What Do You Do With A Gift?

(alternate title: The Holy Spirit is Unpleasant and Messy)

Pentecost Sunday

with readings from Acts 2 

(God gives the gift of the Holy Spirit)

and 1 Corinthians 12 

(the Holy Spirit gives the church gifts)

• What do you do with a gift? Open it!
(explanation of the stole (the thing a pastor wears around their neck) which was a gift at my ordination, which is a mark of a servant, and this particular one is in celebration of the Holy Spirit.)

• The gifts of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 12:4-13)

why? Verse 7: for the common good.
In Greek: sumphero, to benefit, to profit, to collect...

• Gifts: Wisdom, knowledge, faith/trust... 

for congregational leadership!
God will not leave congregation without necessary gifts!
Healing, miracles, prophecy/preaching/speaking for God
discernment, communication, translation...

• Given to whom? To each. To many.
A stool can't stand on one leg, two legs... 

There is stability in the body of Christ 

when essential gifts are given to many.

• The gift of the Holy Spirit is unpleasant. (wait, what?)

Consider a nice day: 

Does it include violent wind? 

Does it include fire? 

Does it include the #1 fear of Public Speaking?... 

The gift of the Holy Spirit is unpleasant.

• The gift of the Holy Spirit is messy.
Suddenly many are preaching.
I wear collar for distinction (not elevation). 

Now there's no distinction.
The power of God is not contained in gender or class (Levites).
The power of God is not contained in geography.

Holy Spirit is not contained. Holy Spirit is RELEASED.

& where Holy Spirit goes, there is fire and the breaking down of walls!

• Holy Spirit sends disciples into the unknown.
We recall Jesus leading the disciples into the storm, accompanying them into storm...

Holy Spirit accompanies into the storm with gifts.

• God will accomplish his purpose through people
not because of the power of the people
but because he will show his power through people.

• What do you do with a gift? WITNESS.
(Homework: read the rest of Acts 2... Peter preaches, referencing current events as well as scripture and theology (Jesus is Lord) and 3,000 are baptized (Acts 2:41)
and the Lord adds daily to their number (Acts 2:47).

• Hymn 2237 As A Fire is Meant for Burning

What's this about 'new wine'?

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On Matthew 9:9-17
Jesus calls Matthew to follow him,

Jesus is judged on account of his followers,

Jesus weighs the old versus the new...

• Jesus calls Matthew, Matthew stops what he's doing and follows Jesus... and Jesus gets judged because of his followers.

Oftentimes I wish I had Jesus' presence of mind, his wit... (read the book, yo!)
Jesus says: Healthy people don't need a doctor, 

sick people do (verse 12). Brilliant.
God desires mercy, not sacrifice; 

relationship over ritual.
(there's a way God wants you to act & you're not doing it)
Jesus did not come to call the righteous, but sinners. 

The church is to be a hospital for sinners, 

not a club for saints.

• What business is Jesus about? Verse 12. 

circle it, memorize it, something... 

Jesus came to be about healing people.

What business are the Pharisees about? 

Maintaining tradition.

Jesus expands beyond tradition. 

(for example, tradition says you fast, 

and you fast often... the more you fast 

the more religious you are... 

Jesus says fasting for the sake of fasting is just that... 

Serving tradition is not the same thing as serving God. 

God isn't interested in fasting for fasting's sake, 

God is interested in LIVING MERCY.)

• And then Jesus says a few things 

about old and new things.

Jesus talks about old wine and new wine. 

Now some folks have picked this passage apart, 

trying to support or refute one side or the other 

regarding whether there's alcohol in that wine, 

but this is one of those statements I take at face value. 

Wine is mentioned in the bible, quite a bit.

Before there was water treatment?

There was unclean water.

But wine was safe. Beneficial. Enjoyable.

• Bible talks about vineyards, 

and Israel being God's vineyard (Isaiah 5).

1, God the gardener enjoys gardening, 

enjoys the garden and its fruit.

2, God the vineyard owner enjoys the fruit of the vine!

• Wine (ancient) always in production, 

not once and done like a tattoo or your will, 

but ongoing process. 

Always going to be haircuts, 

always going to be new wine.

And the new may not be identical to the old. 

May look/taste/feel different.

• I believe Jesus is acknowledging that 

the new will always be different than the old, 

and that some will prefer the old

(how about that old pair of jeans, nothing like it) 

and some will prefer the new.

One or other is not “better” but certainly different. 

And in verse 17... both are kept safe.

• Jesus is saying here that 

God is interested in what we produce. 

Are we producing good fruit for the kingdom? 

Are people being drawn to God by what we're doing? 

Are people experiencing God, experiencing new life, 

or are they dejected and rejected?

Jesus came to call sinners. 

Not to judge 'em or condemn 'em, 

but to call them to follow. 

To initiate people into the presence of the living God, 

who is interested in what they make of what they have, 

and less interested in serving tradition for tradition's sake.

