Back to Church

Back to Church?

Now What? - Part 2

Sunday, August 20, 2023
Matthew 4:18-22, 10:1-8a

 As you go, make this announcement: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’  Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those with skin diseases, and throw out demons. You received without having to pay. Therefore, give without demanding payment.

Matthew 10:7-8

Listen to this Week’s Sermon here:

(note: My wife Rev. McKenzie Sefa & I are presently preaching the same series at our respective congregations. Due to some recording difficulty at my church, I have included her version of this week’s message below. Enjoy!)

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There is no question that the global pandemic of 2020 and 2021 had a significant impact on the way we do “church.”  In some ways, the ongoing move toward building online communities for worship, study and prayer has made church more accessible for many who were previously unable to participate due to health issues, job schedules, etc.  On the other hand, there is something about gathering together in person that can’t quite be replicated, no matter how good our online offerings may be.  I have heard from laity and clergy alike over these past few years that it’s time to stop making our services and bible studies available online because we need to “get people back in church.”

There are a few problems with this theory, well-intentioned as it may be.

1. Eliminating online offerings cuts off people including shut-ins who are not otherwise able to participate.

2. There will always be online opportunities for people to choose from.  People are less likely to return to “our church” than they are to simply find another one to watch online.

3. Though we may like to blame the pandemic for our lower attendance, the truth is that church attendance in the U.S. has been in rapid decline for over two decades.  The pandemic may have sped up the process a bit, but going back to the way things were before 2020 will not address the real problems.

As of 2019, Gallup polls report that only 46% of Americans belong to a house of worship (of any religion).  This is the first time since the 1930’s that the number has dropped under 50%.  What’s more, only 30 to 35% actually attend religious services at least once or twice per month, so “belonging” to a religious institution does not always translate to participation and attendance.  Furthermore, those who identify as “nones” or having no religious affiliation has risen to between 20% and 30% depending on the study. 

This may sound like bad news for the church, but I would argue that it may actually be good news in at least two ways.

1. It is a reality check that we can’t blame any one thing for our decline and it invites us to look at ourselves more closely to evaluate why so many have felt disconnected from our congregations for so long.

2. More importantly, it gives us an opportunity to rethink our metrics.  What if physical attendance in a religious service for one hour a week is not the marker of faith we thought it was?  What if God is at work in people’s lives outside our budlings the other 167 hours of the week as well, and dare we say, even among those who will never darken our doors.

What if getting people in church was never the point? 

Jesus doesn’t gather people to worship him and pray to him.  He gathers them to teach them, to equip them, and to send them out to heal the sick, to cast out demons and even to raise the dead. 

May we go out from our church buildings and do the same.

PPGSW - Prayers, Presence, Gifts, Service & Witness

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PPGSW - The Meaning of Membership
(Prayers, Presence, Gifts, Service & Witness)
Church - Part 3
Sunday, May 29, 2022
Acts 2:42-47

The believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to the community, to their shared meals, and to their prayers. A sense of awe came over everyone. God performed many wonders and signs through the apostles. All the believers were united and shared everything. They would sell pieces of property and possessions and distribute the proceeds to everyone who needed them. Every day, they met together in the temple and ate in their homes. They shared food with gladness and simplicity. They praised God and demonstrated God’s goodness to everyone. The Lord added daily to the community those who were being saved.

Acts 2:42-47 (CEB)

Listen to this week’s sermon here:

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These past few weeks we have looked at the vows our Confirmation Students took in our service last week, but there is one further question asked in our service of Baptism and Membership: 

As members of this congregation, will you faithfully participate in its ministries by your prayers, presence, gifts, service and witness?

Essentially we are asked, “Will you live out your commitment to Christ through your participation in the local church as modeled by the Apostles in Acts 2?”  Each of these means by which we connect ourselves with the church are visibly present in the church of Acts.

They were clearly present, devoting themselves to DAILY teaching and fellowship.  They prayed for one another and the world.  They gave generously and sacrificially and served each other so that no one among them would be in need.  And the scripture tells us that they gained the favor of all the people and God added to their number those who were being saved.  In other words, their acts of service, generosity and prayer along with their commitment to regularly being present with one another did not go unnoticed in the community and their witness led many more to confess Christ as Lord.

• Prayers.

  Throughout the gospels, Jesus models and instructs his disciples about how to pray.  The New Testament offers many examples and instruction on prayer (see Matthew 6:5-13 and James 5:13-18).  By praying with and for our congregation we draw closer to our fellow believers and to Christ.

• Presence. 

  Being present at church is important, and “presence” can mean more than showing up regularly at the building.  Presence might mean visiting with someone who is unable to be part of worship.  Sometimes our presence is required to restore relationships.  When we feel pulled in many directions, we may need to be intentional about being fully “present” with the community of faith.  Psalm 139 shows the enduring presence, knowledge, and depth of care that God has for us.

• Gifts.

  1 Corinthians 12 reminds us that each of us have been given unique gifts from God, meant to be used for the good of the community of faith.  Each of us possesses talents, abilities, and personality traits that are important for the Body of Christ!  In community, we are meant to discover our gifts, affirm those gifts in each other, and find the best use for our gifts, as we offer them to God.

