greatcommission

Sunday’s Sermon – Sent – Luke 10:1-11

July 14, 2019 Leave a Comment

This July, our summer sermon series pairs Scripture texts with well-known and loved books by Dr. Seuss as modern parables to deepen our exploration of faith in the world together. This week our Dr. Seuss classic is Oh, the Places You’ll Go!

“Congratulations! Today is your day!” our book this week begins. It could also be a modernization of Jesus’ instructions to his disciples. While often we think about Jesus sending the disciples out into the world with the Great Commission in Matthew 28 which called us into worship this morning, our text from the gospel of Luke reveals another sending of the disciples that is equally compelling. On his way toward Jerusalem, Jesus sends out disciples to spread the good news to all the world. And did you catch the number? It’s more than “the 12” we tend to cite. It’s 70, and that number is significant. It mirrors the number presented in the list of all nations in Genesis 10 alongside the story of the tower of Babel. Thus, we are meant to understand it to be complete. It is a monumental moment in the gospel, furthering Luke’s insistence on sharing stories that reveal God’s desire for the gospel to truly be for all peoples and all nations, a theme that continues well into the book of Acts. One step further, this is a story about what it means to be in community together. The disciples are even sent out two-by-two. Mitties McDonald DeChamplain offers that:

Jesus is clearly affirming that proclaiming the good news of the kingdom is not a solo performance, but a communal and relational activity – a concert of the whole body of those commissioned. The message is ever inclusive and expansive[i].

But, before the disciples can race on their way, Jesus has some words of wisdom for what they might expect. He lays out the possibilities for them for the road ahead. You know the countless locker room scenes shown in tv, the movies, or even real-life sporting event coverage? The coach tends to have an uplifting, inspiring speech. The players are captivated and focused, and everyone leaves cheering because of how pumped up they are? Yeah – this isn’t quite that pep talk. You see, Jesus lays out for them not just the exciting and wonderful good news that is the message they will deliver; he also tells them to brace for things that are difficult. They’ll have to figure out their way without carrying much of anything with them. But more disturbing, they may face total rejection. Here in 11 verses, Jesus describes what life looks like as a disciple, and it’s full of ups and downs.

Dr. Seuss’s last book, published in 1990, was Oh! The Places You’ll Go!. It quickly became a best-seller and reached #1 on the New York Times Bestseller list. It still remains near the top of those lists, especially in the springtime, when there is a bump as it’s purchased for its words of wisdom to new graduates. Ready for the roller coaster? The book begins with that uplifting notion, quite literally with a hot air balloon soaring. But then bang-ups and hang-ups happen. You can be left in the Lurch. Confusion sets in on which way to go. You get stalled out in the tediousness of waiting. Until you don’t, and then you’re barreling ahead to fame and fortune. Or the bottom can fall out and leave you lonely, or scared. Surrounded by fears that threaten to overwhelm. And you get mixed up with all sorts of strange birds. But you can, and will, do amazing and marvelous things in the end. Whew! It’s a whirlwind of experiences, all wrapped up neatly in rhyme. But, isn’t it also a depiction of the realities of the journeys of life?

That same kind of comprehensive description of the way things might be is what Jesus gives to the disciples in Luke’s gospel. I love that Jesus paints such a realistic picture of life. He doesn’t look at the crowds that have been following them and promise them something that is perfect. He doesn’t promise riches or good health or any form of guaranteed benefit for doing this work. Being a disciple of Jesus Christ is not a guarantee of “the good life” here and now. In fact, sometimes it’s quite the opposite. DeChamplain continues saying:

The reality that many things can devour and diminish the commitment of Jesus’ disciples, and the likelihood of rejection on the journey is strong. Those commissioned, however, are not to be people pleasers but God bearers – offering God’s peace to all[ii].

Some days, that will be received well, and community will be formed. Meals will be shared, people will be healed, and the kingdom of God will be glimpsed. But other times, well, it’s just not pretty. And when that happens, Jesus calls his disciples to leave, and not even take the dust from that place with them on their feet. Move on, there is more journeying to do.

We often like to imagine that beautiful mountaintop scene from Matthew, with discipleship being all about going out, preaching the gospel, baptizing babies, and celebrating God’s presence with everyone joining hands and singing happily. But Luke’s version of the kingdom of God is grittier than that, reflecting that life as a disciple can be a bit of a roller coaster. Personally, I find that kind of honesty about life refreshing, because it carves out space for God to be a part of every aspect of our journeys, with us at every twist and turn in the road. And if we know that to be the case from the start, it might be easier for us to find God in the midst of the “Great Balancing Act” we know as life. And if we can do that, we might have a chance at this thing called discipleship.

