Acts 11:1-18
Psalm 148
Revelations 21:2-6
John 13:31-35
Well, I'm going to jump right in. This past year hasn't been the easiest for this congregation financially speaking, has it? Specifically, it seems like this church has taken a big hit when it comes to offerings. So big, in fact, that you are being forced to consider less-than- halftime ministry. Now, I don't know what happened - I haven't had time to look at the figures - but I can guess that things are pretty serious. Churches don't make decisions to cut their ministry lightly. It is always done as a last resort, as a way just to stay alive. I can also guess that you're all feeling pretty bad about it, too. My guess is that, among other things, you might be feeling anxious, fearful, and maybe even guilty.
After all, it does seem like, at the very least, a successful congregation should be able to pay its pastor full-time, right? Theoretically, if a church is doing things right, the pews should be full, the Sunday School should be packed, the youth should be running around everywhere, and the offering plates should be overflowing. That's what we see on TV and hear about in the news, right? The Crystal Cathedral, the Vineyard churches, the mega-churches in the U.S. Bible Belt, even a few churches here in Toronto - they're all packed to overflowing, with lots of money and more than one full-time pastor - clearly they're successful churches, clearly they're easily identifiable as being good disciples of Christ. Isn't that right? That you can tell how successful a church is by the number of people attending, the number of bible studies being offered, the number of outreach programs being offered, the number of pastors on staff? The higher those numbers, the more successful the church. The more successful the church, the better Christians they must be.
Of course, if that's true, then it would seem like the opposite is true, too. That the lower the numbers, the less successful a church is. When we hear of a church where attendance is dropping, Sunday School classes are closing, programs are being cut, giving is down, well, then, we start thinking that maybe that church is doing something wrong. We wonder about the dedication of its members, about the competency of its staff. We suspect that that church is failing, that it is - dare we say it? - dying. We wonder what kind of discipleship its members are practicing if they can't even keep the church afloat.
Which brings us back to our situation. I have to ask - is it perhaps the case that maybe, deep in your heart, you're wondering the same things about this congregation? That you're wondering if this church is failing? If it's in trouble? If we're really being the group of Christian followers that we should be? I know I do. And as the pastor of this congregation, that's not an easy thing to admit. Naturally, all pastors can't help but think that they are somewhat personally responsible for the success or failure of a congregation. As the pastor, I wonder, should I have pushed evangelism to increase membership? Should I have preached more about stewardship and giving to increase offerings? Should I have encouraged more members to come regularly to strengthen their commitment? What could I be doing to make this church more successful? To make it obvious to everyone that we are thriving as disciples of Christ? I feel anxiety over the future of this congregation and guilt that I should have done more.
Jesus said, "Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."
So what's the connection? Well, it's true that Jesus isn't talking about congregations, but he does seem to be setting a general standard of behaviour for those who want to be called his disciples. And that standard is that they show the same love that Jesus showed. Jesus' standard for judging the success of Christians isn't about attendance numbers, or fiscal solvency, or having the money to pay a full-time pastor. Jesus' standard for discipleship isn't based on how much offering is given, or how many programs are offered, or how many people attend Council meetings. Jesus' standard is about love. It's about showing love to each other and to the world.
That's what, above everything else, Jesus' disciples are supposed to be known for. That's how you can tell that they're followers of Christ - that they're Christian. Not by the material success of their congregation, but by the love they show to one another and to the world. The first disciples of Christ weren't members of mega-churches. They didn't have full-time pastors, they didn't have Sunday School, or full pews on Sundays. But what they did have was love for one another. They supported one another in their ministries, they helped each other out when they needed it. Early on in Acts, we hear that the equivalent of a daily food bank was set up to help starving widows. More often, though, the disciples simply went around proclaiming Christ's forgiveness to anyone who would listen. They spread the gospel, the good news, the message of God's love for the world as far as they could. And that's how people knew that they were followers of Christ - because of the love they had for one another.
It wasn't that the early disciples were exceptional people who were just all-round great guys full of love. They were actually pretty ordinary people like you and me, who worried about their work, and their families, and didn't get enough sleep, and got stressed when money got tight. They had their differences, and they got into arguments. But they did have the Holy Spirit helping them out, and that's what kept them going. You see, it's not as if Jesus set up an impossible standard for being his disciple. Or rather, it's not that he set up an impossible standard and then left us to fend for ourselves. Yes, he did say, "Here's what you need to do to be one of my followers - love the world," a tall order, but then he sent the Holy Spirit to help us to do that. The Spirit of Christ, that moved him to love his disciples and wash their feet, that moved him to love his betrayers and ask for their forgiveness, that Spirit was sent to us in our baptism and is renewed at every Communion. That Spirit is what enables us to care for the people in our midst that we don't always agree with, to see them as human beings and not just as debaters on the opposite side. The Holy Spirit enables us to care for people who are different from us, who come from different backgrounds and hold different values. The Holy Spirit enables us to care for people that we don't even know, to welcome the stranger into our community, to give our spare change and our extra food to those in need.
That same Holy Spirit is at work in this congregation, helping you to show God's love to others. And that's why you shouldn't be feeling anxious, or fearful, or guilty. Yes, the financial situation is tough here. But raking in the money is not what a church is supposed to be known for - congregations aren't businesses. Instead, a church is supposed to be known for the love present among its members, and I can honestly say that that love is shown here in spades. By the grace of the Holy Spirit, you have the most important thing down pat, and that means that the rest of it is, well, it's just not as important. That's not to say that it's irrelevant, but finances and budgets just aren't as important as showing love to one another.
So, major cuts to the budget of this congregation shouldn't leave you feeling like it's the end of the world. The glory of God is not shown in church budgets, but in the love of Christ shown to the world. Thanks be to God that the Holy Spirit continues to bless us with that love, as we seek to be recognized as Christ's disciples. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment