"Why Are We a Church?"  2014

Isaiah 55:1-6   John 4:31-38

 

Isaiah 55:1-6

Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you that have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. Incline your ear, and come to me; listen, so that you may live. I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David. See, I made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for the peoples. See, you shall call nations that you do not know, and nations that do not know you shall run to you, because of the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you. Seek the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near.

 

John 4:31-38

Meanwhile the disciples were urging him, “Rabbi, eat something.” But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you do not know about.” So the disciples said to one another, “Surely no one has brought him something to eat?” Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to complete his work. Do you not say, ‘Four months more, then comes the harvest’? But I tell you, look around you, and see how the fields are ripe for harvesting. The reaper is already receiving wages and is gathering fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together. For here the saying holds true, ‘One sows and another reaps.’ I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.”

 

Why are we   a church?,

                        what is the point,   our mission and purpose?

 

            If we are not sure about that, about why we exist,

                          or if we can’t answer that question easily,

                             then how can we ever know if we are on the right track?,

                                                    if we are doing the right things,

                                                            or perhaps,   missing the target entirely?

 

* On the other hand, if we really do know

       and we are working toward our true mission and purpose,

               then almost everything else   will naturally fall into place …

  … because it’s either helping us

            move toward fulfilling our true mission and purpose

                        or it is  just a distraction.

 

So why are we a church?  

 

                Jesus assigned our mission and purpose

                        in the final instructions he gave to his disciples,

                                    the Great Commission of Matthew 28, vs. 19-20

            Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.

            That text lays out the church’s a twofold  mission and purpose.

 

First, to reach out to all the world with God’s gracious love,

                 by inviting and teaching

                        how to live in  an authentic relationship with the Lord.

 

The second part of the church’s task   is to equip its members,

            to fulfill the first part of the church’s mission and purpose,

                   by being a place of hope and an environment of faithfulness

                              where all are encouraged to grow and deepen their faith

                                      toward effective, meaningful & useful discipleship.

 

After a generation or so    of the Hebrew people living in Babylon,

            many of the descendants of those taken in the Exile

                            had assimilated into the culture and grown comfortable

                                    amid the wealth and materialism of Babylon.

            The Isaiah passage we read earlier

                        was written to challenge and break their complacency,

                                        and encourage them to return to the Promised Land

                                                and be the people of God they were intended to be.

 

     Using the poetic imagery of a water-seller  in the marketplace,

            they were called  to thirst for God’s freely-offered grace,à

                 rather than their foolish pursuit of materialistic trinkets

                         that really cannot satisfy our deepest longings, vs. 1-2a

        Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you that have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.        Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy?

 

Isaiah is proclaiming a message of God’s grace and promise,

            for our lives to be blessed, productive and meaningful,

                        for us to know the joy of developing our gifts & character,

                                 and satisfaction of our lives lived serving usefully…

 

… rather than

      the foolish pursuit of things that don’t last or satisfy, vs. 2b-3

                        Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food.   Incline your ear, and come to me; listen, so that you may live.  I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love.

 

Israel was called to reveal God’s grace & truth to the world, vs. 4~6.

            a witness to the peoples… you shall call nations that you do not know, and nations that do not know you shall run to you, because of the Lord your God, … Seek the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near.

 

*  That truth, given through Isaiah to the Israelites in exile,

            also describes the mission and purpose of the Church,

                        showing how we are to live life abundantly and joyfully,

                                    because God intends for our lives

                                                to be wonderful, fulfilling and meaningful…

 

… as by reflecting the truth of God’s love and blessings,

            we carry the message of God’s grace to the ends of the earth…

**                          … which is the true mission and purpose of the Church.

 

Several weeks ago I had what I thought was a really bad day,

            when Rev. Hawkins told me that he needed to move to California.

He had been my good friend and colleague for many years,

                 and having no Spanish, how could I possibly

                        be of any use to the people of Iglesia del Pueblo?

                                                           

The next Sunday after Wayne announced his impending departure,

            I told the Iglesia del Pueblo congregation, that if

                        they were committed to continuing as a faith community,     à

                                    then First Presbyterian Church, the Session and I

                                                would do everything we could

                                                            to share and support that commitment…

      … and what a marvelous journey and adventure we’ve shared since.

 

These past several weeks of ministry together

            have been amazing, exciting and wonderful …

                                  … a great joy and delight to experience

                                                the hand and wonder of God’s Spirit at work …

            … the blessing of relationships developing and deepening,

                        watching new and faithful leaders arise to the challenge,

                                    eagerly stepping up to take on new responsibilities…

                                                            … and no doubt the best is still yet to come.

 

I believe we are catching   a holy wave   of God’s work and presence

                 with unexpected new opportunities and blessings

                        to help us grow in our faith and Christians service,

            reaching out with God’s grace into the Hispanic community

                and making a difference in Las Cruces where God put us…

 

… as Jesus said to his disciples, vs. 35~38

            But I tell you, look around you, and see how the fields are ripe for harvesting. … gathering fruit for eternal life… I send you to reap that for which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.”

 

My experience is that there are no accidents with the Lord,

            It’s about God’s perfect wisdom and love, not a coincidence.

    I believe God intentionally and uniquely calls and equips

            individuals and congregations for specific missions

                 that build on   the strengths and resources of who we are.

 

This is a most exciting season in the life of our church

            as we are discovering new opportunities to serve

                        where we can commit our time, talent and resources

                            toward accomplishing God’s will, our purpose & mission

                                    as a blessed people, the Church of Jesus Christ…

… and may none of us miss what the Lord has placed before us …

       … I tell you, look around you, and see how the fields are ripe for harvesting.

 

We live in a world and community that is starving and thirsting,

            a people lost, in desperate need of the grace and truth of God.

                            The Lord is doing wonderful things through this church,

                                    and calling each of us to be an active part of it …

            … to be servants whom the Lord takes pleasure in,

                   and servants who take pleasure in serving our Lord well.

 

We truly are the Church, even with our warts and imperfections,

            made up of people

                        who struggle with everyday life just as the world does,à

            but whose hope comes from the gracious love God has for us,

                 and who commissions us to take that love out into the world.

 

And today, in the life of this church, with the help of God,

            we are being called to hope,  to celebrate and recommit,

                        and to fulfill our task,  our shared mission and purpose.

 

When I worshipped with the Christians in Ghana,

            the offering was an amazing and joyful part of their worship.

                        Everybody got up from their pews,  sang and danced.

 

And whether they had money to give   or not,    with great flourish        

            they all came to the front and offered themselves to the Lord.

 

Their offering and stewardship was about way more than just money,

            but was all about having  a joyful attitude of gratitude,

                        as they offered themselves and their lives to the Lord.

 

*  Today during our final hymn,

            when we place our pledge cards in the basket in the front,

                        I hope that all of us, bringing pledge cards or not,

                                         that everyone will make their way up to the front

                                                as an expression of recommitment, joy and hope…

 

            … so that with joy and gratitude we offer ourselves,

                        our whole lives to the delight and pleasure of the Lord…

 

… for actually, that is why we are a church!