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Mike Sorsen: called of God, a man of considerable gifts, mature in life, devoted to his family, distinguished in bearing, poised in delivery. Now to go to Emporia, Kansas, where he will be… a rookie!

In the early days of ministry, a young man reported to a church. It was not many days before someone from the mayor’s office of this small town called to say that there has been the death of a homeless man there. No family… no real connection. In the past, others in the community have taken their turn. Would he do the funeral? And because it will be his first, he readily agreed. He prepared himself and headed out to what will be a new cemetery. But, because he is unfamiliar with the territory, he was late. Now five minutes… ten minutes… fifteen minutes late as he arrived. The hearse is gone, but the backhoe and the crew of three were still there. He slid into his robe and his new white stole and with his service book, he strode up to the place. Looking down, he saw the vault already there. He opened his book and read lines of scripture and then called for prayer. And the three-man crew at the backhoe who have thus far been eating their lunch came up and joined him. He prayed. And then he began to share all that he had learned about the promises of God in Jesus Christ. Twelve minutes, during which time the crew, obviously not Presbyterian, began to say “Amen” and “Praise the Lord” and “Preach it brother.” And having captured that moment perfectly, he now closed with a prayer, shook hands with the crew and went back to his car to take off his robe and his new stole. And as he took off his robe, feeling proud of what he has done for the departed, he heard the head of the crew say to the others, “That is the darndest thing I have ever seen. And I have been installing septic tanks for 20 years!”

How does someone like Mike, however well prepared, go with confidence to a new place, to minister among new people? The scripture that we read today says over and over again something about testimony. So when Mike goes, his confidence will not come from his own ability, but from the fact that he will be surrounded there not only by good people, but also by three witnesses.

Scripture tells us that the first witness is Water. That God testified by the water in His son Jesus Christ. You will recall that when Jesus began his ministry, he followed God’s voice out into the wilderness and there in the River Jordan, he was baptized by John the Baptist. And when he came up out of the water, God Himself testified to the person of Jesus. And Jesus, when he was about to ascend, turned to his disciples, to us, and said, “Baptize in the name of Father, Son and Holy Spirit.” And now for 2,000 years, we have turned again to the Water for its testimony. Peter the rock and Paul the evangelist… baptizing. Martyrs before they died and monks before they went to the dessert baptizing. John Calvin and John Knox… baptizing. Witherspoon at Princeton and Peter Marshall in the U.S. Senate. A Baptist like Billy Graham. And Pope John Paul. And chaplains at Ivy League schools. And Martin Luther King, Jr. All baptizing. Pastors around the world, of every race and in every nation, calling on the witness of the water. Dwight Bayley… here. Jim Simpson… here. And now Mike Sorsen, in whose hands, the water will claim and cleanse, confirm and commission. He, bearing with him the witness of the water.

And Scripture says not only water alone, but also the Blood. Perhaps the person who wrote 1 John had in mind that scene at the cross where Jesus’ side is pierced and both water and blood emerge. But, when we, as a congregation, get together and think of blood, we think of this table. You will experience a great deal of responsibility here. For though it is a simple ritual, yet the details are always to be worked out. It will be you who sees that the bread and cup are here. You, who takes and blesses and breaks and gives; and then you, who with a pitcher and a cup, says, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood.”

Years ago, when I was a rookie, I spilled the cup! I had been away on vacation and someone’s mother gave a new pitcher to the church that had a long, narrow neck. I had no time to practice. When I got to that point in the Service, I lifted the cup and put the pitcher at the same angles that it always should be… and nothing came out. And then, when I pushed it further, out came a flood! Some of it into the cup, but you could hear the Congregation gasp. Partly out of embarrassment and partly out of curiosity… what do you do at a moment like this? But I avoided the embarrassment, because standing there and looking down, I saw the juice now splattered upon the brass and the white table cloth and my white stole. And suddenly, the meaning of it all came back; not really ritual, but reality. He died not on a cross of gold between two candles, but on a wooden cross between two thieves. And when His blood fell, it stained the very earth on which we walk. That it the blood that you will hold up and invite us all to partake of. And the blood will be the witness.

Water and blood and Spirit. If you have a lectern in Emporia, it there where you will read from scripture; you or one of your elders. Sometimes you will read it and members of the Congregation will be so caught up in what you read, that they will not listen to what follows. It will be the spirit speaking through those pages that have been inspired and preserved and that now are God’s gift to us. It is the spirit that will testify. And, if you are lucky in Emporia and have a choir half as good as ours, then sometimes after they have sung then you can merely say “Amen.” But, not always. I expect the people who pay you will occasionally want you to preach. Three witnesses and now your own testimony. Scripture speaks of that.

