Adopted
Into the Family of Faith
Part One: The Three Loves
Sermon preached by Rev. Brad Beeman
July 16, 2006
Scripture:
Psalm 24; Ephesians 1:3-14
“Church
Growth….” I wish I had the time this morning to ask you
what comes to mind when I say those two words. As many of you are
aware, church growth has become a multi-million dollar industry. Hundreds
of books have been written about it. Seminars have been developed
costing hundreds of dollars each. Churches are spending thousands
trying to figure out how to do it. It is amazing to me that so many
of us believe that the answer lays somewhere out there when in fact
I believe it lays firmly right here – in us. I believe that
if you asked Rick Warren at Saddleback Church or Bill Hybels at Willow
Creek they would agree. The growth they’ve seen wasn’t
found in some seminar or someone else’s book. It was found here
– in this book and the relationships that were born out of it.
As I have said very openly to my colleagues – I wonder, in the
midst of the church growth boon, if we might have lost our focus,
and for the next three weeks I’d like to explore and examine
this a little more fully as we concentrate on this letter to the Ephesians.
This
morning I’d like to set the groundwork for the next couple of
weeks and begin in the ancient city of Ephesus, move then to New York
City and then back here - to present-day Santa Monica. It’s
a long journey by miles and by time, but the connection to this book
will allow us to move through it pretty quickly. At the same time,
I would like to ask that you bring your Bibles over these next few
weeks as we try and unwrap the timeless truths that can be found for
us in this letter / sermon we now call Ephesians. The theme is church
health. And we begin in Ephesus somewhere between 57 and 80 CE.
Ephesus
was an ancient coastal city not unlike Santa Monica. It was beautiful
and planned around the sea and surrounding hills. It was filled with
people from all over the world. It was a tourist town, a part of the
trade route and a place people came to find themselves. It held one
of the seven ancient wonders of the world – the Temple to Diana,
which was able to seat somewhere between 24,000 and 50,000 people.
It was the temple that was the significant draw and the temple that
kept folks busy, including Paul as he sought to bring a different
message of love to this diverse population. Out of that, a church
was born. By 65 CE – less than thirty years after the death
and resurrection of Jesus – Ephesus had one of the stronger
of the new Christian churches. Paul founded the church on his second
missionary journey and then a bit later spent three years there teaching
the church how to be the church. Timothy had been appointed there
as pastor. Even John – the author of Revelations – had
moved through there before his ultimate exile to the island of Patmos
– an island just off the coast. This was an important church,
a vital church to Christianity. It was also a growing church, growing
because of a couple of important elements.
First,
it grew because it believed that God had a dynamic plan for them,
and they saw themselves as implementers of that plan. God’s
plan involved the ability to practice a three-fold love; love of God
first. Secondly, they practiced an intentional, protected and shared
love with each other – those within the church. Third, they
shared a deep sense of love with those outside of the church –
the poor they fed and housed, and those who sought answers by worshipping
Diana were given a different alternative, a different example of what
love could be. Ephesus appeared to be a church based in love –
directed love, received love, forgiving love, action-oriented love,
even accepting (continued...)
"The
Three Loves" by Rev. Brad Beeman, July 16, 2006
love. But somewhere along the way something happened
to them. Somewhere between twenty-five and thirty years later we see
a different picture of this church looking back. Look with me at Revelation
and John’s response to his beloved church.
In
the book of Revelation it is the church in Ephesus that is identified
first by John – first of the seven. Remember that Revelation was
written in a time of unbelievable persecution. It is a letter that offers
both hope and motivation to the seven churches remaining in this region.
John writes of his admiration for the Ephesians’ toil and their
patient endurance. He offers them support and encouragement. Then he
challenged them at their very core. John writes, “I have this
against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember
then from what you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at
first. Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying
to the church.” Friends, something had happened to the love.
To
try and find out what had changed, we have to go back to the letter
and what this author says about loving God. You heard eleven verses
this morning; in the original Greek it was one long and powerful sentence
that talked about being blessed by God with every spiritual blessing,
being adopted by God, about God’s freely bestowed grace, about
being freed and forgiven, of being offered wisdom and insight by God
and about being accepted, encouraged, motivated to be better children
of God. This was a reminder that began with a blessing and moved into
a description of the importance of a personal and real relationship
with Jesus, with God through God’s Holy Spirit. These are powerful
words about a potentially very powerful relationship. But let’s
go deeper. We’ll look over the next couple of weeks at some of
these. This author moves beyond the relationship with God and firmly
into relationships with those in the church. He makes statements like:
“Be angry, but don’t let the sun go down on your anger.”
