Today’s Focus:
An Important But Often Neglected
Spiritual Resource
(Nee'-kos) Biblical Greek Word for "Victory"
Wednesday, May 31, 2023
Monday, May 29, 2023
Sermon (May 28/Pentecost) by Rev. Robert McDowell
In some ways, it’s fitting that Pentecost Sunday falls on Memorial Day weekend this year. Memorial Day is a time to reflect on our nation’s history and the sacrifice of those who offered their lives on behalf of our country.
From the time we became a nation in 1776, our country has been a work in progress as we seek to be a nation of liberty and justice for all. As one person who lives outside of the US once said, “America is more than a country. It’s an idea, one of the greatest ideas in human history. America might be the greatest song the world has yet to hear.”
I like that thought. America might be the greatest song the world has “yet” to hear. That line reminds me that our country is always going to be a work in progress because we got our start with the Declaration of Independence that reminds us to pursue freedom for all.
And as your know, that’s not an easy task. There are times when we live up to these ideals and there are times when we fall short. America is an idea that is worthy of our toil and struggle as well as taking time this weekend to thank those who have offered their lives in the pursuit of this idea of freedom and justice. We are an unfinished country. And we will continue be an unfinished country because of these ideas.
This has always been the case with the church as well. The church is more than an institution. It’s a community of faith.
Our United Methodist Book of Discipline offers us this wonderful definition of the purpose of the local church. Listen to this description from our own denomination’s Book of Discipline:
“The church of Jesus Christ exists in and for the world. It is primarily at the level of the charge consisting of one or more local churches that the church encounters the world. The local church is a strategic base form which Christians move out to the structures of society. The function of the local church, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit is to help people accept and confess Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and to live their daily lives in light of their relationship with God. Therefore, the local church is to minister to persons in the community where the church is located to provide appropriate training and nurture to all, to cooperate in ministry with other local churches, to defend God’s creation and live as an ecologically responsible community, and to participate in the worldwide mission of the church, as minimal expectations of an authentic church.”
That’s not a definition. That’s describing an idea of who God has called us to be; a caring, welcoming, loving, gracious, inviting, equipping visible expression of God’s redeeming and saving love for the world. Now, that’s an idea worth all of our toil and struggle.
Once in a while I’ll turn to our Book of Discipline and remind myself of the ideas of our faith because we can so easily forget. Just like our country can so easily forget the idea of freedom and equality for all people.
But I know why we are reluctant to remind ourselves of these ideas. I think it has something to do with how it will remind us that we are un unfinished country! We are an unfinished church. I am an unfinished child of God. I am an unfinished disciple of Jesus. We are all unfinished in our pursuit of who God is calling us to be.
So we have these holidays like Memorial Day this weekend and Independence Day which is just a little over a month from now. It’s why the church calendar has holidays like Pentecost where we are reminded of our bigger purpose and calling in life.
Take Pentecost for example. Our reading from the Book of Acts this morning describes in very vivid detail Pentecost and how the church got its start. It didn’t get started by some committee. According to our Book of Acts reading, it got got started because “suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where those first disciples were sitting. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages as the Spirit gave them ability.”
I wonder who was taking minutes at that first church meeting! And imagine hearing those minutes being read for the next meeting of that brand new church! This is actually what we did just a little bit ago when our worship reader read our Pentecost scripture reading. We were hearing the minutes of our very first church meeting from over 2,000 years ago!
Our first meeting was held on the 50th day after Jesus was resurrected from the dead. Listen again to the minutes of that meeting!
In attendance: The disciples. Our meeting began with a rush of a violent wind which we realized was the Holy Spirit. It filled the entire house where we were sitting.
Tongues of fire then appeared on each disciple in attendance and we were each filled with the Holy Spirit. The Spirit enabled us to speak in different languages so that the people who had come to Jerusalem could hear the good news of how God raised Jesus from the dead.
The Holy Spirit then prompted Peter to preach a sermon about this good news. After the sermon, about 3,000 people were baptized and joined our new church. Following the service, we enjoyed a big meal together and we continued to hear more about the good news of Jesus and we spent time in prayer together.
The meeting adjourned at the end of the day. Next meeting will be tomorrow as we continue to meet in each other’s homes to distribute our belongings to those who are in need, breaking bread together with glad and generous hearts, and praising God together. Respectfully submitted, Recording Secretary of First Jerusalem Church.
These first meeting minutes must have been approved at their next meeting because this is why we hear the minutes of that meeting every year around this time.
These church minutes reminds us that the church is more than a building or an organization. The church is the visible expression of God’s redeeming and saving love for the world made known to us through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This is the big idea of the church! To be that Pentecost community of people!
And the more we remind ourselves of this bigger idea of who we are as the church, the more we are going to realize that we don’t always fully live out this vision of who God has called us to be. This reality of who we are called to be reminds me of one of our church hymns, “The Church’s One Foundation.”
This is a hymn that reminds us of what it means to be the church. There are five verses in this hymn. The 1st verse offers us the powerful reminder of who the church is called to be. “The church’s one foundation is Jesus Christ her Lord; she is his new creation by water and the Word. From heaven he came and sought her to be his holy bride; with is own blood be bought her, and for her life he died.”
But notice that when you get to the 3rd verse, it acknowledges where we fall short in living out that idea. In referring to the church, verse 3 says, “Though with a scornful wonder we see her sore oppressed, by schisms rent asunder, by heresies distressed, yet saints their watch are keeping; their cry goes up, ‘How long?’ And soon the night of weeping shall be the morn of song.”
