Sermon – Psalm 73, Philippians 4:4-23

Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard

Sermon – Psalm 73, Philippians 4:4-23

Eagle Rock Presbyterian Church

May 25, 2008

Tomorrow our nation will be setting aside a day to remember all the men and women who have died or been injured in our wars. This practice was started after the Civil War to remember the sacrifice that so many men made to keep our nation free and undivided. Many people in our congregation have served in the military or have family members who are currently serving. All of you have made a great sacrifice for our country.

Please pray with me. Lord Jesus Christ, many of us today need healing in our hearts as we remember family members and friends who have gone to you; we ask that you heal our broken hearts this day. Many of us today need healing in our bodies as we or family members deal with disease or injury; we ask that you heal those bodies this day. We boldly make these requests to you because you healed the sick and comforted the bereaved while with us. So today we call on your power. Amen.

Philippians 4:4-13 ⁴ Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. ⁵ Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. ⁶ Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. ⁷ And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. ⁸ Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. ⁹ Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you. ¹⁰ I rejoice in the Lord greatly that now at last you have revived your concern for me; indeed, you were concerned for me, but had no opportunity to show it. ¹¹ Not that I am referring to being in need; for I have learned to be content with whatever I have. ¹² I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need. ¹³ I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

When I was growing up, every Memorial Day, or as it was once called Decoration Day, we went to my grandmother’s house and visited the cemeteries. My father’s family is in Oak Grove, near the hospital. My mother and her family are in Silvian Heights up on the hill. We always took flowers to decorate the graves. And my grandfather’s grave had an American flag indicating that he had served during World War One. There was always a picnic outside in my grandmother’s backyard with burgers, deviled eggs, and potato salad. And there were parades and patriotic songs. But what I remember most of all about Memorial Day was watching my grandmother become older and more and more feeble until she died and then we stopped placing flowers on all those graves.

As I think about my grandmother I remember her great faith in God and her desire for me to find God myself. She had a pure heart and scripture says that anyone with a pure heart will be blessed by God. But if my grandmother was blessed, why was she a widow for so many years? Why did she have problems with her heart? Why did she suffer though so many illnesses? Does God really bless those with a pure heart as scripture says?

Anyone watching television this week might conclude that scripture is wrong on this point. You might believe the God blesses people for reason other than a pure heart. If you watched the finals of Dancing with the Stars you might think that God blesses those who are beautiful and can move about the dance floor gracefully. If you watched the finals of American Idol you might think that God blesses those who can sing popular songs with powerful voices. And if you watched the Lakers in the playoffs you might think the God blesses athletes who can dribble and shoot. But when we think about the saints of this church, the people who have worshiped with this church so faithfully for so long, who have such pure hearts, and now see them suffering from cancer, or seizures, or neurological diseases we have to wonder if God really does bless the pure in heart.

This observation that the godless seem to prosper while the faithful suffer illness bothered the psalmist. It angered her that this injustice prevailed. She was ready to enter the sanctuary and complain to God about it. Surely God would hear her prayers and punish those who profit unjustly. But when she entered the sanctuary something amazing happened. She began to see the world from God’s perspective.

The way God sees it, the prosperity of those who do not know God is here today and gone tomorrow. Those who depended on beauty or ability or skill will find that one day all of these things will fail. Those who are beautiful now will grow old and wrinkled. Those who can sing beautifully now will one day lose their voices. And those who are great athletes will one day lose their skills to age or injury. Their blessings are temporary and will soon fade.

But those with pure hearts will be blessed for eternity because they are always renewed by being in the presence of the living God. God holds us in his arms and guides us in her way and receives us with great honor. When we realize that God truly blesses us we are filled with the overwhelming desire to be with God. So as we age and our bodies begin to fail we are blessed because God is right there with us to comfort us along the way.

The Apostle Paul tells us that as we grow old and experience difficulties in life we should not hesitate to bring those difficulties to God. We do this in prayer where we ask God to help us, to heal us, and to heal our families and our friends. Whatever troubles us: grief for a loved one who has died or sickness in our bodies or in the bodies of members of our families and friends we are not to worry about these things, but with confidence we should believe that we and our families will be blessed by God. We are to take all of our concerns for our bodies and our families to God in prayer.

