“Believing, Speaking, Extending”
Preached Sunday, June 9, 2024
This last week I joked with many of you that if my sermon was a little shorter than usual…it’s because I spent too much time talking to our Trash and Treasure volunteers instead of writing my sermon! But really, I am an extrovert and that’s one of my greatest joys as a pastor: being able to connect and be in relationship with my congregation, with my community. And when I sat down to write this sermon, I realized how important staying connected to his congregations, to his communities, how important it was for the Apostle Paul as well.
Our reading from 2 Corinthians today is Paul doing just that - although it could have been under happier circumstances. This is actually the third letter Paul wrote to the Corinthians, the second letter which he said was “written in tears” is lost to us but it’s evident that the Christians in Corinth were having significant disagreements and issues. In this letter and our text from today, he is urging them towards perseverance in the face of persecution and ultimately reconciliation with him and one another.
One of the rich things about Scripture, however, is the multiple layers of meaning. I always say there are at least two layers - at least - to all Scripture. What the author of the Scripture was saying to the original community and how God is speaking through that same text to us today. So while Paul may have had a specific intention of speaking of perseverance and reconciliation as he wrote, when I read this letter with the people of Boardman United Methodist Church in my mind, rather than the people of the Church of Corinth, what I hear God saying to me and to us in the pews today is a message of encouragement of how we live out our faith - our faith in the God of Love who was Resurrected.
The encouragement is simply this:
Believe in the God of Love who was Resurrected.
Speak of the Love you experience through our Resurrected Lord.
And extend that Love and Grace to all.
Believe. Speak. Extend. Resurrection & Love.
Let’s look at this a little more closely.
Our reading from Paul starts with him quoting the Psalms: “I believe and so I spoke.” Paul adds, “we also believe, and so we speak.” The Psalmist is talking about keeping faith and praising God even among trials and tribulations. Paul too is alluding to this. And yet I wondered - before we even get to the speaking part - what is it that we believe? What is it to have faith?
Paul answers this in the very next verse: “because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus, and will bring us with you into his presence.” What we believe is simply this: Jesus who was and is Lord was raised from the dead and God has plans to share that Resurrection with us, and pull us all into God’s loving and living presence.
And yet, I want to spend a little bit of time talking about what it means to believe this morning. Just six verses after our reading from today ends, Paul says, “We walk by faith, not by sight.” But I believe our current culture is often uncomfortable with the ambiguity of faith and thus many Christians and Churches have compiled a check-list of Christian beliefs and you have to tick every box or you’re not considered “one of us” - for some this is strongly implied and yet still others may have explicit Affirmations or Creeds and you have to sign on the bottom line in order to be a part of the community.
Now, don’t get me wrong - I think creeds are very important. I myself hold to the Nicene and Apostles Creeds - which if you aren’t familiar with can be found on page 800 - 802 of our United Methodist Hymnal. And United Methodists do have Articles of Religion that hold the official views of the Church and we have our own distinct Wesleyan theology…
And…not but…and… Faith is so much more than mentally believing what someone tells you to believe. Faith is much more than checking boxes - Belief in the Trinity? Check. Belief in the Divine and Human Nature of Christ? Check. Belief in the Virgin Birth? Check…. Etc, etc. Individuals are going to have different experiences, different thought processes and different qualms about various beliefs or tenets of faith. There are also essential and non-essential aspects of faith and different churches, sects, and individuals won’t always agree where the line is between these things. I tend to take a broad picture approach, as John Wesley, the founder of Methodism said, “Though we may not think alike, may we not love alike.” I’m not saying that what we believe as Christians is a free-for-all, what I am saying is that I don’t think we should assume that faith as Christians is monolithic and that we shouldn’t assume that everyone in the pews is in the same place.
Two years ago, acclaimed Christian author Brian McLaren wrote a book entitled, “Do I Stay Christian?” He lists the theological, ethical, and even moral objections many in our world today have surrounding Christianity…and the acts of Christians. He looks at a history of anti-Semitism, of Christian violence, of Colonialism…and so much more. He spends the first half of the book answering all the reasons one could or should walk away from the Christian faith. In the second half of the book he attempts to answer all the reasons one should stay Christian, to hold fast to one’s faith, and not throw in the towel on our religion. In a world today where there is increasing backlash toward the actions of Christians that don’t match Christ’s commands to love God and neighbor as self, I understand what McLaren was trying to attempt in the book. But here’s my problem with it - his arguments are all in the head. Pointing to facts, statistics, history, reasoning… and that’s not what faith is about for me. I read the book and I have stayed Christian…not because of any logical argument put forth but because I have experienced something greater than myself. My faith is not based in my brain but in my heart that was strangely warmed when I realized that God loved me, yes, even me! My faith is not logical - my faith is felt in my body and my soul. God has acted in my life in ways I can’t explain and ways that even with my degree in theology I sometimes struggle to put words to.
