Sermon John 10:1-10 A Statement On Presbyterian Ordination Standards

Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Pitts Creek and Beaver Dam Churches
Sermon John 10:1-10 A Statement On Presbyterian Ordination Standards
May 15, 2011

Last week I opened an internet news service on my computer and saw this headline. It said, “Gay is now OK for Presbyterian Clergy”. ( http://www.theblaze.com/stories/gay-is-now-ok-for-presbyterian-clergy/ ) Is this true? We need to talk about what the Presbyterian Church did this past week. But first we have to pray.

“Grant unto us, O Lord, to be occupied in the mysteries of thy heavenly wisdom, with true progress in piety, to thy glory and our own edification. Amen.” (John Calvin)

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. 2The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.” 6Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them. 7So again Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. 8All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. 9I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. 10The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

In the fourth Gospel John repeatedly uses a literary device. He starts with a miracle of Jesus, then tells about a conflict over the meaning of the sign, and finishes with a teaching from Jesus. Here we have a miracle, the healing of a blind man. This is followed with a discussion between Jesus and the Pharisees on the subject of sin. The Pharisees contended that physical deformities, such as blindness, was caused by sin. A man who is blind from birth must have parents who sinned. Jesus replied to them is characteristic cryptic fashion, he told a riddle: who is both the shepherd of the sheep and the gate for the sheep? This confused the Pharisees, but opened them to received Jesus' teaching. And Jesus told them that he had come not to condemn sinners but that sinners might be forgiven and receive abundant life.

We have similar discussions today about sin and abundant life. The Presbyterian Church has been in a discussion about the way we select leaders and the reality of sin in our lives. In the Presbyterian Church the process by which we selected our leaders is called ordination. All of the deacons and elders of our church have been ordained. I have been ordained as a Minister of the Word and Sacrament. It is important for all who are ordained as leaders of the church to be followers, disciples of Jesus Christ. This means that church leaders must have life styles that reflect Christ's teachings and submit to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. These are the historic standards that have guided sessions and presbyteries in selecting leaders since the church started.

In the 1970s we decided that ordination standards were needed to guide presbyteries and sessions in the ordination process. It happened in this way. A candidate for the Ministry of the Word and Sacrament was being examined by Pittsburgh Presbytery. His name was Will Kenyon. Although women had been ordained as deacons, elders and pastors in our denomination for many years, Mr. Kenyon told the presbytery that for theological reasons he could not ordain women. The presbytery decided that this scruple would not disqualify Mr. Kenyon from serving as a pastor. But the national church disagreed and spoke through the General Assembly that all churches should have women elders. As a result of this decision the General Assembly began to develop specific ordination standards for all churches and presbyteries in the United States.

Meanwhile a church on Long Island faced another dilemma. A person in their congregation was clearly gifted for ministry and they wanted to ordain him as an elder, but he was a practicing homosexual. The church didn't know what to do. So they asked the General Assembly to form a committee to explore the subject. The decision of the General Assembly was that homosexual behavior was clearly sinful, but if a homosexual repented of this sin and abstained from this behavior then they could serve as leaders of the church.

This policy governed the church until 1996 when changes in American culture caused the church to want more specific standards for ordination. Over the last twenty years homosexuality had become increasingly accepted in American culture. And this caused a split in the church on the issue of ordination standards. Some wanted looser standards so that homosexual members of the church could share their gifts. Others wanted tighter standards to prevent presbyteries and sessions from ordaining homosexuals. The Presbyterian Church USA wrote the following language
into the Book of Order, its constitution.

“Those who are called to office in the church are to lead a life in obedience to Scripture and in conformity to the historic confessional standards of the church. Among these standards is the requirement to live either in fidelity within the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman (W-4.9001), or chastity in singleness. Persons refusing to repent of any self - acknowledged practice which the confessions call sin shall not be ordained and/or installed as deacons, elders, or ministers of the Word and Sacrament.” (G 60106b)

Since the mid-nineties the church has been in a conversation about sin and ordination. Should we honor homosexuals with gifts of ministry with ordination? Should we withhold ordination from people leading sinful lifestyles? The one thing we can all agree on is that we are now tired of the constant debate.

