Can you guess who this is? “He was born in the state of Maine.  When he was 2 weeks old he weighed 100 pounds.  His parents took him and put him in a cradle out in the ocean.  Every time he rocked in his cradle, big waves would come in and flood the seashore.  When he grew up, he found an ox in the snow. He fed it and it soon measured 42 ax handles high.  He founded the Big Onion Logging Company.  He built a big skillet to feed his hundreds of men.  It was so big that 100 men had to strap fat to their shoes and skate on it to grease it.”  Wouldn’t you agree this is exaggeration?

Speaking of exaggeration you may remember this classic story of Mark Twain.  While in Europe, the newspapers in the United States ran a story about his death.  When the news reached him, he cabled the following message to the Associated Press, “The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated.”

One of the verses in our God Sighting scriptures this week is the verse with which John finishes up his gospel — “But there are also many other things that Jesus did; if every one of them were written down, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.” (John 21:25 NRSV)  If John had been writing the gospel today on a Word Processor he might have written, “There’s a whole lot more that I could tell you about Jesus and what he did but there aren’t enough gigabytes or hard drives to contain all of it.”

By all standards, if anything sounds like an exaggeration this statement does. However, exaggeration or not, what a way to end a gospel.  John was excited about Jesus his Lord. He was excited about all the things Jesus had done and said.

Webster defines “exaggerate” as enlarging beyond bounds or the truth or enlarging beyond the normal.  Some synonyms would be “overstate” or “overemphasize.”

I had always equated exaggeration with lying but that is not always the case.  Sometimes, something is perceived as exaggeration simply because the limits as perceived by the listener, or what the listener knows as truth, does not go far enough.

Marco Polo came back to Italy in the 13th century after visiting the Orient.  He told stories of wonders he had seen and marvelous cities he had visited.  Far beyond the imagination of his people, they accused him of exaggerating and lying.  They ridiculed everything he had to say.  When he was dying they asked him to confess his lies, since he was about to face God.  Marco Polo’s final answer? – “I never told the half of it.”

Benjamin Franklin had the exaggerated idea that lightening was a form of electricity.  He sent a paper on the subject to a friend and asked him to read it for him at the Royal Society in London.  The friend later reported they laughed at the idea.

In 1837, Rowland Hill proposed the exaggerated idea of using postage stamps in Great Britain, instead of asking the recipient to make a cash payment on acceptance.  The postmaster general, Lord Richfield, said the idea was “entirely repugnant to reason.”

If we were all honest with ourselves, we would have to admit that we are believers in an exaggerated faith.  Think about some of the things Jesus had to say – some of them are simply outrageous, “The meek shall inherit the earth.”  “Love your enemies.”  “Ask anything in my name and you will receive it.”  “Turn your other cheek.”

Our Bible talks about happenings such as the dividing of the Red Sea; the boy David killing the Giant Goliath with a slingshot; Daniel surviving in the lion’s den; and, Jesus turning water into wine, walking on water and rising from the dead.

Our faith is exaggerated, at least when viewed through the world’s eyes.  The world cannot understand or at least cannot scientifically evaluate those kinds of happenings. The world cannot understand the people in the Bible who gave up everything for God or the people who claimed to speak for God.

A good example is the Apostle Paul.  In his letter to the Philippians, he boastfully lists off his incredible Jewish credentials of lineage, learning and law keeping.  Listen how he ends his bragging time: “… whatever gains I had, these I have come to regard as loss because of Christ.  More than that, I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and I regard them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ  and be found in him …” (Philippians 3:7-9a NRSV)

What a thing to say.  Paul had everything going for him.  Did he really mean it?  Was he just getting carried away? With the eyes of the world, it sounds like exaggeration.  With the eyes of faith, there is no doubt Paul was speaking the truth.

One pastor tells about a letter he received in his first pastorate in the ’50′s.  The letter was from a young member of his congregation who was in the Marine Corp, stationed in Southern California.  He had met the girl of his dreams and was going to bring her home to get married. The letter contained five or six pages describing the girl.  As the pastor read it, he wondered if maybe the soldier had met Elizabeth Taylor and persuaded her to marry him.

A month later, the soldier and his bride came home.  The pastor was astonished.  She did not even come close to being a beauty. However, he concluded the soldier had not lied.  He had only exaggerated.  He actually saw the girl as he had described.  In his love, he saw a beauty no one else could see.

Although the illustration falls short, it has application.  When we have experienced the love and power of God, when we have experienced a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, we see things in a new way.  Some would call it exaggeration, exuberance or even fanaticism but it is reality for us.

We make some pretty phenomenal claims as the church of Jesus Christ – as we read and preach the Bible.  I have already alluded to some of the phenomenal scriptures.  What about our hymns — “O for a thousand tongues to sing my great Redeemer’s praise.”  “O Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder consider all the worlds thy hands have made.”  “We’ve a story to tell to the nations.”

We do it through our buildings such as cathedrals with tall spires and vaulted ceilings.  Look at our own church – why do we have this ceiling – it sure isn’t for heating efficiency.  What about our big cross – inside and out?  To some this might all be an exaggeration but to us it comes out of an excitement and enthusiasm over God’s connection with us.

At least I hope this is why we do the things we do.  There is always the temptation to do what we do out of habit.  We hear the word of God but we don’t really listen because we’ve heard it all before.  We sing the hymns we have always sung and no longer pay attention to the incredible words.

What is the opposite of exaggerating?  Underrating – understating – minimizing?  All too often, the church has such little impact on this world because its members choose to underrate or understate their faith in their conversation and lifestyle.

We have a great God and a great faith – worthy of exaggeration.  In fact, there is no way we can over-exaggerate.  God and God’s ways are higher, deeper, wider, larger, smaller than any of us could imagine.

In his gospel, John was bold enough to state that the whole world could never contain all the books it would take to record the many things Jesus did. It is a wonderful exaggeration.  If only we could be that convinced and carried away in enthusiasm.

This is what the world needs.  Apathy is high – trust is low.  People are afraid. Now is the time to proclaim the gospel boldly.  Now is the time to share the outrageous news of God’s love for us.

Some may call us foolish.  Some may accuse us of exaggeration.  However, there are many who are seeking; whose hearts and eyes and ears are open and waiting for the truth.  Will we deny them life because we are afraid of our reputation?

The gospel of Jesus Christ has endured.  The gospel of Jesus Christ has prevailed.  It will not end here.  If we do not do it God will find somebody else.  However, wouldn’t it be great if we could say we have had a part in telling and showing this incredible story of God’s love for the world?

Last September we began the church year with the theme – “Rethink Church.”  The United Methodist denomination suggested the theme for this stated purpose: to “invite the United Methodist Church, and those unchurched who are seeking spiritual fulfillment, to become more outwardly focused and engaged in the world.”

A major component of the campaign was to ask “what if” questions: What if church was more than a building?  What if church was not a place to go on Sundays but something to do on Mondays?  What if church was a verb?

Most of you are aware of the newspaper article that appeared in the Journal a few weeks ago concerning our Wednesday Nite Live.  The Journal interviewed several of our guests.  I was pleased to read the remarks of one guest confirming what we have been trying to do.  The story reported: “To Adams, actions speak louder than words, and he’s impressed that members of First UMC are doing exactly what their “Rethink Church” T-shirts proclaim.  They quote him as saying, “I think it’s a wonderful thing … to see a church meeting the needs of the community outside itself like this … they really are rethinking what it means to be a church, and making it possible for members of the church and the less fortunate people all around them to rub elbows,” he said.