When I am talking about faith today…I am talking about an experience of Life and Love that has grabbed hold of you and you can’t let it go. Faith is the life-long journey of experiencing God’s Love in this world, experiencing the the power of the Resurrection - that is Life in the face of death, Hope in the face of despair, Love in the face of hate, Peace in the face of violence…experiencing the Holy Spirit at work in our world, lives, and hearts…and then faith is the life-long journey of finding the words that help us make some sense out of God’s Goodness towards us. This is something we do as individuals and as a community. We read the Bible. We talk about theology. We listen to sermons. We worship. We try to give our experiences of the Divine shape in all our words and our actions.
Many of us might be here today because we share a set of theological beliefs that we could go down a checklist together on. But I think most of us find ourselves in the pews because we have experienced God at work in our world, our lives, our hearts. We are here because we are a people of faith - faith that is not always logical, but faith we have experienced.
So that’s belief, that’s faith… and Paul says “‘I believed, and so I spoke’ --we also believe, and so we speak, because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus, and will bring us with you into his presence.”
I already said that when we experience God’s Life and Love, the power of the Resurrection, we can spend the rest of our lives making sense of it, putting words to it, understanding it. And yet that shouldn’t stop us from speaking about it. I think a lot of Christians are hesitant in speaking about their faith because they are still thinking of their faith as a checklist of doctrine that there is some sort of “pressure” that you have to get it all right. We don’t speak about our faith because what if someone asks one of the hard questions that we don’t have an answer to? Or one of the hard questions that there simply isn’t an answer to? Or what if we speak about our faith and the person isn’t open to it or even downright hostile?
There is a quote that is often attributed to St. Francis of Assisi that is “Preach the Gospel always and, when necessary, use words.” We start speaking about our faith by living out our faith. If we believe in Jesus because we have experienced Life, Hope, Love, Light, Peace, God’s Goodness…then our lives should reflect that. Speaking about our faith first requires an examination of our actions (and words). Is all we are saying and doing consistent with the Gospel of Love? If not, then our words will be meaningless to those who hear them but see our actions that speak louder than our words. I’m not saying we have to be perfect in order to share our faith - if that were the case I certainly wouldn’t be in this pulpit this morning or any Sunday. What I am saying is that Love should be our ethic for all we say and do - our actions and words. And when we get it wrong, we try and try again, getting closer to perfect love of God and love of neighbor every day.
Now that quote that’s attributed to St. Francis - it says “use words when necessary.” I have found that many Christians use that as an excuse to not use their words. But friends, in our world, when so many don’t know the Love of Christ, it is necessary. Again. You don’t have to have all the answers. You don’t have to have a checklist of doctrine. All you have to do is talk about your experience. 1 Peter says we should always be ready to give an answer for the reason of the hope that is within us. When we speak about our faith we should never start from a place of convincing someone that we are right and they are wrong. It should never be from a place of standing your ground or picking a fight. It should always be coming from a place of Love - and starting from your own experiences of faith - of Life and Love. Talk about your experiences - and be open to hear about the experiences of others, including those who do not believe and who have not yet experienced the Love of Christ in their lives in a way they can point to it and name it for what it is. They may have even been hurt by those claiming to be acting out of Christian love. Again, our faith doesn’t need you as a defender of it - Christ can handle that. What our faith does require of us - is speaking with words and actions - including actions of listening - that reflect the Life and Love we have experienced.
This takes practice as well. We will all take our whole lives working on getting better at it - that’s the work of the Holy Spirit. And yet we have to take those first steps and let our actions and words speak to our faith.
And lastly, in our reading today Paul says: “so that grace, as it extends to more and more people, may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.”
As we experience God’s love. As we speak into that experience with our words and actions. Be prepared for the circle to widen. For God to give you opportunities to share your experience and God’s love with more and more people. With unexpected people. With people who are different from you. With people you never thought you’d be in relationship and community with. For some, this thought is exciting. For some, this thought is terrifying. For I said in the beginning of this sermon that God desires to draw us all into God’s loving presence. And you are the hands and feet that God will use to do that.
