![]() Sermons from Mission Hills UCC San Diego, California Rev. Dr. David Bahr [email protected] July 14, 2024 “Make Love the Story” 2nd Samuel 1: 25-27 – Common English Bible Look how the mighty warriors have fallen in the midst of battle! Jonathan lies dead on your heights. 26 I grieve for you, my brother Jonathan! You were so dear to me! Your love was more amazing to me than the love of women. 27 Look how the mighty warriors have fallen! Look how the weapons of war have been destroyed! If you think about it, there are not a lot of love stories in the Bible. I was curious so I googled “love stories in the Bible.” The Bible Society listed eight, none of which, in my opinion, quite resemble a love story. Frankly, their list is bizarre.
Enough of that list! But not surprisingly, there was no mention of the story of one of the greatest loves in the Bible: Jonathan and David. David and Jonathan were first introduced on the day David carried the severed head of giant Goliath to King Saul. Saul was Jonathan’s father. The Book of 1st Samuel chapter 18 begins, “As soon as David had finished talking with Saul, Jonathan’s soul became bound up with David’s soul, and Jonathan loved David as much as himself.” Saul then told David to stay instead of returning to his family. The next verse says, “And Jonathan and David made a covenant together because Jonathan loved David as much as himself. Jonathan took off his robe and gave it to David, along with his armor, sword, bow, and his belt.” Twice in three verses, “Jonathan loved David as much as himself.” Those are not words used in scripture very often. And not just admired, “Jonathan’s soul became bound up with David’s soul.” And it’s certainly unusual to describe a covenant in the Bible based on love. “Jonathan and David made a covenant together because Jonathan loved David as much as himself.” Most covenants were transactional and marriages were more like business deals. Few of them were described as having anything to do with love. And then finally, as a sign of their covenant, as if a ritual, Jonathan took off his robe and presented it to David, along with his armor, sword, bow, and belt – a symbolic act of ultimate vulnerability. This doesn’t mean they were lovers in the way we think about it 2,500 years later. This doesn’t mean they were gay in the way we think about it 2,500 years later. But in a Bible with few similar examples of love and intimacy, boy, this sure stands out as significant. In fact, it is the kind of covenantal love that we aspire to 2,500 years later. And if we have any doubt that David felt the same way, in today’s passage, mourning his death, David said, “I grieve for you, my brother Jonathan! You were so dear to me! Your love was more amazing to me than the love of women.” The stories in between are all filled with Jonathan’s attempts to protect David – a dangerous defiance of his father who is murderously jealous. While David was in hiding, they often met secretly; tender scenes described in intimate ways. When Saul discovered their relationship, he exploded in rage, “You son of a perverse, rebellious woman! Do I not know that you have chosen the son of Jesse to your own shame and to the shame of your mother’s nakedness?” Jonathan protected David at substantial risk to his own life because that’s the very covenant he promised – because he loved him. Is theirs a story of love? Yes, of course. Is it a love story? The attempts to downplay the significance of their relationship are predictable. To their credit, most translations stay faithful to the line, “Your love was more amazing to me than the love of women.” However, that same verse in one translation is: “I enjoyed your friendship so much.” Another, “As the mother loveth her only son, so did I love thee.” What?! Even Eugene Peterson disappoints me here. I usually like how he translates The Message, but he says, “Your friendship was a miracle-wonder, love far exceeding anything I’ve known— or ever hope to know.” But no, verse 26 says, “your love was more wonderful than even that of women.” Most translations get it right, but most commentators attempt to claim, with righteous indignation, that David and Jonathan are anything more than two good buddies. Any suggestion of more is met with, “How dare you!” Again, I’m not trying to make a comparison to our modern sensibilities, but… I didn’t hear this story in Sunday School. Did you? Surprisingly, the first time I heard about Jonathan and David was from my mother. I remember the exact moment, standing in front of the kitchen sink in our new home in Grand Forks. It was the summer of my high school graduation. I had been accepted into an international choir to tour Europe and sing in some of the most amazing venues, including the cathedral in Cologne. The reverb in that place was nearly 10 seconds. Anyway, during our week of rehearsals, we got to know each other and quickly became friends for this adventure of a lifetime. Along the way, there was one particular choir member to whom I felt a strong connection, unlike anything I had experienced before. And to my surprise, the feeling was mutual. About two weeks in, on our first night in Paris, the group went on a river cruise and after dinner we would visit the Eiffel Tower. I started having stomach pain during the cruise and it was decided I would stay behind in the hotel. My friend asked to stay with me and sacrifice seeing the Eiffel Tower. Doctors make house calls in France so one came to the hotel. He couldn’t find anything wrong but an hour or two later it was much worse and another doctor was summoned. He touched the right side of my abdomen and I shot up to the ceiling in pain. I did see the Eiffel Tower, in the far distance as we rushed by taxi to the hospital. My friend came with me and held my hand all the way to the hospital and in the room as we waited. My parents were called in the middle of the night to wire $2,000 so I could have surgery. The next day the choir moved on to Belgium and my friend begged to stay, but the leaders wouldn’t let him. But if I could get strong enough to fly in three days, I could return from Amsterdam with him and the group. Believe me, I did. Our parents came to pick us up in Fargo and take us home. We begged that they let him come home with me. We explained that he could take the bus home a few days later – about six hours away. Which means his parents made a 14 hour round trip to pick him up but returned home without him. But they agreed. And then, a few weeks later, as we stood in front of the kitchen window washing dishes, I begged my mom to let me take the bus to visit him. She looked at me curiously and said, you two sound like Jonathan and David. Who are they, I asked. She explained that they were two friends in the Bible who had an extraordinarily close relationship. I found my Bible and looked it up. Wow! It had only been about a month or two before that, also for the first time, I read a very different passage in the Bible. I discovered the verse “Man shall not lie with man…” It terrified me. I was a teenager trying to put the pieces together about myself and this was absolutely not who I wanted to be. That night I got down on my knees – on brown shag carpet in the basement – and prayed so hard that this would not be true. And here we were, a few months later, and my mom told me about Jonathan and David. At the time, I didn’t put two and two together. But today I look back and marvel at how God works in our lives. How God answered my prayer in such an unexpected and wonderful way. I know others might not – or refuse to – see it in this way, but when I read the story of Jonathan and David it is like looking in a mirror and seeing myself reflected in scripture. We may disagree about this interpretation, but just recognize that the covenant between David and Jonathan was based on love, an extraordinarily rare form of covenant between two people of any sex in the Bible. Make love the story. Read into it, don’t read into it, certainly it is more of a love story than Adam and Eve. There’s one last piece to the story of Jonathan and David. After he died, David didn’t just move on and forget Jonathan. A phase, a memory from his youth. Jonathan had a disabled son; he was paraplegic. David took him in and raised him as his own son. “For the sake of your father, Jonathan, you will always eat at my table.” Their souls were indeed knit together both in life and in death. On this Sunday before Pride, I hope this inspires you to remember that the Bible is so much more than the passages used like weapons to hurt and divide. As hate-filled demonstrators line the parade route trying to denigrate and demean same-gender loving people, you know that even in the Bible, love comes in so many more forms than anyone can imagine. Because truly, in God’s house, love is love is love.
