Testimony -- A Message for June 15, 2025

This summer, we are focusing on testimonies of faith. Over the next few weeks, we will each have the opportunity to share a personal story about our faith in Jesus or God. We can say how we came to have faith, or talk about the influence of a Sunday School teacher or mentor on our faith, or share about a time the Holy Spirit interrupted us and set us on the path to faith. We can say how we found our way to Trinity or why it is important for us to be part of the United Church of Christ. We each have a unique story to share.

The Bible is full of people’s testimonies about their faith. The writers of our four gospels were compelled to share the story of Jesus – they gathered testimonies and stories of Jesus’ sermons and healings and miracles. The Gospel writers wanted to put down on papyrus the story of Jesus so that future generations and new Christians would have access to the Gospel. Their words have been read and pondered over for millenia. 

This morning, we are turning to the testimony the writer of John shared as his introduction to his gospel. We usually read this passage twice a year – on Christmas Eve and on Good Friday. So, we usually read it at night, in a darkened room. But, the reading is about light – the light of God, the truth of the Gospel, is revealed to the world in Jesus Christ.

Let us now hear the word of God as it comes to us through the Gospel of John, chapter 1, verses one through eighteen:

The Scripture John 1:1-18

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 

He was with God in the beginning. 

Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 

In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 

He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. 

He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.

The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 

He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 

He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 

Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 

children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

(John testified concerning him. He cried out, saying, “This is the one I spoke about when I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’”) 

Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given. 

For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 

No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.

Here ends this reading of the word of God for the people of God. Thanks be to God. Amen.

Let us pray….

The Sermon Testimony: Trinity Practices Our Faith

John chapter one starts with John’s personal testimony about Jesus. Jesus is part of God – Jesus was with God in the beginning of all things. Jesus is the Word of God – the part of God that communicates God’s vision and love to the world. We can’t see God as God’s full-self, but Jesus came to earth to visibly and verbally make God known to us.

John included in his testimony about Jesus with an introduction to John the Baptist — John the Baptist’s purpose and calling on earth was to prepare people for Jesus’s arrival and announce to others who Jesus is….Jesus is God incarnate in the body of a man who came to earth to help us understand God and God’s calling upon our lives.

John’s words introduce us to the truth about Jesus Christ: “In Jesus was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it”. A few chapters later in the Gospel of John, he summed up the Gospel in another few words: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

Testimonies are brief summations of our faith.  They are different than sermons – sermons are longer talks when pastors or preachers explain a passage from the Bible…..we usually try to explain the context and meaning of the scripture passage and then give suggestions for how to apply the passage to our lives. When I was in seminary, we took classes on sermon crafting – we were told to not talk about ourselves. Sermons are written for a congregation, and are not supposed to be about our personal faith journeys. 

But testimonies are about our faith journeys. Testimonies are personal – they are our opportunities to share how we overcame a personal life challenge or theological quandary with the help of the Holy Spirit. Testimonies are about how the Spirit or the Word of God led us to find a new church or stay in an old one. Testimonies are about how God helped us and guided us when we were in need. Testimonies are about how a mentor in the Christian faith or a conversation we had with a stranger triggered in us a faith-ful response.

The Bible has many examples of testimonies – Some of them are so familiar to us we have them written on our hearts. David said: “The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.” In the 23rd Psalm, David describes God’s love, provision, and guidance. After Jesus healed a blind man, he was questioned by the Pharisees – the man answered the questions, and then testified about Jesus by saying: “IF this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” After the Samaritan woman met Jesus at the well and had a conversation with Jesus… “The woman then left her water pot, went her way into the city, and said to the men, ‘Come, see a Man who told me all things that I ever did. Could this be the Christ?'” And, many of the Samaritans of that town believed in Jesus because of the woman’s testimony.

Testimonies are our personal stories that testify to our faith.

Some churches have their members offer testimonies all the time. In Quaker meetings, the congregation sits in silence until the Holy Spirit inspires someone to share a word – the speaker expresses aloud what they have experienced in the silence of the gathering. Apparently, there is a wide variety of sources for the spoken words: scripture, stories of Jesus’ life and teachings, poetry and quotes from other sources, or personal stories from the speaker’s life. The only time I was at a Quaker worship service, it was silent the whole hour.

