Discipleshifts #2 From Living Like Everybody Else to Being Like Jesus.

Discipleshifts #2 From Living Like Everybody Else to Being Like Jesus.

RUMC July 28, 2013

 

A farmer gave a whistle and his dog herded the cattle into the corral, then latched the gate with her paw. "Wow, that's some dog," said his visitor. What's her name?" The forgetful farmer thought a minute, and then asked, "What do you call that red flower that smells good and has thorns on the stem?"

"A rose?" "That's it!" The farmer turned to his wife.

"Hey Rose, what do we call this dog?"

 

Forgetfulness is always funnier when it happens to someone else.

 

One day after Albert Einstein had moved to his home at the Institute For Advanced Study In Princeton, New Jersey, the telephone rang in the dean's office and the voice at the other end inquired: "may I speak with Dr. Einstein, please?" Advised that he was not in, the voice continued: "perhaps then you will tell me where Dr. Einstein lives." The secretary replied that she could not do this, since Dr. Einstein wished to have his privacy respected. The voice on the telephone dropped to a whisper: "please don't tell anyone, but I am Dr. Einstein. I am on my way home, and have forgotten where my house is"

 

Forgetfulness happens to the best of us… believe me, I know.

 

I want to look at this story about Mary and Martha through the lens of forgetfulness.

Mary, Martha and their brother Lazarus were friends of Jesus. This is not the first time he had been to their home. I picture their house 4 miles southeast of Jerusalem as kind of a retreat center for Jesus. It seems as though he sometimes went there to get away, and be refreshed, and renewed.

Jesus showed up for lunch one day, perhaps unannounced. So, there was quite a flurry of activity preparing hospitality for the teacher and his friends. Now, if you had a sibling, or have worked on a team or committee you know that there is always someone who feels that they have the responsibility to monitor whether everyone else is pulling their weight. Apparently, Martha was that person in their home.

Martha was busy being a good hostess, but when she looked around Mary was nowhere to be found. In fact, Mary had made a place for herself with the men instead of seeing to her womanly duties in the kitchen. (You have to remember that men and women had pretty rigidly distinct roles in that society.)

Martha works herself in to a perfect huff and marches into the living room chastising Jesus for letting Mary slough off.

How does Jesus respond? He says, "Martha, take a chill pill." Well not exactly. Actually, he says, "Martha, Martha, Martha… you are so stirred up (That is what the Greek word means. From that word we get the word "turbidity" which is the measurement of how cloudy the water is) Martha, Martha, you are stirred up and worried about many things. You are so distracted."

From Jesus perspective, that is the problem. Jesus is not worried about Mary. He is worried that Martha is upset. He is worried that Martha is worried. He is worried that Martha is distracted.

Perhaps he was worried that she was distracted from making his lunch, but I don't think so. Think about it. Martha has the opportunity to serve Jesus, yet all she can do is complain about Mary. She has the opportunity to serve the master and she is having a squabble with her sister. Martha is about to break bread with the son of God and all she can think about is petty sibling rivalry. I think Jesus is concerned because Martha has forgotten what is important. The one thing that is most important in the entire world is having a relationship with Jesus. Sometimes that means sitting at his feet. Sometimes that means serving him. Whatever we do- we do it for Jesus and because of Jesus. That is what Martha has forgotten.

 

This story is not about working or not working. It is not about worshipping or not worshipping. It is not about worship being more important than work, or work more important than worship. This is a passage about spiritual amnesia.

Just like the Pharisees had spiritual amnesia and were distracted from real prayer.

Just like the priests had spiritual amnesia and were distracted from real worship.

Martha had spiritual amnesia and was distracted from serving Jesus.

 

People still have spiritual amnesia today.

We can point to all kinds of folks with spiritual amnesia.

They have dropped out of church.

They love Jesus, but not the church.

They baptize their children but don't bring them up in the church.

They get confirmed and disappear.

We can point to all kinds of people with spiritual amnesia. They have forgotten who they are and to whom they belong.

 

We have to be careful of pointing, though.

As a pastor, this is a risk I live with every day. It is awfully tempting because it would be easy.

 It would be easy to manage the church like a Wal-Mart. But if I am just a manager, I have spiritual amnesia. I have forgotten who I am and who called me.

It would be easy as a pastor to slip into doing something in order to get a pat on the back, or in order to make you happy, or to make me look better. But if my main goal as a pastor is to make myself feel better or look good, I have spiritual amnesia. I have forgotten who I am and who called me.

