EVERYBODY'S CHURCH WEBSITE
  • Home
  • Info
    • Need Help?
    • Mission
    • Welcoming
    • Inclusion
    • Community
    • Why I Go to Everybody's Church
    • Become a Member
    • Our Vision >
      • Jesus Christ >
        • Celebrating
      • Reaching
      • Serving
      • Connecting
      • Growing
    • map and directions
    • Our Staff
    • Staff Contact Information
    • Job Openings
    • Funeral Information
    • Church Leadership
    • What to Expect FAQs
    • COVID Masking Policy
    • Building Use Fees
    • Baptism
    • Communion
    • In the Presence of the Holy
    • Presbyterian Church USA
    • Our Stained Glass Windows
    • The Presbytery of Detroit
    • Community Resources
    • Contact
  • Worship
    • church at home, livestream
    • Recent Sermons
    • Bulletins
    • Worship Schedule
    • Rejoicing Spirits Worship
    • Worship Videos >
      • Trombone Choir
      • Choir Videos
      • Handbell Choir Videos
    • Music Ministries >
      • Children's Choir
  • Serve
    • Mission Opportunities
    • Yucatan Peninsula Mission (YPM) Trip
    • Deacons
    • Volunteer Opportunities at FPC
    • Learn about Foster Care
    • Mission Funding
    • Our Efforts to Serve the Least
    • Alcott School Ministry
    • International Missions >
      • Kenya Mission Trip Story
      • Faith Kasoni - Kenya
      • Chang-Lopez
    • Local Missions >
      • Faith Communities Coalition on Foster Care
    • In Our Church >
      • Deacons
      • Memorial Service Help
    • Stephen Ministry
    • Faith Communities Coalition on Foster Care
    • Mission Videos
  • Learn
    • Matthew 25 >
      • Matthew 25 Events >
        • Listen - Matthew 25
        • Learn - Matthew 25
        • Lean In - Matthew 25
    • Children's and Family Ministries >
      • Resources re: Racism
      • Five Part Story
      • Worship Wonder
      • CrossWalks
      • Faith at Home Resources
      • Sacraments
      • Build a Bible For Kids
      • Milestones for Children
      • Inclusion Videos
    • Spiritual Practices
    • Education Videos >
      • Five Women Five Journeys
      • Health and Wellness
      • Theologian in Residence
      • Teacher Training Videos
      • Sacraments Videos
      • Bus Training Video
      • Children's Ministry
    • Adult Faith Formation >
      • Church History 101 >
        • The Jesus Community
        • The Church Expands
        • Constantine to the Reformation
        • The Reformation
        • The Church in America
      • Revelation Bible Study
      • Christian Faith Foundation
      • The Gospel of John >
        • Introduction
        • The Book of Signs >
          • John 1:1-18
      • Genesis Bible Study >
        • Genesis Chapters 1-11
        • Genesis Chapters 12-25
        • Genesis Chapters 26-36
        • Genesis Chapters 37-50
      • Exodus Bible Study >
        • Exodus 1-15
        • Exodus 16-23
      • John Calvin For Everyone
      • What is a Presbyterian Video Series
      • Two Year Bible Trek
      • Immigration Information
      • Faith Formation Groups
      • Fellowship and Ministry Groups
      • Classes and Events
    • Hand in Hand Early Learning Center
    • Belhar Confession
    • All Abilities Inclusion Ministry
    • Disability Inclusion Resources
  • Events
    • Senior Adventures
    • Concerts at First
    • Lunch and Learn
    • SAIL event
    • Calendar
  • News
    • Annual Report 2022
    • Annual Report 2021
    • Email Sign-up
    • First Things
  • Connect
    • Inclusive Communities Network
    • SAIL Solutions for Adult Independent Living
    • Faith Formation Groups
  • App/Members' Portal
  • Give
    • Contribute to FPC
    • Stewardship
    • 2023 Pledge Form
    • 2021 Financial Review
    • Community Rewards Programs >
      • Kroger Sign up/Re-register
      • Link to AmazonSmile
    • Deacons
    • First Foundation >
      • Donating
      • Grant Requests
      • Serving the World
      • History

