Why Was Abraham Tested?

“Why Was Abraham Tested?” was preached at Sunnyside Presbyterian Church on Sunday, July 2, 2017. Inspirations for this sermon include Scripture, commentaries, Challenging Prophetic Literature, and recent events within our congregation.

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Genesis 22:1-14

1 After these things God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” 2 He said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains that I shall show you.” 3 So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac; he cut the wood for the burnt offering, and set out and went to the place in the distance that God had shown him. 4 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place far away. 5 Then Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; the boy and I will go over there; we will worship, and then we will come back to you.” 6 Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. So the two of them walked on together. 7 Isaac said to his father Abraham, “Father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” He said, “The fire and the wood are here, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” 8 Abraham said, “God himself will provide the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” So the two of them walked on together.

9 When they came to the place that God had shown him, Abraham built an altar there and laid the wood in order. He bound his son Isaac, and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. 10 Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to kill his son. 11 But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven, and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” 12 He said, “Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.” 13 And Abraham looked up and saw a ram, caught in a thicket by its horns. Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 So Abraham called that place “The Lord will provide”; as it is said to this day, “On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided.”

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This is not a light story. We need upfront and direct about this from the very beginning. This is a difficult, emotional passage. Genesis 22 is a tough one to hear.

I want to be explicitly clear about what God appears to be asking in Genesis 22. And that’s the key phrase here: “appears to be.” God appears to be asking for human sacrifice. Specifically, God appears to be asking for the sacrifice of Abraham’s son. God appears to be asking for the death of a child.

There’s even a Yiddish folk tale that goes something like this: Why did God not send an angel to tell Abraham to sacrifice Isaac? And the answer is God knew that no angel would take on such a task. Instead, the angels said to God, “If you want to command death, do it yourself.”

If we don’t give this passage the full weight it deserves and if we don’t let it shake us to our core, then we’re not staying true to what power this passage holds… or what grace it can show.

The near-sacrifice of Isaac as we Christians call it, or “the akedah” (also known as the binding of Isaac) as our Jewish neighbors call it, is one of the most puzzling and perplexing stories in our Bible. For centuries it has faced heated, even dangerous debates because it leaves us with so many questions. Is this a story of an abusive God, a misguided Abraham, a not-so-wise Isaac, an example of religious violence at its worst…?

Or is Genesis 22 a story of faith and obedience? Is there some profound meaning locked away between the lines in the depth of the narrative? 

This summer we have been asking the “Why’s” of Genesis… and each week it seems these questions are getting a little bit more tangible and a little bit more personal and a little bit more difficult. I promise it won’t be like this for the rest of summer—this might be our peak our difficult whys—but this is a part of the Genesis narrative. This is the order of the first book in our Bible. Difficult parts and all. Today we are asking the question, “Why was Abraham tested?”

Our passage today begins with “After these things God tested Abraham…” Noting these “things” is an important part of the story. Before this point: Abram has been blessed to be a blessing, he has been called by God to go to a land he has never seen, he is promised by God that he will be a father to many nations and therefore his name Abram becomes Abraham, Abraham then endures the long years of Sarah’s barrenness, then he has Ishmael with his wife’s servant Hagar, and then at long last, at the age of 100, there is the impossible birth of the boy they call “laughter” – Abraham’s son, whom he loves, Isaac.

Call after call, Abraham responds faithfully. Therefore, promise after promise is delivered.

But when all seems right and well, Abraham would face the greatest test of all. God calls down to him, “Abraham! Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering…”

I want us to imagine this story, frame by frame: God commands Abraham to sacrifice his son. For three days, Abraham and his son journey together. The trip is quiet. Abraham says little and Isaac says even less. Together the two walk up the mountain, Abraham gripping the knife and the fire, which leaves Isaac carrying the wood to which he will soon be bound. The altar is built, and without word and without protest, Isaac is bound and laid on that altar. I imagine Abraham takes one last look at his son – maybe a tear coming down his face, maybe he’s numb to all of it – and then he raises the knife high above his head, ready to do what God has commanded.

“Abraham! Abraham! Do not lay hand on the boy or do anything,” calls the angel of the Lord. “For now I know you fear God, since have not withheld your son, your only son from me.”

