All In The Family
Sermon
ACTING ON THE ABSURD
Second Lesson Sermons For Sundays After Pentecost
How to begin a sermon? It always is a preacher's dilemma as to how to introduce a sermon. I never seem to know. I do know that one has said that an introduction to a sermon should be short and concise and should introduce the main thought that the proclaimer is seeking to present. I also know that it is very much appreciated if the introduction is very close to the conclusion. But, how does one introduce a sermon?
I pondered how to introduce this homily. I thought that one way to begin would be to tell a joke. There is a story about a young boy who was observed by one of his neighbors walking around the block time and time again while carrying a large sack in his hand. The neighbor stopped him and said, "Well, son, I've noticed that you have been walking around the block. What's going on?" The young boy said, "I'm running away from home." "Oh, you are! Well, I guess that sack has your belongings in it?" "Right." "Let me ask you, if you are running away from home, why are you just walking around the block?" The young boy said, "Oh, my mother told me never to cross the street."
If I had begun the sermon that way, I probably would have followed it up by saying that even when there is disgruntlement in the family being a part of the family is still very special. Being a part of the family is something most of us desire. But I decided against using that joke.
Also I could have begun the sermon by telling a story. I have a story. Recently my wife and I were privileged to spend time with our parents. My father pulled out a stack of old papers and with great delight presented to me a check that was written on May 5, 1955. The check was made out to my father, upon which the memo read, "For Father's Day!" It was signed by me and the sum of the check was for one billion dollars. Needless to say, my father never tried to cash that check. He has kept it all of these years. If he had cashed that check and somehow by a miracle gotten the money, the amount still would have been insufficient to repay him for all that he is to me.
If I had started the sermon that way, I probably would have proceeded by posing the question, "How can we ever repay someone for giving us life and nurturing us through the varied circumstances and adjustments that constitutes our rearing?" Impossible! But I decided against using that story.
An additional way of starting a sermon would be to refer to something previously presented in the worship service, such as a hymn, an anthem, a passage of scripture, or the touching testimony of a member of the congregation as he detailed his experience of being adopted by his parents.
"Adoption," verse 23, is such a beautiful word as used by Paul. It is an image that he uses to convey the very wonderful act by which God loves us and accepts us into his family. What a beautiful picture! We are not born into the family of God. We are not a member of the family of God by birth or right or nationality. It is a gift of God's love and grace. We are born in the image of God with the capacity to respond to God's love and his offer of salvation. It is not our inheritance. It is an offer of the gift of God's grace that requires our faith response. The entirety of our lives is a process through which we are adopted into God's family and consummated as we go to be with the Lord or he comes again. Adoption - what a beautiful image of what it means to be loved, chosen, blessed, and accepted by God.
Having been received into his family, we, therefore, have the power to choose life and to walk in the spirit as a child of God. "Because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, 'Abba, Father' " (vv. 14--15 NIV). Paul states that if we walk in the Spirit, we are the children of God. To the children of God, he gives the power to put to death the misdeeds of the flesh (v. 13). He gives to us the power to live in daily victory over sin in our lives. He gives us power to exercise and realize what it is to be a chosen and blessed child of God. How are we to do that? I think that there are at least a couple of steps that we might take.
One step we might take in walking as a child of God is to remember constantly to unmask the world around us. The world around us is consistently telling us lies about ourselves. The voices around us can be disturbing, controlling, power hungry, and even destructive as they seek to eat away at our self--identity as a child of God. We are uniquely created, chosen, and blessed of God. We must remind ourselves of that.
The voices of the world around us are not true. They seek to tempt us to engage in comparisons and competitions with others around us. If we do so, we can be led to a false sense of pride or to a paralyzing sense of despair. The truth is that there always will be people who are more attractive and less attractive than we are. Always there will be those who are more powerful and influential than we are and some who are less so. There always will be those who are ahead of us and those who are behind us. We can waste our lives comparing ourselves with others and fail to realize our own individual uniqueness and potential. We can let the world shape us into its own image, or we can let God shape us into the very image of Christ.