Some other charismatic and evangelical worship services that are less structured than our worship services invite testimonies during their worship gatherings. People may feel the need to express words or teachings the Holy Spirit is saying to them in the moment – sometimes in the language spoken by the people in the room and sometimes in “tongues.” So, people may sing, share testimonies, offer prayer, ask for healing, talk in tongues, hear a sermon, and sing some more. 

Our testimonies are little, short stories of why we believe in God….why we believe in Jesus. It is important that all of us be able to express, briefly, the “why” behind our belief – “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so.” “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that everyone who believes in him shall not perish but shall obtain eternal life.” “I once was lost, but now I’m found, was blind but now I see.”

We all came to have faith in God for different reasons. And, we know many people who don’t share our faith. They wonder what our motivation is, what we do in this building, why we feel it is important for us to be here. So, this summer, we are practicing sharing our testimonies of faith. We are practicing sharing the stories of why we choose to believe in God and worship with the people who gather in this room and over this facebook feed. 

I look forward to hearing your stories.

Amen. 

 

Pentecost and the Fruits of the Spirit -- A Message for June 8, 2025

 

This morning, we gather as the people of God for the date in the Christian year that is considered the “birthday” of the Christian church. On the first Pentecost, almost 2000 years ago, the Holy Spirit of God came to earth and filled the followers of Jesus. Jesus was no longer on earth with them, and instead each of them, each of us, are infused with a little bit of the Spirit of God – the power of God – the wisdom of God – the energy of God. The Holy Spirit is the guiding power within each of us that empowers us to act with fierce bravery as we do God’s work in the world.

Our first reading describes how the Holy Spirit first came to earth – our second reading lists the traits and attitudes the Spirit encourages us to embrace. Listen now to the word of God as we read first from the Acts of the Apostles and then from St. Paul’s letter to the Galatian Christians.

The Scripture Acts 2: 1-4; Galatians 5:16-23

2 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 

2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 

3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 

4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues[a] as the Spirit enabled them.

16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 

17 For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever[c] you want. 

18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

19 The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 

20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 

21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 

23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 

24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 

25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. 

26 Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each otheAmen.

Here ends this reading of the word of God for the kingdom of God. Thanks be to God. Amen. 

Let us pray….

The Sermon Pentecost and the Fruits of the Spirit 

When we baptise people at Trinity, we invoke the Holy Spirit – we remember Jesus’ baptism when he was dunked in water and the Holy Spirit filled him, and then we invite the Holy Spirit to bless the baptismal waters. After we pour the water on the person being baptised, the pastor says: “May the Holy Spirit be upon you, child of God, disciple of Christ, and member of the Church.” At this moment, we believe the Holy Spirit enters the person being baptised.

Our baptisms are more about the Holy Spirit pouring into the person being baptised than they are really about the water – the water is the symbol, the Holy Spirit is the real presence of God in our midst and in the person being baptised.

We are Holy Spirit people. Before Jesus came to earth, although the Holy Spirit was present, everyone could not access it. When we read the Old Testament, we read of special people who were Holy Spirit-filled – people like Moses and Abraham and Sarah and Elijah. But, everyone did not have access to the Holy Spirit.

That changed when Jesus came to earth. Before Jesus left his disciples and Ascended to heaven, he told them he was returning to God and the Holy Spirit would soon appear and “be upon them” so they would have the power and authority to take his message to all people of the world.

On the first Pentecost, the Holy Spirit appeared to the Disciples who were gathered together, filled them, and gave the the first of the gifts of the Holy Spirit: the ability to speak in new languages. They were the first Christians who were called to share the Good News of Jesus with the world – it was therefore important that they were given extra communication abilities and skills….they needed to know new languages so they could explain the good news to people in a manner they could understand.

The Holy Spirit has been among us since that day. And, some of us are still giving the gifts of languages – some people are able to learn other tongues with ease. 