That is good news.  Not only have we been challenged by “rethink church” but also others outside of the church have been noticing.  It is always good to be found practicing what we preach.

Today I want to wrap up this “rethink” theme – mostly.  Be advised this is not the end of our rethinking church.  Just because the WNL year is over and we might not wear our red “rethink church” shirts anymore does not mean we will not continue in our transformation.  This is much more than a one-year campaign. “Rethinking church” will extend into our future just as “rethinking church” has been part of our past.  In my nine years here, God has continually challenged me to rethink what church is all about.  God has done that through the conviction of the Holy Spirit, by a staff more concerned with doing ministry than having a job, and as my life has interacted with the guests visiting from the outside.  I have passed on my own rethinking with you, like it or not.

What is the church?  Who is the church?  Part of my rethinking of the church has involved new insights concerning the history of the church.  Until recently, I thought the word “church” or the concept of the “church” was new with the followers of Jesus.  Many, many times I have declared Pentecost as the birthday of the church.  That is somewhat accurate but mostly, it is wrong.  The concept of church already had a long and deep history far before the first Pentecost of our tradition. The word generally meant assembly or “a gathering of people” and could just as easily be applied to any assembly of the early Israelites, e.g. when they gathered with Moses at Mt. Sinai or later as they gathered in synagogues.

Keeping that in mind, if there ever was a moment to “rethink church” it was on that day Jesus’ followers – mostly, if not all, Jewish people – gathered in prayer as the Holy Spirit showed up.  The story is in Acts, chapter two – “²And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting.  ³Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them.  ⁴All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.” (Acts 2:2-4 NRSV)

Jesus had already prepared his followers to think beyond themselves.  As he left for heaven, he told his followers the Holy Spirit would come and they would be empowered to go out into the entire world to share the good news he had come to bring.

As the Holy Spirit appeared on Pentecost so did the first sign confirming this was not just for them.  They began to share the wonders of God in languages unknown to them but understood by the various groups of foreigners visiting in Jerusalem on that day.

With the incredible appearance of the Holy Spirit, that group of Jesus’ followers could do nothing but rethink church.  They were no longer a group of people waiting for a Messiah.  They were a group of people who had seen the Messiah – not just a prophet or a messenger or a military commander but “God in the flesh.”  They were a group of people given the mandate to share the good news of the Messiah with the world.

So what does this have to do with King David?  Good question.  I painted myself into a corner this week.  As you heard in the scripture reading, I was going to preach about King David and as you see in the sermon title, the main issue was to be “integrity.”  After the bulletin was completed, I remembered that this Sunday was Pentecost Sunday.

I’ve been known to weave together some pretty unrelated thoughts before so I decided to take up the challenge.  What might David and Pentecost have in common?  I think we can stay with the word “integrity.” Inspired by the Day of Pentecost, we ask ourselves this “rethink church” question – “what if the church had integrity?”

First, let’s look at David.  King David had his problems but overall he had integrity, at least in his younger days.  Our scripture reading this morning is one indication.  It is one of two times David had an opportunity to kill Saul but out of respect for this  man, who in spite of his huge faults was the Lord’s anointed king, David chose to spare his life.  This is most interesting and impressive.  Saul had already tried to kill David several times.  At the time of our scripture reading, Saul was in pursuit of David to destroy him and his followers.  King Saul and David  both knew God had given up on Saul and had already anointed David to be the next king.  By killing Saul and taking over the kingdom, David had the opportunity to help God along and hurry the process.  Who could blame him?  He had every right.  Saul treated him horribly, David loved God – that was obvious from all of the music he had written and sung, and God had already used him in incredible ways, most notably the killing of the giant Goliath.  Again, out of respect for Saul – the man that God had chosen and anointed – he refrained.

David showed integrity. He practiced what he preached.  He walked the talk.  He respected both God’s plan and God’s timing and for it he was willing to lay aside any self-serving plans of his own.

This was the story of Pentecost. The followers of Jesus could have scattered just as soon as Jesus left for heaven, at the worst to do whatever they were doing before they ever met him or at best, to share the gospel in their known world.  However, Jesus told them to stay together and wait for the Holy Spirit.  Then they could scatter and share.  So, they waited.  And, God’s plan revealed itself. The Holy Spirit came and they were empowered to go out to share what Jesus had done for them and what Jesus wanted to do for the world.

In both the case of David and the case of Jesus’ followers on Pentecost, they showed integrity of faith as they submitted themselves to God’s plan and God’s timing.

Our “what if” question for today, to help us rethink church, is this: What if the Church had integrity? Expanding that further, what if the Church practiced what it preached?  What if the Church walked the talk? In particular, as in our two examples today, what if the Church submitted itself to God’s plan and God’s timing?

If you could see my printed sermon you would notice that in this series of questions I capitalized the word “Church.”  What if the universal Church, all of the followers of Christ combined, had the integrity to seek out God’s will and then to heed it?  That seems beyond our reach.  How can we control what the Church is doing in Africa or Asia or Europe?  What if we scaled it down to this question: What if First United Methodist Church of Rapid City had the integrity to seek out God’s will and then to heed it?  Even that might seem a little beyond our control.  However, what if we scaled it down even further to ask this question, “What if I had the integrity as a follower of Jesus Christ to seek God’s will for my life and to submit to what I have come to know as God’s will for my life?”  It must start with me.  It must start with you.

So what are we supposed to do?  How do we discover God’s will?  We read and study God’s word, we pray and meditate over God’s Word and we follow Jesus into the places that he would go if he were here.  And how do we heed God’s will?  We lay aside our agenda, our excuses, our desires and we do it.

Integrity in our faith makes a huge difference.  Listen to what Jesus says, ⁴⁶“Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I tell you?  ⁴⁷I will show you what someone is like who comes to me, hears my words, and acts on them.  ⁴⁸That one is like a man building a house, who dug deeply and laid the foundation on rock; when a flood arose, the river burst against that house but could not shake it, because it had been well built.  ⁴⁹But the one who hears and does not act is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the river burst against it, immediately it fell, and great was the ruin of that house.” (Luke 6:46-49 NRSV)

What if the church had integrity?

A few years ago I was riding my bicycle with a new acquaintance who had recently moved to Rapid City.  We had been talking about our mutual faith and our respective churches.  As we rode past the Civic Center, I pointed out the area where Hills Alive, the outdoor Christian Rock festival, takes place each summer.  I figured he might be interested in attending.  He stopped me mid-sentence to let me know that there was no such thing as Christian Rock music.  I wasn’t quite sure what he meant so I asked.  He talked about drums and Africa and paganism.  He let me know in no uncertain terms that rock music of any sort, including Christian rock music, was of the devil. I was surprised that with his apparent Biblical understanding he did not remember that the Bible first mentions rock music and that this rock music is God oriented.  We heard about it in our scripture reading this morning.

The people are singing praise to God.  Jesus rides into Jerusalem on what we know as Palm Sunday. For the most part, they knew Jesus was someone very unique.  Some were convinced God sent him to do something very special for them. They shout, “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven, and glory in the highest heaven!” (Luke 19:28 NRSV) The other gospels precede this exclamation with “Hosanna,” a word of praise to God, which translates into “save now.” The people were shouting in hopes of deliverance, in particular from Jesus.