Verse 3 of that hymn expresses both the idea of what it means to be the church as well as the struggle the church has in living out that idea. We always live within this tension. And this is why we celebrate Pentecost on the church calendar each year, because it could be so easy for us to settle for being another social agency in the community that depends on our own strength and wisdom to carry out our mission.
No, we are so much more. We are the church called by God to share the good news of Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit indwelling each and every one of us. What a powerful thought! You, me, each person here today empowered by the Holy Spirit to do great things in the name of the Risen Christ!
I am so excited for the future of Athens First United Methodist Church because I know that the Holy Spirit is rushing through this place like a mighty wind through our ministries, through our fellowship, through our worship, and through the life of our church. And the more we are aware of the presence of the Holy Spirit, the more that we are able to live out who God has called us to be.
Pentecost won’t let us forget! Even though we will always be a work in progress, Pentecost will never let us forget who we are and who we are called to be.
When I think of Pentecost Sunday and who God is calling the church to be, I think of the chair that Benjamin Franklin would see during his Constitutional Convention meetings in Philadelphia in 1787 as our nation was being formed.
This was Benjamin Franklin’s observation of that chair which has become known as the Rising Sun Armchair. Franklin is quoted as saying, “I have often looked at that picture behind the president who was George Washington, without being able to tell whether it was rising or setting. But now at length I have the happiness to know that it is a rising and not a setting sun.”
Noted Methodist theologian, Albert Outler offers this responsive reading called, “The Unfinished Church.” May these words always remind us that the sun is always rising thanks to the presence and power of the Holy Spirit at work in and through each and every one of us and upon the life of the church. Let’s share in this responsive reading together. The words are on the screen:
PASTOR: We gather in this time and place, all of us from different times and places, here to worship God.
ALL: Many years ago, the people gathered and were ignited by passion for God, lit up by Pentecost fire, shouting out in Pentecost voices, carried away on Pentecost winds.
PASTOR: So many years later, we gather. We have learned new words, and written books of rules. We have heard the stories of our past. We come to create stories for the future.
ALL: We are an unfinished church.
PASTOR: Like those disciples so many years ago, we are not sure we know the way. We are afraid to make mistakes. We are afraid to fail.
ALL: We are an unfinished church.
PASTOR: But, Christ calls us to carry on the blessing of discipleship, to move forward in love and faithfulness, so that all might find a place in our holy space, our church.
ALL: We are an unfinished church.
PASTOR: So long as even one of us is left outside the door because of our coldheartedness, we are an unfinished church.
ALL: We are an unfinished church.
PASTOR: So long as any one is lonely, hungry, sick, in prison, naked, we are an unfinished church.
ALL: We are an unfinished church.
PASTOR: So long as any one of us is destitute of the great Hope that is our future in Christ Jesus, raised up to set us free from death into holy and everlasting life.
ALL: We are an unfinished church.
PASTOR: Every day is a new Pentecost, full of the promise and possibility that God offers.
ALL: Today is a day of dreaming. A Pentecost day filled with refining fire, and holy smoke, and winds of change, and voices full of passion for God and for each other.
PASTOR: We are an unfinished church, but we are God’s church.
ALL: We are God’s church, full of grace and love and hope. Today is a new Pentecost Day, may we be birthed again into a new beginning.
The Unfinished Church
Sermon Discussion Questions
Acts 2:1-21
May 28, 2023
Pentecost on the church calendar is when we remember how the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples and empowered them to share the good news of Jesus’ resurrection. We are told that the Spirit came upon them like the rush of a mighty wind.
Share a time when you felt the presence of God’s Holy Spirit in your life? What descriptive words come to mind of what that time was like for you.
Pentecost is also known as the beginning or birthday of the church. The Book of Discipline of the United Methodist Church offers this description of what the local church is: “The church of Jesus Christ exists in and for the world. It is primarily at the level of the charge consisting of one or more local churches that the church encounters the world. The local church is a strategic base form which Christians move out to the structures of society. The function of the local church, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit is to help people accept and confess Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and to live their daily lives in light of their relationship with God. Therefore, the local church is to minister to persons in the community where the church is located to provide appropriate training and nurture to all, to cooperate in ministry with other local churches, to defend God’s creation and live as an ecologically responsible community, and to participate in the worldwide mission of the church, as minimal expectations of an authentic church.”
What are your thoughts about this definition of the local church? In what ways do we live out this definition in what it means to be the church?
Pastor Robert shared that the church is always unfinished because we are always seeking to live out who God has called us to be. Verse 3 of the hymn, “The Church’s One Foundation” refers to how the church is always a work in progress. “Though with a scornful wonder we see her sore oppressed, by schisms rent asunder, by heresies distressed, yet saints their watch are keeping; their cry goes up, ‘How long?’ And soon the night of weeping shall be the morn of song.” The good news is that even though the church is unfinished and is far from being perfect, there are times when it is a shining beacon of hope in our community and world.
Share a time when you were especially encouraged by something the church did or how it was a witness of God’s redemptive love for our community and world.
Albert Outler who was a noted Methodist theologian shared this responsive litany during a special ceremony when the Evangelical United Brethren (EUB) denomination merged with The Methodist denomination in 1968 and formed what we know today as The United Methodist Church. The title of the litany is “The Unfinished Church,”
Close your time be sharing in this beautifully worded litany about the church and notice how he connects it with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost:
PASTOR: We gather in this time and place, all of us from different times and places, here to worship God.
ALL: Many years ago, the people gathered and were ignited by passion for God, lit up by Pentecost fire, shouting out in Pentecost voices, carried away on Pentecost winds.
PASTOR: So many years later, we gather. We have learned new words, and written books of rules. We have heard the stories of our past. We come to create stories for the future.
