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PONDER HOSPITALITY
Deuteronomy 10:14-19
Romans 5:5-7
August 9, 2009
Unless otherwise noted most of the information presented here comes from Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations, by Bishop Robert Schnase.
During the month of September we are going to emphasize inviting people to church. We are going to reach out to everyone in the Ponder community with open hearts, open minds, and open doors; and invite them in. Each week in September the worship service will focus on building strong, durable, faith centered marriages. It is a topic that crosses all boundaries. Broken hearts and bad relationships don’t care about your race, your age, your income, or your denomination. Whether someone is newly engaged, or whether they’ve been married for fifty years, there is always more you can do to improve your relationship. So, the topic and theme during September should be universally relevant. Which means, if you go to the effort to invite someone to participate with us, they will not go away empty handed.
What is the purpose behind this initiative? Let me tell you what it is not; it is not about increasing our membership, and it is not about more money in the offering plates. This is about faithfulness to Jesus, and our role in bringing about the Kingdom of God. We live in a broken and hurting world, and the Church Universal has something special to offer that no one else can match. If we are going to live as Jesus would have us live, and if we are going to love as Jesus would have us love, then we need to share what we know with everyone else.
Here’s the problem. This world is so damaged and ravaged by sin that most people don’t know they need Jesus. So, they are never going to walk in here on their own. You are going to have to get them, and bring them in. If you do – I am convinced that the Holy Spirit will convict them of their deep need for a Savior. In the United Methodist Church we call this Prevenient Grace. God prepares the broken person by giving them grace to recognize when the truth is put in front of them, and a burning desire to grab on to salvation when they see it. We just have to get them here so they can see it.
Why here? Because, “People need to know God loves them, that they are of supreme value, and that their life has significance. People need to know that they are not alone; that when they face life’s difficulties, they are surrounded by a community of grace; and that they do not have to figure out entirely for themselves how to cope with family tensions, self-doubts, periods of despair, economic reversal, and the temptations that hurt themselves or others. People need to know the peace that runs deeper than an absence of conflict, the hope that sustains them even through the most painful periods of grief, the sense of belonging that blesses them and stretches them and lifts them out of their own preoccupations. People need to learn how to offer and accept forgiveness and how to serve and be served. The Church is a school for love, where people learn from one another how to love. People need to know that life is not having something to live on but something to live for, that life comes not from taking for oneself but by giving of oneself. People need a sustaining sense of purpose (Schnase 18).” And, the best place to get all of that, is in church.
You might think that if someone is hurting that badly, they will find their way to the doors of the church. Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way. Bishop Robert Schnase spent some time as a hospital chaplain, and he tells this story. “I was called to the emergency room to support an older man whose wife had been brought to the hospital by ambulance. They had started their morning with no idea how events would unfold that day. After shopping, they stopped at a restaurant, and while she was eating, she suffered a heart attack and was rushed to the hospital. Shortly after I arrived in the small consultation room with the husband, a doctor approached him to announce that his wife had died.
The doctor handed me an envelope that contained her wedding ring, her necklace, and her eyeglasses to give to him. Needless to say, the man was stunned with grief. After a few minutes together, I offered to call his pastor. He did not have a pastor because they attended no church. I asked if I could call a family member to come take him home, and he told me his family was scattered across the country, living many hundreds of mile away. I asked if I could call a co-worker to be with him, and he told me he had retired years before from work in another city. What about a neighbor I could call? He told me that he and his wife didn’t’ know the names of the other residents in the apartment since they’d only lived there three years.
I helped him with the paper work, offered a prayer as I held his hands in mine, handed him the envelope that contained the jewelry, and glasses, escorted him to the exit, and watched him walk away alone to cope with the shocking news of the day, and to grasp its meaning for himself all on his own (Schnase 19).” That’s why we have to find them, and bring them here. Of course, that’s based on the presumption that this church is a worthwhile place to bring a hurting person.
Adam Hamilton is a big time Methodist who is recognized for his skill in finding people who have never been to church, and bringing them in. In his book, Leading Beyond the Walls, he says there are three crucial questions every congregation must answer (p. 21 – 27). The first question is why do people need Christ? I think we’ve already answered that one. There are a million ways to wound yourself, and those you love, and the rest of the world is not interested in helping you unless they can profit by it. Only Jesus comes to the wounded with unconditional love.
The second question is why do people need the Church (and he’s talking about the big Church Universal here). In other words, why do we need to meet with other Christians; why can’t we just have a private relationship with Jesus? First, the Apostle Paul says the Church is the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:27; Ephesians 4:12). The Church is the primary way that our living Savior continues to interact with the world. Secondly, Jesus said, “For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them (Matthew 18:20).” Jesus promises the power of his presence when believers come together. Third, the Bible commands us to meet together. Hebrews 10:24-25 says, “And let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another.”