Looking in on this whole scene were the Pharisees – the religious rulers of the time.  They already were having a severe case of jealousy and competition concerning Jesus.  Jesus had challenged them more than once about the hypocrisy of their beliefs and lifestyle.  The crowds seemed to be following Jesus far more enthusiastically than they had ever experienced.  Jesus’ grandstanding as he rides into Jerusalem on a donkey did not impress them. They urge Jesus to tell his followers to be quiet. Jesus reply to them went something like this: “Knowing what I know about who I am and what I have come here to do, if these people would stop singing out their praises, the rocks themselves would cry out in praise.”  In other words – rock music.

I’ll admit this is a little bit of a stretch – a less than admirable play on words – but there is a point to be made here. Whenever God is involved, excitement fills the air and all of nature responds. Isaiah talks about the mountains and the hills bursting into song, and the trees of the field clapping their hands. (Isaiah 55:12)  The Psalmist invites the floods to clap their hands and the hills to sing for joy at the presence of the LORD, (Psalm 98:8,9) The rocks get it, the trees get it but we who should know better often don’t.

A couple of weeks ago, in our God-sighting readings, we read the story of Balaam and his donkey.  Balak, the king of the Moabites, has summoned Balaam – a priest or prophet of some sorts.  He wants Balaam to put a curse on the Israelites.  God intervenes and tells him not to do it but Balaam can’t pass up the king’s reward so he sets off to see Balak.  Three times Balaam’s donkey refuses to move and three times Balaam beats the donkey.  The third time the LORD intervenes.  He allows the donkey to talk.  The donkey turns to Balaam and tells him to knock it off.  Then the LORD opens Balaam’s eyes and he realizes that the reason the donkey has stopped the three times is that an angel of the LORD with sword drawn stood in front of the donkey to prevent him from moving.  The donkey got it.  He realized what God was doing.  Balaam, the man, did not.

The Bible tells of many other situations in which the people that should have gotten what was going on do not have a clue and the people who we would think would not understand are able to discern what God is doing.

This has been an issue in our dealings with the Parable of the Prodigal Son.  It actually was an issue between Jesus and the Jewish religious rulers.  They, of all people, who considered themselves experts in the knowledge of and the keeping of God’s law, want nothing to do with Jesus – God in the flesh.  At the same time, those outside of the fold, the non-Jews, the tax collectors and other assorted sinners seem to have no problem recognizing that something very special is going on with Jesus.  They know he is connecting them to God.  He might even be God.

As we have looked at this parable the last several weeks we have concluded that this is more than just a story about a wayward son coming home, much more than a story to encourage sinful people to repent and return to God.  The ultimate purpose of Jesus telling the story is to expose the Pharisees as being like the elder son, refusing to be a part of the welcome home party thrown for his returning brother.  Jesus hopes that in the telling of the story the Pharisees would see their error and they themselves would leave behind their religion and return to a relationship with God.

The question thrown out to the Pharisees was, “Will you participate in the celebration God has prepared for all of his people?”  More personally, “Will you join me in celebrating what I am doing as I restore those who have been lost and on the outside of the faith to a rightful, loving relationship with God?  Will you join me in celebrating God’s great mercy to all, including you?”

Ultimately, Jesus’ story we have labeled as the Parable of the Prodigal Son is a story about celebration.  It is no accident that this parable follows the story of the joyful finding of a lost sheep and the story of the joyful finding of a lost coin.  Both of these stories end with these words, “there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” (Luke 15:7 and 10 NRSV) These stories are about the gathering of the people of the earth and the angels of heaven, for the purpose of celebrating God’s great love and mercy.

Jesus never finishes the parable.  It is like a book or a movie that leaves us guessing at how the loose ends will resolve themselves.

Jesus never finishes the parable because the resolution of the parable was up to the hearers.  We would like to think that the religious rulers got the point – that their response to Jesus would have been something like, “Oh, now I get it. I have a relationship with God, not because I have earned it through working so hard living a good life and staying away from the bad people and the things bad people do.  I have a relationship with God because of God’s great love and mercy, a love and mercy none of us deserve, but God extends to us all.”

That is not their response.  It is nothing like their response.   It has no happy finale.  As John MacArthur, in his book A Tale of Two Sons, concludes, “it is the great shock and outrage of all time.” The Pharisees did not join the celebration.  The Pharisees killed the host.  MacArthur continues, “Since the father figure in the parable represents Christ and the elder brother is a symbol of Israel’s religious elite, in effect, the true ending to the story, as written by the scribes and Pharisees themselves, ought to read something like this: ‘The elder son was outraged at his father.  He picked up a piece of lumber and beat him to death in front of everyone.”

What about us?  How will we write the end to Jesus’ story?  Will we join the party or will we stay outside?

Church, we are the older son – we are the ones who should know better.

I have been doing a lot of reading recently about the perception of those outside of the church concerning the Christian Church.  Did you know that when they describe us they know more about what we are against than what we are for?  Have we earned that perception?

When people step through these doors on Sunday mornings or Wednesday evenings or whenever do they witness us as a celebrating people?  Do they sense an invitation to celebrate along with us?  Or, do they experience self-focused people selfishly hanging on to a perfunctory religion?

From beginning to end the Bible tells of God’s invitation to all to join Him in a great celebratory banquet.  Listen to these words from the end of the Bible – the Book of Revelation: “The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” And let everyone who hears say, “Come.” And let everyone who is thirsty come. Let anyone who wishes take the water of life as a gift.” (Revelation 22:17 NRSV)

If we, the people of God, don’t celebrate, the rocks themselves will take up the cry of praise. But, let’s not leave it up to the rocks.  Let us human beings, created in the image of God, join the rocks and hills and trees, the donkeys and the elephants, the sinners and saints and let us celebrate.

Feeling footloose and frisky, a feather-brained fellow forced his fond father to fork over the family finances. He flew far to foreign fields and frittered his fortune feasting fabulously with faithless friends. Finally facing famine and fleeced by his fellows in folly, he found himself a feed-flinger in a filthy farmyard. Fairly famished he fain would have filled his frame with the foraged foods of the fodder fragments left by the filthy farmyard creatures. ‘Fooey’, he said, ‘My father’s flunkies fare far fancier.’ Frustrated by failure and filled with foreboding he forthwith fled to his family. Falling at his father’s feet, he floundered forlornly. ‘Father, I have flunked and fruitlessly forfeited family favor.’

But the faithful father, forestalling further flinching frantically flagged the flunkies. ‘Fetch forth the finest fatling and fix a feast.’ But the fugitive’s fault-finding frater frowned on the fickle forgiveness of the former folderol. His fury flashed.

But fussing was futile, for the far-sighted father figured, such filial fidelity is fine, but what forbids fervent festivity? The fugitive is found! “Unfurl the flags, with fanfares flaring! Let fun and frolic freely flow!” “Former failure is forgotten, folly is forsaken! And forgiveness forms the foundation for future fortitude.” (The Prodigal Son Parable in “F” found floating around on the internet)

The letter “f” is the first letter of the character we look at today from the Parable of the Unprodigal Son.  The “f” stands for father.

The main theme of the parable has to do with the father’s love.  The main question asks the listener if they will respond to the invitation to participate in that love. The brothers initiate the question from two different places in life.  For whatever reason, both had been unaware of the gracious love of their dad.  In the end, the younger son who broke his father’s heart was the one to discover the immensity of his father’s love.  The older brother, from beginning to end, missed it.