In the very final moments, Isaac is spared for God knew that Abraham trusted that God is a God of provision and providence. We’ll never know exactly what Abraham believed would happen: did he believe God would spare Isaac? Did he believe God would give him another son? Did he believe God would raise Isaac from the dead? Or did Abraham believe God would do something so miraculous that we can’t even imagine what that might be? Whatever Abraham believed, it doesn’t make this story any easier of what was asked of him. And to make us question it even more, Scripture says little to what Abraham was thinking or feeling during this entire interaction.

But for the rest of us, when we read stories like this, we are overwhelmed with emotions so raw and so powerful that our instinct is to close the book and find something lighter, something happier—something more clearly and explicitly filled with hope. This passage reminds us of every moment that God has tested us, the moments where we believed God didn’t deliver promises of providence. It makes us think of every moment we felt abandoned by God and when life just seemed too much to bear. This passage brings forth every moment of heartbreak and pain and tragedy because it’s the story of a man who was asked by God to sacrifice his only son whom he loved.

I, too, found myself with the instinct to close myself off from this story. Each time I opened my Bible, I found myself saying, “Not today. Maybe later. But not today.” I knew I needed to spend time wrestling with this text but I felt I didn’t have the emotional strength or capacity to do so. But it was when I forced myself to dive deeper into Genesis 22, prayerfully asking God for some sign of hope, I came across this:

Julia O’Brien in her book, Challenging Prophetic Literature, writes about a student of hers named Lyn, and Lyn’s sermon preparation on Genesis 22. O’Brien writes, “[Lyn] gave up trying to make this text into something beautiful and uplifting and simply wept. She wept not only just for the characters in the story but also for herself and for her culture. [This student] gave her congregation permission that the text had not given Abraham: to weep for the tragic situations of their own lives, for the horrible choices they feel they have no choice but to make.”

My friends, this right here is the good news in this text: the permission to weep, the permission to cry out… the permission to feel and to know we are not alone in any of our heartbreak.

We, like Abraham, are tested with things too tragic and too unbearable. Isaac may have been spared at the end of this story, but we know all too well that we ourselves are not always spared from heartbreak. It’s a sad, unfortunate part of life, and these words alone can’t cover what emotions we actually feel. The majority of us know the pain of heartbreak. It can be a move to somewhere new and leaving behind a place you love. It can be in the end of a relationship or in a divorce. It can be in a new diagnosis or another cancer treatment. In can be in unforeseen tragedy and even the death of someone we love. It’s in every moment of fear and anxiety and pain. And this pain has us crying out to our Creator just like in Psalm 13: “How long, O Lord? How long!”

At times, it feels like life just hits us again and again… but when life hits hard, our God comes to us greater and stronger and harder filled the provision of grace, love, joy, hope, forgiveness, power.

When we weep, our God weeps with us. And when we cry out, our God responds. Remember this for all of your days.

In a few moments, we’ll all be invited to the table. And we’ll taste a meal so great, so divine, so full of love that it reminds us that we are never alone as we are brought together before God and Christ in the heavenly kingdom with saints of every time and place, not separated by life or death. Heartbreak isn’t the end for us.

As we come to the table, we’ll be reminded of a body broken, blood shed, God the Son sacrificed. It was a death full of heartbreak, and I believe God wept that day. But in God’s weeping, we were delivered the hope found in the resurrection and the promise that one day pain will be no more.

Why was Abraham tested? Why are we tested? My friends, maybe there’s no satisfactory answer to this. But truly, an answer wouldn’t make the pain we feel any less. But what we do know is that when we are tested, God does respond faithfully to us. We must remember to recognize God’s providence and provision in all situations, the ordinary, extraordinary, and especially so, when everything seems futile.

When you read Genesis 22, and if you are still left with feelings of unease or anger or frustration or sadness, maybe that’s the point. It’s not supposed to be something filled with joy or beauty. This text is one of reality and tragedy. That is how God shows that God is with us through it all.

You have the permission to question, and you have the permission to feel. Life will test us, but we know in heart of hearts that God is working for us: never against us. This too is the good news. Thanks be to God.

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2017 Statements of Faith Sermon

This “2017 Statements of Faith Sermon” was professed at Sunnyside Presbyterian Church on May 21, 2017 by five confirmation students using excerpts from their own individually written statements.

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John 14:15-21

15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever. 17 This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you.

18 “I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. 19 In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live. 20 On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. 21 They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.”

