Holy Hump Day (September 28) with Pastor Robert

Today’s Focus:

Churchy Words

Sermon (September 25) by Rev. Robert McDowell

    Today is the 3rd part of a 7 week series on instructions Paul is giving to Timothy, who was a young pastor serving a church in the region of Ephesus. Unlike today, where becoming a pastor can be a long time of preparation that includes a Master of Divinity degree, pastor’s licensing school, and a very in depth credentialing process, Timothy had to learn on the fly.

     Actually, Timothy had spent a lot of time with Paul during his missionary journey and now Paul is giving Timothy important tips in what it means to be a pastoral leader of a church. 

     For the first Sunday of our Dear Timothy series, the pastoral tip was for Timothy to set a culture where God’s overflowing love and grace welcomes all people. Last Sunday, the pastoral tip was to emphasize the importance of prayer which includes praying for our needs, the needs of others, and offering prayers of thanksgiving. Paul wants Timothy to have a praying church.

     For today, Paul’s spiritual tip to Timothy is for him to continue to pursue a godly life. We find this in the final part of his letter to Timothy. Paul uses the word, “godliness” twice in our scripture reading for this morning. In verse 6, Paul writes that “there is great gain in godliness.” And then in verse 11, Paul writes, “pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, gentleness.”

     One of the Bible commentaries that I read said that to pursue a godly life is to pursue an alternative way of living where we are seeking to live out God’s kingdom here on earth. This is why Paul uses words like “righteousness, faith, love, endurance, gentleness, and contentment,” in what it means to pursue a godly life. 

     Those are words that describe Jesus. Jesus sought righteousness in making this world a better place. He had faith in which he trusted God who was leading him. Jesus endured the many challenges that came his way. He showed gentleness with the people he encountered including his enemies and those who were marginalized. And Jesus was content and knew that what God had given him was sufficient to fulfill God’s purposes through him.

     Pursing godliness means that we live our lives in such a way where we demonstrate a Christlike approach in how we live out our lives. I like this meaning of the word, “godliness” much more than what first came to my mind when I read that word from our scripture reading. 

     For many people, the word, “godliness” is associated with someone who acts holier than thou, who comes across as judgmental, and who has a very narrow way of interpreting scripture. Chances are that you have probably come across some Christians like that. And we all are susceptible to coming across that way as well.

 

     I like Paul’s description of what it means to be godly which is rooted in who Jesus is; a seeker of righteousness and a person of faith, love, endurance, and gentleness.

     In this scripture passage from I Timothy, Paul also emphasizes the importance of contentment in living a godly life. He mentions contentment twice. Paul knows that the love of money can lead to a lack of contentment. 

     This scripture reading includes one of the most misquoted verses in the Bible. Paul writes in verse 10, “For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.” It often gets misquoted as simply, “money is the root of all kinds of evil,” but the phrase is “the love of money.”

     Paul wants Timothy to know that being rich in good works, being generous, and being ready to share with others is what leads to contentment and a life that really is life. That’s actually how Paul puts it in verse 19; “Taking hold of the life that really is life.”

     I know that downplaying becoming rich might not go over so well here in a university community where people come here in pursuit of hopefully making a lot of money in a future career. Paul even says how focusing on money above everything else can lead people to wander from the faith and lead to pain and a lack of contentment. 

     This reminds me of something my mom used to say a lot. She would tell me how she and dad were the happiest when they were poor. And then she would follow that up that with the punch line, “Which is why we’ve always been really happy.”

     To this day, I don’t know how mom and dad who didn’t make a whole lot of money were able to provide for their four children, help us go to college, take us on vacations, gave us a wonderful place to live, and were also generous in helping others and giving to the church. Well, I did have to wear my brother’s hand me downs so there was that, but still, to this day, I still wonder how they did it.

     My only answer is that they maximized what they had, they worked hard, they lived within their means, and they just really loved us. They certainly did what Paul writes in his letter to Timothy, “They stored up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they could take hold of the life that really is life.”

     What a life we had while growing up. Full use of exploring the farm, building dams in the creek that ran through our meadow, making hay forts in the barn, not to mention tree houses. Drinking lemonade on our front porch after a long day of mowing our large yard. Playing croquet matches in the meadow. Going to church together. Just enjoying life!

     Wow, did I have it good or what? Thank you mom and dad. Thank you for having a faith that pursued godliness in the best sense of that word. Thank you for making the best with what you had and for being content. I know that there are many people who didn’t have that kind of love and happiness growing up which is why I will always be thankful for their pursuit of godliness.