When it comes to healing our bodies there are those who think that prayer does no good. Some discount the existence of miracles today and believe that only modern medicine can heal. Others believe that God knows when we are sick and will decide for himself whether or not to heal us. So why bother praying? Scripture tells us the Jesus healed the sick and gave that power to us to heal in his name. Jesus simply spoke a command and people were healed. For us we heal by praying in Jesus’ name. And when we pray in confidence for Jesus to heal us or a loved one we are filled with hope.

When we pray for healing we must first understand the God desires healing for all who experience illness. This understanding allows us to anticipate that our prayers will be heard and acted upon. We must also have compassion for those we pray for. Our prayers for healing will only be effective if we truly desire for someone to be healed. When we pray for someone who is ill we become vulnerable, but we take the risk because the reward is so great. And finally we must always remember that when we pray for healing we are not doing magic. There is no direct cause and effect relationship between prayers and healing. Many times our prayers do not have the desired result. But we should not be discouraged because God heals in many different ways; our job is just to pray unceasingly and to trust God to act.

So on this Memorial Day Weekend lets not just spend our time at picnics and parades and decorating the graves of those who have gone to the Lord a long time ago. Rather spend some time in prayer for the living who are experiencing sickness. Boldly, pray for healing, believing that God desires the everyone be whole. Pray for the well being of the people in your family and in your church. Be a part of the healing ministry of Jesus Christ on earth.

Lord Jesus, we ask this day that you give us the authority to heal. Help us to pray for healing. Listen to our prayers as we pray for family and friends this Memorial Day Weekend. And heal those in Eagle Rock Presbyterian Church who are suffering from illness this day. We pray in your strong name, amen.

June Vision Article

Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard

June Vision Article

Eagle Rock Presbyterian Church

May 28, 2008

Every two years the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) meets to debate and decide, with God’s help, important matters facing the church. This month commissioners from presbyteries all over the United Stated will be gathering in San Jose for the 218^th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). These commissioners will be meeting from June 20^th to the 28^th prayerfully discerning God’s will for the church.

Among the important issues to be decided are: a revised form of government for the church that would be more flexible, foundational, and appropriate for a missional church in the 21^st century, the addition of the Belhar Confession from South Africa in our Book of Confessions, ways of seeking peace and justice in the Holy Land, and the election of a new Moderator for the next two years. The commissioners will be guided by scripture especially these words from the prophet Micah, “Do Justice, Love Kindness, Walk Humbly with your God”, the theme of this General Assembly.

The decisions the General Assemble have to make will have a profound impact on the church’s future. Please pray for the commissioners to the as they do God’s work on a national level. – Pastor Jeff

Almighty God,
in Jesus Christ you called disciples
and, by the Holy Spirit, made them one church to serve you.
Be with members of our General Assembly.
Help them to welcome new things you are doing in the world,
and to respect old things you keep and use.
Save them from empty slogans or senseless controversy.
In their deciding, determine what is good for us and for all people.
As this General Assembly meets,
let your Spirit rule,
so that our church may be joined in love and service to Jesus Christ,
who, having gone before us, is coming to meet us in the promise of your kingdom.
Amen.

Sermon: 2 Corinthians 13:11-13 – Making Disciples of All Nations

Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Sermon: 2 Corinthians 13:11-13 – Making Disciples of All Nations
Eagle Rock Presbyterian Church
May 15, 2008

This past Sunday an extraordinary event happened in our church. We had a multicultural concert as a lead in to our evening worship service. Singers and dancers from a variety of ethnic churches were invited. We had Native American, Hispanic and Jamaican Christians doing what they do in their own churches, performing here for us as part of an event that was designed to demonstrate to the community that we are a church that welcomes people from different cultures, nations and ethnicities. We wanted to show Eagle Rock that we celebrate the diversity of our community. This is part of our effort to build Eagle Rock Presbyterian Church into a multiethnic and multicultural church. Today I will be reflecting theologically on this event, and what it means for our church.

But first will you pray with me? Father in heaven, calm our fear of others and help to follow you into our multiethnic community here in Eagle Rock. Send your Spirit to fill us with love for you and for our neighbors. Help us to make disciples of people from every nation and ethnic group who live in our community. And send Jesus Christ to be with us always in worship. We pray this in the name of our triune God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, amen.

