Blended Families Psalm 133; 1 Corinthians 12: 1-14 September 29, 2013 (Joint Worship Service with Second

Presbyterian) Rev. Deborah Dail Denbigh Presbyterian Church Psalm 133 1How very good and pleasant it is when kindred live together in unity! 2It is like the precious oil on the head, running down upon the beard, on the beard of Aaron, running down over the collar of his robes. 3It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion. For there the Lord ordained his blessing, life forevermore. 1 Corinthians 12: 1-14 Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. 2 You know that when you were pagans, you were enticed and led astray to idols that could not speak. 3 Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking by the Spirit of God ever says Let Jesus be cursed! and no one can say Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit. 4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5 and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. 7 To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8 To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the discernment of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are activated by one
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and the same Spirit, who allots to each one individually just as the Spirit chooses. 12 For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one bodyJews or Greeks, slaves or freeand we were all made to drink of one Spirit. 14 Indeed, the body does not consist of one member but of many. Sermon: When I was a kid I loved to watch The Brady Bunch. For those of you who are unfamiliar with The Brady Bunch, it was a story of a lovely lady who was bringing up three very lovely girls and of a man named Brady who was bringing up three boys of his own. Then the one day when this lady met this fellow. They knew that it was much more than a hunch, that this group must somehow form a family. And thats the way they became the Brady Bunch. The Bradys were a blended family. The Bradys made it look easy. Even their pets, Tiger and Fluffy, eventually got along after the terrible wedding reception debacle. According to one article I read by Lamar and Ronnie Tyler, one third of all Americans are in some type of step-family relationship. There are lots of blended families. But when we really think about, were all a part of blended families. Were apart of groups that draw together different people at different times, recreating the family dynamic each time there is a change. In the workplace, you usually have your work family. Then you get a new boss, someone retires, new people are hired. Blending. Adjusting and readjusting. Kids deal with this every new school. Your class becomes like a little family. By the end of the school year, youve blended. Then a new school year comes. You get a new teacher. You get a new set of friends to get used to. Blending. Adjusting and readjusting. Churches, we hope, are always blending welcoming new people into the family, welcoming new people into leadership, becoming one.
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While the Brady Bunch made blending a family look easy we know it isnt always easy. Yet, when it does happen when people can come together in unity, it is a beautiful thing. The writer of Psalm 133 says: How very good and pleasant it is when kindred live together in unity! This Psalm is among the category of Psalms called the Psalms of Ascent. Scholars believe this particular passage and others like it were sung by Gods people as they journeyed up to the temple in Jerusalem to worship God. The first verse of this Psalm is very clear. The rest of it has always confused me. The writer of the Psalm uses two similes that are really weird. He says Gods people living together in unity is like the precious oil on the head, running down upon the beard, on the beard of Aaron, running down over the collar of his robes. It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion. For there the Lord ordained his blessing, life forevermore. Oil probably olive oil or some kind of scented oil was poured on the heads of priests (like Aaron) and kings to set them apart for service and to bless them. It was abundantly and lavishly poured over the heads of these leaders. Oil was also used when guests came to your home. After they had walked long distances, they entered their hosts home and were welcomed with a foot massage with fragrant oils. It was a pleasing, soothing, welcoming experience. It was a blessing. In Jesuss time, a woman poured expensive oil on his feet as a gesture of respect, welcome and honor. The oil was extravagant and abundant. When I spent a summer in Japan as a student missionary I visited in many Japanese homes. In America, if someone comes for a visit we typically offer them a drink. May I get you a coke or a glass of ice water? we ask. In Japan, you are offered a bath. That took some getting used to. But I grew to love it. A bath in Japan was rinsing off outside of a hot tub, then getting into a steaming hot tub to soak and relax. It felt wonderful. The writer of Psalm 133 is saying unity, blending together with other people in harmony, feels wonderful and is pleasing to God. Its a blessing to those who are united and it is a blessing to those who witness such unity.
