Share The Wine

 

taking a look at the

Like when you sit in front of a fire in winter — you are just there in front of the fire. You don't have to be smart or anything. The fire warms you.

Desmond Tutu

Last week we focused on the bread. This week we look at the wine. Next week we share together. 

If the bread symbolizes the Body of our Savior, the Wine is supposed to speak about his blood, shed for our sins. His body was broken, shown to us through the breaking of the bread as the officiant usually pulls the loaf apart into two pieces. Our communion process is rather simple as we only have some bread and a cup before us. The Jewish Sader meal is a much more complex partaking of lamb meat and oil and cracker bread until there is small bite put together that is then dipped into the cup. (If you ever get a chance to be a part of a Sader meal, I highly recommend.) The last part, however, is the cup. And, in our Protestant tradition, we focus on the two elements mentioned in the scripture as Jesus brings his hearers attention to them. I see much of the fellowship we need to have with one another in the communion elements, especially in the bread. What is so special about the wine, then? What kind of experience do we have together as we share in the cup that symbolizes his blood? 

The foodie in me came out as I was preparing the message this week. I'm sitting in Champs Pizza and Pub putting some thoughts into the blog post for this week's sermon. I have a Hawaiian Pizza coming to me in a matter of minutes. (I have added mushrooms and jalapenos to my pizza because... I'm a little crazy) And, it comes to me... this is where a great communion service could happen! There is a sharing in the bread and there is fellowship in the wine. What do people do when they are having a drink together? They are usually having a good time! I take to Google to see what I might find with a search of "communion experience wine". I'm hoping there might be some people who have shared their own stories surrounding a time of fellowship with other people in their own personal moment with the Lord's Supper. One of the first results I saw in my search was for the Communion Wine Company. They have a vineyard in Oregon and a Beer and Wine Tasting Bar in Arizona called the Divided Vine. I just felt like there was a story behind the name of the bar and I was intrigued by the concept I read on the opening page of their website. I had to know more about this place. 

Because I'm not all that shy, I immediately grabbed their email address and wrote to them. If you visit their site, you will quickly find out that the owners are Jeremy & Michelle Jernigan. They have 5 kids and live in Oregon. Jeremy is a second generation preacher with a passion for sharing and talking with people. The drive of the Communion Wine Company is to bring people together around wine to experience Jesus in new ways. Let me ask you, when was the last time you just sat down with someone and had a drink? When was the last time you experienced fellowship and peace with others around the table? Some might think it too fundamental to think of sharing in wine as we talk about Jesus. There are those in our world who would see something like the Lord's Supper and think, "They served wine. We should drink wine also." (I poked at our Lutheran friends on Facebook today as I prepared for this Sunday. I take no shame in doing so.) There are some who would open a bottle and pour a glass and sit and talk about their beliefs in front of others. This company is pressing it's inspiration into my heart further. After reaching out through email, I got a response from Jernigan. I wanted to know more about the Divided Vine's name and Jeremy responded with, "[It's] is a clever name as half the bar is wine and the other half is beer. They have the wine list on one wall and the beer list on the opposite wall. The idea is that there is normally a divide between beer and wine drinkers but they want to bring them both together. The owner isn’t a Christian but he has become an incredible ‘person of peace’ to partner with us and host our events." I thought the name had to come from some background about our divided nature over things in this country. There is always a chance to bring people together over a glass or a bottle and talk things out. What better place than here? 

I reached out again to ask about his own background and personal journey. How did they come up with this idea to do a ministry around a wine company? Jeremy came back to me with, " I was in full-time ministry for two decades and was Lead Pastor of a megachurch in Portland for three years. I ended up quitting when my eldership told me that I needed to stop talking about the things I was talking about. It made me realize that many of the conversations that need to happen may not be able to happen inside of our churches. We try and create space for people to feel safe to explore Jesus in ways that may not fall in line with their church experiences." He still speaks regularly in churches and has a "foot in both camps", so to speak, as he tries to present Jesus to as many people as possible. It makes me wonder what kinds of things Jernigan had been talking about that would have made his church leaders feel uncomfortable. There is plenty of ground to cover that would probably make others not so easy with the material that needs to be addressed as we try to bring others to Jesus. And, the subject of alcohol would tend to make some feel uneasy as they think about trying to separate their faith from any possibility of drunkenness. But, aren't the people we need to reach right their around some bar stools? I shouldn't need to remind a bunch of Methodist minded people that our founding fathers, some Wesley boys, are historically noted for crafting some hymns that would have followed some tunes that would have been heard from a piano in some places called "bars". "The world is my parish", are the world famously coined and attributed to John Wesley himself. That world would include those not so well thought of places where we might not want to find ourselves going. When was the last time you found yourself inside of a place like Champs Pizza and Pub, especially since it has been expanded and remodeled into the lovely bar it is today? You might find yourself in front of a conversation with an area Thornvillian or Glenfordite that you wouldn't normally see. 