We know that living a life of faith has its ups and downs. Some days, we are filled with the Holy Spirit and enthusiastic about spiritual practices. Our prayer life feels focused, we are eager to read the Bible or some other devotion. We serve others with love and compassion. We might even come to church with a spring in our step, excited about participating. The music is uplifting and the sermon really hits home with us. Other days, though, it’s not so easy. Our Bibles gather dust on the shelf because life is too chaotic. We rush through prayers or forget them all-together. We would rather hit snooze or go to brunch than attend worship. Or maybe the sermon is a dud. It happens. Or, we want to engage in fellowship, but feel disconnected from others. Maybe we fight some with each other, or grieve the loss of what once was in our faith communities. The list goes on. If we took stock of our lives, attentive to the faith aspects, I imagine we’d also find it full of ups and downs. The good news of today’s text, I think, is that Jesus tells us that’s normal and to be expected. He also calls us to go anyway.

Robert Short gives us wisdom for the journey, saying:

To get lots of mileage, you must have a great mission. If you really want to go great places, then you’ve got to have something great to go for. The greater the goal, the farther you’ll go . . . Furthermore, if you really want to be unconquerable in this quest, if you want to be a winner no matter what happens, then what you are going for must also be unconquerable. It must already be the winner[iii].

He then reassures us that all of this can be accomplished (yes, we’ll do great things! Move mountains even!) – not because of us, but because the work has already been accomplished in Jesus Christ. We are simply called to take that message into the world and share it in as many ways and in as many places as we can, trusting that God has been, is, and will be, responsible for what happens from there.

Two lesser-known theologians, Jake and Elwood Blues quipped “We’re on a mission from God!” Being disciples is not just about coming to worship and professing faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. It’s about recognizing that our Lord and Savior launches us into the world. We were not meant to be stagnant beings just biding the time until Jesus comes back. No, we are to go ahead and proclaim his coming. That’s what the seventy were sent to do in Luke, and two thousand years later what we are called to as well.

I think we often forget this part of discipleship – the going part. Especially as a community of faith. Sometimes we treat the church too much like a destination and endpoint for our faith, an offramp instead of an on-ramp on which we accelerate into the world. Carol Howard Merritt challenges us on this complacency, saying:

Too often Christians are shut up in sanctuaries, concerned about leaky roofs and outdated boilers, counting the attendance, and wringing their hands because people do not seem to be worshiping God as they did in the past. Congregations spend so much time caring for their own and feeling anxious about their demise that they sometimes forget that they, like the seventy, have been sent out with the gospel of God’s love and justice and mercy. How can we get out of the pews and join in the mission of God to the world? How, like the seventy, do congregations recognize and embrace their active participation in the reconciling work of God beyond the narrow confines of their own fears and needs?[iv].

The answer, I think, lies in our ability to simply keep going, and stay focused on the call we have been given as disciples. Ultimately, that’s what Jesus tells his followers to do. Don’t carry extra things that will distract or weigh you down, rejoice in the message you’ve been given without trying to bounce around from place to place, and if things happen that block or impede the message, just move on.

In addition to the words from Jesus and Dr. Seuss, this morning we might borrow the lyrics of another poet, Frank Lebby Stanton, who was a popular editorial columnist for the Atlanta Constitution who was named Georgia’s first Poet Laureate in 1925. Among his many writings is a turn of the century poem titled, “Keep a’Goin.” It reads:

If you strike a thorn or rose, Keep a-goin’!
If it hails or if it snows, keep a-goin’!
‘Tain’t no use to sit and whine when the fish ain’t on your line;
Bait your hook an’ keep a-tryin’- keep a-goin’!

When the weather kills your crop, keep a-goin’!
Though it’s work to reach the top, keep a-goin’!
S’pose you’re out o’ ev’ry dime, getting’ broke ain’t any crime;
Tell the world you’re feelin’ prime – keep a-goin’!

