END OF SUNDAY SCHOOL YEAR SERVICE - D.R.E.A.M.
Readings: Genesis 37: 1-11, Psalm 33:1-12, Romans 4:13-25, Matthew 9:9-13
Preached at Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church, June 11 2023
Readings: Genesis 37: 1-11, Psalm 33:1-12, Romans 4:13-25, Matthew 9:9-13
Preached at Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church, June 11 2023
DO
Some people have dreams – that remain just dreams. Some churches have big plans that remain just big plans. For anything to come out of visions and dreams that God puts into our hearts – you have to DO something about them. D…The first letter of Dream.
Presbyterians are often known for their abundance of committee meetings. It’s a solid biblical pattern for getting things done. Committees are wonderful vehicles through which God’s Spirit can work in powerful ways. But there is always the danger that if you are on a committee that has talked about something then that means the problem is solved. The problem only starts to be solved when we do something about it!
In Matthew 9 we are told about Matthew the tax collector being called to follow Jesus. Up to that point Matthew’s life may have been fairly routine. But that day Jesus walked into his office and said, “C’mon, Let’s go do something!” changed everything. We read “He rose and followed him”.
Maybe Matthew wasn’t happy with his life. Maybe he was concerned about the way things were going in the world around him. He saw something in Jesus that he thought could make a difference. So, he got up and followed Him. The time for dreaming was past. The time for doing was here!
Some folks are dreamers. Some folks are doers. The difference between them is that the doers have the kind of faith that makes things happen. We should remember that! In fact, there are a lots of things we need to remind ourselves about. R is the second letter of “Dream.”
REMIND
Presbyterians are often known for their abundance of committee meetings. It’s a solid biblical pattern for getting things done. Committees are wonderful vehicles through which God’s Spirit can work in powerful ways. But there is always the danger that if you are on a committee that has talked about something then that means the problem is solved. The problem only starts to be solved when we do something about it!
In Matthew 9 we are told about Matthew the tax collector being called to follow Jesus. Up to that point Matthew’s life may have been fairly routine. But that day Jesus walked into his office and said, “C’mon, Let’s go do something!” changed everything. We read “He rose and followed him”.
Maybe Matthew wasn’t happy with his life. Maybe he was concerned about the way things were going in the world around him. He saw something in Jesus that he thought could make a difference. So, he got up and followed Him. The time for dreaming was past. The time for doing was here!
Some folks are dreamers. Some folks are doers. The difference between them is that the doers have the kind of faith that makes things happen. We should remember that! In fact, there are a lots of things we need to remind ourselves about. R is the second letter of “Dream.”
REMIND
Jesus said “Go into all the world and make others my disciples”. We regularly should remind ourselves that our reason for being a church is not simply to nourish our personal spiritual lives, but to reach out to others with the gospel message. If we are constantly looking in, we need to look out! All churches are Mission Churches. A Church without a vision for mission has lost sight of the reason God bought it into being in the first place.
This year in Sunday School our youth have been involved in practical projects that are going to make a difference in other people’s lives. That’s something we want to do as a church. Through supporting mission, here and throughout the world, we want to help others know the love we have found in Jesus.
We are constantly challenged to redefine who we are and who we can reach. We need to remind ourselves that as a Church we are all in the business of mission.
Exactly who is involved in that mission? Who? Why… all of us! E is for …
EVERYONE
This year in Sunday School our youth have been involved in practical projects that are going to make a difference in other people’s lives. That’s something we want to do as a church. Through supporting mission, here and throughout the world, we want to help others know the love we have found in Jesus.
We are constantly challenged to redefine who we are and who we can reach. We need to remind ourselves that as a Church we are all in the business of mission.
Exactly who is involved in that mission? Who? Why… all of us! E is for …
EVERYONE
God used young Joseph and his crazy dreams. Now, we saw in our reading that Joseph’s family were not actually happy about that! Who Joseph he think he was having dreams that involved all of us? What they didn’t allow for was the fact that these were dreams God had put in his heart.
He used a couple well advanced in years, Abraham and Sarah, to build a nation. He accepted the fish and loaves of a young boy and used them to feed 5000 hungry folk. He welcomed the hospitality of Mary and Martha and of Zaccheus and of Matthew and of so many others.
He called everyone… everyone who responded to Him to be involved in the work of the Mission. Everyone means just that. Every one of us here, everyone listening to this message or reading it, is called by God to be actively involved in the mission of Jesus.
For example, if everyone made it their task to bring one other person into membership of their church in the coming year, then according to the laws of logic they would have twice as many people filling this building by this time next year. That’s simple arithmetic. 1 + 1 = 2. Right?
When the prophet Isaiah heard God saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” (in Isaiah 6:8) Isaiah did not say “Here I am, send somebody else”, he said “Here I am. Send me”. Everyone is involved in the work of mission. You, Me. The person sitting next to you.
One thing that stops us fulfilling our mission is that we worry about the wrong things. The fourth letter of DREAM is the letter “A”
ABOUT
He used a couple well advanced in years, Abraham and Sarah, to build a nation. He accepted the fish and loaves of a young boy and used them to feed 5000 hungry folk. He welcomed the hospitality of Mary and Martha and of Zaccheus and of Matthew and of so many others.
He called everyone… everyone who responded to Him to be involved in the work of the Mission. Everyone means just that. Every one of us here, everyone listening to this message or reading it, is called by God to be actively involved in the mission of Jesus.
For example, if everyone made it their task to bring one other person into membership of their church in the coming year, then according to the laws of logic they would have twice as many people filling this building by this time next year. That’s simple arithmetic. 1 + 1 = 2. Right?