To summarize, this is the encouragement I heard to our community today in our letter from Paul:
Believe in the God of Love who was Resurrected.
Speak of the Love you experience through our Resurrected Lord.
And extend that Love and Grace to all.
May it be so. Amen.
Our reading from 2 Corinthians today is Paul doing just that - although it could have been under happier circumstances. This is actually the third letter Paul wrote to the Corinthians, the second letter which he said was “written in tears” is lost to us but it’s evident that the Christians in Corinth were having significant disagreements and issues. In this letter and our text from today, he is urging them towards perseverance in the face of persecution and ultimately reconciliation with him and one another.
One of the rich things about Scripture, however, is the multiple layers of meaning. I always say there are at least two layers - at least - to all Scripture. What the author of the Scripture was saying to the original community and how God is speaking through that same text to us today. So while Paul may have had a specific intention of speaking of perseverance and reconciliation as he wrote, when I read this letter with the people of Boardman United Methodist Church in my mind, rather than the people of the Church of Corinth, what I hear God saying to me and to us in the pews today is a message of encouragement of how we live out our faith - our faith in the God of Love who was Resurrected.
The encouragement is simply this:
Believe in the God of Love who was Resurrected.
Speak of the Love you experience through our Resurrected Lord.
And extend that Love and Grace to all.
Believe. Speak. Extend. Resurrection & Love.
Let’s look at this a little more closely.
Our reading from Paul starts with him quoting the Psalms: “I believe and so I spoke.” Paul adds, “we also believe, and so we speak.” The Psalmist is talking about keeping faith and praising God even among trials and tribulations. Paul too is alluding to this. And yet I wondered - before we even get to the speaking part - what is it that we believe? What is it to have faith?
Paul answers this in the very next verse: “because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus, and will bring us with you into his presence.” What we believe is simply this: Jesus who was and is Lord was raised from the dead and God has plans to share that Resurrection with us, and pull us all into God’s loving and living presence.
And yet, I want to spend a little bit of time talking about what it means to believe this morning. Just six verses after our reading from today ends, Paul says, “We walk by faith, not by sight.” But I believe our current culture is often uncomfortable with the ambiguity of faith and thus many Christians and Churches have compiled a check-list of Christian beliefs and you have to tick every box or you’re not considered “one of us” - for some this is strongly implied and yet still others may have explicit Affirmations or Creeds and you have to sign on the bottom line in order to be a part of the community.
Now, don’t get me wrong - I think creeds are very important. I myself hold to the Nicene and Apostles Creeds - which if you aren’t familiar with can be found on page 800 - 802 of our United Methodist Hymnal. And United Methodists do have Articles of Religion that hold the official views of the Church and we have our own distinct Wesleyan theology…
And…not but…and… Faith is so much more than mentally believing what someone tells you to believe. Faith is much more than checking boxes - Belief in the Trinity? Check. Belief in the Divine and Human Nature of Christ? Check. Belief in the Virgin Birth? Check…. Etc, etc. Individuals are going to have different experiences, different thought processes and different qualms about various beliefs or tenets of faith. There are also essential and non-essential aspects of faith and different churches, sects, and individuals won’t always agree where the line is between these things. I tend to take a broad picture approach, as John Wesley, the founder of Methodism said, “Though we may not think alike, may we not love alike.” I’m not saying that what we believe as Christians is a free-for-all, what I am saying is that I don’t think we should assume that faith as Christians is monolithic and that we shouldn’t assume that everyone in the pews is in the same place.
Two years ago, acclaimed Christian author Brian McLaren wrote a book entitled, “Do I Stay Christian?” He lists the theological, ethical, and even moral objections many in our world today have surrounding Christianity…and the acts of Christians. He looks at a history of anti-Semitism, of Christian violence, of Colonialism…and so much more. He spends the first half of the book answering all the reasons one could or should walk away from the Christian faith. In the second half of the book he attempts to answer all the reasons one should stay Christian, to hold fast to one’s faith, and not throw in the towel on our religion. In a world today where there is increasing backlash toward the actions of Christians that don’t match Christ’s commands to love God and neighbor as self, I understand what McLaren was trying to attempt in the book. But here’s my problem with it - his arguments are all in the head. Pointing to facts, statistics, history, reasoning… and that’s not what faith is about for me. I read the book and I have stayed Christian…not because of any logical argument put forth but because I have experienced something greater than myself. My faith is not based in my brain but in my heart that was strangely warmed when I realized that God loved me, yes, even me! My faith is not logical - my faith is felt in my body and my soul. God has acted in my life in ways I can’t explain and ways that even with my degree in theology I sometimes struggle to put words to.