• We come to church, to the table of God, 

to participate in (and receive!) God's healing; 

we're called to go forth to offer and invite others

(without judgment!)

that they may receive life and healing 

as GOD would give to them.

• And when we come together, 

when we break bread together,
we know God, and we are known by God...

In the breaking of the bread, 

God is made known, 

God fills our souls.
In the blessing from the cup, 

God lifts us up, 

God makes us whole.

• Hymn (insert) In the Breaking of the Bread

What is Forgiveness?

From Matthew 9:1-8

Jesus heals a paralyzed man after forgiving his sins.

• This telling of Jesus healing a paralytic is a repeat from Mark 2 with subtle but significant differences that demonstrate Matthew's point that forgiveness takes precedence over healing, and that Jesus, as the Son of God, has the ability, authority, and desire to do both.

• We don't know what the man's sins are, 

whether he is righteous or far from it,
neither do we know the reason for his paralysis, 

whether he was born that way
or it somehow happened to him or he somehow caused it.

His sins could be “normal”
good news: Jesus is quick to forgive those that are brought to him!

His sins could be “great”
good news: Jesus is quick to forgive those that are brought to him!

Forgiveness >> healing

• What is forgiveness?
First, what is sin? Separation. Broken relationship.

Forgiveness is relationship. God's power over brokenness.

Forgiveness is NOT condoning, saying it's okay. 

Forgiveness is a step towards reconciliation and reparation of what is broken.

Broken plate / apology / still broken → God is healer

• God in Jesus is ABLE (has authority)
and God in Jesus is WILLING (hello, incarnation!)
and God goes to great lengths to forgive.

• Relationship is supremely important to God.

• Bring people to him.

• Prayer of Confession / Hymn 389 Freely, Freely

Who Wants to Be With Jesus?

on Matthew 8:23-34... 

Jesus quiets a storm at sea, 

Jesus evicts demons from two men. 

• Teaching section of Matthew (chapters 5, 6, and 7, the Sermon on the Mount) comes to end, what happens after teaching? LIVING.

• Who likes having kids, raising kids? 

Is it great? Is it easy? Is it always enjoyable?

Hershey Park with my 9-year-old daughter... 

story of her first roller coaster ride. 

And 9 times in a row on the “Wild Mouse” which is not very fast but if you're more than a hundred pounds, hurts.

Certainly, having a child has taken me beyond my comfort zone many times.

But... do you ever take child past their comfort zone?
Do you as parent ever lead your child beyond where they're comfortable?

Yes, of course, it's how we learn, really learn.

And it's how we take children where they need to go... into maturity.

When you lead people beyond their comfort zone, what are you? A monster, or responsible?

When you leave people IN their comfort zone, what are you...

• Regarding following Jesus, which do you think Jesus will do: leave you in your comfort zone, or lead you into and through storm (and beyond comfort)?

Jesus sees crowds and orders to sea (8:18) where there's a storm (8:24)

and Jesus is right there in the midst. 

God may lead children into storm, but God will not abandon children.

Hold on to Dad's hand in the midst. In amusement park and in life.

• What about demons?

Matthew and others use as illustration of the power of Jesus.

The fear in their day: demon possession.
The fear today: cancer.

I have no doubt that today the story would be about Jesus cancer.

And Jesus has authority over. And Jesus leads into and goes with.

• Bottom line: Go with Jesus. Hold his hand. He goes with you.

• Hymn 512 Stand By Me

Jesus, Life-Restorer

on Matthew 8:14-22... 

Jesus heals Peter's mother-in-law, 

Jesus speaks to two would-be followers. 

• Teaching section of Matthew (chapters 5, 6, and 7, the Sermon on the Mount) comes to end, what happens after teaching? LIVING.

• It's Mother's Day... honestly I don't often talk about my mother (still living). I love my Mom's cooking. Not gourmet or anything, but it's what I was raised on and I have many happy memories... She would try to make the Thanksgiving turkey dry, and thankfully she failed most of the time. She had (has) a signature dish: her spaghetti sauce. We had it every week. If we had a visitor, that was the dish. Best way she knew to welcome, give hospitality...

When Jesus entered the home of Peter's mother-in-law, she had a fever. Jesus healed her and she began to serve... Jesus restored not just her health but her ability to be host, provide hospitality.

• What's next? More healings. Exorcisms. People who could not participate in life were restored to participation.

No moss under Jesus' feet!

It's like he knows he has limited time and is out to do the greatest good, to restore life to the most he can. 

Reminds me of a quotation attributed to John Wesley: 

Do all the good you can, 

by all the means you can, 

in all the ways you can, 

at all the times you can, 

to all the people you can, 

as long as ever you can.

give/receive inoculation, go and inoculate. Spread healing and wholeness.

• Twist: Not easy to follow Jesus... his is a continual call, a call for your all.

