Ghost Stories: great vision and greater power Reinbeck UMC 5/15/16

    Ghost Stories: great vision and greater power

Reinbeck UMC 5/15/16

 We have been talking about some not so spooky Ghost Stories for 5 weeks now. The stories from those 40 days between Jesus’ resurrection and his ascension during which he appeared to in

•           the garden on Easter morning,

•           the on the road to  Emmaus on Easter afternoon,

•           in the upper room Easter evening and the following week,

•           and of course on the beach.

This final appearance is just before his ascension. The disciples went to a mountain in Galilee, Just as Jesus had told them. In my imagination, it might be the same mountain from the Sermon on the Mount. He gave them one last instruction, “Go therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you.”

That is not so hard to understand… but it confuses people.

   A farmer saw a strange formation of clouds one day. The clouds spelled out “GPC.” The farmer thought for a moment and decided they were a sign from God to “Go Preach Christ.” He left her tractor sitting the middle of the field and went to seminary to become a pastor. As a pastor, he was a miserable failure. He couldn’t preach. He didn’t like to visit. He hated hospitals and funerals were torture. It wasn’t long and he was so discouraged he went back to his field and knelt down by his tractor. He prayed, “God you called me to go preach Christ, and I am. But I am miserable and to be honest I am not that good at it. I need a sign of what you want me to do next.” The clouds began to move again, and there were the same letters G  P C.    But this time other clouds formed next to them and spelled out the words. “GO… PLANT … CORN.”

Jesus commands us to “go make disciples.” In Mark’s version, it is “Go into all the world and preach the good news.” That doesn’t mean that everyone is to become a pastor.” Saint Francis of Assisi said, “Preach the gospel, and if necessary use words.” In other words, everything you do can be a proclamation of the Gospel. Anything you say can be a way of making disciples. If you so choose, you can use your life for Jesus.

Jesus is very specific here… every person is expected to be in ministry.

•           No exceptions.

•           No excuses.

•           No free passes.

You may think that every person in ministry was a crazy idea dreamed up by the leadership team. No, it is a crazy idea dreamed up by our savior. And it was important enough to be his last words before he left this earth. I don’t think that is an accident. Jesus was serious, completely serious about every person being in ministry. 

 If you aren’t sure what that means, think back to the week we posted our gifts, skills passions and interests on the cross. Those are very likely your ministries. So get up and use them.

 Jesus says, first, “Go and use your gifts.”

But second he said, don’t go alone. Oh no… don’t you dare go alone. “Remember I am with you even to the end of the age.” That is what Pentecost is about.

•           The power of God coming upon the disciples and us.

•           The power of God empowering the disciples and us.

•           The power of God sending out the disciples and us.

•           And the power of God going with the disciples and us … as we go in ministry.

We talk about Pentecost as the “birthday of the church.” The church is simply the people of God when we GO in power.

•           When we Love with God’s love.

•           When we work for justice at God’s right hand.

•           When we forgive with the compassion of God.

•           When we give with the generosity of God.

•           When we share the gospel filled with the power of God. That’s when we are in ministry.

 Three weeks from right now, I will be in DesMoines at the ordination service at annual conference. Ordination may seem like a strange and mysterious thing to you… but it is not. It is simply a specific baptism renewal in which a person is given authority by the church to be a professional minister.

But here, today the professional ministers are outnumbered what 70 to 2? Who do you think does the bulk of the ministry around here? You do. At least that is Jesus’ great vision... If you were Jesus, would you rather send out two people to go into the entire world, or 72? It’s a no brainer isn’t it?

That is Jesus’ great vision…

•           that we would go…

•           and that we would go with power to be in ministry for him.

Today you will have the opportunity to renew your baptism. But not just to “remember your baptism and be thankful”: but to “remember you are a minister of Jesus Christ.” Every person in ministry… you and you and you and you… and all of us. “Go and remember you are a minister of Jesus Christ.”