ALL: We are an unfinished church.
PASTOR: Like those disciples so many years ago, we are not sure we know the way. We are afraid to make mistakes. We are afraid to fail.
ALL: We are an unfinished church.
PASTOR: But, Christ calls us to carry on the blessing of discipleship, to move forward in love and faithfulness, so that all might find a place in our holy space, our church.
ALL: We are an unfinished church.
PASTOR: So long as even one of us is left outside the door because of our coldheartedness, we are an unfinished church.
ALL: We are an unfinished church.
PASTOR: So long as any one is lonely, hungry, sick, in prison, naked, we are an unfinished church.
ALL: We are an unfinished church.
PASTOR: So long as any one of us is destitute of the great Hope that is our future in Christ Jesus, raised up to set us free from death into holy and everlasting life.
ALL: We are an unfinished church.
PASTOR: Every day is a new Pentecost, full of the promise and possibility that God offers.
ALL: Today is a day of dreaming. A Pentecost day filled with refining fire, and holy smoke, and winds of change, and voices full of passion for God and for each other.
PASTOR: We are an unfinished church, but we are God’s church.
ALL: We are God’s church, full of grace and love and hope. Today is a new Pentecost Day, may we be birthed again into a new beginning.
Sunday, May 28, 2023
Online Worship (May 28/Pentecost) Athens First UMC
Welcome to our
May 28/Pentecost
online worship service!
Athens First UMC
2 S. College St., Athens, OH 45701
[Live-Stream Begins @ 10:25 AM]
Wednesday, May 24, 2023
Monday, May 22, 2023
Sermon (May 21) by Rev. Robert McDowell
Next month, I will be participating in my 7th pastoral transition as I will be retiring from pastoral ministry and welcoming your new pastor. This is one of the most important things that we do as itinerate United Methodist clergy. We do our best to make a smooth hand-off to those who will be following us.
As I’ve been reflecting on my pastoral transitions, they haven’t always been as text book as I would have liked them to have been. For example, in my very first appointment, I followed a pastor who had abruptly left that church to go back to his home state without telling anybody, including the District Superintendent.
In another church that I was appointed to serve, the pastor who I followed was going through some health challenges and that prevented the two of us from having an opportunity to meet to help me get to know that church better.
In another new church appointment, I was asked to become the new pastor of a church that had just been hit by a tornado and they needed to rebuild most of the church building. And then there was another church where not too long after I arrived there, we discovered that the financial director had embezzled hundreds of thousands of dollars over a ten-year period.
Fortunately when I came to become your new pastor it was less dramatic than some of these examples! And quite frankly, I don’t know if there is really such a thing as a perfect pastoral transition. Change is never easy. There are some things that you can control but there are other things that just take you by surprise, like a tornado hitting the church you are going to serve before you even preach your first sermon.
I think that Jesus worked really hard at preparing his disciples for when he would be leaving them. For the past several Sundays, our appointed Gospel readings have been from what we refer to as “Jesus’ Farewell Discourse” with his disciples.
Jesus spends four whole chapters in this part of John’s Gospel, chapters 14-17, helping to prepare the disciples for when he would be leaving them. Of course, at that time, they didn’t understand why he would be leaving them. They didn’t know that he would be dying on a cross, rising to new life, and then ascending into heaven.
Maybe this is why Jesus concludes his last discourse with the disciples in our Gospel reading for today by offering a prayer on their behalf. In this prayer, Jesus prays for his disciples to know that he had been sent to glorify God while he was on earth. And then Jesus prays for them to be protected and that they would be one just as God and Jesus are one.
Think of this is Jesus’ pastoral prayer for his disciples. And this prayer is asking God to be with his disciples as he will soon be leaving them. Prayer is an important part of any smooth hand-off from one person to another.
And then in our Acts scripture reading, just minutes before Jesus ascends to be with his Heavenly Father, the disciples are still trying to figure out what Jesus’ departure will mean for them. Their questions are expected because in their minds they are still wondering when God’s kingdom will finally be established on earth.
And Jesus’ response is for them to not worry about these things but to simply remember to continue his ministry by being his witnesses. These are the things that Jesus wants the disciples to remember as he hands-off his ministry to them.
Whenever we face times of transition in our lives, we have many questions. We want to know what we need to do now, so that we are ready for that time of transition. We have a million questions.
When I arrived here eight years ago, I remember asking the staff a lot of questions about Athens First because I wanted to keep the things that appeared to be working and try some new things as well. At one point, one of the staff members finally said to me, “Honestly, just do what you think God is calling you to do. We trust you.”
That was probably the best word of advice I could have heard in that moment. It almost sounds like what Jesus was telling the disciples before he ascended to heaven. “Honestly, just do what you think God is calling you to do. I trust you.”
Jesus was telling the disciples to simply be his witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea, and to the ends of the earth. Jesus was reassuring them that they had everything they needed to continue his ministry. What they needed to hear was that Jesus trusted them.
What a powerful thought for us to think about on this Ascension Sunday. That Jesus trusts us, like he trusted the disciples to be his witnesses and to continue his ministry. Jesus trusts us!
Maybe the bigger question for us on this Ascension Sunday and for whenever we face a time of transition in our lives is, “Do we trust ourselves?”
This past December, I received a Christmas letter from a couple in our church. It was a family Christmas letter and I love that it began with a quote from the book, “The Return of the King” by JRR Tolkien.
It’s a quote from Bilbo Baggins when he said this to his nephew Frodo: “It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out of your door. You step into the Road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off to.”
