Sermon
Psalm 148 2 Corinthians -21
“The Ministry of Reconciliation”
Protestantism was born in 1517, when Martin Luther nailed his 95 thesis on the doors of the
(Who2.com, Martin Luther’s Biography)
We are celebrating today Reformation – Reconciliation Sunday: “Many Protestants choose this occasion to celebrate the beginning of the denomination to which they belong. Most of the predecessor bodies of the UCC can trace their origins to the Reformation, which was the movement in the sixteenth century that articulated many doctrines and liturgical practices of the
church in new and often controversial ways. This movement resulted in the
formation of many of the churches that we now know as Protestant, and (on the other hand) the divisions that were created at that time remain in many cases to this day. (Covenantal Relations Ministry, O.G.M. UCC, copyright, 2003).
PRAYER
Reconciliation is “the coming to agreement of two or more persons after a misunderstanding or estrangement.” (Interpreter’s Bible Dictionary). Reconciliation then, is not about getting mad, “picking up your marbles” and leave. It is about sticking together and finding common ground.
Let me share with you a couple of recent events that are great examples of what Paul is saying here.
You may know by now that we have been in the paper twice this week. In the
is not about us, it is about the generosity of our neighbors to repair the bell, a story that touched the lives of these two reporters, and in loving the story they had to share it to the world.
Do we need to respond to the comments? No! Do we need to defend ourselves? No! In contrast to the text of Paul, where he had to defend himself, today we don’t need to defend ourselves.
The ringing of the bells is about advocacy and awareness of our responsibility as stewards of God’s creation and we are saying just that, we are part of a local and global effort on saving the planet for future generations.
Rebecca Hyman was called by a member of our Growth committee, to write an article about our International Day of Climate Change and the ringing of the bell. She has been fascinated by our history and our bell, as she also wrote an article about us, last year. Monday when she came to talk to Charlie and I, she heard our story about the repairs done to the bell and the fact that the children after 25 years will once again ring the original bell, an article was in print Wednesday. The article was read by a second reporter on Wednesday and he, Peter Schworm, came on Thursday, to hear and write about our story, and a second article then appeared in the Boston Globe, Friday. We are not bragging, these reporters were truly touched by the telling of our story and the story needed to be told to the world, and others continue to be touched by our story.
For me this is an example of reconciliation, we listen to both sides, we share our truth, we honor each others opinion and we work to find common ground.
In the N. T. the meaning of reconciliation is about restoring the harmony between people, creation and God; and is only through Christ that we can find reconciliation with God. “To say that in Christ, there is a “new creation,” that “everything old has passed away,” that “everything has become new” is to locate the individual’s experience in a context as large as the cosmos itself. If we have been reconciled with God in Christ, our actions and beliefs would reflect the result of change in our human perception.”
(Texts for Preaching, Brueggemann, Year B, pg. 389)
Paul is saying to the Corinthians that we have been charged with the ministry of reconciliation. We are now ambassadors, representatives of God through Jesus Christ to the world.
“Paul is also finding reconciliation between him, his co-workers and the church. He is defending himself against his critics, helping the church understand the gospel and the nature of the Christian ministry.” Then, “Paul begins to itemize all the struggles and the difficulties of ministry that they have faced…(him, Peter and Timothy) their exemplary behavior… and finally the anomalies created by the conflict between the way they are perceived by the world and the way they really are…” (Idem, pg.398)
If we continue reading chapter 6:7c-10, we read: “We are treated as impostors, yet with the truth; as unknown, yet well known; as dying, yet alive; as punished, yet not killed; as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet made rich; as having nothing, yet possessing everything.”
Can you hear the contrast, the difficulties of ministry and the willingness of the heart. And Paul continues to get to the heart of the matter this is the conflict, the struggle that exists between what the world sees and what Christians know to be real.” (Idem, pg. 388)
Paul’s “focus is on both the nature of the gospel and the nature of the Christian ministry. That dual focus exists not simply because Paul is once more
defending himself against his critics…, but because the ministry can only be understood rightly where the gospel itself is understood rightly. Paul’s ministry, like the gospel, has to do with reconciling human beings to God. (Idem, Pg. 188)
Martin Luther wanted just that, reconciliation between the church and the individual, not conditional but relational. He wanted the Church to give people the opportunity to think for themselves, instead of telling them how to believe, he wanted the people to read the Bible and to be active participants in worship.
The beauty of our denomination today is that we can trace our historical and theological roots back to Paul and to the first Christians, to Luther and to the Reformation. As we learned last week, Congregationalism was born in
How are we seen by the world today? How are we known in our community? How do we see ourselves? Perhaps sometimes we are seen as liberals, yet traditional; as too diverse in religious beliefs, yet with a rich theological heritage; as not Christian, yet Christ oriented; as rebels, yet doing justice; as not good followers of the scriptures, yet recognizing the scriptures as the word of God; as not holy, yet believing in the presence of the Holy Spirit. We are a church that has local autonomy, yet in covenant with the larger church; independent in thinking, yet dependent on each other. We are seen as the church way out there, yet inclusive of all peoples and cultures; we welcome diversity, we help the stranger, we embrace God’s transforming mission by doing social justice; we seek peace and reconciliation not only amongst us but also amongst other nations; we are called to be care takers of God’s creation, and to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ all over the world. In Christ we are both reconciled and united.
As Christians then, we are called to find a common ground, to be reconciled with each other and with God. We are part of a church we love, a church that calls us “to do justice, love kindly and to walk humbly with our God.” Amen!
BENEDICTION
Let us make a joyful noise to the Lord…
Let us ring the bell…
Let the world know that we are stewards of God’s creation.