     Beyond parents and family, God places people in our path who have lived a godly life and have taken hold of the life that is really life.  I think of people in my home church who taught Sunday School, led bible studies, and served as pastors. These are the people who have made a positive impact on my life.

     Sky McCraken is a United Methodist pastor in Jackson, Tennessee. He writes about Bette who was a member of his church and was an example of someone who lived a godly life. She lived on a very limited income and had a variety of health and mobility challenges. He said that she could also try his patience. Sometimes, Bette would bring him small trinkets, one of them being a cross that she had made out of clothespins.

     During the funeral for Bette, one of the church members, Nancy who helped settle her estate shared how Bette had lived a godly life. She said that she had found a spiral noteback that was Bette’s ledger. It included her contributions to the church. 

     Bette had very little, but in comparison to what she had, she was a very generous giver to the church. During her eulogy, Nancy said, “I wept when I realized how generous this woman was, and how little she kept for herself.”

     He also shared about a man in his congregation named, Morris. Morris had built up a very successful business during his lifetime. He was very generous in giving to the church and supporting the community.

     Morris paid for a lot of college tuitions and funeral expenses over the years for his employees and their families who were financially challenged. Morris could have driven any car he wanted but instead drove old vehicles until they fell apart. He believed that the church and those who had been entrusted with much should live out what Jesus said to love and care for one another.

     When I think of someone who lives a godly life, one of the first persons that comes to my mind is Bishop Gregory Palmer of our West Ohio Conference. Bishop Palmer oversees our 1,000 United Methodist Churches that extends from the western border of Ohio, much of the northern border of our state, and all the way over to southeast Ohio, including Marietta. 

[Bishop Gregory Palmer, West Ohio Conference UMC]

     Being a Bishop is a very challenging and demanding job because you are responsible for making sure that each church is matched with the right pastor. It’s really an impossible task, but he does his very best with the support of his eight district superintendents. 

     When it was first announced several years ago that he would be assigned as our Bishop, I called a pastor friend of mine in Illinois where Bishop Palmer was serving at the time. I asked him what kind of Bishop we would be getting here in West Ohio.

     I was just expecting to hear some general thoughts about his leadership but he ended up going into great detail about him. He didn’t use the word, “godly” but what he described for me is exactly what Paul is telling Timothy to be a person who“pursues righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness.”

     He said that we would be getting a Bishop who encourages and prays for his pastors and who is open to the diversity of theological opinions that are represented in our conference. He also said that we would be getting one of the best preachers we have ever heard. 

     Some of you have heard Bishop Palmer preach. He’s been here at our church 2 or 3 times since I’ve been here as your pastor. He loves to preach in this great big sanctuary. And if you have heard Bishop Palmer preach, you know that he likes to raise the volume of his voice in order to make an important spiritual point. He is a powerful preacher. I refer to him as a holy freight train when he preaches.

     But Bishop Palmer is also one of the most genuine and down to earth people you will ever meet. He called me one day to ask if I would serve on a conference committee but he spent most of the time asking about Penny and our family and ministry here at Athens First. When Bishop Palmer enters a room, you really can feel the presence of Jesus. 

     One of the pastors in our conference referred to him this way in which I heartily add my Amen. Here’s what she said: “Bishop Palmer's heart and passion can't help but bubble out and through. Grateful for his heart of deep and abiding gratitude and faithfulness!”

     You can just tell when someone is living a godly life, a life where they are taking hold of the life that really is life. This is why Paul is telling Timothy in this last chapter of his letter to be that kind of pastor and that kind of church where people are pursuing righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness. And then Paul tells Timothy to fight that good fight and to put his energy in living that kind of godly life.

     And we are all invited to be people who live that life, a life that can fill up a room with the love of Jesus.

    In his biography of St. Antony who inspired many through his faith during the 4th century, Athanasius wrote this rhetorical question about him where he asks, “Whoever met Antony grieving and failed to go away rejoicing?”

     May people say that about us as well.

Dear Timothy, Pursue a Godly Life

Sermon Discussion Questions

I Timothy 6:6-19

September 25, 2022

We are in the 3rd part of a 7-week sermon series focusing on two letters that the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy who was one of the young pastors of the early church. In addition to these two letters to Timothy, Paul also wrote a similar letter to Titus, also a pastor at that time. These three letters that the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy and Titus have become known as “The Pastoral Letters;” I Timothy, II Timothy, and Titus. One bible scholar states that the reason Paul wrote these letters was to instruct Timothy and Titus in providing the pastoral leadership needed to help people in the church commit their lives to Christ, serve his kingdom, and to worship God. 