That quote reminds me of what the disciples must have been feeling when Jesus was about to leave them and ascend into heaven. They knew that they were about to walk out the door and they weren’t sure if they would be able to keep their feet.
And this couple’s Christmas letter went on to share both the many challenges they faced during 2022, but they also recognized that they also had been blessed in many ways. Yes, we all need to step out our doors not knowing what we might experience or encounter, but isn’t this what Jesus was teaching his disciples? To not be afraid to step out in faith because when we do, we will be surprised at all the blessings that we will encounter along the way.
I share this with you because I know of people who literally are afraid to leave their own homes because they are afraid of what they might encounter. We live during a very fearful time because the world often feels very intimidating and polarizing.
But the answer isn’t to stay in our houses. The answer is to find our footing as we step out in faith trusting in God and remembering that Jesus trusts us to be his witnesses.
My favorite part of the ascension story isn’t the miracle of Jesus leaving the disciples in thin air, although that is a very impressive departure, I must say! No, my favorite part of this story is what the disciples did right after Jesus left them.
We are told that they returned to Jerusalem, (get this!) they returned to Jerusalem, and together they devoted themselves to prayer! Jesus’ prayer for the disciples to be unified gets answered right here when the first thing that they did was to devote themselves to prayer.
The best way that we can step out in faith when facing a time of transition in our lives is by joining together in prayer. That’s where we can then lean on Jesus and and receive the assurance that God will be with us as we continue his ministry through any transition we may face.
Are you facing a time of uncertainty in your life and it has you concerned and worried? Go to God in prayer! Are you worried about stepping out of your house because of how crazy this world seems to be? Go to God in prayer! Are you feeling anxious and ill-equipped for what the future holds for you? Go to God in prayer! Are you wondering how on earth you are going to lead that youth Sunday School class? Go to God in prayer! Are you having second thoughts about trying that new ministry that you feel that God is calling you to begin? Go to God in prayer!
That’s the take-away for me on this Ascension Sunday. Do you still have questions that you want to ask Jesus before he leaves even though you have already asked him a million other questions? Go to God in prayer!
Go to God in prayer and invite others to pray with you. This is how we find our feet when we walk out the door. We remember that Jesus trusts us to carry on his mission and ministry in our community and world.
Ron Bartlow is a United Methodist pastor at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church in Arizona. He shares the story of his first job which was assisting the janitor at his church. One day, the janitor set up a tall ladder and handed him a couple of those old style, long fluorescent bulbs and asked him to climb up that ladder and change them.
And so, reluctantly, he went up a few rungs on that ladder and then he said that he just froze. He just couldn’t keep climbing because of a fear of heights and so back down he came. The janitor assured him that he would be fine. Just then, the pastor came out of his office and saw that he was afraid to go up the ladder. The pastor took those lights, climbed up the ladder and replaced them.
And his pastor said to him, “If you ever think of going into the ministry, remember this: sometimes you have to do what others aren’t ready or think they’re ready to do.”
Ron says he still thinks of that time when he was scared to climb that ladder. He was afraid that he wouldn’t be able to find his footing. And he says that story from years ago still reminds him that when he is not feeling capable, to listen to the encouragement of others, watch their example, and to step out in faith. The lesson he learned was that you’ll be surprised at what God can do through you thanks to the prayers and support of the people around you…
…and not to mention the power of the Holy Spirit at work in your life. But let’s save that thought for next Sunday when we celebrate Pentecost and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. For now, let’s find our footing by going to God in prayer. Trust and obey for there’s no other way.
The Hand-Off
Sermon Discussion Questions
Acts 1:6-14 & John 17:1-11
May 21, 2023
In chapters 14 to 17 of John’s Gospel, Jesus is preparing his disciples for when he would be leaving them. This section of the Gospel is known as “The Farewell Discourse.” Jesus did this to help there be a smooth hand-off so that they would be able to continue his ministry. Life is filled with transitions!
Share a transition time in your life where you needed to prepare for a smooth hand-off. What went well? What was challenging about it?
Part of the challenge that Jesus had in preparing his disciples for when he would be leaving them was that it was a lot for them to absorb! They were still confused as to why he would be dying, rising, and then ascending to heaven. This didn’t make sense to them and so they had a lot of questions and they still didn’t feel ready.
What are some questions that you want ask Jesus that would help you to carry on Jesus’ ministry in sharing the good news that God’s kingdom is at hand?
Just before Jesus ascended into heaven, he reminded the disciples to be his witnesses. Even though they still had unanswered questions about what this will all mean, Jesus was trusting them to carry on his mission and ministry in the world. In other words, Jesus was trusting them with this hand-off of ministry. He had given them everything they needed. Maybe the bigger question for us as we continue on Jesus’ ministry is do we trust ourselves?
Why do you think we sometimes find it difficult to trust ourselves in being Jesus’ witnesses and living out our faith?
In his sermon, Pastor Robert shared a quote from JRR Tolkien’s book, “The Return of the King” where Bilbo Baggins tells his nephew, Frodo, “It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out of your door. You step into the Road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off to.”
Share what helps you to “keep your feet” when you walk out into the unknown.
Just after Jesus ascended into heaven, we are told that the disciples went to Jerusalem and they devoted themselves to prayer. This is probably one of the best things we can do to help us keep our feet as we continue on Jesus’ ministry in being his witnesses. Close your time by praying this prayer from Sunday’s worship service:
God of power and might, you are worthy of our worship and praise! You created this beautiful world and called it good. You sent us Jesus who lived, died, rose again, and who is now seated at your right hand on your heavenly throne. Soon, you will send us your Holy Spirit to empower us to be Jesus’ disciples. Thank you for all you have done for us! Forgive us for whenever we forget that you are a God of power and might who has given us everything we need to be the church you have called us to be. You are worthy of our worship and praise! Praise the Lord! Amen.