Sometimes when a perosn gets a job it's part of their contract that if they leave they won't go to a competitor within a certain amount of time... a kind of brand loyalty.

Jesus, in discipleship, demands 100% loyalty... all him and only him, always.
There is no partial discipleship. Jesus is sovereign. Complete.

• And then Jesus responds to two would-be followers, and honestly, it's a little awkward. “Foxes have dens, birds have nests...”

heads-up, warning, following Jesus takes all, is not convenient, and may be quite surprising...

• But not letting a man bury his father? 

You may have heard this softened,
but I think this is one to be taken at surface.
Jesus is sovereign. Following Jesus may be offensive. 

And there's an urgency: the time to follow is now. 

The one to set the schedule is him.

And when it comes down to it, what is appropriate: yield to Jesus, or yield to man?

• Prayer of Confession / Hymn 407 Close to Thee

Restore life... save life... For Mother's Day we encourage making a donation to Imagine No Malaria.

Jesus, Well-Maker

on Matthew 8:1-13... 
Jesus heals a man with leprosy...
Jesus heals a centurion's servant from afar

• Teaching section of Matthew (chapters 5, 6, and 7, the Sermon on the Mount) comes to end, what happens after teaching? LIVING.

• Jesus heals a man with leprosy... an outsider.

What is leprosy, more importantly what are effects?
   various skin diseases, caused leper to exist outside society. 

No normal life. Shout “unclean” from a distance.

Can you imagine a condition that cut you off?
   AIDS. Ostracized from society.

As Jesus makes the man well, he bears the consequences of the man’s condition.

• Jesus heals a centurion's servant... an outsider.

• Good news: Jesus is capable healer (write it down)

• Not-so-good-news (for insiders): healings for Gentiles (outsiders)... healings for outsiders who are active and have faith.

Aside: Would you rather have a “yesman” son who actually does nothing, or a son who's an outsider who does good work?

• Many of us are Christians... Many of us know not only the stories but the goodness. It's good to worship, good to enjoy fellowship, but it can't stop there... Jesus restored health & LIFE to church outsiders.

Why are we here? To make disciples... to save lives. To introduce broken lives to saving power of JC. Disciples bring people to Jesus.

Share the love of God with people in a hurting world...

Make disciples of JC for the transformation of the world.

TRANSFORMATION. Are we doing it?

What does transformation mean?

We do community when we interact with others...

• Interact through worship, song, commuion...

• Communion saying I love you. Some people don't hear that much.

I Will Never Ask You What You Weigh

Resurrection Sunday

Resurrection scripture: Matthew 28:1-10

Our journey through Matthew: Matthew 7:24-28 (a house built on rock or sand... Jesus speaks with authority)

• Come to church on Easter to hear good news: 

I will never ask you what you weigh.

Who says what you should weigh?
Weightloss & maintenance are difficult. 

Sometimes I succeed, sometimes I fail.
Sometimes I feel like that's how I'm evaluated, measured, weighed.

• Where have you had success, failure in other arenas? Lenten discipline? Study, devotion? Behaviors: lying, laziness, uncleanliness. Bad habits or practices, drugs, alcohol, smoking, porn.

Success, failure, up and down?

I can't do it on my own. 

I can't lead a life perfectly pleasing to me, 

or perfectly pleasing to God on my own. 

When I weigh myself against God's standard I don't measure up.

• But Jesus can. 

Jesus can and Jesus did live a life perfectly pleasing to God. 

When God weighs Jesus, he measures up exactly right. 

When God looks at his Son he gets the biggest smile on his face you ever did see.

• And here's an amazing thing: 

Jesus takes all my shortcomings, every area where I don't measure up... Jesus took all the sin the world had to offer, took it and died with it. Took it away from me, removed the guilt of sin from me, took my sin and died with it on the cross.

• And God's heart burst with pride at the selfless love of his Son – that Jesus wanted to relieve people where they didn't measure up, even if it cost him his life. Jesus the Son of God would rather die than witness the sin-guilt-death of his people. Yes, God's heart burst with pride at the selfless love of Jesus.

And that perfect selflessness could not be contained by death.

And hallelujah, Christ arose!

• In his sacrifice my value, my weight is made perfect.
There is nothing I can do to earn this grace, and there is nothing I can do to make God love me less. I am changed by Jesus. I cannot do life alone, but with Jesus I can do anything.

And I want to praise him, love him, learn from him, tell about him.

I want to build my life on him (Matthew 7).

• Jesus rose, and he goes on before us (Matthew 28).

Alleluia, praise the Lord, thanks be to God.

• We read in Luke 24 that on the day of resurrection Jesus walked with some disciples but they didn't recognize him. Not until Jesus broke bread for them. When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it, and began to give it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him... They returned to the other disciples and told how Jesus was made known in the breaking of the bread. In the breaking of the bread you are made known, you fill our souls. In the blessing from the cup you life us up, you make us whole. 

(Distribute Holy Communion)