June 24, 2018

Fruit of the Spirit: “Love”

Galatians 5:22-25

Today we begin a nine-part sermon series on "The Fruit of the Spirit." The text is

Galatians 5:22-23. Paul writes;

By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,

generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against

such things.

What does God look like? Nobody knows, but Paul gives us a description; love, joy,

peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These are the

fruit of God’s Spirit. That’s a different picture of God than most people may have. It’s a

benevolent picture of a God who loves the world.

I think Paul was intentional in placing love at the head of the list of fruit. It’s first. It’s

the engine that pulls the rest of the train.

Imagine a world without love.

● There would be no marriage (not any good ones!).

● No forgiveness.

● There would be no friendship,

● no compassion for the aging, for children, or the poor.

● There would be no Church, without love.

In his famous passage on love in 1 Corinthians 13, Paul writes; If I…do not have love, I

am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. (13:1). Without love, the world is full of noise. It’s not

an accident that he strategically places "love" at the head of this list.

*

So, who’s he writing to, and why? This letter is to a cluster of small Christian

communities he formed on his first missionary trip in the region of Galatia, which is modern

Turkey today. They are the earliest of all churches.

They would have met in homes, had no New Testament, never met Jesus of Nazareth,

weren’t Presbyterians and had no pastor. They lived in a world that didn’t understand church.

They barely understood church themselves! It was all new.

After Paul left Galatia, a group of Jewish Christians, known as Judizers, came in with a

different brand of Christianity. They insisted that in order to become a Christian, a male Gentile

(or none-Jewish person) must first be circumcised and observe the Mosaic law. So, to be a

Christian, you must first be converted to Judaism.

Paul disagreed, that’s why he wrote this letter. We do not earn our salvation in any way.

We receive it, through Christ. You cannot earn or work your way into God’s favor. It is a gift

for all people.

This was radical thinking. The way things were, were the way things were. The

Messiah was coming to the Jews. If you wanted to be a part of that, you had to become Jewish.

God doesn’t change the rules. Unless He does!

This was a huge battle in the early church. Can Gentiles become Christians? Things

have to be done “decently and in order!” And surely God’s Spirit would not take up residence

in human flesh. We are unholy, and unworthy.

But Paul is saying that. He is coloring outside the lines. That’s why they tried to kill

him, and eventually imprisoned him. The author of over two-thirds of our New Testament was

considered a criminal, a heretic, a traitor, and an open-minded liberal.

*

As complex, and emotionally charged as all this is, why in the world would Paul choose a

metaphor as simple as “fruit?”

Richard Hayes writes the obvious:

Fruit cannot be humanly manufactured. (The New Interpreter's

Bible: vol. XI, Richard Hayes, “Galatians,” p. 328)

That’s precisely the point. Paul would be opposed to any idea that humans can

manufacture righteousness. John writes; “God is love, and those who abide in love abide in

God, and God abides in them.” (1 John 4:16). That’s a deeper definition of love, not based on

human achievement, but on human receptivity. That’s where Paul is. Fruit is actually the perfect

metaphor.

*

Love is a fruit born in the human spirit by God. This is the love we ask for at a wedding.

The Church does not ask you, "Do you love each other?" but rather "Will you love each other?"

And then we throw everything we can at you;

…in plenty and in want;

in joy and in sorrow;

in sickness and in health;

as long as you both shall live. (meaning death).

That's a love that only God can produce in us. We cannot manufacture it on our own.

It’s not about following the rules. You can’t read a book on marriage and know everything you

need to know. You need something else.

When I use to visit my mother in the nursing home, there would always be an elderly

man sitting in the hallway with his wife, who was in a wheelchair. She was an Alzheimer's

patient. He held her hand as she stared off into space. No conversation. No eye contact. He

just sat there for hours holding her hand.

One day I stopped and introduced myself to him. I said:

'It must be hard for you to come here every day knowing that she

doesn't know who you are.'

And I’ll never forget his response. He very quietly said:

'But I know who she is. We did vow to love each other in sickness and in health.’

(As if I, the minister, did not know!)

We do vow that, but how do we pull that off? From where does our strength come?

How do you get to that level of love? How do you love in “want, sorrow, sickness, unto death?

That’s not “puppy love,” that’s “Big Dog love!”

*

Have you ever needed to tap into a love deeper than the one you could produce? I have.

Sometimes you need the kind of love Paul describes.

Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious, or boastful, or rude. It does not insist on its own

way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing but rejoices in the truth. It

bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. (1

Corinthians 13:4-8a).

That kind of love is not based on what you can do for me. It’s not based on merit, good

behavior, or accomplishments. You don’t need to become Jewish first, or Christian first, to meet

the requirements. The kind of love God instills in us is much deeper than all that.

This love will hang on a cross and get up from a grave. It will color outside the lines.

It’s radical. You can’t earn it. You don’t regulate it. You can’t kill it!

*

But love can be complicated. There are times when loving someone means setting

boundaries and limits. There are times when love means staying away or letting someone face

the consequences of their behavior. Some call it “tough love,” but it is love all the same.

You can’t ask someone to stay in an abusive situation. There are consequences to all

behavior. There is justice. Love is not indulgent, lawless or blind mercy. Read the Bible.

God’s love can be tough, demanding, sacrificial.

How do you strike the perfect balance between human compassion and national security?

Isn’t that a question of love? Love of neighbor. Love of children and their families. Love of

nation. It’s no wonder Paul put love at the head of the list.

Sometimes we need to tap into a love deeper than the one we can produce. We need that

love to forgive. We need that love to hope. We need that love to heal, to wait, to dream, to

sacrifice, to give.

*

As we ordain and install elders and deacons today, we pray this love may guide and

support their ministries. We pray this love may empower this church to go deeper, be more, and

shock the world with the compassion and grace of God. The world is starving for this fruit, the

fruit of God’s love.

In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Congregation: Amen.