When it looks like all is up, keep a-goin’!
Drain the sweetness from the cup, keep a-goin’!
See the wild birds on the wing, hear the bells that sweetly ring,
When you feel like sigin’, sing – keep a-goin’![v]

No matter what, we are called to keep going on the mission Christ has given us – to go into the world, our topsy-turvy, chaotic, ups and downs world, and share what we know to be good news, the very gospel itself. So, let’s do it. We’ve got writers giving us inspiration, Christ himself cheering us on, and we aren’t alone; we get to do this together. Today is our day! With God’s help, we’re off to great places! So, let’s get on our way! Amen.

~Sermon preached by Rev. Elizabeth Lovell Milford, July 14, 2019

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[i] Mitties McDonald DeChamplain, “Homiletical Perspective: Luke 10:1-11, 16-20.” Feasting on the Word: Year C, Volume 3, David L. Bartlett and Barbara Brown Taylor, editors. (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010).

[ii] Mitties McDonald DeChamplain, “Homiletical Perspective: Luke 10:1-11, 16-20.” Feasting on the Word: Year C, Volume 3, David L. Bartlett and Barbara Brown Taylor, editors. (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010).

[iii] Robert L. Short, The Parables of Dr. Seuss, (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2008).

[iv] Carol Howard Merritt, “Pastoral Perspective: Luke 10:1-11, 16-20.” Feasting on the Word: Year C, Volume 3, David L. Bartlett and Barbara Brown Taylor, editors. (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010).

[v] https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7b/KEEP_A-GOIN%27_by_Frank_Lebby_Stanton_1c.jpg

Sunday’s Sermon – Elevator Speeches – Luke 24:44-53; Ephesians 1:15-23

June 2, 2019 Leave a Comment

Wear Sunscreen.

If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it[i].

20 years ago, this spoken word piece by Baz Luhrmann dominated the radio waves as tassels were hung and mortarboards tossed. The original text came from a 1997 article in the Chicago Tribune by Mary Schimich, titled “Advice, like youth, probably just wasted on the young.” It was Schimich’s take on what she would say in a commencement speech if she were asked to give one, saying things like:

Don’t worry about the future or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra problem by chewing bubblegum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind – the kind that blindside you at 4 pm on some idle Tuesday. . .

[and]

Accept certain inalienable truths

Prices will rise

Politicians will philander

You too will get old, and when you do you’ll fantasize that when you were young

Prices were reasonable

Politicians were noble

And children respected their elders.

Respect your elders[ii].

Both the article and lyrics are rich with poignant advice about growing older, laced with nostalgia and sort of a shaking head wisdom that youth are rarely going to heed such advice, but the speaker will give it anyway. This time of year, you may even listen to such a commencement address, or at least hear snippets and quotes here and there of what famous speakers are offering to the next generation of graduates. And sometimes, as Morehouse College graduates recently learned, these speeches can bring quite the big pay-off[iii].

Our text for today is a final address, given by Jesus at the end of Luke’s gospel. Chances are, though, if you’re asked for Jesus’ final words to his disciples, you’ll likely turn to the end of Matthew’s gospel, that Great Commission:

¹⁹Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.[iv]

It’s a great send-off, right? Clear and concise instructions; a roadmap for how to be disciples.

Luke’s account, on the other hand, is frankly less memorable. It follows classic stories of Post-Resurrection appearances, notably the revelation of the risen Lord on the road to Emmaus. Our text for today is sort of tucked into the end, offering a bookend of Luke’s gospel before the transition into the second part of the evangelist’s narrative in the book of Acts. In this story we encounter the story of Jesus’ Ascension. It is a day marked on the liturgical calendar 40 days after Easter (which, in case you weren’t keeping count, was this past Thursday). For Luke, the Ascension is a key marker to connect the story of Jesus as the promises from the Hebrew scriptures fulfilled. It also serves to identify Jesus as a prophet, one who reveals an understanding of God’s word, and is indeed swept up into a cloud like Elijah. The symbolism would not have been lost on the audience in the first century. Like those around the table in Emmaus, their eyes would have been opened and they would have recognized Jesus as the Messiah. But, if Matthew’s Great Commission is the penultimate commencement address, what do we make of Luke’s parallel? I’d offer this morning that Luke’s gospel has Jesus giving an elevator speech.

Are you familiar with the phrase?

An elevator speech is a clear, brief message or “commercial” about you. It communicates who you are, what you’re looking for and how you can benefit a company or organization. It’s typically about 30 seconds, the time it takes people to ride from the top to the bottom of a building in an elevator. (The idea behind having an elevator speech is that you are prepared to share this information with anyone, at anytime, even in an elevator.) . . . This elevator speech is: •absolutely not longer than 25 to 30 seconds •or – in words – approximately 80 to 90 words •or – in sentences – 8 to 10 sentences[v].