Our scripture reading today is from Matthew. It is the Great Commission that Christ gave to the church. This scripture is therefore our mission as the church of Jesus Christ. This is what Christ is calling us to do. So listen carefully to this familiar text.

Matthew 28: 16 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age."

Matthew first tells us that the disciples of Jesus were obedient. After the crucifixion they could have fled. And they justifiably could have concluded that all the Jesus had said was a lie. A rumor was already circulating that Jesus had not been resurrected by God, but that his body had been stolen. The disciples could have believed this lie and continued their lives as if nothing had happened, as if they had never met Jesus. But as followers of Jesus they chose to follow him wherever he might lead. This is the calling of the church: to follow Jesus wherever he leads us. So we have to not only listen carefully to Jesus’ words, but we have to be willing to put those words into action. We have to turn understanding into obedience.

Once we have chosen to obey Christ we are led by him into worship. Worship is always directed at Jesus Christ because Jesus is God and therefore the only acceptable object of our worship. The important question is not how we worship but who we worship. Over the centuries there have been many different ways of worshiping but the direction of worship is always turned toward Christ. The earliest church worshiped in the Greek tongue in house churches. The medieval church built great cathedrals and worshiped in Latin. The reformed church translated the Word of God into the language of God’s people, and emphasized that the reading and proclamation of the Word of God was vital to legitimate worship. In the 20th and 21st centuries worship has included a wide variety of cultural expressions. The manner of worship is unimportant so long as the object of worship is Jesus Christ.

Worship is not limited to only those who believe. Even some of the 11 who had followed Jesus for years still doubted much of what he had to say. Even nonbelievers should be invited to worship because it is through the worship of Jesus Christ that we come to belief. In worship Jesus comes to us. So it does not matter where or when we worship as long as our worship is centered on Jesus. The authority to worship comes to us not from the state or even from the congregational leaders. Our authority to worship comes directly from Jesus himself who has unlimited power from God.

Jesus uses this authority to tell us that our mission as church is to make disciples, followers of Jesus, and baptized them in the name of our triune God. As we are going about our day to day lives we are to tell everyone we meet about the good news we have found in Christ. We are to proclaim this Good News to people of all nations. Jesus was not talking about modern nation states like we have today. Rather Jesus used the Greek word ethnos from which we get the word “ethnic”. In other words Jesus was telling us that we are to make disciples of all the different ethnic groups who live in Eagle Rock. To obey Jesus means that we must make disciples of all the people in Eagle Rock regardless of their ethnic background, nationality, language, dress, documentation or income level. Therefore, obedience to Jesus requires that we become a multiethnic church in this diverse community.

I grew up in a church just like this one. We had lots of families and the church was building classrooms and a larger sanctuary. We were all white and worshiped in a very traditional Presbyterian style. Our biggest fear was the blacks would move into our community and take away what we had. As an adult I was able to make enough money to live in the affluent suburbs far away from the poverty and crime of the city. I worshiped in traditional Presbyterian churches. Almost everyone in these churches was white.

Several years ago I joined a Masonic lodge in Washington DC. It was a great source of friendships that last to this day. Unlike the churches in Washington the Masonic lodges are very multiethnic. People from all over the world come to Washington to live and have joined Masonic lodges for activities and friendships. I was able to meet and establish friendships with people from many different nations. I loved this experience. So when I was looking at seminaries I wanted a place where I could study with people from all over the world. That is why I chose Fuller. And while at Fuller I lived in an extremely multinational apartment complex. My neighbor on one side was from Africa and on the other was from China. While at Fuller I met and married a woman from Korea. And my internship at Pasadena Presbyterian Church was with a ministry to international students from around the world. So when it came time to look for a church I wanted to find a call to a multiethnic community and a church that was willing to welcome into its fellowship people from many different nations and languages and cultures. That is why I came to this church because you offered me the opportunity to build a multiethnic church.