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Taylor: This past year we had five our eighth graders enroll in confirmation. Confirmation is a time where our young people come together in lasting fellowship to learn more about the Presbyterian tradition and build a confidence in their own beliefs. It is also a time for our eighth graders to decide for themselves if they would like to join the church as a full member. Our passage today from the Gospel of John has Jesus promising the disciples that the Spirit of Truth will abide with them for all of eternity. It is that same Spirit – the Holy Spirit – that allows any of us to profess our beliefs.

Today we get the joy of seeing the Spirit at work as we hear our young people profess their faith before us. As part of confirmation, each of our eighth graders had to write a statement of faith. Through excerpts from each of their statements, you are about to hear one collaborative, cohesive, confirmation declaration of faith.

Please pray with me:

Good and gracious God. You are the Spirit of Truth. Allow that Spirit to enter into our hearts and minds today as we hear our young people profess their faith. Allow us to consider where you are at work, both here in our Church and in the World. Use this as an time for illumination. In Christ’s name we pray. Amen.

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Connor: “I believe in the Kingdom Come” --U2

Taylor: What do you believe about the Trinity?

Connor: I believe the Trinity symbolizes God. The Trinity, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, shows that God is everywhere and behind everything. God is the Father of everything, the ultimate Creator. God is the Son, Jesus, to show he is with the people of Israel. And God is the Holy Spirit, being in the essence of everything.

Josh: God is the creator of the Universe, the Redeemer of the Universe, and the Sustainer of the Universe.

Michael: I believe in Love, Lover, Beloved.

Taylor: What do you believe about God?

Michael: I believe God loves us all. I believe that God created the Universe with love. I believe in love. Love is a universal thing.

Josh: I believe that God forgives all. God is many different things.  God is the Father, the Son, or the Holy Spirit.  

Gage: The Trinity is the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  Christians define God in that way because we believe that he is above all and created each and every one of us for a specific reason.  He created everything we know on our planet, and others around us to serve a purpose.

Taylor: What do you believe about Jesus?

Hannah: I believe that Jesus Christ is God’s son. This is most important to me because Jesus Christ is the teacher. Jesus is the Messiah. He leads the people of Jerusalem towards hope and a stronger belief, and he is still leading people to this day. This is what truly matters, and that is why believing that Jesus Christ is God’s son is most important to me. Jesus is the son of Mary. He sacrificed himself for us teaching us to believe in the Holy Spirit. He died on the cross to protect our Christian beliefs and was resurrected three days later proving he was the son of God and our savior. Jesus lived a faithful and guiding life with a mission to spread the word of God. Jesus taught others to love their neighbor as they love themselves. To me Jesus’s resurrection is a symbol of hope because it provides proof of God’s presence and his power to bring life from death.

Gage: Jesus is the son of God and was sent to earth so many years ago through his Virgin Mother Mary to continue spreading the word of God.  What it means to me to say that Jesus was “Christ the Messiah” is that he was the son of God, and God’s form on earth.  He wanted to keep the world on a path away from total chaos by preaching and telling the people God’s word.  He proved to many others who questioned he was the Messiah, that he was Christ the Savior by rising from Crucifixion after three days.  This is in the book of John and the true meaning behind Easter.  This is where Resurrection came from and happens when a person returns to life after death.

Taylor: What do you believe about the Holy Spirit?

Josh: I believe the Holy Spirit is God.  We know that the Holy Spirit is present by overseeing all of our lives.  The Holy Spirit helps us in our daily lives. The Holy Spirit is the one who answers our prayers.

Connor: I believe the Holy Spirit is everywhere. The Holy Spirit is the essence of God walking with us everyday, watching and guarding us. The Holy Spirit guides us in everything we do, working within us. He helps us to make the right, Christian decisions, such as helping everyone in our own Christian community.

Taylor: What do you believe about the Bible?

Michael: I believe that the Bible is lessons from God’s people who have had visions, encounters, or stories. I believe that the stories in the Bible have been passed down through time and through many hands. Sometimes these hands write what they want to write, giving the diversity of the Bible to fit the certain religions. That is why I believe we should not worship the Bible, but use it as a guide, a teacher. The stories are lessons. When we read scripture, we do not let it sit in our heads. We analyze it. That is where in my belief the word of God comes out. Through the impact, it makes in our life, not the stories themselves. The stories are the causes and what we do after reading them are the effects. What really matters is what to do in life when given the stories.

Taylor: What is your favorite Bible passage?

Connor: Mark 12:31 – “The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

Michael: 1 Corinthians 13:13 – “And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love.”

Gage: Romans 5:3-5 – “And not only that, but we also must boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.”

