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One way to
imagine the recent trip to the World Cup in Germany that saw my son Jim and
I, and Dave Jones and his son Scott drive 3,000 miles around Germany, would
be to merge some aspect of the following movies: National Lampoon’s European
Vacation, Thelma and Louise, The Odd Couple, The Fast and the Furious,
Grumpy Old Men, Days of Lightning, Rain Man, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, RV,
Brutus Buckeye Does Europe, It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World and Grumpier Old
Men.
Hitting the road, especially in a smallish Recreational
Vehicle, with people you know can be one of
those make or break experiences. It can be great for friendship and bonding,
for making unique and shared memories or it can be
a howling disaster! It can be a trip of a lifetime or the final stop in a
wonderful friendship. It can be a way into a whole new relationship or a
cul-de-sac from which there seems no escape.
You will all be relieved to know that Jim and I are still speaking, that
Dave and Scott are still speaking and that all four of us are still speaking
to one another! Actually we are speaking a whole
lot… mainly about what those other folks in our van did or didn’t do that
annoyed us! The dishes they left unwashed; the
towels they dragged on the floor; the luggage that
they scattered in our space; the socks that they
seemed to wear for a week; the smells
and the noises. Truthfully we had a blast.
We had some issues to deal with:
a jammed door and a broken key, but we
maintained our togetherness and our unity.
And we met lots of great people and saw lots of
great soccer!
And here we are today, part of another great group that always needs to do
some "togethering". Yes, we could think of Church as
the ultimate RV experience. We
are always doing so many things together with other people and then once a
week, every Sunday, we all climb together into our RV -
our Religious Vehicle - and we share in another great family reunion!
From the words we read in
Ephesians today, as well as in countless places in
the Bible, we know that the life of the church is essentially communal,
reflecting the family relationship we all have as children of God. The
Christian community is held together by and in the “bond of peace”; a bond
defined by the virtues of humility, gentleness, patience, dealing with each
other with love and being unified in the Spirit. All of these virtues are
key to a successful RV vacation and to the life of a healthy church!
Church life
is communal and church life is also creedal. The creed of our RV in Germany
was get to as many World Cup games as possible, as quickly as possible! As a
Church community we have many, many shared beliefs. We exist as a community
of faith: committed to being one body, strengthened by one Spirit, called to
one hope, following one Lord, acknowledging one faith, living out one
baptism, trusting one God. These beliefs are our roots, our foundations; this faith is what ties us together.
Church life
is communal and creedal. Church life is also
charismatic. In Greek the word,
“charis” means gift or grace – it gives us words that include charity. The
Church as the creedal community bearing the likeness of our Lord is
marvelously “graced” and gifted. The church is not intended to be a
homogenous group sightseeing its way through the Christian experience.
At
its best the Church is a community in action, calling upon and using the
gifts of people of all different ages, stages and abilities. These gifts and
graces are not for our entertainment or amusement.
The gifts are to be
shared so that all of us might be prepared for ministry – seeing that the
church is strengthened in love and faith so it can serve others and so that
the whole Church can focus on the One who is the Bread of Life.
In our RV
Scott might cook, Jim might sleep, I might drive and Dave, well Dave might
make the tea! In the Northminster RV we all have places where we can express
our God-given gifts in the life of our church.
Church life
is communal, creedal, charismatic and church life is also caring. Within our
community we are to speak the truth in love.
We are not to be bitter or
thieving or angry or malicious.
We are to be kind to one another,
tender-hearted, forgiving, as God has forgiven us, as God loves us.
As an aside,
notice that there’s no mention here of heaven as the ultimate vacation
venue. Indeed, the church really “arrives” not when it reaches heaven,
but
when it functions fully as the body of Christ in the world.
The church is at
its best when everyone has a stake in our shared adventure here and now, and
tomorrow, and next week and next year.
