Access to God 

Sunday, September 27, 2009
Rev. Janice Palm

Mark 9:33-42; James 5:13-20

Some say perhaps that I am a dreamer, but I believe that most folks who are a part of the church are here or in another church because they love the church, they love the faith community and what it’s about, and the possibilities of what it provides and they even dream that the community might live out the gospel of love in greater ways than is already happening. I say again, I believe most folks who are a part of the church love the church.

Well, okay I admit it, I didn’t always think that way. When I first started out in ministry, I dreaded Pastor Parish Relations Committee meetings. I dreaded them because I had learned in some places they were opportunities to bash the pastor. So mostly I felt relieved when each PPRC meeting was over. And then that fateful day came, the PPRC wanted to talk over some issues; I was sweating. Was this the bashing opportunity I had dreaded? Mind you everything worked out when we all were on board thinking and believing that we were a working team trying to do the best for the congregation’s life in ministry. I learned working with that Pastor Parish Relations team that it wasn’t about me; it wasn’t just about the congregation either. It was about the life of the congregation and its being in ministry – and how best could we together make the most of who and whose we are?

I relearned a truth that I had thought to be true until I started in ministry – that most folks are a part of the church because they love the church – so how best can we go forward together as pastors and a congregation –touching people’s lives and being the most we can be in Christ’s love? That’s the question always before a Pastor or Staff Parish Relations Committee.

Perhaps you also have held onto a truth but that truth dissolved as time passed or you grew up. Perhaps also you have been able to reclaim what you held as true because of someone or some event.

I suppose even though they didn’t have a formal Pastor Parish Relations Committee, perhaps John was acting in that capacity when he goes up to his pastor, Jesus. John wanted to make sure the flock of followers was well cared for and that there weren’t copycats out there who might confuse the community the twelve of them were gathering in Jesus name. He says to Jesus in our reading, “You know there are some folks out there, not one of us 12, mind you, who are going around curing people. They are young ones being cured; now isn’t that awful. Oh, they say they’re doing it in your name, Jesus, but it’s not one us, it’s not one of us elders. So we did what we knew to be right and we tried to stop the fellow.”

John was clearly trying to establish the boundaries of this new faith community. He knew that their Jesus held the truth and the twelve of them held onto that truth very carefully.

But Jesus does a turnaround on him. He tells John, “Don’t stop this one who is healing in my name. Whoever is not against us is for us.”

Jesus knew the others were acting in his name. This term is used a lot in Mark: in Jesus name. In some places it can mean, on behalf of. The twelve, and others, were acting in Jesus’ name, on behalf of Jesus.

But there is another level of meaning, perhaps: in the name of Jesus. For the community of faith, it bears a heavier, weightier connection; acting in Jesus name has the power and identity of Christ. And so the question for John was, could one outside the community act in the power and identity of Christ.

Jesus comes back at John: the past ways may not exist forever, what you assume may no longer be; today, tomorrow bring new possibilities. Whoever is not against us is for us. Jesus puts a new low bar of acceptance to his community of faith and it’s about as low as you can. He welcomes those who are outside, who have the power of faith in Jesus name. Jesus is opening up the kindom of God to all, to all who believe in him. For Jesus the truth wasn’t dependent on being an elder in an in-group of 12 but rather being transformed and working through Him.

I wonder what that would look like if we lived that out today. I wonder what accepting others who act and believe in Jesus’ name would look like … would live like. The work of ecumenism has gone on a long time – ever since Luther put up his complaints; ever since the Roman and Eastern Churches split. Mainline Protestant denominations have worked at coming together to accept each other’s baptisms, and Holy Communion. We’ve worked hard so that a church of one denomination might have a pastor of another denomination. It’s been only very recently, in the last month or so, that the Evangelical Lutherans and United Methodists have recognized the other’s sacraments. We still are working to be in more accord with the Roman Catholic Church. In some ways we are accepting of one another’s belief in Jesus. But underneath, I wonder if we do agree with what Jesus was saying,: Whoever is not against us is for us.

In many ways, I believe we think we are in competition with one another. When in actuality, we are working toward the same end – that people know God, the love of Jesus, and the work of the Holy. We are working toward the same end. And yet I hear, snatches of – ‘if we did that, we might take from….’ What goes through some of our minds is, “If we did that, we might loose to ….” We think in terms of “There are only so many of us and which church is going to get that one?” It makes me wonder if we realize whose we are, who we are as a community of faith. Too often, we think from a vantage point of scarcity. There is not a limit to those who can hear and be touched by the love of Christ through this community of faith. The only limiting factor is ourselves.

But I wonder if we might look at this from a slightly different angle. What if we weren’t working alone? What if churches came together in ministries? If the power and identity of Jesus comes out in community, what would happen if that community expanded to include many faith communities?

Yesterday, as I rested in my office between two gatherings of our extended faith community, as I rested between the funeral services for Olive Trussell and Linda Blattner, I listened to the chatter of high schoolers and the hosing and washing of cars. Only here, could we welcome mourners on one side of the building and wash cars for mission on the other side. These high schoolers – once again about 60 strong all together – are energized to be in mission. They work on local mission projects in order to qualify for the spring week long mission trip – which by the way, whose timing has been successfully worked out with the high school administration – so they have permission if necessary to miss school two days. The ‘they’ is RPMs. The ‘they’ is an ecumenical group of youth who are larger and perhaps more effective and powerful if they were three individual denominationally divided youth groups. They even draw youth who have no church affiliation. The ‘they’ is RPM: Reformed, Presbyterian and Methodist. They have figured it out: how they can work together in Jesus name, in the power of Jesus identity. They work living out whoever is not against us is for us. YES! To the youth.

Last week I attended what I believe was a recruitment gathering for ARISE: The tri-cities area ecumenical group of clergy. ARISE has done some good social justice work in the past. It is looking to reorganize out of a slump. The luncheon had a great speaker in the Rev. Dr. Mott from the Baptist Church. He came up from the eastern part of Pennsylvania to speak/preach on How Together We Can Have the Power to Change Things. Together we might make the powers that be pay attention to those who are normally forgotten. Together we might be stronger than we are individually. He spoke using a text from Numbers where Moses invites a foreigner along with him on his journey to the Holy Land. Moses says together even though we are of different cultures, we might learn from each other.

I wonder if there are other areas where we as community churches right here might work together in ministry. Could we do a mission project together? Could we go on a mission trip together? Would you be willing? I saw, experienced a little of that ecumenical work with Habitat for Humanity this summer. But I must admit it felt a bit lackluster; I sensed the work of just a few individuals from different churches. But I didn’t sense individual churches, a ground swell of involvement.

And yet I still wonder if our Bethlehem, Delmar community churches might really get together on a mission focus? Would you have the inclination? Would you open up the boundary of Methodism and work with others in Christ’s name … even if they don’t believe or practice as a Methodist? Would you be willing to be an active part of such a movement in Jesus name?

Yesterday one woman came up to me after one of the funerals and said, you know if I didn’t belong to such and such a church in town already, I’d come here. My response to her was that it was good knowing that Christ is alive and worshipped not just here but in other houses of worship. As I thought more about what she had said to me, she was saying the exact same thing to me. Christ is alive here in this place; Christ is alive in other houses of worship as well.