If you were asked to offer some words of advice to somebody who recently became a Christian, what would you share with that person?

For this week’s word of instruction to young Timothy, the Apostle Paul encourages Timothy to pursue a godly life. Paul describes a godly life in this way, “pursuing righteousness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness.” A little later in this scripture passage, Paul adds this description, “take hold of the life that really is life.”

How are these descriptive words about a godly life similar to your definition? What other descriptive words would you add to the list?

Paul also describes godliness as being content and he specifically writes, “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.” This is one of the most misquoted verses in the Bible. Many people leave out the phrase, “for the love of” in reciting this verse. 

What do you think Paul means when he says, “The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil?” How does this relate to being able to live a godly life?

Pastor Robert offered several examples of people living a godly life as described by the Apostle Paul. They live out their faith in such a way that they are seeking righteousness, faith, love, endurance, gentleness, generosity, and contentment. They are also taking hold of the life that is really life.

Share an example of someone who has demonstrated a godly life and how has that helped you in your own pursuit of a godly life?

Close by praying our Sunday worship prayer about being a person who pursues a godly life:

O Lord, we confess that we allow the cares of the world to rob us of our peace and contentment. Our anxieties and fears often get the better of us. We spend so much of our energy and time chasing after the pleasures of this world. Remind us to pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness. May our love for you be our most cherished treasure in life. To you, be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.

Online Worship (September 25) Athens First UMC

Welcome to our 

September 25

online worship service!

Athens First UMC

2 S. College St., Athens, OH 45701

[Live-Stream Begins @ 10:25 AM]

Holy Hump Day (September 21) with Pastor Robert

Today’s Focus:

Taking a Tour of Our

Church’s Bible Garden

Sermon (September 18) by Rev. Robert McDowell

    Last Sunday, we began a 7-week sermon series that we are calling, “Dear Timothy.” Our appointed New Testament readings during these weeks take us through the two letters that the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy. 

     These two letters are known as “The Pastoral Letters” because in these letters Paul is offering pastoral instructions to young Timothy who is pastoring the church in Ephesus.

     Actually, I don’t know why Paul wrote these letters to Timothy. He could have saved a lot of time by simply sending Timothy this website link that says at the top of the homepage:

     “Online ordination is fast, easy, and completely free. To become a minister, start by clicking the button below!” 

     And this website also provides free training information for officiating at a wedding, a baptism, a funeral, starting your own church, and delivering a sermon. You might have noticed that my sermons have been a little better lately. I clicked on that link. 

     I like the part from that sermon training link that says, “When speaking on controversial subjects, it is best to tread lightly.” I mean, there is some really good information in there. And a lot of it is free! No 3 year Master of Divinity degree needed! Just click whatever lin you need. How easy is that??

     Well, it really isn’t that simple which is why Paul is taking the time to write these letters to Timothy. The big advantage that Paul has in instructing Timothy is that unlike these online instant clergy websites, Paul actually knows Timothy pretty well because they have already been in ministry together.

     This personal connection between Paul and Timothy goes back to Paul’s 1st of 3 missionary journeys that we can read about in the Book of Acts. During his 1st missionary journey, Paul had founded new churches in Asia Minor which included the cities of Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe.

     

     During Paul’s 2nd missionary journey, he revisits these new churches and meets Timothy for the first time. The other connection is that Paul knew Timothy’s grandmother and mother, Lois and Eunice because they were two of Paul’s first converts from the Jewish community in Lystra. Most likely, Timothy became a follower of Jesus in between Paul’s 1st two missionary journeys.

     Paul could see in Timothy a person who would be good to assist him in his missionary journey.

     The other reason I think that Paul saw Timothy as a future pastoral leader is because Timothy’s father was a Gentile and his mother was Jewish. Paul knew that God would be able to use him since the good news of Jesus is meant to be shared with both Jews and Gentiles.

     As Paul’s trusted missionary companion, he was able to send Timothy to check on the various churches he had founded. We know that Paul and Timothy had a close relationship in these early years of ministry together because in other letters, Paul refers to Timothy as his “co-worker,” as his “son,” as “his child,” and as “his brother.”