Sunday, May 21, 2023
Online Worship (May 21/Ascension Sunday) Athens First UMC
Welcome to our
May 21/Ascension Sunday
online worship service!
Athens First UMC
2 S. College St., Athens, OH 45701
[Live-Stream Begins @ 10:25 AM]
Saturday, May 20, 2023
Eulogy for Gene McDowell (August 9, 1942 - February 11, 2023)
[The McDowell Family Photo at Gene’s Memorial Service - May 20, 2023]
On behalf of the family, I want to thank all of you for being here today as we remember and give thanks to God for Gene and for what he has meant to all of us. I am one of several members of the family who will be sharing in today’s service. My brother, David and I are two of Gene’s cousins and we’re both United Methodist pastors.
Since our mother was raised Presbyterian and Gene was Presbyterian, I feel like I’m more of a “Methoterian,” a combination of the two. Pastor Tim graciously offered for me to lead us in saying The Lord’s Prayer later in the service, but as a Methodist pastor, I’d mess it up and forget to say “debts” instead of “trespasses!”
Gene gave me a wonderful gift just a couple of months ago when he sang happy birthday to me from his hospital room in Pittsburgh. It was through a FaceTime phone call and I was at my house in Athens, Ohio. Gene, the oldest of the 8 cousins singing to the youngest cousin. I will always remember that. Thank you, Todd, Vivian, and David for setting that up.
I also will always be grateful for times we got to spend together at Steelers games, at our family’s cottage in the mountains, and other family events over the years. Great memories. Our family got together for dinner last night and it’s been good for us to reconnect since we don’t get to see each other that often. We could sense Gene’s presence with us through the sharing of family stories.
Gene’s faith was important to him. I was reminded of this a couple of years ago when we visited Gene in his new place in Pittsburgh. We went out to lunch and Gene rode in my car. On the way back from the restaurant, (OK, it was really a sports bar,) we spent that whole time talking about our faith. And Gene asked me what I thought of the Book of Revelation. And I said that I have always really liked that book of the bible. And he said the reason he asked me was because he was enjoying being part of a zoom bible study on the Book of Revelation through your church here. How nice that you all provided this way of staying in touch with Gene.
I told Gene that for a lot of people, the Book of Revelation is kind of weird and scary, but that for me it’s comforting because it reminds us that a day is coming when all of God’s people will be reunited. That’s how the book of Revelation ends and we have this great verse in Revelation 21:4 where it says that…
God will wipe away every tear from our eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.
I think of how different things will look when that time comes. No more tears, no more need for oxygen masks, no more hunger, no more pain, no more heartache, and no more death, for the former things have passed away. This is the good news of our faith and I’m thankful for my cousin Gene who reminded me of this good news.
Tuesday, May 16, 2023
Monday, May 15, 2023
Sermon (May 14) by Rev. Robert McDowell
I wonder how many of us who saw this sermon title have this song playing on an endless loop in our heads right now.
“What the world needs now. Is love sweet love. It’s the only thing that there’s just too little of.”
It’s such a simple melody that even I can sing it!
It’s a song that was written by Hal David and Burt Bacharach and was sung by Dionne Warwick back in 1965. And what is so amazing about this song is that they didn’t think it would be well received, but it made it all the way up to #7 on the record chart that year.
And the reason they didn’t think the song was going to be a hit is because it was written during the Vietnam War era which was dividing our country at the time. The lyrics could easily be heard as anti-war and unpatriotic.
The popularity of this song just goes to show how much the world is longing for there to be more love despite our many disagreements and differences. Love is a universal language. This song came to my mind as I was reading over our appointed scripture readings for today because they both are appealing to our universal desire for there to be more love in our world.
In our Gospel reading, Jesus is preparing his disciples for when he would be leaving them. Of course they don’t fully understand that Jesus is referring to when he will be dying on a cross and then rising to new life. So, Jesus is offering this long farewell discourse to them, to not only instruct them but to also comfort them.
Jesus uses the word, “love” several times in our Gospel reading for today. He says, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever.”
And then a couple verses later, he tells them, “They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.”
Jesus isn’t just telling the disciples to follow all of his teachings and commandments. He is using this time to remind them why it’s important to follow all of his teachings and commandments. These commandments help us to remember that the whole point of being a disciple of Jesus is to know that we are loved by God, that we are to love God, and that we are to love others with God’s love.
That’s why our discipleship strategy here at Athens First United Methodist Church is for each person to grow in having a Loving Faith, a Learning Faith, and a Living Faith. We grow in having a Loving Faith by loving God and others with our hearts through Sunday worship, through our small groups where we care for one another, and through our fellowship together.
We grow in having a Learning Faith by learning more about God and our faith with our minds by going to Sunday School, participating in a bible study, and by attending confirmation classes.
And we grow in having a Living Faith by living out our faith by serving others with our hands through the ministries of the church like feeding the hungry, visiting the sick, going on mission trips, and blessing others by offering our time and resources.
All of this is what helps us to be disciples of Jesus. We are called to be growing in what it means to have a Loving Faith, a Learning Faith, and a Living Faith.
Jesus is encouraging his disciples to keep loving, keep learning, and keep living out their faith even after he will be leaving them. And notice that Jesus also tells them that they will not be alone even after he leaves them. He will be sending them an Advocate, the Holy Spirit who will continue to help them to grow in being the loving people that he has called them to be.
