Sermons at St. John’s Presbyterian Church

Different Strokes for Different Folks

Transcribed from the sermon preached January 14, 2007

The Reverend Max Lynn, Pastor

St. John’s Presbyterian Church

2727 College Avenue, Berkeley, CA 94705

 Telephone 510-845-6830    Fax 510-845-6837

office@stjohns.presbychurch.net    http://www.stjohns.presbychurch.net

Scripture Readings: Isaiah 62:1-5, I Corinthians 12:1-11, John 2:1-11

Guide us oh God by your word and spirit that in your light we may see light, in your truth find freedom, and in your will discover peace through Jesus Christ. Amen.
One of the great steps I took on my way to becoming an adult was accepting grace for my limitations. Not that I have finalized this acceptance, but there was a clear point in my life when I realized that waiting to commit to relationship until I was certain I could do everything perfectly meant that I would be isolated for a very long time. My desire for relationship finally outgrew my fear of failure.
 
It is heard to accept our limitations. I find that most people are their own worst critics. We know that God sees our limitations better than we do, but God is willing to use our strengths despite our limitations. An odd benefit to this self-acceptance, to recognizing that God loves me and wants to use me despite my imperfections is that I became less critical of others and began to be more gracious toward them.
 
I felt a call to the ministry early on in my life, but I was extremely critical of the Church, Church people, and the worship style I grew up in. Not only that, but I was critical of those churches and worship styles I didn't grow up in. Still I felt inadequate to start creating an alternative. You could say I was stuck. Then, as I came to accept the gifts I did have rather than focus on the limitations and gifts I didn't have, I became better able to look beyond the limitations and imperfections of others and see their beauty and strengths. No one can do everything; everybody can do something.
 
Paul is talking to certain groups in the Corinthian church who are in conflict over who has the more important gifts, who is more filled with the Spirit. Certain gifts, people thought, were a better demonstration of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Of course, then, people were making claims to authority, over and above Paul and others, based on these gifts, on their grasp of knowledge or gnosis, or if they could speak in tongues. And, as we might imagine, this created factions with people aligning in various camps. Some were claiming that if you had the Spirit of Christ it would manifest itself in particular gifts and not in others. They may have also been claiming that different spirits resulted in different gifts. But Paul says that it doesn't matter what gifts you have, if you confess Jesus is Lord then it is of the Spirit, and there is only one Spirit. Unity is in faith and love, but not in ways.
 
Between denominations today there are divisions over which gifts are important and which are not. Many Pentecostals still emphasize speaking in tongues, or a radical transformation and testimony of being "born again." For some denominations it seems being a man is a gift of the Spirit that makes one closer to God.
 
Within our congregation here at St. John's, there is not a lot of conflict over who is the greatest or most spiritual. However, it is possible to detect traces of feelings of inadequacy, feelings of difference, and certain bias.
 
Presbyterian and so close to the University, with multiple members who are Cal students or alumni, it is possible to detect a sense that the Spirit of God is in short supply down at Stanford. Peggy begs to differ. Some seem quite certain that God is a Bears fan, and that the BCS will suffer punishment in the last days for leaving Cal out of the Rose Bowl last year. More seriously, education wields its weight around here. Knowledge and education are clearly beneficial and important to life, and we are certain God blesses us with our mind and the accumulation of knowledge, science, and law. It is not uncommon for those of us with less education or less recognized education to feel a bit intimidated. It is important we recognize this sentiment as a social and not a divine projection.
 
Often people joining the congregation express regret or a sense of inadequacy for a lack of money, as if money was a spiritual gift given to us by God as a prize for our Spiritual worthiness. Not that God is not pleased with us when we are frugal and work hard, but the spiritual measure of our tithe is based upon our dedication and faithfulness, not on the size of the gift. Everything in life, including money, needs to be used with God's will in mind, and we should show our gratitude to God for what we have, no matter how much we have, by giving some back, but a billion dollars won't buy us anything in Heaven.
 
