To This We Have Been Called

Read 1 Peter 3:8-12 (NRSV)

"Full Measure"
18 x 24 Acrylic on Canvas
by Susan Savage
www.susandsavage.com

Finally, all of you, have unity of spirit, sympathy, love for one another, a tender heart, and a humble mind. ⁹Do not repay evil for evil or abuse for abuse; but, on the contrary, repay with a blessing. It is for this that you were called—that you might inherit a blessing.  

¹⁰ For ‘Those who desire life
   and desire to see good days,
let them keep their tongues from evil
   and their lips from speaking deceit;
¹¹ let them turn away from evil and do good;
   let them seek peace and pursue it.
¹² For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,
   and his ears are open to their prayer.
But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.’ 

Questions for Personal Reflections by Jerry Tankersley

By virtue of baptism into Christ we clothe ourselves in Christ and accept what God has done for us as a gift.  C.S. Lewis says in Mere Christianity that each day after our baptism  the Christian awakens to put on Christ for the sake of being and becoming a Little Christ.  We know that we are not Christ.  Nevertheless, over a lifetime of pretending we progressively become like him.  In becoming like him, we become who we are in all of our uniqueness.  Fake it till you make it, the slogan goes.  Does this bother you that you are a work in progress?

Pretending means we take seriously the unity of the Spirit within the fellowship of the church. Yet, we are all so different.  Christians are not of one mind on everything.  What are the essential truths that the church confesses?  Read the Nicene Creed (set forth below).  Is this Creed easy to affirm?  Are there elements of it that you do not understand and with which you disagree?  Can you let it be the church’s historic affirmation of the faith even though parts of it may be difficult for you to affirm?

How do you feel about being a member of a church in which there is great diversity within the context of historic creedal statements?  How would you have felt if you had had James Bryan Smith’s experience reported in the sermon?
 
Think about your life experiences that have given to you the ability to develop sympathy, tenderheartedness, and humility.  Write about one of those experiences and how it led you into deeper spiritual maturity, even though it may have been painful at the time.
 
How has God used an experience of failure, loss, or disappointment to deepen your understanding of life and to help others?
 
What is the blessing you would like most to inherit?
 
If you could guess how  people beyond LPC see and regard our church, how would they see us?  Someone said that LPC is a class act.  What might they mean?  Do you agree?
 

Prayer

The Nicene Creed was written during the 4th century A.D. in an attempt to unify the Christian church under emperor Constantine. It is heavily influenced by the theologian Athanasius and the work of the first two ecumenical councils of Nicaea (325) and Constantinople (381). It was adopted by the council of Chalcedon in A.D. 451. Its central doctrines are those of the Person of Jesus Christ and the reality of the Holy Spirit. It is the only creed accepted by all three major branches of Christendom including Protestant, Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Christians.

We believe in one God,

the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is, seen and unseen. 

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, light from light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one Being with the Father;
through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven,
was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary
and became truly human.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end. 

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father [and the Son],
who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come. Amen.

The Tree of Life

Read Genesis 1-3 (NRSV)
In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, 2the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. 3Then God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light. 4And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. 5God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

6And God said, ‘Let there be a dome in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.’ 7So God made the dome and separated the waters that were under the dome from the waters that were above the dome. And it was so. 8God called the dome Sky. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.

9 And God said, ‘Let the waters under the sky be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.’ And it was so. 10God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. 11Then God said, ‘Let the earth put forth vegetation: plants yielding seed, and fruit trees of every kind on earth that bear fruit with the seed in it.’ And it was so. 12The earth brought forth vegetation: plants yielding seed of every kind, and trees of every kind bearing fruit with the seed in it. And God saw that it was good. 13And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.

14 And God said, ‘Let there be lights in the dome of the sky to separate the day from the night; and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years, 15and let them be lights in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth.’ And it was so. 16God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. 17God set them in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth, 18to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.