Christianity
is the ultimate group project where togethering is a requirement not an
optional extra. This togethering, aided by and expressed through the “unity
of the spirit”, does and must push the church outward into the world, to
engage with people in the joys and struggles of their lives, inviting them
to faith and to use their gifts, all of us together in the great adventure
of serving God.
To get our RV
on the road to our next destination took all of us.
There was much to be done: we had to empty our
trash, get rid of our gray water and our “unmentionable” water, we had to
take on fresh water, disconnect our power line, fold away our chairs and
tables, collapse our awning, secure the windows, make sure everything was
stowed, close all the cupboards, make sure we had the correct route and maps
and then, if we could ever get Dave out of the Tea Shop or the
toilet, we could leave! In the same way, every person in
the life of our church is needed and wanted.
All of you have those certain
things that you can already do well, and a few others that you can and are
learning to do well. It takes all of us to be willing to step up, do our
bit, and then get out of the road so that everyone else can do their bit.
With Christ at the centre we are lead forward to unity which is not the same
as uniformity. There can and indeed needs to be diversity within unity.
There will be differences; people with different gifts, different people
with slightly different emphases in their faith but all with a shared focus
on serving Christ in God’s world, among all God’s people.
At this point
in the sermon I want to connect this togethering with our readings these few
weeks in John 6 about Jesus the Bread of Life. I recently came across this
simple story: As World War II came to an end, many orphaned children,
rescued from starvation and afraid of what the next day might bring, were
unable to sleep. To help with this problem someone suggested that each of
the children be given a small piece of bread to hold at bedtime as a sign
that tomorrow there would still be food and hope. Holding this small piece
of bread comforted the traumatized youngsters and enabled them to fall
asleep. A simple piece of bread brought the miracle of rest to kids ravaged
by the obscenities of war.
As members of
Northminster - a communal, creedal, charismatic and caring Church -
we are
all being asked to offer the Bread of Life to any and all who need it, to
all who desire it, to all who can benefit from knowing God’s love for them
in Jesus Christ. For this task God has blessed this Church family with
gifts, many, many gifts. All of these gifts are intended to be utilized and
shared as we work together in harmony within the community of faith.
Gathered
today for our weekly family reunion this is never just a time to swap old
stories or look at old photographs. This is a time to listen for God, to
pray for the needs of the world, to share life together, to identify those
places where God needs our gifts. As I remind you of some of the gifts in
our midst, please listen, listen for what it is God is calling you to do and
be as together we serve God.
The gift of
Hospitality: You love to be a hostess, you enjoy meeting new people, you
work in sales. You are needed to be a Welcome Table greeter, welcoming
visitors, connecting all members to each other.
The gift of
Ministry: You sense a call to some specific form of Christian service, you
are an ordained elder or deacon, you keep hearing about some need or way of
serving. Step right up and get going.
The gift of
Prayer: You peruse the prayer list avidly, other people ask you to pray for
them, you know you are close to God when you pray.
Make sure you share with
others that you pray for them, see if you can connect with others to meet to
pray.
The gift of
Teaching: You can explain things well, you can speak of your own
experiences of God and faith, you have a burden for children or youth or
newlyweds or singles. There is always a place for those who can teach
English to immigrants, the stories of the Bible to children, the meaning of
a maturing faith to teens and adults.
The gift of
Giving: You have resources to share, you have know blessing in life, in
your career, in your investments, in what you have inherited.
There are
some specific resources under your control that when released to the life
and work of the church will make a profound and significant contribution
that nothing else can.
The gift of
Compassion:
You have a heart for the hurts and pains of the people around
you, you sense pain, you know when someone is hurting.
Step forward to work
with your deacon, get engaged with Congregational Care, visit someone who is
a shut-in.
The Northminster RV is ready to move forward to serve God.
There is much for us to be doing, lots for us to
be excited over and many things that need our attention. As a communal,
creedal, charismatic and caring church, there are
a growing number of opportunities for all of us to serve God and to serve
our neighbor,
offering to each and all the very Bread of Life – Jesus our Lord. Amen. |