     Unlike getting trained to be a pastor by reading a couple of articles on the internet, Timothy already knew Paul and served in ministry with him. Timothy has already seen first-hand what is needed to help a church to grow and he also experienced the challenges and the obstacles that can keep a church from living out it’s faith and mission. 

     And now years later, Timothy is pastoring a church in Ephesus and Paul is providing him with these two letters of instructions to continue to help him lead his churches. 

     For Paul’s first instruction to Timothy which we looked at last week, the focus was on setting a culture in the church where all are welcomed and included. And Paul does this by opening his letter to Timothy by emphasizing the overflowing grace and mercy of Jesus Christ. 

     Setting a culture in which God’s grace is emphasized and where everyone is loved and included is so important because there are many people who feel more judged by the church than they do accepted by the church. 

     And this is why we have this welcome statement that we display whenever we can. Let’s read our welcome statement together:

     For this week here in chapter two of his letter, Paul reminds Timothy to emphasize prayer in his church. He writes, “I urge you that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for everyone.” 

     Paul concludes that sentence by adding “for kings and all who are in high positions.” I’ll come back to that specific prayer instruction a little later. For now, I want to focus on the first part of Paul’s instructions to Timothy.

     Paul urges Timothy to have a church that offers up prayers of supplication, intercession, and thanksgivings for everyone. 

🙏 Prayers of Supplication 🙏

     Let’s focus on prayers of supplication. These are prayers in which we are asking God for something. These are probably the most popular type of prayers where we have a need; maybe it’s a need for guidance and direction, maybe we are in need of some type of healing, maybe we are in need of forgiveness for something we have done or left undone. There all kinds of examples of prayers of supplication.

     One of the things I have been working in my own spiritual life is to not minimize my own personal prayer needs. For example, I’m pretty good at praying for others but sometimes, I neglect to include myself in my own prayers. 

     And when we neglect our own personal prayer needs, we can become spiritually empty. So, to all of you who sometimes forget your own personal prayer needs, Paul is urging us to take time for ourselves as well.

🙏 Prayers of Intercession 🙏

     Paul also urges Timothy to have his church offer prayers of intercessions which refer to those prayers that we lift up on behalf of others. Our weekly pastoral prayer during the worship service is an opportunity for us to lift up prayer needs both locally as well as around the world. 

     Our weekly Sunday Connect Cards provide us with a great way to share our intercessions, our prayer needs with our church family. And with permission, we send those prayer needs out to the people who are signed up to receive our email prayer chain. 

     Every week, these requests from Sunday morning are sent out to the prayer chain. These prayer requests are a great resource for us to see what is on the hearts of our church family and it’s another opportunity to pray for the needs of others.

     I was having a conversation one day with a church member who attends another church when her phone started ringing. She said to me, “Sorry, I need to take this call.” 

     It was an automated call from her church that asked people to pray for someone who was about to have surgery that morning. After she hung up the phone, she bowed her head for about 30 seconds praying for that person who was about to have surgery. After she prayed, we resumed our conversation. This was a great example of a prayer of intercession not just in the middle of the day, but in the middle of a conversation.

🙏 Prayers of Thanksgiving 🙏

     And then Paul urges Timothy to have his church offer prayers of thanksgiving. It’s wonderful that we can pray for our own needs as well as the needs of others, but it’s also important that we offer prayers of thanksgiving for our many blessings. 

     Paul excelled at this in the letters he wrote. He often begins his letters with prayers of thanksgiving. In one of his letters he abruptly pauses and offers a short prayer of praise and thanksgiving to God and then continues on with his letter. I love how Paul was able to have prayer interrupt his daily work. What’s that hymn writer tell us to do? “Every time I feel the Spirit moving in my heart, I will pray.”

     Our church was reminded of the importance of prayers of thanksgiving a couple of months ago during our “Thanksgiving in July” sermon series. Prayers of thanksgiving aren’t just meant for around the Thanksgiving table in November. They are meant to be prayed throughout the year! God has blessed us in so many ways and prayers of thanksgiving remind us of those blessings.

     Paul is urging Timothy to encourage his church to be a church that offers prayers of supplication, prayers of intercession, and prayers of thanksgiving.

 

     Paul adds specific instructions about praying for everyone including kings and all who are in high positions. You read that and you wonder why Paul mentions that specific group of people. 

     Paul’s big goal was to share the good news of Jesus Christ with the entire world which was governed by the Roman Empire. Even when he was establishing several churches in Asia Minor, he also wanted to eventually share the gospel in Rome and even in Spain.  Paul always had this big picture in mind, this global picture in mind where the good news of Jesus would be shared throughout the world.