July 1, 2018

The Fruit of the Spirit: "Joy" Galatians 5:22-25

Last week we began a series on Paul’s Fruit of the Spirit listed in the Letter to the Galatians. The first fruit was love. Today we come to the second fruit, the fruit of joy.

22By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things.

* I put this series together several years ago and went through my library to realize I did not have one single book on the topic of joy. I had numerous commentaries on every book in the Bible. I had lots of books on worship and preaching. I had books on prayer and pastoral counseling. I had books on death and dying, world religions, Christian ethics, theology, church history, Christian education, stewardship, leadership and mission work. I didn’t have one single book on the subject of joy, and yet it is one of the fruits of the Spirit of God. Wonder what that says!

Then I went through the list of every sermon I’d ever preached and realized I had never preached a sermon on the subject of joy. I was really beginning to feel depressed! So as a last resort, I went to the Bible! What a novel idea.

*

The Bible has 171 references to joy. Even in Job, the saddest man on earth, there was a reference to joy.

(God) will yet fill your mouth with laughter, and your lips with shouts of joy. (Job 8:21)

There’s a wonderful passage in Psalm 30;

Weeping may linger for the night, but joy comes with the morning. (Psalm 30:5b)

I don’t know why we don’t quote this one from Proverbs more often;

…the parent of the fool has no joy. (Proverbs 17:21b)

Jeremiah, during the exile of Israel, talks like this;

My joy is gone, grief is upon me, my heart is sick. (Jeremiah 8:18)

When the angels came to the shepherds on the night of Jesus’ birth, they brought these words;

‘Do not be afraid; for see, I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people; to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior who is the Messiah, the Lord.’ (Luke 2:10b-11)

And when the wise men saw the star stop over Bethlehem, Matthew tells us,

…they were overwhelmed with joy. (Matthew 2:10)

And James writes in his letter,

My brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of any kind, consider it nothing but joy, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance; and let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking in nothing. (James 1:2-4)

It’s what Jesus said about joy that should most capture our attention. After his resurrection, in preparing to leave his disciples, there is a long discourse in John’s Gospel. It’s there that Jesus said these words,

‘I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.’ (John 15:11)

To know Christ is to know his joy. It’s his goal that we come to know this joy.

The Bible talks about a different kind of joy. It’s rooted in a relationship with God through the Holy Spirit and not through material things or earthly treasures. It’s not based on accomplishments, nor can it be thwarted by failures. It’s not determined by outward appearances, health, education, money or success.

The kind of joy the Bible talks about is not based on the present circumstances. You can have true joy in life in the midst of severe poverty, sickness or even at the moment of death.

*

Sounds good, but it is relatively easy to lose your joy in life. There are plenty of "joy robbers."

A loss in your life can rob you of your joy. Loss of a loved one, loss of a job, loss of health, loss of a marriage. Grief is like a dark cloud that momentarily covers the sunlight of joy.

A crisis can definitely rob you of you joy. How do the good people of Annapolis, Maryland have joy today after the senseless shootings at the Capital Gazette newspaper? It’s unthinkable.

Stress can snatch joy away. When the demands of your life outrun your resources, you can lose your joy.

But the source of our joy is not based upon our circumstances. True joy is something that God bears within us. It is a work of God, a fruit of the Spirit. That’s the

point. You can’t make yourself joyous. As God’s Spirit resides in you, God’s joy resides in you.

C. S. Lewis wrote, Surprised by Joy. (I now have that book!) He reminds us that joy is not something to be pursued rather,

“Joy is the consequence of being open to that which is beyond one’s self.”

* Today we celebrate communion. We “celebrate” communion. It is “the joyful feast of the people of God!” It is not another funeral for Jesus. If joy is a trait, or fruit, of God’s Spirit, then joy is a part of the Christian life. We can’t afford to lose our joy!

We are sinners, but we are forgiven sinners, called to a new way of life. We do see the pain and suffering in this world, but we also have hope in God’s power and strength. There is loss and crisis and stress, but God’s love can heal and restore us.

If you have lost your joy, this may be the place to pray to receive it again as we celebrate communion with Christ. May the fruit of God’s Spirit dwell richly within you.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Congregation: Amen

July 8, 2018

The Fruit of the Spirit: "Peace"

Galatians 5:22-23 We’re on the third part of a series of “The Fruit of the Spirit.” Today we come to the fruit of “peace.” Paul writes,

By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things.

* Peace. It’s a complicated issue. Can there be peace with North Korea? What about on our borders? With Russia? How could there ever be peace with terrorists? Could there be peace among Israelis and Palestinians; Iran, Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, and all the rest? The world is in some serious need of peace. And that’s not new. For as long as there has been time, there has been a need for peace.

We just celebrated our independence as a nation. To acquire that freedom there was first conflict and war. Lives were lost and families were broken. It was not a July 4th picnic, or a time of peace. It was war. So, it was with the Civil War, and with every other war. Some ditches are worth dying in. Things matter. How is peace to come?

And think of the peace that is needed just within the United States today; racial prejudice, discrimination, hate, abuse, violence, economic injustice, and the current political war between Democrats and Republicans.

And what about Ruya Kadir? She was the 3-year-old little girl who was stabbed, and died on her birthday in Boise, Idaho last week. The family came here to get away from violence in Ethiopia. How do they have peace? And what about the man who did it? Can he ever have peace? Should he ever have peace? How would you start to bring peace to all these complex and entrenched issues? It’s overwhelming.

But it’s closer than that. What about the need for peace in our homes and among our families? Marriages that fail, estranged siblings, child and spousal abuse, affairs, addictions; wounds too deep to heal and forgiveness too shallow to make a difference. How in the world do you bring peace to all that? Maybe we don’t.

* Paul wrote to the Philippians,

And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Phil. 4:7)

The peace of God. What is that? It “surpasses all understanding.”

My mother and I used to have arguments when I was younger. It was the same argument. She would tell me to do something and I would ask, “Why?” Same response; “Because I said so!” To which I would respond, “But why?” Same response, “Just do what I tell you to do!”