Jesus tells the story of a son demanding his inheritance early and then running away from home.  His listeners, especially the religious rulers, were horrified as the boy committed one of the most despicable acts of disrespect any son could commit.

Jesus knew their thoughts on this disgraceful act, but also he also knew what they would be imagining concerning the reaction of the father.  Any good, honorable Jewish father would deny the request.  The normal response would be, at the very minimum, a hard slap across the face or some sort of public shaming. At the worst, according to Old Testament law, the son could be stoned to death.  A next step would be a publicly disowning of the boy. Oftentimes a family actually held a mock funeral for a child who disrespectfully abandoned home and family, declaring that child dead to them.

The Pharisees listening to Jesus tell the story were shocked to hear there was no such response.  Both the son’s request and the father’s relinquishment of inheritance with no response of anger and punishment were appalling.  Then it gets worse.  Instead of the father writing off his son as good as dead he expectantly prays for his son to change his mind and come home.  Day after day, he searches the horizon for the boy’s return.

Much to the disappointment of the Pharisees, the father’s prayer is answered.  The son comes to his senses.  He returns home.  Now what is the father going to do?  Surely, somehow, now he will save face.

Before we go on, we need to make a little shift in our own imagining of the scene.  I have always pictured the father and his family living in a mansion in the middle of acres and acres of Dakota farmland.  I imagined the spotting of the son on the horizon and the meeting between the two as a fairly private affair.

That would not have been how those listening to Jesus’ story back then would have imagined it.  People didn’t live out in the expansive country separated from their neighbors by large sections of land. The people lived in communities for protection, traveling out from those communities to their fields.  What they would have imagined is a father watching the horizon from his housetop and the spotted son walking, not towards a solitary farmhouse, but towards a village.  The return would be very public.

Already concerned about the shame the father has placed upon himself, the Pharisees expect that with the whole community watching, the father would save face with an honorable response to his son’s return.  The son might be expected to bow low and kiss the father’s feet in humility and disgrace.  More likely, the father would not even come out to see the son.  He would send a servant to inform the son he was not welcome or that he must first sit outside the father’s mansion for several days.  During those days he would suffer ridicule and abuse from the passersby who would be sure to give the son the “what for.”

The only question for the legalistic Pharisees was how and how much the father would shame and punish the boy to save his own honor, and give the son what he deserved. So what happens?

A dad and son listened to their pastor deliver a sermon based on the story of the prodigal. When the preacher got to the point where the father raced out to meet his returning son, he said, “Throwing wide his arms, the father said….” Before the preacher could finish the line, the boy sitting by his dad spoke out loud enough for everyone to hear, “YOU’RE GROUNDED!”

Actually, that was not the father’s response.  Before the son reaches the village, the dad runs out to him and before the son can get out a decent apology the father throws his arms around him in a great big hug and yells instructions to his servants to begin a welcome home party.

The Pharisees gasp in horror as once again the father shows no sense of honor.  No self-respecting, older Middle Eastern man would ever run.  Not only that, but the father touches – he hugs – a filthy, ragged son who smells like pigs.  And to top it off, the father offers no sentence of punishment. It is the son who should have been shamed.  It is the son who should have humbled himself.

Why would the father be so adamant in searching the horizon for his son day after day and why would he be so adamant in getting to him before he reached the village.  Is it possible he wanted to make sure that before the son received the insults and questions of the community he would know that his dad loved him?  Is it possible, before such public ridicule took place, the dad wanted the community to know just how much he loved his son.

It was an incredible act of mercy.  The father left his home and outside the walls of the city, he humbled himself and took upon himself the shame that rightfully belonged to his son.  Sound familiar?

There is no doubt that as Jesus shares this parable he is describing the incredible love of God, the Father.  However, considering the fact that Jesus and the Father were one, in this parable Jesus is also describing himself and his ministry.

As the father carried upon himself the shame of the sinful young man, so the son, Jesus, came to carry upon himself the shame of all sinners. Jesus walked the path of the prodigal so that no one could ever say he is unable to identify with him or her.  Jesus left his home just like the younger son, removing himself from the presence of his Father.  Jesus traveled to a far country, just like him.  Jesus lost everything he had, coming to the end of his life in great suffering and much humiliation.

Paul writes to the Philippians, “[Even] though [Jesus] was in the form of God, [he] did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And, being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death—even death on a cross. (Philippians 2:6-8 NRSV)

The younger son took all that was coming to him.  Jesus gave up all that was his.  The younger son selfishly wasted all he had on himself.  Jesus allowed anything he did have to be taken from him.  When the younger son hit rock bottom with nothing, he repented, returned home and fell on the mercy of his father.  When Jesus hit rock bottom he went deeper still, separating himself completely from the life and love of the Father, taking upon himself the sins of the world and its consequence, walking through death and hell, making a way for everyone to come home.  It is a story like no other.

Henri Nouwen writes this in his book based on this parable: For most of my life I have struggled to find God, to know God, to love God.  I have tried to follow the guidelines of the spiritual life – pray always, work for others, read the Scriptures – to avoid the many temptations to dissipate myself.  I have failed many times but always tried again, even when I was close to despair.

Now I wonder whether I have sufficiently realized that during all this time God has been trying to find me, to know me, and to love me.  The question is not “How am I to find God?” but “How am I to let myself be found by Him?”  The question is not “How am I to know God?” but “How am I to let myself be known by God?” And finally, the question is not “How am I to love God?” but “How am I to let myself be loved by God?”  God is looking into the distance for me, trying to find me, and longing to bring me home. (The Return of the Prodigal Son by Henri M. Nouwen, p. 106)

***************************
BREAKPOINT DAILY TRANSCRIPT
***************************

The Countersign
God’s Servant in Haiti

March 10, 2010

This commentary was delivered by Prison Fellowship president Mark Earley.

What if your daily job were to work among the very poorest people in the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere? What if that job involved taking food to people in its “most ferocious slums”? Or routinely collecting bloated corpses from an unsanitary morgue? Or helping the victims of kidnappings, shootings, abandonment, and even much worse?

If that were your job, how would you survive without emotionally or spiritually shutting down?

One man, Pastor Rick Frechette, has not only survived, but thrived. Matt Labash of the Weekly Standard recently wrote a brilliant profile of Pastor Rick, which you can read by going to BreakPoint.org.

As director of the Haitian branch of the international organization Our Little Brothers, Pastor Rick runs a children’s hospital, an orphanage, and a mission to educate and feed some of Haiti’s poorest citizens. Once a week, he and a team of volunteers recover forgotten corpses and give them a decent Christian burial, “with a tiny modicum of the dignity that eluded in them in life.”

Having worked in Haiti for over two decades, Pastor Rick deals with horrors most of us couldn’t imagine. To follow him through his routine, as Labash did, is like touring hell. He functions by hanging on to his sense of humor and, even more importantly, “to his faith in a God that orders the universe even amidst the apparent chaos.”

If there were ever an example of the Christian worldview being tried by fire, Pastor Rick would be that example. He tells Labash that the most concrete way he can practice his faith and help the Haitians is to offer “countersigns” of grace — that is, to do something right for someone when everything is going wrong.

For example, Pastor Rick tells the story of a boy that he saw set on fire by thugs. Before he could reach him, the boy was dead, but he got buckets of water and extinguished the flames anyway. Then, he says, “we put him in the back of the truck, and do what we always do. Have a prayer right there. To make a counter-witness by our own behavior.”