In St Paul’s letter to the Galatian Christians, there is another list of the gifts the Holy Spirit shares with us – the fruits of the Holy Spirit are:  love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Each of these attributes are attributes of God – as followers of God, we are called to reflect God’s fruitful attributes to others – we are called to be loving, joyful, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle and self-controlled. This list is aspirational – we are called to work on embodying these attributes. They are listed after another list of behaviors we are called to avoid – Christians are in the world, and we face the same temptations to misbehave as everyone else. But, we are called to have self-control and work to embody God’s Fruits of better-behavior.

The Holy Spirit came to earth to fill the first Christians so they had the gifts they needed to do the work at hand – they were spreading the word of God to new people every day. They were the first people to live Chrsitian lifestyles – to work to embody God’s Fruits of the Spirit in the world. 

The Christian church may be almost 2000 years old, but we still have work to do. In fact, when we listen to the news and talk to our neighbors, it seems like we have more and more work to do all the time. The Holy Spirit is here in our midst, here in our hearts, and is giving us the courage and the endurance to take on the work at hand. Maybe the work we need to do is very personal – perhaps we need to repair broken relationships, perhaps we need to build bridges with neighbors, perhaps we need to work on forgiving ourselves or others. Maybe the work we need to do is wider reaching – volunteer at the Daily Bread, participate in a fundraising walk or run, travel to help rebuild houses destroyed by a natural disaster. We all have options of ways we can do God’s work with the skills and abilities we have now. 

For almost 2000 years, we have been blessed to have the Holy Spirit present in our midst, in our lives, and in our hearts. Let us work to embody the fruits of the Holy Spirit, live bravely and work to serve God in all the ways we can.

Amen. 

One in Christ -- A Message for June 1, 2025

 

Friends, this week, we are returning to St. Paul’s letter to the Christians of Galatia. The overarching theme of this letter is that God’s grace is a gift for all. Everyone is welcome and encouraged to follow Jesus. St. Paul was unhappy that some Christians were trying to impose rules on the Gentile Galatian converts that made it hard for them to consider following Christ.
Let us now turn to the letter to the Galatians, chapter 3….

The Scripture Galatians 3:1-9, 23-29

You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. 

I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by believing what you heard? 

Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh?

Have you experienced so much in vain—if it really was in vain? 

So again I ask, does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you by the works of the law, or by your believing what you heard? 

So also Abraham “believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”

Understand, then, that those who have faith are children of Abraham. 

Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.”

So those who rely on faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.

Before the coming of this faith, we were held in custody under the law, locked up until the faith that was to come would be revealed. 

So the law was our guardian until Christ came that we might be justified by faith. 

Now that this faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian.

So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, 

for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 

There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 

If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

Here ends this reading of the word of God for the people of God. Thanks be to God. Amen.

Let us pray….

The Sermon One in Christ

One of my favorite hymns is “They Will Know We Are Christians by Our Love.” It opens with the focus of our scripture reading: that we are united as one in Christ…. “We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord. … We will pray that all unity may one day be restored. And, they will know we are Christians by our love, by our love, and they’ll know we are Christians by our love.”

 Christian unity is the theme of the portion of Paul’s letter to the Galatians we read today. The tone of this portion of Paul’s letter was a tad angrier than the portion we read last week. The letter is focused on the problem of whether the Galatian Christians, as former Gentiles, needed to follow Jewish laws. Paul’s position was that they did not. They did not convert to Judaism when they became Christ-followers. Jewish people are called to follow Jewish laws. Paul wrote his letter when Christianity was beginning to separate from Judaism – Christianity was not just a branch of Judaism, it is a wholly new thing. 

Paul was upset because the Galatian Christians were visited by Christian evangelists that wanted them to follow Jewish practices as well as the Christian faith. But, Paul asserts that Jesus didn’t come to only be a prophet and teacher among the Jewish people, but instead Jesus came to bring a new revelation to the world. Jesus came for all people, Jews and Gentiles, slaves and free people, male and female – all people are called to embrace Christ’s teachings and believe in God. 