Christ wants us to build a multiethnic church because that is in the very nature of God. We believe that we have one God. This is the God of the Hebrews who created everything. But this one God exists in diversity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. So too must the church be united as one while existing in a diversity of ethnic worship all centered on Jesus Christ. Our triune God is held together as one by the bonds of mutual love. So too must the church be bound together by the love of God and our love for each other. A multiethnic church is tied together into one unified church by the bonds of genuine mutual love.

If we are going to build a multiethnic church here in Eagle Rock we must confess our fears to God. Only God can settle our hearts and fill us with love so that we can reach out into the community around us with offers of that love. We must confess the anger that prevents us from loving our neighbor as God love us. We must be obedient to Christ and reach out to our neighbors with worship that is sensitive to their cultural needs. We must accept changes, meals after worship, new musical and cultural styles that are sensitive to the desires of people in the community, and new hearts which allow us to love our neighbors in new ways. Change is always scary. But I urge you not to be afraid of the diverse people who now live in Eagle Rock. Ask God to calm your fears and fill your hearts with love. The promise of scripture is that if we love those who live in Eagle Rock and make disciples of all the different ethnic groups who live here then Jesus will be with us in worship until he returns at the end of time. So I hope you will attend and enjoy the multicultural events and worship which with God’s help will bring new people into our church. I pray that all of our hearts will be filled with love as we come into contact with people from other ethnic groups. I want us all to be as welcoming as we can to everyone who comes looking for Jesus in this place.

God in heaven, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, bind us together with your mutual love. Fill our hearts with desire to take this love into our diverse community. Bless us with a multiethnic church which can worship you in many different ways. And we pray this in name of the one with supreme authority and whom we will obey, amen.

Sermon – 1 Corinthians 12:1-13

Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard

Sermon – 1 Corinthians 12:1-13
Eagle Rock Presbyterian Church

May 11, 2008 – Pentecost Sunday and Mother’s Day

Let me start this morning by welcoming all the mothers who are worshiping with us today. I can report that last week I returned to Washington DC with a box of Sees Milk Chocolate, my step mother’s gift for Mother’s Day. The church is honoring mothers with carnations this morning and a special concert this afternoon at 3PM on the patio. Our evening worship musical group, A Matter of Faith, has organized a wonderful program featuring many different musical groups from different churches. Everyone is invited.

But first will you pray with me? Holy Spirit, we ask that you come upon us today as you did on that day of Pentecost so long ago. Empower us to be your church. Enable us to worship God. And be with us to comfort us in our times of need. We pray all of this in the glorious name of Jesus, Amen.

1 Corinthians 12:1 Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. ² You know that when you were pagans, you were enticed and led astray to idols that could not speak. ³ Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking by the Spirit of God ever says "Let Jesus be cursed!" and no one can say "Jesus is Lord" except by the Holy Spirit. ⁴ Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; ⁵ and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; ⁶ and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. ⁷ To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. ⁸ To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, ⁹ to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, ¹⁰ to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the discernment of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. ¹¹ All these are activated by one and the same Spirit, who allots to each one individually just as the Spirit chooses. ¹² For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. ¹³ For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body-- Jews or Greeks, slaves or free-- and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.

In the 20^th century the Christian Church experienced the initiation and growth of a new type of Christianity whose power came nor from the state, or from the congregation, but from the Holy Spirit. On New Years Eve 1900 a young Methodist minister, Charles Fox Parham, was leading a healing ministry and Bible study group in a home in Topeka, Kansas. Parham asked his Bible study group “What proof or evidence is there in scripture that shows the Apostles received Baptism with the Holy Spirit?” The class answered that according to the Book of Acts the Apostles had spoken in other tongues. So that night they prayed and asked the Holy Spirit to give them the same gift, and they all began speaking in tongues.

On April 9, 1906 a student of Parham, William Seymour, the son of slaves, was leading a prayer meeting in Los Angeles. While Seymour was teaching several people began speaking in tongues. People started arriving to see what was going on. They moved the prayer meeting to 312 Azusa Street which became known as the Azusa Street Mission. According to the LA Times, on April 18, 1906 thousands of people had come from around the world for Christian revival. The Azusa Street Revival continued unabated for nearly three years. Hundreds of new congregations were formed. Today, 25% of all Christians around the world are part of traditions that trace themselves back to this powerful event.