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![]() Sermons from Mission Hills UCC San Diego, California Rev. Dr. David Bahr [email protected] July 7, 2024 “Prelude to a King” 2nd Samuel 5: 1-5, 9-10 – Common English Bible All the Israelite tribes came to David at Hebron and said, “Listen: We are your very own flesh and bone. 2 In the past, when Saul ruled over us, you were the one who led Israel out to war and back. What’s more, the Lord told you, You will shepherd my people Israel, and you will be Israel’s leader. 3 So all the Israelite elders came to the king at Hebron. King David made a covenant with them at Hebron before the Lord, and they anointed David king over Israel. 4 David was 30 years old when he became king, and he ruled for forty years. 5 He ruled over Judah for seven and a half years in Hebron. He ruled thirty-three years over all Israel and Judah in Jerusalem. 9 David occupied the fortress, so it was renamed David’s City. David built a city around it from the earthen terraces[a] inward.[b] 10 David grew increasingly powerful, and the Lord of heavenly forces was with him. As we heard last week, a shepherd boy named David was sent to the Philistine front lines to bring lunch to his older brothers and couldn’t understand why all the soldiers were just standing around. He learned that the sides were at a stalemate and there was a deal on the table: Just send one man against one man, but no one would be that one man. David thought this was ridiculous, so he said, “I’ll do it,” and to the shock of everyone, he did it. With just one stone from his little slingshot, David took down giant Goliath. Cheers erupted. The brother who told David to go home and “let men take care of manly things” suddenly boosted this little twerp up on his shoulders. “My little man!” At first, King Saul loved this. He was riding high on victory. It reminded him of his early days as King when he took 12 squabbling tribes and created one cohesive force and led them to their first ever victory in battle. All Hail King Saul. But all that power went to his head and he started making bad decisions, making excuses and rationalizing his behavior. It didn’t have to be this way. Saul knew better but he wouldn’t apologize and instead he became more arrogant and defiant. The angrier he got, the wilder his mood swings. His advisers suggested that music might lift his spirits. They told him about a young shepherd from Bethlehem who played the harp and had a beautiful voice. As soon as David sang, Saul was so taken that he invited David home and treated him like his own son. It was a short taste of royal treatment, however, and soon he was back watching sheep and chasing butterflies and subject to torment by his seven brothers. Up until the time, of course, when he took lunch to them and said, “I’ll do it,” and saved the people from the Philistines. From that point forward, his life was never the same. David brought Goliath’s head to King Saul and the people erupted in joy. The king called for a big hero’s reception. But as happy as Saul was for that amazing victory, he couldn’t help himself and he was soon overcome with such jealousy and rage that his mood took a deep dive. The night of his big victory with a slingshot, David pulled out his harp. It worked. Saul was Zen, right up until the moment he picked up his spear and threw it straight at David, nearly splitting him in half. David looked horrified but Saul just gestured, “Oops, my bad,” and closed his eyes. David began playing again. Until Saul threw his spear directly at David. This time the advisers swooped in and carried David away to safety. It had been a long, exhausting day and David slept well that night. But in the morning, the next thing he knew, he was being led off to battle. And he learned that Saul had put him in charge! The entirety of David’s battle experience had been lions and bears, oh my, and against one giant. And now he was in charge of leading 1,000 men against an enemy with 10,000!? Clearly Saul was just trying to get rid of him in the fog of war with plausible deniability. But against all odds, somehow the boy was a genius strategist and rose to the occasion. Victorious, everyone returned from battle chanting “Saul killed thousands and David has killed tens of thousands.” Saul inwardly seethed even as he exclaimed the glory of his soldier and promised his daughter Merab to him in marriage in front of everyone. But he was furious. Before he would let David marry her, Saul sent him off to another impossible battle. Again, David returned victorious, but oops, Saul had already given Merab away in marriage. Here, you can have Michal. As a “gracious gesture” to make up for his mistake, Saul said, since your family doesn’t have any money to pay the bride-price, I’ll let you just pay with… foreskins. Just bring me back 100 Philistine foreskins – an impossible task that would surely result in David’s death. But what do we know about David? He came back with 200. Saul just couldn’t win against his golden boy yet he wouldn’t give up. David’s new wife, Michal, Saul’s daughter, and his oldest son, Jonathan, helped him go into hiding. David could have put an end to this torment by killing Saul and he wanted Saul to know he could. One time while David and his men were hiding in a cave, Saul went inside to relieve himself. David snuck up behind with his knife, but instead of stabbing him, he secretly cut a piece of cloth off his hem. He did it again another time and later showed the pieces to Saul as if to say, beware. David had no intention of killing God’s anointed, but he didn’t want Saul to know that. Of all the many ways Saul dishonored God, one of the worst was while David and his men were hiding. Starving, they begged the priests of Nob for something to eat and they consented. Saul discovered this treachery and ordered every priest killed. Increasingly, Saul felt like God had abandoned him and consequently, the more desperate he acted, the less connected he felt. Anymore, when he called upon God, he heard nothing back. And no more dreams. No more prophets. He was so desperate he tried one more thing. Saul had banned all mediums, like psychics, under threat of execution. It simply meant they went underground and were very careful who they told. Saul asked his advisers to find a medium and they found a woman at En-dor. Saul disguised himself and asked her to contact the now deceased prophet Samuel. Samuel appeared and the woman panicked when she recognized it was King Saul in front of her, but he said, don’t worry. Samuel reprimanded Saul and told him he would die the next day at the hands of the Philistines. The next day, with Philistines racing directly at him, Saul fell on his own sword rather than be killed, along with his armor bearer and 3 sons, including David’s beloved Jonathan, the subject of next week’s story. All of this was the tragic prelude to David being anointed King at the age of 30, inaugurating his 40-year reign as the greatest king in the history of Israel – not counting his numerous indiscretions, some of them just as bad or worse than his predecessor. But, in the grand scheme of things, it’s a prelude and not all is lost. Not all is lost. I’ll admit, however, it’s starting to feel that way. A new state law in Louisiana now requires all public school classrooms to post the Ten Commandments. That was followed by the Oklahoma state board of education mandating the teaching of the Bible in public school classrooms – not as an example of literature but as doctrine. The superintendent indicated they may need a curriculum to ensure “uniformity of instruction,” which I’m pretty sure doesn’t include the wide variety of Christian beliefs in this country, particularly like the inclusive gospel preached from pulpits like ours, let alone what that means for people who are not Christians. Both of these are clearly unconstitutional, but after the Supreme Court tortured the Constitution again this week to fulfill yet another wish of evangelical Christians, I thought, it’s all over. There’s no shame. Prepare to soon live in a Christian theocracy, which should alarm no one more than Christians. Officials in Louisiana and Oklahoma, who will soon be followed by other states, claim the Bible and the Ten Commandments are part of the founding documents for the United States and therefore deserve their place in public school curriculum. That’s simply not true, but it goes to the heart of Christian nationalist’s argument that the United States was founded to be a Christian nation with, as they call it, dominion over the Seven Mountains of family, religion, education, media, arts & entertainment, business, and government. We’re all exhausted of politics. I’m very aware of that and have tried to mostly refrain from appearing political, although that is nearly impossible these days. Just to be an Open and Affirming Church is seen as politically divisive. But, to be silent on this grants consent and consent to this cannot be granted. But far from an indictment on today’s evangelical Christians, a new book called Baptizing America shows how mainline Protestants set the stage for this and promoted the idea of the US as a Christian nation. We used to call it civil religion – as innocent as pastors praying before city council meetings, which I used to do regularly in Cleveland. Baccalaureate services before graduation. Sunday blue laws. Or singing the national anthem in worship and flying American flags in the sanctuary. We even used to pledge allegiance to the American flag at Vacation Bible School. What could be wrong with that? It’s not that it’s wrong so much as its out of place. Which comes first? We give our allegiance where it belongs: to Jesus in church and our personal life and to our country in civic life. We all have important civic duties as citizens. Jesus very helpfully said, “give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and give to God what is God’s. We can be patriotic at home all day long but to say “God so loved the world” challenges the very notion of singing God Bless the USA in worship. It all seems so harmless, just like, what’s wrong with posting the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms? Because, at heart, the Ten Commandments are a document requiring fidelity, “Thou shalt have no other God beside me." And how to worship the one and only true God: Keep one day holy. Don’t take the Lord’s name in vain. And which version will they post? Exodus or Deuteronomy? The Constitution, on the other hand, is fundamentally a document that refuses to establish a state religion. Let’s put that on every classroom wall. Article VI bans all “religious tests” for office, the framer’s clear rejection of the theocracies that ruled Europe. The First Amendment, meanwhile, bans the establishment of a national religion and interference in the freedom of citizens to worship how and whomever they choose. The framers sought freedom from the dictates of religion so they established a nation based on laws – with no one person above that law. Even King Saul was subject to laws that limited his ability to do whatever he wanted. And if we want to get biblical, American Presidents should be held to at least the same standard as Saul. It might all seem quite depressing at the moment. But not all is lost. Today is prelude for the day the arc of the moral universe has bent toward justice, because one day, one person-one vote, will return. But it takes arc-benders, like David, upset at people standing around wondering what someone else is going to do, in this case, to protect our freedom from religious rogues. Today, let the prelude be not for a new king, but when life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness is realized for everyone of all religions and no religion, all races, genders, orientations, abilities, languages, and so much more. Isn’t it possible that both religion and state could agree on that? I highly recommend Baptizing America: How Mainline Protestants Helped Build Christian Nationalism by Brian Kaylor and Beau Underwood, Chalice Press, 2024 ![]() Sermons from Mission Hills UCC San Diego, California Rev. Dr. David Bahr [email protected] June 30, 2024 “Take Off Your Armor” 1st Samuel 17: 1, 4-11 – Common English Bible The Philistines drew up their troops for battle. 