Jesus was the great equalizer.  All people, no matter what their background, are encouraged to embrace the Christian faith. In the couple of decades after Jesus’ ascension to heaven, Christianity spread from Judah and Galilee to Samaria and Egypt and Ethiopia and Turkey and Greece and Rome. It is believed that St. Thomas, the doubter, travelled along trade routes from Judah to India and started churches there just two decades after Jesus’ death. Christianity quickly spread along trade routes first in the Roman empire and then beyond.  Christianity shifted from a faith of people who were formerly Jewish to a faith of people formerly from a variety of Gentile religions. 

Christianity is for everyone. When we become Christians, we become part of the body of Christ. So, people who are from every continent on the earth, of every ethnic background, of every economic background, of every profession, are all one in Christ. We are one.

People naturally are tribalistic and suspicious of each other. Perkiomen Valley Vikings are suspicious of North Penn Knights. Plymouth White Marsh Colonials are suspicious of the Norristown Eagles. Eagles fans hate Cowboys fans, and vice versa. We love to pick sides, pick teams, and root for our side. 

But, Christianity is not tribalistic. Everyone is invited and included.  In a way, when we commit to following God, we agree to become part of the body of Christ….we no longer have our team, our side, and instead become one with other believers…other believers we don’t look like, other believers we often don’t think like, other believers from every national origin, other believers of every age and race. 

Sometimes, Christians struggle to remember this. We may think that American Chrsitians are more important to God than Sudanese Christians….we may think that Caucasian Christians are more important to God than aboriginal Christians….we may think United Church of Christ Christians are more important to God than Pentecostal Christians. 

We must remember that we are one in Christ. God loves and values all of God’s followers. Jesus is the great unifier – a unifier of people, a unifier of nations, a unifier of the world. So, we must work to be welcoming and receptive of all people into the community of Christ. We are called to join together with Christains of every nation and background to work together throughout the earth. And, we must put aside the roadblocks and things that may divide us, for we are all one in Christ Jesus. 

Amen. 

Living by Faith -- A Message for May 25, 2025

 

In the weeks between Easter and Pentecost, we have been focusing on the development of the early church. As Jesus prepared to Ascend to heaven, he gave his disciples the responsibility of continuing his work on earth. The Disciples, now called Apostles, first led the Chrisitans on their own; they later appointed Deacons to help administer the food and look after the vulnerable people within the Chrisitan community. The churches and the body of Christ grew quickly….more and more people began to profess faith in Jesus and live according to his teachings. As more diverse people joined the church, there were disagreements about which Jewish practices needed to be continued by the Christians. Last week, we focused on how the Christians contended with the question of circumcision…. they decided that male Gentile converts to the faith didn’t need to be circumcised. 

Despite that decision, we will read today that again and again, the question of “how Jewish” the Christians needed to be was asked repeatedly.

Let us now turn to Paul’s letter to the church of the Galatians. Paul addressed this problem in his letter. We read two portions of the letter this week: Galatians chapter one verses thirteen through seventeen and chapter two verses eleven through twenty-one. Listen now to the word of God…. 

The Scripture Galatians 1:13-17; 2:11-21

13 For you have heard of my previous way of life in Judaism, how intensely I persecuted the church of God and tried to destroy it. 

14 I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people and was extremely zealous for the traditions of my fathers. 

15 But when God, who set me apart from my mother’s womb and called me by his grace, was pleased 

16 to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles, my immediate response was not to consult any human being. 

17 I did not go up to Jerusalem to see those who were apostles before I was, but I went into Arabia. Later I returned to Damascus.

11 When Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. 

12 For before certain men came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles. But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself from the Gentiles because he was afraid of those who belonged to the circumcision group. 

13 The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray.

14 When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas in front of them all, “You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs?

15 “We who are Jews by birth and not sinful Gentiles 

16 know that a person is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law no one will be justified.

17 “But if, in seeking to be justified in Christ, we Jews find ourselves also among the sinners, doesn’t that mean that Christ promotes sin? Absolutely not! 

18 If I rebuild what I destroyed, then I really would be a lawbreaker.

19 “For through the law I died to the law so that I might live for God. 

20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 

21 I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!”

Here ends this reading of the word of God for the people of God. Thanks be to God. Amen.

Let us pray….