I learned right there and then that there would be things in life I would never understand. (My mother being one of them!) You can’t control everything. There are things that make no sense. Something, or somebody is at work in this world, and they are bigger than you! It is beyond us.

There is a peace that prevails even in the midst of life’s greatest storms, and even amongst our strongest differences. That peace is a gift from God, a fruit of the Holy Spirit within us. It is actually God’s peace that dwells in us. It’s not our peace! It “cannot be manufactured, or humanly produced.” (The New Interpreter's Bible: vol. XI, Richard Hayes, “Galatians,” p. 328). We don’t have to understand it, we need to receive it.

* Our lives are the environment in which the fruit of the Spirit is cultivated. Fruit can grow and flourish, or it can be eaten by bugs! Fruit can wither on the vine. Fruit can dry up without water and proper conditions.

So, the fruit is born into our lives by the Holy Spirit, but there are conditions within our lives that can be a hindrance to the Spirit’s life within us. We can choke it out. It can dry up. We can leave it unattended. Peace is like that. It may be a gift from God, but it needs to be cultivated by us.

Mark Gornik writes; While always a gift of grace, peace will not come about…unless the church works at it intentionally and more tenaciously than the forces…against it. (Mark Gornik, To Live in Peace, p. 110)

The fruit of the Spirit has to be fed and nourished. It takes hard work. Because it is a gift does not mean it comes in and takes over your life and fixes everything. We’re in cahoots with God. We’re partners. We work together in a relationship. We can cultivate this stuff, or we can let it die. We can work hard at it, or we can just sit back and hope grace covers our mess.

The needs for peace are God-sized issues that require a God-sized response. If we could manufacture peace, we would have already done it. It’s not a matter of intelligence, it is a matter of will. Peace comes by aligning our will with God’s will. But that doesn’t mean there is no cost or conflict.

* Whatever peace is, it cannot be acting as if something doesn’t matter when it does. It can’t mean letting go of your ethics and morals in order to reduce the conflict. Peace can’t mean being a doormat and lying down while others have their way. It cannot mean standing by and tolerating injustice for the sake of peace. That’s not peace.

Peace is not the absence of conflict. We have a magnet on our refrigerator that reads;

Peace – it does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble or hard work. It means to be in the midst of those things and still be calm in your heart. (unknown)

Jesus likely had peace on the cross, while he suffocated to death. How could that be? The world was in turmoil. The Messiah had been rejected. All would seem to be lost. It was a dark day. Can there be peace in a place like that?

There are times when we are at odds with others because we are hanging onto our values, or they are hanging onto theirs. There is conflict in those places. We disagree. We’re on opposite sides. Wars are fought. Thousands die. Martyrs sacrifice their lives for a cause. So how does the fruit of peace manifest itself in those times and in those places?

We need a peace “which surpasses all understanding.”

* There may be some difficult days ahead for you, or for me. Our nation may yet see some difficult days. The world already has some difficult days in it. But the fruit of God’s Spirit dwells richly within you and gives you a peace that “surpasses all understanding.” That’s not naiveté. It’s not denial, or over- simplistic faith. It’s peace. Where did it come from, and how could it be there in the midst of all the conflict, violence, and pain? It belongs to God! It’s not yours, but it dwells in you when your mind and heart are open to receive the gifts of God’s Spirit.

* Let us pray; Lord, we are bold to pray for Your peace this morning. Empower us to surrender our lives as a place where that peace can grow and flourish. Guide us to cultivate this peace, that it might be manifested in our lives; in how we talk, in the decisions we make, in the way we relate to others. Help us to be a witness to You at work, at home, in our politics, and in our relationships with one another. In your mercy, grant us, and all your people, your peace.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Congregation; Amen.

July 22, 2018

The Fruit of the Spirit: "Patience"

Galatians 5:22-23

We’ve come to the fruit of “patience” in our series on “The Fruit of the Spirit.” I tried to get a guest preacher because patience is not one of my virtues…but I couldn’t wait for anybody to call me back, so I’ll just do it myself!

Paul wrote these words to the early Christians in the region of Galatia; By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things.

* What Paul is defining is the very nature and character of God. “Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” Is that really our image of God? Do we see God as joyful, kind, gentle or patient? Is God really like that? You ever thought of God has having patience; with you, with me, with us, with the world? God apparently knows how to wait. If you were God, why would you have to wait? It’s a very loving thing to be able to be patient with someone.

We’re all waiting for something this morning. Somebody is waiting for test results, or surgery. Others wait for a child to be born. Someone is waiting for a job offer. Parents are waiting for school to start! (Seriously!) A couple waits for their marriage to heal. We wait for a son or daughter to come to their senses. Somebody is waiting for forgiveness, healing, or reconciliation.

We wait for our nation to heal and to unify; to be “…one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” (Pledge of Allegiance). Not two nations, but one. Not above God, but under God. “Indivisible,” which means “unable to be divided or separated.” With liberty, (not oppression), and justice, (not injustice), for all, (not just for some). We wait for that. We hope for that. We pray for that.

The person sitting next to you, in front of you, or behind you is likely waiting for something today. And what are you waiting for in your life right now? We all have to wait.

* We use to be better at it .

Ice cream was hand-churned with packed ice and rock salt. We had to wait for it. (And it was definitely worth it!)

The Wizard of Oz only came on television one Sunday night a year! That’s it! We had to wait for it.

There were no microwaves or fast food restaurants. We waited.

We used to have to wait for film to be developed from our cameras. Imagine that! (And we had cameras!)

We had to wait for a letter to come in the mail!

We had to wait to get to a phone. Now I’m waiting for the day when I don’t have a phone tied to my hip 24 hours a day, 7 days a week!

Technology has sped up our lives so we don’t have to wait as much.

Speed dials, emails, cell phones, GPS, the internet, digital photos and videos, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and texting have diminished our need to wait. We record TV shows and skip the commercials! No waiting! You can even start your car before you get in it! Your hot water can be instantaneous.