• Service.

  We put our gifts to work by living a life of Christian service.  We serve our congregation and together, we serve beyond our congregation.  Our service points to the example of Christ and bears testimony to God’s work in our lives.  Each of us, regardless of age or gift, can serve in some way.

• Witness.

  Our witness brings together all these expressions of faith.  When we use our prayers, presence, and gifts in service of God to others, we act as witnesses to God’s redeeming love through Christ and as examples of how to live a life of Christian discipleship. (Note: The 2008 General Conference added witness to the membership vows which is why it is not included in our hymnals)

As Christ’s living body on earth, we do not have the same leeway we might have in other clubs or organizations to grow slack in our participation.  A hand cannot say it is too tired to help someone when the head tells it to and a foot cannot say it is too busy to walk when the body needs to go out in the community to serve.  As members of the body, we do what the head instructs us to do, with no questions asked.  There are days when our body part may be sore or tired and not feel like moving, but we must continue to function regardless.  If not the whole body will become paralyzed.   

In order to function as Christ’s body, we must fully and actively participate in the life of the church and in His calling upon our lives beyond the church.

How are you participating in the Body of Christ through your prayers, presence, gifts, service and witness?

We Believe

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We Believe
Church - Part 2
Sunday, May 22, 2022
Acts 2:14-41, Matthew 16:13-20

Now when Jesus came to the area of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Human One is?”  They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.”

He said, “And what about you? Who do you say that I am?”  Simon Peter said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Matthew 16:13-16 (CEB)

Listen to this week’s sermon here:

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“Who do you say that I am?” Jesus asks us.

Or as we say in our third vow of baptism and membership:

Do you confess Jesus Christ as your Savior, put your whole trust in his grace, and promise to serve him as your Lord, in union with the church which Christ has opened to people of all ages, nations and races?

In other words:

Do you affirm the declaration that has been made about the person of Jesus and testified through the Holy Scriptures?

Do you believe Peter’s foolish words; that this man is indeed the Son of God, that he was crucified, dead and buried, yet on the third day God raised him from the dead?

Do you believe that by his sacrifice for us, you can experience the forgiveness of sins and the promise of eternal life?

If your very life was on the line, as were Peter’s and the other apostles’, would you declare this truth, that Jesus is Lord, over all of the powers and rulers of this world, and that he is the Christ, sent to save us from the power of sin and reconcile us with God our Creator, not as servants, but as children of the most High?

Do you trust wholly in his grace and promise to serve him with full and joyful obedience?

Today we will renew our baptism together.  We will reaffirm our belief in Jesus, which is revealed to us by the Father through the Holy Spirit.

May the declaration of faith spoken by Peter under the power of the Holy Spirit cut us to the heart once again, as it did the crowds that first Pentecost.  Let us pray for the faith to overcome our doubts in this foolish message, for as Paul writes:

The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are being destroyed.  But it is the power of God for those of us who are being saved…

- from 1 Corinthians 1:18-25

 Lord, we believe.  Help us in our unbelief!

Form Without Power

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Form Without Power
Church - Part 1
Sunday, May 15, 2022
Acts 1:2-5; Matthew 12:43-46

“When an unclean spirit leaves a person, it wanders through dry places looking for a place to rest. But it doesn’t find any. Then it says, ‘I’ll go back to the house I left.’ When it arrives, it finds the place vacant, cleaned up, and decorated. Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself. They go in and make their home there. That person is worse off at the end than at the beginning. This is the way it will be also for this evil generation.”

Matthew 12:43-45

Listen to this week’s sermon here:

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Do you accept the freedom and power God gives you to resist evil, injustice, and oppression in whatever forms they present themselves?

In this vow we declare our belief that God not only saves us from the consequences of sin, but from the power of sin itself.  Like the person in the scripture above, we are often quick to cast out the unclean things from among us, but we do not fully allow God’s Spirit to take up residence in its place.  We do not accept the freedom and power God gives us to overcome sin and darkness.

John Wesley once wrote,

I am not afraid that the people called Methodists should ever cease to exist either in Europe or America.  But I am afraid lest they should only exist as a dead sect, having the form of religion without the power.  And this undoubtedly will be the case unless they hold fast to both the doctrine, spirit, and discipline with which they first set out.

It’s easy to develop a like-minded club or group of people who like each other and want to live good lives and keep themselves separated from the world around them.  It’s easy to have worship services and read the bible together in Sunday School and share fellowship meals.  It’s even easy to do a few community service projects… We are very good at “playing church”. 

But without the fire of the Holy Spirit and the power He gives us to live out the discipline and commitment of our Baptismal Covenant, we are not The Church.

If we have been baptized by the Holy Spirit and by fire, God has consumed all evil and wickedness within us.  If we allow the His fire to burn within us, no evil can return and we will experience freedom from sin, guilt, and shame. 

Will we vow again, to live the Holy Life to which we were called, out of darkness into the marvelous light of Jesus, the Christ?  Let us pray:

Lord, I come, and I confess,

there are things in me, that are not of you

and I lay down my mess. 

I replace it with your love,

I replace it with your peace. 

I surrender all that is holding me back

from all you have for me.

Cheryl Vought, “Replace It”