He reports that the gang that set him on fire stood by and watched. And the boy’s mother — even overwhelmed by grief—was grateful for this act of love.

“It made her able to live with it,” Pastor Rick says. “It’s like God sent someone to help her, like it restored her faith in humanity again…I call it the countersign.”

Father Rick explains it this way: “The terrible thing that’s in front of you, you hurry, and offset it right away. Before what happens is too taxing and too poisonous…Sometimes with horrible things, you really feel there is nothing you can do…You’re just useless. But over time, you start seeing that to do the right thing no matter what has tremendous power.”

What a wonderful expression of what it means to live out a Christian worldview. We can’t change the past, but, empowered by God, we can show love and grace that offers people hope and a way to move forward.

Maybe you will never have the chance to minister in a disaster area like Haiti. But no doubt you will encounter people who need that countersign of God’s love and grace. Let’s pray we will all be ready to offer it.

Get links to further information on today’s topic (http://www.breakpoint.org/commentaries/14726-the-countersign

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Oops! Here’s Colson’s Breakpoint on The Countersign Inbox X Reply | Donald Joy to don.joy show details Mar 10 (1 day ago) Oops! I sent everything but the Breakpoint on The Countersign! Here it is. DON *************************** BREAKPOINT DAILY TRANSCRIPT *************************** The Countersign God’s Servant in Haiti March 10, 2010 This commentary was delivered by Prison Fellowship president Mark Earley. What if your daily job were to work among the very poorest people in the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere? What if that job involved taking food to people in its “most ferocious slums”? Or routinely collecting bloated corpses from an unsanitary morgue? Or helping the victims of kidnappings, shootings, abandonment, and even much worse? If that were your job, how would you survive without emotionally or spiritually shutting down? One man, Pastor Rick Frechette, has not only survived, but thrived. Matt Labash of the Weekly Standard recently wrote a brilliant profile of Pastor Rick, which you can read by going to BreakPoint.org. As director of the Haitian branch of the international organization Our Little Brothers, Pastor Rick runs a children’s hospital, an orphanage, and a mission to educate and feed some of Haiti’s poorest citizens. Once a week, he and a team of volunteers recover forgotten corpses and give them a decent Christian burial, “with a tiny modicum of the dignity that eluded in them in life.” Having worked in Haiti for over two decades, Pastor Rick deals with horrors most of us couldn’t imagine. To follow him through his routine, as Labash did, is like touring hell. He functions by hanging on to his sense of humor and, even more importantly, “to his faith in a God that orders the universe even amidst the apparent chaos.” If there were ever an example of the Christian worldview being tried by fire, Pastor Rick would be that example. He tells Labash that the most concrete way he can practice his faith and help the Haitians is to offer “countersigns” of grace — that is, to do something right for someone when everything is going wrong. For example, Pastor Rick tells the story of a boy that he saw set on fire by thugs. Before he could reach him, the boy was dead, but he got buckets of water and extinguished the flames anyway. Then, he says, “we put him in the back of the truck, and do what we always do. Have a prayer right there. To make a counter-witness by our own behavior.” He reports that the gang that set him on fire stood by and watched. And the boy’s mother — even overwhelmed by grief—was grateful for this act of love. “It made her able to live with it,” Pastor Rick says. “It’s like God sent someone to help her, like it restored her faith in humanity again…I call it the countersign.” Father Rick explains it this way: “The terrible thing that’s in front of you, you hurry, and offset it right away. Before what happens is too taxing and too poisonous…Sometimes with horrible things, you really feel there is nothing you can do…You’re just useless. But over time, you start seeing that to do the right thing no matter what has tremendous power.” What a wonderful expression of what it means to live out a Christian worldview. We can’t change the past, but, empowered by God, we can show love and grace that offers people hope and a way to move forward. Maybe you will never have the chance to minister in a disaster area like Haiti. But no doubt you will encounter people who need that countersign of God’s love and grace. Let’s pray we will all be ready to offer it. Get links to further information on today’s topic (http://www.breakpoint.org/commentaries/14726-the-countersign ) Reply Reply to all Forward Invite Donald Joy to chat

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A Sunday School teacher was telling his class of older children the story of the Prodigal Son. He wanted to emphasize the resentful attitude of the elder brother.  He described the welcome home party and then the fact there was one who failed to share in the happiness of the occasion. He asked, “Can anybody in the class tell me who this unhappy person was?”

One of the girls, Olivia, had been listening sympathetically to the story. She waved her hand in the air. “I know! I know!” to which she proudly replied, “It was the fatted calf.”

We know Jesus was much more than just a great story teller but we also know he was a great story teller.  The story we label with the title, “The Parable of the Prodigal Son,” is one of his best.

We have to understand that this is more than just a story about birth order or about a sinful child coming home to a forgiving father.  When we consider its context, we see this story as an accusatory reprimand aimed at the self-righteous religious people.  It is not the younger son, it is not the forgiving father – it is the older son who is the central character in this story.

While Jesus may have shared this parable to bring comfort to the sinners in the crowd that day; more certainly, Jesus had his eye on the religious rulers.  If he had not, his story would have stopped at the younger son’s return.

Jesus was after the self-righteous religious folks and he did an incredible job in setting them up to hear his accusations. As Jesus begins to tell the story, they believe the behavior of the younger son is the focus.  They are relieved Jesus is finally getting after the unappreciative sinners – those who take advantage of God – those who refuse to follow God’s laws – those who are more interested in placating their sinful desires than taking care of the religious side of their lives.

Jesus paints a bleak, disgusting picture of what sinners are like.  The religious rulers eat it up.  They shake their heads as Jesus tells about the son who humiliates his father and breaks his heart.  They sneer as they listen how he wasted the money taken from his father on immoral living and they grunt in disgust when Jesus says the boy takes a job feeding unclean pigs.

What were they thinking?  What were they whispering under their breath to one another?  “Preach it Jesus – tell it like it is.”  “How could that boy do such a thing?”  “What is this world coming to?”  That’s just what this younger generation is like.”

Jesus steps it up.  The religious leaders continue to take the bait.  The money is gone – “I told you so.”  A famine hits the area – “God’s judgment prevails!”  The boy starves towards death in the middle of the pigpen – “serves him right.”  “I sure am glad I am not like that.” “Maybe Jesus isn’t such a bad guy after all.  He is as disgusted with those sinners as we are.”  They look over at the tax collectors and prostitutes and beggars and other assorted sinners in the crowd and they give them the “we are better than you” look.

Jesus has them right where he wants them.  Their defenses are down.  He sets the hook as he tells of the younger son coming to his senses, heading for home, being hugged by his father, and given a party to celebrate his return.

The religious folks in the crowd sure didn’t see that coming.  They wanted to see the sinful boy die of starvation in the pigsty – but a party?

And then Jesus reels them in. ²⁵“Now his elder son was in the field; and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing.  ²⁶He called one of the slaves and asked what was going on.  ²⁷He replied, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he has got him back safe and sound.’  ²⁸Then he became angry and refused to go in. His father came out and began to plead with him.  ²⁹But he answered his father, ‘Listen! For all these years I have been working like a slave for you, and I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends.  ³⁰But when this son of yours came back, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him!’ (Luke 15:25-30 NRSV)

They knew they had been had.  “Wait a minute Jesus.  I thought you were talking about them, not us.”  “You’re delusional.  Didn’t you know that we are the good guys?”

