One Thing that Changes Everything 2014
Galatians 5:13-17, 24-26 Romans 12:1-11

Galatians 5:13-17, 24-26
For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another. For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” If, however, you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another. Live by the Spirit, I say, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh. For what the flesh desires is opposed to the Spirit, and what the Spirit desires is opposed to the flesh; for these are opposed to each other, to prevent you from doing what you want. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, competing against one another, envying one another.

Romans 12:1-11
I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect. For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another. We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith; ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness. Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord.

Denis Diderot was an 18th century French philosopher.
He wrote about when he received a costly gift one time,
a very beautiful and elegant scarlet dressing gown.
The robe was so noticeably attractive,
that it made the rest of the room look a bit shabby.

For example, his comfortable but well-worn straw chair
now seemed dingy and out of place, so he bought a new one,
which then led to him needing to replace his writing desk,
and so it went, buying and replacing more stuff
to fit and conform with his elegant new robe.

His point was that when he was given that new dressing gown,
Diderot had no idea how much that one thing would cost him,
and how it would cause him to change everything else.

Economists have a name for that, it’s called, the Diderot effect…
… that like a cascade of consumerism,
one thing leads to one change, and then to more change --
-- until almost without noticing it, everything has changed.

Do you recall the early 90’s movie, “City Slickers”?
It was about men, three long-time friends,
who were feeling restless and dissatisfied
with their lives as they approached middle age.

They were settled in
with the choices and compromised they’d made in life ---
- and though relatively comfortable and secure,
it was far from the meaningful good-life they had expected.

In contrast to their ordinary, sedate and settled lives,
for vacation, they decide to go to a ranch in New Mexico
where on horseback they can participate as cowboys
in driving a herd of cattle up to Colorado.

The cattle drive is led by a tough and grizzled old cowboy
who is everything that these middle-age friends are not.

Along the trail, he explains to one of them,
that they spend 50 weeks a year, their lives getting all tied up and tangled in knots,
then suppose that two weeks on a cattle drive
is somehow going to straighten out their lives.

He goes on to explain his philosophy:
you figure out and focus on just ‘the one thing’,
and all the rest of life will follow and fall into place…
… something like the Diderot effect,
the one thing that changes everything …
… much as Paul tried to explain to the Galatians.

Typical of most of the letters Paul wrote,
the Apostle had started the church in Galatia,
but then when Paul moved on to preach elsewhere,
others had come along,
creating conflict among those he’d converted.

In the Galatian church, one group in conflict believed
that by grace, God accepted gentiles as if Jewish,
so the religious traditions and rules still applied.

On the other side, another group believed,
that since God’s grace covers all and everything is forgiven,
moral behavior and integrity no longer matter …
… so they were free to do anything they desired,
since grace would erase any sin or immorality they committed.

Interestingly, Paul’s answer was the same to both groups…
… urging them to focus and follow the one thing… vs. 13-14
For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another. and For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

* To the legalist: --- you don’t need all those rules and rituals
because self-sacrificial love of neighbor covers it all.
If you focus and follow Christ-like selfless love,
everything you do will fall right into place,
and fulfill every commandment of God.

* To those rejecting any moral restraint: ---
that’s wrong, for Christians are bound by selfless love,
a love that places the good and welfare of others
ahead of our own interests, wants and desires…
… which most certainly places limits and restricts our behavior.

Paul explains that guided by the Spirit of God living within us,
we are called by grace to be a faithful community,
defined by Christ-like sacrificial and selfless love…
… in sharp contrast to the selfish me-first ways of this world.
As Paul wrote, vs. 16, 25
Live by the Spirit, I say, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh. If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit.

The question is not, what do I want and desire,
but what is the loving-choice, the more Christ-like way…
… for being led by the Spirit toward sacrificial love
is the one thing that changes everything else.

Which leads to the fundamental and essential task of the Church:
that through the fellowship and the ministry we share,
we are called & equipped to notice & affirm gifts in others,
and to offer our own uniquely wonderful gifts
as a celebration of God’s gracious diversity among us.

As a community of faith, we are charged, it is our responsibility-
to help discover, discern and develop all of God’s gifts
as they fit together and express God’s grace & goodness,
as they flow together to build up the church for mission.

But what does that really look like?

One time in the little church I used to serve,
we needed somebody to lead and work with our youth.
The moderator of the CE committee
made an announcement before worship asking for a volunteer.

After the benediction,
a young woman, a first-time visitor handed me a slip of paper
with her name and phone number written on it,
and said that if we could help with transportation,
she might be willing to help.

