Sermon Title: It Takes Courage to Stand Up

Sermon Text: Luke 14:16-19

Sermon Date: October 14, 2007

Then Jesus, spiritually invigorated, returned to south Georgia, and the news of him spread through the whole area. He was speaking in their churches, and the people respected him. But he went to Valdosta, where he had grown up, and as he was in the habit of doing, he went to church on Sunday. They invited him to preach, so he got up to read the scripture and found the place in the book of Isaiah where it says:

            "The Lord's spirit is on me;
            He has ordained me to break the good news to the poor people.
            He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the oppressed,
            And sight for the blind,
            To help those who have been grievously insulted to find dignity;
            To proclaim the Lord's new era." (Cotton Patch Gospel)

Last week we began a study of Luke 4 by reading about Jesus’ time in the wilderness. The time when the Devil tempted him with food, power and immortality. He was able to resist because he had immersed himself in his relationship with God which is what God wants for us today. To immerse ourselves in a deeper relationship with the Creator.

Today’s passage has taken us to the next phase. Jesus was traveling the countryside like an evangelist. Perhaps a young Billy Graham or Chris, the person in the story created and read by Jake Atkinson. He traveled with a message. He wanted them to know that God was real. Then he came home and went to the synagogue.

The synagogue was the community meeting place. It means literally “house of assembly.” Three major things happened there: Study, prayer and worship. The week would be filled with these kinds of events. However on the Sabbath (from Friday at sundown to Saturday at sundown), it was worship. Little time for conversation or discussion. They listened and worshiped.

As a faithful Jewish leader, Jesus went on the Sabbath. A visiting rabbi was often invited to offer an interpretation of the Bible lesson during the service and on this day, Jesus, the visiting rabbi, offered an interpretation on Isaiah 58 and 61.

As the weeks go we will unfold the story of what he said and how people reacted to his words but today let’s just focus on one huge element of the story. Jesus came forward to preach.

Now the sermon title is a bit of a misnomer. The rabbi wouldn’t have stood up. He would have sat down and taught. But still, in his soul…he was standing up to proclaim a message the people didn’t want to hear. At first they don’t get it. He speaks with authority and they are impressed but then the story continues and they don’t like what he has to say. He asks them to readjust their thinking, to broaden their horizons, to listen to the scriptures and not just to hear them. Really listen. And then do something.

It takes courage to stand up for something you believe in. Clarence Jordan was another one of those guys

In 1942 two Baptist couples, Clarence and his wife Florence, along with Martin and Mabel England, founded an intentional Christian farm community, Koinonia, as a “demonstration plot for the Kingdom of God.” They intended to set up a community of believers modeled after the first Christian communities described in the Book of Acts. (all of this information is from the Bible study, “The Agenda” (www.ethicsdaily.com)

Jordan had a Ph.D. in New Testament Greek but it was his undergraduate degree in agriculture that equipped him to use his knowledge of scientific farming “to seek to conserve the soil, God’s holy earth.” His extensive theological education and his experience as an ordained Baptist minister motivated him to help the poor.

He and England, another ordained minister and professor, envisioned an interracial community where blacks and whites lived and worked together as partners. Theirs was a radical discipleship aimed at confronting racism, militarism and materialism and committed to:

· Treating everyone with dignity and justice;

· Choosing love over violence;

· Sharing all possessions and living simply;

· Being stewards of the land and its natural resources.

Other families soon joined the Jordans and Englands on their rural Sumter County, Georgia farm. Visitors often came to “serve an apprenticeship in developing community life on the teachings and principles of Jesus.” In addition to working together on the farm, the families and visitors ate together and studied the Bible together.

As you can imagine, not everyone was pleased with the community and its purpose. It was, after all, a huge deviation from the prevailing racism and segregation of the rural South. Some people tried to destroy the farm and scare off its residents, but Jordan, England the other members of the Koinonia community remained committed to nonviolence and racial equality. Firebombs, bullets, KKK rallies, death threats, property damage, excommunication of churches and economic boycotts of the farm’s products brought the community much suffering, but not defeat. In fact, Jordan said that if they died, they wouldn’t be the first Christians to die for the cause of Christ.

By the late 1960s, the threats subsided and only the Jordans and one other family remained on the farm as residents. Jordan had long been concerned about the poor quality of housing available to the farm’s neighbors, who were primarily black sharecroppers and tenant farmers. So when Millard Fuller approached him with an idea, he jumped at it. That idea is known to us today as Habitat for Humanity. Koinonia Farms changed their name to Koinonia Partners and launched several other innovative partnerships in addition to the housing program.

Both ministries exist today. Jordan died in 1969 but his spirit lives on. . In fact, Millard Fuller, Habitat for Humanity founder– “More than anyone I have ever known, Clarence Jordan thought like Jesus.”

It takes courage to stand up for something you believe in.

What do you believe in so much that you are willing to risk your life or even friendships for it?

The split that caused the Northern Baptists and the Southern Baptists was over the issue of slavery. This church stood up many years ago against slavery.

Perhaps you marched against segregation. Or the death penalty. Or war. Or abortion. Or abortion rights. Or stem cell research.

Perhaps you did so at the risk of alienating family or friends. Or loss of income. But few of us here today have really risked our lives in doing so. Not like Jordan and his family did. Not like Martin Luther King did. Not like Gandhi did.

You see, following Jesus isn’t for wimps. Just ask Chris.

