Rev. Dr. Bary R. Fleet - Pastor
January 27, 2008 – 3rd Sunday after the Epiphany
Isaiah 9:1-4       
1st Corinthians 1:10-18    
Matthew 4:12-23

Family Matters

In a few minutes we will be having our Annual Meeting and, as a part of that, you will see an item called “Pledge Income.”  Some churches know that there are people who shy away from making a “pledge” and so they call it an “estimate of giving”.

Well, I want to thank those of you who have made an “estimate of giving” for 2008 … and for those of you who haven’t – it’s never too late!

I think one of the most important concepts of the Christian faith is that of “Stewardship,” what we do with what we have been given.  It has to do with money, it has to do with natural resources – which is why we’ve decided to try and distribute the newsletter in a more “environmentally friendly” way.  We’ve started using the china cups for Coffee Hour instead of the disposable ones.  Yes, it does take a few more minutes longer, but did you know that the Styrofoam cups last in landfills for hundreds of years? 

We had a discussion at our last Deacons’ meeting about the number of people in our congregation who don’t pledge, and there was some thought to actually asking them why.  In retrospect, I thought it might be more informative to ask folks why they pledged … which is what we do the month before Pledge Sunday.  Every church I know would like to do a better job with getting people to give, to be committed.

I read recently of one church that used the slogan “Family Matters” for their Stewardship Campaign.  I like that:  Family Matters.  Because if ever there was a family – it is here, in church.  We are family.  There is a long tradition of understanding church as family – we use family terms:  “father,” “mother,” “brother” and “sister.”  We don’t do it so much in our denomination.  The Roman Catholics are more likely to use “Father,” and “Mother” (Mother Theresa) and certainly the monasteries and convents are full of  “Brothers” and “Sisters.” 

But we are family – even without the titles.  In families, everybody pitches in – at their own level and ability. 

This reminder that we, in the church, are family is what Paul was reminding folks when he wrote his first letter to the Corinthians.  He writes, “Now I appeal to you, brothers and sisters …”  He repeats that phrase later:  “My brothers and sisters.” 

The folks at Corinth were divisive.  They were focused on all the things that made them different.  Who baptized them?  Who “discipled” them?  What gender were they? 

We still do it in so many ways:  A couple of weeks ago I put the baptismal font at the entrance of the sanctuary, and invited folks to “bless themselves” with the sign of the cross, using the closest thing we have to “Holy water” (The “waters of the peoples” that we use for Baptism.)  Some folks liked it; some thought it was too “Catholic.”

We divide ourselves by denomination … we divide ourselves by ethnicity … we tell “Polish jokes” or “Blonde Jokes” or “There was a priest, a minister and a rabbi ….”  The point is to heighten our differences.  There are stereotypes … we have them of Jews, of Southerners, of those on welfare, of those whose lifestyles don’t match ours.  The list is almost endless … but here is Paul with his consistent message:  We are family!

As we move downstairs in a few minutes for our Annual Meeting … let us go as family:  brothers and sisters who live together, to love together, who support and encourage one another through the good times and the not-so-good times.

And when we leave this place and go out into the world, let us remember that there isn’t one person we come across who isn’t somehow part of our family.

At the end of the day … family matters!

Note:  The inspiration for this sermon came from a sermon entitled “Family Matters” by Mark Trotter, found at www.esermons.com. 

SERMON IN A SACK:  Deck of cards.  Talk about all the ways the deck can be divided … but it is still one deck and all the cards belong!