Week 4: Mission Work
"All In"
Our focus this morning is Mission Work—going out into the world to help those in need. Are you willing to go "All In" in order to do God's Work?
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All In
As an introvert, I always feel a bit stretched in (A) social settings, and (B) conversation with strangers. So I invite you to imagine my unease standing among a large crowd of people, some of whom had shared some degree of hostility, engaging some of them in conversation as I offered to pour coffee for them.
I was 14 or so, and was volunteering at the lunch line in a homeless shelter in San Diego. It was a stretch for me just to be there, but to try and talk with some of the people we were ministering with that day was a bigger stretch. But the staff had encouraged us to do so, so I tried my best.
I remember one man from that day in particular. As he talked with me, he shared that he hadn’t always been homeless. But his wife had left him, and he had lost his job because of the stress. Those two events left him in such a financial mess that he lost his home and everything in it. He told me that his life had felt completely out of control for a while, and he just didn’t understand it.
I wish now that I could speak with him again. That I could some how share with him my assurance that God was with him. That even in the difficult times of our lives, even in the worst stuff that we sometimes have to face, God never leaves us. That I am confident in God’s presence and love; confident that He understands our trials; confident in the message of the gospel, that he took on our flesh and blood and underwent the trial of the cross just so we would know, once and for all, that we are never alone.
That day, as he talked, I just nodded as he shared his life story with me. When he was done, I said something nice to him, but not really all that theological. And, knowing who I was in those days, probably nothing about God or Jesus.
Maybe it was enough.
The church is called to serve. The church is one of, if not the only, institutions that exists not for the benefit of its members, but for those outside. Jesus Christ himself said that the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve – and, after taking the role of the lowliest household servant of his day and washing the feet of his own disciples, Jesus taught that we ought to go and do likewise (see John 13).
Every week, as we gather as the church – the body of Christ – in worship, we pray the prayer Jesus taught us, saying as part of that prayer “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” The very prayer that Jesus gave us calls us to serve others, to engage in mission work. Every week we pray together that the earth might be a little bit more like heaven, a little bit more the way God intends it to be. The church’s works of mission seek to see this happen, to help the presence of God shine a little more clearly in people’s lives.
Our gospel passage this morning, Jesus’ parable about separating the sheep from the goats, touches on the importance and call to serve others. Recall Jesus words’ that:
the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'
Those who are separated off to the right of the King, the place of honor, are those who served him. They are the ones who are promised eternal life.
Now, I have to share with you that over the years I have struggled to make sense of this particular teaching of Jesus in light of our understanding of salvation by faith. We receive the good news from our Christian tradition, as expounded in the writings of the Apostle Paul, that we are not saved by works; that God does not give us eternal life as a reward for what we do; but we are saved by grace through faith. Now, there is a lot to unpack in that statement “saved by grace through faith,” but let me simply say that our understanding of it is that eternal life is not a reward, but something God gives to us freely, something we receive by means of our faith in God.
But sometimes Jesus’ words, especially in this parable of the sheep and the goats, seem to emphasize that what we do earns us a place in heaven. I’ve struggled with this before, and it took serious consideration of Jesus’s words – and the insight of those wiser than I – to really understand two very important aspects of this passage.
First, those who are separated out for honor are separated for such because they served Christ. But their subsequent question – “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty… or naked… or in prison?” – demonstrates that they didn’t engage in these behaviors because they were seeking to earn some form of reward. They didn’t even know they were serving the Lord when they did these things. So why did they do them?
Because they felt a compulsion to do them. And what brought about that compulsion? They knew in their heart, if not in their minds, the words of an old hymn: “I once was lost, but now am found; was blind, but now I see.” They knew in their hearts an assurance and a new life, and out of that came a drive to offer whatever they could to others. That is the first insight into this story that helped ease my struggle with it; I realized that those Jesus separated out for honor had not done their deeds seeking such honor, but because of something deeper.
Second, Jesus does not say eternal life is a reward to those who served him. He says it is an inheritance.
Remember, an inheritance is a gift. Nothing we do earns it. A few years ago Lynn and I were shocked, and blessed, to receive an inheritance from my grandmother. She had a gift set aside for us in a trust, and because the interest on it had dropped so low she opted to go ahead and distribute the funds to us. It was a tremendous blessing that made a difference in our life; and still does.
Jesus’ words to those on his right is that the kingdom – what we might consider eternal life or heaven or what have you – is their inheritance. It is God’s to do with as God pleases – and what pleases God is to give it to those who have held their faith in Him; who have received with joy the gospel that we are forgiven and freed through Jesus Christ; and have lived their lives in grateful thanksgiving for God’s gift to us.