The Mission: Ready to Launch

6/7/2020

 
June 7, 2020
The Rev. Dr. John Judson

Listen
Watch
Print Version
Communion Liturgy


Matthew 28:16-20; Deuteronomy 34:1-8

      I felt like we saw about everything there was to see in the Holy Land. Almost exactly two years ago Cindy and I went with a group from the church for our first visit to Israel and Jordan.  We went to Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nazareth, the Dead Sea and the Sea of Galilee.  We spent part of a morning in the Garden of Gethsemane and waited in line to get into the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.  At each location different people in the group were moved by their connection to Jesus and or to our story of faith. For me, the one place that truly moved me, was the last one we visited, Mt. Nebo, yes the same Mt. Nebo in our Old Testament text. I suppose it might be strange that of all the places we visited that were associated with Jesus and his disciples, what moved me was one connected with Moses and the people of Israel.  It moved me because from Mt. Nebo, you can see much of the Promised Land; the land that was to be the home of God’s people. It stretches out before you, green and inviting.  As I stood there peering out over the land, I somehow wondered what it must have been like for those Israelites. They had been in the wilderness, fought their way to this point and now were about to enter uncharted space. They were about to launch into a new adventure, unsure where it would take them, or the obstacles they would face, or perhaps even the outcome of their journey. They were also going without Moses who led them for the last forty years.  The one thing I believe they did know was that they were ready to launch.

      What I mean by this is that God had given them everything that they needed to launch their adventure into this new territory. God had given them each other.  The Israelites were not a rag-tag band of people who just happened to meet on a mountain top.  They were a family joined together by circumcision. That physical mark was a sign that they were different from all of the other peoples around them and that they had been chosen by God for a particular mission. I know that only men were circumcised, but in their patriarchal culture, the circumcision of fathers and husbands tied wives and daughters into the family.  They were ready to launch because they had a manual of operations. They had the Law.  The Law had been given at the outset of their journey in the wilderness and it had come to shape how they treated one another and those whom they encountered.  It was God’s manual for how to be a community that loved God with heart, soul, mind and strength, and loved neighbor as self.  Finally, they were ready to launch because they had a physical reminder that God was with them.  This physical reminder was the Ark of the Covenant, yes, the Raiders of the Lost Ark, ark. It was a tangible reminder that they were not alone and that the God of the Exodus was traveling alongside them.  They were ready to launch.

      For the disciples who met the resurrected Jesus on the mountain in Matthew 28, I doubt any of them could have missed the connection.  Jesus was acting as the new Moses, sending his followers on to their new mission.  And he reminds them that they too are ready to launch.  They are ready to launch because they have each other; they have a family connected this time not by circumcision but by baptism. And this time baptism is a sign of belonging to the family for both men and women.  “Make disciples,” Jesus says, “And baptize them.” They were ready to launch because they had an expanded manual of operations.  Not only did they have the Law of Moses, they had Jesus’ teachings, on the Law to guide and direct them. “Teach them to observe all I have commanded you,” Jesus continues.  Finally, they were ready to launch because they had a physical reminder that Jesus would be with them.  This physical reminder was not an ark but a meal; a meal he told them to celebrate whenever they were together. “And I am with you to the end of the age,” Jesus concludes. They were ready to launch.

