Sermon + Do You Have The Faith?
Pastor Brian Campbell's Sermon from January 3.
His sermon was based on Exodus 2 & 3 on how God calls us to be a part of God's work, and God wants to hear our concerns and questions. This is the first of a Sermon Series from Exodus.
Grace, peace, & mercy to you from God, our Creator, our Christ, & our Counselor. AMEN.
· From now until Lent, I’ve selected a sermon series that goes through the Exodus story.
o The story in Exodus is about God providing for God’s people, even when they are in the most dire of straits, even if they fight what God is doing for them.
o I picked this topic and these lessons because they mirror the journey that the three Covenant Churches are on as we begin this new year.
§ We to decide if we will be One Church Together, or if we need to find an alternative.
· I bring up the question of IF because there are enough signals coming from church leaders and church members that they are not convinced becoming One Church Together is in the best interest for them, for their church or for all three churches.
· There are some who are ready to work on coming together, and there are some who are concerned about their church and their church only.
o This alone is troubling, and that comes before the complications of the pandemic numbers which remain near record levels even after nine months of learning what to do and a few weeks of vaccines being distributed.
· We are not all ready to come together, but there are some of us who would rather stay apart. There are members of each church who have chosen not to engage with what we are trying to do.
o The book of the Exodus spells out how God came to claim God’s people who were in slavery and brought them to the land promised to their ancestors, Sarah and Abraham.
· Just as an aside, if you are still looking for a resolution or habit for the new year, if you read a chapter of Exodus each day, you will finish the book right around the beginning of Lent.
§ As with everything God does, God takes the initiative, God provides the spark, but God works with and through people.
§ That is what God is doing with Ascension, Redeemer and St. Mark. God through previous pastors, prior church leaders and Synod staff has put these three very different churches together.
· Now it is up to us to determine if we are going to follow this vision through or to find a new vision and new way to proclaim God’s Good News is word and deed.
§ I want to remove one thing from your minds right now. I am not Moses in this story.
· Moses are the leaders of these churches, elected and unelected. Moses are those whom people turn to for guidance. I am a guide and facilitator.
· God is calling leaders from amongst this group of God’s people to lead them to a future promised to them.
· The family of Israel – the family of Jacob – moved to Egypt during a famine under the protection of Jacob’s son Joseph, who was Pharaoh’s right-hand man.
o After a long time the king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned under their slavery, and cried out. Out of the slavery their cry for help rose up to God. God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. God looked upon the Israelites, and God took notice of them. [a]
§ God noticed of the suffering of God’s people, heard their groaning and remembered the promises that God made to their ancestors, Jacob, Isaac and Abraham.
o God looked for someone to help in this mission and Moses brought a flock of sheep to graze on Mount Horeb, the mountain of God, when he came upon a burning bush.
§ God tells Moses that they are on sacred ground and tells Moses that this is the God of his ancestors.
· All of this terrifies Moses who hides his face from God who is speaking to him from this bush that burns but is not consumed.
§ God then tells Moses what their mission will be, to rescue God’s people who are suffering in slavery in Egypt.
· Moses raises his first objection: Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt? [b]
· The sight, voice and power of God have made Moses afraid. Now, he gives voice to his fear. Who am I to do this?
o This is the fear many of you have. Who am I to be involved in this?
o This is the work for people who have been here for a long time.
§ This is the work for people who know more than I do.
§ This is the work for people who care more than I do.
· God doesn’t call people based on their resume, experience and credentials. God calls people who are willing to talk with God. And Moses is going to have a great conversation about why Moses is the wrong person to have to do this work.
§ God says I will be with you, and furthermore I will bring you all right back here to worship me.[c]
· Moses objects and asks who do I say sent me?
o God ultimately gives Moses God’s name, Ehyeh-Asher-Ehyeh. [d]
§ Whole books have been written on what that means.
§ Our lesson translates it as I AM WHO I AM. I prefer I WILL BE WHOM I WILL BE because we best understand God by what God does and God will do what God needs to do to fulfill God’s will and God’s ways.
· Including use those who are reluctant to participate in God’s work.
· Moses continues to object, spending chapters 3 and 4 asking God for physical proof, for speaking help because he stutters, and finally asking God to send someone else.
o God reassures Moses enough that God will be with him every step of the way and that God will empower Moses to do the work God is calling him to do along with God.
o That is what the challenge is for the people of the Covenant Lutheran Churches.
§ Do you have the faith to follow where God is calling?
· If you aren’t sure this is the right thing to do, are you willing to question, and challenge God as Moses did?
o Or are you just going to sit on the sidelines and let someone else decide?
§ The real challenge and the real problem we have is that a lot of people are sitting this one out. They have decided not to be engaged.
· What is worse is that YOU have let them.
o Recently, the Covenant Council asked me to be better at contacting members. I will do my best. But you all need to step up and do your part.
· I am one person. I can only contact so many people on a daily or weekly basis.
o You all are many.
· I have only known people here for less than three years.
o You have known our members for years, if not for most of your life.
o You need to do the first contact; you need to do the outreach.
§ I’ll help and follow up as you think will be helpful.
o If you’ve got an objection, read Exodus chapters 3 and 4.
§ For our work to have a hope of succeeding and for these churches to survive in some form, we have to unite our members. All of you can do that better than I can alone. That is not an excuse, but a simple arithmetic fact.
· Share these services. People can access them if they want to.
· Call them before the service and have them listen in over the phone.
o God has heard our groaning and taken notice of us.
§ It is up to us to respond, “Here I am, Lord.”
AMEN.
[a] Exodus 2.23-25.
[b] Exodus 3.11.
[c] Exodus 3.12.
[d] Exodus 3.14.
Hebrew Bible Reading: Exodus 2:23-25; 3:1-15
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