20 And God said, ‘Let the waters bring forth swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the dome of the sky.’ 21So God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, of every kind, with which the waters swarm, and every winged bird of every kind. And God saw that it was good. 22God blessed them, saying, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.’ 23And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.

24 And God said, ‘Let the earth bring forth living creatures of every kind: cattle and creeping things and wild animals of the earth of every kind.’ And it was so. 25God made the wild animals of the earth of every kind, and the cattle of every kind, and everything that creeps upon the ground of every kind. And God saw that it was good.

26Then God said, ‘Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.’ 27So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.
28God blessed them, and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.’ 29God said, ‘See, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food. 30And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.’ And it was so. 31God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

Chapter 2
1Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all their multitude. 2And on the seventh day God finished the work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all the work that he had done. 3So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it God rested from all the work that he had done in creation.

4These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created. In the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens, 5when no plant of the field was yet in the earth and no herb of the field had yet sprung up—for the Lord God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was no one to till the ground; 6but a stream would rise from the earth, and water the whole face of the ground— 7then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being. 8And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east; and there he put the man whom he had formed. 9Out of the ground the Lord God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food, the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

10A river flows out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it divides and becomes four branches. 11The name of the first is Pishon; it is the one that flows around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold; 12and the gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. 13The name of the second river is Gihon; it is the one that flows around the whole land of Cush. 14The name of the third river is Tigris, which flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.

15The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it. 16And the Lord God commanded the man, ‘You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; 17but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.’

18Then the Lord God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper as his partner.’ 19So out of the ground the Lord God formed every animal of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. 20The man gave names to all cattle, and to the birds of the air, and to every animal of the field; but for the man there was not found a helper as his partner. 21So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then he took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. 22And the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. 23Then the man said, ‘This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; this one shall be called Woman, for out of Man this one was taken.’ 24Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and clings to his wife, and they become one flesh. 25And the man and his wife were both naked, and were not ashamed.

Chapter 3
Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, ‘Did God say, “You shall not eat from any tree in the garden”?’ 2The woman said to the serpent, ‘We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; 3but God said, “You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, nor shall you touch it, or you shall die.” ’ 4But the serpent said to the woman, ‘You will not die; 5for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.’ 6So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate. 7Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.

8They heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden at the time of the evening breeze, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9But the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, ‘Where are you?’ 10He said, ‘I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.’ 11He said, ‘Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?’ 12The man said, ‘The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit from the tree, and I ate.’ 13Then the Lord God said to the woman, ‘What is this that you have done?’ The woman said, ‘The serpent tricked me, and I ate.’ 14The Lord God said to the serpent, ‘Because you have done this, cursed are you among all animals and among all wild creatures; upon your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life.  15I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.’  16To the woman he said, ‘I will greatly increase your pangs in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children, yet your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you.’ 17And to the man he said, ‘Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten of the tree about which I commanded you, “You shall not eat of it”, cursed is the ground because of you; in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life; 18thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. 19By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; you are dust, and to dust you shall return.’

20 The man named his wife Eve, because she was the mother of all who live. 21And the Lord God made garments of skins for the man and for his wife, and clothed them.

22 Then the Lord God said, ‘See, the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil; and now, he might reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever’— 23therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he was taken. 24He drove out the man; and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim, and a sword flaming and turning to guard the way to the tree of life.


Read 1 Peter 2:21-3:7 (NRSV)
21For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in his steps.
22 ‘He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.’
23When he was abused, he did not return abuse; when he suffered, he did not threaten; but he entrusted himself to the one who judges justly. 24He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that, free from sins, we might live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. 25For you were going astray like sheep, but now you have returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.