(It’s funny, but if my parents were alive today, they wouldn’t even understand what I just said! “What’s GPS?”)

We have an aversion to waiting. It’s a bad thing. “I had to wait in the doctor’s office. It was a long wait in the DMV!” (Ok, I’ll give you that one!) “I had to wait in traffic, wait on the phone, wait in the drive-thru.” We hate waiting!

We live in a culture that conditions us not to wait, and yet we all have to wait. We need patience.

* If there are only nine fruit of the Spirit, nine characteristics of God’s personality,

how significant is it that one of those fruit is patience? God gives us patience as a characteristic of God’s Spirit that dwells in us. You really need patience to live in this world. Sometimes patience is the door to wisdom. It can be the gate to making the right decision. Patience gives time for something new to happen.

I’ve told married couples who are going through a hard time, “Hang on as long as you possibly can, and then hang on 5 more minutes. In those 5 minutes, a breakthrough may happen.” Patience waits for God to be involved in our lives.

The Bible knows about waiting. Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord! (Psalm 27:14) But it is for you, O Lord, that I wait; it is you, O Lord my God, who will answer. (Psalm 38:15) I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his Word I hope; my soul waits for the Lord. (Psalm 130:5-6a) …but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint. (Isaiah 40:31)

Waiting is not a mistake, it is a way of life. Sometimes there is wisdom in waiting.

* Years ago, I learned something about patience that I have never forgotten. I was a

young pastor in my first church. I must have been 25 or 26 years old. (It should be against the law for a 25-year-old to be a pastor!) Maybe it was the stress of all of it, but one Sunday afternoon I had severe abdominal pain. I was rolling from one side of the bed to the other. There was no relief.

Catherine called Dr. Romm. He made house calls! Remember those? He came in with his little black bag, asked me a few questions, poked and prodded and then said, “I’m not going to do anything right now.”

I sat straight up in the bed, my head turned 360 degrees and I said with a demonic voice, “You’re gonna do what?!!” He wanted to wait. I wanted to say something that you shouldn’t say!

But Dr. Romm taught me something that day. There is a time to act, and there is a time for patience. Wisdom is knowing the difference. He didn’t want to mask the symptoms. So, he had coffee with Catherine while I was dying! Eventually, (what felt like 12 years), he gave me a shot and I lived! Patience can allow time for things that need happen.

* But waiting does not mean being helpless, powerless, or weak. A farmer waits for his crop to yield a harvest, but the farmer does not simply stare at a barren field. The ground is tilled, the weeds removed, the rows are formed and the seeds are planted. Fertilizer is purchased and applied. Irrigation may be needed. Prayers are offered. We labor as we wait.

Having patience does not necessarily mean doing nothing. Sometimes waiting is the action plan. Patience is the strategy. Patience can mean doing everything we possibly can, and then waiting upon the Lord to do what we cannot do. God gives us the gift of patience as we wait.

* Oren Arnold penned the prayer,

Dear God, I pray for patience. And I want it RIGHT NOW! (M. J. Ryan, The Power of Patience, p. 2)

There are many things on our hearts this morning for which we are waiting. We wait for God to answer our prayers. We wait for God’s will to be done, here on earth, as it is in heaven. We wait, and we wait, and then we wait some more. But in our waiting, we have hope. “I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word, I hope.” (Psalm 130:5) In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Congregation: Amen

July 29, 2018

The Fruit of the Spirit: "Kindness" Galatians 5:22-23

We are in a summer sermon series based on Paul’s “fruit of the Spirit” found in Galatians 5:22-23. Today we come to the fruit of kindness.

By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things.

* There are some big issues in this world. You would think the Church would have more to offer than kindness. Seems fluffy! But is it?

How desperately does the world need the fruit of kindness?

senseless mass shootings bullying road rage abuse

the lack of civility hate crimes terrorism

discrimination

I can keep going. Paul didn’t just throw a list of fruit, or characteristics of God, together on the back of a napkin while waiting in the airport. He hand-picked these fruit, because they each tell us something unique about the character and the nature of God. Kindness. We desperately need some kindness.

* Imagine how the word kindness sounded to the all-powerful Roman Empire.

Weak, soft, open to defeat. Rome was about strength and power, intimidation and control. If the Church was going to compete with Rome, it would need to put up something more powerful than kindness.

Or would it? Perhaps that is precisely the point. Kindness is counter-cultural to Rome. Kindness is counter-cultural to all arrogant, self-serving, power. We saw kindness in Christ, who touched the lepers, cared for the poor, embraced societies’ outcast, washed his disciple’s feet and ate and drank with sinners. That’s kindness!

To live in Christian community is to be counter-cultural. And think of this, the Church is still around, and Rome fell. Do the math! Kindness is on this list for a reason.

*

There’s actually a lot of kindness in this world. Several months ago, I was on my way home from teaching a seminar in Atlanta and stopped for gas along the way. I went in for coffee and witnessed something significant. An elderly white gentleman was entering the convenience store at the same time an elderly black woman was coming out. He quickly stepped to the side and held the door open for her.

As she passed, she politely said, “Thank you, sir.” to which he replied, “You are most certainly welcome. Have a wonderful afternoon.”

Not a big deal? We were in Georgia. Not too long ago, people were killing each other over the issue of slavery. The generation in which they grew up was segregated and for the most part, full of racial prejudice. But they were kind to each other, respectful, honoring each other in that brief moment in the doorway of a convenience store. It wasn’t earth-shattering, but it was counter-cultural. I was watching kindness change the world.

You can see the fruit of kindness in the most routine places in life. Nurses, teachers, salespeople, mechanics, carpenters, artists, musicians, lawyers, doctors, bankers...people who are homeless, rich people, poor people all share multiple acts of kindness every day. I would venture to say there is more kindness in the world than there is evil, but evil makes the news.

* Several years ago, we were up at Lake Michigan and went out for breakfast with

friends. The small restaurant was packed, so we stood in line to wait. A young couple was in front of us. A table for four came open and they looked back at us and said to the waitress, “Let them have that table. We’ll wait.” But that’s not the end of story.