Another step we might take as we seek to walk in the Spirit as a child of God is to look for places where the truth is told about us. We need to surround ourselves with people who remind us of who and whose we are. The voices of the world will put us down. Every day they will invite us for a hot, steaming cup of despair. That is why we must take the intentional step to surround ourselves with loved ones and other children of God who remind us of the unique individual we are in God's sight. We can choose the voices to which we listen.
Another step that is available to us along our journey is to celebrate constantly our own chosenness with gratitude. We can thank God without ceasing. We are unique. We were not a twist of fate or a random consequence of an unfinished universe. We are an intentional dream in the mind of God.
One of my twin sons asked years ago, "We were an accident, weren't we?" "I beg your pardon!" I asked. "We were an accident, right? I mean, our older brother was only eighteen months old when we were born. Three kids so close together. We were an accident, right?" I exclaimed, "No! No! No, not at all! We wanted to have our children close together. Your mother and her sister were eighteen months apart. We thought how wonderful it would be to have children eighteen months apart. That's what we planned for and we missed it by one day. Eighteen months and one day! If the doctor had been there on time, we'd have gotten it right on the nose. You cannot plan those kind of things much better than that. You were anything but an accident!"
I hate the term "illegitimacy" with a passion. I recoil in horror every time I hear that detestable word. There are no "illegitimate" children. To pigeonhole or label a child so is a step beyond cruelty. That everything may not have been as it should have been with their parents is no reason to brand a child. There are no illegitimate children in God's eyes. Every child is born in the image of God with a capacity to respond to God, and we hope every child will be given opportunities to be adopted in God's family as his child. Unlike earthly adoption, the choice lies with the child in God's kingdom. God has already done everything he can do to adopt us into his kingdom, and God is waiting for our response. So, we can thank God without ceasing for what he has already done for us. Gratitude becomes the major characteristic of the child of God. As one has said, "God has two places in which to dwell; one is heaven, the other is a grateful heart!"
We, thusly, can enjoy the marvelous benefits of being a child of God because we are secure in the love of the Heavenly Parent. "For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the spirit of sonship ..." (v. 15a). Nothing can ever separate us from the love of our Father.
I have often wondered, "How did Jesus do it? How did Jesus work tirelessly? How did Jesus perform miracles? How did Jesus go everywhere doing good in the face of opposition and in the face of doubt from his own family? How did Jesus do it? How did Jesus win the victory in the Garden of Gethsemane? How did Jesus face the cross and all the horrible suffering and shame? How did he do it? He did it because he was secure in the Father's love. He knew that nothing could ever separate him from his Heavenly Father. What God did for Jesus, he'll do for us.
I recently saw an interview with George Foreman, twice crowned Heavyweight Champion of the World. He showed a photograph of himself and another man. He said (pointing to the other man), "That is my biological father. Even after I was Heavyweight Champion of the World I did not know that my father was not my biological father. I found my biological father and he's a nice guy." Then he said, "But Foreman is my father because he loved me."
We are secure in our Heavenly Parent's love and we belong to the heavenly family. "The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children" (v. 16 NIV). Because we are his child, we have direct access to the Father. "By him we cry, 'Abba,' Father" (v. 15b). "Abba" is the Aramaic word for "daddy." "Daddy, give me a nickel." "Daddy, give me a dime." (Or today, "Daddy, give me ten dollars or twenty dollars.") But, God is Daddy, not some far--removed deity: transcendent, removed from us, but Daddy, who is here and walks with us every step of the way. We never have to talk to "Daddy" through a raised newspaper. We never have to talk to "Mommy" while she has one eye on us and one eye on the television screen. No! As a chosen and blessed child of God, you always have direct access to the Heavenly Parent and 100 percent of his or her undivided attention. Isn't that something to celebrate?
