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ARE YOU WILLINGTO HELP CHANGE THE WORLD? (9/25/11 Athens Pride) SCRIPTURES: James 1: 19-27 & Matthew 25: 34-40 KEY CONCEPTS: True religion/spirituality embodies how we treat others & what we do. OPENING COMMENTS: Welcome to Our Hope MCC on this Athens Pride weekend! We are thrilled to have you in worship this morning as we consider several key realities regarding genuine spirituality. Now it is true that many in our GLBTQ community are leery of people who claim to know God, especially those who claim to know God through Jesus Christ. For it is true that some of the worlds greatest atrocities have been carried out by fundamental religious people who claimed God told them to do whatever they did. The annals of history record human activities that have forever changed the face of history for ill & for good. So, on this Sunday morning of Athens Prideas we celebrate not only our God given orientation, but also our chosen spirituality, I invite you to consider how you might be able to radically change YOUR own world & the broader GLBTQ & straight allied communities that you belong to. WILL YOU PRAY WITH ME? PRAYER:

SERMON OUTLINE/STRATEGY: Both of todays readings are rather clear on how disciples of God especially those who choose to follow Christ are to behave toward others, particularly those who are less fortunate. MATTHEW 25: 34-40 ONLINE READING: The passage from the book of Matthew is one of my favorites. This story connects Gods pleasure toward human beings with how said human beings act almost without thinking toward those who are in needthe hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick, the imprisoned. This passage will be covered more fully next Sunday, October 2. So, please come back then EPISTLE READING JAMES 1: 19-27: The passage that I want to focus on today comes from the book of James. If youve never read the entire book of James, I hope you will do so in the coming week. (And if you dont have a Bible of your own, then take one of the Bibles in the chair backs as a gift today.) EXEGESIS OF THE PASSAGE IN JAMES: (ONLINE LINE) Because I believe in accurately looking at Scripture, I adhere to whats called a historical contextual way of interpreting the Bible. This means that I take into account the history, the context, the author & his agenda, as well as his audience. Then (& only then) do I look at some of the contemporary applications of the text. Historically, it is possible that James the brother of Jesus wrote this book. The book is short (only 108 verses) with 59 of these verses being in the imperative tense. Moral instructions are given to the audience of Jewish Christians which came from the Hebrew Bible as well as traditional teachings of Jesus from the Gospels of Matthew & Luke. (i.e. the Sermon on the Mount). The book possesses an urgent plea for disciples of Jesus to adopt a courageous faith that would help them cope more effectively with the trials of life. Their faith was also to produce greater moral integrity & loving actions. This book seems to oppose Pauls

teachings on the relationship of faith & works. Paul taught that people were in with God by mere faith & just saying Im in with little regard for transformation by way of action. James, on the other hand, stated that faith without works is of no value. James sees works as the acts that spring from the love of the believer for God. The author was also concerned about these small bands of believers falling back into the broader communitys negative values or selfish behaviors. GENERAL APPLICATION: According to James, true faith is the underpinning for a persons acts of love toward another person AND the anchor that holds that disciple (him/herself) during hard times. This type of faith/spirituality can change our world! Righteousness in word & deed: For James, Jesus brother, righteousness is a holy union of word & deed. And for James, one could not exist without the other. Be doers of the word (1:22) Religion that is personal AND social (1: 26-27) For many in the GLBTQ & straight allied communities, the call to be involved in social justice issues is paramount to their living as Christians. Doing justice for the least of these is an ancient tenet of not only Christianity & Judaism, but all major world religions. The call to be active in caring for others should be foundational to ANY true religion. How we each practice our faith outwardly is an indication of what we say is our inner faith. Only God can absolutely know our inner most thoughts, motivations & truths. Our behaviors, words & actions are the only clues that people have in knowing who we are & what we value. James gives several examples of behavior that sheds a positive light on the Divine. If youre truly spiritual then heres how youll want to act: Bridle your tongue To care for orphans, children in need To care for widows in their distress To keep ones self free of the negatives of the world CONTEMPORARY APPLICATION: I want to make 2 key points by way of application with this passage. The first connects the call to care for orphans & widows in their distress (James 1:27) Back in the day, there was not a safety net for orphans & widows who were the most vulnerable of society. Care for Widows & Orphans: These days, truly spiritual people are failing miserably at caring for the children, women & families who desperately need our help! Churches (& members of churches) no longer take responsibility for caring for people in needrather we often build large edifices & then lock the doors to protect our property from those people. Just this week, a study (U.S. Census Bureaus American Community Survey) came out stating that the state of Georgia has the 10th highest poverty rate in the nation (17.9% tied with Texas). Ironically, both GA & TX executed men on death row just THIS week! Almost 1.7 million Georgians live below the federal poverty level ($22,314 for a family of 4). Additionally, Georgia has the 5th highest percentage of people living in deep poverty (8.2%) defined as half of the poverty level ($11,157 for a family of 4). Notably high poverty rates were found in Clarke (yes, Athens-Clarke county & Dougherty county shared an overall poverty rate of 36%! Child poverty rates in Clarke County currently stand at 40%!

Soeven today centuries later the words of this ancient text needs to ring in our ears & more importantly, resonate in our hearts! INSIGHTS: I wonder what citizens of Athens-Clarke County would think of our GLBTQ & straight allied communities if we led the charge against hunger, child poverty & care for families? How radical would it seem if GLBTQ people who are most often denied basic human & civil rights actually got busy making sure ALL families & ALL children had enough quality food to eat? Which leads me to what I believe prevents our community from being taken seriously Bridle your tongue & To keep ones self free of the negatives of the world: When do you suppose we might all grow up in the GLBTQ community? When do you think well decide to stop excluding people just because weve been excluded for much of our lives? Spiritual people GLBTQ & straight people are ALL called to bridle or control our words! So, why is it that so many in our community not only dont control what they say but they actually make a career out of being overly slitchy, rude & mean spirited? Is that the best we can do as a community as we seek our equal rights? We can do better My personal experience after almost 25 years of ministry & being queer for almost 50 years- is that when people can only be rude, hateful & mean its because something hasnt been resolved or healed within them. So, on this Athens Pride 2011 resolve & heal whatever your issue is so the rest of us can live in some peace & quiet! CLOSING: Soare you willingto help change your world? In either large or small ways? Personally, will you be more mindful of your words to others Personally, will you seek more positive people & experiences in this world Will you begin to state your lifes vision & purpose in the POSITIVE rather than the negative? For example, I will leave the world a better place than I found it; rather than I wont mistreat the earth. I will be a loving & nurturing parent; rather than I will not be my father/mother. You may have stated what you hate or what you dont want to be BUT have you ever stated what youre passionate about & who you want to be when you grow up? Personally, will you seek to include people instead of excluding them Will you help to stop discrimination within our larger community between: GLBTQ & straight, between men & women; between GLB & Trans (hello DADT); between the various ages; between all of our people of color; between those who identify as GLBT & those who are spiritual? In our God given sexual orientation as well as in our chosen spirituality, we are ALL called to be more loving, more involved & more active in caring for those whom we love & those whom we meet who are in need. What eternal good are you doing to change our world for the better?