"Called By the Will of God"                 2011

1 Corinthians 1:1-9, 12:12-20, 27

 

(1 Corinthians 1:1-9 NRSV) 

            Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes, {2} To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, together with all those who in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours: {3} Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. {4} I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus, {5} for in every way you have been enriched in him, in speech and knowledge of every kind-- {6} just as the testimony of Christ has been strengthened among you-- {7} so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ. {8} He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you may be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. {9} God is faithful; by him you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

 

(1 Corinthians 12:12-20, 27 NRSV) 

            For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. {13} For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body--Jews or Greeks, slaves or free--and we were all made to drink of one Spirit. {14} Indeed, the body does not consist of one member but of many. {15} If the foot would say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," that would not make it any less a part of the body. {16} And if the ear would say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," that would not make it any less a part of the body. {17} If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? {18} But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. {19} If all were a single member, where would the body be? {20} As it is, there are many members, yet one body.  Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.

 

In preparation for ministry,

            I went on a seminary travel seminar to the Middle East,

                        which included a visit to the ruins of ancient Corinth.

We arrived early on a Sunday morning and held our worship service

            where once a church might have been, but today,   it is no more.

 

According to biblical historians,

   it wasn't that the church in Corinth ran out of money or resources.

               There certainly wasn't a shortage of people in need  to serve;

       àor those with whom they could share the truth and Good News

                        about God's grace, compassion, love and saving purpose.

 

The church didn't fail because of an earthquake, fire or flood;

            nor was it from an external attack or from Roman persecution.

 

The problem at Corinth was internal.

            They stopped being the church; behaving as a Church,

                        as a faithful and caring Christian community,

                               or as Paul would describe it, being the body of Christ.

As we read that Sunday morning in Corinth,   vs. 12-13

            For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. à

            For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body--Jews or Greeks, slaves or free--and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.

           

The Apostle Paul,

            was the evangelist who started that congregation in Corinth.

                        He stayed there for two years establishing the church,

                                    and teaching them how to serve God together in unity,

                                                as a Christian community, the body of Christ.

 

However, as Paul's letter indicates,

            after he moved on to evangelize in other places,

                        the church, and the Christians in Corinth got off-track.

 

**         The grace of God, freely given through faith in Jesus Christ

                        means that our salvation is entirely a gift from God,

                                    and not the result of who we are or what we have done …

 

… which means that we are all  equally dependant upon God's grace,

            which unifies all believers into being the one body of Christ –

 

- meaning that God's grace is far more important & significant than

       any of the other stuff about us or that we might ever accomplish,

                or that people notice as being somehow  better or different.

  By God's grace alone    we are all equally loved and precious to God.

 

The Christians gathered into the ancient church in Corinth

            were a very diverse group from lots of different backgrounds.

                 There were Jews and former pagans, slaves and slave-owners,

                         the rich and very poor, some were educated and others not.

 

And that diverse gathering of Christians in Corinth,

       struggled to live out their Christian unity because some

              thought that they were better and more important than others…

 

            … so Paul writes, instructing them:  vs. 13, 14, 20, 27

                        For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body--Jews or Greeks, slaves or free--and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.  Indeed, the body does not consist of one member but of many.

            As it is, there are many members, yet one body. … Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.

 

So why

      weren't they living out that wonderful truth of Christian unity?

                and why do we struggle sometimes with our unity in Christ?

 

 

I've got a friend, a Presbyterian pastor serving in Albuquerque

            who occasionally needs to pick up trash that blows

                        onto the church property from a public park next door.

 

As he explains it, most of the disagreements and the disunity

            that we deal with in the church and between Christians,

                        are all really,

                                    just trash and stuff that blows in from the world.

 

Rather than being able to stay focused

            on all the grace and blessings that we receive from God,

àwe allow the values & perspectives taken from the world around us,

               such as jealousy, greed, fear of scarcity or selfishness

                    to influence our decisions, motivations and behavior

                           more than we trust, listen and rely upon the Holy Spirit.

 

            And so we try to resolve our problems and issues of the church

                        with solutions and ideas that we've brought in                                                            from the world and culture that surrounds us…

 

            … which is to forget or ignore,

                        that it is God's grace alone   and God's will alone

                              that defines who we are, what we are called to do ---

                               -- and not the ways and values of the culture around us.

 

Before I became a pastor, I was an executive in a huge corporation,

         which meant that I learned how to survive and thrive

               by playing the games & politics of that corporate environment

                   by doing what was necessary in order to succeed & get ahead.