4-7 A giant nearly ten feet tall stepped out from the Philistine line into the open, Goliath from Gath. He had a bronze helmet on his head and was dressed in armor—126 pounds of it! He wore bronze shin guards and carried a bronze sword. His spear was like a fence rail—the spear tip alone weighed over fifteen pounds. His shield bearer walked ahead of him. 8-10 Goliath stood there and called out to the Israelite troops, “Why bother using your whole army? Am I not Philistine enough for you? And you’re all committed to Saul, aren’t you? So pick your best fighter and pit him against me. If he gets the upper hand and kills me, the Philistines will all become your slaves. But if I get the upper hand and kill him, you’ll all become our slaves and serve us. I challenge the troops of Israel this day. Give me a man. Let us fight it out together!” 11 When Saul and his troops heard the Philistine’s challenge, they were terrified and lost all hope. Last week we were introduced to David, the apple-cheeked little brother whose responsibility in the family was to watch over sheep as they grazed in green pastures. Samuel was in town looking for the next king. After standing in front of each brother and rejecting all seven, Samuel recognized this good shepherd’s good heart. A good shepherd, even though, as I said last week, David was often distracted, trying to catch butterflies or singing and playing his harp and daydreaming. But have no fear, if a predator approached, he could whip out his slingshot in ten seconds flat and use a single stone to put down even a lion or a bear, oh my. That skill comes in pretty handy in today’s story. One day his brothers were on the front lines of a battle. It seemed like the tribes were forever at war with the neighboring Philistines, although to say they were at war implies that they stood a chance of defeating the much larger and much better equipped army. The tribes thought that having a king to rule over them would bring victory. And it started out true. One of new King Saul’s greatest achievements was to organize 12 squabbling tribes into their first ever victory. All Hail King Saul! The Philistines could have completely crushed little Israel. That’s what they did to every nation in their way of global domination. You see, the Philistines had a technological monopoly on iron. Anyone who wanted so much as a cooking pot let alone a sword and shield had to buy it from the Philistines. However, they had one weakness. One time after a victory, along with material goods and the people they took to make into slaves, the Philistines took the Ark of the Covenant. Big mistake. Big. That box contained the sacred stones on which the Ten Commandments were inscribed. That box contained the very presence of God. Remember the plagues one after another in Egypt until Pharaoh let them go? Well, wherever the Philistines took that box, each city would soon be overrun with rats and the people were covered with tumors; some translations say hemorrhoids. Finally, in order to neutralize it, they put the box in the temple of their god Dagon. The next morning, however, they found the statue of Dagon had fallen over face first in front of the Ark. Must have been an accident. They put it back up and the next morning it had fallen again, but this time its head and hands had broken off. The Philistines recognized they clearly had a problem on their hands and so they returned the box along with a gift of five golden tumors, or hemorrhoids, and five golden rats. Kind of a bizarre story but it’s why the Philistines didn’t/couldn’t just wipe these little tribes off the map. The God of Israel was too strong so they simply continued to threaten and torment them. And so that’s where we are today. Another battle. David’s father sent him to bring provisions to his brothers and bring news back home. When David arrived, he was surprised to see everyone just standing around. There was a standoff between the armies. To break the stalemate, an offer had been made: Instead of whole armies, each side would send one soldier. Mano a mano. Except this would be mano a big mano. A giant, an exaggerated 9 feet tall. Who really knows, but however tall he was, he stood as a giant in front of men who averaged 5 feet tall. And he wasn’t just tall, he was built, the cover of a men’s fitness magazine built. Solid muscle hidden behind 126 pounds of armor, biceps capable of throwing a spear the size of a fence rail; its tip alone was 15 pounds. No one would agree to fight. He intimidated everyone except David who couldn’t understand why grown men would be afraid of a mere human when God is so much more powerful. “I’ll do it!” His older brother told him to go back home and “Let the men take care of manly things.” David rolled his eyes and told some other soldiers, “I’ll do it.” So, they took him to King Saul. David said, “Don’t give up hope. I’m ready to go and fight this Philistine.” But Saul took one look and laughed. David answered, “I can do it. I’m a shepherd and whenever a lion or a bear, oh my, tries to take one of my lambs, I go after it, knock it down, grab it by its throat, wring its neck, and kill it. And I’ll do the same thing to this giant.” Since no one else was willing to try, why not. Saul covered David with armor and put a bronze helmet on his head. But it was all so heavy David couldn’t even move. He had them take it off and then he walked toward Goliath, stopping to pick up five stones along the way, feeling each in his hand before putting them in his pocket. He approached Goliath with a sling in his hand. Goliath saw this and roared with laughter. Imagine the voice of James Earl Jones. “This is what you send? An apple-cheeked, peach fuzzed little boy? Am I a dog that you come after me with a stick. Come on, I’ll make roadkill of you.” Now imagine the voice of Linus from Peanuts. “You come after me with swords and spears and ax, but I come at you in the name of the God Almighty. And this day our God is handing you over to me.” Remember the Linus voice. “I’m going to cut off your head and serve up your body to the crows and coyotes. You and every single other Philistine. This battle belongs to the Lord.” Provoked by this little pipsqueak, Goliath picked up his spear and started marching toward David, his big feet pounding the ground. David calmly reached into his pocket, put a stone in his sling and slung it. He hit the Philistine hard in the forehead. Down he went. Now if this were a Hollywood movie, David would have missed four times. One stone would hit on the ground in front of him, one go too far, one bounce off the armor and another hit a bird. But then, music rising, imagine him fumbling, the last stone caught in his pocket trying to get it out, and just as Goliath pounces with a second to spare, David hit the one place on his body without armor. The Bible, however, says it took only one stone on the first try and Goliath fell straight forward, face down in the dirt. Then David jumped on top and did just what he promised and cut off the giant’s head and gave it to Saul while the Philistines ran screaming for their life. To see that final scene would depend on a R or PG rating. Saul was elated with the victory until he realized the people were chanting David’s name and not Hail King Saul. Saul seethed with jealousy, only the first of many more times to come, as we will see next week. This week, David’s special ability involved a slingshot. Next week it will be his harp. David and Goliath is not just an iconic biblical story, it’s culturally iconic. Everyone knows, little people taking down the man.
Lots of examples of other people, but my question: Who is your Goliath today? Who stands towering over you. Or perhaps better, what is a Goliath? Might it be a giant fear, ten feet tall? Goliaths keep us up at night with questions. Maybe like, will she get through all the treatments and side effects? Or how do I deal with dysfunctional relationships at home or at work that loom over me ten feet tall. Or maybe even a real bully. Perhaps it’s seeing something coming down the tracks toward us, fixated on a Goliath sized train instead of simply stepping off the track. Fear paralyzes. We can’t move, but maybe we’re just covered in so much armor, a self-protective shield, that we can’t. So covered in armor we’re always on the defensive even with people just trying to help, people from whom we’ve asked for help. Sometimes our armor is, I don’t need any help. So take off the armor. But taking off our armor makes us feel vulnerable. Brené Brown would say that’s exactly what we need. She said, “I was raised in a ‘get ‘er done’ and ‘suck it up’ family. Very Texan,” she said. “The tenacity and grit of my upbringing has served me, but I wasn’t taught how to deal with uncertainty or how to manage emotional risk. I spent a lot of years trying to outrun or outsmart vulnerability by making things certain and definite, black and white, good and evil. My inability to lean into the discomfort of vulnerability limited the fullness of those important experiences wrought with uncertainty.” A healthy faith welcomes vulnerability. It frees us from the 126 pound burden of certainty. Ironically many religious people think faith is believing the correct things, assigning good and evil, right and wrong. But a healthy faith frees us of the need to be right or see things as black and white. Don’t we recognize that God is present in both light and shadows, in joy and in grief, in our best moments as well as the worst moments in our life? David knew that only his vulnerability, taking off his armor, could allow him to win against his Goliath. He stepped forward because he believed and then demonstrated that his weakness was God’s strength. And that’s how we defeat our Goliath too. Shedding the protective armor we use to try to keep ourselves from feeling or being honest. What is your Goliath? ![]() Sermons from Mission Hills UCC San Diego, California Rev. Dr. David Bahr [email protected] June 23, 2024 “God Chose Who!?” For an audio version: https://sermonsfromsandiego.buzzsprout.com/2098815/15296566-god-chose-who-david-s-origin-story or find Sermons from San Diego wherever you get your podcasts. 1st Samuel 16: 1-13 – Common English Bible The Lord said to Samuel, “How long are you going to grieve over Saul? I have rejected him as king over Israel. Fill your horn with oil and get going. I’m sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem because I have found[a] my next king among his sons.” 2 “How can I do that?” Samuel asked. “When Saul hears of it he’ll kill me!” “Take a heifer with you,” the Lord replied, “and say, ‘I have come to make a sacrifice to the Lord.’ 3 Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will make clear to you what you should do. You will anoint for me the person I point out to you.” 4 Samuel did what the Lord instructed. When he came to Bethlehem, the city elders came to meet him. They were shaking with fear. “Do you come in peace?” they asked. 