"Creating a Place of Welcome" - Sermon, July 2, 2017
Community UMC,
Quincy
July 2, 2017
“Creating a Place
of Welcome”
Pastor Andrew
Davis
Romans 15: 1-13
Matthew 10: 40-42
Up until 12-13 years ago, one of the highlights for me each summer was my
family’s annual Fourth of July BBQ party in our backyard. Now while many kids would eagerly anticipate
Christmas morning, I absolutely loved the Fourth of July, since it was warm
out, we could go swimming, fire up the grill, and watch the fireworks, both the
safe and sane kind and the big fireworks from Cal Expo in the distance. When we started hosting the party in the late
80’s/early 90’s, it started with mostly family, then evolved into friends of
our family, our church family, and many others.
But like items in the grocery store that have a shelf life, the party
began running its course and like seasons of life, people passed on or moved
away, and the amount of work that went into hosting and preparing for the party
would take its toll on us. Nevertheless,
reflecting on those years when we had our Fourth of July Party, it was more
about about creating a place of welcome in our home for those near and dear to
us to enjoy, to celebrate our country, and enjoy some good food, fellowship, and camaraderie with one another.
As
my family created a place of welcome each Fourth of July, we hear the message
about creating a place of welcome from Paul and Jesus in both texts that we
just listened to. In our text from
Romans, Paul is instructing his people to welcome one another; particularly the
Gentiles who had ordinarily been shunned and excluded by the greater community
of faith in Paul’s time. But we also
hear a powerful message of welcome from Jesus, saying that whoever welcomes the
ones who have been sent by him, welcome Jesus as well, as these are also Jesus’s final instructions to the Twelve as he sends
them out into the mission field.
At the heart of our texts is a
message about the importance hospitality and the need to create places of
welcome, which is especially relevant
today here in the church and can be rewarding in itself as it gives us
opportunities to create new relationships as 21st Century disciples. As Paul says in his letter to the Romans in chapter 15,
So reach out and welcome one
another to God’s glory. Jesus did it; now you do it! Jesus,
staying true to God’s purposes, reached out in a special way to the Jewish
insiders so that the old ancestral promises would come true for them. As a
result, the non-Jewish outsiders have been able to experience mercy and to show
appreciation to God. Just think of all the Scriptures that will come true in
what we do! (Rom. 15: 7-9, MSG).
Paul is
basically saying that the Gospel needs to be accessible for EVERYONE throughout
ALL the world, as it is a source
of hope, of mercy, and a source of light which people can experience whenever
we create a place of welcome, both then and still today. Hence why it is important to welcome everyone
to take part in God’s glory, and to keep in mind that whenever we welcome
people into our church on Sunday morning, at the community supper on Wednesday
evening, or anytime we welcome people into town whether they're attending the
music festival or Joshuafest, or those who are passing through from the Pacific
Crest Trail, we are welcoming Jesus Christ too!! We never know who we may see the face of
Christ in, as the face of Christ can be seen in people we would never expect to
see. We also see Jesus focus a lot on
the vulnerable within society in this morning's Gospel lesson and all
throughout the Gospels. Yet in particular, he emphasizes the poor, the
outcast/outsider, or the children when he says “And if you give even a cup of
cold water to one of the least of my followers, you will surely be rewarded” (Matthew
10: 42, NLT). Kind of hearkens back to everyone
he names ealrier on on The Sermon on the Mount.
Essentially, it’s all about creating a place of welcome for EVERYONE,
regardless of where they are in life or whatever situations in life are going
on. It’s about practicing hospitality at
its best, just like my family did when we hosted our Fourth of July parties
each year and something we need to keep striving for here in the church.
Plus now
that our wheelchair lift is operational as of this past week thanks to the
diligent work by the Trustees and Council, it’s one of the ways that we are
practicing radical hospitality and creating a place of welcome, as our
sanctuary is now more accessible without having to navigate the front steps or
go the long way around to access the ramp. And, maybe I’m dreaming some here,
but I hope to see the rest of our building become fully accessible someday
too!! Having the lift helps us to
welcome those who have mobility issues by making it a lot easier to come and
participate in worship, but as we face the realtity of an aging congregation,
it is part of considering our future too.
As another means of radical hospitality, we have also begun making
large-print bulletins to make it a little easier to read, as text can be small
otherwise. These are a only couple small
ways of how we are creating a place of welcome, and there are always more ways
how we can create such a place, as it’s a continuous process and do feel free to share with
me your ideas too how we can take creating a space of welcome to the next level. And let's be radical in our hospitality too,
although not too aggressive or pushy either. Like Goldilox and the three bears,
we want it to be just right, not too hot, but not too cold. ---
In his book, Five Practices
of Fruitful Congregations, Bishop Robert Schnase writes that
Christian hospitality refers to
the active desire to invite, welcome, receive, and care for those who are
strangers so that they find a spiritual home and discover for themselves the
unending richness of life in Christ. It
describes a genuine love for others who are not yet a part of the faith
community, an outward focus, a reaching out to those not yet known, a love that
motivates church members to openness and adaptability, a willingness to change
behaviors in order to accommodate the needs and receive the talents of
newcomers. Beyond intention, hospitality
practices the gracious love of Christ, respects the dignity of others, and
expresses God’s invitation to others, not our own. Hospitality is a mark of Christian discipleship,
a quality of Christian community, a concrete expression of commitment to grow
in Christ-likeness by seeing ourselves as part of the community of faith, “not
to be served but to serve” (Matthew 20: 28).