 

 

I first realized

            how different that was from living in Christian community

                        when a few weeks into seminary, the dean of students

                                    sat down next to me on a bench on campus and asked me,

                                                "So Norm, how are things going,

                                                            and how are you adjusting to seminary life?"

 

From  my corporate background, from that worldview & perspective,

            I paused and began trying to process her inquiry ----

                        "hmmm, I wonder why she is asking me this …

                                    what is she up  to, and what does she really want …

                        what is the secret agenda that she has in play here,

                                    and what is the most advantageous way I can answer?"

 

Then, it suddenly struck me,

            that there really wasn't any secret agenda at work.

                        It was simply one Christian caring enough to ask another,

                                    "how are things going, and are you doing OK?"

            It really wasn't intended as a trick question to trip me up.

 

And at that moment it dawned on me

            that I was no longer in the corporate world,

                        or operating under those rules or the ways of that world.

 

Paul describes a different sort of living:         vs. 2-3, 9

            To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, together with all those who in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:  Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. … God is faithful; by him you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

 

Paul is writing about the relationships that we live as Christians,

            and the possibility of faithful and authentic fellowship

                        that exists in the church as those who are called by God

                               to live, love and serve in unity   as the body of Christ.

 

It has been my experience in church life,

            that those who just sit passively in the sanctuary on Sunday

                        and do nothing more, probably miss out on the best part

                                    of truly belonging, connecting and serving usefully,

                                        which is the way we build meaningful relationships.

 

The church, the body of Christ is called to be a very special place,

            it can be an oasis of grace   where all are welcomed and valued,

 

                        where we can grow in our faith, relationships and service

                             by presenting the best of our gifts to the glory of God…

                                 and experience the satisfaction of pleasing the Lord.

 

The problem in Corinth was that some parts of the body, some folks

            believed that they were better, more useful and important

                        than others, than other parts the body of Christ;

  - and those  inferior others were seen, perceived and devalued

            as having nothing significant or worthwhile to contribute.

 

To dispel that false and destructive idea, Paul wrote:  vs. 18, 20-21

            But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. … As it is, there are many members, yet one body.  The eye cannot say to the hand, "I have no need of you," nor again the head to the feet, "I have no need of you."

 

Paul wants them to love, and to appreciate and value one another.

    Paul wants them to respect all of the gifts of all of the members.

 

The point is, no one person has all the gifts that the body needs,

            and no one's gift is so important that the others don't matter.

 

Our task then, as a community of faith, grace, unity & servanthood

            is to discover and help others discover their gifts

                  so that we can all be a blessing   for building up the body,

                              for that is how    we as Christians can grow in our faith.

 

By God's grace and will, different gifts are given to each of us,

            for the purpose of strengthening the whole church's ministry

                        so that we can be faithful & fulfill our mission & purpose.

 

That means that no one's gifts, or any single member,

     that no body part   is more important or necessary than any other,

                 but rather, all of us are needed, all of us are significant

                        and all are indispensable to accomplishing God's mission.

 

            We are all blessed

                        and able to give of ourselves according to God's grace.

All of us have something useful and wonderful to contribute;

            and if anyone chooses not serve,  then the body of Christ,

                        the church,  does not and cannot function as well it might.

 

Therefore, let us each consider with care and deliberation,

            how can we   most faithfully and usefully   serve the Lord God

                        and how can we   best contribute to this church's mission?

 

      In a few minutes

              we will be ordaining and installing new elders and deacons.

These are servant-leaders who have been called and equipped by God

            at this particular time to serve in this particular way

                        for building up this body toward mission and outreach.

 

But let that in no way cause the rest of us to minimize or deny

      the critical importance of what God has entrusted to each of us.

                        Therefore as these new officers make their vows today,

                                    you might also consider your gifts, your blessings,

                                                and God's call to you,  for your promise this day.

 

            A man stopped to admire a huge cathedral one time, and a little girl who was sitting on the steps noticed and asked him, "So do you like it?"

            Surprised, he answered, "Yes I do.  It is really very beautiful and impressive.

            "I'm glad you like it", the young girl replied, "because I helped build it."

           

            The man smiled and said, "You are awfully young to have worked on the construction of such a large building.  Tell me, what did you do?"

            The little girl proudly announced, "My father is a bricklayer.  And everyday that he worked on this church, I brought him his lunch."

 

As Paul instructed the Christians living in Corinth:  vs. 4-7

            Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit;

                        and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord;

                                    and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone.

            To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.