We could see them from our table and noticed they waited for a long time. So, we called the waitress over and asked her to put their breakfast on our tab. We left before they found out we did it. Their kindness inspired our kindness! It’s contagious.

A small thing, given the enormity of the issues in our world today, but it’s the small things that have the power to change the big things! There are hundreds of thousands, even millions of acts of kindness rendered in our world every day. They don’t make the news, they just make the difference.

* You’ve heard the phrase, “Kill them with kindness.” It likely originated from an English proverb, “The ape kills her young with kindness.” The ape would accidentally kill its young by crushing it with an affectionate hug. That certainly does not mean we should hurt someone. It does say that we can kill the animosity with kindness. You crush it! Paul quoted verses from Proverbs 25:21-22 to the Christians in Rome;

If your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads. (Romans 12:20).

Heaping burning coals on your enemy’s head wouldn’t make sense if you are feeding them and taking care of their needs. That’d be counter-productive! It likely meant putting hot coals in a pan they carried on their head to replenish their fire and gain warmth in their homes. You win them over with kindness.

Not as easy as it sounds. How does kindness get through prejudice and hate? But it does. How does kindness get through arrogance and pride? But it does. How does kindness get through to a hard heart, a broken past, and a closed mind? But it does.

* We’ve tried everything else.

● At times, physical force seems necessary, but if force could overcome evil, we would have already done it.

● If being intelligent could overcome evil, why hasn’t it worked? Some of the most intelligent people in the world today are actually the ones committing the evil deeds.

● Technology has given us many things, but it has not defeated evil. In fact, at times, technology actually facilitates and even fuels evil. The internet is used for both good and evil.

● Business, medicine, the arts, and science cannot overcome evil. It’s not their task. It’s not within their expertise. It’s not their purpose.

Kindness. Seems such a fluffy concept, but in actuality, it has the power to

paralyze evil. It can disarm even the most barbaric criminal, or the most crusty of individuals. It can cancel the plans of revenge. Kindness can dispel hate. It can even turn an enemy into an ally.

Evil makes the news, but kindness changes the world. It’s a powerful weapon for good.

We can try to control guns. Control the heart and you control the gun. A heart full of God’s kindness doesn’t need a gun to do harm to others.

The kindness of God stands with the oppressed; is an advocate for the poor, guards the rights of the defenseless, and values all human life. Kindness will go to prison, a crack house, the White House, or to people with no house. It’s blind to money or power. It doesn’t care about color, nationality, education, or religion, or lack thereof.

It’s indiscriminate. The waitress at your table is as important as all the people sitting at that table with you. That’s the kindness of God.

Kindness opens doors, shares words of respect, offers a breakfast table, or pays for a meal. All simple acts of kindness that overcome evil with good, one small deed at a time. Every act of kindness reclaims a world that belongs to God.

* Oh, I think Paul knew exactly what he was doing when he carefully selected the

word “kindness” as one of the nine fruit of the Spirit. The kindness of God dwells within us. In kindness, God created the heavens and the earth, gave us life, forgives our sins and grants us the gift of eternal life. What greater kindness is there than this? We know this kindness and saw this kindness in Christ. We are called to bear witness to this kindness in the world, especially now.

* Let us pray; Cleanse our hearts, O God, from all malice, hate and pride. Grow within

us this fruit of kindness, that the world may see another way; a way that leads to life. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Congregation: Amen.

August 5, 2018

Fruit of the Spirit: “Generosity" Galatians 5:22-23

We are in the sixth part of a series on Paul’s “fruit of the Spirit” in the letter to the Galatians, 5:22-23. Today we come to the fruit of generosity.

By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things.

*

Most of us have a retirement plan, a savings plan, a plan to pay for college or the weddings of our daughters. We have financial goals, maybe even a “Bucket List.” Any wise person knows you have to plan for all of that. Have you ever thought about having a Generosity Plan?

A friend of ours has one. He’s a Presbyterian minister, but along the way invested in rental properties. His goal was to build that investment up to 10 million dollars before he retired. At his death, he wants to be able to give 10 million dollars to the Presbyterian Church and to his alma mater, Presbyterian College. That’s a “Generosity Plan!”

*

Paul uses the metaphor of fruit when he is talking about the characteristics of God’s Spirit as a way of saying these traits are born in us. We don’t manufacture this stuff. If the Spirit of God dwells in you, then so do these things. Our job is to cultivate them. There could be no such thing as an “ungenerous Christian.” That’s an oxymoron. We cultivate the generosity of God that is within us.

Christian generosity flows from a heart that belongs to Christ. It’s more than charity. More than a tax break. More than needing to be recognized. It’s not about earning credit, but about expressing gratitude. The sole motive of Christian generosity is always, and in every case, gratitude. That’s it. Gratitude gives birth to generosity.

* Adam Hamilton, pastor of the Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas, tells the story of his family’s camping trip to the Grand Tetons on his birthday. He gave each of their young daughters $20 spending money for the three days at Jackson Hole.

One of his daughters went to the gift shop on the very first day, found a ball cap for $20, and wanted it. He tried to persuade her to forego the cap and spread her money over the three days, but to no avail. She spent her entire $20.

Later that day they took a walk around the lake and found a great spot to watch the sun set. That’s when his daughter, Rebecca, handed him the cap and said, “Daddy, I bought this for you. I love you. Happy Birthday!” (Adam Hamilton, Enough, Abingdon Press, 2009, p. 87)

What if we were so generous with God? Not calculated. Not a tax cut. No strings attached. Not a power play. Just pure generosity that flows from gratitude.

* When we see Paul’s word generosity in this list of fruit, many of us think of money. Some of us have more money than others. Those who don’t have much money often think those who do should be more generous! (That’s convenient!) Those who do have more money often feel “nibbled to death by ducks” from all the requests they receive for their money. They can feel used by people who try to manipulate them for their money. When Paul uses the word generosity, he provides no qualifiers. He doesn’t say the rich person should be more generous. Nor does he say the poor are exempt from generosity. He simply implies that the Spirit of God is generous. If God’s Spirit dwells in me, then I share in the generosity of God. It’s not contingent on how much, or how little I have.