The American Library Association notes that:

An elevator speech [is] a message intended to spur decision makers to action. An elevator speech must be short, specific, and memorable. It is important to have your elevator speech rehearsed and ready because you never know when you’ll have an opportunity to use it![vi]

I would offer that in his final moments with his disciples, with the “elevator going up” if you’ll allow it, that Jesus maximized his final moments in this style in order to inspire his disciples into action. The ALA goes on further to give a guide for crafting such a speech, one we see reflected in Luke’s gospel account.

First, the message; what do you need your audience to know. This is where our text begins today, as Jesus opens their minds to the entirety of the Scriptures. Ok, so it’s a pretty big message, but the key here I think is that, echoing the experience on the Emmaus road, the disciples begin to understand what is going on, something that is radically new to their experience of discipleship. Light bulbs begin to go off, and we might imagine them nodding along, perhaps for the first time with a glimmer of understanding about what all of this means.

Second, the story and key data; connect the message specifically to your work, with a quick fact/data and story. Jesus gets to the point with a recap of the resurrection, and perhaps most importantly, the good news of the forgiveness of sins that should be proclaimed. The bottom line according to Jesus? Grace.

Third, the ALA would have you make an Ask; consider who you are talking to, what they care about, and what it is within their power to impact. Make a specific request. Jesus names those gathered as “witnesses to these things.” He promises them that the power of the Holy Spirit is coming to enable them to do this work, and instructs them to wait for it (spoiler alert- they only have to wait about 10 days – we’ll get there next Sunday on Pentecost). And when the time comes, they are to proclaim this good news to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.

There you have it – an elevator speech – short, personal, and memorable. As William Herzog II notes:

Up to this point Luke has been concerned with reinterpreting the Scriptures in the light of Jesus. Now his focus shifts to the outcome of Jesus’ ministry – the mission that the disciples will conduct in his name . . . The blessing occurs in Bethany. It is as though the risen Lord took the disciples to the trail head that would lead to the Gentile mission.

In this speech, Jesus reminds the disciples, after all that has happened, about what really matters, so that they might grab hold of it and continue his mission.

In the Roald Dahl classic book, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the candyman Willy Wonka takes some of the characters in a magical glass elevator. He explains that this is no ordinary elevator – it can go any direction the heart desires. At the very end of the book, when only Charlie and Grandpa Joe are left, the elevator breaks through the ceiling of the Chocolate Factory, giving them a view of the entire factory and city. From the sky, things can appear clearer. Wonka asks Charlie if he liked all that he has seen and experienced with him, and Charlie enthusiastically agrees. Then, the big reveal comes: Charlie is going to be Wonka’s successor. Everything will belong to him, and he will carry on what Wonka began. Big things can happen on an elevator ride.

In these final verses in Luke’s gospel, Jesus takes his disciples up in the elevator, and then opens the doors for them to go out into the world. Because that’s what you do when the elevator ride ends. You get off at your floor! And, if the elevator speech has been done well, it will impact the steps you take next. Perhaps that’s why Jesus had to ascend; so that the disciples would start making connections on their own, living out the faith he had shown them, rather than just following along somewhat mindlessly and clueless. Here, Jesus is inviting them to continue exhibiting the reign of God in the world. It’s quite the offer, isn’t it?

It came to the disciples long ago, and it comes to us today. As those who have heard the good news and experienced the presence of Christ, what would we share with others on an elevator ride? Would we dare to share the gospel? May it be so. Amen.

sermon preached by Rev. Elizabeth Lovell Milford

Heritage Presbyterian Church, June 2, 2019

————————————————————————————————————————————————–

[i] “Everybody’s Free (to Wear Sunscreen)” by Baz Luhrmann

[ii] Ibid.

[iii] https://www.ajc.com/news/just-morehouse-commencement-speaker-pay-off-class-2019-student-loans/XvMHlS1SVyJiG3mRp1WOWL/

[iv] Matthew 28:19-20, New Revised Standard Version

[v] http://sfp.ucdavis.edu/files/163926.pdf

[vi] http://www.ala.org/advocacy/advocacy-university/school-library-resources/elevator-speech

Sunday’s Sermon – Sent – Luke 10:1-11

Sunday’s Sermon – Elevator Speeches – Luke 24:44-53; Ephesians 1:15-23

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