So I called and went out to see her the next week.
Andrea, her husband Rick, and their baby
lived in a tiny trailer tucked way back in the woods.

It was very isolated, a long way from any neighbors,
and when her husband, a typical gung-ho Marine corporal,
drove their car to Camp Lejeune each day …
… she was left alone, cut-off and isolated
with no way to get out, to see anyone or do anything.

They had been high school sweethearts from a small town.
They got married and pregnant right after boot camp,
and now the lonely isolation was crushing her.

Through sobs and tears, anger and frustration,
she described how hard it was to be alone all day, every day,
so far from home, family, friends, the familiar.

She was broken, sad and discouraged,
and Rick, a dedicated and busy Marine didn’t understand
how lonely, disappointed and hopeless she felt…
… and that her life was so much less than she had expected.

So I made a few phone calls,
and other military wives immediately connected with her,
and other ladies of the church made a point
of including her and the baby in their outings…
… surrounding them with Christian fellowship, warmth & welcome.

Well, it was as if someone had turned on a switch,
as Andrea and her husband were drawn into our church family,
and it was amazing how they blessed and led our youth.

Both Andrea’s and Rick’s lives were wonderfully changed,
as by each one presenting their service, gifts and efforts,
they helped several of the youth of our church
change direction and connect with Jesus Christ.
It was truly and inspiring delight to observe.

We were still a new church, just developing,
and their fire and passion for the Lord and for service
seemed to spread and influence others
with contagious joy and deep commitment to the Lord…

… the kind that transforms and helps us to discover
the best that our gracious God intends for each of us.

The church made a huge difference in their lives,
and I believe we may have helped save their marriage…
… for by encouraging them to get their focus on God’s love,
the rest of their lives had fallen right into place…
… and they in turn, were a wonderful gift and blessing
that influenced and encouraged our whole congregation.

The impact of their gifts contributed to the life of our church,
and demonstrated how God’s love and compassion,
how God’s gracious Spirit, purpose and mercy have
the amazing power to change and transform everything…

… as Paul urged and explained to the Christians living in Rome.
vs. 1-2
I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, … Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.

As Christians we are not to just sit back feeling holy and secure
but we are to crawl off the alter and go out into the world,
and there, to spread and overflow with God's grace;
to reflect the light of God's love and joyful abundance
to our hurting world still stumbling about in the darkness.

Because of God's mercy to us, and what it has accomplished in us,
we present our whole selves as living sacrifice to God.
* God gives to us, and we respond by giving ourselves back to God…

… as an expression of God’s grace, purpose, mercy and goodness
in faithful service that helps build up the church body
toward our mission, toward making a difference for Christ
out in the community where God has called and placed us.

Our call is to rediscover continuously ‘the one thing’
how we can fit the needs around us by willingly
presenting our gifted uniqueness back to God.

When the Session met last week, one of the topics we discussed
was the sermon series this summer about spiritual gifts.
An elder asked about an action plan for everybody in our church
to take a spiritual gifts inventory to help identify them.

That was my intention when I began this series of sermons,
but as I delved deeper into what Scripture has to say
and as gained insight concerning spiritual gifts;
I don’t think the issue is that we haven’t identified our gifts,
but it’s our unwillingness to offer and use all our gifts…
… and more description of our gifts won’t change that.

So instead of trying to figure out
the definitions, differences and trying to name our gifts,
I believe our call is to focus on God’s purpose:
and as Paul wrote, vs. ~1
I appeal to you … by the mercies of God, to present your whole selves as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God…

- and trust that the Lord has arranged
that all the body parts will fit together perfectly
to accomplish well, the mission that together
this church has been called to accomplish…
… and if we can get that one thing right, I believe that
then the Spirit will change and transform everything else.

One time a faithful Christian I respected and admired deeply
told me that the most important fact and truth of his life
was that God loves him enough to send Jesus Christ,
that he might live forever in the Kingdom of God…

… that was the one thing,
and everything else about the church and religion
was about responding to God’s gift of grace,
and how we should then live a life
that reflects the grace, truth and holiness of God.

So the question is, am I living out the reality of God’s love?,
and how is my life being transformed by God’s grace? …
… the one thing that has the power to change everything else.

The choices and decisions that each of us constantly make,
our relationships, the lives we live during the week,
our involvement in the life and mission of the church,
our compassion, forbearance and service to others,
do all of these truly and boldly proclaim
the grace and love, the hope and joy of the Lord?

What am I doing with God’s gifts and blessings entrusted to me?

As we read in 1 Peter 4:10
Like good stewards of the manifold grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received.

… that that is the one thing that will change everything else.