Jesus’ parable reminds us that mission and service rise in our hearts and lives not as a means to an end, but as a response. We don’t engage in mission to be good guys or to earn heaven, but because the love of God has made a difference in our lives, and we want to help others to know God.
Of course, we’re not just talking about mission and service today. We’re talking about Risk Taking Mission and Service. Bishop Schnase, in his book The Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations, makes this distinction:
“Risk-taking steps into greater uncertainty, a higher probability of discomfort, resistance, or sacrifice. Risk-Taking Mission and Service takes people into ministries that push them out of their comfort zone, stretching them beyond the circle of relationship and practices that routinely define their faith commitments.” (87)
As I read that, it made me think of Texas Hold’Em. Have you ever seen, or played, that form of poker? Now I never have… but while we were in Illinois Lynn and I would occasionally watch celebrities play. (I can’t remember the name right now, but I’m sure someone will remind me.) And there was often a point in the game when a contestant would go “all in.” You know what that means, right? Putting everything you’ve got into the pot; risking it all because you think you have the cards.
To me, Risk-Taking Mission and Service means to go all in. It means to step out of the circle of family and friends that we would support without question, and to offer all of ourselves in God’s service. There is an old biblical term for true risk-taking mission and service; sacrifice. At the heart of our faith, repeated throughout the Scriptures both Old and New, is the notion of sacrifice. Sure, we don’t practice it ritually any more, but sacrifice permeates the history of the Church; it was at the heart of Jesus’ ministry, it was demonstrated in the lives and ministry of Paul and the other disciples.
And if we are going to live in faith everyday, the notion of sacrifice moves out of the pages of Scripture and into our lives. Eugene Peterson, in his book The JEsus Way, says:
“A sacrificial life is the means, and the only means, by which a life of faith matures. By increments a sacrificial life—an altar here, an altar there—comes to permeate every detail of life: parenthood, marriage, friendship, work, gardening, reading a book, climbing a mountain, receiving strangers….” (Eerdmans, 2007; pp. 50–51).
Likewise, Frederick Buechner noted that “to sacrifice is to make something holy by giving it away in love.” Risk-Taking Mission and Service is our response to God’s gift of love, by the giving of what we have.
What does this mean for us as a congregation? Bishop Schnase writes this:
Churches that practice Risk-Taking Mission and Service are dissatisfied and offended (for Christ’s sake!) by the abuse of children; the suffering of innocents; the oppression of the poor; and the recurring cycles of addiction, violence, and injustice around them. They hear in the human need of their neighbors the distinct call of God. Against all odds, they figure out a response and offer themselves faithfully and genuinely, even at some cost to themselves. God uses them to transform the world.
Methodism began with this emphasis on risk-taking mission and service, and left its mark on the world. The very beginning of the Methodist movement, long before it was ever organized as a church, lay in a small club of students at Oxford. Charles Wesley invited his brother John to join the club, the members of which wanted to do what our mission statement says we want to do: to live in faith everyday. John Wesley challenged them that it was not enough to be pious – it was not enough to read their Bibles regularly, to pray several times each day, to receive communion as often as possible. Wesley challenged them to extend mercy to others as a key component of living in faith; he specifically challenged his brother and their colleagues to join him as he took the risk to begin visiting those shut up in prison. And their experiences reaching out to the imprisoned, and the orphaned, and the poor all had a radical impact on the history of England in the 18th century.
Risk is relative. I know many of you, but even so I can’t say with confidence what risk God might call you to take. Some of us have heard the stories that Godfrey and Lorraine have shared about the risk they took to go to Africa; a risk that has left its mark, for both good and ill, on them both. We’ve heard about the risks that Lane and members of our church took to help House of Refuge build a Laundromat. Some of you take risks to share what you have with the homeless as you pass out a good Samaritan bag; or help donate food to Pan de Vida.
What I can say for sure is that risk-taking mission and service makes an impact on the world in which we live, helps the world to be more like “thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth.”
knows who we might be ministering to when we stretch out beyond our comfort zone to give of ourselves to someone else. Think about it:
• Moses was a foster child.
• Mary was an unwed pregnant teenager.
• Jesus and his parents were refugees, illegal aliens in Egypt.
• Paul was a prisoner.
Reaching out in risk-taking mission and service can make an impact on the world, and also leaves you changed. By now I hope we all know that the often portrayed idea that becoming a Christian makes your life easier is not true; becoming a Christian doesn’t make your life easier, but it does make it holier, more meaningful. The risks we take change us, and help us to be more like Christ.