Josh: Isaiah 40:31 – “But those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.”

Hannah: Genesis chapters 6-9: The story of Noah and the covenant God made with the world.

Taylor: What do you believe about mission and outreach?

Connor: I believe mission and outreach is an act to become closer to God. We go on mission trips to become closer to God by helping others in various tasks. Some of my favorite deeds to perform is to help a stranger or someone I know with something. The Bible says we should love our neighbor as we love ourselves. This includes others of all races, religion, rich or poor, it doesn't matter. We shall love others as we love ourselves, another form of how the Holy Spirit is working in us.

Hannah: Mission and outreach to me is giving of oneself to help others in need. I believe mission work is important to help those in need and to restore our faith and trust in our spiritual development. Some of my favorite ways to help others is to be a mentor to those younger than me at school and help them with their school work and social growth. I like to use me leadership skills in my team sports. I strive to be an example of confidence, drive, and competitiveness in hopes that together we may succeed. Finally, when people I love are sad I like to use my sense of humor and positive mental outlook on life to help them feel better.

Michael: I believe in work. Nothing comes without work. Reaching with hand and pulling somebody up with work is a way of respect. Even if they are disrespectful. Working with love and respect will overcome hatred.

Taylor: Why do we live in a Christian community?

Gage: We live in a Christian community because we like to be around people who have the same faith, and people we feel safe around.  The commitment we make when we join is a promise to believe in God and follow the rules of living as a Christian to the best of our ability.  What this means in terms of your support, prayers, attendance, and pledge is that you are supported by the Christians around you, you pray to God and speak to him, you attend Church every Sunday possible, and you pledge to believe in God forever.

Hannah: We live in a Christian community to support each other in one faith. I believe in my Christian faith and have chosen to be a part of the Sunnyside community. I pledge to support our community by setting a good Christian example for those that are younger than me and follow the guidance of those who are older and wiser. As a member of the Sunnyside community I will attend as I am able and live my daily life in the spirit of Christianity.

Taylor: What do you believe about the Sacraments?

Josh: The sacraments of the Presbyterian Church USA are Baptism and Communion, or the Lord’s Supper.  Baptism is the acceptance of a baby into a church and the sign of a new way of life.  I believe Communion is the practice God the Son, Jesus, taught us many years ago.  The wine represents Jesus’ blood shed for us, and the bread represents Jesus’ body broken for us. 

Connor: The sacraments are honoring our religion and God’s gifts. Baptism and Communion represent the two things Jesus gave up for us: Life and well-being. The Lord’s Supper was the promise that Jesus would drink and eat with us, his followers, in Heaven. Baptism is the introduction into God’s family and everlasting love and kindness.

Gage: The Sacraments are the signs of the Power of Christ in the church.  In the Presbyterian tradition, there are two Sacraments.  The Lord’s Supper, or the Communion and Baptism.  Baptism is when a person, typically a newborn child is blessed into Christianity.  The Lords Supper is one of the last things that Jesus did before he was crucified.  It was when he fed disciples the bread and wine, telling them, “the body and blood of Christ is with you.”  He assures them that he will always be present within them, and that they must help to continue the spread of God’s word.

Taylor: What do you believe about sin?

Hannah: Sin to me is when one acts against the will of God. I believe we sin because we are human and no one is perfect. Everyone sins. There is evil in the world because all people sin. God provides forgiveness for sin which allows us to find hope through our faith and fight against evil. I believe that bad things do sometimes happen to good people.

Michael: I believe that sin is a wall between me and God. Nothing can make God not love me. God is always with me for it is the Holy Spirit that is there with me. To get past my wall I must reach out to God because God’s hand is already there.

Josh: I believe that sin is something we do that goes against the teachings of Christ.  Sometimes we sin because at the time we didn’t realize it was a sin.  We can say to others who are going through a hard time that we hope they feel better and that God is with them.  When I lost family members to death God helped me through it by reminding me that they were ascending to Heaven.

Taylor: What do you believe about the Resurrection?

Connor: I believe we are sent to heaven when we die. We are here on Earth to do good, and sometimes sin blocks us from our faith. But God’s grace saves us. The Resurrection gives me hope for the future because this is what happened to Jesus when he was crucified. He was rejoined with His Father. This story shows me that we will join the ranks of Heaven with God and Jesus.

Hannah: I believe that when we die our spirit goes to heaven. Resurrection is the concept of coming back to life after death. I do believe that Jesus was resurrected and came to speak with Mary. I also believe that after we die, and after our spirit goes to heaven, our spirit is resurrected as something new. I believe that what we do in our daily lives matter to what we become after resurrection.

Gage: When we die, we ascend to Heaven.  The Easter story gives us hope for the future because when we die, we will stay in Heaven under God’s protection for Eternity.  Jesus was resurrected and ascended to our Father for this reason.

Taylor: Why do you want to be confirmed?

Hannah: Today I would like to be confirmed into the Sunnyside community. I believe that the Sunnyside community will be a source of support, wisdom and encouragement as I continue to grow spiritually. It is important to me to be confirmed as it will remind me to reflect upon my faith and Christianity every day of my life. 

Josh: I would like to be confirmed so that I can become a full member of the church and help others more.  This process is an important step to becoming an independent adult and member of Sunnyside Presbyterian Church.  Yes, God is calling to me by giving me the opportunity to be confirmed into the Church so that I can be a better Christian, and be closer to God.

Gage: I would like to be confirmed.  I know that this is where I belong, and it means that I am one step further into the Christian Faith. I can bring to Sunnyside the gift of music, a supportive “ear” for someone to talk to, and the perspective of a member of the youth.

Michael: I believe my energy and commitment will benefit the church. I can be loving, caring, and faithful to others which will brighten their lives. I would love to work on teaching others which I think would further grow my faith in church. I have talked to my parents and said that I would love to be a deacon someday. I sing in the choir, I play in the band, and I can be a liturgist. All in all I hope to work hard and improve my faith by becoming a member of Sunnyside.

Connor: I want to be confirmed to grow closer to God and to help our community and fellow youth become closer to God. This rite of passage helps me understand I am pledging my faith to God, in addition to joining the church.

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Living as Sheep

“Living as Sheep” was preached at Sunnyside Presbyterian Church on May 7, 2017. Inspirations for this sermon include Scripture, commentaries, children’s songs, and current ecumenical events.

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John 10:1-10

10 “Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. 2 The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5 They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.” 6 Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.

7 So again Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. 8 All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. 9 I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

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Living as sheep… Christ our Shepherd calls us to live as sheep… but how do we do that?

I want us all to quickly flip to Psalm 23 in our Pew Bibles. It’s found on page 501 in the Old Testament. Once you find it, bookmark it your bulletin or with your check to the youth mission trip (see what I did there?). We’ll return to that passage later in the sermon and read it as a prayer.

As you find Psalm 23, I want to sing you this song that I think explains how we can live as sheep. Mind you, it’s a children’s song but still the lyrics ring true. It goes, “I just want to be a sheep: Baa, Baa, Baa, Baa. I just want to be a sheep: Baa, Baa, Baa, Baa. I pray the Lord my soul to keep. I just want to be a sheep: Baa, Baa, Baa, Baa.”

Never imagined me up here singing, did you?

The verses continue with lyrics such as “I don’t want to be a Pharisee… because they’re not fair you see” and “I don’t want to be a Sadducee…. Because they’re so sad you see.” And my personal favorite, “I don’t want to be a goat… nope, nope, nope, nope.”

Don’t you wish everything was an easy as a children’s song? But it’s not, is it? We can’t just say we are sheep and therefore we are. No, in our own stubbornness and discontentment and even more so, our exclusivity, we hold ourselves back.

And truth be told, do any of us really want to live as sheep anyway? I mean, Christ calls us to live as sheep which should make us want to, but let’s be realistic for a moment. Sheep are fearful animals—not open to change, in need of protection, and in search of a leader. And if we understand what that is saying, it brings us to the question. Do we really want to be scared, timid, weak, lost followers? Because our answer should be “Yes.” But I have to admit, that’s a tough one.

On top of all that, the passage found in John has Jesus telling us he is the gate. Twice, he says, “I am the gate.” And to be honest, we all have our own definitions of gates. We see them as walls and we see them as barriers; built to keep things out. We see gates as a means to be guarded and therefore exclusive. But we know the Gospel. We know that’s not what Jesus meant what he said he is the gate. We cannot be an exclusive church; we are not called to be an exclusive people.

This past July, our Methodist brothers and sisters called and elected their first openly gay Bishop Karen Oliveto, to serve their Western Jurisdiction. This would be similar to a Moderator of our Presbytery but on a larger scale, covering multiples states. However, roughly a week ago, in the midst of Easter season and celebrating the resurrection of our risen Lord, the Methodist Court Law in a 6-3 decision ruled that Bishop Oliveto was in violation of church law.