Fourth, we can accomplish far more together than we can apart. Imagine the chaos if we each individually tried to establish a ministry of mission to our community, instead of all of us working together. Fifth, every believer has a spiritual gift from God. That gift is not for your own benefit, it is to be used to impact those around you on behalf of Jesus (Acts 2:38-39). And sixth, no one can reach their full potential as a Christian without the Church. Being a part of the body is how we are educated, supported, encouraged, healed, and find our opportunity to serve.
Hamilton’s third question is the most difficult; why do people need this particular church? Does there need to be a Ponder UMC, or would the community be served just as well if there were only the Baptist, Church of Christ, and Cowboy churches? Would anyone miss us if we were gone? I think they would. We are the only church specifically reaching out to special needs children and their families. We are the only church creating opportunities for mission work here in our own community, and not just half way around the world. We are the only church specifically looking for the fringe, the unwanted, the outcast, the one who is different. And, hopefully, we are doing this from an enlightened, highly educated, and highly biblically based position.
That’s why they need to be here. How do we invite them? It’s pretty simple really. When Jesus promised to make Peter and Andrew fishers of men his calling was simple, “Follow me” (Matthew 4:19). When the scribe wanted to become a disciple Jesus simply said, “Follow me” (Matthew 8:22). When Matthew, the tax collector, wanted to leave his sinful life behind Jesus told him, “Follow me” (Matthew 9:9). When the young man wanted to know how to get to heaven Jesus said, “Follow me” (Matthew 19:21).
When outsiders questioned the disciples, “Why do you follow him?” the answer was just as simple, “Come and see” (John 1:39, 43; 4:29; 21:12). You do not need a Master’s of Biblical Studies to invite someone to church. You don’t need a Doctorate of Theology to explain why they should seek the Lord here. When they ask why all you have to say is, “Come and see.”
Back in June I preached a sermon on Sanctification, the process of becoming more like Jesus in this life. At one point I quoted Dr. Gannon Murphy, who is the editor of American Theological Inquiry, and had written an article for Theology Today magazine. He had an overly complicated definition. He said Sanctification is, “The translation which follows a unilateral pneumatological regeneration,” which is true, but I poked a little fun at how complicated it was. As you know, Kris Corkins posts all of my sermons on our website. A few weeks later, I received an e-mail from Dr. Murphy. He started the e-mail by pointing out that I had intentionally made light of him, and he quoted me – so I couldn’t deny what I had written. I expected the second sentence to be something like, “You’ll be hearing from my lawyer.” Instead, it turns out Dr. Murphy has a great sense of humor. He laughed at his definition and said, “I must have had too much coffee when I wrote that!”
His letter went on to say that as he has grown older he has often decided that simpler is better. Don’t give people a lecture on theology; just tell them the Gospel story. He quoted C. S. Lewis, who said, “No man can live according to a philosophy he cannot explain to a nine year old.” Simpler is better. Dr. Murphy went on to say, “I think one of the best theological answers I ever gave was to a question from my son when he was seven. I was reading to him from the Psalms and he asked me, “Dad, what does it mean to be blessed?” I thought for a moment, realized I couldn’t get away with a PhD’s answer, and replied, “Myles, to be blessed is to have God look upon you and smile.” Simpler is better.
Through the month of September the EVOW committee will be putting inserts in the bulletins for you to give to someone you are inviting to church. The message on the insert will be simple, “Come and see!” That’s how you’re going to invite them.
What do we do with them when we get them here? This is what Bishop Schnase calls Radical Hospitality. I want everyone on the EVOW committee to help Frances McKinley greet first time visitors when they walk through the door. If you’re not on the EVOW committee, and you see someone new, it’s your responsibility to approach them and help them to feel comfortable. You can start by showing them the facilities. How uncomfortable is it to wonder where the restrooms are? As you walk into our sanctuary would you know we have a nursery with a fully qualified nursery attendant? If you had to warm up a baby bottle where would you go? When someone new walks into our midst it is everyone’s responsibility to show them the facilities and help them settle in.
Secondly, set them up with paper work. Give them a bulletin. If you worship here all the time you know to stop at the back and pick up a bulletin. A first time visitor doesn’t know that. How uncomfortable is it when everyone else reads the Call to Worship, and you don’t know where they got the bulletin? Also, give them a visitor’s flyer – they are next to the bulletins. Were you a little uncomfortable when you didn’t know to say, “Thanks be to God” after the Scripture reading today? If you were in another Methodist Church this morning you might have been the only one who didn’t know what to say. Did you know there are several versions of the Lord’s Prayer? How uncomfortable is it to be the only ‘Trespasser’ when everyone else is a ‘Debtor’, or vice versa? The flyer specifically lists the words we use to the Gloria Patri, the Doxology, and the Lord’s Prayer. It explains how Communion works. It is absolutely critical that every first time visitor receives a flyer, and an explanation on how to use it, when they walk through the doors.
September is going to be our month for inviting people to meet Jesus Christ through the Ponder United Methodist Church. Jesus said, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:19-20). This is called the Great Commission. We are not inviting people to increase our membership or our checking account. We are inviting them to fulfill our role in the Great Commission. Start planning now on who you will invite to, “Come and see.”