In's and Out's

A District Superintendant in the Detroit area at the time, preached using this illustration saying that church ought to be like Cheers, as the theme song said "where everyone knows your name and their always glad you came". In many ways I still agree with this, it makes sense on some level. It’s great to be recognized and it’s great to be appreciated for who you are. I would contend that for a lot of years, that was the church. And people just came. But something happened starting in the late 60’s and has continued since where, that became less and less the case. This prompted the need for this DS to use the illustration. But I would also contend that in reality, that which was our greatest asset also became our greatest liability. We worked so hard at trying to get people to come and know their name, we may have sacrificed quite unintentionally the first the reason why we all come. When we gather in church and in worship it’s not just to know our names, but it is so that we can be empowered and strengthed to go back out into the world and to proclaim the name we all know and share that name with others. We enter into this place of worship, so that we can go back out so that others will know the name of Jesus that is alive and well and offering healing and hope to the world.


Essentially, if all Jesus was going to do was heal and cast out demons, then he could have just stayed in Nazareth. There was plenty to do there for the time being just as there was in Capernaum. But his purpose was to proclaim the good news of the Kingdom of God that he was bringing about. Yes that included healing and casting out demons, but that was simply part of taking the message out so that the children of God, could be restored and have healing and have hope because the good news he was bringing out. Jesus knew that eventually, there would be no more people to heal, no more demons to cast out, then what? Jesus knew he had to take the message out and demonstrate his power beyond just a few places, for it truly to take hold in peoples hearts and lives.

I think the church today is still sitting and waiting sometimes for people to come to them with all their problems and all their inner demons, and there are a few that do come in. But nothing that can occupy us all the time. We too need to be like Jesus, who moves on and takes the message out to the people, that there is good news. When we become complacent that is when problems start. And when we start focusing on ourselves and our problems and worry only about if so and so knows our name, then it is right for the rest of society to question our relevance.

Sisters and brothers, believe it or not, this is also good news, because while we have a crises to resolve in our spirit as a church, we know that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. There is no deficit so great, no Spirit so desolate, that cannot be made whole in Christ Jesus. Today that forgiveness and renewal is made new again as we remember that grace shown to all of us in the giving of the bread and the sharing of the cup. As we enter into the time of confession we know that we can rise and go out forgiven and made new so that together as children of God, we can renew ourselves and share the good news that Christ has brought to us, and we can offer it to others know that we have received it ourselves.