3Wives, in the same way, accept the authority of your husbands, so that, even if some of them do not obey the word, they may be won over without a word by their wives’ conduct, 2when they see the purity and reverence of your lives. 3Do not adorn yourselves outwardly by braiding your hair, and by wearing gold ornaments or fine clothing; 4rather, let your adornment be the inner self with the lasting beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in God’s sight. 5It was in this way long ago that the holy women who hoped in God used to adorn themselves by accepting the authority of their husbands. 6Thus Sarah obeyed Abraham and called him lord. You have become her daughters as long as you do what is good and never let fears alarm you. 7Husbands, in the same way, show consideration for your wives in your life together, paying honour to the woman as the weaker sex, since they too are also heirs of the gracious gift of life—so that nothing may hinder your prayers.

Questions for Personal Reflection from Jerry Tankersley 
If you had one “why?” question for God, what would it be?

Have you ever read the Book of Job?  Beginning in chapter 38 God had some questions for him.  If God asked you these questions, how would it make you feel?
 

The movie interprets the human condition as the way of nature and the way of grace. We may choose either way.  After reading the sermon manuscript (Click on the podcasts found in the left column) about these two ways with which way do you identify?

Remember the table that you grew up with as a child with your parents.  What memories come to your mind?  Was family time at the table a good experience?  Did you ever say grace?  Was there conflict at the table?
 

The Tree of Life became the Tree of the Cross of Jesus.  What happened that made his cross the Tree of Life for humanity?
 

Peter says that believing husbands and wives are co-heirs of the gracious gift of life.  If this is true, how ought that awareness shape and form our attitudes toward others in our family, or in the church?
 

When you walk through the open door into eternity, who do you want to see or to have restored to your life?

Prayer

God of the Sparrow
Tune: Carl F. Schalk, 1983
Lyrics: Jaroslav J. Vajda, 1983
  

God of the sparrow, God of the whale, God of the swirling stars
How does the creature say Awe, How does the creature say Praise
  

God of the earthquake, God of the storm, God of the trumpet blast
How does the creature cry, Woe, How does the creature cry Save
  

God of the rainbow, God of the cross, God of the empty grave
How does the creature say Grace, How does the creature say Thanks
  

God of the hungry, God of the sick, God of the prodigal
How does the creature say Care, How does the creature say Life
  

God of the neighbor, God of the foe, God of the pruning hook
How does the creature say Love, How does the creature say Peace
  

God of the ages, God of the hand, God of the loving heart
How do your children say Joy, How do your children say Home

Living As Free People: As Slaves

Read 1 Peter 2:18-25 (NRSV)
18 Slaves, accept the authority of your masters with all deference, not only those who are kind and gentle but also those who are harsh. 19For it is to your credit if, being aware of God, you endure pain while suffering unjustly. 20If you endure when you are beaten for doing wrong, where is the credit in that? But if you endure when you do right and suffer for it, you have God’s approval. 21For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in his steps.
22 ‘He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.’
23When he was abused, he did not return abuse; when he suffered, he did not threaten; but he entrusted himself to the one who judges justly. 24He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that, free from sins, we might live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. 25For you were going astray like sheep, but now you have returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.

Questions for Personal Reflection from Kathy Sizer
Think about your “power relationships”. In situations where you are “one up” in power, how do you use your power fairly? In what ways do you use your power unjustly?

In situations where you are “one down” in power, what unfair treatment do you experience? How do you respond? How would you change your response if you were “honoring all people”?

When have you done right, and suffered because of it?
(i.e you were given no credit for doing right or you were criticized for it or your situation grew worse?)

What is the hardest thing about being a servant for you?

What difference does it make to you that Jesus “came as a servant”?

Prayer 
How thankful we are that you did not cling to your rights, that you emptied yourself to become a slave for us….and to take upon yourself all the injustice and brokenness and pain of our world.

We ask that you would teach us to trace your path with our lives…..to have wisdom to discern when to work against injustice….when to bear it as you did….and to be those who honor all people.

Read 1 Peter 2:9-17 (NRSV)

9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.
10 Once you were not a people,
but now you are God’s people;
once you had not received mercy,
but now you have received mercy.
Live as Servants of God

11 Beloved, I urge you as aliens and exiles to abstain from the desires of the flesh that wage war against the soul. 12Conduct yourselves honourably among the Gentiles, so that, though they malign you as evildoers, they may see your honourable deeds and glorify God when he comes to judge.