More and more I am aware that I was reared in a different time than today. Believe it or not, we seldom locked our doors and I never remember my parents owning an alarm clock. We did not need one. My mother was our alarm clock! Countless times I would stumble in the house at all hours of the night, stick my head into my parents' bedroom, and say, "Mom, wake me at so and so in the morning." Without fail, the warm and clear voice would always respond, "Okay." Dullard me! Embarrassingly, I do not remember the too--advanced age at which I realized that she slept with one eye open and with a listening ear to my car driving up in the driveway. I had her undivided attention even while she was "at rest." That kind of love is certainly worth celebrating and something for which I will ever be grateful.
Paul continues to emphasize that we can celebrate the incredible inheritance we shall receive as a child of God. "Now if we are children, then we are heirs - heirs of God and co--heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory" (v. 17). Everything Jesus has in heaven today, one day shall be yours. Everything Jesus is today, one day you shall be. You are God's chosen and blessed child - the same as your brother - Jesus, himself.
Bobbie Gee tells the story of Al, a talented and gifted artist. He had two sons. The older son didn't feel well one night because of a minor stomach problem. Thinking it wasn't serious, they put him to bed. During the night the child died from acute appendicitis. It was a horrible tragedy from which the family never recovered. The father's health began to deteriorate mentally and the mother left him with a six--year--old child. Al continued to deteriorate and became an alcoholic.
He lost it all - his home, his reputation, and his job. Years later Al died alone in a San Francisco motel room. Bobbie Gee thought to herself about Al's wasted life, but then she began to think of the younger son, Ernie, who was one of the most caring, loving, and kind persons that she knew.
Bobbie Gee asked Ernie, "I know that your father raised you alone, and his life was full of many heartaches and problems. But tell me, how did you get to be the wonderful person that you are?" He said, "As far back as I can remember and until the day I left home at age eighteen, every night my father came into my bedroom and gave me a kiss and told me, 'Son, I love you.' "1
If such love could be communicated from such an imperfect parent, how much more can the love of our Heavenly Parent be communicated to us? If that parent could love that much, how much more does God love you? Absurd, but true! It is all a part of being in the family of God.
____________
1. Jack Caufield and Mark Victor Hansen, Chicken Soup For The Soul (Deerfield Beach, Florida: Health Communications, Inc., 1993), p. 117.
I pondered how to introduce this homily. I thought that one way to begin would be to tell a joke. There is a story about a young boy who was observed by one of his neighbors walking around the block time and time again while carrying a large sack in his hand. The neighbor stopped him and said, "Well, son, I've noticed that you have been walking around the block. What's going on?" The young boy said, "I'm running away from home." "Oh, you are! Well, I guess that sack has your belongings in it?" "Right." "Let me ask you, if you are running away from home, why are you just walking around the block?" The young boy said, "Oh, my mother told me never to cross the street."
If I had begun the sermon that way, I probably would have followed it up by saying that even when there is disgruntlement in the family being a part of the family is still very special. Being a part of the family is something most of us desire. But I decided against using that joke.
Also I could have begun the sermon by telling a story. I have a story. Recently my wife and I were privileged to spend time with our parents. My father pulled out a stack of old papers and with great delight presented to me a check that was written on May 5, 1955. The check was made out to my father, upon which the memo read, "For Father's Day!" It was signed by me and the sum of the check was for one billion dollars. Needless to say, my father never tried to cash that check. He has kept it all of these years. If he had cashed that check and somehow by a miracle gotten the money, the amount still would have been insufficient to repay him for all that he is to me.
If I had started the sermon that way, I probably would have proceeded by posing the question, "How can we ever repay someone for giving us life and nurturing us through the varied circumstances and adjustments that constitutes our rearing?" Impossible! But I decided against using that story.
An additional way of starting a sermon would be to refer to something previously presented in the worship service, such as a hymn, an anthem, a passage of scripture, or the touching testimony of a member of the congregation as he detailed his experience of being adopted by his parents.