5 “Yes,” Samuel answered. “I’ve come to make a sacrifice to the Lord. Now make yourselves holy, then come with me to the sacrifice.” Samuel made Jesse and his sons holy and invited them to the sacrifice as well. 6 When they arrived, Samuel looked at Eliab and thought, That must be the Lord’s anointed right in front. 7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Have no regard for his appearance or stature, because I haven’t selected him. God[b] doesn’t look at things like humans do. Humans see only what is visible to the eyes, but the Lord sees into the heart.” 8 Next Jesse called for Abinadab, who presented himself to Samuel, but he said, “The Lord hasn’t chosen this one either.” 9 So Jesse presented Shammah, but Samuel said, “No, the Lord hasn’t chosen this one.” 10 Jesse presented seven of his sons to Samuel, but Samuel said to Jesse, “The Lord hasn’t picked any of these.” 11 Then Samuel asked Jesse, “Is that all of your boys?” “There is still the youngest one,” Jesse answered, “but he’s out keeping the sheep.” “Send for him,” Samuel told Jesse, “because we can’t proceed until he gets here.”[c] 12 So Jesse sent and brought him in. He was reddish brown, had beautiful eyes, and was good-looking. The Lord said, “That’s the one. Go anoint him.” 13 So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him right there in front of his brothers. The Lord’s spirit came over David from that point forward. Then Samuel left and went to Ramah. Sheila was there that day. She watched as Samuel stopped in front of every one of Jesse’s boys to see if he was the one God had chosen to be the new king. She said, “I might have expected God would do something unusual but it was still a shock when Jesse’s oldest son wasn’t chosen. I mean, he had everything – tall, dark, and handsome. He was the complete package, a tested warrior in the army of King Saul.” His younger brothers poked each other and smirked and puffed up their chests in preparation for Samuel to pass by. But, one by one, no one was the right one. And with each son, Samuel looked more perplexed. Had he gotten the message wrong? Did his GPS send him to the wrong address – his God Positioning System? When Samuel asked if he had any more sons, Jesse laughed and said, “Oh, that’s right. I do have one more son, but he’s just a sweet boy.” “Send for him anyway,” Samuel said. So, several brothers ran through the pastures looking for David. He was out watching the sheep, although to be honest, most of the time, he wasn’t really watching. He was busy running around trying to catch butterflies or laying on his back watching the clouds pass over – that one looks like a duck! Or singing and playing his harp and daydreaming. Occasionally he looked over to see if the sheep were OK, but to his credit, he could sense if a predator was approaching. He could whip out his slingshot in ten seconds flat and use a single stone to put down a wolf or even a bear. The sheep were in good hands with this good shepherd, even if he was easily distracted. The brothers ran with David back to Samuel and Jesse. Right as he approached, David tripped over a rock and fell face first, right in front of Israel’s great prophet, Samuel. Jesse gave Samuel a look as if to say, “see why I forgot?” David just brushed the dirt off his clothes and grinned from ear to ear. His apple cheeks were red from embarrassment, but he stood up and did his best to look tall and adult. Samuel said, “It’s you!” This clumsy boy was exactly what God was looking for. Jesse pulled him over and proudly proclaimed, “He’s my boy!” while the brothers looked on in disbelief. God chose who?! The question is, why. Why was Samuel there in the first place? He was looking for a replacement for the very king he himself picked. Well, reluctantly picked. If you remember last week, the people demanded to have a king. They felt insignificant as they looked at the surrounding nations and decided that if they had a king, they would be more prosperous and powerful. If only we could be like everyone else. With God’s consent, Samuel did as they demanded, but not before telling them what they can expect from a king. God warned them: A king will use you and abuse you and take from you what he wants until you ultimately end up his slave. But, it didn’t matter. They wanted a king just like everyone else and so a king they got. Samuel was directed to anoint tall and handsome Saul; a foot taller than everyone else. And in the beginning he did some pretty impressive things. Saul came up with an organizational plan that rallied men to come from every tribe for the defense of a small town. Finally, a victory. He was a hero. But then he started acting like a king and the people didn’t like it. “We wanted a king. Not someone who acts like a king.” As the years went by, it got worse. Saul was carried away with his sense of power and began to make excuses and rationalized some of his decisions that were directly in opposition to his instructions. He thought he knew better than Samuel. And God. Kings may have been kings, but they still had to follow the religious laws. No one is above the law… And there were certain things only religious leaders could do. One time, Saul had waited 7 days for Samuel to show up to make a sacrifice and offer a blessing so they could go into battle. Saul grew impatient and decided to do it himself. When Samuel arrived that same day and learned what Saul had done, he was outraged and declared that one day Saul would be replaced with someone who would “actually love the Lord more than his own self.” Another time he got caught in a lie. So, trigger warning, the details are really disturbing: at the end of one battle with the Amalekites, he was supposed to kill everything, every single person and animal – so, understatement, that’s a problem – but, in the context of this story, the problem was that he decided to hold back some animals. Samuel arrived and asked, "Why do I hear sheep bleating and cows mooing?” “Oh, I wanted to hold them back so you could sacrifice them.” Big fat lie. Samuel said, “To obey is better than to sacrifice.” Saul begged for forgiveness but Samuel refused and never spoke to him again. It’s said that even God regretted choosing Saul and its interesting to ponder the idea that an all-powerful, omniscient, omnipresent God would have such a thing as “regrets.” Isn’t the idea that God is always right? Anyway, God tasked Samuel with finding a new king and was directed to find him among the smallest of the tribes. Specifically, Jesse in Bethlehem. A quick back story: Jesse’s great-grandma was Ruth. She was a Moabite, as in “those damn Moabites.” Jesse’s grandfather was conceived after a night on the “threshing floor,” a forbidden encounter between a foreigner and Boaz. Jesse’s household should have been the last one from which God would direct Samuel to find a new king. It really says something to pick the apple-cheeked youngest from a perfectly-ordinary family in the smallest and most insignificant of the tribes with a “those damn Moabites” as a great-grandma. Of course, to follow this logic, remember that this is the ancestry of Jesus too. Every Christmas when we sing about the “root of Jesse,” this is what that’s all about. But it comes down to, God chose who?! And why? Because Saul fell out of favor for all the reasons above. He also fell into a deep depression with wild mood swings and behavior that was unhinged from reality. Although the British Journal of Psychology would seem to be an unlikely source for biblical commentary, the Journal labeled King Saul the victim of “work-related stress.” They offer a remarkable insight on this character in the Bible. We may even relate to some of it. 1)Neither Samuel or God wanted the people to have a king in the first place. They relented but thought it was a bad idea from the beginning. Would you like to go into a new job with that kind of support from your bosses? 2)The people had never had a king before so they could only have brought unrealistic expectations to his performance. A king acting like a king would only bring criticism. 3)He is supposed to lead an army of a few thousand against the military might of enemies with tens of thousands of soldiers. He had sticks and stones to fight people who had mastered the art of metal – iron chariots, armor, spears. Their enemies were at an impossible advantage. He’s supposed to lead that? 4)Saul was supposed to be in charge, but he could go into battle only after Samuel gave him permission. Was he really in charge at all? No support, unrealistic expectations, performance against overwhelming odds, not allowed to make final decisions. According to the Journal, Saul’s story shows a combination of high demands and low control which can lead to psychological stress and even lead to chronic disease. Some of you know about that kind of stress. Expectations that can’t be met, conditions over which we have no control, work demands that conflict with family needs... Some of you are shaking your heads. Did you know that pastors are among the “fattest, sickest, and most depressed people in America?” Why? Impossible demands and unrealistic expectations of one’s self and from others to reverse the cultural trend away from Christianity resulting in congregations shrinking and closing. And when congregations are in stress, they look at the person most visible as their scapegoat. Sometimes when a congregation is shrinking, they treat each other worse instead of with extra loving care. Fear does that. And this information is from a study pre-pandemic. It’s a lot worse today. I give thanks every day to serve such a healthy and hopeful group of people like you but many of my colleagues are working in situations with little hope. Leading many to ask, “God chose who?!” More than half of seminary graduates leave ministry before finishing 5 years of being a pastor. Say a prayer for them. Saul descended farther and farther and finally into madness. But one thing gave him comfort. Music. And he will soon be introduced to an apple-cheeked little shepherd who liked to chase butterflies and watch clouds floating overhead, whose singing and harp playing were the only thing that soothed Saul’s soul and gave him relief. Until Saul tried to kill him. And then tried to kill his own son who fell in love with David. Those and more light-hearted stories to come. So why do I tell these stories? Because these characters are fascinating. They are not fairy tales with happy endings. They’re real people because they’re our real stories too. They are true stories in that we can find our own lives reflected, just like we try to do our best in situations where we have no control and try to meet expectations we can’t possibly meet and have demands that conflict with what our families need from us. Sometimes we need help and stories like these provide comfort – like, first, you are not alone. Even Jesus asked, “Why have you forsaken me?” So, like Saul, perhaps try a little music therapy. Unlike Saul, we have access to much more than that. So when we need it, seek help, follow the advice of your physician, seek guidance from a psychologist or psychiatrist, take the medicine that is prescribed. It’s as important for our mind as much as it is for our body. Remember, all of these resources are God given gifts that are thankfully available today that were not available for people like Saul. In his time, they had no explanation so they said Saul was plagued by an evil spirit. Today we can recognize that he had undiagnosed mental health challenges – which is not a sign of evil or judgment. I love David’s origin story – later to become the Great King David – with his own issues. But, to me, here is the most important line of the whole text: “Humans only see what is visible to the eyes. God sees into the heart.” Perhaps that seems too simplistic, but when you find yourself asking, God chose who?! There’s a reason God chose you. God sees your heart. And it’s beautiful. ![]() Sermons from Mission Hills UCC San Diego, California Rev. Dr. David Bahr [email protected] June 16, 2024 “Choose to Be Different” 1st Samuel 8: 1-9 – Common English Bible Now when Samuel got old, he appointed his sons to serve as Israel’s judges. 