13 For the Lord’s sake accept the authority of every human institution, whether of the emperor as supreme, 14or of governors, as sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to praise those who do right. 15For it is God’s will that by doing right you should silence the ignorance of the foolish. 16As servants of God, live as free people, yet do not use your freedom as a pretext for evil. 17Honour everyone. Love the family of believers. Fear God. Honour the emperor.

Questions for Personal Reflection from Jerry Tankersley
1. How long has it been since you read the American Declaration of Independence? Have you ever thought about the difference between Thomas Jeffersons words and the words of the Apostle Paul in Galatians 5? "For freedom Christ has set us free." "You have been called to freedom, only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh." Or 1 Peter 2:16, "As servants of God, live as free people, only do not use your freedom as a pretext for evil."

2. Could it be that Christian freedom may only be realized by being a servant of Christ? "You will know the truth and the truth will set you free." John 8:32

3. Peter suggested that we live as free people by honoring everyone. Why should we honor others? Why does human nature honor others? What about honoring dishonorable people? How does spiritual freedom lead to honoring others?

4. Peter exhorts us to love our brothers and sisters as an expression of our spiritual freedom. What is the connection between honor and love? Why might it be more difficult to love than to honor? Jesus gave to us a new commandment to love one another as he has loved us. In what sense was his life, death, and resurrection the great model for freedom and love?

5. When you read the command to fear God how does it make you feel? How is the fear of the Lord the beginning of wisdom? How does the awareness that we live, move, and have our being in God affect what we do, think, feel, and do?

6. Honor the emperor. Wow! We suspect all authority. American history is filled with hate speech and literature. Technology has complicated this. Think about the loss of civility in our culture. We are grateful for the freedoms we enjoy, the freedom of speech, religion, and of living without fear of the governing authorities. We have the right to protest, to vote, to shape and form our governmental authority. Do these political, economic, and religious freedoms mean a Christian may support a revolution, abuse others, violate laws, or place others in danger? How about paying taxes and being honest in our dealings with others? What about speaking the truth? How about passing on derogatory emails that insult those with whom we disagree?

7.  Read Romans 13 and ask how this passage is an expression of Christian liberty. What does a Christian do when political authority becomes demonic, totalitarian, and oppressive of the rights of its citizens?
 

America the Beautiful
Words by Katharine Lee Bates,
Melody by Samuel Ward

O beautiful for spacious skies,
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!
America! America!
God shed his grace on thee
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!

O beautiful for pilgrim feet
Whose stern impassioned stress
A thoroughfare of freedom beat
Across the wilderness!
America! America!
God mend thine every flaw,
Confirm thy soul in self-control,
Thy liberty in law!

O beautiful for heroes proved
In liberating strife.
Who more than self their country loved
And mercy more than life!
America! America!
May God thy gold refine
Till all success be nobleness
And every gain divine!

O beautiful for patriot dream

That sees beyond the years
Thine alabaster cities gleam
Undimmed by human tears!
America! America!
God shed his grace on thee
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!

O beautiful for halcyon skies,
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the enameled plain!
America! America!
God shed his grace on thee
Till souls wax fair as earth and air
And music-hearted sea!

O beautiful for pilgrims feet,
Whose stem impassioned stress
A thoroughfare for freedom beat
Across the wilderness!
America! America!
God shed his grace on thee
Till paths be wrought through
wilds of thought
By pilgrim foot and knee!

O beautiful for glory-tale
Of liberating strife
When once and twice,
for man's avail
Men lavished precious life!
America! America!
God shed his grace on thee
Till selfish gain no longer stain
The banner of the free!

O beautiful for patriot dream
That sees beyond the years
Thine alabaster cities gleam
Undimmed by human tears!
America! America!
God shed his grace on thee
Till nobler men keep once again
Thy whiter jubilee!