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“The
Magic Of Being In A Group” Sermon Delivered By Rev. Dick Stetler – January
22, 2017 Centenary United Methodist Church
Psalm 27:1, 4-9; Matthew 4:18-25
Have you ever wondered how successful Jesus would have been if
preaching and teaching were his only skills?
Suppose healing others had not been a part of his ministry?
We would probably find that the results would have been the same
as to what happened because of the uniqueness of Jesus and his message.
When we examine the Gospels, there is very little evidence that
those who were healed became his followers.
Once they had their needs met, most of them went on with their
lives much like the ten lepers. (Luke 17:11f)
But, in terms of drawing large audiences of curiosity seekers,
Jesus drew crowds that were estimated to have reached into the
thousands. (Matthew 14:13f) Most
of these people disbursed in the same manner as they did on Palm Sunday.
They came and witnessed something and faded back into their
culture. What we do know is that Jesus' warmth, supportive and accepting
spirit drew many listeners to him from all levels of life.
He had one-on-one experiences
with Nicodemus, a great teacher in Israel.
He experienced life-changing moments with Zacchaeus, a chief tax
collector. He had close
friends like Mary, Martha and Lazarus with whom he frequently visited in
Bethany. He ate with sinners,
allowed prostitutes to touch him and was invited to teach at the home of
a wealthy Pharisee. What made
Jesus' teachings so compelling and memorable
were the risks he took by preaching a very different message from what
his people had been trained to believe.
Rather than obedience to the Laws of Moses, Jesus taught
that extending love, compassion and understanding was the link to
understanding the nature of God. (Matthew 7:29)
Obedience was a personal
discipline. Growing a
person's loving energy for others was a matter of desires that came from
the heart. God's Kingdom was
not in some external reality; it was inside of us.
These teachings were heresy. In our lesson this morning, Jesus began his ministry by
collecting a group of very average men that he could teach and guide.
His invitation was, "Come with me and I will teach you how to
influence people so that they change the direction of their lives."
(Matthew 4:19) When we think of the source of our own spiritual growth, most of
it has come from our life-experiences.
We can only point to wonderful, thought-evoking sermons, reading
numerous inspirational books and having discussions on Spirituality as
supportive aspects to our growing faith.
The
magic
that took place in Jesus' small group of disciples slowly
changed their lives because he was
the compass
that constantly pointed to the qualities of life that are found in
the Kingdom of
God.
Emotionally charged responses
from his students often became the source of Jesus' lessons as he taught
them how to live as a light
in the presence of darkness. One such episode occurred when James and John were rejected by
the leaders of a Samaritan village from whom they were seeking lodging
for Jesus and the group.
The Samaritan leaders did not want Jews to stay in their community for
even one night. Their egos
were so bruised that later they asked Jesus if they should call down
fire from heaven to destroy them.
(Luke 9:54) There was also a time when the same two brothers asked Jesus if
one could sit on the right and the other on the left when he came into
his power. When the other
disciples learned of their request, they became angry.
(Mark 10:41) There
was also the time when the group argued with each other over whom among
them was the greatest.
(Luke 22:24) Jesus had to unwind
centuries of social conditioning that existed among the Jews.
After one of his public teaching experiences, his disciples came
to Jesus and asked him why he had become a story-teller.
His response was most
intriguing: The knowledge about
the secrets of the
Kingdom of Heaven has been
given to you but not to the general public.
The reason I tell stories to people is that they look but do not
see. They listen but do not
hear or understand. You are
most fortunate to be part of our group because I will teach you how to
keep your eyes and ears open.
Everyone in every age has wanted to see and hear what you are
experiencing, but they have remained unable to understand anything
concerning life in God's Kingdom.
(Matthew 13:10-16) What is the magical
dynamic within a group that cannot be found anywhere else?
We are no different from the Jews.
Our attitudes and responses to our life-experiences come largely
from years of social conditioning.
If we are to be
angels-in-the flesh, we need
to take control of how we express ourselves.
Being in a trusting and
peaceful group can prepare us to remain open to changes and growth that
will keep us tracking toward such a goal.
During a week-long backpacking expedition, a number of teenagers
were in a wilderness setting for the first time.
While others were preparing breakfast one morning, I found a girl
sitting on a rock sketching a magnificent round spider web outlined with
dew. We were discussing how
the spider knows instinctively how to build a work of art to catch her
food. One of the boys approached, saw what we were doing and tossed a
log through the web that destroyed it. This incident created quite a
breach of trust between the two teens.
Around the campfire that evening, the group focused squarely on
what had happened that morning. The episode created a real life-lesson
for our group. When David threw the log destroying the web, for that spider the
experience was like one of us having our car badly damaged by an
intoxicated driver. The
spider lives with danger every day and thinks nothing of it.
When her web is destroyed by winds, a falling branch or an animal
passing by, without any hesitation, she instinctively begins to build a
new one. People have the same ability as the spider, but our emotions
often cause us to remain unsettled for a long time.
Even though we cannot
change the result of anything that has happened, we feel entitled to
hold on to our feelings. Not so for the spider.
Jesus taught his disciples to be like the spider. On Friday, Americans watched
the peaceful transition of
power from one political party to another.
The Republicans were jubilant in their victory.
Many Democrats were still holding on to strong emotional
responses associated with their defeat.
Think about the lesson that Jesus would have taught his group
when the Romans took control of the entire area.
