Sermon for Covid #7 Service May 10, 2020

Sermon for Covid #7 Service May 10, 2020

Gracious God, as we listen to the words of Scripture, open our hearts and minds with the gift of your Holy Spirit. By the Spirit’s power, move in us so that we follow your way more nearly, know your truth more fully, and share in your gift of life more abundantly, through Christ, your Living Word. Amen.

John 14:1-14

Who do you resemble more -- your father or your mother? And, with this in mind, are there not times that, without even knowing or thinking about it, we act and talk like our parents?  That is, we find ourselves saying things our parents said to us years ago, things that, at the time, we promised we would never say to our own kids. And, what is more, we may have noticed the little habits and mannerisms of our parents and said, I am not going to do that. And then, one day we catch ourselves doing exactly that!  One of the things we often do when we see a family with young kids is we look for the resemblance between them. Even in a newborn child we look to see who he or she most resembles.  When I was growing up, I was told that I resembled my grandmother Mahood and my dad. And when I was together with my sisters, what I heard most often was, “Well it isn’t hard to tell you are sisters.” 

Family resemblance is a blessing. Even if a family member doesn’t have a biological connection to the family unit, over time he or she may adopt the mannerisms, words and attitudes of the family members around him. The blessing of a family is that, within it, we have a place of deep roots and belonging.

The Gift of Honor, Gary Smalley & John Trent, Ph.D., p. 89 
Sense of Belonging

There's an old story about two young children who were standing on the corner, bragging about who had moved from province to province the most. One little boy said, "My family has moved three times in the last three years." "Hey!" said the other little boy. "That's nothing. My parents have moved five times this year & I found them every time!" It's safe to say that this second boy came from a home without a strong sense of belonging. Yet this boy longed for that place of belonging.

Our reading from John 14:1-14 records a very pivotal time in Jesus life. This is the night before Jesus died. He has had the last supper with His disciples and He has done that humble act of love and service of washing their feet.  Following the meal Jesus tells them that He is about to die. He says to the disciples “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me, Jesus went on to tell them that He was returning to His Father and when He does, He will prepare a place for us there too.

Thomas questions -- how this can be and how do we know the way?  And Jesus responds with these assuring words, “I am the way, the truth and the life. If you know me you know the Father” 

Then Philip said to Him, Lord show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.  Jesus said to Him “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. I am in the Father and the Father is in me. The words that
I say to you I do not speak on my own; but the Father who dwells in me does His works” In other words, He tells me what to do & I do it.

Again, the disciples ask Jesus, show us the Father.  And, in essence, Jesus replies by saying, Here I am, what you see in me, you see in my Father. The way I act, the words I say the things I do, I do with my Father in me.  And so it is that, in Jesus Christ, the invisible God is made visible, that is, if you have seen the Son you have also seen the Father.

God is invisible to our physical eyes but God is a spiritual reality and a true spiritual presence. And so it is that the best way to know God and see Him and understand Him, is to set our hearts and minds on Jesus so that we too may see the resemblance of the Father in His Son.

If we, turn to the New Testament to the gospel accounts of Jesus life you will come to know who God is, what He looks like, how God sounds and what He does, because God was, and is, in His Son.

What is God like? Well God in Christ is gentle enough to embrace children, humble enough to be born in a barn and eat with the outcast of society.

God is compassionate, loving and merciful.  He understands our real needs, better than we know ourselves, and seeks to address them.

What is He Like? God is like His Son a great teacher who taught as a servant. He spoke the gospel in terms of everyday experiences, that is, he spoke of the Kingdom with illustrations that His listeners could readily identify and understand, such as, for example, the parable of the sower and the seed; the lost sheep, and many others. He taught his followers to become servants by becoming one himself. In Mark 10:45, Jesus says: “the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve” Jesus had the authority to have all of His needs attended to; but instead chose the position of servant to serve others. He speaks the truth and calms the storms; He is patient and kind, but he is also passionate about the attitude of the human heart.

As God did, so Jesus did, that is, God in Christ Jesus expressed and bore witness to the breadth and fullness of God’s love for humankind –  for you, me and for all creation. Jesus Himself said that there can  be no greater love than to die for your friends—and He did just that.  God gave His only Son and Jesus sacrificed Himself on the cross so we could all be saved from our sins so that we might live for Him.  Even when enduring the pain and agony on the cross proclaimed  Luke 23:34: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”  

This leaves us with, who are we, and who are we called to be?

We are created in the image and likness of God. So God created humankind^] in his image,
    in the image of God he created them;
    male and female he created them.

Not only are we made in God’s image but we are called to live our family resemblance, that is as members of the household of God.

Our actions, our words and thoughts should reflect our Creators presence. At home, at work, in the long line ups, in isolation and when times are hard and when they are good.

 In this pandemic time our family resemblance to the Father is very important. As Christians may we continue to keep in touch with others making sure they are safe in their homes and residences. We worship and pr ay in safety and share from our resources to help others. All things the Father has done for us and calls us to do for others. Let us remember we are blessed to be blessing to others.

May we rejoice on this Christian Family – Mother’s Day Sunday in the Family resemblance we share and rejoice in it. Thanks be to God.

The Gift of Honor, Gary Smalley & John Trent, Ph.D., p. 89  

Sense of Belonging

 Father Michael Renninger Sermon “Family Resemblance”