It would be easy for a pastor to let the church just keep doing the same thing over and over. It would be easy to let the church slip into the "But we've always done it that way" thinking just to keep the doors open. But if my main goal as a pastor is to keep the doors open, I have spiritual amnesia. I have forgotten who I am and who called me.

Pastors can have spiritual amnesia.

 

But so can churches. Churches get spiritual amnesia too. Do you believe that? Sure they can. In fact, there is probably someone here right now who owns a dusty Bible. They have a Bible, but never brush off the dust, let alone open the cover. They have spiritual amnesia. They have forgotten who they are and that the Bible is God's word.

There is probably someone here today who prays, but only for their own needs. Prayer is all about them. They have spiritual amnesia. They have forgotten who they are and why they pray.

There are probably people here who show up to church, but they think they do not need to do anything else to grow spiritually. No one is going to hold them accountable. They have spiritual amnesia. They have forgotten who they are and what it means to be the body of Christ.

There is probably at least one person here who comes to church for the entertainment value, to hear the latest gossip, or to see their friends. They have spiritual amnesia. They have forgotten who they are and whom we worship.

There is probably someone here today who makes a special point to love others because it makes them feel good. Alternatively, they serve so they can feel like they are better than someone else. They have spiritual amnesia. They have forgotten who they are and why Jesus washed the disciples' feet.

 

As Christians, we all have to guard against spiritual amnesia every day. Last week I challenged you to get off your big fat excuses and love like nobody else. I have a vision that we can be a church where everyone is serving, and loving, and teaching, and giving.

I have a concern, however, that we never ever forget who we are, to whom we belong, and why we do those things. It would be easy for us to be so distracted by the bleeding people alongside the road, so distracted by the bloated tummies of starving children in the Sudan, so distracted by doing the critical work of visiting the elderly and teaching the young that, like Martha, we get distracted. It would be easy for us to forget who we are- the body of Christ; and to whom we belong; God.

 

So alongside my vision that we can be a church that loves like no one else,

I have to set the vision that we can be a church that is sitting at his feet.

·         I have a vision that we can be a church that will spend more time at Jesus feet studying scripture. You say that you want to know the Bible better, but are you involved in an ongoing Bible study or class? Every single one of us should be in a study or a class sometime during the week. As a church, every single one of us needs to spend more time at Jesus' feet studying scripture.

·         I have a vision that we can be a church that will spend more time at Jesus feet praying both individually and together. How much time do you spend in deep prayer? Not just saying a blessing… in deep prayer. At this time, we don't have any prayer groups. Why? Why don't we have times when people come together to share in the greatest power available to us: prayer. As a church, every single one of us needs to spend more time at Jesus' feet praying.

·         I have a vision that we can be a church that will spend more time at Jesus feet supporting, encouraging, and holding each other accountable in small discipling groups. We have several small groups, but no discipling groups. Our groups encourage, they support, but what they lack is intentionally covenanting to grow together and then holding one another accountable. As a church, every single one of us needs to spend more time at Jesus' feet in intentional discipleship groups.

·         I have a vision that we can be a church that will spend more time at Jesus feet in weekly worship. Notice I said weekly worship. For too many of us, worship has become an option whenever it is convenient. As a church, we need to raise the bar of expectation from worship whenever it is convenient to weekly worship. As a church, every single one of us needs to spend more time at Jesus' feet in weekly worship.

·         I have a vision that we can be a church that will spend more time at Jesus feet serving side by side with him both in our own community and on life changing mission trips for all ages. You have seen how mission trips change the lives of young people. Perhaps you have noticed that the adults come back changed too. Whether we are serving in our own community, on nearby mission trips or half way around the world. As a church, every single one of us needs to spend more time at Jesus' feet serving together.

 

Are you seeing the vision? I know it is a little scary. Nevertheless, we can do it.

However, my friends, the insidious creep of spiritual amnesia is making its way into our church. Call it secularization, call it taking the easy way, call it being distracted.

We do a lot of things as a church. Look at the bulletin at all the things going on. If we forget who we are and to whom we belong, however, none of that will make a bit of difference.

If we forget whose we are, we will no longer be who we are.

BUT… we will not forget will we?

We will not forget that we are a people of one book, the bible. And we will not forget to do something about it.

We will not forget that we are a people on our knees. And we will not forget to do something about it.

We will not forget that we are a people growing toward Christ. And we will not forget to do something about it.

We will not forget that we are a people here to worship God and God alone. And we will not forget to do something about it.

We will not forget that we are a people here to love and give in the name of the one who loved us so much that he gave all he had even his life that we might be saved. And we will not forget to do something about it.

 

We will not forget. Will we?

AMEN