"Adoption," verse 23, is such a beautiful word as used by Paul. It is an image that he uses to convey the very wonderful act by which God loves us and accepts us into his family. What a beautiful picture! We are not born into the family of God. We are not a member of the family of God by birth or right or nationality. It is a gift of God's love and grace. We are born in the image of God with the capacity to respond to God's love and his offer of salvation. It is not our inheritance. It is an offer of the gift of God's grace that requires our faith response. The entirety of our lives is a process through which we are adopted into God's family and consummated as we go to be with the Lord or he comes again. Adoption - what a beautiful image of what it means to be loved, chosen, blessed, and accepted by God.
Having been received into his family, we, therefore, have the power to choose life and to walk in the spirit as a child of God. "Because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, 'Abba, Father' " (vv. 14--15 NIV). Paul states that if we walk in the Spirit, we are the children of God. To the children of God, he gives the power to put to death the misdeeds of the flesh (v. 13). He gives to us the power to live in daily victory over sin in our lives. He gives us power to exercise and realize what it is to be a chosen and blessed child of God. How are we to do that? I think that there are at least a couple of steps that we might take.
One step we might take in walking as a child of God is to remember constantly to unmask the world around us. The world around us is consistently telling us lies about ourselves. The voices around us can be disturbing, controlling, power hungry, and even destructive as they seek to eat away at our self--identity as a child of God. We are uniquely created, chosen, and blessed of God. We must remind ourselves of that.
The voices of the world around us are not true. They seek to tempt us to engage in comparisons and competitions with others around us. If we do so, we can be led to a false sense of pride or to a paralyzing sense of despair. The truth is that there always will be people who are more attractive and less attractive than we are. Always there will be those who are more powerful and influential than we are and some who are less so. There always will be those who are ahead of us and those who are behind us. We can waste our lives comparing ourselves with others and fail to realize our own individual uniqueness and potential. We can let the world shape us into its own image, or we can let God shape us into the very image of Christ.
Another step we might take as we seek to walk in the Spirit as a child of God is to look for places where the truth is told about us. We need to surround ourselves with people who remind us of who and whose we are. The voices of the world will put us down. Every day they will invite us for a hot, steaming cup of despair. That is why we must take the intentional step to surround ourselves with loved ones and other children of God who remind us of the unique individual we are in God's sight. We can choose the voices to which we listen.
Another step that is available to us along our journey is to celebrate constantly our own chosenness with gratitude. We can thank God without ceasing. We are unique. We were not a twist of fate or a random consequence of an unfinished universe. We are an intentional dream in the mind of God.
One of my twin sons asked years ago, "We were an accident, weren't we?" "I beg your pardon!" I asked. "We were an accident, right? I mean, our older brother was only eighteen months old when we were born. Three kids so close together. We were an accident, right?" I exclaimed, "No! No! No, not at all! We wanted to have our children close together. Your mother and her sister were eighteen months apart. We thought how wonderful it would be to have children eighteen months apart. That's what we planned for and we missed it by one day. Eighteen months and one day! If the doctor had been there on time, we'd have gotten it right on the nose. You cannot plan those kind of things much better than that. You were anything but an accident!"
I hate the term "illegitimacy" with a passion. I recoil in horror every time I hear that detestable word. There are no "illegitimate" children. To pigeonhole or label a child so is a step beyond cruelty. That everything may not have been as it should have been with their parents is no reason to brand a child. There are no illegitimate children in God's eyes. Every child is born in the image of God with a capacity to respond to God, and we hope every child will be given opportunities to be adopted in God's family as his child. Unlike earthly adoption, the choice lies with the child in God's kingdom. God has already done everything he can do to adopt us into his kingdom, and God is waiting for our response. So, we can thank God without ceasing for what he has already done for us. Gratitude becomes the major characteristic of the child of God. As one has said, "God has two places in which to dwell; one is heaven, the other is a grateful heart!"
We, thusly, can enjoy the marvelous benefits of being a child of God because we are secure in the love of the Heavenly Parent. "For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the spirit of sonship ..." (v. 15a). Nothing can ever separate us from the love of our Father.
