Last minute opportunity to preach last week

Last Friday evening I saw I had missed a call from earlier that afternoon. I listened to the message and called back as soon as I had the opportunity. The result of the conversation was that I would be doing pulpit supply on Sunday at two locations for my colleague. I was glad to be able to fill in for my colleague who needed the help. My schedule happened to be open, so it worked out. I hadn't preached at either of the churches in a long while, but I knew them both, one more than the other as I had been a member of it prior to becoming clergy. 

The sermon was written. Sunday came. I headed to the first church. 

The sign outside the church caught my attention. It said: "Your life is a canvas-- paint it with God's love". The focus of the sermon was God's love. When I got inside the church, there were a few people already there. A few others came later. It was a small turn out, but we had a good time of worship. The small, but hearty choir sang a special song, "God is Calling Us"  by Natalie Sleeth. Some of the lyrics: "If the song's to be sung, we must sing it! If the love's to be shared, we must bring it! For God is calling us now indeed, to go where there is need If the word's to be heard, we must speak it! If the peace is to come, we must seek it!

Other songs came from "The Faith We Sing" ("There's a Song") and "Worship and Song" ("Give Me Jesus"). It was a good blend of music, as there was also a song from the United Methodist Hymnal (UMH). The children's message was partially about grace and hit on some of the things in the sermon. It was neat how things came together, even though it wasn't planned for me to be there. 

At the 2nd church, a handmade bookmark in the Bible that read "God is love" from 1 John 4:8 caught my attention because that was one of the verses I referenced in the sermon. 

I enjoyed the music at the 2nd church too, as the drum, piano, and organ worked together to lead us in worshipful praise. 

Though I prepared one sermon and preached it two times, it was almost two different sermons because it changed. I couldn't really tell you exactly what I changed, but I know I used some different examples in each place. That's how it was when I consistently preached at two different churches every Sunday. It was always interesting to see how the Holy Spirit moved.

Here is the basic sermon. I say "basic" because as I noted above, it changed. It got edited here and there in the giving of it. The foundation is the same. Maybe there is something there for the reader today. Who knows? 

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“Know the Love of Christ”

Ephesians 3:14-21

July 28, 2024

Grace and Fairview UMC

 
Good morning!
As we continue in our time of worship this morning, will you pray with me?
 
“God of Light, open our hearts and minds by the power of your Holy Spirit, that, as the Scriptures are read and your word proclaimed, we may hear with joy what you say to us today. Amen.” (Prayer for Illumination, UMH, in Upperroom WorshipBook, page 35)
Today’s Scripture passage comes from Ephesians 3:14-21, from the Common English Bible:
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¹⁴ This is why I kneel before the Father. ¹⁵ Every ethnic group in heaven or on earth is recognized by him. ¹⁶ I ask that he will strengthen you in your inner selves from the riches of his glory through the Spirit. ¹⁷ I ask that Christ will live in your hearts through faith. As a result of having strong roots in love, ¹⁸ I ask that you’ll have the power to grasp love’s width and length, height and depth, together with all believers. ¹⁹ I ask that you’ll know the love of Christ that is beyond knowledge so that you will be filled entirely with the fullness of God.
²⁰ Glory to God, who is able to do far beyond all that we could ask or imagine by his power at work within us; ²¹ glory to him in the church and in Christ Jesus for all generations, forever and always. Amen.
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LEADER: THE BREAD OF LIFE.
PEOPLE: THANKS BE TO GOD.
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I gave this passage a different title than Braxton, taking the title from verse 19 as a focus verse: “Know the Love of Christ”.
Before we get there, let’s look at the passage.  The passage begins with “this is why I kneel before the Father.” What is the “why” here? To understand that, we need to go back a bit. In the preceding verses, there is much talk by the apostle Paul about God’s grace and the strength that offers. In verse 12, we read this from Paul: “In Christ we have bold and confident access to God through faith in him”. It is that bold and confident access that causes Paul to kneel before God and pray for the Ephesians. In this prayer he asks several things in verses 16-19.
 
There are four “I ask that” statements. Two are Paul asking God and Christ on behalf of the Ephesians and two are Paul asking the Ephesians to respond.
 
·      I ask that he (Father) will strengthen you in your inner selves (16)
·      I ask that Christ will live in your hearts through faith (17)
·      I ask that you’ll have the power to grasp love’s width and length, height and depth (18)
·      I ask that you’ll know the love of Christ that is beyond knowledge (19)
 
Both verses 18 and 19 put the responsibility onto the hearer of the letters (in those days)…. Or hearer or reader in current times.
 
How do we grasp the love of Christ and know it beyond knowledge?
 
If we are to grasp its width and length, its height and depth, how are we to do that beyond knowledge?
 
It’s similar to having “peace that passes all understanding”, right?! We are somehow able to have these things that are beyond measurement and capability. How does that even work? It goes back to grace. God’s grace, which is ongoing for us, throughout our entire lives and faith journeys. We don’t stop growing or learning.
 
And because of that, we can continue to learn about Christ’s love, how we are to love, and what that all means.
 
We can look to Christ to see his love. Christ modeled love through humility and compassion for others. We know he took on the role of a servant when he washed the disciples’ feet. He cared for those who were sick, had disease. He brought back people from the dead. He defended the poor, the widow, the orphan. Jesus showed love in many situations.
 
Jesus set the example but also left us with words when he shared the greatest commandments…to love the Lord God and to love neighbor as ourself, as found in Matthew 22:37-40: “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your being and with all your mind. ³⁸ This is the first and greatest commandment. ³⁹ And the second is like it: You must love your neighbor as you love yourself.”
1 John 4:8 reminds us that God is love. 1 John 4:9 goes on to say this: ⁹ This is how the love of God is revealed to us: God has sent his only Son into the world so that we can live through him.
1 John 4:16 says: ¹⁶ We have known and have believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and those who remain in love remain in God and God remains in them.
If we are to “know the love of Christ” as Paul is praying to the Father here in Ephesians, then we will seek to better understand how Christ loved, who Christ loved, and how we can love as Christ loved. We will seek to love God and others as ourselves. We won’t always get it right, because we aren’t Christ. But grace abounds and we can keep trying.
The love and power of Christ is within us and as we continue to allow Christ to work in us and through us, growing us on our spiritual path, we will “know the love of Christ” .
Paul ends this passage with these words, a fitting ending for us today, as we recognize that God is able to do more within us than we can ask or imagine: “²⁰ Glory to God, who is able to do far beyond all that we could ask or imagine by his power at work within us; ²¹ glory to him in the church and in Christ Jesus for all generations, forever and always. Amen.”

Rev. Deb