The Rev. Dr. Karen Oliveto who has faithfully served the Methodist Church since 1983 – that’s 34 years – and who has been with her same partner – her wife – for seventeen years is up for suspension as Bishop and possibly removal from her position because she has the courage to live as an openly gay woman. Her call to serve God and the people of God is up for debate because people have created a wall of exclusivity to keep her and others like her out of the church. What kind of message does that send?

Now I’m sure many of you know that LBGTQ ordination passed in our denomination – The Presbyterian Church (USA) – back in 2011. But when this was allowed—when this means of access was opened for additional people to serve the call of God—churches responded by leaving the denomination and joining different exclusive branches. This has left us divided.

And this is not the first time this has happened either. When we as the PCUSA allowed the ordination of women back in 1956—when we first opened a channel to be more inclusive and to welcome more people in—churches responded by leaving the denomination. And human-made gates were built. And over time, the gates we as humankind built have become taller and tighter; more guarded, more exclusive.

But my friends, those are not the gates Jesus intended. That’s not the gate that Jesus is. And unfortunately, the PCUSA denomination is not free from these false gates. And neither is Sunnyside.

I believe that Sunnyside has been trying to be a more inclusive community full of hospitality and warmth. I believe that Sunnysiders try to be… well, as our name suggests… Sunny. This has definitely been apparent since I started in my position back in September. But I think all of us still get to a point as we enter the unknown—as we make changes and start to feel uncomfortable—when we meet someone who don’t understand—we shut down and we hide back behind our walls and we build our gates back up… tighter and taller.

We can’t deny this. When we think about politics and what our fellow Sunnysiders believe; we build our gates. When we listen to controversial topics that we may disagree with; we build our gates. When we navigate our relationships with the other Presbyterian churches in the area and explore ways to best support them as our brothers and sisters in Christ; we build our gates.

But that’s why Christ makes it clear in John 10 that we are not the gate nor the gatekeeper nor the shepherd. We are the sheep; Christ is the gate. Unlike our own self-made gates which keep others out, Christ the gate is a means for us as sheep to go out and find pasture. Yes, Christ promises that as the gate he will be a guard and protector from thieves and bandits and wolves – from those who mean to kill and destroy life abundant – that’s a promise.

But more important, twice in John 10, first in verse 3 and then again in verse 9, Christ tells us the reason he is the gate and the reason we are called to be sheep is so that we have a channel to be led out into the world and find others who are also called to live as sheep. Listen again, verse 3: “The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.” And verse 9: “I am the gate. Whoever enters by will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture.”

See, the purpose of the gate is not to keep others out. Not people we disagree with; not people we don’t understand. Not women; not the LGBTQ community. No, the purpose of Christ the gate is to be able to go through Christ and find others and show them the same Gospel love that has been already be extended to us. Listen to what Jesus says in verse 16: “I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.”

Our role as sheep is to listen to the one voice that calls to us each by name. And when we go out to find pasture—when we go out to find community, there is this understanding that it can be uncomfortable and scary and at times tough. Because life abundant doesn’t mean life so perfect. Life abundant is taking the bad with the good with the promise of eternal life, hand-in-hand with sheep of all over, of every time and place. Sheep who may be our friends. Sheep who may be our enemies. Sheep who be similar to us and sheep who may be different. We are called to be one flock; one people under one God.

I challenge us all this week and in the weeks to come to be open to where God is leading us out and where can find pasture. As we do this, as we allow ourselves to be sheep, I want us to remember the prayer found in Psalm 23. Please open your Bibles from earlier and join me in prayer; read along with me:

“1 The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.

2 He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters;

3 he restores my soul. He leads me in right paths for his name’s sake.

4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff—they comfort me.

5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord my whole life long.”

I love that. Our voices coming together in prayer. That’s the one flock Jesus intended. But what if that flock grew and more people joined. Especially people who have been excluded from the church. It would be like a beautiful, harmonious melody to Christ’s ears.

My friends, we are called to live as sheep. We have shepherd that guides us. A shepherd whose roles as gate and gatekeeper is not meant to keep others out but as a means for us to go out. Listen to the one voice that calls to you. Be open to what it is saying and the open pasture it calls us all to find. That is life abundant.

Thanks be to God! Amen.

