No Holds Barred
Acts 16:16-34
When searching for resources on the Internet over the last couple of weeks, I decided to Good Search (not Google) “No Holds Barred.” What came up among the hundreds of websites cited was a mix of wrestling websites, a bad B-rated movie starring Hulk Hogan, a song with very explicit lyrics by Tweety Bird Loc and a book on prayer by Mark Roberts. Of course, our scripture lesson is the story of Paul and Silas being jailed in Macedonia after depriving a wealthy entrepreneur of his slave-girl’s ability to tell fortunes, so there were some aspects of the scripture lesson in all of those topics.
Last week we talked about the fears that sometimes immobilize all of us and looked to the scripture to give us insight about how to break free from those fears. Today I want us to glimpse the future in a “no holds barred” manner. What would it look like if we are successful at living blessed lives and blessing others with our lives? There would be some tangible results.
GLBTQ folks will have another tool to use in conversations with religious people who mistrust us.
Let’s face reality. When GLBTQ people have challenged the prejudice ingrained in conservative Christianity, it has usually been a losing battle even though there is overwhelming scholarly evidence against the heterosexist interpretations usually given the clobber passages. More information has not changed many minds or hearts because a lack of information is not the main obstacle. Facts are not the problem. The facts support an understanding of the God of grace we have come to know. Fear is the problem. Religious people fear us because our existence challenges their assumptions about how God ordered creation. That fear is so overwhelming that it is rarely articulated because to say the words is far too frightening to the status quo. When we ask the question, “Would Jesus discriminate?” it returns us to the heart of Christianity, which most Christians agree is revealed in the life and teaching of Jesus Christ. We see clearly from scripture that Jesus refused to be held hostage by out-dated legalistic laws that only served to oppress parts of the population. Jesus always chose helping those in need over following prescribed ritualistic rules. Jesus held up the Samaritan, the sick, the broken, the leper as heroic examples, exactly opposite the usual cultural interpretation which asserted these populations were rejected by God. Jesus chose grace over legalism every time. And as frightening as this makes our conservative brothers and sisters in the Christian church, Jesus would stand with GLBTQ people and any group that was vulnerable to the abuse of those with power.
Make no mistake about it. The power of Holy Spirit to overcome all oppression is certain. Grace, in the end, is always stronger than hate, fear or enmity. The gospel of Jesus Christ is a “no holds barred” movement toward hope, reconciliation, justice and truth. We must not lose our voice in this discussion that is happening across our nation and around the world. The first tangible result of Blessed and Blessing Others is that our people will have another tool to add to the discussion.
The second tangible result is:
Our building will be preserved for many generations to come.
It has been said that one of the true marks of generosity is to plant a tree under which you will never sit to enjoy the shade. Planting a tree is an investment in a future that one may or may not get to witness. It’s counter-intuitive. Most people give of their resources in order to receive something back. We support organizations which show us verifiable results. We support political candidates who will support our ideas. We want to be able to see the results of our philanthropy. Preserving this house of worship as a symbol of hope for future generations goes far beyond any self-centered interests that usually motivate people to give. We don’t yet know the names of the thousands who will pass through these doors. We don’t know the causes of the broken hearts that will be healed at this altar. We don’t know the number of families that will celebrate baptism, weddings, first communion or who will gather to mourn the death of a loved one in this sanctuary. We don’t know what challenges will rear their ugly heads in the future to face the faithful who gather in this place long after all of us are dead and gone. All we can do is do our best to preserve and enhance this monument to the grace of God while it is in our care. We received this gift from those who went before us. We want to leave it in better shape to those who come behind us.
The final tangible result that will come from our effort today is:
We get the opportunity to choose blessing.
There have been so many stories about the power of blessing from all corners of our congregation. One of Bill’s brothers and his family live here in the cities. We are very close to him, his wife and four (soon to be five) children. Those Ekni are a fertile bunch! We usually attend birthday parties and other events in the kid’s lives. Our sister-in-law’s family is usually also there. A couple of weeks ago when we went to one of the children’s birthday parties, Bill’s brother told us that his mother-in-law would not be attending the party because we were there. Both Brett and Cindy were clear with the mother-in-law that we are an important part of their extended family and part of the children’s lives so they refused to give in to her ultimatum to choose her over us. I was very moved by their decision to resist such an ultimatum even though it probably would have been easier to just give in to the pressure from that side of the family. They chose blessing over ultimatum.
Kathy Barclay was out working on her lawn when a neighbor walked by and asked how things were going. Kathy shared some of what was happening at church and mentioned she was going to be putting up a “Would Jesus Discriminate?” yard sign. Without missing a beat, the neighbor said, “I want one of those.” Her son was bringing some friends home from college soon and this neighbor felt this would be a good opportunity to open some conversations around the issue of GLBTQ folks and how religion is used as a weapon.
A few weeks ago I shared with my parents what was going on here and described the campaigns we were involved in. I received a letter from my mother this last week enclosing an unsolicited check for the “Blessed and Blessing Others” campaign because they are so impressed with the work we are doing. They plan to send even more later.
After putting up their “Would Jesus Discriminate?” yard sign, Mark and David got an anonymous note from a neighbor chiding them on the sign complete with a homophobic sermon copied from an Internet preacher. I noticed the next Sunday that David had an armload of yard signs he was taking home with him. I didn’t get a chance to ask him where he planned to stick them.
As our theme song says, “we choose blessing over cursing.” Our knee jerk reaction is to curse those who wound us or to retaliate against injustice that damages our families. When Paul and Silas were released from their prison shackles by that midnight earthquake in our reading, they could have cursed the jailer by escaping and encouraging others to do so as well. The jailer would have received the sentence of any prisoner who escaped. They chose blessing and the jailer’s life was spared and his family transformed. We too choose blessing. We choose to use the reality that we are blessed people, enriched with God’s grace, as our greatest offense against the forces that use scripture as a weapon and church tradition as a barricade. Let it be said of us that we lived to be a blessing for life, that by the fruit we leave behind our legacy – our heritage – is blessing.
In a moment I will ask you to bring your offering and pledge cards to the containers here at the front. Once we have received all of our offerings and pledges, we will dedicate these resources to be used as a blessing for life. Everything collected today –both money and pledge cards – will go towards the “Blessed and Blessing Others” campaign. If you brought an offering for one of our other funds, please place it in an offering envelope and clearly mark where you want it applied. There will not be a separate DUO offering since we are bringing everything forward at one time.
In the pew rack in front of you, there are extra pledge cards. If you did not receive one in the mail or if you failed to bring it with you, there are plenty in the pews. Also in the pew racks, there are offering envelopes and credit card forms if you need them. We take Visa, MasterCard and American Express. Good old cash is accepted as well. Please complete any of these items in your pews, then bring your offering and your pledge to “Blessed and Blessing Others” forward and let us as a body of believers choose blessing. The ushers will not be directing you by pew, just come as you feel led.
Sources:
www.homileticsonline.com Prison Break, May 2007.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097987/ No Holds Barred movie image
http://www.markdroberts.com/htmfiles/resources/noholdsbarred.htm “No Holds Barred” book image
http://www.amazon.com/No-Holds-Barred-Ultimate-Revolution/dp/190385430X “No Holds Barred” wrestling book image