January 8
Isaiah 42.1-9, *Acts 10.34-43 “Baby Steps” Baptism of the Lord Pastor Jacqueline Hines
The book of Acts is a little history of the
Church in the very first century. Because Bethel has a church historian in Mike
Osiol and Dorothy Hall [slide # 1 Bethel Historians…] and several others, we have written
documents of names and events of church activity generation after generation. This
is good. Our church history informs and encourages us.
In this tenth chapter of Acts, we read that
Peter, one of Jesus’ disciples, was invited to speak to a group of believers.
Peter began his sermon by saying, “‘I truly understand that God shows no
partiality, 35but in every nation anyone who fears him and does
what is right is acceptable to him.” [slide # 2 global family]
Peter preached this sermon in a city known for
its great aqueducts and its convenient, seaside sewage system. This city was called
Caesarea, [slide # 3 Caesarean
aqueducts] named after Augustus
Caesar, which reflects the power of Roman politics. In fact, the person who
invited Peter to preach was a Roman army sergeant named Cornelius. [slide # 4 Roman soldier] Cornelius was a good man. Scriptures tell us
that he had great respect for God, gave generously to people in need, and
prayed constantly.
Cornelius, no doubt found a lot of support for his faith in the
city of Caesarea for Caesarea was not
only an important political city, but at certain times in its history was an
important religious city, even as much as Jerusalem -70 miles away - was. Priests
and rabbis would no doubt gather there for conferences and religious courts and
fulfilling administrative duties just as our church has its special offices
today in Valley Forge and D. C. and Tennessee.
Caesarea was also a port city. [slide # 5 Caesarea port] A wide variety of travelers came there from
different parts of the world. [slide # 6 hands on globe] There were men, women, boys, and girls who spoke all kinds of
languages and had interesting or sometimes disturbing customs. Christians would
come to Caesarea to share the gospel with them and invite them to participate
in the Christian culture.
I grew up in a small town in Connecticut with
neighbors who were Jewish, who spoke Polish, Italian, Ebonics, and Greek. It
was a blessing to get along as well as we did. We were civil to one another. It
is hard to accept the fact that even civilized communities can deteriorate into
selfish and hate mongering mobs. That is why we must watch as well as pray.
The fact that a preacher like Peter known for
speaking the controversial message of Christ, [slide # 7 finger pointing crowd] was invited by a religious soldier like
Cornelius of the Roman army that crucified Jesus, to come to a city as diverse
as Caesarea, was a God-thing and a God-thing is always a good thing, no matter
how uncomfortable it is. [slide # 8 man with hands near face]
Peter told the crowd regardless of where you
were born or where you live, if you do right, you are acceptable in the eyes of
God. Verse 36 says that Peter was preaching “peace” in a time when there were
so many opportunities for disagreement and cultural conflict. Peter had
courage. [slide # 9 get
comfortable with being…]
As scary as some conversations and
confrontations can be, if we neglect to seek God’s help in facing our fears or
remembering the least, the last, the lost, we put ourselves at risk along with
our families, our communities, and our churches. Neglecting to do all of God’s
work is like neglecting maintenance on our bodies or our homes. We cannot
afford to do only the work that is comfortable and convenient. We have to have
balance.
The church is like a tropical rainforest. Rainforests
become balanced because they have a diversity of life. [slide# 10 rainforest]Tropical rainforests cover less than 2 percent of Earth’s
surface, but they are home to more than 50 percent of the plants and animals on
Earth. They can accommodate so many plants and animals because of there is so
much sunlight. The church is also a place where we can find a whole lot of Son
– Light, [slide # 11
Son Light] too, especially if we ALL let our lights shine. [slide # 12 heart and light]
The tropical rainforest not only provides sunlight
but an overhead canopy. This canopy serves as a shelter and a shield and a
refuge. [slide # 13 plant canopy] Water and food are hidden in this canopy where
animals and plants find them. In the church, God is our refuge, our source of
shelter, water, and food. And when God is all we have, then God is all we need!
[slide # 14 Jesus hugging
man]
At times, all we have may be spiritual and not
physical. In other words, when we find ourselves short of food, or shelter, or
water, we better have God. We better have spiritual food, and we better have
refreshing rivers of life flowing from our lives, we better have established
our covering care like a canopy for our neighbors and our enemies, even as we
continue to work at resolving our differences. [slide # 15 hands together]
God expects great things from us as a church.
We begin each journey of faith with three baby steps. [slide # 16 baby steps] The first baby step we take is prayer, [slide # 17 man kneeling] the second baby step is preparation, [slide # 18 success needs…preparation] the third baby step is prediction. [slide # 19 bright future…]
Journeying without prayer is like taking a 3
day journey without food and water, without adequate outerwear and footwear.
The journey of faith can become uncomfortable without proper protection. [slide # 20 man kneeling
(duplicate of slide#17)]
Cornelius and Peter were men of prayer. Prayer
helped them to give to those in need. Prayer helped them to understand more
clearly what God was asking them to do and where God was asking them to go.
Prayer enabled them to go to the next level in doing great work and enjoying
spiritual treasures of unity and spreading the good news and of working with and
getting along with others in the church.
Prayer helped them to take a second baby step,
preparation. [slide # 21
success needs…preparation (duplicate of slide # 18) ] Being prepared for all kinds of people is
worth a million. I spent a day in a diversity workshop at Washington, D. C.’s
Howard University. The title of the workshop was “One for All, and All for
One.” The focus was on relating with
respect and kindness to people who are different.
We were placed in small groups where different
people were “planted”. I recall a young person with a very wild pair of socks
that I thought I would never ever wear. I saw another person with legs 3 times
larger than normal because of a rare disease.
There was a psychologist who sat outside the
group making evaluative comments, like “You left someone out.” or “You all are
avoiding the issues.” The therapist was like a ghost. We were told not to
respond to him directly, but to simply reflect on his professional insight.
The lesson learned in those hours at Howard
University was that we are prepared for greatness when everyone has a place in
our heart. We are prepared for greatness when we know and understand that everyone
is worthy and everyone should be attended to with timely integrity. We are all
in the boat together.
A third baby step towards God’s greatness is
predicting a positive outcome. [slide # 22 bright future…(duplicate of slide # 19Growing up my pastor would often say, “Hitch your wagon to a
star, and ride.” As we learn to keep our head up, we learn to think positively
and to dream big. God helps us picture and predict reconciliation and
forgiveness and peace that is deeper than what we have or that may not even
exist yet.
It is easy to play negative situations over
and over in our minds until they become a self-fulfilling prophecy from one
generation to another. If we take baby steps to see ourselves, our families,
our community, our church in the light of God’s love, if we dare to dream of a
new version of that crazy old scene, we will see God’s will unfold. We will
experience more of the healing and deliverance that Jesus modeled for us and
that Peter mentioned to the crowd in verse 38….how God
anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power; how he went
about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was
with him. [slide # 23
how he went about…]
So go ahead, picture that angry face as a
happy face. [slide # 24
happy face flower] Predict that rough road
as a sunlit path full of peace and happiness. [slide # 25 flowery path] See yourself doing God’s will and having the
strength to help others walk in the path of righteousness. [slide # 26 helping hand] Every time a negative scene plays itself in
your mind, replace it with a new version and a new vision. [slide#27 eyeglasses]
We can be the balanced church God calls us to
be as we make room for all God’s children to benefit from our Son Light and the
protective canopy that provides spiritual and physical food and water and
shelter for those who need it. May it be so for you and me, today and forever. [slide # 28 Give God what’s
right…] Amen.
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