      My friends, what this means for us is that we too are ready to launch; ready to launch on our new mission of being a Matthew 25 church. All of you may be asking yourself, what is a Matthew 25 church?  Matthew 25 is a movement of Presbyterian churches, based in Jesus’ call in Matthew 25 to care for the least. And it asks us to care for the least by working on three things.  I will give you the first and the last on the list, then the one in the middle.  The first is to create vital congregations in which peoples’ lives are transformed.  I believe that we have been doing this well for a long time. Through Bible studies, mission endeavors, wonderful worship and small groups we have created a vital congregation. The last on the list is eradicating systemic poverty.  In some ways we as a congregation have been at work in this area, both individually and collectively, for a considerable period of time. Through our work at Alcott Elementary, our work with Foster youth and through much of the work many of you do with organizations such as Boys and Girls Clubs and Focus Hope we are using education to help lift people out of poverty.  It is the middle challenge, however, that has gone unanswered. It is the one on which we are called to launch.  The middle challenge is to dismantle structural racism.  Of the three challenges to serving the least this one is the most difficult. It is the most difficult because it deals with people’s hearts and with our cultural “DNA.”  Let me give you some examples from scientific papers.  Schools punish black children, especially boys, more harshly for the same actions than they do white children.  Physicians tend to ignore symptoms in black persons and fail to listen to them more than to white people. Housing for people of color tends to be more substandard than it is for whites.  Law enforcement tends to treat people of color with suspicion and more harshly than it does white people. And all of this happens not because people get up each morning, wave the Confederate flag and think to themselves, I am going to oppress some people today.  No, it is hard wired into the system and into people’s hearts and minds.

      Thus then, to make a difference in this area requires a tremendous lift, yet we are ready to launch into this new endeavor of doing our best to help dismantle structural racism. We are ready to launch because we have each other.  Because we are a family bound together by baptism with all of our brothers and sisters, of all skin colors and socio-economic conditions.  We are ready to launch because we have a manual of operations in the scriptures that remind us that we are all one in Christ and that we are to care for the least.  We are ready to launch because we have Christ with us.  We have this table reminding us that in Christ transformation and new life is possible.

      In some ways we are on our own Mt. Nebo, peering out over a landscape that is unfamiliar to us.  My challenge to you on this Sunday is this; to pray.  I challenge you to pray and see if you are willing to come on this challenging, and at times uncomfortable journey, that we might help to change the world.

Comments are closed.

    Subscribe by Email

    Enter your email address:

    Delivered by FeedBurner

    Categories

    All
    Alive In A Global Uprising
    Alive In God's Creation
    Alive In The Spirit Of God
    Alive In The Story Of Jesus
    Alleluia People
    An Abundance Attitude
    Being God's People
    Being Human
    Claiming Our Identity
    Discipleship Defined
    Do You Hear What I Hear
    Encouragement Along The Way
    Giving From The Heart
    God's Imperfect Family
    Growing Our Faith
    Living In Ordinary Time
    Luke Looks At Money
    Matthew 25
    Mourning Mystery Mission
    New Beginnings
    On The Job Training
    Own Your Hope
    Pentecost
    People Get Ready
    Praying Like Jesus
    Rooted And Grounded In Love
    The Children Of God
    The Five Part Story
    The Force Is Awakening
    The Heart Of The Matter
    The Lord Is Our Shepherd
    The Mighty Acts Of God
    The Perfect Season
    The Vocabulary Of Faith
    The Voice Our Choice
    The Voice - Our Choice
    We Make The Road By Walking
    Youth Sunday

    Archives

    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014

    RSS Feed

First Presbyterian Church
Phone:  248-644-2040
Fax:       248-644-8047
Email:    contact@everybodyschurch.org
Address: 1669 W. Maple, Birmingham, MI 48009
Hand in Hand Early Learning Center
Phone:   248-644-2040 ext. 124
Faith Communities Coalition on Foster Care
FAR Therapeutic Arts and Recreation 
Phone:   248-646-3347
Presbytery of Detroit