Others in the congregation have more time to give than others. Again, it is not infrequent, especially for single parents and up and coming young people to apologize for not having more time to give to the church. Certainly we want people to be engaged in giving of their time in some way, and there is not a small congregation in existence who doesn't feel that there are too few people with more work to do than can be accomplished. But truly, every minute and every penny counts.
 
As in most congregations, there is a little musical parochialism to be found here. Again, this surely has something to do with class and education. It can be related to the generational issue as well. If it encourages us to worship God, then it is of the Spirit. I can go with Karla's criteria: whatever kind of music we do, it should be done well, as well as we can manage. God's measurement is sincerity and joy.
 
And speaking of the generational thing: It is funny to me that young people may feel like outsiders because they haven't been around as long. They perceive the old timers as comfortable and dedicated in their faith. They know this church and God stuff. This is of course another projection. On the other hand, the older folks often feel as if something is not for them because of an emphasis on attracting and serving the younger generations. If we say something is for families, it is almost certain that older folks won't come. Got God, by the way, is not just for the parents of the kids who come. The family snow trip is not just for parents and their young kids. The women's bible study is not exclusively for older ladies, and being an elder is not just for the elderly. It was powerful to have young and old alike in the grieving group led by Sally. We will have another one coming up here in the spring.
 
Everyone knows that kids are Church of tomorrow, and that families with young children need all the help and encouragement they can get. But I really think we need to adjust our thinking from the idea that the husband, wife and kids kind of family is the exclusive Christian life style, as if this type of social arrangement is a gift of the Spirit and others are not. Certainly God wants marriages to last and having more than one caregiver is easier and better for parents and kids alike. But Paul and Jesus were not married, and as far as we can tell, they didn't feel less of themselves or their ability to be at one with the Spirit because they were not married. We can assume that since Jesus was human, there were times when he wished he had an intimate sexual relationship, and maybe even kids, but that longing didn't get in the way of him being connected, loving and fulfilled in other ways.
 
In our society, for the most part people are isolated into subcultures of people just like them: age, income, career field, hobby, etc. One of the truly great gifts of the Church is its diversity; it is healthy to have relationships with children who are not our own, old folks who are not our grandparents, and people of different economic, education and racial ethnic backgrounds. The homecare giver does the garden, the retired doctor folds the bulletin. The Guatemalan does visits to shut-ins, the French woman takes home communion, the Nigerian reads the scripture, and the Chinese organizes our concert series. The woman in the wheelchair runs the worship committee, the lesbian attends presbytery, the Latina is the administrator, the African American is the accountant. The professional and the child play the trumpet together, the student plays the organ and the scientist plans the centennial celebration. The community organizer plays Santa Claus and the lawyer teaches. The teacher knows how to run a meeting, the clerk knows how to ask questions, the forester takes the minutes. The back row people keep the visitors company. The front row makes sure we remember mother's day and the importance of taking ourselves lightly. The new people keep us fresh and honest, the old people teach us grace and courage. The retired couple gives the young couple a break from the kids and a night out on the town. The couple without kids takes a young girl horse back riding, giving the adopting parents a much-needed break. The surfer sets up tables with the opera singer, the family of girls arranges the bulletin board. The language teacher protests nuclear weapons, the homemaker protests the war, the law student takes clothes to the women's shelter, the copier and the old Navy guy help a widow move. And on and on and on it goes. All united and driven by the same Spirit, we gather together around this same table to eat with this Jesus of Nazareth who showed us the amazing power of God's grace and love for all people.
 
And we cry and grieve loss together, we go through times of doubt and someone has faith for us, and then on another day we return the favor. Some days we don't have much to give; we feel like empty vessels. But, like Mary, someone else believes that God will work wonders with us today. Some days we may feel like a small, hundred year old congregation whose party has just about run out of wine. The Gospel tells us that Jesus is in the house, and with those empty jars and some water from the old tradition, the new will come. The good stuff is just beginning. Perhaps there have been times of exile, a sense that wrong decisions and weakened faith led us away from God. Yet God does not abandon us. Restoration shines forth salvation like a burning torch.  We shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of God. God delights in you, God is delighted with you, as a bridegroom rejoices over the bride. Joy and celebration are in order.