* Years ago, I was invited to conduct a chapel service for a nursing home in Norfolk, Virginia. The residents were classified as below poverty level.

They came into the dining room for worship in wheelchairs, walkers, canes, with oxygen bottles, hearing aids and all the rest. I don’t remember much about the service, nor would they, but I do remember this.

As I stood at the door to shake hands and greet them, there was a woman in her bathrobe and bedroom slippers who shuffled up to me. Bent over with age, she grasped my hand and thanked me for the sermon and in her hand was a one-dollar bill. I quickly told her that we were not taking an offering. Then she said, “Well, then, this is for you.” And she shuffled off! I didn’t even know her name. I was standing there with a dollar bill from a poor woman in an indigent nursing home.

The jacket I had on was worth hundreds of dollars. The car I drove was worth thousands. I felt guilty for taking her dollar, but it would have been condescending to give it back to her.

Figure the percentage of that dollar to her income and she likely gives more than most of us. That dollar bill is taped inside the back cover of my Bible to this day, reminding me of her generosity. She would never remember the sermon I preached that day, but I will never forget the gift. That was 35 years ago! Generosity has an ongoing ripple effect.

* As we take communion together this morning, we are literally tasting the

generosity of God. We consume it. We receive God’s grace, God’s forgiveness, God’s love poured out in Jesus Christ.

When we leave this Table, we are compelled to allow the spirit of generosity to flow through us. It spills out of a heart that belongs to Christ! The ripple-effect is unending!

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Congregation: Amen

August 12, 2018

The Fruit of the Spirit: “Faithfulness”

Galatians 5:22-23

22By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, 23gentleness, and self-control. There

is no law against such things.

*

I wish I had a farm full of the fruit of faithfulness. I’d have that fruit picked, place in containers and shipped in refrigerated trucks all over the world. Imagine how the fruit of faithfulness would change the world!

Think of it in government. If you gave the fruit of faithfulness to those who govern our country, or other countries, there would be no place for bipartisan politics, self-serving interests, deception, unethical decisions or the misuse of power.

Think of it in the realm of business. If a person’s heart is full of faithfulness, there is no room for greed. If there is no greed, 90% of all unethical behavior in business would be eliminated.

Think of the fruit of faithfulness in marriage. What if there was an actual fruit of faithfulness we could give every couple before they got married? (We’d be rich!) We could ship them a case of fruit every month! How many families would be changed by the fruit of faithfulness?

Imagine faithfulness in the classroom, the military, healthcare, religion, sports, the judicial system, and law enforcement. This is some powerful fruit!

* The dictionary defines faithfulness as; true or trustworthy in the performance of duty, the fulfillment of promises or obligations; loyal. (Standard Encyclopedic Dictionary). The question is, “Loyal to what?” To whom, or to what are you faithful?

ABC’s Ted Koppel once said, “What Moses brought down from Mt. Sinai were not ten suggestions, they are commandments. Are, not were.” (Duke University Commencement Address, May 10, 1987). The first commandment is likely the bedrock of the rest. “You shall have no other gods before me.” (Exodus 20:3) Get that one wrong and the rest don’t matter.

To whom, or to what are you faithful? What determines your moral compass, your ethical decisions, how you vote, spend your money, set your goals or how you relate to others? Knowing to whom or to what you are faithful is the key to life! It determines all the rest.

* If there is a disease that is affecting the health of our nation, some would say that disease is moral ambiguity. There are many names for this disease; secularism, pluralism, hedonism, radical individualism. At the core of them all is the question, To

whom, or to what am I faithful? What are my core values, my guiding star, my stakes in the ground? It takes a lot of honesty with one’s self in order to answer that question. Some people never do.

We drift when we don’t know to whom, or to what we are faithful. When that remains an unanswered question in our lives, then anything could be the answer. Anything could come along and try to fill that void, take that seat of authority in our lives. And sometimes it does.

* I had a front row seat in Charlotte, North Carolina to watch the banks crash in 2008. People were faithful to the wrong god.

As a pastoral counselor, I sat with many people who were faithful to the wrong thing. Sex, drugs, affairs, money, power. It was all the wrong stuff.

Being faithful to the wrong thing is what got Jesus crucified. People had the wrong god. We’ll do anything to protect our “other gods.” Lie, cheat, steal and even kill.

How foolish we are. The God of the universe wants to have a relationship with us, to dwell in us, and yet we choose lesser things? It’s like having a loving parent and choosing not to love them in return.

* Paul is not saying, Try to be more faithful. He’s not saying, Try to love some more, to have more joy, more peace, more patience or kindness. Christianity is not the Boy Scouts, or the Girl Scouts. It’s not about earning merits for badges. It’s not a self-help program, volunteerism, or a charitable organization. It’s more than a comfort station along life’s busy highway.

If Christianity is anything, it is about God dwelling in human flesh. It is about a Spirit, a power, a presence that is beyond one’s self. It is beyond any one nation, color or creed. It is about God taking up residence in human containers, flawed as we all may be.

This is radical thinking, but it is biblical thinking. Paul writes; “Do you not know the you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?” (1 Cor. 3:16) How can that be when we are but microscopic cosmic dust?

There are at least 100 billion galaxies in the universe. The Milky Way is just one! We can’t grasp how huge all of creation is, yet we can have a relationship with the God of all that? That’s what the Church ought to be talking about in a world that wants and needs more than pietistic squabbling, religious rules and regulations, divisions, anger, judgment and a church that is consumed with self-preservation.

We’re the ones who have tamed this truth to something we can control and understand, even manipulate. We have reduced this truth to a religious club with membership and dues, programs and services, budgets and buildings. We’re the ones who water it down, or reduce it to an issue-driven institution. But it is so much more than all that.