Jesus taught, "The crowd of people look but they do not see.
They listen but do not hear or understand anything about living
in the Kingdom of God."
Saturday, millions of American women marched in cities all over
the United States in support of a wide universe of causes.
They were joined by women all over the world.
Sixty-eight Congressional legislators stayed away from witnessing
Donald Trump's taking the oath of office.
Bermuda did not send a representative as we did for President
Obama's inauguration. What do these responses mean? Everyone is entitled to their point-of-view, but what do our
emotional reactions cause us to become? What is happening inside of us
both in victory and in defeat? Jesus
often taught, "Do not become attached to anything in this world.
Rather, grow the qualities
of spirit that will work in this world and the next.
(Matthew 6:19f) What are the secrets of
the Kingdom of God that
Jesus shared with his inner group but which also missed the notice of
other people? If we cannot be at
peace within ourselves because of what is happening around us, we have
placed a greater significance and importance of issues in our external
world over our need to express the spiritual qualities that come from
living in God's Kingdom.
Very few people understand this.
(Matthew 7:13f) If we understand these
secrets of the Kingdom
and choose to make them visible in our lives, how are we to express our
civic duty to make our culture in Bermuda a more inviting culture for
others to experience when the OBA and the PLP face each other in a
future election? Do we want open conflict as some are suggesting?
Must there be a passive-aggressive
civil
war like what has just taken
place in the United States?
Must our strategy always be grounded in attacking one another,
particularly when we have just seen one of the ugliest chapters in U.S.
history unfold before us? The
answer is that we must keep
our inner mystical
connection to the Kingdom of God within us while
serving with love and grace the point of view we wish to represent.
Be like the spider; create in the midst of powerful headwinds
without developing attitudes that clip
our
angel wings. When I had my second hip replaced, I requested that the
anesthesiologist give me an epidural rather than a general anesthetic.
This allowed me to awaken very quickly in the recovery area.
I sat up and learned what it was like to be temporarily paralyzed
from the waist down; however, I could talk without slurring my words.
I asked one of the nurses, "What is nursing like these days?"
Other nurses heard the question and became involved in the
conversation. Soon I had
six nurses around my gurney.
They began sharing their feelings about
the politics of the hospital,
the technology and protocols that they are required to use, the zero
tolerance for mistakes, the poor
bed-side manners of a few physicians and the fear that the Director
of Nursing might overhear what must never be discussed in front of a
patient. I asked them if patients ever expressed their gratitude for what
they do for them. Not one
of them could remember such a time. I
said, With the many
cross-currents that surround you on a daily basis, please do not lose
sight of your ability to bring healing energy to others through the
spirit by which you live. Try
not to allow what is happening in your lives to define your feelings for
you. Be responsible for
remaining a vital part of the healing team because that is who you are.
Let those qualities show up every day.
They just stared at me speechless. One asked, "Who are you and
what do you do?" When I told
them that I was a pastor, they said, "Well, Father, you can look for us
to attend Mass at your church on some Sunday morning."
Not one of them followed through.
No doubt that small
spontaneous group of nurses disbursed.
They each re-entered the world that reinforced their
well-rehearsed emotional responses. This
is what our living in this world does to us.
We look and do not see.
We listen and do not hear anything that resembles the world from
which all of us came. (John 18:36) Jesus stayed with his group for three years.
Each time his disciples
missed the mark with their emotional responses, he reminded them
that they were angels that
did not need any particular outcome in the world in order to change the
attitudes of others. People
change when they experience attitudes that work in all circumstances.
That unique group allowed Jesus' message to reach us.
How many of us are willing to make Jesus'
secrets of
the Kingdom life visible in
our lives?
CONGREGATIONAL PRAYER Loving God, our faith traditions have always guided us to understand
that you created us in your image.
We thank you for the privilege it is to participate in your
creation. We are still
learning, refining and evolving our skills of spirit.
When our values falter and the light within us grows dim, we
thank you for helping us to realize that we are still students.
Never stop reminding us to be gentle with ourselves. We want to
thrive in our diversity and yet remain unified in making your love
visible through the spirit by which we live. Amen. PASTORAL
PRAYER
Loving God, how grateful we are that we can share moments of quiet and
peacefulness as we direct our thoughts toward you. You know our
thoughts long before we open ourselves to your loving presence.
In spite of your infinite, all knowing nature, we recognize how
helpful it is for us to talk to you.
As the drama of our lives continues, there is no way of stopping the chain of circumstances that come up for us. Sometimes that means looking forward to surgery. Sometimes that means watching those we love face challenging experiences while we feel helpless in listening to their stories. Sometimes that means dealing with the routine of our jobs, our marriages and our family experiences. Sometimes that means pondering our response to people whose earlier choices for years have put them in an economic crisis during the latter part of their lives. As each of us
strives to make your presence visible, help us to recall the words of
Paul that remind us that "Spirit produces love, joy, peace, patience,
kindness, faithfulness, humility and self- control." When all appears
dark, inspire us to light our
match in gratitude for the presence of such qualities in our lives.
In spite of our outward circumstances, we have so much for which
to be grateful. Guide our
thoughts, inspire us to hold fast to our values and grant us the courage
to walk toward tomorrow with great hope. We
pray these thoughts through the spirit of Jesus, the Christ, who taught
us to say when we pray . . . |