By practicing hospitality, we become part of God’s invitation to new
life, showing people that God in Christ values them and loves them.[i]
--- As I reflect back to year ago
when I was just moving in, I got to experience this sign of hospitality from
you, as you warmly welcomed me to Quincy as your new pastor, helping me settle
in, preparing my house for me to move into, and hosting neighborhood gatherings
so I could get to know you more.
Usually, I am nervous as heck when in a new setting and can be shy and
reserved, yet your hospitality, showing God’s love in Christ in each other, and
creating a place of welcome for me left a big impression, as there are some
churches who may view a brand-new pastor right out of seminary as if they were
fresh meat in front of a lion’s den.
Thankfully, not here!! Even when
I visited Glide Memorial in San Francisco in May, I received more hugs from
complete strangers, and while I admit I was personally a little uncomfortable
with that being an introvert who also likes my personal space; yet it was clear
that EVERYONE, even pets are welcome at Glide. However, that's one means of
radical hospitality which works in their context. At the same time, hospitality can be a
challenge at that requires us to step out of our comfort zones and sometimes
might even test our desire to show that Christ loves everyone, and in reality,
we sometimes don't always want to extend a welcome to everyone, let's just be
real. Sadly, I have even heard some
pastor's say there isn't room at the table for everyone except for the
righteous, which I dont think Jesus or Paul are saying in our two texts this
morning. Yet at times, we are faced with
situations, maybe even people that put us on edge or make us nervous, testing
our Christ-likeness and testing us in creating a space of welcome.
I remember while growing up, our
church was located a couple blocks from some group homes and would occasionally
have some of the residents show up to church, particularly on potluck Sunday or
during coffee hour (in retrospect, we did heed Jesus’s command when he told the
disciples grumbling about the crowds to ‘give them something to eat!’). It oftentimes made people at the church and
myself uncomfortable because many of the people at the group homes struggled
with past addictions or were in the midst of mental illness beyond their
control, and given the high stigma towards addiction and mental illness at that
time, I would often get caught up in saying some some not-so-Christ-like things
about our brothers and sisters even when all they may have been searching for
was a sense of community.
Perhaps out of fear and
inexperience with life in general, I often felt the people from these homes
weren’t welcome in our church because they weren’t like the rest of us and
because I also allowed my own self-righteous, holier-than-thou attitude to
prevent myself from possibly seeing the face of Christ. However, looking back, I was very wrong in my
attitude, and I’m still repenting for some of my own behavior at that time, and
even for some blips I've made in my first year here as well. But, I’m also not going to lie that I still
struggle at times, and even struggle when I read stories about or when I've
encountered people who come to take advantage of the church, but God’s still
working on me and I'm working towards training to be better equipped in my
ministry with ALL people. Because I
failed to welcome everyone at that time, I failed to welcome Christ, but I also
failed to do my part in helping to create a place of welcome and in turn,
failed at being a disciple. Yet, it’s a
struggle at times because it’s easier for us to hang out and associate with
people who look like us, think like us, or even people who vote alike, even
though we are called to love God and love our neighbor, as when we welcome
others, we also welcome Christ.
When we come through our doors
here, we are likely seeking different things as to why we are here in the first
place. Maybe some of us are Fourth or
fifth generation who have always gone to church. Some of us are here because we are genuinely
seeking to know God better and grow in our faith and love. Some of us are seeking a sense of a loving,
grace-filled Christian community of disciples, and in turn, want to be a
disciple too as we take our personal discipleship to the next level. And, some of us may be here because our lives
are in crisis and have nowhere else to turn to while trying to seek hope and
guidance, as we do have several individuals within our community who have the
gift of walking alongside those who struggle.
No matter what reason we are here today, there is an amazing richness of
life in Christ that Bishop Schnase mentions that is available through the
community of faith, regardless of where we’re are at in life, which is why we
need to keep striving to create a place of welcome just like Jesus and Paul
called their communities to do two millennia ago.
As we begin our second year
together and this new week, I encourage all of us us to keep thinking
of how we can take it to the next level in making this church a place of
welcome, a place where we can experience new life in Christ, but a place where
ALL (and I mean ALL) of God’s children can come to know God’s love, grow in Christ, and become one of Christ’s
ambassadors by finding great joy that life in Christ and discipleship offers,
even amidst the challenges or struggles that all of us face along the way. Yes, it does take stepping out of our comfort
zones a little bit, as stepping out of our comfort zone is necessary and
healthy since Jesus was always challenging the disciples to do the same and
still challenges us to do the same today, as well as Paul challenging his
people. Regardless of why each of us are
here, let’s welcome one another, let’s create a place of welcome for everyone
because we never know whose face we may see Christ in. Because when we create a place of welcome in
this church and create a place of welcome like my family did each Fourth of
July, we especially welcome Christ into our midst.
In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, let the
church say, AMEN!!
[i]
Robert Schnase, Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations (Nashville:
Abingdon Press, 2007), 11-12.
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