One of my fellow colleagues is Zach Bechtold. He is one of the two guys who does a podcast and blog called Bearded Theologians. (You can guess why.) Yes, Zach is all his bearded glory is the pastor of Grace UMC in Cheyenne, WY. Zach has actively been involved in a bar room ministry with other men in the area who meet for a glass and have a small bible study at a nearby bar. It has been going on for several years and Zach finds it truly rewarding and fulfilling. It has opened him up to people he might not otherwise get to talk with or share. Certainly, the matter of alcohol brings to the surface the need to confront any issue getting drunk. It should be noted: if alcohol is a temptation that is not easily handled in your particular life, then you should avoid this sort of thing. Still, there are people here who need to be reached out to and it take other human beings with self control to work in this area. 

I am able to reference a time in my own life when I needed to do this. For the larger part of my time on this earth, I had not consumed alcohol. It wasn't until I was 40 and living in Thornville that I occasionally would have a beer socially. Prior to that, it never existed in my life. You would have had to go clear back to high school to find a time where I even tried some beer. When my wife and I were freshly married, I would take my car out to her cousin's house for a 6 month look at the brakes. Her cousin was a true blue beer drinker. In the time it took him to look my brakes over, he would probably have 5 or 6 bottles. He would offer me one. I would always turn him down. Then, on one visit, I decided I was going to have one. I had it in my mind that I could show him that you could simply drink one and stop. As he was taking the brake caliper off the driver side, I recall saying to him, "Todd, you know you can have just one and be done, don't you?" As he began to tear into the brake on the passenger side, his response was, "Yeah, I know", as he cracked the top on another beer. I finished my beer and he finished the brakes and that might have been the last time I went out to his house for a brake job. Sometimes, all we can do is be there and be the voice. We can't force change. All we can do is offer the bread and wine and be there for a shoulder, even if they don't want it. 

One of the most fulfilling things I have had the opportunity to do during my time in Thornville is to visit Weasel Boy Brewing in Zanesville. Nathan Zangmeister, bass player for the Wayfarers and one half of our favorite Sunday morning twosome Two by Two, playing guiatr along side pianist Carrie VanSickle, hosts an open mic night at Weasel Boy on the third Thursday of ever month. I have had the pleasure of singing there for several of those nights as the stage is open to local area talent. It has been a pleasure to sing about my faith and share some some songs that make you think. I have also had the joy of sitting and talking with people from all over. Musicians. Zanesville folks. Working people who just need a chance to unwind and relax. I have had conversations about church and God. I have shared music and prayer. Nathan and Carrie have done sets of old songs and classic hymns. You wouldn't think someone could do that in such a setting. But, you can. And, you should. There are people who need to here. There are souls longing for the contact. Ministry is about meeting people. People are everywhere. 

That is just where we are told to go.
 

Pass The Bread

 

taking a look at the

Communion. The Lord's Supper. The Eucharist. 

All ways of describing what we are doing as we remember what Christ has done for us. 

What we will look at today and next Sunday are the matters surrounding this sacrament. We have Catholic and Protestant views to hash out. There are specific terms and understanding to take to heart. In this morning's message, we want to focus on the bread and it's meaning for us. Next week we will looks at the wine. 

How many of us grew up in church with the communion elements passing us by because we had not gone through church membership class yet? Maybe that is less of an issue here in the United Methodist Church. When we get to our next Communion Sunday on February 6, we will bring to the surface our open table policy and why we serve the elements to everyone. 