2 The name of his oldest son was Joel; the name of the second was Abijah. They served as judges in Beer-sheba. 3 But Samuel’s sons didn’t follow in his footsteps. They tried to turn a profit, they accepted bribes, and they perverted justice. 4 So all the Israelite elders got together and went to Samuel at Ramah. 5 They said to him, “Listen. You are old now, and your sons don’t follow in your footsteps. So appoint us a king to judge us like all the other nations have.” 6 It seemed very bad to Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us,” so he prayed to the Lord. 7 The Lord answered Samuel, “Comply with the people’s request—everything they ask of you—because they haven’t rejected you. No, they’ve rejected me as king over them. 8 They are doing to you only what they’ve been doing to me[a] from the day I brought them out of Egypt to this very minute, abandoning me and worshipping other gods. 9 So comply with their request, but give them a clear warning, telling them how the king will rule over them.” The first story in our series this summer started with Hannah and her decision to give her first born son to a priest named Eli. Raising Samuel brought Eli tremendous joy because his own sons were, let’s just say, rotten. One night, Eli realized that God was calling Samuel by his name. Samuel didn’t understand and kept waking Eli up, so Eli told him the next time to say “Here I am.” And he did. And Samuel grew up and rose to prominence among all the other judges of the 12 tribes. Judges in ancient Israel DIDNT HAVE gavels OR WEAR black robes SITTING. perched high above. One example of a great judge was Deborah. She had an office under a tree at a busy crossroad. Judges offered advice and guidance and decided disputes among people, but they were also representatives of God, tasked with keeping people faithful to their covenantal responsibilities. Unlike the Pharaohs under whom they had been enslaved for generations, this was a kind of governing structure dispersed among the people – a kind of “power to the people” system. Judges were respected authorities, socially and religiously, and often military leaders too. One story about Deborah, one day she told her army commander to gather up his troops and go into battle against Canaanites who had tormented them for 20 years. Why now? Because Deborah discerned this was the time to confront them. However, her commander resisted, for good reason. The Canaanites had 900 iron chariots. Barak complained that with even 10,000 soldiers, they couldn’t win against such a super power. He refused to go unless she met his one condition – that Deborah take his hand and go with him. And that day, against all odds, they prevailed. Years later, Samuel was a judge, a highly respected authority in the tradition of judges like Deborah. But, like Eli, his sons were another story. They were corrupt and the elders of Israel were so frustrated, they all got together and confronted Samuel. Do something! The something they thought he should do was to appoint a king to rule over them – “just like everybody else.” The nations around them seemed wealthier, more powerful… We can have all that too. Just give us a king. Samuel was crushed because he felt it was a judgment of his failure. But God assured him that the people weren’t rejecting him. They were rejecting God. So, God said, “give ‘em what they want, but at least, first warn them about what they’re going to get.” 11 “This is how a king will rule over you: He will take your sons, and will use them for his chariots and his cavalry. 12 He will use them to do his plowing and his harvesting, or to make his weapons and parts for his chariots. 13 He will take your daughters and your best fields, vineyards, and olive groves and give them to his servants. 16 He will take your male and female servants, along with the best of your cattle and donkeys, and make them do his work. 17 He will take one-tenth of your flocks, and then you yourselves will become his slaves! 18 When that day comes, you will cry out because of the king you chose for yourselves, but on that day the Lord won’t answer you.” 19 But the people refused to listen to Samuel and said, “No! There must be a king over us 20 so we can be like all the other nations.” I think this is such a fascinating description. The kind of power people beg for until they are begging for relief from it. And what a harsh response. “Don’t come asking for my help. You did this to yourself.” How do we reconcile God would say such a thing? Well, this wasn’t a story told by a reporter as it was happening. It wasn’t even a warning, a cautionary tale: and the moral of the story is, “Be careful what you wish for.” No, this is a reflection on the question, “What in the world happened to us?” You see, centuries later they are sitting around wondering what could have gone so wrong. Here we are, carried off into exile by our enemies, weeping along the water’s edge in Babylon. This story was written as the people look back on their history and searched for clues. How can we explain this mess we’re in? They determined that all our problems started when we demanded to be like everybody else – when they demanded to have a king. They were meant to be distinctive from all the other nations. They were distinctive. They were God’s people rescued from slavery. They were to be God worshipers who took care of widows and orphans and welcomed strangers into their homes. They had covenant responsibilities to have no other gods, to take a break once a week to worship, to honor father and mother, to not murder, cheat, or steal. Not to even want what belonged to someone else. That’s what it meant to be God’s people, not just like everyone else. They were supposed to be different. I would assert, churches are supposed to be different too. People of faith are supposed to be different. I’ve been giving this a lot of thought recently, asking, “What in the world happened to us?” You see, year-end reports for the UCC just came out. I proudly claim my status as a geek for church statistics so I jumped right in. But let me warn you. If you don’t like May Gray and June Gloom, you won’t like the next two minutes. More decline, the UCC now down to under 700,000 members. 683,000 to be exact, in 4,485 churches. Twenty-five years ago, we had 1.4 million members in 6,000 churches. That’s 700,000 fewer members but only 1,500 fewer churches. That can be explained by the fact that half of our churches now have less than 37 worshipers on an average Sunday. We are not alone in this. The median for United Methodists is 38. For Presbyterians, 35. There’s a lot of tiny churches in every denomination, many trying to hang on as long as they can. Here’s another shocking number: Of our 4,500 churches, we are one of only 350 that have more than 100 people in worship on Sunday. There are a few UCC megachurches – Trinity in Chicago has 6,000 members. First Plymouth in Lincoln has 4,000 and keeps growing. Twenty-five years ago, Plymouth Church in Seattle had 1,000 members. Big church, prominent, active. Today there are 360 members. Still, not too bad, all things considered. But their average worshiping congregation is 45, down from 500. Their annual budget, however, is $2 million – thanks to healthy endowments. And regardless of its size, it’s a healthy optimistic church. Lots of things going on. On the other hand, a prominent congregation in Colorado also had over 1,000 members, now 500, with an average worshiping congregation of 96, down from an average of 300. But they are really struggling, weighed down by the loss of their status and identity, although they have a $1 million annual budget to work with. They’re still stuck on “what in the world happened to us?” Here are the last numbers I’ll share. Last year 13,000 people joined a UCC church. 8,000 people died. And total losses were 28,000. 84 churches closed. Year after year this will call into question our very existence. However, some congregations with 37 members are vital and alive, like my former church in Cleveland. Long before me, Archwood UCC too had 1,000 members. Thirty years ago, its projected life was another 2 years – enough money and people to last 2 more years. But what was thought to be inevitable was reversed. Most recently, they got creative and gave their building to a cultural arts center in exchange for free office and worship space. They hire Sunday morning worship leaders and provide all the other services themselves. This inner-city church is in a food desert so every other week they go to the main produce terminal in town and buy fresh fruits and vegetables to sell for 5 cents or a quarter and offer a free breakfast. A vital group if there ever was one. The good news is that even if denominations cease to exist, there will continue to be vital churches. Amen? But it’s a choice. I read today’s scripture passage not as a call to wrestle with “what did we do wrong” but with the temptation to want to be like everybody else. Churches and people of faith are meant to be distinctive – not to have distinction, an elevated status in society. We are meant to be different. In a world with a thousand ways to get involved in things like social justice or beach clean ups or community affairs, and with lots of places to be part of a community, whether a hiking group, a community choir, or a book club, we are uniquely meant to, first of all, be the people of God – even though we won’t all agree what God means or who God is. No creeds around here. Yet, it is still essential for our self-understanding to recognize that God called us into being. We didn’t call God into being. God called us. And secondly, that we are a Christian church, although some days, many days to be honest, we may be repulsed by the label Christian, given how it’s thrown around as a weapon. The word Christian carries so much baggage, but it remains both our identity and calling, and our choice how to live it. Thank God there are lots of ways to make an impact upon the world for good, through groups focused on social justice and beach clean ups and community affairs, and thank God there are so many places where we can feel like part of a community, whether a hiking group, a community choir, or a book club. But we’re not called to be like everybody else. Worship keeps calling us into hard places,
Churches call us to persist in the love Jesus modeled through his life, to always choose love, even and especially when it’s hard. That’s the choice. Choose to be different. To worship something greater than money, status, success, popularity; to worship something other than power. Whether through churches or temples or mosques or any spiritual community, these are things we bring to the world that are unique – adding Spirit to Body and Mind. We can read statistics and ask “What in the world happened to us?” Or we can ask, “OK, what now? We all constantly face competing interests for our time and money and energy. Don’t choose what everyone else is doing. We’re called to be different.