I have often wondered, "How did Jesus do it? How did Jesus work tirelessly? How did Jesus perform miracles? How did Jesus go everywhere doing good in the face of opposition and in the face of doubt from his own family? How did Jesus do it? How did Jesus win the victory in the Garden of Gethsemane? How did Jesus face the cross and all the horrible suffering and shame? How did he do it? He did it because he was secure in the Father's love. He knew that nothing could ever separate him from his Heavenly Father. What God did for Jesus, he'll do for us.
I recently saw an interview with George Foreman, twice crowned Heavyweight Champion of the World. He showed a photograph of himself and another man. He said (pointing to the other man), "That is my biological father. Even after I was Heavyweight Champion of the World I did not know that my father was not my biological father. I found my biological father and he's a nice guy." Then he said, "But Foreman is my father because he loved me."
We are secure in our Heavenly Parent's love and we belong to the heavenly family. "The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children" (v. 16 NIV). Because we are his child, we have direct access to the Father. "By him we cry, 'Abba,' Father" (v. 15b). "Abba" is the Aramaic word for "daddy." "Daddy, give me a nickel." "Daddy, give me a dime." (Or today, "Daddy, give me ten dollars or twenty dollars.") But, God is Daddy, not some far--removed deity: transcendent, removed from us, but Daddy, who is here and walks with us every step of the way. We never have to talk to "Daddy" through a raised newspaper. We never have to talk to "Mommy" while she has one eye on us and one eye on the television screen. No! As a chosen and blessed child of God, you always have direct access to the Heavenly Parent and 100 percent of his or her undivided attention. Isn't that something to celebrate?
More and more I am aware that I was reared in a different time than today. Believe it or not, we seldom locked our doors and I never remember my parents owning an alarm clock. We did not need one. My mother was our alarm clock! Countless times I would stumble in the house at all hours of the night, stick my head into my parents' bedroom, and say, "Mom, wake me at so and so in the morning." Without fail, the warm and clear voice would always respond, "Okay." Dullard me! Embarrassingly, I do not remember the too--advanced age at which I realized that she slept with one eye open and with a listening ear to my car driving up in the driveway. I had her undivided attention even while she was "at rest." That kind of love is certainly worth celebrating and something for which I will ever be grateful.
Paul continues to emphasize that we can celebrate the incredible inheritance we shall receive as a child of God. "Now if we are children, then we are heirs - heirs of God and co--heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory" (v. 17). Everything Jesus has in heaven today, one day shall be yours. Everything Jesus is today, one day you shall be. You are God's chosen and blessed child - the same as your brother - Jesus, himself.
Bobbie Gee tells the story of Al, a talented and gifted artist. He had two sons. The older son didn't feel well one night because of a minor stomach problem. Thinking it wasn't serious, they put him to bed. During the night the child died from acute appendicitis. It was a horrible tragedy from which the family never recovered. The father's health began to deteriorate mentally and the mother left him with a six--year--old child. Al continued to deteriorate and became an alcoholic.
He lost it all - his home, his reputation, and his job. Years later Al died alone in a San Francisco motel room. Bobbie Gee thought to herself about Al's wasted life, but then she began to think of the younger son, Ernie, who was one of the most caring, loving, and kind persons that she knew.
Bobbie Gee asked Ernie, "I know that your father raised you alone, and his life was full of many heartaches and problems. But tell me, how did you get to be the wonderful person that you are?" He said, "As far back as I can remember and until the day I left home at age eighteen, every night my father came into my bedroom and gave me a kiss and told me, 'Son, I love you.' "1
If such love could be communicated from such an imperfect parent, how much more can the love of our Heavenly Parent be communicated to us? If that parent could love that much, how much more does God love you? Absurd, but true! It is all a part of being in the family of God.
____________
1. Jack Caufield and Mark Victor Hansen, Chicken Soup For The Soul (Deerfield Beach, Florida: Health Communications, Inc., 1993), p. 117.