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Lenten Blessings

“Lenten Blessings” was preached at Sunnyside Presbyterian Church on Sunday, March 12, 2017. Inspirations for this sermon include Scripture, commentaries, Lenten devotionals, reformed theology, and the theme: leaving the past. A shortened, adapted version of this sermon was preached to the Presbytery of Wabash Valley on Saturday, March 18, 2017 as part of my ordination examination.

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Genesis 12:1-4a

1 Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

4 So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him.

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John 3:1-17

1 Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. 2 He came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.” 3 Jesus answered him, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.” 4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. 6 What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not be astonished that I said to you, ‘You must be born from above.’ 8 The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” 9 Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” 10 Jesus answered him, “Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things?

11 “Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen; yet you do not receive our testimony. 12 If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? 13 No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. 14 And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.

17 “Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.

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Consider your Lenten blessings. Yes, you heard that right: Lenten blessings.

For a good majority of us, that might seem like an odd pairing of words: Lenten & Blessings. Some of us might argue and say, “Take out Lent: why not just ask us to consider our blessings all the time.” After all, John Calvin, a founding theologian of our reformed tradition, was superstitious of Lent and believed we should be celebrating a little bit of Easter and the resurrection in every Sunday. For others, maybe the phrase “Lenten blessings” is odd because it’s somewhat of an oxymoron. If Lent if a time for suffering and struggle; for lament and longing – why would I ask you to consider your blessings during a season such as this? But I’m asking you to do it. Consider your Lenten blessings. And whether you are feeling more blessed than Lenten or feeling more Lenten than blessed, let us pair those words together and consider our Lenten blessings.

Whether you see Lent as another time to celebrate the resurrection or whether you see Lent as a time of darkness… If there is one thing we can agree on about the season of Lent, it’s that it comes before the season of Easter. There’s no debating that one. Just as Advent comes before Christmas, Lent definitely comes before Easter. We use these forty days; these seven weeks to follow Jesus’ life to his eventual death on the cross and the promised resurrection to come. Some use this season as a time to give something up—perhaps sweets or social media. Others use this season as a time to take something on—more time reading Scripture, more time in intentional prayer. And then there are some who choose Lent as a moment to leave something behind and as an opportunity to move forward. That’s one of my favorite things about the season of Lent—it’s a time in the church that makes us want to do something as we prepare Easter and the resurrection.

I want to particularly focus on that last action: leaving something behind in order to move forward.

One of my absolute favorite things about being new and fresh in ministry is that everything—and I mean everything—excites me. I love committee meetings and creating plans for the church. I love making visits to church members in their homes or at the hospital and hearing their stories. I love talking with people before and after worship, and I love working alongside people who bring life to the many ministries across the globe. Every opportunity to preach or teach or serve is a privilege I am grateful for, and I absolutely love every minute of it.

And then sometimes as a pastor, I get asked to do odd jobs, which I also love.

For example, several weeks ago I was asked to burn the palm branches so that we could collect their ashes to use in our Ash Wednesday service. This—and I don’t say this lightly—this was a dream come true! When I was asked to burn the branches, my face lit up with excitement. I grabbed the largest bowl I could find to use as a fire pit; a box full of palm branches from last year’s Palm Sunday; and as many matches as I could. Now I’m sure many of you can guess this but one-year old, dry palm branches are extremely flammable. That fire grew and grew; smoke went everywhere… and all I could think to myself was, “Oh my gosh! This is my job! This is awesome. I LOVE THIS!”

But as I continued to watch those branches burn, I couldn’t help but end up in prayerful reflection. I saw the fire grow and the scent of smoke came all around me, clinging to my clothes and filling my nostrils. It brought me back to one of my first blessings in ministry.  

As some of you may know, my first experience in ministry was working for an outdoor ministry summer camp up in northern North Dakota. When I see fire and when I smell smoke, I am instantly brought back to summer and bonfires and camp and music and joy and thanksgiving. Fire and the smoke it brings are two of the sights and smells I associate with ministry. As the branches burned, I remembered my two summers of working at Camp, first as a counselor and then as a chaplain, and how I wanted more than anything to return and work for a third summer. However, due to other commitments (specifically taking a summer Hebrew course at seminary), this wasn’t a feasible option. It was time to move on; it was time to move forward… and that was an incredibly hard decision to accept.