![]() Sermons from Mission Hills UCC San Diego, California Rev. Dr. David Bahr [email protected] May 24, 2024 “Set Free” Acts 12: 4-10 – Common English Bible King Herod had Peter put in prison, handing him over to four squads of soldiers, sixteen in all, who guarded him. He planned to charge him publicly after the Passover. 5 While Peter was held in prison, the church offered earnest prayer to God for him. 6 The night before Herod was going to bring Peter’s case forward, Peter was asleep between two soldiers and bound with two chains, with soldiers guarding the prison entrance. 7 Suddenly an angel from the Lord appeared and a light shone in the prison cell. After nudging Peter on his side to awaken him, the angel raised him up and said, “Quick! Get up!” The chains fell from his wrists. 8 The angel continued, “Get dressed. Put on your sandals.” Peter did as he was told. The angel said, “Put on your coat and follow me.” 9 Following the angel, Peter left the prison. However, he didn’t realize the angel had actually done all this. He thought he was seeing a vision. 10 They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city. It opened for them by itself. After leaving the prison, they proceeded the length of one street, when abruptly the angel was gone. It all started one morning after a night of fishing but catching no fish. Peter and his partners were bone tired, washing their nets along the shore. A traveling preacher interrupted their routine and asked Peter to row out a little ways so he could talk to the crowd pressing in on him. Peter obliged, but then just when they had finished and were ready to go home, the preacher asked them to go out and try fishing again. They objected but did it anyway and this time, so many fish jumped into the nets, their boats began to sink. Peter cried out, “Get away from me. I’m not worthy of this.” Jesus just said, “Peter, get over yourself and come follow me.” And immediately, he dropped everything. For the past three months we have been following the story of Peter. We know of his extraordinary highs, like walking on water, and his exceptional lows, like when he realized he was walking on water, just like he asked, and began to sink. His extraordinary highs like when he recognized that Jesus was the Messiah, and his exceptional lows, when he completely misunderstood what that meant. Jesus as Messiah – not someone who would come in to enact retribution on their enemies but someone who would save the world by his sacrificial love. When he heard Jesus talk of his impending suffering and death, Peter scolded him and said, “Never!” Jesus turned right around and called Peter Satan. “Do you still not understand?” God would redeem the hatred and cruelty of the violent Romans through the example of Christ’s love. We heard these stories and many more, like when Jesus was being dragged away by soldiers, Peter demanded three times, “I don’t know that man.” But after his resurrection, while preparing some breakfast on the beach, Jesus gave Peter the opportunity to redeem himself with three questions: Do you love me? Do you know the second question? Do you love me? How about the third? Do you love me? Forty days later, Peter and the rest watched as Jesus ascended into heaven. Now, with Jesus gone, it was time to get busy. At their first organizational meeting, Peter stood in front of 120 followers and laid out the criteria to select a 12th apostle to replace Judas – overlooking Mary Magdalene as the obvious choice. No one seemed to question Peter’s role as the leader, but of course, he was the first of Jesus’ 12 disciples. Impetuous and hot-headed, Peter seemed to mature after Jesus departed. Or at least, stories about him began to focus more on his accomplishments than his failings. Peter helped establish the new church as a community in which no one had need for anything because those with means sold properties to support the community. Peter traveled around preaching and teaching and inviting people to change their hearts and lives but one day was confronted with an existential dilemma – could someone who wasn’t Jewish be baptized too? Two weeks ago, we heard a great story about how through dreams and visions, Peter was convinced that Gentiles were as much a part of the circle of Christ as anyone. Word got back to angry skeptics in Jerusalem that Peter baptized non-Jews, but Peter stood up to them and the church forever changed. The intent of the church, if not always its reality, is an inclusive body that welcomes all. We can all thank Peter for that. Well, today is the conclusion of his story. It begins with King Herod harassing people who belonged to the church. Harassing and killing. It may sound awful, but the general population loved it, so Herod decided to give them some more to cheer about and had Peter arrested and put in prison. 16 soldiers were assigned to guard him. As he lay sleeping on the ground, two were chained to him while the others guarded the entrances. While he was asleep, an angel appeared. The angel nudged him awake and said, “Quick! Get up!” The chains attached to the guards on either side fell from his wrists. Peter got dressed and followed the angel. They passed through one gate. Where were the guards? And then through a second gate, and when they came to the final gate to the city, the iron doors opened themselves. They ran down the length of the street and then the angel disappeared. Peter thought he was having a dream, but standing outside there by himself, he realized this was really happening. He also realized, any minute now, a search party would be out looking for him. Imagine Herod’s rage at the incompetence of 16 guards holding Peter behind three different locked gates, two of them actually chained to him. And yes, in fact, Herod was enraged. In the morning, Herod rounded them all up, interrogated them, and executed every one of them. But, spoiler alert, it came back around and what happened to Herod is pretty gross. Should I wait or tell you now? After the debacle involving Peter, Herod left Judea for a little rest and relaxation on the shore of the Mediterranean Sea. One day he held a rally. He got all dressed up in royal attire, seated himself on a majestic throne, and gave a rousing speech. His words caused people to shout over and over, “he’s a god, not a human,” which Herod’s ego liked. Well, remember the angel that “nudged” Peter awake? It “struck” Herod – same word. But whereas Peter woke up and was set free, Herod fell over, was eaten by worms, and died. Not died and was eaten by worms. Eaten by worms and then died. I told you it was gross. But back to Peter. Still standing on the street by himself, he came to his senses and ran toward the house where church members were gathered, praying for his release. Peter stood at the outer gate and knocked, nervously watching behind his back, hoping someone would come quickly to get him off the street. What a relief when Rhoda came outside. She was overcome with joy to see Peter and hear his voice. She was so overcome that she forgot to let him in. Instead, she ran inside to tell everyone that Peter’s at the gate! But they didn’t believe her. “You’ve lost your mind,” they claimed. But she kept insisting that Peter is outside. Someone said, “Well, maybe it’s his guardian angel.” While they sat around debating, Peter was still standing in the street, panicked, wondering what was taking so long and what was all that noise coming from inside the house. If he didn’t get off the street, he’d soon be found and the consequences would be deadly. When those in the house finally came out to see for themselves, they too were overcome with joy. Peter motioned for them to keep quiet. They all went inside and Peter recounted everything that had happened to him and then told them to tell James and the brothers and sisters. And then “he left for another place.” Those are the last words about Peter. That’s it. “He left for another place.” The end. Kind of anti-climactic. Little is known about what happens to Peter after that. At some point, some how, he showed up in Rome, but little is known about his time in Rome. We know that both Peter and Paul lived in the city at the time of Emperor Nero’s reign.[1] It’s only from non-biblical sources that we know Peter died about the same time as the Great Fire in Rome, in the year 64. Tradition says that Nero blamed Christians living in the city for the fire even though he probably set it himself to justify his cruelty. Tradition says Peter was crucified, but on an upside down cross. He didn’t want to be killed in the same way as Jesus because he said, “I’m not worthy of it,” just as he told Jesus the first morning after that shocking abundance of fish. Peter was crucified but Paul was not because Paul was a Roman citizen and Roman citizens couldn’t be crucified. Instead, Paul was beheaded. At least that’s the most common story. There are actually 15 different versions of how they died. Four different stories about Peter, five different ones about Paul, and six involving them dying together – well, not together as in the same place but on the same day of the same year.[2] Maybe. It seems odd that scripture records how King Herod was eaten by worms but nothing about Peter. Or other disciples except that Stephen was stoned to death. Of course, there are variants in how the four gospels describe the death of Jesus too. But, details aside, at least we know Peter died as a martyr to the Christian faith, right? Oddly, the Bible itself contains no word of it. But anyway, after all these months, what’s the point? What is the bottom line? Peter was an average guy. A fisherman whose aspiration was taking care of his family. Jesus saw something in him and invited Peter to follow him, even though Jesus might later have wished to change his mind. Peter was often a bitter disappointment. He didn’t just make little mistakes, misjudging some situations where he should have known better. Among his many faults and failings already mentioned, perhaps his most egregious failure was the night soldiers came to arrest Jesus in the garden. Peter pulled out a sword and cut off the ear of a soldier – the absolutely opposite reaction Jesus taught. And yet, even after all that, Jesus gave him a chance to make things right with those three little questions: Do you love me? To which Jesus gave the same answer: care for my sheep. After all those times of falling short, Jesus believed Peter could start again. All those times of really, really wanting to do the right thing and getting it so wrong. Oh Peter… And yet, bottom line? Peter is a good role model. What could be more reassuring for us? For those of us who really just want to do the right thing, who aspire to follow the teachings of Jesus but as often as we succeed we fail. Peter shows that we can begin again. Do you love me? Then take care of my people. And look who he became. Peter didn’t give up and as Jesus said, became the rock on which he built his church – the church to which we belong because Peter stood up and defended our place within it. A church which often, like Peter, gets it so wrong. But, Christianity isn’t about achieving perfection. Can I get an amen? Christianity isn’t about achieving perfection. It’s always an aspiration and commitment to start again. So, my question: Do you aspire to do better? Forgive more often, slow you’re your anger, practice patience, love a little more? Do you want to be set free from what you have failed to do? Just don’t give up. [1] https://www.christianpost.com/news/how-did-the-apostles-peter-and-paul-die.html [2] https://bam.sites.uiowa.edu/faq/peter-and-paul-martyrdoms#:~:text=Answer%3F,recorded%20in%20the%20New%20Testament! ![]() Sermons from Mission Hills UCC San Diego, California Rev. Dr. David Bahr [email protected] May 12, 2024 “Why Do We All Belong?” Acts 10: 9b-17a – Common English Bible Peter went up on the roof to pray. 10 He became hungry and wanted to eat. While others were preparing the meal, he had a visionary experience. 11 He saw heaven opened up and something like a large linen sheet being lowered to the earth by its four corners. 12 Inside the sheet were all kinds of four-legged animals, reptiles, and wild birds.[a] 13 A voice told him, “Get up, Peter! Kill and eat!” 14 Peter exclaimed, “Absolutely not, Lord! I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.” 15 The voice spoke a second time, “Never consider unclean what God has made pure.” 16 This happened three times, then the object was suddenly pulled back into heaven. 