     In addition to being globally minded, Paul who believed that Jesus was the true king and ruler over all creation also knew that God uses earthly rulers to help hold the world together through their rule, leadership, and authority.     

     For the past several months, I have become more aware of the need to expand my own prayers for world rulers because of the war in Ukraine. I have to admit that before February when Russia invaded Ukraine, I can’t tell you the last time that I had prayed for the United Nations, but since February, they have been in my constant prayers.

     The famous 20th century theologian Karl Barth was known to say, “Keep the bible in one hand and your newspaper in the other.” 

     Barth said this because he believed that in order for God to speak to us through his Word, our faith should always be informed by the events that are taking place in our community, in our country, and throughout the world. If God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, it’s important for us to be aware of the needs of the world that God loves so much.

     Paul encourages Timothy to have a praying church; prayers of supplication, prayers of intercession, and prayers of thanksgiving.

     In a church I was serving, I was walking down one of the hallways on a weekday afternoon, and noticed out of the corner of my eye two of our youth praying together just outside the chapel door. As I continued walking by, a smile came to my face and I remember thinking, “We must be doing something right.”

     Emphasize prayer!

Dear Timothy, Emphasize Prayer

Sermon Discussion Questions

I TImothy 2:1-7 & Luke 16:1-13

September 18, 2022

We are in the 2nd part of a 7-week sermon series focusing on two letters that the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy who was one of the young pastors of the early church. In addition to these two letters to Timothy, Paul also wrote a similar letter to Titus, also a pastor at that time. These three letters that the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy and Titus have become known as “The Pastoral Letters;” I Timothy, II Timothy, and Titus. One bible scholar states that the reason Paul wrote these letters was to instruct Timothy and Titus in providing the pastoral leadership needed to help people in the church commit their lives to Christ, serve his kingdom, and to worship God.

What spiritual thought or instruction has someone shared with you to help you in your spiritual journey? 

The Apostle Paul already knew Timothy really well when he wrote his letters of pastoral instructions to him. Timothy had served with Paul during one of his missionary journeys. They worked together in encouraging the new churches that had been started.

Share a time when you served in ministry with someone or with a team of people. What helped you to get to know one another by serving together?

Last week, Paul’s instruction to Timothy was to set a culture in which God’s overflowing grace and mercy welcomes all people into the church family. For this week’s instruction to Timothy, Paul wants Timothy to emphasize prayer in his church. Paul writes to Timothy, “I urge you that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for everyone.”  - I Timothy 2:1 

Prayers of supplications refers to the prayers that we offer up for our own personal needs. Pastor Robert mentioned that people who pray a lot for others often forget to remember to prayer for themselves!

What prayers of supplication would you like to lift up today?

Prayers of intercession refers to the prayers that we offer up on behalf of others. 

What prayers of intercession would you like to lift up today?

Prayers of thanksgiving refers to to the prayers that we offer up thanking God for our blessings.

What prayers of thanksgiving would you like to lift up today?

In I Timothy 2:2, Paul adds this specific instruction to Timothy about prayer: pray for “kings and all who are in high positions, so that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and dignity.” During Paul’s day, this would have meant praying for the rulers in the Roman Empire. Even though the early Christians would not have approved of the brutal and inhuman tactics of the Roman Empire, Paul was still encouraging Christians to pray for these rulers.

What prayers for world rulers would you like to lift up today?

As you reflect on today’s instruction from Paul of the importance of emphasizing prayers of supplication, intercession, and thanksgivings, share how you strive to make prayer part of your daily routine.

Our opening Sunday worship prayer that we say in unison is a prayer that we include in these sermon discussion questions. This prayer centers on the theme of our worship service for that particular Sunday and it also offers us an opportunity to confess our sins. Here is this past Sunday’s opening prayer to offer to God today:

O God, like today’s psalmist we cry out to you, “deliver us and forgive our sins.” We offer this prayer because you are the God of our salvation. You are the one who can make us new again. Help us to be a church that offers to you our supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings. Forgive us for whenever we rely on our own strength, abilities, and wisdom without first consulting you. You sent us Jesus who is the way, the truth, and the life! Why wouldn’t we turn to you often in prayer? Teach us to be a praying church as we seek to be your faithful people. Amen.

Online Worship (September 18) Athens First UMC

Welcome to our 

September 18

online worship service!