And that was the problem. The religious leaders thought they were good to the exclusion of everyone else.  They thought they were good because they excluded those who were bad. They believed goodness earned them a special place in God’s lineup.

It’s fine to think of ourselves as good.  After all, God made us in His image and declared all of His creation as good.  We get into trouble when we turn our goodness into self-righteousness; when we pride ourselves in our goodness and expect others to be impressed as well; or, when we believe we have somehow earned the title of “good.”

Like it or not, the evidence is clear – Jesus does not appreciate such an attitude.  When he was criticized for hanging out with sinners, he told them he was much more interested in being with people who knew they were sick than those who had convinced themselves they were well.  Listen to this parable: ¹⁰“Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. ¹¹The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. ¹²I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.’ ¹³But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ ¹⁴I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other …” (Luke 18:10-14 NRSV)

Our scripture reading this morning also gives evidence.  The rich young man was into being good.  He believed he was good and he believed that his wealth was proof of his goodness.  Jesus knocks his self-righteous stool right out from beneath him by challenging him to get rid of all of his wealth – his badge of goodness – and to be good for goodness sake, not for what he could get out of it.

The saddest sentence in Jesus’ story of the Prodigal Son is this: “… [the older son] became angry and refused to go in[to the party].”  This sentence is the crux of the story.  Jesus had come to throw a party – welcoming – joyously welcoming – everyone – to enjoy life in the Kingdom of God, basking in the love and grace and blessings of a good, good Heavenly Father.  Just before this story, he tells stories of a shepherd searching for one lost sheep and a woman turning her house upside down to find one lost coin.  Both stories end the same.  The finders invite their neighbors and friends to a party to rejoice in the finding of what was lost.  Jesus concludes, “In the same way, there is joy in the presence of God’s angels when even one sinner repents.” (Luke 15:10 NLT)

The word prodigal means “extravagantly wasteful.”  The younger son had been prodigal in lifestyle and he lost everything.  The father had been prodigal in forgiveness and grace and he gained his son back.  There was nothing prodigal about the older son.  He was selfish, self-oriented and self-righteous.  Life was performance – no joy, only duty.  This story is actually the parable of the “unprodigal” son.  He is the one Jesus wanted his listeners to notice.

It is a dangerous place to be when we believe God has ranked us better than our neighbors.  We may miss God’s party because of it.  We who have been part of the church for a long time are most susceptible.  Believing we have earned our place, we may find we have lost our place.

We have a party going on in our church.  Those who had no idea that God loved them are experiencing God’s love – here.  It would be a tragedy if we who thought we knew better, missed it.

“… Jesus told them this story: “A man had two sons.  The younger son told his father, ‘I want my share of your estate now before you die. (Luke 15:11-12 NLT)

So starts one of the best-known stories in the Bible.  Preachers have preached from it time and time again.  Shakespeare borrowed from the story for The Merchant of Venice and Henry IV.  Benjamin Britten turned the story into an opera.  Hank Williams recorded a song entitled “The Prodigal Son.” The story inspired many of the world’s great painters. Charles Dickens called the parable the greatest story ever written.  Amazon.com has nearly 100 different “prodigal son” items for sale including prints, music, movies, and books.

I introduced this parable on Ash Wednesday using Rembrandt’s painting entitled “Return of the Prodigal.” I referred to Lent as a time to do as the younger brother did and “come to our senses” – squaring up our lives with what is true and right.  I suggested that one way to do that is to become familiar with the Rembrandt’s painting and determine with which of the characters of the painting we most closely identify.  I would suggest we do the same with this biblical story.

In these next weeks, we will look at the three main characters of this parable.  We start with the younger son.  Though we have tended to view him as the central character of the story, we will find that not necessarily true.

I’m sure you have heard this definition of preaching – to comfort the afflicted and to afflict the comfortable. This is what goes on as Jesus tells this story.  Luke introduces this section of his gospel with these words – “¹Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. ²And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, “This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.” ³So he told them this parable …” (Luke 15:1-3 NRSV)

Two groups of people were listening – the tax collectors and sinners and the Pharisees and scribes.  As the so-called sinners listen, they experience pain and then relief as the younger brother screws up his life and then returns home forgiven.  As the religious leaders listen, they are pleased that such an insolent young man gets what he deserves but when the older brother appears on the scene, they are brought up short.

The younger son starts our story with a most despicable act. There was not much worse in attacking the fiber of Jewish society than for a son to ask his father for his inheritance early.  The inheritance laws were extremely important.  They insured stability in the Jewish economic system.  Money and property were to stay within a family to maintain equity.  Even though a child might be entitled to an inheritance, to take it early in its entirety was the ultimate offense to a parent.  What the younger son was saying in his demand was, “Dad, I wish you were dead. You are in the way of my plans. You are a barrier. I want my freedom. I want my fulfillment.  I have other plans that don’t involve you; they don’t involve this family; they don’t involve this estate; they don’t even involve this village. I want nothing to do with any of you. Give me my inheritance now, and I am out of here.”

For a Jewish family, a son could sink no lower and yet Jesus paints for the boy a continuing downhill slide.  He goes to a distant country – in other words, a Gentile country – thereby leaving his cultural heritage and his faith.  He sets aside his ethical heritage as he breaks one moral boundary after another in wild living, spending away the inheritance that was to help perpetuate the family name into future generations.  A collapse is imminent and then made certain by a severe famine.  We know what droughts are like but most of us have no clue what a famine is all about.  Famines in biblical times were horrific.  People resorted to eating grass and tree bark and one another.  Whether theologically sound or not, famines were seen as the ultimate in divine punishment. The religious leaders listening to Jesus’ story would have understood.  This scoundrel – this unappreciative, immoral boy – was getting what he deserved.  The angry, righteous hand of God was setting things right.

What is most interesting is the boy is still not ready to admit the error of his ways and return home.  He finds himself a job.  Once again, Jesus’ listeners would gasp at the audacity of the boy.  He took a job feeding pigs, a slap in the face to any good Jewish family.  Pigs were unclean.  Pork was not to be eaten.  But again, the boy gets what he deserves.  Although it was not the ideal diet, the pigs could eat pods from the hardy carob trees even in a famine but it was nothing digestible for the boy. He hits rock bottom.  Friendless, empty-handed and alone, he is doomed to death by starvation.

The so-called “sinners” listening to Jesus’ story knew the pain of hitting rock bottom.  They sympathize with the boy.  The so-called “religious people” listening to the story whisper to one another, “serves him right.”

Jesus pauses.  The people wait.  Is there any more to the story?  The sinners hope so.  The religious leaders prefer this as the end.

Jesus continues – “the younger son came to his senses” … (play song)

Whereas earlier the younger son wanted nothing to do with his home, his family and his faith, now he knows that without them there is no hope.  He formulates an apology and heads for home.

Once again, Jesus’ listening audience has a mixed response.  The sinners smile – they sense hope.  The religious leaders moan – they smell a rat.

We know the rest of the story but we stop today with this young prodigal’s moment of regret, remorse and repentance, a moment was far less public than what we witnessed a week or so ago as Tiger Woods stood in front of his mom and selected journalists to say he was sorry.

An editorial appeared earlier this past week by Cal Thomas.  He wondered if it was a moment of sincerity or merely a perfectly staged media event in preparation for a golfing comeback.  He also raised a question about just what Tiger was doing.  He wrote:

“So, was he sincere? A better question might be: Was he demonstrating remorse, or repentance? Remorse is regret for getting caught at something one should not have done. Repentance is an acknowledgement that one’s behavior has offended an authority higher than one’s self and a commitment to turn from that behavior with the intention of never engaging in it again.