Let me give you four pieces of advice:

First, develop a Scottish accent. Nobody ever heard a mediocre sermon delivered with a brogue.

Second, continue to be a person of high character. Chaucer once said, “If gold rusts, what will iron do?” If you do not personally set the bar high, what can you expect from the people who call you to be their leader?

Third, be a person of courage and talk about those things that matter. A young minister, this time of year, called to a church in Kentucky, fired with passion over what he had learned in seminary, in three consecutive weeks preached on the evils of gambling, the dangers of strong drink and they way in which fossil fuels threaten the environment. After three weeks, one of the elders came to him and said, “You know, the Kentucky Derby is the biggest event in our lives here and we like to wager a couple of dollars. And three-fourths of the Congregation works either in the distillery or in the mines. I don’t want to tell you what you ought to do, I fell that you ought to think about that.” The minister talked it over with his wife, who was keenly aware of the implications. He said to her, “I will not compromise myself” and she understood. And on the fourth Sunday when he strolled into the pulpit and preached, he did so with great fervor. The elder who had spoken to him before met him at the door and said, “Preacher, in all my years, I have never heard a sermon against cannibalism quite like that.”

Fourth, more than anything else, be someone who cares! 2003, three years ago this month, the National Basketball Association playoff was in full swing. The Portland Trailblazers were playing host to a visiting team. They had had a local competition to identify those people who had real talent. And a young woman named Natalie Gilbert was selected to sing the National Anthem at this game. The great flag was displayed by a color guard. 20,000 people fill the arena. This little slip of a girl stepped forward with a microphone and began to sing acapella, “Oh say can you see, by the dawn’s early light. What so proudly we hailed at the starlight’s…” Starlight wasn’t right! She realized that and so did everybody else. And so she stopped. And when she stopped, her mind went blank. Whistles and catcalls began to fill the arena. She was desperate, she had never felt so alone. She took the microphone and pressed it to her forehead, hoping it would tell her the words. But, it couldn’t. She looked to her side for somebody; for anybody to help her. We looked away because we were embarrassed. Mo Cheeks is a giant of a man; a man who was a star in the NBA and became coach of the Trailblazers. Out of sight of the camera, he soon came to her saying, “Come on now… come on now. The twilight’s last gleaming.” And she got out, “The twilight’s last gleaming.” He put his arm around her and they began a strained duet. The coach lined out the words as we used to in church. He, “The bombs bursting in air.” And then she, “The bombs bursting in air.” He, “Gave proof through the night.” She, “Gave proof through the night.” And suddenly momentum began to build. The cameras began to pan the crowd. Tommy Heinson, who was coach of the other team, an old banger in the NBA; Tommy Heinson began to sing. And his players began to sing, and then the other coaches. And then the fans began to sing. A thousand at first… and then two thousand. And then Cheeks, with one arm around Natalie and the other arm encouraging and conducting, drew them all in and the singing grew louder and louder. And they together, Natalie and Moe leading them on, onward with the sound crescendoing to “The land of the free and the home of the brave.” And when they finished, there were cheers… unbelievable cheers and thunderous applause and hurrahs from every corner of that arena because they had witnessed what could have been disaster become rescue and recovery and everyone’s triumph.

And Mike, that story tells us what ministry is. Care about people. Go where the need is. Stand strong beside the weak. Remind them of the words… the words. Help them find their voice and invite others to join in the effort. And then together,  all together, finish the song. Whenever you do that, it will be an anthem to God.

Three divine witnesses, the Water and the Blood and the Spirit, now are entrusted to Mike Sorsen and he will go to Emporia. And though he will be a rookie, he will be a really, really good one!

What about you? In a few moments, we will come forward. The Commission of the Presbytery and others and we will lay our hands on Mike’s head. What, if in that moment, God laid His hands upon your heart? It is not for me to know who you are. You might be in the second grade or you might be someone already accomplished, considering a second career. You might be a teenager facing all those challenges that teenagers face today; and knowing that there must be a better way. Or maybe you are grown, but still idealistic; you still want to make a difference in the world. Or maybe you are a graduate, full of potential. And now, suddenly in this hour, with Mike present, you have found your purpose. You might always have known, but only now it might be dawning on you. But, for 2,000 years the Water and the Blood and the Spirit have been entrusted to the voices and the hands of women and men like you and me.

So, in this hour say to you, “Listen!” And I say to God, “Call your next witness!”  Amen.