Athens First UMC

2 S. College St., Athens, OH 45701

[Live-Stream Begins @ 10:25 AM]

Holy Hump Day (September 14) with Pastor Robert

Today’s Focus:

Holy Cross Day

Sermon (September 11) by Rev. Robert McDowell

    Today, we begin a 7-week sermon series focusing on two letters that the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy who was one of the young pastors of the early church. In addition to these two letters to Timothy, Paul also wrote a similar letter to Titus, also a pastor at that time. These three letters that the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy and Titus have become known as “The Pastoral Letters;” I Timothy, II Timothy, and Titus.

     The reason we will be spending seven weeks focusing on I & II Timothy, is because these are the appointed New Testament readings for these 7 Sundays and I think these letters have a lot to teach us about what it means to be the church. 

     In preparing for this series, one of the bible scholars I was reading mentioned  that the reason the Apostle Paul wrote these letters was to instruct Timothy on providing the pastoral leadership needed to help people in the church commit their lives to Christ, serve his kingdom, and to worship God.

     This is why it’s important to have pastors and Leadership Boards who provide the necessary leadership to help churches to be clear about their mission, discipleship strategy, and core values. Without strong leadership, the church can easily drift away from it’s purpose, vision, and strategy. 

     Sometimes, even with strong leadership, it can be challenging to help the church to move in the same direction together and that’s because the church can be a very busy place with a lot of moving parts. 

     In addition to this 7-week sermon series being a way to justify job security for pastors, it’s really meant to help us see the church from a larger perspective that we do not often take time to see. Sometimes this larger perspective of the church can help us to see how everything is meant to fit together and support the larger mission and direction of the church.

     Before we get started, I think it’s important to know who Timothy was. Besides these two letters that Paul wrote to Timothy, his name is mentioned in nine other New Testament letters. He’s either included in Paul’s opening greeting or he is simply named as one of Paul’s messengers and co-workers in sharing the gospel.

     Pastors like Timothy and Titus were people who were entrusted to provide pastoral leadership for a church in a particular geographical area. For example, Timothy was pastor of the church in the region of Ephesus and Titus was the pastor of the church in the region of Crete. 

     So who are pastors, anyway? Does anybody really know what pastors do? I sure would like to know! 

     Actually, the title gives it a way. Pastors are shepherds who are entrusted with the care of their flock. And as we mentioned just a little bit ago, pastors are to provide leadership in helping the people of their church to commit to Christ, serve Christ’s kingdom, and worship God.

     The first thing that Paul wants Timothy to focus on from our scripture reading today. “Dear Timothy, set a culture in the church where all are welcome and included.” Set a culture in the church where all are welcome and included.

     Here in the opening of Paul’s letter to Timothy, the Apostle Paul writes how God’s mercy reached out to him, the chief of all sinners and led him to faith in Christ. Paul calls himself the chief of all sinners because of how he had persecuted Christians prior to his conversion. Twice in this part of the letter, Paul writes how he received mercy from God. And he also writes how the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ overflowed for him.

     I don’t know what it is about religion, but a lot of times people use their religion as a platform to exclude people. I’m sure you’ve experienced this as well. There must be something about human nature where we feel the need to be judgy toward others. Humans in general love to be judgy and throw religion in the mix, and we can become even extra judgy. 

     When we put ourselves in a position to judge others and use our religion as a justification to exclude people or make ourselves look better than others, than we have missed the whole point of being a people of faith. Yes, God wants to shape and mold us into the people God is calling us to be, but our primary calling is to love people into the church, not judge people out of the church.

     This theme of God’s grace is also prominent in our Gospel reading for today from Luke. I love how the first verse of that reading begins, “Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him, (meaning Jesus.”) And then we read how the religious leaders, the Pharisees and scribes were grumbling when they saw Jesus spending time with these people and they said, “This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.”

     And as Jesus so often does, instead of lecturing those religious leaders about loving and not judging others, he then tells them a parable about the joy you experience when something is lost is finally found. Jesus was focusing on God’s welcoming grace, not on worrying about who is included or not included.

     Look at how the Apostle Paul begins his letter to Timothy. He writes, “Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the command of God our Savior and of Christ Jesus our hope, to Timothy, my loyal child in the faith: Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.” In just the first couple of lines in Paul’s letter to Timothy, he mentions God’s grace and mercy.

     Just a few verses down from that opening greeting in his letter to Timothy, Paul writes about the importance of teaching doctrine that is true to the faith and then he writes, “The aim of such instruction is love that comes from a pure heart, a good conscience, and a sincere faith.”