We are never done growing in our faith. I think this is what Jesus is trying to get across to the disciples. This is something that we have shared with our confirmation class. We are never done growing in our faith. It is a life long journey in becoming more and more like Jesus.
This reminds me of the old joke of the three pastors who met for lunch one day. The one pastor goes off about his problem with bats at his church. “I’ve tried everything to get rid of them, they just won’t leave.”
The second pastor added, “We have a similar problem at our church. We’ve tried cats, sprays, noise, light. They just won’t go away.”
The third pastor says, “Well, this is what worked at our church. I baptized them and confirmed them and I haven’t seen them since!”
This old joke reminds us in a cynical kind of way that confirmation and baptism are only the beginning of our walk with Jesus. As much as I loved my 3rd grade Sunday School teacher, I can’t imagine what my faith would be like if my faith stayed at a 3rd grade level. And actually, it would have been a disservice to my 3rd grade Sunday School teacher if I felt that was all I needed for the rest of my life.
I also needed other mentors, and pastors, and friends, and family members to continue to guide me in my faith through my youth and college years, and into my adult years. I needed more spiritual faith formation groups to help shape me and encourage me along the way.
I needed bible studies that would challenge my theological assumptions. I needed to hear other Christian voices who I didn’t know even existed who helped to help me see the scriptures through other lenses of faith rather than simply through my limited perspectives as important as they are.
Our confirmands will appreciate what I’m going to say next because this is one of the many things they learned about being a Methodist which I also learned during my confirmation class way back when. We talked about the Wesleyan quadrilateral where we interpret scripture by using church tradition, experience, and reason.
In other words, there is no such thing as a plain reading of the Bible that is totally objective because all of us interpret scripture through our own personal lenses. The Wesleyan quadrilateral is what reminds us to be open to other ways of looking at scripture.
And this is not an overnight process. It requires a lot of wrestling, questioning, digging, praying, reading, and having conversations with other Christians who view the scriptures in ways that we had never really seen.
This doesn’t mean that our own experiences aren’t important. It just means that we don’t have the only perspective. The Wesleyan quadrilateral is what helps us to stay humble when reading the Bible because what may appear to us as the obvious meaning of a scripture passage may reflect more about our biases and assumptions.
In an article written by Kelly Edmiston, she talks about reading the Bible in context which can make all the difference in the world for how we interpret it.
In this article, she encourages us to “look behind the scriptures to discover the historical background, authors, sources and literary characteristics of it, not to mention how words that had one meaning at the time a scripture passage was written might not have a good equivalent in today’s English language.”
In her article, she adds, “think about sitting down to watch your favorite TV show, either on Hulu, Netflix, or on live TV. Before you watch the TV episode, you watch the “flashbacks” from the previous episodes and hopefully receive enough information from the entire season to have a good idea of what is about to take place in the current episode. In others words, you take in the background information before you watch the show. If you watch a random episode in the middle of the season of a TV show that you have never seen before, and without any of the background knowledge, you would likely be very confused.”
She says that “this is what it is like to read the bible without any knowledge of the time the Bible was written. Reading the bible with no knowledge of its history, authorship, culture, sources or literary characteristics will give you a very limited understanding of the bible. Without any sort of biblical background, you will have a limited perspective on what you are reading. And there will be lots of things you miss.”
And she concludes by saying, “This process of learning to think critically about scripture can be disorienting for some and outright offensive to others. But without it, we can get into some really deep trouble when it comes to interpreting the bible.”
The Wesleyan quadrilateral of using scripture, tradition, experience, and reason helps us to interpret the Bible in new and fresh ways. And I think that this is why Jesus is telling the disciples in our Gospel reading for today that he will be sending them the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is who will help us to continue to discover, explore, ask questions, and rethink our faith throughout our lifetime. We are never done growing in what it means to have a Loving Faith, a Learning Faith, and a Living Faith.
It’s this willingness to be a lifelong learner that helps us to love Jesus more and more every single day. And the more that we love Jesus, the more that we will also share God’s love with those around us.
This past December, singer, Amy Grant announced that she & her husband Vince Gill are going to host a same-sex wedding on their farm for her niece.
She received a lot of criticism for announcing this from several evangelical Christians and ministry leaders especially since Amy is known for her evangelical music ministry over her long music career. I don’t know if Amy would have announced that she would be hosting a same-sex wedding earlier in her career, but her understanding of the scriptures and who God is has grown over these many years as it should, as all of our faith should.
In defense of her decision to host a same-sex wedding, Amy offered these words, “Jesus - you just narrowed it down to two things: love God & love each other.”
And this brings us back to what I said earlier in the sermon. The whole point of being a disciple of Jesus is to know that we are loved by God, that we are to love God, and that we are to love others with God’s love. And that’s a good thing because…
“What the world needs now more than ever is love sweet love.”
What the World Needs Now
Sermon Discussion Questions
John 14:15-21
May 14, 2023
The song, “What the World Needs Now” was written by Hal David and Burt Bacharach and was sung by Dionne Warwick back in 1965. And what is so amazing about this song is that they didn’t think it would be well received, but it made it all the way up to #7 on the record chart that year. And the reason they didn’t think the song was going to be a hit is because it was written during the Vietnam War era which was dividing our country at the time. The lyrics could easily be heard as anti-war and unpatriotic.The popularity of this song just goes to show how much the world is longing for there to be more love despite our many disagreements and differences. Love is a universal language. The first words of the song are, “What the world needs now is love sweet love. It’s the only thing that there’s just too little of.”
Do you agree with the song lyrics that say that “love is the only thing there’s just too little of?”