Paul is talking about transformation. He is talking about the change that happens in a person’s life when the fruit of the Spirit is born within them. Without that transformation, without God’s Spirit dwelling in us, we are like a swimming pool with no water. The structure is there, but there is no function. We are like a lamp with a cord that is not plugged in, or a plane with no engine. Form without substance. That’s deadly!

* Maybe that’s why a lot of people have stopped going to church in our country. They’re hungry for something powerful, something life changing. Augustine wrote, “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it finds its rest in you.” (Confessions 354-430).

Have we watered down Christianity to something less faithful, less transformational, less important? Have we drifted from our faithfulness to God and replaced it with something else? Perhaps we should look at ourselves before we blame others for not coming to church. To whom, or to what are we faithful?

* I can think of no greater tragedy than to come to the end of one’s life only to realize that you have been faithful to the wrong thing. You can’t get that time back. You can’t reproduce those opportunities to be faithful to God. To whom, or to what are you faithful? It’s never too late to answer that question. That’s grace!

• We should pray for the fruit of faithfulness to dwell richly within us.

• We should pray for faithfulness to dwell in our government and in our business leaders.

• We should pray for the fruit of faithfulness in our marriages and relationships.

• We should pray for this fruit to be born in our children and our grandchildren.

• We should pray for this fruit of faithfulness for people of faith and for people of no faith.

• We should pray for this fruit, because when it is born within us, it changes the world. It changes us.

Lord, hear our prayer. In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Congregation: Amen

August 19, 2018

The Fruit of the Spirit: "Gentleness" Galatians 5:22-23

We are continuing a sermon series on Paul’s, “fruit of the Spirit,” found in

Galatians 5:22-25. Today we come to the fruit of gentleness. Paul writes;

22By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, 23gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things.

* I was in Linville Friday and Saturday playing golf with a friend. He asked what I was preaching on today. I said, “Gentleness.” “Really! What you going to do with that?” What am I going to do with that? Gentleness doesn’t exactly rock your boat. Makes me think of a baby and a soft blanket. An elderly woman knitting by the window with a warm cup of tea. Nothing wrong with all that, but it doesn’t sound like anything that would change the world.

No one in the Roman Empire, where Paul lived, would think of any god as being gentle. You feared the gods. You did things to appease the gods. You needed a powerful god; a god who would show up, defeat the enemy, provide for all your needs, rule the kingdom and speak with an authoritative voice. Gentle gods would lose the battle.

If the Search Committee came back with a candidate and said, “He, or she is a very gentle person.” What would be your first thought? “Well, thank the Lord they’re not like Steve!” Gentleness is a good thing, but you’d have to wonder if they could get the job done. Sounds a little soft.

* Paul is saying God is gentle. Not exactly my image of God. Is that true?

Jesus makes a very interesting statement to his disciples in his farewell discourse. He said, “‘Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.’” (John 14:9b) That’s an odd statement. Does that mean Jesus and God are the same thing? That’s what the Jews heard. That’s what got him crucified. No human being could be God.

If Jesus of Nazareth was who he said he was, then in him we see the nature and character of God. If Jesus was only a teacher, then we should have no interest in his personal traits, only in the content of what he taught. On the other hand, if Jesus was God in human flesh, we had better pay close attention.

Where do we see the fruit of gentleness in Jesus? *

He was in Jericho on his way to Jerusalem for what would be his trial, death and resurrection. That timing is what makes this story so memorable. Matthew reports…

Then little children were being brought to him in order that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples spoke sternly to those

who brought them; but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.” And he laid his hands on them and went on his way. (Matt. 19:13-15)

You’ll never read a story about a Roman emperor stopping for children, though from time to time you may see a presidential candidate kiss a baby! To allow your busy agenda to be interrupted by children could be seen as a sign of weakness, soft, emotional, lacking drive and power. And yet, Jesus, on his way to the cross and resurrection, stops and lays his hands on children and prays for them.

This story tells us a lot about who he is. There’s a gentleness about him. There is a unique form of power being displayed here. There is a vulnerability, a humility and openness to the life of another that we see in Christ.

Gentleness implies a receptivity to others. It’s open. It’s welcoming. When gentleness is present there is room for someone else. When it is not present, there can be aggression, hostility or violent behavior; dominance, or power over others.

* There were other times when Jesus was direct, even forceful, turning over the tables of the money-changers in the temple. There is a time for confrontation, for disagreement and even anger. Sometimes things matter too much for a gentle approach. But even when things matter deeply, gentleness has its place.

I think of Jesus’ analogy of the “log and the speck.” ‘Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye? Or how can you say to your neighbor, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ while the log is in your own eye? First take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor’s eye.’ (Matt. 7:3-6)

Consider what it takes to remove a speck from someone’s eye. You do that gently. Maybe that’s his point. If we did the hard work of removing the logs from our own eyes, we’d be more gentle in dealing with our neighbor’s issues. We would know firsthand how painful that can be.

You don’t just stick your finger in someone’s eye and go plowing around in there trying to pull out a speck! You take care not to wound the other person. That’s the gentleness of Christ. He deals with the logs. He deals with the specks, but he does it with a value on human life. You can confront the issues without aggression and insensitivity. There is a place for gentleness even in confrontation.

* You remember the story of the woman they caught in the act of adultery and brought her to Jesus? The penalty for adultery was stoning the person to death. It was the law. They were trying to trap Jesus, but he turned it back on them when he said;

‘Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.’ (John 8:7b)

All the elders dropped their rocks and went home, because no one was without sin. And then this happened;

Jesus straightened up and said to her, ‘Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?’ She said, ‘No one, sir.’ And Jesus said, ‘Neither do I condemn you. Go your way, and from now on do not sin again.’ (John 8:10-11)

Forgiveness is an act of gentleness. He treats her with respect. He treats her gently when he could have allowed the aggression of stoning her. He’s open and receptive to the valuable part of who she is, yet doesn’t condone what is harming her.