Presbyterian Church USA
​
More Light Presbyterians
​
Skyline Camp and Conference Center
Phone: 248-644-2043 (Birmingham Office)
             810-798-8240 (Almont Campus)
Samaritan Counseling Center
Phone: 248-474-4701
  • Home
  • Info
    • Need Help?
    • Mission
    • Welcoming
    • Inclusion
    • Community
    • Why I Go to Everybody's Church
    • Become a Member
    • Our Vision >
      • Jesus Christ >
        • Celebrating
      • Reaching
      • Serving
      • Connecting
      • Growing
    • map and directions
    • Our Staff
    • Staff Contact Information
    • Job Openings
    • Funeral Information
    • Church Leadership
    • What to Expect FAQs
    • COVID Masking Policy
    • Building Use Fees
    • Baptism
    • Communion
    • In the Presence of the Holy
    • Presbyterian Church USA
    • Our Stained Glass Windows
    • The Presbytery of Detroit
    • Community Resources
    • Contact
  • Worship
    • church at home, livestream
    • Recent Sermons
    • Bulletins
    • Worship Schedule
    • Rejoicing Spirits Worship
    • Worship Videos >
      • Trombone Choir
      • Choir Videos
      • Handbell Choir Videos
    • Music Ministries >
      • Children's Choir
  • Serve
    • Mission Opportunities
    • Yucatan Peninsula Mission (YPM) Trip
    • Deacons
    • Volunteer Opportunities at FPC
    • Learn about Foster Care
    • Mission Funding
    • Our Efforts to Serve the Least
    • Alcott School Ministry
    • International Missions >
      • Kenya Mission Trip Story
      • Faith Kasoni - Kenya
      • Chang-Lopez
    • Local Missions >
      • Faith Communities Coalition on Foster Care
    • In Our Church >
      • Deacons
      • Memorial Service Help
    • Stephen Ministry
    • Faith Communities Coalition on Foster Care
    • Mission Videos
  • Learn
    • Matthew 25 >
      • Matthew 25 Events >
        • Listen - Matthew 25
        • Learn - Matthew 25
        • Lean In - Matthew 25
    • Children's and Family Ministries >
      • Resources re: Racism
      • Five Part Story
      • Worship Wonder
      • CrossWalks
      • Faith at Home Resources
      • Sacraments
      • Build a Bible For Kids
      • Milestones for Children
      • Inclusion Videos
    • Spiritual Practices
    • Education Videos >
      • Five Women Five Journeys
      • Health and Wellness
      • Theologian in Residence
      • Teacher Training Videos
      • Sacraments Videos
      • Bus Training Video
      • Children's Ministry
    • Adult Faith Formation >
      • Church History 101 >
        • The Jesus Community
        • The Church Expands
        • Constantine to the Reformation
        • The Reformation
        • The Church in America
      • Revelation Bible Study
      • Christian Faith Foundation
      • The Gospel of John >
        • Introduction
        • The Book of Signs >
          • John 1:1-18
      • Genesis Bible Study >
        • Genesis Chapters 1-11
        • Genesis Chapters 12-25
        • Genesis Chapters 26-36
        • Genesis Chapters 37-50
      • Exodus Bible Study >
        • Exodus 1-15
        • Exodus 16-23
      • John Calvin For Everyone
      • What is a Presbyterian Video Series
      • Two Year Bible Trek
      • Immigration Information
      • Faith Formation Groups
      • Fellowship and Ministry Groups
      • Classes and Events
    • Hand in Hand Early Learning Center
    • Belhar Confession
    • All Abilities Inclusion Ministry
    • Disability Inclusion Resources
  • Events
    • Senior Adventures
    • Concerts at First
    • Lunch and Learn
    • SAIL event
    • Calendar
  • News
    • Annual Report 2022
    • Annual Report 2021
    • Email Sign-up
    • First Things
  • Connect
    • Inclusive Communities Network
    • SAIL Solutions for Adult Independent Living
    • Faith Formation Groups
  • App/Members' Portal
  • Give
    • Contribute to FPC
    • Stewardship
    • 2023 Pledge Form
    • 2021 Financial Review
    • Community Rewards Programs >
      • Kroger Sign up/Re-register
      • Link to AmazonSmile
    • Deacons
    • First Foundation >
      • Donating
      • Grant Requests
      • Serving the World
      • History