These song lyrics tie in with our scripture reading from John’s Gospel where Jesus was preparing them for when he would be leaving them. Jesus was encouraging the disciples to continue with his ministry by following his commandments and teachings that will help them to love God and others. Notice that Jesus tells them that God will be sending God them the Holy Spirit to help them.
How does the Holy Spirit help you to love God and others?
Our discipleship strategy here at Athens First UMC is for every person to grow in having a Loving Faith, a Learning Faith, and a Living Faith. A Loving Faith is where we love God through worship and love others through fellowship and small groups. A Learning Faith is where we learn about Jesus’ teachings so help us be loving as God is loving. A Living Faith is where we love God and others by serving and helping others.
Share an example of how this discipleship strategy has helped you to love God and others through having a Loving Faith, Learning Faith, and Living Faith.
Since Jesus was telling the disciples to keep his commandments, it’s important for us to grow in our understanding of the scriptures. Our Wesleyan quadrilateral is a tool that can help us to interpret the scriptures in new and fresh ways. The quadrilateral includes interpreting the scriptures through the lenses of tradition, experience, and reason. These lenses open us up to new ways of understanding the Bible.
In what ways has your faith perspective and understanding of the Bible changed over time? Who or what helped you to see the your faith and the scriptures in a new light?
Pastor Robert shared a recent quote from contemporary Christian singer, Amy Grant. In response to a lot of heavy criticism she received from several evangelical Christians and ministry leaders regarding her decision to host her niece’s same sex wedding ceremony, she said, “Jesus - you just narrowed it down to two things: love God and love each other.” Amy’s faith perspective has evolved over the years. Her quote picks up on the theme of Jesus’ words to his disciples to love God and others through his teachings.
What helps you to keep love at the center of your faith?
Close your time by praying this prayer from last Sunday’s worship service:
Nurturing God, thank you for your love which always reminds us that we are your blessed, beloved, and beautiful children. Like a loving mother, reassure us that we always belong to you. Open our hearts to receive your love and share it with others. Speak truth to us, even when we would rather hide from the truth of our mistaken ways. Forgive our foolishness. Unveil our sins and shortcomings, that we might be clothed with your mercy and covered with your grace. With hearts open to receive your love anew every day, finish then thy new creation; pure and spotless let us be. Amen.
Sunday, May 14, 2023
Online Worship (May 14) Athens First UMC
Welcome to our
May 14
online worship service!
Athens First UMC
2 S. College St., Athens, OH 45701
[Live-Stream Begins @ 10:25 AM]
Wednesday, May 10, 2023
Monday, May 8, 2023
Sermon (May 7) by Rev. Robert McDowell
I love visiting church buildings. There are so many different architectural designs. I remember when I first entered this building, I was struck by the beautiful simplicity of the sanctuary, the perfect symmetry, and just the large space that it provides for people to worship together.
But I also appreciate other architectural church designs. My previous church had beautiful stained glass windows. There were times on a Sunday morning when the early morning sun would often shine at just the right angle through one of those vivid and multi-colored stained glass windows. It was so striking that I would have to pause my sermon and appreciate that glorious gift of God’s light shining into our sanctuary.
Several years ago, I officiated at a wedding at a large church in Indiana. That sanctuary was in the shape of a cross so that when the people gathered for worship, they actually were forming the cross of Jesus.
I’ve been thinking about that particular sanctuary design because of our appointed New Testament scripture reading from I Peter, chapter 2. The apostle Peter is reminding us that we as people of faith are “living stones.”
In verse 4, Peter writes, “Come to him (meaning Jesus) a living stone, though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God’s sight, and like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”
As one of our hymns reminds us, “The church is not a building, the church is not a steeple. We are the church. You are the church. We are the church together!”Peter is reminding us that the church is not the building. It’s the people. It’s people like you and me who have been called by God to be the church together.
Our church was especially reminded of this back in 1955 when the building prior to this one was destroyed by a fire. That happened on an early Saturday morning when it burnt down but it didn’t stop the congregation from worshipping that very next morning just a block from here at Memaud Auditorioum on the OU campus.
Nothing was going to stop the congregation from being the church, not even a devastating fire because the people knew that the church was more than the building! They were the church together!
For the first 15 years of our church’s history, from 1800 to 1815, we didn’t even have a church building. The people met for prayer and worship in people’s homes during those early years.
So yes, we know a little bit about what Peter is talking about in this scripture reading. We are the living stones that make up Athens First United Methodist Church.
Speaking of the 1955 fire that destroyed our previous church building, it took three years for the congregation to build our current church building. In April, 1957, a little less than one year before the new building would be finally completed, the congregation held an outside cornerstone laying ceremony. They had their regular worship service at Memaud Auditorium and then walked over to this location for that special cornerstone ceremony.
We actually have a video from that day on April 28, 1957 when that cornerstone ceremony was held. Let’s watch a brief portion of that video that happened 66 years ago. One of the church members at the time, John Dowler describes this event for us.
By the way, this video and another one are on our church’s website. Just look for the “Our History” tab and click on it and you’ll see a couple of videos related to our church’s history.
The reason that I mention this is that during that cornerstone laying ceremony, one of the prayers had this little phrase that we have been using as one of our daily prayers. We call it the 4:57 prayer with 4 referring to the month of April and 57 referring to the year when this cornerstone service was held.
When I saw this little phrase in that prayer, it just really stood out for me because it reminds us that it’s not really about the bricks and mortar of a new church building. It’s about God’s spirit at work in each of our lives.
Here’s the 4:57 prayer: “O God, baptize us afresh with the life-giving Spirit of Jesus.” Say that with me, “O God, baptize us afresh with the life-giving Spirit of Jesus.”