* God is gentle. Not exactly my image of God. And yet, consider a world without gentleness. Who would want to live in that world? I wouldn’t leave gentleness to babies and elderly women. The world desperately needs this fruit. The fruit of gentleness. In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Congregation: Amen.

August 26, 2018

The Fruit of the Spirit: “Self-Control"

Galatians 5:22-23

Someone sent me an email this week. It had pictures with various church signs that have weekly messages on them. You know the type. The very first one was from Johnson Memorial United Methodist Church. It read; “What Is Hell Like? Come Hear Our Preacher.” I’ve been chiseling away at this summer-long series on the “Fruit of the Spirit.” I hope it hasn’t been like that! Today we come to the final fruit, self-control. Paul writes;

22By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, 23gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things.

*

Paul may have saved the best for last! How many problems could be solved in the world today with self-control?

� All violent crime would disappear, along with most of the prison population.

� Robbery, theft and fraud would vanish, along with

kidnappings and abductions.

� Alcohol and drug addictions would be eliminated.

� All sexual, emotional and physical abuse would cease.

� The divorce rate would drop.

� Many lawsuits and litigations could be avoided.

� Self-control could reduce unwanted pregnancies.

� Automobile accidents would decline, along with road rage.

� Obesity would be under control.

� People would quit smoking.

� The school dropout rate would decline, as would most low-test scores.

� Job performance would increase.

� All gossip, ridicule, judgment and unforgiving spirits

would have to yield to self-control.

� The entire list of the seven deadly sins; pride, envy, anger, sloth, greed, gluttony, and lust… Boom! Deleted!

And you can add to the list.

The point is, the world would be a better place with self-control!

But it’s not. That’s not to say there is no self-control among us. There is plenty. Think of all the people around the world who will get up tomorrow morning and go to work. But we humans struggle with self-control.

The very man who gave us this fruit once wrote: “I can will what is right, but I cannot do it. For I do not do the good I want but the evil I do not want is what I do. So, I find it to be law that when I want to do what is good, evil lies at hand. Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! (Romans 7:18b-19,21, 24-25).

If the great Apostle Paul wrote that, what are my chances? Emmet Fox, in his commentary on the Sermon on the Mount writes;

If you seek systematically to destroy in yourself everything which you know should not be there – not feeding or nourishing them by giving in to them, but starving them to death by refusing them expression;…then, you are worthy to be called the salt of the earth. (Fox, The Sermon on the Mount, p.51)

It is up to us to starve those things that should not be there. If you feed them they stay alive. They even grow. When you shut them down they die. It’s really not that complicated. It’s just that hard to do. That’s why we need this fruit of self-control as a gift from God! You can’t do it alone.

* Sam Williams writes;

Self-control is, nevertheless, an ironic virtue because it is the fruit of the Spirit, not a work of the self! (Sam Williams, Galatians, Abingdon Press, p. 151.) So how does that work? If it is self-control, wouldn’t it be up to me to do it? “I’ve got to fight my own demons. I’ve got to resist my own temptations. I’ve got to control myself.” Well yeah, until you can’t. What happens then?

Our friends in Alcoholics Anonymous have a few things to teach us about self-control. The Twelve-Step Program. Bill Wilson and Dr. Robert H. Smith established these life-saving steps in 1946 in Akron, Ohio.

Step #1: We admitted we were powerless over alcohol - that our lives had become unmanageable. Step #2: Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity. Step #3: Made a decision to turn our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him. There’s more.

A moral inventory. Admitting the exact nature of your wrongs.

A willingness to have God remove all these defects in character. Humbly ask God to remove these shortcomings.

Make a list of all persons we have harmed and be willing to make amends with all of them. Make those amends wherever possible.

More personal inventory and admitting faults. Improve constant contact with God through prayer.

And carry this message to others who need it, practicing these principles in all our affairs.

WOW! That is a lot of work! And you get a Sponsor too! And don’t forget those powerful meetings. And did you count how many times God is mentioned?

That’s how hard self-control is. The stronger the demon, the more difficult the control. Don’t fool yourselves. Those battling with alcohol are not the only ones struggling with self-control. They just take it more seriously than most of us. Something to learn there.

* Looking at these nine fruit of the Spirit, these nine characteristics of God, you quickly realize that it’s impossible for us to simply produce these.

Our love will be limited. Our joy can be tied to circumstances.

There are some things that we can’t reconcile for peace. There’s a limit to our patience, our kindness, our generosity and our faithfulness.

I can try to be gentle, until you cross me. The same is true with self-control. I can’t always do it!

So, what are you going to do? How do you fair with self-control? Wander through life being susceptible to this or that? That’s exhausting. Weak boundaries, poor discipline. Maybe win a battle, but lose the war. Denial, (“I didn’t do that.”) anger, (“I can’t stop doing that.”), a repetition of failure, but blame it on someone else. All classic responses. Or is there something else?

Is there a way to rise above the flood of temptation? Is there something in there, something down deep in the basement of who you are, that is actually God’s Spirit within you? Could that be true? All of this, loaded up inside of you; love, joy, peace,

patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. God, right there, with all of that…in you. Could that be true?

I suppose each person, culture, and nation has to answer that for themselves. Even so, it’s a long ride to the cemetery if we are left to live our lives on our own power.

* Well, we’ve come to the end of this series, and we’ve preached up a bowl of fruit salad! Isn’t it interesting that the Bible begins with a story about people eating the wrong fruit, and here at the end of the book we have a different bowl of fruit?

By contrast…Paul writes, meaning; different from the other fruit, different from the other choices, different from the other life. By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. There is no law against such things.

That’s because no law is needed. This isn’t about rules. It’s about a relationship with God, through Christ, empowered by the Holy Spirit, who, believe it or not, dwells in you.

* Let us pray. Merciful God, these fruit are desperately needed in our world today. They are needed in your Church. They are needed in us, and they are needed in me. We acknowledge that without these fruit, we are form without substance, an organization without purpose, a people without power. By your grace, O Lord, may You bear these fruit within us, less we miss Thy kingdom’s goal. Through the risen Christ we pray. Amen.