Chris’ Story (Luke 4)

Graduating from CTS following his toughest semester left Chris looking forward to a few days’ relaxation at Turkey Run.  He was gloating in his accomplishments… Top of his class, a national preaching award, and accolades from just about every professor and every department in the seminary, job offers from all over the country.

Now, sitting on the banks of Sugar Creek after 12 hours of sleep he reflected on his upcoming decision to accept the call from First Church in Oxford.  He couldn’t just say no.  It was his home church.  Pastor Johnny had been his hero.  Johnny had moved on years ago but the church kept going somehow.  Ninety members, few of them under 50 (and probably set in their ways) average church attendance of 40, building needs a new roof, tendency of the men to let their wives fill most of the church’s leadership positions, no funds for even a part-time secretary, etc., etc.

“All of this to put up with and for $15,000 a year!  I could make that working at McDonalds!  I could go to Purdue and with my transfer credits and get a degree in engineering or business management in just a couple of years.  I’d make 4 times as much as I would at First Church and I wouldn’t have to walk on egg shells to keep from offending the Chair of the Deacons!  But what a name I could make for myself if this little church did a turn-around.  I could headline some conferences and write books on evangelism and church growth.  I’m probably a good enough speaker that I could be the keynoter at some of those popular Spiritual Power seminars.  Hmmm …”

He left Turkey Run on Saturday and headed home to Oxford.  This was supposed to be a slow journey and he took a circuitous route.  On the way he stayed with friends in Crawfordsville, Clark’s Hill, Romney, Lafayette, Battle Ground, Delphi and Fowler.  Everywhere he stopped he would preach in worship or teach the mid-week Bible study.  He found that whenever he arrived at his next destination, word had already spread about him. In each town there was an air of excitement and expectancy.  And no one was disappointed.

Finally the time had come for him to return home and ultimately make his decision.  Word about his recent triumphs had spread to Oxford, too.  And so he went to First Church on Sunday, just as he had so many times before leaving for college.

The crowd was larger than it had been in years.  But as he looked around he noticed the familiar faces … Tom’s dad (he looked older) …  and Susan’s mom – “too bad about her dad,” he thought to himself.  As the service began he was flooded with memories, “There’s something special about this place … these people … opening this old hymnal … #461 has always meant a lot to me … and this moment of silence… “

And he prayed during that silence: “Thank you, God, for this church, for its influence on my life, and especially for Pastor Johnny who helped me through some tough “growing up” times.  And thank you, God, for the opportunity to serve as pastor of First Church.  Amen.”

Chris sat in the first pew of his home church, Boonville First. During a silent time as worship began he’d offered a prayer of thanksgiving for this place … these people … and for the opportunity to serve here. He thought about the town. Other than voting down that publicly funded home for women and children living with AIDS a few years ago there were no real controversies here. The town had hardly changed in the eight years he’d been gone. He remembered the faces of the folks he’d grown up with. Some of them had been his teachers. Others had changed his diapers. That thought embarrassed him a little.

The first hymn was one of his favorites. In his mind, it was a classic. Singing about the eternal and loving creator of the universe gave him some comfort. And today, for some reason that he hadn’t totally figured out yet, he needed that comfort.

You see, Chris was sorely tried while he was at Turkey Run. He went there to unwind. He even turned off his cell phone. It was supposed to be peaceful. Oh, there was no doubt he’d intended to bask a little in his accomplishments. But what he really wanted was time to rest and ease into the next phase of his life. A gentle blending of the comfortable rhythms and routines he’d established with the new demands of professional ministry – however that might look.

The last thing he expected was all the doubts and questions. Wasn’t he beyond all that? Hadn’t he satisfied himself (and God) with his understanding of his calling? He thought he was over it when he left Turkey Run, but now, sitting in the front pew on the Sunday of his celebrated return he was bothered again. No, it was worse than being bothered. Each one of those doubts came rushing back on him like a Midwest thunderstorm chasing a freight train.

The second hymn was done and Chris noticed he hadn’t been singing. He thought about his sermon. He was an award-winning preacher in seminary but now he wasn’t even sure what to say. His mind wandered as the Moderator led the pastoral prayer.

He didn’t hear choral anthem either… “They changed my diapers,” he thought, “ … What can I possibly say to them?” He tried to refocus himself. “What would be good news to these people I’ve known for so long?” He tried to look around at them. It was hard to do that from the front row. “Now I know why everyone sits in back,” he thought, “can’t see what everyone is doing sitting up here.” That thought just got him frustrated and he felt a bead of sweat forming just above his eye. “Last time I sit up here with my back to everyone …”

And as the last voices of the choir faded, he got it. He knew why he was in Boonville. He knew what the good news was and he knew what he had to say. “Strange,” he thought: as nervous and unsettled as he was a few minutes ago, now, confident in what he would say, he was even more so. He rose, and on his way to the pulpit he offered a brief prayer of thanks to God and for a couple of professors who, he suddenly realized, had prepared him for this very moment.

The congregation had no idea what Chris had been going through right under their noses in the seldom used front pew. But they watched intently as he thumbed through his Bible to just the right place …”

Next week you will hear the sermon Chris preached to that congregation but in the meantime, think this week about what sermon Jesus would preach to us, here at First Baptist Church of Lafayette, Indiana. What would Jesus say to you? And me? After all, Jesus didn’t die on the cross so that we would be reluctant to share the good news.