So, I may not be able to tell you what risk you might be called to take in the coming year. But I want to share with you a few risks that I am committed to taking this year. I don’t do this to compel you to keep up with me, or to make you feel guilty. But as I’ve given prayerful thought to these messages in this series, I have felt called to these things:
• As I’ll share with you later, I’m increasing my tithe next year to an even $100 a week. This means more than 60% of my salary increase is going back to the church. And of the $1,500 increase, I’m making a commitment on behalf of Song of Life to give $1,000 to the deaf ministry at St. Matthew UMC. Our congregation received a significant amount of help in our early years from St Matthew and its members, and I feel it weighing upon my heart for our church to begin to pledge to help fund this important regional ministry that they offer. Neither Lynn and I nor our congregational budget are exactly rich, so both increasing our tithe, and committing some of it to help a ministry other than Song of Life, are risky; but I know that God is doing good things, and I want to do my part to help.
• I have committed to partnering with Rev. Julius Keller, of Living Water UMF, to minister to the ASU Polytechnic Campus; even if it is only me, and even it the only results of my work there are benefits to the students and to help Living Water grow its ministry and outreach. We are too close to this mission field to not offer of ourselves to those living and studying there, even if it doesn’t help Song of Life directly.
• I am committed to volunteering at the Justa Center in Phoenix on Saturday, November 15th, during our Work Day. The Justa Center is a location that ministers to the homeless in downtown Phoenix, and both the work and the location cause me a degree of unease. But I also believe in the ministry that Scott Richey is doing at the Justa Center, and my hope is that after helping on the 15th I’ll be able to identify ways that Song of Life can reach out to serve the homeless through this ministry.
• Most of you know that Lynn and I are in the process of becoming foster parents. You may not know that we do so not with the intention of adopting. We’re not fostering because we want another child, but because through temporary foster parenting we have the opportunity and the ability to minister to the “least, the last, and the lost,” we have been given by God the chance to offer care to some of the thousands of children in Arizona that find themselves, for whatever reason, removed from their family of origin. Our hope as we pursue this is family reunification for the children we minister to; that their parents will do what it takes to become better equipped to care for their own children. In the meantime, we’ll give of our selves and our lives to be a place of safety. Let me tell you; as we’ve gone through this process, we’ve learned a lot about the risks that this might entail. This past week I had conversations with several others who have been foster parents, including members from Song of Life like Eleanor Atwood and Tom & Nan LaBrose. We can all tell you that there is no telling what issues or trials a child in the system might bring with them. But I can also tell you with complete conviction that the One who is best able to help them is Christ. And we hope that in some small way, any child that comes into our home for any length of time will be able to know Christ a little better as part of the result.
Do I hope to earn my way into heaven by doing these things? Honestly, there are days when I do hope for a reward. I don’t think I’m much different than anyone else, and when I take a risk to do good, a part of me hopes that God notices and puts a gold star next to my name on His heavenly behavior chart. But on my best days I know that I cannot earn my way into heaven; I know myself and my mistakes too well, and God knows me better.
But I trust in God’s grace. I trust that forgiveness and eternal life are not mine to earn; but they are God’s to give to me as an inheritance. And it is because of God’s grace that I am able to give of myself.
I want to leave you today with a challenge. It is not enough today to say, “wow, we should engage in some risk-taking mission and service,” We, as a congregation and as the individuals within it, need to make a commitment!
In the next four weeks, there will be four opportunities for you to commit to risk-taking mission and service in response to Christ’s work in your life:
1. Our Work Day on Sunday November 15. You an begin to sign up for the missions opportunities this morning.
2. We are already looking to grow and expand our missions work as a congregation in 2009. This week you’ll receive information in the mail inviting you to consider whether you want to commit yourself in this direction.
3. This week, I’m gathering with leaders to discern new leadership for several of our ministry areas; we’ll be praying for people who will help us live as risk takers. You can pray that we’ll discern effective leadership, and pray that if you are contacted about leadership that God can lead you to take the risk.
4. Finally, on November 23rd we’ll celebrate Consecration Sunday, where we will ask every member of Song of Life to take the risk to commit financially to the support of the ministries of the church. We’ll share more about that next week.
I’m brought back to that man in the homeless shelter in San Diego, and my meager conversation with him. Maybe it was enough. I was there; I did what I could at that time. Hopefully somewhere in his journey, someone loved that man enough to share with him about God. For my part, I did what I did in the name of Jesus; and I believe that whatever we do in the name of Jesus Christ matters. Big or small, whatever level of risk we are able to take, God will work his wonders in and through it.
And we do it all, not because of our strength, not because we are earning heaven; but because of God’s grace, and God’s grace alone.
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(Read by Max McLean. Provided by The Listener's Audio Bible.)
