"For the Good of All!"

Today I was in Fremont at Sinai Lutheran to install Pr. Al Duminy.  Several folks from my years at Midland were there as well.  It was fun to see them.  Pr. Al's installation, my first as Assistant to the Bishop, went well.  Here is the message I brought for the people at Sinai.

"For the Good of All"
I Corinthians 12: 1 - 11

George was a person with a big heart and a wonderful sense of humor.  George claimed that he was “so tender hearted that he cries at supermarket openings.”  At church, everyone loved George and he was respected at the hospital where he worked.  So many people loved George because he was always kind and respectful to everyone.

His children vividly remember the days George spent in the hospital before his death.  The president of the hospital paid him a visit.  They spoke like they were old friends.  A few minutes later one of the janitors came to visit George.  They too had a nice visit like old friends.  When the janitor left, one of George’s children said, “Dad, did you realize that you treated the president of the hospital and the janitor alike?”

George smiled and chuckled at the remark.  “Let me ask you something,” he said.  “If the president left for two weeks and the janitor left for two weeks, which one do you think would be missed the most?

People, positions and gifts can cause problems if we think one is more important than another.  (James Moore, “When All Else Fails”, pg. 78)

When we get to the 12^th Chapter of I Corinthians and read what St. Paul has to say to the little church over there in Corinth, it appears that there were some special problems developing by the way the people were understanding of the gifts of the spirit.  Some activities seem to have been rated more highly than others – leading a prayer group seems to have been more “spiritual” and therefore “more important” than clean up work.  St. Paul’s reflections here are probably sparked by the matter of “speaking in tongues” – a religious practice in Corinth even before Paul first arrived there.  But, it appears that issues had grown to the place where some spiritual gifts were considered more important than others.  The issue may have been compounded by those who “privatized” their spiritual gifts and used them only for their own good.

In response to this issue (much of what Paul writes in his letters are in response to local issues), Paul starts with the most important thing – the gift of the Spirit gives the ability to confess, “Jesus is Lord.”  The primary gift of the Holy Spirit is to lead us to our Lord.  For those of us who memorized the catechism, we remember Martin Luther’s teaching on the Third Article:  “I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith. In the same way He calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian church on earth, and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith.”

What is primary in our discussion is that the Holy Spirit leads us into relationship with Jesus and keeps us in relationship with Jesus.  This is not only personal, but communal.

Along that same line we can note that of equal importance is not the list of gifts, but that the Holy Spirit gives all gifts to the community of faith. The notation is that each person has a special gift to serve.  God activates the gifts in each person to carry out the ministry.  This is not random.  This is not helter-skelter, but systematic as the Holy Spirit chooses for the church.

I want to be clear.  The gifts of the Holy Spirit are NOT innate abilities like artistic talent, like the gift of gab, like an inborn ear for music, like a big heart or a listening ear.  These gifts and talents are important and God uses them all for ministry.  In what has been given, God moves, God acts and God multiplies.

The line of thinking is this:  God gives the Holy Spirit to lead us into relationship with Jesus.  The Holy Spirit brings gifts to the community and for the community.  The gifts are activated in the community, not for personal consumption, not to make us better disciples, but for the God of all.

Spiritual Gifts are given for the good of all.  Those in whom God has activated the gifts of the spirit are intended to be rivers, not reservoirs.  In some ways the best way to see a gift of the spirit is to look for what elevates and lifts up the others in the church.

A parable.  A king who wanted to demonstrate the power of the people in the kingdom when then united together to share their gifts for the good of all. 

So, this king invited all of his subjects to bring a glass of milk and pour it into a large vat.  His subjects lined up with filled glasses in hand.  The stream of people poured their full glasses over the edge of the vat, which was overhead height. 

When all had finished the king went to the vat to begin distributing the milk to the needy.  What the king drew were glasses of pure water. 

You see, each person felt that their part in the program wasn’t very important.  Each person decided somehow that what they had to offer wasn’t for the good of all.  The gifts of the spirit in each one had not been activated to build the kingdom, to bless the kingdom.

There is always a temptation to hide in the crowd.  There is always the temptation to think that my part isn’t important.  There is always the temptation to count on the efforts of someone else. 

In these temptations, God blesses us with the power of the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit unites us and blesses us.  As one people with knit together with the power of the Holy Spirit, we are activated by God with everything that is necessary for the common good.  In the gift of the Spirit, the kingdom of God is blessed as each one of us finds our place as laborers together with God.

On this day that marks the formal beginning in the life of this congregation, I offer this encouragement.  

People of Sinai:  keep in mind that your gifts aren’t any more important than Pr. Al’s gifts.  You’ve been gifted to play a part in the Kingdom ministry in this place. Your gifts compliment his.  As your gifts are shared together, God activates them for the Kingdom and for your mission and ministry in the Kingdom.

Pr. Al:  Keep in mind that your gifts aren’t any more important than the gifts of this congregation.  You’ve been gifted to play a part in the Kingdom ministry in this place.  Your gifts compliment those of the people of Sinai (collectively and individually).  As all the gifts are shared together, God activates them for the good of all, for the Kingdom and for your corporate and communal mission and ministry in God’s kingdom.

This is a homey little story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, and Nobody.

         There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it. 

         Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it. 

         Somebody got angry about that because it was Everybody's job. 

         Everybody thought that Anybody could do it, but Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn't do it.

         It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done.

In line with this little story, let me say this:  Everybody can’t do Somebody’s job.  But Everybody has gifts for the good of the whole, gifts given and empowered by the Holy Spirit.  With Everybody doing their part Nobody will ever depend on Somebody to do what Anybody believes needs to be done.

May God bless your ministry!

 

Amen.