SERMON 6/14/20 Pentecost 2A Proper 6 6/14/20 Annunciation, Vidalia GA

Genesis 18:1-15, (21:1-7); Psalm 116:1, 10-17; Romans 5:1-8; Matthew 9:35-10:8(9-23)

Apostolic Community and the Creeds

In today's Gospel, we hear, "These twelve, Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Go ... proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come

near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give." "Being Sent" into the world has been the mission of the "People of the Way" for over 2000 years. This is not merely a Historical memory of the church, we promise to continue this mission, when we say the Nicene Creed, that lengthy part of the liturgy some of us often

say, and without thinking what it is we really are saying.

The Creed emerged in the year 325 CE at the Council of Nicaea, a gathering of the earliest bishops or leaders in the apostolic line. In the Creed, the church has made several theological claims about our nature, the nature of God, and we make a very bold claim about the nature of the people gathered, the church (us).

We say, "I believe in one Holy, Catholic, and APOSTOLIC church." We say it weekly, but do we really know what it means? We say, the church is Holy. That means, " it is set apart by God,

functioning as a community consecrated for His specific purposes rather than conforming to the world." Next, we say it is catholic. That means, "it is an assembly meant for all people, times, and cultures, rather than being restricted to one geographical area, ethnicity, or group." We say, it is Apostolic and this part is essential. That means "it is constantly being built and re-built upon the

foundational doctrine of the original Apostles, AND we cannot forget this part, its purpose is to carry out the apostles outward mission." In other words, Apostolic means we are a peopl eof mission. We are " sent out for a purpose."

The Church Gathered

Scripture gives us the clearest picture of what the gathered community of faith should be like. In the Acts of the Apostles 2:42, the author wrote these words, "They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer." The church gathered to learn the teachings of Jesus through the apostles. The church fellowshipped to deepen their love of each other. The church broke bread (meals and Eucharist) to feed and strengthen their bodies and souls. The church prayed together seeking Christ's guidance, his

leading, and the power to do what came next; Mission.

"What if your next chapter considers a model of the earliest gatherings for what comes next? Those early Christians didn't have a building fund or a strategic plan. They had four things — teaching, fellowship, breaking bread together, and prayer. What if those four things are enough to begin again?" "I don't know this community as well as you do. But you know who is missing from this table. Youknow who in this neighborhood that needs what you have to offer. What if God is already showing you that answer?"

Jesus gathered his earliest followers for preparation, then he sent them out on mission, and he still sends his followers today. What if we started calling these little mission trips of love, peace, mercy, and transformation merely our daily lives. What if our daily lives become mission-focused, mission-driven, and mission itself, all once we leave this building on Sundays. We are not the church merely because we gather for our own edification and fellowship. We gather not merely

to listen to Jesus' words, feast at his table, and gather for social connection. We gather to be fed, trained, and readied as a force of love, so Jesus can send us out to continue his ministry, and for the benefit and blessing, betterment, and peace for all of creation.

Distractions

Sometimes though, we can become discouraged, distracted, and we become lost and removed from our purpose. In all my years of diocesan work with 70+ churches in Florida and 65+ in Oklahoma I witnessed the amazing mission work of so many diverse communities. There were all doing God's work in so many ways, but the challenges of change seemed to frustrate them. Those communities that struggled, often lost their way and became stuck. They started believing they could cannot function, unless they had all the right resources in place, the right plan completely figured out, or unless they had the right perfect leader up front.

The truth is we have all we need and we already have the only leader of our lives we need, and he faithfully directs our way in every way. It is Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Jesus is with his church and keeps calling us out of our old thinking, challenging us to take a risk and trust him. Jesus says you don't need a purse, or cloak or other things to do what I have in store for you. Jesus challenges us to let go of our "Oh, woe is me" thinking and begin mission living again with

trust and great hope.

"What if"

In my previous ministry calls, I once met with a Bishop's committee for a mission church that was in the early process of discernment to call a new priest. In one meeting I led with a church's a leadership team they were so overwhelmed with the tasks before them. They were grappling with challenges like, "How in the world are we going to do all this work, who is going to be on the search committee, do we have enough money in the budget, etc. etc." I heard desperation, fear, and a culture of "we are not enough."

I sat and listened patiently then I said, let's try something different, let's pray. After we prayed, I said these words to the group, "Let's reframe these challeges you face, and look at them through the lens of a new question, "Whatif?" For instance, let's ask, "What if we have enough people to do all this work?"

"What if we already have plenty of good candidates for the search committee?" "What if we have plenty of resources to meet the budget? What if we started thinking outside the box?" "What if" is an unpretentious, humble and innocent little question that has the power to generate so many possibilities. "What if" reminds us that we are not alone, and it prompts us to recall that “God is always making things new, even in our own little communities.”

A New Day and New Adventure

I try to ask the "What if" question myself, especially when Terri and I personally need to reimagine our own fears, doubts and uncertainties. What if each of us reimagined our own personal challenges by asking "What if?" What if the church reimagined her challenges by asking "What if?"

That reframing wisdom came to me when I first read a beautiful poem of hope written by Erin Hanson. The poem was based on an imaginary dialogue between a Mamma bird and her baby bird. The young bird was contemplating the fear and anxiety of jumping out of the nest for the first time. The poem is as follows:

There is freedom waiting for you,

On the breezes of the sky,

And you ask, "What if I fall?"

Oh, but my darling,

"What if you fly?

My sisters and brothers, you are in a period of transition, but that should not deter you from the mission God has given you. God has been, is now, and will always call you out of fear, uncertainty and anxiety, and give you what you need to leap into a new day of mission and ministry. Don't let fear stand in your way. "Live in hopeful expectation and imagine a new vision. Ask God to give you a big dream! How might you do that you ask? By asking a simple little question, “What if?"

It is a powerfully simple phrase, and it has the power to release in you, God’s renewed creativity and hope. So, live in hope and expect miraculous new adventures, expect the unexpected, and expect Our Lord to be with you in all this work. When all this seems overwhelming, please don't ponder, "what if we fall." Like that little bird who was so afraid to jump out of the nest, here is a simple prayer of hope, “What if, with God’s help, we fly?”