17 Peter was bewildered about the meaning of the vision. Peter got hungry and started thinking about lunch. While he waited for lunch to be served, he fell asleep. He was so hungry he had a dream or a vision about all kinds of things he couldn’t eat. Not foods with too much fat, salt, and sugar, he dreamt about foods he couldn’t eat because he was faithful to the dietary laws of his religion. In his vision, he saw the sky open and something that looked like a large linen sheet tied in its four corners being lowered down from heaven – like a tablecloth spread over a picnic table. And on that tablecloth was every kind of animal, reptile, and bird you could think of. A voice said, “Get up, Peter! Kill and eat!” Peter exclaimed, “Absolutely not, Lord! I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.” The voice said, “Never consider anything unclean that God has made pure.” He had the same dream three times and when he woke up he was puzzled. But as hungry as he still was, lunch was delayed because some visitors showed up at his door. They wanted him to come with them and meet a man named Cornelius. You see, the day before, Cornelius had an unusual dream too, a vision of his own. It was 3:00 in the afternoon, the regular time for prayer. An angel of God appeared in a vision – an angel as real as his next-door neighbor – who called out his name. Cornelius answered, “What is it?” The angel replied, “Your prayers and compassionate acts have come to God’s attention.” Cornelius wasn’t your average joe, a humble man doing good deeds that nobody noticed. Cornelius was a prominent Roman soldier and not just a solider, he headed a military unit of about 600 soldiers for the occupying force of Rome. If anyone represented the enemy, it was this guy. He had a reputation, but not for cruelty. He was always the first person to help someone in need. He was a thoroughly good man and always faithful to prayer. He directed his whole household – children, relatives, and servants – to live worshipfully before the Jewish God. That’s why he was praying at 3:00 in the afternoon. They were what we call Gentile God-worshippers. The angel told Cornelius what to do. He sent two servants and one of his soldiers who was also devoted to God to bring a man named Peter to meet with Cornelius. No explanation why, just go get him and bring him back to me – a day long journey both ways. They arrived at Peter’s house and knocked on the door. Peter was still waking up from the most unusual dream and trying to figure out what it meant. Something about a linen sheet lowered down from heaven with foods on it that he wasn’t allowed to eat and yet told to kill and eat. He was so lost in thought that he didn’t hear the repeated knocking at the door. The Spirit had to nudge him and whispered, “Go answer the door. I’ve sent these men.” They introduced themselves and told Peter their request that he accompany them to see Cornelius, but they assured him, this Roman soldier, this leader of soldiers, is a good man, a God-fearing man. Ask any Jew in the land. Peter invited them into his house and in the morning, Peter and several of his friends made the 14-hour walk to the beautiful city of Caesarea along the Mediterranean Sea. Cornelius was waiting with his whole household to welcome Peter and the others. Cornelius got on the ground to worship Peter who quickly told him to get up. “I’m human just like you.” As the family and servants of Cornelius gathered around, Peter said, “You know, it’s highly irregular for us to visit with people like you. Forbidden, in fact. But I just had this unusual dream. Something about eating things I’m not allowed to eat and the instruction – ‘never consider anything unclean that God has declared pure.’” He thought about what his dream might mean for a minute and had an epiphany: “I think God has just shown me that I should never call a person impure or unclean. But first, what do you want with me? Why did you call me here?” Cornelius told Peter about the vision he had while he was praying, the visitation by an angel who instructed him to send for Peter. He described every detail. And said, “we’re ready to do whatever you ask of us.” Peter nearly fell off his chair. He exclaimed, “God has done it! God has shown us the truth. It’s as clear as day. In every nation, those who do right by their fellow human and worship God with sincerity are included. God plays no favorites. God shows no partiality. The door is open to everyone. The children of Israel and everyone else too – including, shocker of shockers – a Roman soldier. Our enemies. All who worship God are one in Christ.” Everyone stood there with their mouths wide open. And then all of a sudden, the Holy Spirit fell upon everyone in the room, just like on Pentecost when she had fallen on people from every nation speaking every kind of language. But, they were all devout Jews. Here, the Holy Spirit came upon non-Jews – poured out on Gentiles, even on an enemy. Peter watched in amazement and said, “Does anyone object to baptizing these friends?” But of course, after all that, who could object? What a glorious, joyous occasion. But when the folks at headquarters heard about it, they were not so happy. Peter went to Jerusalem and heard plenty of criticism. They accused him of entering the home of the uncircumcised and eating with them. Isn’t it fascinating that when Jesus ate in the homes of tax collectors and prostitutes, the religious authorities accused him of eating with sinners!? And now the religious authorities representing Jesus turned on Peter for eating with “those people?” But step by step, Peter detailed what happened –
Peter asked his accusers, “So, if God gave them the same gift as was given to us who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, then who am I? Could I stand in God’s way?” Those leaders who had been riled up and angry and indignant that Peter would do such a thing as eat at the home of a sinner… they stood there in silence. “Huh. Well, all right then. God has a plan and we better not get in the way. Everyone can change their hearts and lives and have new life.” “No matter who you are or where you are on life’s journey, you are welcome here.” Why? This story tells us why. We all belong because God plays no favorites. “Never consider anything unclean that God has declared pure.” Especially people. Because who are we to keep some people out? I’ll never forget watching this play out in real time. Back in the late 1980s, a new church formed in the Twin Cities from a group of social justice minded folks who were unhappy with the lack of that focus at the Metropolitan Community Church in Minneapolis. I had already made a decision to leave that church about a year earlier. When I started seminary, I didn’t have a church home. As many of you already know, I was forced to leave the United Methodist Church of my childhood because in 1984, the General Conference added a line to their Book of Disciple prohibiting “self-avowed practicing homosexuals” from ordination. Without a home, I considered my options, one of which was the Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches, a denomination made up primarily of LGBTQ Christians excluded from every type of denomination from Pentecostal to Catholic. The first time I worshiped at the MCC in Minneapolis, sitting in a massive sanctuary full of 400 worshipers, I cried throughout the service. It was a large congregation, all Christians like me who needed refuge, who either felt excluded or were excluded or had actually been physically kicked out of their churches. The message my first Sunday was “God loves you just as you are.” It was so healing. They had an amazing choir so I joined that almost immediately. The message on the second Sunday was “God loves you just as you are,” as it was on the 3rd and 4th and 10th and Sunday number 26. I was hungry for what was next. I wanted to know what we were called to do with that love. After six months, I decided to look for a United Church of Christ to join. Shortly after, a larger group discerned the same need to move on. They formed a new independent congregation named Spirit of the Lakes. Eventually they decided they wanted to affiliate with a denomination and chose the United Church of Christ. But the UCC 35 years ago wasn’t yet the UCC we know today. The process for a congregation to join the UCC isn’t quick and easy and in the end, requires a vote of the delegates and clergy of all the other churches in the local Association – usually about 30 or 40 congregations. I went as an observer to the meeting where the decision would be made. It was contentious and emotional, lots of scripture weaponized. And then an older man in a wheelchair went forward to speak from the microphone. He held a very worn Bible in his hand and I knew what was coming. More Sodom and Gomorrah, even though Sodom and Gomorrah were actually about the lack of hospitality, just like the lack of hospitality being shown toward Spirit of the Lakes. The man began reading from his weathered Bible. “I saw something like a large linen sheet being lowered from heaven by its four corners.” I thought, what is he talking about?! He continued, repeating certain lines as he went, “never consider anything unclean that God has made pure. God shows no partiality.” And Peter’s question, “who are we to prevent these people from being baptized.” He closed his Bible and rolled back to his place. The room was silent. The question was called. All who vote to accept Spirit of the Lakes stand. The man struggled to stand up. Two people helped him and he stood as straight as he could. He spoke loudly, Aye! The margin was small, but the church that day became Spirit of the Lakes United Church of Christ. Oh, and by the way, for those who don’t know, the General Conference of the United Methodist Church overturned that ban two weeks ago. When the vote was announced, they broke out singing Draw the Circle Wide. I will never read this passage without the image in my mind of a man with his weathered Bible being helped to stand in order to say “We all belong.” This story is why all of us – no matter who we are or where we are on life’s journey – this is why we all belong. It’s not a political statement. It's a deep theological affirmation grounded in scripture. Any objections? ![]() I was raised in a United Methodist Church and have wonderful memories of my childhood and youth. Our rural church in North Dakota was picturesque, situated at the intersection of two gravel roads on a corner cut out from fields of wheat and sunflowers on land donated by members of our family tree. The men of the church built the church themselves which sits alongside a parsonage and cemetery out back. It could be a movie set. The General Conference of the United Methodist Church just voted to overturn its prohibition against openly LGBTQ clergy. Some are celebrating while others may be embarrassed to be associated with a denomination that would do such a thing. It may feel like a decision that only affects people far from your own experience. I would like to share my story. The church played an absolutely central role in our family – and I was happy about that. I loved church. I was part of a family that showed up any time the doors were open – although, in this rural setting, the doors were never actually locked. Among other things, my mother was a beloved Sunday School teacher and active with missions, connecting us with the state and national levels. We even hosted a missionary from Hong Kong at our kitchen table. My father was a trustee, and I can only imagine every other function too, active in the Brotherhood. We always sat in the same third row pew on the left side – where there is now a plaque on a new window featuring a stalk of wheat in honor of my parents and aunts and uncles. I have fond memories of Sunday School flannelgraph panels illustrating Bible stories, the annual Christmas Eve pageant – always wishing to be Joseph. Vacation Bible School and church camp every summer. Washing dishes after a potluck and listening to women tell stories. Youth group on Sunday evenings – serving as president twice. I was a youth delegate to the state annual conference meeting. In 7th grade I started playing the organ during worship on Sunday mornings, taught by the pastor’s wife. In high school I started riding along with the pastor – Rev. Cushing, never “Ralph” – to the other churches on our three-point charge, which means one pastor serving three churches in a 65-mile circuit every Sunday. He picked me up so I could play the piano at one of the country churches with only 14 worshipers. While driving those country roads, we had wonderfully deep theological conversations. Sometimes I would go along to play the pump organ at the second church in a small town with 25 worshipers. Ours was the “big church.” My aunt was the main organist and I played regularly. I never encountered words of hate in my local church – from either pulpit or people. The love of Jesus was the message. I believed that and so when I was 7-years old, I went forward one night during the annual week of revival services and gave my life to Jesus as my Lord and Savior. Our revivals were quiet. Lots of singing, always in four-part harmony, a sermon by a guest preacher, and an altar call. Emotion came in the form of quiet tears, not shouts of praise. When a Baptist from Texas moved to one of the local farms and joined our church, his enthusiastic “amen!” during very dry sermons still caused people, and the pastor, to jump even years later. I wanted to paint a picture of this idyllic setting. A church that was a place