Last summer the General Assembly adopted new standards for ordination and changed the language in the Book of Order. These changes have been approved by a majority of presbyteries and will become effective next month. Here is what it says:

 “Standards for ordained service reflect the church’s desire to submit joyfully to the Lordship of Jesus Christ in all aspects of life (G-1.0000). The governing body responsible for ordination and/or installation (G.14.0240; G-14.0450) shall examine each candidate’s calling, gifts, preparation, and suitability for the responsibilities of office. The examination shall include, but not be limited to, a determination of the candidate’s ability and commitment to fulfill all requirements as expressed in the constitutional questions for ordination and installation (W-4.4003). Governing bodies shall be guided by Scripture and the confessions in applying standards to individual candidates.”

To understand what the church has done we have to look at both the actual meaning and the effective meaning of these words. The actual meaning of this new ordination standard is that it has actually become more stringent. Presbyteries and sessions can no longer just apply a simple rule to determine who to ordain or not ordain. Now we must look at the entire lifestyle of a candidate to see if there is evidence that this person is truly a follower of Jesus Christ. This is a much more difficult task, but it will engage the church is a broad discussion of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus.

But the effective meaning of this new standard is that the church has now removed the specific language prohibiting practicing homosexuals from serving in ordained ministries. And this may open the door to homosexual ordinations How all of this works out is still to be determined as presbyteries and session deal with individual candidates for ordination.

So, has the church said that it is OK for Presbyterian clergy to engage in homosexual behavior. Of course not, although some do think that this is exactly what the church has done. What we have done is to substitute an historic principle that all leaders must “joyfully submit to the Lordship of Jesus Christ in all aspects of life” for a specific rule that prevented practicing homosexuals from serving in leadership roles.

There are four principles that I think can guide the church as we move into a somewhat uncertain future. First, we need to remain faithful to our communities. This is not the time to get angry with the church and leave. This applies to both individual members and churches. We need everyone engaged in a conversation on what it means to joyfully submit to the Lordship of Jesus Christ is all aspects of our lives. We need together to study scripture and engage in theological discussions about what discipleship means developing our own biblical standards for leadership in our churches.

The second principle is that we should find graceful ways of finding leaders for our church. We need to speak the truth in love. Remember that the church is a hospital for sinners. Our reason for being is to help people be transformed from sinners to disciples. So we have to provide opportunities for the the Holy Spirit to transform people into disciples of Jesus Christ through nurture in God's word and by engaging in the ministries of the church. And sinners who are becoming disciples need to be nurtured for leadership positions.

The third principle is that we need to hold each other accountable. It's not enough to simply apply some arbitrary rule from the General Assembly. Rather we must be involved in each others lives so that we can nip sin in the bud before it can develop into an evil lifestyle. We can encourage each other as we all become disciples of Jesus. We can nurture each other's faith, grow in God's love, and develop leadership skills.

And the fourth principle is that we must always remember that each of us is a forgiven sinner. Be careful when calling someone else a sinner, because you are one too. If we were truly honest none of us is really qualified for ordained office. None of us is holy enough or pure enough to lead the church. But we are forgiven sinners and by the grace of God through Jesus Christ we have been given that wonderful opportunity of serving the church.

So as we move into a new era for the Presbyterian Church USA let's remember that Jesus came not to condemn sinners, but that all of us may live life abundantly. So lets use this as opportunity to grow as disciples, leave sin behind, and experience the abundant life Christ is offering us.

“You sent your Son Jesus Christ, who came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many. We praise you that he calls his faithful servants to lead your holy people in love; to proclaim your Word and to celebrate the sacraments of the new covenant.” (Book of Common Worship p. 137) Amen.

Sermon adapted from Charles Wiley III http://www.vimeo.com/23560820