Today, many Christians have reported an encounter with the Holy Spirit. They say that they have experienced an extraordinary sense of God’s reality, which has brought them into a deeper encounter with the deity. This has enabled them to praise and worship God in new ways. They experience a heightened desire and capacity to bear witness to the gospel within a more strongly bonded community. Many claim that speaking in tongues, healing, or prophecy has accompanied these heightened experiences and awareness of the presence of the Holy Spirit.

The Presbyterian Church has had a difficult time dealing with these experiences. We have always stressed the role of the Spirit in uniting us with Christ and thus bringing to us the fruit of salvation. But in this contemporary manifestation of the Spirit there seems to be more going on than our Reformed theology allows. Some Presbyterians have questioned the authenticity of these experiences. Others say these experiences are signs of the manifestation of the Holy Spirit. This often leads to divisions within the church. We need to understand what is happening when Christians report an experience of spiritual empowerment and be able to discern whether or not those gifts are from God.

According to the Apostle Paul ecstatic experiences, such as speaking in tongues, can only be from God if they acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord. Spirituality without Jesus at the center is not from the Holy Spirit. But the experience of spiritual gifts within the context of the worship of Jesus Christ is definitely an authentic experience of the Holy Spirit. Paul also says that if spiritual experiences come from the Holy Spirit then they will be used for building up the church, its ministries, its activities, and its good works. And finally Paul says that if these experiences come from the Holy Spirit then they will lead to the unity of the church. Just as we have one God in three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit so also we have one church with many members, each one receiving spiritual gifts from the Holy Spirit.

For Eagle Rock Presbyterian Church to grow again and be revitalized we too must be filled with the power of the Holy Spirit. The government will not help us grow. Neither will the denomination. Rather we are dependent on gifts from the Holy Spirit that empower us for ministry in this neighborhood. And this is happening here in our church. I have often sensed the presence of the Holy Spirit in this sanctuary. Every morning at 6AM we begin by reading the Word of God to place us in the presence of Christ for worship. Then we begin to pray. I pray for the needs of the church. As I pray I have heard other people speaking in tongues. I don’t have this gift, at least not yet. But I have found universally that those who speak in tongues at our early morning service believe that the revitalization effort at this church will be successful. Every person who has spoken in tongues in the morning has told me that the Holy Spirit will send more people to this church. I am now convinced that this church has a bright future ahead of it because it is being empowered by gifts from the Holy Spirit.

There is clear evidence of the work of the Holy Spirit in this church. Rapidly growing churches in Latin America and Africa all report that their growth begins with the arrival at the church of the poorest people in the community. The poor are powerless and can sense when the church is worshiping in the power of the Holy Spirit. They are drawn by this power to worship. In Eagle Rock there are many people who live on the streets. The Roman Catholic Church feeds them; this is a good thing to do. But recently several homeless people have been coming here, not for a feeding program, but to worship with us. They join us for worship and fellowship and share their gifts with us. One man, who lives here on the street, cooked the dinner for last Sunday’s worship. The poorest in our community are sensing the power of the Holy Spirit at work here at Eagle Rock Presbyterian Church, and are drawn to that power. This is the power that God will use to make this church grow and proper.

Of course, as the church grows conflicts will arise. Personalities will clash. Resources must be shared. Our ways of doing things will change. Stress will increase. And tempers will flair. We will begin to think that the newcomer’s spirits are not from God. Paul has told us to test the spirits. Only one Spirit comes from God. As long as the entire church is focused on Jesus Christ we know that this is the Holy Spirit. We also know that if the Holy Spirit is empowering our church she will unite us into one church.

So pray that Holy Spirit will empower the church for the work she is calling us to do. Do not be afraid if you begin hearing others speaking in tongues, or have some special knowledge or wisdom. Do not be afraid if new experiences begin to happen to you. As long as we are centered in Jesus Christ what we experience will be a manifestation of the Holy Spirit. This will empower our church. And this power will attract others who will join us in doing God’s work here in Eagle Rock. This is the promise of Pentecost.

Holy Spirit, pour down your gifts upon us. Bring us closer to God through our Lord Jesus Christ. And give to this congregation the power to grow and thrive in the Eagle Rock community, Amen.