      In the verses that follow, Paul does offer examples of people who live in a way that is not loving and where they are causing harm toward others. This is all the more reason why Paul wants Timothy to help the church set a culture in which the church celebrates and lives out God’s overflowing love that welcomes all and will not leave us the same.

     When I came here to be your pastor over seven years ago, I could tell that this was a very loving and welcoming congregation. I remember the first day I walked into this building. I can’t totally explain it, but I could sense the many prayers that had been lifted up during that time of pastoral transition. I could also sense a lot of love in this place.

     There was already a culture here of being open and welcoming. As Paul wrote to Timothy in our scripture reading for today, I felt God’s overflowing love in this place. An overflowing love that welcomes all and includes all.

     One of our church’s themes is that we want to be a haven of blessing and peace for all people. To be a haven of blessing and peace is to be a place where people know that this is a safe space for them.

     Here is a picture of a welcome sign we added in front of our building following the 2019 special General Conference of our denomination which ended up adding even more restrictive language regarding LGBTQ issues. That conference made national news and we wanted our community to know that contrary to our denomination’s restrictive policies, we are a church that welcomes everyone. 

[Trey Pearson, Sing/Songwriter]

     Another time when I knew that our church was welcoming and affirming was when we invited Christian singer, Trey Pearson to sing here in our church. Trey was a lead singer for a popular Christian band, “Everyday Sunday” and when he publicly came out as gay and was not allowed to perform a concert here in our community, we invited him to our church on a Sunday morning where he was able to share his painful story of being excluded from the Christian community just because of his sexual orientation. 

     After he sang for us during worship, he received a standing ovation from all of you. That moment will probably go down as the most moving worship moments in all my years of pastoral ministry.

     When people feel welcomed and loved in your church, that’s when you know that you have a church culture where God’s mercy and love are overflowing. But here’s the thing to keep in mind about setting a church culture. A church culture has a shelf life. It’s something that can quickly expire. It’s something we always need to work on and offer our time and energy. 

     Being open and inclusive can be challenging which is another reason why it’s something that requires our prayerful attention and focus.

 

     And if I can be really honest with you, a lot of my personal struggle with being inclusive and open is in how often I’m not very inclusive and open to my more socially conservative Christian brothers and sisters. 

     Hey, I am really, really good at accepting people who look like me, act like me, vote like me and think like me! But not so good at accepting anyone else. I guess you can say that I am not very tolerant of intolerance which makes me intolerant. 

     No wonder why the Apostle Paul feels the need to write these letters to Timothy. He knows it’s not easy to set a culture in the church where people truly know that this is a haven of blessing and peace. Paul knows that it’s always a process in not only leading a church to be more open, inclusive, and welcoming, but also in where we personally are also striving to be more open, inclusive, and welcoming.

     In this first chapter of his letter, Paul is encouraging not only Timothy, but all of us here in this church to always be intentional in celebrating God’s overflowing mercy and love made known to us through Jesus Christ. If anyone should know what it means to be included and welcomed unconditionally in the church family, it’s Paul because in his own words, he was the chief of all sinners.

     There have been a lot of stories circulating about Queen Elizabeth. Here’s one that speaks of how she was welcoming of others.

     Rev. Robert Cunningham, a Presbyterian Pastor in Lexington, Kentucky took a tour of the UK Parliament several years ago. He says that one of the tour guides shared a personal story with him about Queen Elizabeth. He told him this story which was his favorite about the Queen.

     Every legislative session begins with a visit from the Queen, and it's a very regal tradition. She wears her crown and robe and processes down a hallway lined with the Queen’s Guards who literally strike the stone walls with their swords to make sparks fly as she walks by. 

     The hallway ends at the House of Lords, where the Queen enters to take her seat on the throne and essentially commissions the legislators to enact the will of the people. Several years ago, they were forced to break tradition a bit to accommodate the Queen in her older age.

     There is a grand staircase leading to the hallway, and it became too much for her to climb. So they decided to start using the elevator to get her up. Well, the first year they did this, a mistake was made. The lift operator accidentally pushed the button for the wrong floor.

     Rather than the entrance to parliament, he presses the button for the maintenance floor. The lift goes up, the doors open, and Alice from the cleaning crew with her head down pushes her cleaning cart into the elevator as she has done countless times. 

