2009-03-08 Sermon

2009-03-08 On Being Presbyterian
James McTyre
Lake Hills Presbyterian Church (USA)

8:34 He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, "If any want to
become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.

8:35 For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life
for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it.

Look closely. Scripture is very explicit. Jesus called the his disciples AND the crowd. This is a message for all of us. Not just the lifelong followers. Not just those who have given up their livelihoods. Not just those hand-picked by the Lord himself. This is a message for all of us. You, in the back row, not so sure about this Jesus guy. You, on the sidelines, waiting for direction. You, hiding behind your mama's back. You, ready to go, and just not sure where. This is a message for the faithful AND the not-so-faithful alike. This is a message for all of us.

This is the time of year when I get to teach Confirmation Class. Confirmation class is for the 6th-graders who are ready to "confirm" the vows of baptism taken on their behalf when they were baptized as babies. It's also for kids who have never been baptized, and who are ready to take the step of baptism for themselves. It's also the time of year when I'm reminded how old and how boring I became when I turned 21. The best part of Confirmation is that it's young, and it's anything but boring, because these kids aren't afraid to ask questions, or make sarcastic comments, or yawn and stare out the window when you're yammering on about Justification or some other 16th century churchy jargon. We have middle school teachers here. Raise your hand if you teach middle school. You have a special place in heaven. It's in Leviticus.

Raise your hand if you're a professional teacher. Raise your hand if you're an unpaid teacher (not underpaid, but unpaid), like a coach, or Sunday School, or private tutor. When you teach a lesson, who always learns more: the students, or you? You do. Teachers always learn twice as much as the students.

So, this is the time of year I get to teach Confirmation Class, and, I don't know if the kids are learning nearly as much as I think I'm teaching, but I'm learning. I'm re-learning the luscious lessons of Presbyterianism. Yes, I am a Presbyterian Nerd. I like Robert's Rules of Order, and serving on committees, and having meetings. Oh yeah, and serving Jesus, too. Problem with any church is that sometimes we forget that being church isn't about being church, it's about serving Jesus. Serving Jesus can be scary, so we hide behind our bureaucracy and traditions. If you ever hear anyone in church say, "But we've never done it that way before," it's not because they're grumpy sticks in the mud; it's because they're scared. Serving Jesus can be scary. But once you get over the scary part, you'd never go back. Kind of like learning to ride a bike: It's scary to start with, but once you get it, you feel freedom.

So, this is the time of the year I'm teaching Confirmation Class, and I always re-write it every single year. Kristen says, "Why do you have to rewrite it every year?" I don't know. I'm probably more ADD than the middle schoolers. So, I get this idea, I know hundreds of people who are Presbyterian. Why don't I get them to help teach? So I got on Facebook and I sent a message to all my Presbyterian friends and I asked them to call in and leave a voice mail about why they like being Presbyterian. They blew me away. Ministers, elders, high-ranking officials, people looking for jobs. They told their stories of faith, from their hearts. I don't know what the kids will learn from this, but I'm learning and re-learning all about what it means to be not only Presbyterian, but to do what Jesus said, to deny yourself and take up your cross and follow him.

So, here's just a sample of what I'm receiving. I share it with you this morning, because I think all of us can learn from these voices from the crowd, the disciples in the making. Now, I know these people, and I assure you, not one of them is perfect. But they know Jesus. They know faith. And they're willing to share it.

[video]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Z4A1aXJxkY

Jesus called to his disciples and to the crowd, and he said, "If any want to
become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life
for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it."

What of your life are you willing to give up for Jesus? But more important, what are you willing to take on to become a follower of Jesus? What's your story? What do you want your story to be? What do you want to teach the new generation of disciples?

Let's pray.