The Sermon Living By Faith

The Galatian converts to Christianity were Celtic people who lived in what is now Turkey. They were residents of the Roman empire and came from a polytheistic religious cultural background ... .Before they embraced Christianity, they worshiped many Gods. Their lives changed greatly when they became Christians – their religious lives, their family lives, their professional lives changed when they became Christians. Their old selves were no longer; in Christ, they were born again.

St. Paul was a profound preacher and under his leadership, many people came to Christ. He was the embodiment of a man on a mission – a mission to spread the word of God. So, after he visited the towns of Galatia and started the Christian communities there, Paul moved on to the next mission field. He made three missionary journeys through Galatia – each of those journeys were several years apart and resulted in many new people embracing Christianity as their faith.

Paul was a communicator. When he wasn’t present with the Christians in Galatia, Paul wrote them letters. In his letters, Paul consoled the Christans. He advised them about theology. He tried to settle disputes among the believers. And, he sometimes tried to correct the believers if he thought they had strayed from the true path of Christianity.

Other Christian leaders visited the new Chrsitians and churches that were founded by Christian Apostles and Evangelists like Paul. Sometimes, those other Christians disagreed with Paul. In the letter we read from this morning, Paul wrote to the churches in Galatia and told them to stop doing what some of those other Christians preached – unlike Paul, they wanted the Galatian Christians to embrace Jewish practices. Paul didn’t think they needed to do this.

Last week, we read about the Council of Jerusalem when this problem was discussed and resolved. Many scholars believe this letter from Paul was written before the Council of Jerusalem. At the Council of Jerusalem, the Apostles met and, after much discussion and debate, they decided new Christians, especially those new Christians who had formerly been Gentiles, did not have to embrace Jewish practices. They didn’t have to be circumcised. They didn’t have to avoid eating pork. They could wear clothing of mixed fibers, like a linen and cotton blend. Christians were not simultaneously Jewish and Christian. We are part of a wholly  new religion and therefore do not have to practice Jewish customs or laws. 

In this letter, Paul emphasized that we are saved by God’s grace. We can’t follow a bunch of rules and earn points towards our salvation. God saves us. God’s grace covers it all. And, nothing we can do is enough to earn that salvation. God saves us because God chooses to save us. God loves us because God chooses to love us. God forgives us because God chooses to forgive us. We don’t earn that love or salvation or forgiveness. It comes to us because God chooses it, not because we earn it.

Prior to Christianity, religions were much more pre-scriptive. Believers had a bunch of arbitrary rules to follow – eat this, not that – sacrifice this animal, not that animal – wash your hands following this procedure – abstain from this activity, but not that activity. It almost was like there was a behavioral chart that everyone was working on …. If you do these 5 things every day, you get a star….if you do these 5 things every day for five days in a row, you earn a piece of candy. It was like the kindergarten behavior chart but you earned points with God.

Jesus came to free us from this kind of thinking. We don’t earn points with God. God loves us, forgives us, and saves us because God wants to….because God is a loving, good God.

This doesn’t mean we should just do whatever we want. We are motivated by our appreciation of God’s love, and our desire to create healthy communities and relationships with others, to do all of those good and healthy and loving behaviors in return. Not because we are earning points, but because we believe in God’s Mission and God’s plan for the world. 

So, we are motivated to do good in the world, to be kind, loving and supportive of other people because we appreciate that our God is kind, loving and supportive of us. We don’t treat others well because we are concerned God will punish us otherwise. We don’t love our God and our neighbor because we fear retribution from God. Our motivation is not punishment-based, but is love-based. God loves us and we love God and each other in return.

When Paul wrote to the Galatian Chrisitans, he wanted them to know that they didn’t have to follow Jewish laws or customs. God doesn’t judge us on a point system. But, sometimes, we still get caught up on thinking about faith as operating on a point system. God is worried about our hearts – God wants us to be inspired by our appreciation and love to live that love out in the world. We don’t need fill out a chart logging our daily good deeds or kind words — God is not keeping score. God wants us to strive to do good, to treat others with respect and love, to live out the teachings of Jesus….not because God is taking notes but because we are inspired by God’s love and grace. 

Let us act with love and appreciation towards God and each other each and every day. Amen.