     Only this time, she has pinned the Queen of England against the wall of the small lift. The doors close behind her, Alice is stuck in the lift with the Queen and her Guard, and she lets out an expletive not fitting the presence of royalty. Then an awkward silence, no one knowing what to do.

     The silence was broken by the Queen's uncontrollable laughter, and then the most remarkable invitation. Rather than opening the doors to let Alice off, the Queen asks the lift operator to take them down to the proper floor. 

    The doors open and to everyone's shock, out walks her Majesty the Queen and Alice the maintenance worker. Then the Queen in her regalia along with Alice in her maintenance uniform process side by side down the royal hallway. But it gets even better. 

     Once a year for the rest of Alice's life, she was invited to Buckingham Palace for high tea with her newfound friend, Queen Elizabeth.

     Queen Elizabeth had set a culture in allowing these unexpected moments to become an opportunity to connect with people in a very gracious and loving way. She made room for people she normally would not have met. 

      Of course, every time our church offers the Sacrament of Holy Communion like we’re doing today, it’s another reminder that there is always room for more around this holy table. This dining room table doesn’t just seat 8. There’s room for all of us here.  

     J.R.R. Tolkien, the great 20th century English writer once wrote, “Not all those who wander are lost.”

     In Christ’s love, even when we wander, we are never truly lost. We are found by the grace of God. And since we all wander from time to time, we all need to depend on God’s grace. 

     Here, we come to the table of grace, where all are welcome, no matter how far we have wandered or how lost we feel. Here, we are all welcomed home.

Dear Timothy, Set the Culture!

Sermon Discussion Questions

I Timothy 1:12-17 & Luke 15:1-10

September 11, 2022

We are beginning a 7-week sermon series focusing on two letters that the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy who was one of the young pastors of the early church. In addition to these two letters to Timothy, Paul also wrote a similar letter to Titus, also a pastor at that time. These three letters that the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy and Titus have become known as “The Pastoral Letters;” I Timothy, II Timothy, and Titus. One bible scholar states that the reason Paul wrote these letters was to instruct Timothy and Titus in providing the pastoral leadership needed to help people in the church commit their lives to Christ, serve his kingdom, and to worship God.

Share someone in your life who took the time to mentor you to be a more faithful follower of Jesus.

In this opening of his letter to Timothy, Paul is encouraging Timothy to set a culture in which God’s overflowing grace welcomes and includes all people. Paul refers to God’s grace, mercy and peace as well as God’s overflowing grace that even includes him, someone who had persecuted the church! In our appointed Gospel reading, we are told how the religious leaders criticized Jesus for welcoming tax collectors and sinners. Throughout his life and ministry, Jesus set a culture of welcoming all people.

What comes to mind when you think of these words Paul uses in the opening of his letter to Timothy; grace, mercy, peace, and overflowing grace?

Pastor Robert made the observation that people in general tend to be “judgy.”  When you add religion into the mix, people can become extra “judgy” toward others. 

Why do you think we can be so “judgy” toward others? What helps you to be more welcoming and loving toward others, especially those who are very different from you?

Pastor Robert mentioned that having a church culture that is welcoming and inclusive has a shelf life. It’s something that always requires our attention and focus. 

What helps to remind you to be welcoming and inclusive of others? Share a time when you felt welcomed and included.

The Sacrament of Holy Communion is a wonderful reminder that God invites all to the table to receive God’s overflowing grace, mercy and peace. Pastor Robert made the comment, “God’s dining room table doesn’t just seat 8. There’s room for everyone at God’s table.

What is a specific way that you can help someone to feel welcomed and included in God’s family this week.

Pray our worship prayer from Sunday’s worship service:

Immortal, invisible, God only wise, we come before you in humility, wonder, and praise. Your grace overflows and invites us to receive your gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ. Forgive us for our judgmental ways where we neglect to see others as you see them; people created in your image. We are all your blessed, beloved, and beautiful children of God. There are no exceptions, asterisks, or loopholes. Lead us to always be a church that is welcoming, affirming, and inclusive. To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.

Online Worship (September 11) Athens First UMC

Welcome to our 

September 11

online worship service!

Athens First UMC

2 S. College St., Athens, OH 45701

[Live-Stream Begins @ 10:25 AM]

Holy Hump Day (September 7) with Pastor Robert

Today’s Focus:

Bus Stops &

The Means of Grace

Online Worship (September 4) Athens First UMC

Welcome to our 

September 4

online worship service!

Athens First UMC

2 S. College St., Athens, OH 45701

[Live-Stream Begins @ 10:25 AM]