When I am talking about faith today…I am talking about an experience of Life and Love that has grabbed hold of you and you can’t let it go. Faith is the life-long journey of experiencing God’s Love in this world, experiencing the the power of the Resurrection - that is Life in the face of death, Hope in the face of despair, Love in the face of hate, Peace in the face of violence…experiencing the Holy Spirit at work in our world, lives, and hearts…and then faith is the life-long journey of finding the words that help us make some sense out of God’s Goodness towards us. This is something we do as individuals and as a community. We read the Bible. We talk about theology. We listen to sermons. We worship. We try to give our experiences of the Divine shape in all our words and our actions.
Many of us might be here today because we share a set of theological beliefs that we could go down a checklist together on. But I think most of us find ourselves in the pews because we have experienced God at work in our world, our lives, our hearts. We are here because we are a people of faith - faith that is not always logical, but faith we have experienced.
So that’s belief, that’s faith… and Paul says “‘I believed, and so I spoke’ --we also believe, and so we speak, because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus, and will bring us with you into his presence.”
I already said that when we experience God’s Life and Love, the power of the Resurrection, we can spend the rest of our lives making sense of it, putting words to it, understanding it. And yet that shouldn’t stop us from speaking about it. I think a lot of Christians are hesitant in speaking about their faith because they are still thinking of their faith as a checklist of doctrine that there is some sort of “pressure” that you have to get it all right. We don’t speak about our faith because what if someone asks one of the hard questions that we don’t have an answer to? Or one of the hard questions that there simply isn’t an answer to? Or what if we speak about our faith and the person isn’t open to it or even downright hostile?
There is a quote that is often attributed to St. Francis of Assisi that is “Preach the Gospel always and, when necessary, use words.” We start speaking about our faith by living out our faith. If we believe in Jesus because we have experienced Life, Hope, Love, Light, Peace, God’s Goodness…then our lives should reflect that. Speaking about our faith first requires an examination of our actions (and words). Is all we are saying and doing consistent with the Gospel of Love? If not, then our words will be meaningless to those who hear them but see our actions that speak louder than our words. I’m not saying we have to be perfect in order to share our faith - if that were the case I certainly wouldn’t be in this pulpit this morning or any Sunday. What I am saying is that Love should be our ethic for all we say and do - our actions and words. And when we get it wrong, we try and try again, getting closer to perfect love of God and love of neighbor every day.
Now that quote that’s attributed to St. Francis - it says “use words when necessary.” I have found that many Christians use that as an excuse to not use their words. But friends, in our world, when so many don’t know the Love of Christ, it is necessary. Again. You don’t have to have all the answers. You don’t have to have a checklist of doctrine. All you have to do is talk about your experience. 1 Peter says we should always be ready to give an answer for the reason of the hope that is within us. When we speak about our faith we should never start from a place of convincing someone that we are right and they are wrong. It should never be from a place of standing your ground or picking a fight. It should always be coming from a place of Love - and starting from your own experiences of faith - of Life and Love. Talk about your experiences - and be open to hear about the experiences of others, including those who do not believe and who have not yet experienced the Love of Christ in their lives in a way they can point to it and name it for what it is. They may have even been hurt by those claiming to be acting out of Christian love. Again, our faith doesn’t need you as a defender of it - Christ can handle that. What our faith does require of us - is speaking with words and actions - including actions of listening - that reflect the Life and Love we have experienced.
This takes practice as well. We will all take our whole lives working on getting better at it - that’s the work of the Holy Spirit. And yet we have to take those first steps and let our actions and words speak to our faith.
And lastly, in our reading today Paul says: “so that grace, as it extends to more and more people, may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.”
As we experience God’s love. As we speak into that experience with our words and actions. Be prepared for the circle to widen. For God to give you opportunities to share your experience and God’s love with more and more people. With unexpected people. With people who are different from you. With people you never thought you’d be in relationship and community with. For some, this thought is exciting. For some, this thought is terrifying. For I said in the beginning of this sermon that God desires to draw us all into God’s loving presence. And you are the hands and feet that God will use to do that.
To summarize, this is the encouragement I heard to our community today in our letter from Paul:
Believe in the God of Love who was Resurrected.
Speak of the Love you experience through our Resurrected Lord.
And extend that Love and Grace to all.
May it be so. Amen.
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