“King David understood repentance when he wrote Psalm 51 … [His sin is] a startling account many learn in Sunday school and the lesson is that God does not regard sin lightly, as modern culture does.

“’I have a lot to atone for,’ said Woods, which is an impossibility. One cannot atone for one’s self. But there is One who can …”

As we probably have realized the themes and nuances in this parable are many.  One of those is this whole idea of atonement – or the making of amends.  Who was going to atone for the younger son’s sins?  A repentant heart was a good start but that is all the boy could offer.  It could not restore the inheritance money.  It could not erase the many days the dad lived with a broken heart.

In the parable, Jesus tells the audience the father will provide atonement – a concept foreign to those who listened.  They could not even begin to conceive of such forgiveness.  Sin resulted in consequences.  The punishment of the sinner paid for sin, even the death of the sinner if the sin was bad enough.

We have a hard time relating to all of that.  In our culture, especially for those of us who consider ourselves good people, we take God’s forgiveness for granted.  Why would we even need to be forgiven by God?  Isn’t saying we are sorry when we mess up enough? We view concepts such as redemption and atonement unsophisticated, crude, and outdated.

Today we put ourselves in the place of the younger son.  As sons and daughters of a gracious Creator, we have been given so much to enjoy.  Instead of seeing it as a gift given, we believe it to be an entitlement deserved.  We believe we can’t enjoy it unless we enjoy it our way.  We leave the Giver behind.  We ignore the Giver.  We take what we have been given and we hoard it, we take pleasure in it, we waste it, we abuse it and we lose it.

Like the prodigal boy, someday we will see the end of it all.  We will face that moment from which we will leave this earthly life.  What we have left will slip from our grip.  Our family will be gone.  Our friends will be no more.  As we came into the world with nothing we will have nothing.  What will we do?  Where will we go?  Will we know the way back to the one who gave us life – to the one who offers to us eternal life?

The boy would have died in the pigpen if he had merely been sorry for his bad choices.  The boy would have died in the pigpen if he had not remembered a father who loved him.  He needed to repent.  He needed to change direction and head for home.

Jesus began his ministry with a very simple sermon, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is here” or in other words, “Turn around.  You have had your back to God long enough.  God loves you.    God has good things for you.  Do not miss out. Turn around before it’s too late.”

The sermon has not changed.  Are we like that younger son?  Are we also guilty of cashing in on what God has given us – running away from home to do things our way.  And have we, like him, come to our senses, and journeyed back to the One who alone can give us life?

I would guess this might not excite some of you but let’s just say that you and five of your best friends were offered free tickets to the Super Bowl – all expenses paid – and your seats would be in a special VIP box with the Manning family.  What would you be willing to give up in order to go?  You will have to make your own list, but would I give up a Sunday I was scheduled to preach?  Would I give up a funeral for a church member or a wedding?  Would I give up a planned trip to see my mother?  Our daughter was born on Super Bowl Sunday 27 years ago.  Would I have given up being present for the birth of my second child?

Let’s say you go on such a trip but you miss the enjoyment of the game because you spend so much time complaining – the limousine that took you and your friends to the game smells like stale smoke, the beer is warm and the brats are cold, the press box next door is too noisy. You complain because you want seats with the Brees family.

Let’s come at this from a different direction.  We could all name persons who we consider excellent hosts.  They know how to entertain.  They know how to make their guests feel at home and important.  Their food – all the way from preparation to presentation – is out of this world.    Would it not be foolish to decline an invitation to one of their dinner parties?  Moreover, if you should go would it not be bad taste to complain the whole time – the furniture; the long wait before the meal; the other guests; the spices in the food and the size of the portions?

We find both of these situations in the scripture readings this past week.  If there ever was a host, it is God.  David writes, “¹³Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures throughout all generations. The LORD is faithful in all his words, and gracious in all his deeds. ¹⁴The LORD upholds all who are falling, and raises up all who are bowed down. ¹⁵The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food in due season. ¹⁶You open your hand, satisfying the desire of every living thing.” (Psalms 145:13-16 NRSV)

In the book of Exodus we are exposed to this incredibly generous host dealing with a bunch of incredibly gifted complainers.  Three days after the miraculous escape through the Red Sea, they complain about being thirsty.  It will not be the last time.  About five weeks after leaving Egypt, we read this, ²The whole congregation of the Israelites complained against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness.  ³The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the fleshpots and ate our fill of bread; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.” (Exodus 16:2-3 NRSV)

Flash ahead some 1200 years.  Jesus tells a story about God’s heavenly hosting in which God appears as a king who throws a banquet.  It is a wedding banquet for his son.  He spares no expense.  The guests have been invited.  The table is spread.  It will be a super supper.  Everything is ready to go, except no one shows up.  The king sends out messengers to check on the invitees.  Some ignore the messengers, some make fun of the banquet, some beat up – even kill – the messengers. It is insane. It is unimaginable.

It is about as insane and unimaginable as the Israelites’ complaints.   They witnessed miracle after miracle and yet they did not believe God would take care of them.

I don’t know what God would have done for the people had they not complained, but even in their dis-appreciation God throws for them a super supper. “¹¹The LORD spoke to Moses and said, ¹²“I have heard the complaining of the Israelites; say to them, ‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall have your fill of bread; then you shall know that I am the LORD your God.’” (Exodus 16:11-12 NRSV)

And that is just what God did.  In the evening quails flew in and covered the camp.  Dew covered the ground in the morning. The dew lifted and a fine flaky substance appeared, tasking like wafers made with honey.  The people asked, “What is it?” and that became its name – “manna” which means “what is it?”  It was bread from the hand of God.  God met the people’s complaining with a super supper – a super breakfast – and it was not just a onetime event. Throughout the forty year wandering of the Israelites, God fed them day after day.

The Jewish people of Jesus’ time were proud of their tradition.  The story of their ancestor Moses and the manna sent from heaven was a favorite.  However, when God, the one who made the manna, took on flesh, came to earth and announced that he was bread sent from heaven – the Bread of Life – the people wanted nothing to do with him.  When Jesus fed the 5000 and then the 4000, just as miraculously as he had fed the Israelites a thousand years earlier, they were only interested in the free food and not the Bread of Life who had given it.

Jesus takes the whole history of God working with His chosen people and encapsulates it in this single parable.  A most gracious God invites this group of people to receive all He has to give.  A most ungrateful people say “no.” They want the gifts without the giver – the name without the relationship – the concern of God without a commitment to God.

This parable goes on.  God had hoped that as His people experienced His graciousness they would invite others into that relationship.  Unfortunately, for many of them, because they did not cultivate the relationship they did not want to share – actually, they did not have anything to share.  Jesus came to give them one last chance to respond.  In the parable, Jesus prophetically shares the reality – as God’s chosen people had ignored, ridiculed, beat and killed the inviters, they would do the same to him.

In the story, the dismal response generates another invitation – given to everyone – without regard to religious heritage, social standing, reputation, or moral character.  Jesus had already proven that the fringe people responded to his message of love and grace much more readily than those who should have known better.