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The other simile is Gods people living in unity is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion. For there the Lord ordained his blessing, life forevermore. Ive always been confused by this because when I think of dew I think of moisture on the grass when I get up in the morning. Commentators tell us, however, that dew in this context is melted snow. Professor Nancy Koester says: Mount Hermon is far to the north of Jerusalem. Mount Hermon rises above the upper Jordan Valley. It had its share of heavy rainfall and snow. The melting snow, or dew, flowed down into the valley. It fed the Jordan River and reached as far as the oasis of Jericho. In arid (dry) country, where the rain is scarce and the rivers dry up, the land and the people depend on water that comes from a distant source. It is the scarcity of water in the dry lands, which makes Mount Hermons dews so precious. Like the oil that flows down the beard of Aaron, so the dew of Mount Hermon reaches far beyond its point of origin and gives life to faraway lands. (workingpreacher.org) Gods people dwelling and worshiping in unity is pleasing to God and it is life-giving. It is life-giving to Gods people and it is life-giving to all upon whom this unity overflows. When we turn to the New Testament book of 1 Corinthians we know that the Holy Spirit has been poured out on the heads and lives of Gods people. The Holy Spirit has brought together a very diverse group of people in this thing called the church -- Jews and Gentiles, slaves and free people, rich and poor, women and men. Like oil poured on the heads of the priests or feet of guests, like abundant water flowing down a mountain to quench parched land, so also has the Holy Spirit been poured out on Christs church. The outpouring of the Holy Spirit has created a blended family. And it looks easy at first kind of like the Brady Bunch. Its a beautiful thing. But by the time Paul writes his letter to the church at Corinth things have gotten a little messy. Professor Shauna Hannan suggests that like oil running down a beard and water gushing into dry lands, unity among diverse peoples can be messy. (workingpreacher.org) Things were messy in Corinth. The Holy Spirit had been poured out freely and abundantly upon the Christians. The people were gifted
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and empowered to serve as a united group a united Body so that the grace they had received through Jesus and the Holy Spirit would overflow into the world around them. But instead, they competed over whose spiritual gift was more important. They became territorial. They wanted certain groups in the church to have seniority and thus more power. Paul responds: For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one bodyJews or Greeks, slaves or freeand we were all made to drink of one Spirit. Indeed, the body does not consist of one member but of many. He also emphasizes that each believer is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good (not personal gain or notoriety or power). Paul reminds the church at Corinth and all of us of three important things: First, the Holy Spirit poured out upon us makes us One. There are no divisions, no prejudices, no seniority. We are One. We are a blended family. Second, we are diverse. We have been given different gifts. We have different roles and responsibilities. Every persons gifts are important and needed none more than another. Third, the Holy Spirit has been poured on us in abundance. The outpouring is extravagant. Though the Spirit makes us feel good, that is not the Spirits primary goal. The Spirit is poured out on us in abundance for the common good. The Spirits power and grace overflow in our lives to be poured out on others for their good and for the worlds good. The Spirit is poured out upon us so that we can be a blended family diverse, but one; overflowing with grace for others. One day a teacher gathered her childrens Sunday school class for their morning lesson. As she was starting the lesson, a visiting child came in. Immediately the teacher noticed that the child had only one arm. She was concerned that one of the children might say something inappropriate that would hurt the childs feelings. To her great joy, no one said anything. At the end of the class the teacher did what she did at
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the end of every class. She said, boys and girls, lets make our churches. (Recall the heres the church, heres the steeple which you make with your hands.) As soon as she said it she realized her mistake. The child with only one arm would not be able to make a church. Just then, the girl sitting next to the child put up one of her hands to his hand and said Well make the church together. In the coming months, we are making the church together. Its a beautiful thing. It will be a little messy at times, like oil running down a beard or abundant rain waters creating mud in desert lands, but its beautiful, pleasant, pleasing in Gods sight. Today the challenge for us is reaching out our hands to make the church together. Today the challenge is for us to make the church together so that we can better serve and bless the Denbigh community and the world. Today the challenge is to make the church together for the common good and the good of those upon whom the grace of God will overflow from our unity. And this challenge is not just for the church. It is for each of us wherever we are: in our homes, in our schools, in our workplaces, in our community organizations, wherever we are. Will we reach out our hand to another in order to blend a family? Will you and I reach out our hands to a family member, a classmate, a fellow employee or supervisor, and neighbor or a friend? I pray so. For how good and pleasant it is when kindred live together in unity.