It’s an easy prayer to remember for us to say at 4:57 each day to remind us that we are each living stones. “Baptize us afresh with the life-giving Spirit of Jesus.”
This is what Peter is wanting us to remember in this part of his letter. Remember, that you are living stones whose foundation is Jesus Christ who is our church’s cornerstone. The church isn’t referring to the building. It’s primarily the people in the congregation who are helping one another to be built into a spiritual house.
In fact, Peter even expands beyond referring to us as living stones. Peter reminds us that we are a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people! And so, if you are ever feeling down on yourself, remember these titles that God has given you. You are part of a royal priesthood because Jesus Christ is your chief cornerstone!
Peter emphasizes this point in the last verse of this scripture passage by saying, “Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.” God has given us this identity in order that we may proclaim the mighty acts of God who has called us out of darkness and into his marvelous light.
This is what it means to be baptized and to be part of the church family. We have been claimed by God to not only live in God’s light but to shine God’s light to the people around us.
I see the many ways that each one of you live out what it means to be living stones for God. You are constantly shining God’s marvelous light in so many wonderful ways through welcoming people to church, especially those who are here for the first time.
You shine God’s marvelous light by offering your gift of music, by teaching a children’s Sunday School class, by serving as a confirmation mentor, by coordinating our Angel Tree ministry so that children can receive Christmas gifts, by helping to serve meals for Monday Lunch.
You shine God’s marvelous light by being there by someone’s side when their spouse is critically ill in the hospital. You shine God’s marvelous light by arranging and delivering flowers to the patients and staff at the hospital. You shine God’s marvelous light when you offer your gift of music through our music ministry.
You shine God’s marvelous light by praying for the prayer needs of our congregation on Tuesday mornings, by serving as a small group facilitator, by offering your time as a worship reader, preparing Sunday morning refreshments, stocking our Blessing Box shelves with non-perishable food. You shine God’s marvelous light by making prayer shawls for people who are going through a difficult time in their lives, by serving as a Stephen Minister and offering a listening ear to someone who is facing a transition in their lives.
You shine God’s marvelous light by providing a meal for a grieving family, by serving as an AV volunteer so that people who can’t attend worship are still able to worship with us online. And God bless those of you who share God’s marvelous light by repairing things around the church, something for which pastors are always eternally grateful.
I remember a conversation that I had with Todd Bradford who was our Maintenance Director when I came to this church 8 years ago. I said to him one day, “Todd, I can’t repair anything. In fact, I probably break half of the things that you have to fix in this church!”
And I’ll never forget what Todd said to me. He said, “Well, there is no way that I can do what you do as pastor. We all have our different gifts.”
He made me feel so much better about myself! It’s OK to not be able to do what you see others doing. Let them do their thing. You do your thing. That’s what makes the church such a special place when we are all doing our thing and when we are each shining God’s marvelous light in our own unique ways.
You are each living stones that make up this beautiful church. You are each part of a royal priesthood, a holy nation, and God’s own people. That is your truest identity in life and there is nothing in this entire world that can ever, ever offer you anything more valuable than that.
Oh, and did you notice from our appointed Gospel reading today that as God’s royal priesthood and living stones, you also get a house! Jesus said to his disciples as he was preparing to leave them, “In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places.”
And your house isn’t just waiting for you in heaven, it’s wherever you are gathered with God’s people like we are doing today. We are the living stones that make up God’s house with Jesus Christ being the cornerstone.
To help us remember who we are and that we are living stones who make up the church together, we are invited to remember our baptism this morning.
When you come forward to receive the Sacrament of Holy Communion, you are also invited to first come to the baptismal font, dip your hand in the water and take one of the small stones from that bowl of water to take with you. Let that small stone always remind you that you are part of God’s royal family and a living stone who shines God’s marvelous light.
May we each be baptized afresh with the life-giving Spirit of Jesus.
A Living Stone
Sermon Discussion Questions
I Peter 2:2-10 & John 14:1-14
May 7, 2023
There are many different architectural designs for church buildings. Some have beautiful stained glass windows and others utilize a Georgian style with lots of symmetry like our church building. Some sanctuaries are in the shape of the cross so that when the congregation gathers for worship, they form the cross of Jesus.
Share some church building architectural designs that you find interesting and meaningful.
As beautiful as some church building can be, our I Peter appointed scripture reading reminds us that we are living stones that make up the church. Jesus is our cornerstone. Later in this scripture passage we are told that as living stones we are a royal priesthood, a holy nation and God’s own people. And because we are God’s living stones, we are called to shine God’s marvelous light.
Share some examples of people in our church who are shining God’s marvelous light.
We all shine God’s marvelous light in different ways because we are all unique and we have a variety of gifts.
What are some gifts that God has given you to shine as a living stone of God?
Our 4:57 PM daily prayer that is based on our church building’s April,1957 cornerstone ceremony includes these words from a prayer that was in that service: “O God, baptize us afresh with the life-giving Spirit of Jesus. Amen.” You can watch the short 2-minute video of that April 28, 1957 cornerstone ceremony in the video above in the sermon.
How can this simply daily prayer remind you that we are God’s living stones? What does it mean to you to be baptized afresh in the life-giving Spirit of Jesus?
Close your time with this prayer from Sunday’s worship service:
Lord Jesus, thank you for being the church’s one foundation. Forgive us for when we have not acknowledged you as our true cornerstone. Once we were not your people, but now we are your people. Once we had not received mercy, but now we have received mercy. Thank you for calling us out of darkness and into your marvelous light. We are so blessed to be part of the family of God. With grateful hearts, we pray. Amen.