Here are the lessons of the day: (1) We must take care that we, personally, do not dismiss God’s invitation to us; (2) God wants everyone to hear the invitation and have a chance to respond; and (3) this is not to be taken lightly.  In the parable, one of the guests gets into trouble because he was not properly dressed. His apparel indicated a total disregard for the King.  He was focused only on the spoils of the banquet.

God invites us to his super supper.  In turn, God wants us to invite anybody and everybody to join us.  Then together, not only are we to enjoy the food and entertainment but we are to experience a relationship with the living, loving Lord.

The super supper of all super suppers stands before us.  In the most dramatic of ways, in the Lord’s Supper, God shows us just how far He will go to extend His love.  As we eat, as we drink, and as we say thank you, may we give ourselves to our Host.  Only He can truly care for us.

According to the Geek Squad update my computer has received needed parts and is in the process of being repaired.  I sure hope I get it soon.  It is amazing how dependent we get on our computers.

By the way, I was so upset with the Viking’s loss, the crash of my computer was anti-climatic.  Oh well.

In Executive Edge newsletter, Ken Blanchard retells the story of a little girl named Schia. When Schia was 4 years old, her baby brother was born. Little Schia began to ask her parents to leave her alone with the new baby. They worried that, like most 4-year-olds, she might want to hit or pinch him, so they said no. Over time, though, since Schia wasn’t showing signs of jealousy, they decided to let Schia have her private conference with the baby. “Elated, Schia went into the baby’s room and shut the door, but it opened a crack—enough for her parents to peek in and listen. They saw little Schia walk quietly up to her baby brother, put her face close to his, and say, ‘Baby, tell me what God feels like. I’m starting to forget.’” —Leadership, Vol. 16, no. 3.

At the beginning of The Book of Revelation Jesus directs John to send letters to the seven major churches of Asia Minor.  To the church in Laodicea he is to write, ¹⁵“I know your works; you are neither cold nor hot. I wish that you were either cold or hot. ¹⁶So, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I am about to spit you out of my mouth. ¹⁷For you say, ‘I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing.’” (Revelation 3:15-17 NRSV)

I wonder what Jesus would instruct someone to write to us as First United Methodist Church or to the United Methodist denomination in general.  I believe our report card would speak of Jesus’ love for us but it might also contain some tough words.

Two weeks ago Sharla and I attended a gathering of United Methodist clergy for a few days.  The purpose of that meeting was to consider the condition of our denomination in the Dakotas.  I don’t think anyone was really surprised but the statistics shared with us were brutal.

In 1974 the number of UM churches in North and South Dakota numbered 350.  Today we have 263.  The number of United Methodists has decreased from 63,000 to 40,000 in the last 35 years.  The average attendance has gone from 30,000 to 20,000.  In 1980 United Methodists comprised 4.4% of the population of the two states.  Today we comprise less than 2.7%.  The number of attending Sunday School has also decreased: children by 28%; youth by %21 and adults by 6%.

I realize there is always a margin for error in statistics.  Who knows how accurately pastors and ushers and Sunday School superintendents have recorded numbers throughout the years.  However, the trend can’t be denied.  We were challenged at the meeting. We were reminded that these statistics are us.  For most of us older pastors, at least, this continual decline has happened under our watch.

Today I relay the challenge to you as well.  Whether a part of the United Methodist Church for many years or just a short while this decline has happened under our watch.  There have been no exceptions.  The decline has happened every year since 1970.

We could make all kinds of excuses.  We know some of the problem is demographics – the decline of the rural areas, the changing of culture and so on.  We could blame it on others.  But we can’t deny it, part of problem is us.  We just aren’t taking this seriously.  For example: How many persons have you brought into the Christian faith since you first accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior?  How many people have you kept away?

The sad thing about it, we have strayed so far from the track of early Methodism.  John and Charles Wesley, Francis Asbury, and many, many others would be greatly saddened by what has happened to this movement they began 250+ years ago now.  Did you notice I said “movement?”  They were not concerned about a church.  They were concerned about a movement of God’s spirit.

That is some of our problem. We define ourselves too much as a place instead of a movement.  We define the church as an organization that takes care of us instead of a movement motivated by us.  We as pastors have come to believe that we are appointed to take care of churches instead of to lead the church.

Is it possible we are like the little girl in our opening story we have forgotten what God feels like?  Is it possible we have lost our first love?  Have we given up? Have we have put ourselves out to pasture far too early or written ourselves off as unusable by God?  What in our lives has more value than another human soul?

In our scripture reading Jesus describes one group of hearers this way, “Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them … As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the lure of wealth choke the word, and it yields nothing.” Is this us?  (Matthew 13:7, 22 NRSV)

Stanley Hauerwas in his commentary on Matthew says, “Why we are dying seems very simple.  It is hard to be a disciple and be rich … the lure of wealth and the cares of the world produced by wealty quite simply darken and choke our imaginations.  As a result, the church falls prey to the deepest enemy of the gospel – sentimentality … too often those who propose strategies to recover the lost status and/or membership of the church do so hoping that people can be attracted to become members of the church without facing the demands of being a disciple of Jesus.”

More of us need to return to our first love for God and people.  More of us need to take seriously the vows of a United Methodist – to be a part of its movement by praying, giving, serving, witnessing and being there when the people gather. They say that normally in any organization 20% of the people support 80% of the activity.  Did you know that in our church 10% of our attendees give 90% towards our weekly offering?

More involvement by more of us is one way we can turn things around for us as a church in our corner of the Dakotas.  Here are some more:

We need to be able to answer these questions – as a church and as individuals in this church – Why Jesus? Why church? Why our church?

We need to realize that we will be asked to pay for ministry that does not benefit us.  We will be asked to invite persons into these walls that bring challenge.  We need to move outside of these walls to places that are not comfortable for us.

We must invest more time, money and involvement into our children’s ministry. Barna Research sampled more than 4200 young people and adults resulting in data which showed that people from ages 5 through 13 have a 32% probability of accepting Christ as their Savior. Young people from the ages of 14 through 18 have just a 4% likelihood of doing so while adults (ages 19 through death) have only a 6% probability of making that choice.

We need to concentrate on making disciples of Jesus Christ, not just adding members to our church roles.  This goes for our children and youth as well.  If we expect them to do nothing more than warm our pews we will lose them.  All of our programs must have discipleship in mind.

We need to realize that we will be judged not by how many churched people come into our doors but by how many people outside of the church are brought into a living relationship with Jesus Christ.

A mom walked in on her six-year-old son and found him sobbing. “What’s the matter?” she asked. “I’ve just figured out how to tie my shoes.” She was puzzled – “That’s wonderful.  You’re growing up.  Why would you be crying?” “Because,” he said, “now I’ll have to do it every day for the rest of my life.” —John Ortberg, Leadership, Vol. 14, no. 3.

Following Jesus is not easy.  It never stops. It always demands.  It always calls us to reorder the priorities of our lives.  It always challenges us to lift our attention beyond ourselves.  However, following Jesus brings life – to us; to our church; to our denomination; to those who are looking for real life.

Many years ago I attended the National UM Men’s Congress at Purdue University. The featured speaker was Robert Schuller.  He called the United Methodist Church a sleeping giant.  He said that because of our connectedness, our theology, our history and our worldwide presence – if we could wake up and respond to the call placed upon us we could change the world for Jesus.  He is not the only one outside of our denomination who has said the same.  Is it true?  Could we make a turn around?  Could we make such a difference?  The least we can do is try.

“Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.  Let anyone with ears listen!” (Matthew 13:8-9NRSV)