of love and belonging and intertwined family trees – we may have been second or third cousins with over half of the church. The church encouraged my musical abilities long before they were very good. I was a good kid and when I announced that I was called to become a pastor, no one questioned why. I knew that one day my picture would be added to the frame of the many others from this small church who had been called into ministry as pastors and missionaries – and even included my sister and aunt because they married pastors. However, I’ve been ordained over 30 years and my picture never made it to the wall. My mother was sad about that until the day she died at age 90. Why? I graduated from high school in 1983 and only looked at United Methodist colleges. I intended to go straight from college to seminary and become a pastor in North Dakota. I reasoned that I should return home because people who weren’t raised in North Dakota wouldn’t want to move there. Big changes came while I was in college. First, the farm crisis hit hard. Our family like thousands of others were suddenly forced out of business. Those family farms supported small towns and small churches. Both started emptying out. Secondly, I accepted what I had tried to deny for years. I started to understand in high school that I was different but didn’t know exactly how. I was mortified when I figured out that I might be gay. What little I knew about it wasn’t good. I did what I could, including a lot of prayer on my knees, to be something other than what I realized years later I couldn’t change. In the middle of all this, the United Methodist General Conference adopted a rule in the Book of Discipline that prohibited “self-avowed, practicing homosexuals” from ordained ministry. It felt like a particularly cruel joke that I would both be called to ministry and be gay. I knew that when I met with the Board of Ordained Ministry, I would be asked if I was a self-avowed, practicing homosexual. I considered lying since, as my campus minister counseled, it would be an unjust question. In the end, they didn’t ask because they already knew me so well. I had been so active as a youth in the conference. But I decided I wouldn’t be put in the position of deciding to tell the truth or a lie again. I would pursue ministry as a pastor somewhere else – not that there were really many options. But God made a way out of no way. Not long after, I received a phone call inquiring whether I would be interested in serving as the pastor of churches in two small towns during my senior year of college, my first introduction to the United Church of Christ (UCC). I loved being a pastor – at 20 years old, preaching every Sunday, marrying, burying, counseling the grieving. Why they listened to me, I don’t know. God was kept busy helping me. And then I went to seminary – as an out gay man. Ordination in the UCC wasn’t an easy path, but at least the possibility existed. Whereas in 1972 the United Methodist Church declared “Christianity is incompatible with homosexuality,” the UCC ordained the first openly gay man in 1972. I am grateful that the UCC became my home. I have worked and served on every level of the church from national to local and been a pastor for over 30 years. All that service and devotion would have been in the United Methodist Church. I say this with no bitterness. I just want people to know that the decision of the General Conference just made wasn’t about “other people” from some place far away. It directly affected one of the Sunday School children who was nurtured and formed in a country church, who enjoyed listening to Bible stories and watching them illustrated with figures cut out of flannel, who went forward to the altar one night when I was seven years old, and who, at age 16, 42 years ago, God called into ordained ministry. Is it too late to get my picture on the wall outside the sanctuary? My parents would be very happy. ![]() Sermons from Mission Hills UCC San Diego, California Rev. Dr. David Bahr [email protected] April 28, 2024 “Pretending” Acts 5: 1-6 – Common English Bible However, a man named Ananias, along with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property. 2 With his wife’s knowledge, he withheld some of the proceeds from the sale. He brought the rest and placed it in the care and under the authority of the apostles. 3 Peter asked, “Ananias, how is it that Satan has influenced you to lie to the Holy Spirit by withholding some of the proceeds from the sale of your land? 4 Wasn’t that property yours to keep? After you sold it, wasn’t the money yours to do with whatever you wanted? What made you think of such a thing? You haven’t lied to other people but to God!” 5 When Ananias heard these words, he dropped dead. Everyone who heard this conversation was terrified. 6 Some young men stood up, wrapped up his body, carried him out, and buried him. In some churches, when the liturgist finishes reading a scripture passage, they will say “The Word of the Lord,” and the congregation replies “Thanks be to God!” This is one of those passages where the response is more likely to be “Thanks be to God??” Ananias and Saphira sold a piece of property and gave the proceeds to the apostles to care for the needs of their community. Why? The previous chapter tells us. Acts chapter 4: The community of believers were united as one – one heart, one mind. No one said, “That’s mine; you can’t have it.” They shared everything and so there was not a person in need among them – that’s the power of the Holy Spirit. Those who owned fields or houses sold them and brought the proceeds to the apostles as an offering and the apostles distributed it according to each person’s need. This was such a remarkable characteristic of the early Christians that this is already the second time in the Book of Acts that the author, Luke, has told this story. Back in Acts chapter 2, following their experience of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost: All the believers were united as one – one heart, one mind. The believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to the community, to their shared meals, and to their prayers. They would sell pieces of property and possessions and distribute the proceeds to everyone who needed them. Sound familiar? Must be important. And then Barnabas is specifically lifted up as an example. Barnabas, whose name means “encourager,” owned a field, sold it, brought the money and placed it under the care and authority of the apostles. What an inspiration he is! The next word, however, is "however…" Yay Barnabas, and then, let me tell you, however, about Ananias and Saphira. They saw the example of Barnabas and others. They too decided to sell a piece of property but this husband and wife duo decided they would hold back a piece of the proceeds for themselves. To be clear, that was their right to do. Peter said so. He told Ananias, that was your property to keep and after you sold it, it was your money to do with as you wanted. But Peter could tell there was some kind of deception going on. What was it? Peter said they lied to the Holy Spirit. That’s not really a helpful explanation for us, but Ananias understood and when he heard it, dropped dead. He wasn’t struck dead, he dropped dead from a conscience attack. He was wrapped up, carried out, and buried. A frightful and puzzling conclusion. And now we say, thanks to be God? This is not an inspiring story. It could have been. I mean, this seems like a perfect opportunity to teach about two central ideas in Christianity: honesty about our actions and forgiveness. For example, the story could have been that when Ananias was confronted by his deception, it broke his heart. He realized his error and begged forgiveness. He promised to change his ways and he did! And look at what this man became – the greatest philanthropist in history! Instead, he realized what he had done was wrong and he dropped dead. Where is the opportunity for redemption in that? This is not an inspiring story. And it’s not even the end. It gets worse. Three hours later, Saphira arrived. She didn’t know that anything had happened to her husband. Peter said, “Tell me, was this the price you given for your field?” “Yes, that’s the price.” Peter replied, “how could you scheme with each other…” but he doesn’t specify exactly what that scheme was, leaving us, again, to wonder what was the real offense? But, it was bad enough that when confronted with it, she too immediately dropped dead. Just fell to the ground. Another conscience-attack. They were under no obligation to sell. And the problem wasn’t that they held some back, which they were free to do. So, what was the problem that resulted in such an extreme action? My theory is that they pretended to give the entire proceeds of the sale to receive recognition for their generosity. They pretended that it was because the Holy Spirit had inspired them to give, just like Barnabas and all the others. But the Holy Spirit would never inspire us to do less than we are capable of already. The Spirit is in the business of inspiring us to do more than we thought possible. It would be a betrayal of the Spirit to do less. Ananias and Saphira wanted praise for their acts of generosity, which they were, just not quite as generous as they wanted to people to think. Their motivation was status in the community, not love for it. In the origin story of the church, they were the first “pretend Christians.” That can actually mean many things. We are well aware of the declining rates of church participation across the country. It’s not all a bad thing. It just means people don’t have to pretend anymore. For a long time, some people’s motivation to belong to a church had more to do with cultural expectation than religious orientation; maybe some family pressure. Everyone was supposed to belong to a church. And now they’re free not to. It’s not that they had bad intentions but now, since they won’t be judged for not going to church, they’re not going to church. Please understand that I’m not trying to cast blame – but some people felt they had to pretend to be Christians to fit in, to be accepted. Isn’t honesty and freedom better for everyone involved? Now, I would suggest to them that belonging to a church is a good thing, participating in religious rituals, practicing generosity, giving kids a moral grounding, caring for and being cared for by your neighbors – all of these things bring tremendous meaning to our lives. We often like to pretend that we are at the center of the world, but it’s a really good thing to be reminded on a regular basis that we are not. So why did Luke tell this story? Of all the important things he could have chosen to say about the origins of the church at the very beginning, why include this less than inspiring story about Ananias and Saphira? I’m sure there are plenty of reasons, but the one that speaks to me today was his concern for the appearance of hypocrisy among early Christians. This couple wanted to look generous, they sought out status, but they were not acting out of love. And that’s not Christianity. They weren’t misers, cheapskates. They were impostors. Pretenders. And Luke cautions the early church to be careful, because hypocrisy can be deadly. You know, the kind of pretend Christianity that is killing the church in America, but don’t blame people who are leaving. They are reacting quite understandably and logically to an inexplicable form of Christianity that seeks privilege for itself, professes love for authoritarians, embraces the denial of science, a distrust of women, and the demonization of immigrants. It’s all in such stark contrast with descriptions of the early church characterized by its remarkable generosity and sacrificial concern for all who have need. It’s a betrayal of the Holy Spirit. That’s why I have such gratitude for churches like this. Not perfect but trying. Aspiring to love and understand and serve – to do more than it would seem possible, were it not for the Holy Spirit. From the bottom of my heart, please hear my gratitude for your genuine generosity and compassionate spirit. I give thanks for your orientation to our community – what do the people around us need? It is churches like this that many of us depend upon to remain in Christian community or we might be among the formerly-churched. Not that we should be overly self-congratulatory, but it can’t be stated enough. Churches like this matter. And we shouldn’t keep it a secret. I know I have thrown some arrows at so-called pretenders, so let’s turn our gaze inward and be reflective. Are we as loving and accepting as we profess to be? Are we pretending to care? As individuals – am I, are you, using our resources to address human need in our communities – not for recognition but the requirement of love insisted upon by the Holy Spirit? Am I trying to hold back what the Spirit is inviting me to share? Because I don’t want to just pretend to be a Christian. Do you? |
AuthorI love being a Archives
June 2024
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