When the prophet Isaiah heard God saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” (in Isaiah 6:8) Isaiah did not say “Here I am, send somebody else”, he said “Here I am. Send me”. Everyone is involved in the work of mission. You, Me. The person sitting next to you.
One thing that stops us fulfilling our mission is that we worry about the wrong things. The fourth letter of DREAM is the letter “A”
ABOUT
Some thing that stops us being bold in our witness for Jesus Christ is that we worry about – what if? What if we seem too pushy? What if we fail? What if this turns out to be costly? What if it rains?
You know I was looking at the weather forecast this morning. Do you know that the forecast is promising torrential rain all day tomorrow? Tomorrow there will be torrential rain and the possibility of flooding. At least there will be in parts of Africa, because that was the forecast I was listening to. All of which has very little relevance to what the weather is going to be doing here in Bridgehampton, NY
Many of our “What if’s” are generated by the fact that we are tuning into the voices of this world rather than building our faith upon the Word of God. If we are about building God’s Kingdom then surely it is God’s Word that should direct us, not the words of the doom and gloom merchants of our culture?
God knows all about us. God knows all about our situation as a Church. God knows what God is calling us to do! And God never gives God’s people a call to do something without also empowering them for the mission to which they are called. That is not to say God gives us all the resources up front. Rather that as we proceed in obedience to do the things Jesus is calling us to do, God provides what we need to see it through.
When Jesus, after the resurrection, sent the disciples out, He did not do so alone, but in the power and with the presence of the Holy Spirit… His personal presence within them and all around them, directing and leading and guiding and preparing the way.
God knows about our problems,
God knows about our worries.
God knows about our temptations and failures.
God knows about the things that trouble us today.
God knows about our hopes and dreams.
And as we place our lives into God’s hands God knows He can do something about them! All of this is about belonging to Christ the King. And it’s all about Mission. “M” is our final letter.
MISSION
Joseph was faithful to the dreams God implanted in his heart. It was at times extremely costly, and he surely had days when he questioned himself about the wisdom of his actions.
Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane struggled in prayer over the path that lay before Him. “If it is possible, let this cup pass from me.” But the vision that God had for God’s people was a greater destiny that overshadowed His struggles. His desire to be faithful to His mission was greater than any other call that life placed upon Him.
The disciples heard the command to “Go” and they went into the entire world. It was never easy. They had to constantly readapt and change and reform in order to meet the challenge of different cultures and situations.
The Church across the centuries has been faithful in carrying out the Great Commission of their King. In the past have been those who had a vision for what a Christian community could achieve here in this location. It is for us to build upon that heritage and dream new dreams and envision new forms of ministry. In the process, God promises that we will be changed and empowered by God’s Holy Spirit.
So, let us dare to dream.
Let us be faithful to Christ’s call to go into all the world, (which includes the world on our doorstep).
Let us seek to catch others up in our dreams for a better world.
We have a mission from God. And my mission today involved the word “Dream”… which… lining it out, shares my concern for today.
You know I was looking at the weather forecast this morning. Do you know that the forecast is promising torrential rain all day tomorrow? Tomorrow there will be torrential rain and the possibility of flooding. At least there will be in parts of Africa, because that was the forecast I was listening to. All of which has very little relevance to what the weather is going to be doing here in Bridgehampton, NY
Many of our “What if’s” are generated by the fact that we are tuning into the voices of this world rather than building our faith upon the Word of God. If we are about building God’s Kingdom then surely it is God’s Word that should direct us, not the words of the doom and gloom merchants of our culture?
God knows all about us. God knows all about our situation as a Church. God knows what God is calling us to do! And God never gives God’s people a call to do something without also empowering them for the mission to which they are called. That is not to say God gives us all the resources up front. Rather that as we proceed in obedience to do the things Jesus is calling us to do, God provides what we need to see it through.
When Jesus, after the resurrection, sent the disciples out, He did not do so alone, but in the power and with the presence of the Holy Spirit… His personal presence within them and all around them, directing and leading and guiding and preparing the way.
God knows about our problems,
God knows about our worries.
God knows about our temptations and failures.
God knows about the things that trouble us today.
God knows about our hopes and dreams.
And as we place our lives into God’s hands God knows He can do something about them! All of this is about belonging to Christ the King. And it’s all about Mission. “M” is our final letter.
MISSION
Joseph was faithful to the dreams God implanted in his heart. It was at times extremely costly, and he surely had days when he questioned himself about the wisdom of his actions.
Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane struggled in prayer over the path that lay before Him. “If it is possible, let this cup pass from me.” But the vision that God had for God’s people was a greater destiny that overshadowed His struggles. His desire to be faithful to His mission was greater than any other call that life placed upon Him.
The disciples heard the command to “Go” and they went into the entire world. It was never easy. They had to constantly readapt and change and reform in order to meet the challenge of different cultures and situations.
The Church across the centuries has been faithful in carrying out the Great Commission of their King. In the past have been those who had a vision for what a Christian community could achieve here in this location. It is for us to build upon that heritage and dream new dreams and envision new forms of ministry. In the process, God promises that we will be changed and empowered by God’s Holy Spirit.
So, let us dare to dream.
Let us be faithful to Christ’s call to go into all the world, (which includes the world on our doorstep).
Let us seek to catch others up in our dreams for a better world.
We have a mission from God. And my mission today involved the word “Dream”… which… lining it out, shares my concern for today.
DO
REMIND
EVERYONE
ABOUT
MISSION.
REMIND
EVERYONE
ABOUT
MISSION.
The Reverend Adrian J Pratt B.D.
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