There are some distinctions between the terms you have heard above. These three ways of describing the sacrament need some explanation. I have to admit that I was not fully educated on the differing ways of looking at the Grace that is being extended in this moment. It was a pleasant surprise to come across the writings of author and journalist Joseph Serwach. He is an award winning writer with degrees from Michigan State and Michigan universities in journalism, history and education. He also has focused a particular large part of energy on writing about Catholic beliefs and issues in the church. His blog, "The Catholic Way Home", seeks to bring people back to the faith in the Catholic tradition. His post titled "Who Gets Jesus?" caught my eye and was a big help in defining these terms for the message today. Serwach's article helped to understand the grammatical way of looking at these terms. He would state that Communion is the Verb side of the moment while the Eucharist is thought of as the Noun side. Verbs are, of course, action words. We are doing something with our hands or feet or going somewhere. There is some sort of movement, perhaps. What are we doing in Communion? We are communing, simply being with Christ. It's not a major, heavy action, but it action nonetheless. We are participating. When we come to the altar and take of the elements, most people are encouraged to spend some time with Christ in prayer. It is that much needed One to One time that we need to center ourselves on. So, the Noun part of this would be Christ himself. Christ is here in this moment. Our Catholic friends would explain Holy Communion with an emphasis on the actual person of Christ in the elements that are being presented. For them, this bread and this wine are actually His body and His blood. I'll make more to do about that in a minute. As Protestants, we do not take it that far. We would focus on the presence and person of Christ being here with us. The Holy Spirit is present and we know that God communes with us in person. It is not simply a ritual or rite of passage. It is a personal moment with God. The Verb and Noun explanations can go far in helping us understand what we are doing and being. 

If you take the time to read Serwach's blog post, you will no doubt find yourself at odds with the Catholic beliefs surrounding the actual elements. Our Catholic friends would present the bread and cup as Christ's actual body and blood. They find opportunity to bring control and command to all who would follow the Catholic way in Jesus' words. "This is my body and my blood." As Protestants, I would like to think we see more of Jesus' truth through the power of parable and illustration. That is how Jesus spoke to through who would listen. We should see that continuation when he lifts the bread and the cup. They are not his actually body and blood. To suggest so seems morbid. When Jesus says that this bread is his body, I see opportunity to do exactly what he does command. "Do this in remembrance of me." The real command in the Lord's Supper lies here and not in the reference to the bread and cup. I would suggest to you that the real emphasis in our partaking of Communion lies not in the actual elements that are being served. The true source of Eucharist is in what we are doing as we take the bread and the juice. We are remembering. That's what he asked of his disciples. As Jesus would break that bread it in front of them at the meal, it seems as if he is saying "My body is going to be broken just as this bread is broken in half." A solider would later come and poke a spear in his side, blood and water spilling out and pouring to the ground. His hands and feet will have nails driven through them. Every time we partake of the bread we have a moment to remember what we have learned about what Christ did for us. 

If our Communion is real and true and we are partaking in the Eucharist, actually realizing that Christ is here with us, then the remembering should not simply be biblical and historical, but also personally relevant. What do we remember about what he has done for us? How has God touched our lives? How has He spoken to us? What strength have we gained and what insight has been given? "Do this in remembrance of me." This meal. This breaking of bread. I would plead the case that it is not so much about the elements as that which we are doing with them. 

Especially during this COVID time of worshiping at home in front of a television or computer screen is where you might find yourself in a place with no bread or juice readily available. Through the end of 2021, many of our area UM Clergy were gathering for a weekly meeting surround the book "United Methodists and the Sacraments" by Gayle C. Felton. In the courseof talking through of scriptural focus on the sacramental meal, we had some good rousing discussion about the use of other elements outside the bread and juice we habitually consume. Paul, a lay speaker and recent Course of Study beginner shared how tough it was for him being stuck at home during those months when we were out of the in-person mode of worship. "No one was really thinking about ever having to take communion at home in front of the TV screen," he shared. It was Communion Sunday and at his house he found nothing more than some carrots that were drying up and some apple juice. That would have to do it. Paul shared that the Lord was present with him in the moment. The Lord did not look down upon him on that cold winter morning in December 2020 and say, "Hey, you don't have bread and juice. I can't meet with you." If our Lord truly is a God of Grace, then he meets with us despite our circumstances. He comes to us when we are at our lowest. He comes without legalistic fury or demand for exactness. In return, he asks us to simply come. Come to him regardless of where we are at in life. Come to him without first thinking about what needs to change. Let him handle the change, if there needs to be any at all. "Come unto me all you who and weak and heavy burdened, and I will give you rest." He does not ask us to come to him so he can lay more on our already tired shoulders. He comes to us with glad tidings of great joy. He wants to be with us. If we understand what we are doing around the table, then we want to be with him also. 