Or, “I beg you to live a life worthy of calling to which you have
been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing
with one another in love making every effort to maintain the unity of
the Spirit in the bond of peace.” Why these? Because the church
in Ephesus had been born of and built on loving relationships and now
they were beginning to struggle.
Had
the stresses and trials moved some out of loving relationships, out
of the focus on being saints who were faithful to Jesus Christ and away
from the faithful calling they had received to love God and each other?
Had they lost some of the love? The concentration on but one of those
loves was simply not enough. What can and often does readily diminish
a church and even a denomination is a singular focus on self-protection
played in an attitude of self-preservation. Had Ephesus fallen into
that trap? If so, it would certainly motivate the author of Revelations
to offer them the challenge. It was certainly not the last time a struggle
like this required refocusing and different actions.
There
was another element that Paul helped the church redefine – particularly
in relation to the love of neighbor. For that we look back to the Book
of Acts and Paul’s response to those in need in the community.
Paul healed – any who would come – Paul healed. As he did,
the author simply states that Paul helped redefine for them what the
kingdom of God was all about. That third type of shared loved was essential
to balance in the church. When that element is missing, the church becomes
much less powerful and moves into a time of struggle. That takes us
to the year 1853, New York City and Methodism in that time.
This
was a time of immense immigration to the United States. New York City
became the destination for so many who were looking for a new life.
What they found, however, were dangerous and harsh conditions. These
were violent times accurately portrayed in the movie The Gangs of New
York. But where was the church? Simply stated, it was not responding.
It seemed to have lost its way. But, as often happens, God lifts up
a few who begin the change. Two individuals stand out in this time.
The first was Rev. Dr. Charles Loring Brace. Brace was a
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"The
Three Loves" by Rev. Brad Beeman, July 16, 2006
Methodist
Episcopal theologian-teacher who by 1853 had gained some notoriety.
He could have easily focused on teaching. He could have focused on
the split in Methodism that occurred not even ten years prior over
slavery. He could have contributed to the debate on the role of laity
or even on the role of Bishops that had been tearing Methodism apart.
He, however, couldn’t do any of that. Like Paul in Ephesus,
Brace saw a need for hope, for love and for ministry that simply couldn’t
be ignored. The church needed to reestablish its focus on the mandates
of Jesus, and for Brace it centered on children. Every morning on
his way to work, he would walk by, step over, be jostled by or approached
by some of the thousands of homeless children trying to survive on
the streets of New York. Brace became overwhelmed and needed to respond.
He was not alone.
Rev.
Herman Clark was the other, also a Methodist pastor, who after searching
for a decade finally found God’s purpose for him by the establishment
of a pretty unusual church with an even more unusual congregation.
The two joined forces and parts of the church refocused itself on
love. Out of his passion for the children of New York, Rev. Charles
Loring Brace established the New York Children’s Aid Society.
It lives on even today. Out of that was born Rev. Herman Clark’s
unusual congregation - The Orphan Train. Brace and Clark helped the
orphan children of New York by creating the opportunity of relationships
with families beyond the inherent dangers of living on the streets
of New York. In a time with no e-mail, no phones, few far-reaching
newspapers and little access to communication – these two found
a way. Fliers were created and sent to every train stop between New
York City and Chicago. The train then moved through the many small
towns in the East and on into the Midwest. Families, individuals,
grandparents, and those who could not have children responded in overwhelming
numbers to the Orphan Train and adopted these children on the spot.
Brace became the administrator and Rev. Herman Clark became the pastor.
The children became his congregation. He would begin with a trainload
of children in New York City and introduce them along the way to those
who would take them in, adopt them and provide loving homes. Each
train, each car became a congregation, a vessel of hope…a sanctuary
for thousands whose lives were changed and strengthened as a result.
Out of this movement grew other organizations, other ministries that
began to turn the church back to what it was intended to be. People
like Herman Clark and Charles Loring Brace began a movement that re-ignited
a spiritual renaissance in the church. Yes, there were challenges
and things didn’t always work out the way they hoped. But lives
were changed and a future provided for many who would not otherwise
have one. I keep wondering if we might be in a similar time? From
Ephesus to New York and now to Santa Monica.
My
question over these past couple of weeks as I’ve prepared this
sermon is: How are we doing on the three loves? Where are our strengths
and challenges as we seek to implement God’s plan in this community?