See, camp was my home. Camp was my comfort zone. I could do camp ministry; I was getting pretty good at camp ministry. It was that moment when everything felt okay that God then called me away. I had been blessed by my experience at camp but it was now time to share those blessings in new places with new people. And although it was hard to let go of camp, it brought me to my internship at a church in New Jersey and then to my clinical pastoral education in a hospital in Colorado and then to my residency at Sunnyside. That hard decision was followed by many good things to come. That right there is a Lenten blessing.

Lenten blessings are the good things that happen during trying times. It’s making the difficult decisions. It’s the letting go of what holds us back. It’s the moving on and moving forward. It’s what God reveals to us. Lenten blessings are remembering we are called to be better and do more when things already seem fine. And Lenten blessings are trusting God when things don’t seem fine…

Our passage in Genesis today specifically speaks to Lenten blessings: leaving something behind in order to move forward and do something else. Genesis 12 tells the call of Abram (later better known as Abraham), in which the Lord speaks to Abram and tells him to leave all he has known—his country, his family, his home—to go forth and be blessing unto others. And so Abram does, without question, he leaves his past behind and he goes forward to be a blessing. And it’s not that Abram went without struggle as he went forward to be a blessing. He continued to face hardships and difficult decisions… this includes leaving his home and heading into foreign lands, pretending his wife Sarah was his sister so the Pharaoh would take her in, being promised children in extremely old age, having his first son Ishmael with Hagar and not Sarah, then having his son Isaac with Sarah, having to then cast Hagar and Ishmael out at the request of Sarah,  and then ultimately being tested by God to see if Abram would be willing to sacrifice his son Isaac. Each time he approached hardships with a heart full of  love, trusting that God his Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer would continue to protect and hold Abram’s life as a blessing to be shared with others for generations to come.

What choices do you have to make? What do you have to let go of? How can you move forward? Where is your pain and your suffering and your struggle… and how can use that for something good? Consider your Lenten blessings; consider what is being made good and what you can, with the help of God, make better.

This is not the easiest thing to do. This is especially hard if things are so dark that it seems there is no hope to even see the light, but we are encouraged to try. Look at Nicodemus in John 3. He is still in the dark. The kingdom of God is right in front of him, but he is still unable to see it.

However, we need to give Nicodemus the credit he deserves because he is trying. He literally goes to Jesus in the middle of night trying to learn, seeking to know more so that he can become a better man. It’s important to note that Nicodemus is a Pharisee, a leader of the Jewish people. He is expected to know God’s law… but what makes Nicodemus different than some of the other Pharisees is he approaches Jesus with humility. This act is Nicodemus letting go of what he has always been told and what he as a Pharisee would interpret as God’s law… but he takes this as a chance to find answers.  

To ask open and honest questions to Jesus, I wonder how that made Nicodemus look in front of the other Pharisees. I wonder if they responded with disappointment or ridicule; I wonder if they responded with awe or curiosity. Nicodemus needed to go from what he knew and ask questions so that he would be given answers and see the new things that Jesus would show. So too are we encouraged to leave what we know in order to see the new things that God will reveal. There are few things that are more frightening than this, but there are also a few things that are more faithful.

Keep in mind Abram was in his old age when he was asked to leave his country and kindred. Keep in mind Nicodemus was a Pharisee, a well-established and respected expert of God’s law, when he sought out Jesus. But if Abram, father of the Abrahamic traditions, could leave behind his home, and if Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews, could leave behind his teachings…. Maybe we can do it too. Maybe we are called to leave something behind that is holding us back, so that new and greater things can be revealed.

During this season of Lent, we, like Abram, must go from what we know in hope that God will bless us to be a blessing. We, like Nicodemus, must seek out what Christ will reveal to us and we must do so in humility and openness. This is your opportunity; this is your moment. What is God asking you to leave behind? What is God revealing to you? What journey must you take to expand your identity and be a better version of yourself?

We see this opportunity as a risk, but it is a risk we are called to take. After all, the choices we make to better ourselves for God’s sake will be rewarded with grace and love and salvation. Remember God did not send Christ into the world so that we would perish. God did not send the Son into the world so that it may be condemned. No, God sent Christ into the world so that it may be saved. Christ was sent so that we have been guaranteed eternal life. This is the greatest blessing of all; this is the guaranteed reward to your risk.

My friends, consider your Lenten blessings. In the midst of your darkness, where is the good? In the midst of what’s good, what can be made better? God is calling to us all. Go. Go forth. Go and be blessed. Go and be a blessing. Go and know God shields those who serve.

Consider your Lenten blessings; consider what you must let go; consider what good things are to come.

In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.   

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