There was a service back in my Nazarene days up in Shelby, OH when the Reverend Jay Hawes was our pastor that we took the bread and broke it and shared it. We were encouraged to take a chunk of bread off the loaf and go find someone in the sanctuary to just sit and talk with for a bit. I recall it feeling a bit weird. We didn't focus on the cup that morning. Just the bread. There was an emphasis to remember, but to do in more of a community fashion. It was not a solo partaking of kneeling at the altar. Some groups of two or three that were sharing did wind up going to the altar, all together, in order to pray about something that was on their hearts. Ecclesiastes 4.12 says to us, "though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not easily broken." Yourself. A friend. And, Jesus. We come together in the moment. We stand together. We care for one another. And, we find the hope we need.

A Jew, A Priest and A Rabbi

 

Throughout our year of focus on United Methodist beliefs, we will take a moment occasionally to focus on Christian community. In the midst of our time in the Sacraments this month, we pause midway here on the 3rd Sunday to have a moment with the idea of what it means to be in ministry together. 

The subject of sacraments bring us closer to God and, hopefully, closer to one another.  As we give ourselves to the Lord in the vows of our baptism, we should see that we are all sinners. No one escapes the distinction of being separated from the Glory of God because of our sin. Thus, we should see each other in a different light. It is a good place to see scripture like this bit from the Letter to the Ephesians. In the 4th chapter, Paul makes some distinguishing remarks about our Christian beliefs that help us to see the special nature of our relationship with God and each other. It is a notion that will lead us into the subject of Communion and hopefully shed some Grace into our unique spirituality in the Church. 

It's a time old joke and we have heard it repeatedly. Usually three of some kind of ethically, racial stereotype walk into a bar. Stop me if you've heard it before. Tine and again people like this are the blunt edge of other people's humor. In an interesting way to turn the tide, The Guardian, an online newspaper and reporting service has tried to give people hope by turning the tide and allow people to tell their own stories. Recently, they allowed people in these people, who are usually the butt of the joke, to do a little joke telling of their own. The result was stellar. 

The Reverend George Pitcher, an Anglican priest and journalist, offered a short joke the capsulizes where we are headed this morning.

 I could do so much with Ephesians chapter 4. There is so much territory that we could apply this passage to and such much to tag it with; but, what we should do with it is focus on the One whom it is all about. The "all" is where we tend to get lost. "All" encompasses so much. Racial tension. Insensitivity. Lack of unity. The One brings us back to our center. I have wondered why Rev Pitcher didn't cast himself in the light of the joke he told. Why did he cast three different religions into his bit and leave himself out? In our world, it seems we like to throw matters of indifference onto other people and places and make believe it's not a problem for us. Rev Pitcher's joke does bring one problem front and center. While the other two people have issues that require some sensitive attention, we tend to not care about what others think or want. "Make me one with everything." Forget about those guys. Who cares what they need. Just think about me.

We are here in the church to focus on meeting other people's needs. That is what ministry essentially is.I won't bother posting the definition piece from Merriam-Webster today because it is rather disappointing. Traditionally, ministry has been treated as a noun. A proper place or thing. It can be possessive. The Ministry of Defense. The Minister of Perry County, Ohio. It never takes on a verb sense at all in the dictionary. There's no action put into the definition of the word. It's troubling for me to think that the predominant idea behind a word such as this suggests that it's more about place and title than actually doing something, and that for other people. 

My final class in the United Methodist  Course of Study (which ended for me some 8 years ago now) was a course titled, "Theology and the Practice of Ministry". It was taught by The Reverend Stan Ling who was formerly the Director of Development for the Methodist Theological School in Ohio. He has also served in different positions for The West Ohio Conference over the years. Rev. Ling had a very open mind about the needs of other people as he taught our class. It was a real game changer for me. The class is intentionally set up as your last class before you graduate the Course of Study and go forward into ministry. What is ministry? I was one of the eager beavers who raised their hand and shared that I had always heard that ministry was truly "meeting people's needs." There is much truth in those words. Much scripture can point to the idea that Jesus met other people's needs above his own. He tirelessly shared and taught and healed. Rev. Ling, however, made it even more intriguing. For him, ministry was simply "meeting people." Right away, we are taken to a moment in John 4 where Jesus meets a woman at a well. He doesn't actually do anything for her. He doesn't touch her or heal her. He just talks with her. He just "meets" her. Right where she is in that moment. 