Have we embraced it with the passion we saw in Paul in Ephesus or
of Brace and Clark in New York? We live in a community that sees all
manner of folks come to find their dream, hoping to be adopted by
an industry that has a tendency toward abuse. More often than I like
to think, we become the place that helps some redefine their lives,
overcome the despair, pick up the pieces and start a new life. Like
Ephesus, we are a gathering place for so many, rich and poor. Like
those along the path of the Orphan Train, we become a potentially
family of hope for many. As a church, we’ve done a lot of good
things. If you saw this last Sentinel, Patricia listed many of those
in a wonderfully affirming way. In the midst of all of that I want
to make sure we don’t lose our focus – our focus on love,
of God – of each other – and of neighbor. Let’s
examine some of this for a minute.
I
believe we’ve done a good job of examining our love of God as
we explore worship renewal, and potential changes in our Sunday morning
schedule. Might each of us, however, be better about committing ourselves
individually to the realizations found in these first fourteen verses
of Ephesians. Do you really believe that these statements are true?
Do you see yourselves as blessings of God? Do you believe that you
are adopted into a family led by a God of love? Do you
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"The
Three Loves" by Rev. Brad Beeman, July 16, 2006
realize
the expectations God has for us? Do you really believe that you’ve
been forgiven and accepted? Do you pray believing that God answers?
Do you believe that Christ seeks a relationship with you and can make
you whole? These are just a few of the areas in need of examination
as we look at church health. It is this kind of examination that will
move us forward, strengthen us as a church, and create the energy
required to stay focused on our love of God.
I
believe we’re doing a good job of doing things for others –
our neighbors. From our work across the street at Upward Bound House
to the first, and now second, Gulf Coast work team. Our work with
Alternative Christmas, the concert almost a year ago, the Annual Conference
award won because of our mission support, our support of Relay for
Life, Big Sunday and other community areas is of the highest quality.
These are great qualities and great accomplishments. But do we believe
that we have even more to offer. The church at Ephesus was dedicated
to bringing hope for those with little hope. That became an enormous
priority for them. As great as our work may be beyond our borders
I continue to wonder if there might be more we can do as a church
right here in Santa Monica. Be thinking about that over these next
few weeks and let’s keep talking as we seek to continue to strengthen
our love of neighbor.
Finally,
how are we in our love of each other – of those who call this
their church home? This may be the one that began to tear the church
at Ephesus apart. It often is in churches. It certainly took its toll
on churches in New York in the mid-19th century. It’s a continual
challenge and even more so in a church this size. Here are some questions
to ponder. On Sunday morning do you go out of your way to find and
greet unfamiliar faces? Are you a voice of hospitality that immediately
offers your hand to others? Even more importantly, when you feel a
conflict with someone in the church, how do you deal with it? Do you
bring others in who you know will support you and your opinion –
even if it may be at the expense of others, or do you do the scriptural
thing by trying to work things out with that person? Conflict, inappropriately
dealt with, can destroy a church. Negativity is contagious. So is
joy and reconciliation. I remind us again that church health is always
about relationships and I wonder if we may have some work to do in
this area. It was so in Ephesus, in New York and is so here.
Church
health will come, as will growth, when we realize, like the Ephesians,
that our lives are made whole by a relationship with Jesus Christ.
They deepen when we have healthy relationships with each other here
and beyond the walls. For this church to move to the next level, we
must be, at every level, be a church based in the three loves. We,
like the Orphan Train, become a vessel of love and sanctuary of hope.
My hope is that everyone and anyone who walks through these doors,
any who meet us on the streets of Santa Monica, any who hear of us
in the Gulf Coast, in the Iware District of Nigeria, in the Conference
Office, or anywhere else are able to say with great admiration –
see how they love God, see how they love each other, and see how they
love their neighbor. If we can focus on these three areas, then God
our parent can say and feel that we have become the children He hopes
us to be. We do that, and we will not be able to provide enough worship
services, enough programs, enough opportunities to those who will
flock here to be a part of it. It has happened before in this church.
It can happen again in this church. Now we move forward and fan into
flame again the love we have. It’s not about church growth.
It’s about church health. Your assignment for this week is two-fold.
First, read this letter to the Ephesians. Spend some time in it, study
and be prepared for next week. Second, pay attention to what you are
doing to love God, love each other here, and where you are loving
your neighbor. Write it down, pray about it and make it a priority
if you have not already done so. Then watch us grow in depth, in health
and in relationships of love. Amen?
Amen!
©Brad
Beeman , 2006. Permission is given for brief quotation with attribution.
All other rights reserved.
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