.
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WORSHIPby George Reed
Call to Worship
One: Dominion belongs to our God who rules over all the peoples.
All: Even those who have entered death shall bow to God.
One: The poor shall eat and be satisfied.
All: May our hearts live forever in God’s realm!
One: All shall serve our God but now for future generations.
All: God proclaims deliverance even to those not yet born.
OR
One: God comes among us and we gather together today.
All: We rejoice in a God who abides among us.
One: God grounds us in the eternal embrace of divine love.
All: Without God’s love we would be lost.
One: God seeks to embrace all creation through us.
All: We will be God’s arms reaching out to all.
Hymns and Songs
Praise to the Lord, the Almighty
UMH: 139
H82: 390
GTG: 35
AAHH: 117
NNBH: 2
NCH: 22
CH: 25
ELW: 858/859
AMEC: 3
STLT: 278
Renew: 57
All My Hope Is Firmly Grounded
UMH: 132
H82: 665
NCH: 408
CH: 88
LBW: 757
Abide with Me
UMH: 700
H82: 662
PH: 543
GTG: 836
AAHH: 459
NNBH: 247
NCH: 99
CH: 636
LBW: 272
ELW: 629
W&P: 307
AMEC: 495
STLT 101
Alleluia, Alleluia
UMH: 162
H82: 178
PH: 106
GTG: 240
CH: 40
W&P: 291
Renew: 271
Take Time to Be Holy
UMH: 395
NNBH: 306
CH: 572
W&P: 483
AMEC: 286
Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing
UMH: 400
H82: 686
PH: 356
GTG: 475
AAHH: 175
NNBH: 166
NCH: 459
CH: 16
LBW: 499
ELW: 807
W&P: 68
AMEC: 77
STLT: 126
For the Healing of the Nations
UMH: 428
GTG: 346
NCH: 576
CH: 668
W&P: 621
Lead On, O King Eternal
UMH: 580
PH: 447/448
GTG: 269
AAHH: 477
NNBH: 415
NCH: 573
CH: 632
LBW: 495
ELW: 805
W&P: 508
AMEC: 177
Renew: 298
Blessed Jesus, at Thy Word
UMH: 596
H82: 440
PH: 454
GTG: 395
LBW: 248
Renew: 93
Wonderful Words of Life
UMH: 600
AAHH: 332
NNBH: 293
NCH: 319
CH: 323
W&P: 668
AMEC: 207
People Need the Lord
CCB: 52
I Am Loved
CCB: 80
Music Resources Key
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982
PH: Presbyterian Hymnal
GTG: Glory to God, The 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
W&P: Worship & Praise
AMEC: African Methodist Episcopal Church Hymnal
STLT: Singing the Living Tradition
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day/Collect
O God who abides with your creation:
Grant us the wisdom to know how to abide with one another
that we may be deeply rooted in you and open to our neighbors;
through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We bless your Name, O God, because you are the one who abides with all of your creation. Help us to also be able to abide with you and with others. Root us firmly in our connection with you so that we can freely dwell in love with all around us. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
One: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially failure to abide with God and with each other.
All: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We come to visit you most every week but we seldom spend time abiding in your presence. We are more concerned whether or not we know a particular piece of music. We are more concerned about the flower arrangements at the altar than we are about the deepness of our relationship with you. We find it difficult to be around people we don’t agree with and find it incomprehensible that we are expected to abide with them. Forgive us our selfish ways and open us to your loving presence so that we may be a loving presence to others. Amen.
One: God does abide with us even when we are distracted and focused on all the wrong things. God forgives us and offers us the chance to live as God’s likeness. Receive God’s grace and share it with others.
Prayers of the People
Praise and glory to you, O God who abides in grace and love with all your creation. You have never deserted us nor left us with your comfort.
(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 come to visit you most every week but we seldom spend time abiding in your presence. We are more concerned whether or not we know a particular piece of music. We are more concerned about the flower arrangements at the altar than we are about the deepness of our relationship with you. We find it difficult to be around people we don’t agree with and find it incomprehensible that we are expected to abide with them. Forgive us our selfish ways and open us to your loving presence so that we may be a loving presence to others
We give you thanks for all the ways in which your share your presence with us. We thank you that you root us in your own self so that we can know our place in your reign. We thank you for those who abide in your and share your love with us.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for those who find it difficult to sense your presence because of the difficulties of their lives. We pray for those who struggle for their daily bread, a drink of clean water, shelter from the elements, or decent clothing. We pray for those who face hatred, violence, and anger every day. We pray for those who walk among these in need and seek to be your abiding presence to them.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
Hear us as we pray for others: (Time for silent or spoken prayer.)
All these things we ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ who taught us to pray saying:
Our Father....Amen.
(Or if the Our Father 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 SERMONLove Takes Effort
by Quantisha Mason-Doll
1 John 4:7-21
Themes
- Love
- Confidence in trust
- God is love and humanity is born from that love.
- God gave God-self in the form of the Son for sacrifice. This was done out of love.
- We have never seen God yet God is real and loves us.
- Through love, God is able to dwell within us — connecting us with the power of the Holy Spirit
Next, ask the children if there has ever been a time when they did something selfless just because they felt like it. Maybe they took the time to meet the new kid? Or they gave their sibling the last of something just because they wanted to see them happy.
This next point is about trust in something intangible. This can be tricky to try and visualize since children tend to work in absolutes. Think of the ways we trust or take faith that something is going to happen even though we can not prove it will happen until it does. Faith and trust are feelings that need to be exercised just like our bodies and mind.
The final point is one that is important for children in today’s political climate. John is not afraid to call out hypocrites. Children are masters at telling right from wrong — the good from the bad. This is why we are asked to have faith like children. Children mimic what is shown to them. Ask them about a time when they talked to someone different from themselves. If they don’t have a story, ask them why they avoid the stranger. This is a perfect time to address how differences make us stronger as a collective.
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The Immediate Word, April 28, 2024 issue.
Copyright 2024 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.