This past week I took the moment to look up Rev. Ling's contact information and gave him a call. I hadn't spoken to him since that class 8 years ago. I was curious what he was into and if his viewpoint on matters had changed at all. After our introductions on the phone, I asked him what he was doing now and what ministry looked like for him in his current context. He was amused and congratulatory about my call. The timing of such things was perfect fro where he and his wife are at right now. Currently, they are living in the Westerville area and are just "meeting people." He says his wife is really the person who spearheads this initiative. She is the outgoing one. Stan is more an introvert. Together, they simply like to go out and meet other folks. It is in this manner of ministry that they recently came to know a named Mamadu. He is a Muslim and living in the Columbus area. They haven't tried to convert him or witness to him in any formal manner. They simply got to know him on one of there visit to downtown Columbus and have become friends. Over time they have gotten to know his family. One of these visits with Mamadu revealed that his son is almost 4 and has not spoken a word in any language yet. With social disorders and subjects like Autism on the rise in our world, it triggered a serious talk about what could be done for the boy. This past week, because of the Lings intervention and relation with their new friend, they were able to help get the family admitted to Nationwide Children's for an interview that could help figure out why Mamadu's son had not spoken yet. How many of us are willing to do ministry? How many of us would be willing to simply "meet people"? It takes a desire to get involved in the messy parts of other people's lives. All the while working toward the chance to share some of God's Love with a world who needs to know. The One who is above all, and in all. Whose Grace extended outward and draws us closer. 

As we move into our next sacrament on communion next week, let us remember that we are in this together. It's not about ourselves. God calls us all. God uses us all. And, The One did what he did for All.

Paddling Upstream

 

our 2nd Sunday of looking at the 

We jump into our 2nd Sunday looking at the Sacraments and the matter of Baptism. 

Last week, we covered the basics of the holy plunge into the water. Whether you have been sprinkled or poured upon or dunked into the deep, there should be a desire in our hearts to want to separate from the old life before we knew Christ as we make a commitment to follow Him. This moment we are brought to is conceived and brought to fruition by none other than the Grace of God. God Himself draws us to him. When we approach with faith and trust, we find ourselves becoming a child of God. Jesus set an example for us to follow. Being a child of the Almighty means putting off ourselves (our haphazard wants, our flimsy cares, our carnal desires) and listening to the call from Above. But, what happens if we don't stay the course? What happens if we don't continue to follow Jesus? What if our desires try to pull and tug us in another direction instead the way we intended to go after our baptism? Paul has some words for his Galatian audience about being a Child of God that apply to our subject today.

In an article titled "The Battle After Baptism", Darci Claggett of Discovery Church in Orlando, FL sites the struggles she has had in her own life following the moment of baptism. She says "My new walk met me with immediate attacks from the enemy. Sin brought me down again and again leaving me to question whether I had really been saved. It wasn’t until a couple years after my baptism that one of my dear friends and mentors taught me that Christ followers are in a spiritual battle every single day. You see, the enemy doesn’t have to fight for you when you are already walking with him. But as soon as the enemy knows you have been washed by the blood of Jesus, he rallies his army and begins to fight against your salvation." There's a certain weakness in the law that does not have the power of salvation to hold us up. The law can only point to what is correct and right. And, we can nod and accept that we know what the right thing is to do. Our enemy knows this. Under our own strength, with the light of the law shining into our world, we are powerless to follow. On our own, we cannot do what God wants. It is through believing in what Christ has done for us, through faith and trust in Christ Himself, that we find the help we need. 

Without Christ in our lives, the fight to do what is right can seems like an uphill battle. Imagine what it would be like to fight the current going upstream in a boat? I want to immerse us in the field of analogy and illustration this morning. Too often we gather for a message or a study and we want to simple be told what to believe. Even when we are given a picture image by which to explain something we come away with the matter cemented in our heads. "That's exactly how it is!" Too often we miss the moment to think deeply about something through the use of illustration. Now, lets use this subject of baptism and the idea of not keep instep with our vows and drop our minds into the area of what it would be like to fight and struggle like a salmon going up stream in the American West. What do you know about the life of a salmon fish? Finn Sky has been an avid fisherman since learning to fish with his dad in the 1990s. He’s caught over 50 species of fish and makes a habit of trying out as many new techniques and fisheries as he can. His specialties are salmon and trout fishing, but he also has experience fishing for tropical and pelagic fish such as marlin and tarpon. Finn wrote a piece just a few months ago in November 2021 about the life and trials of salmon during late September or early October in places like Oregon and Washington. The one thing that seems to intrigue most people is simply - WHY? Why do these fish fight to go upstream like this? Most of them die in the process and the ones who do make it to their egg laying destination will die not long after they make it.  There are lots of simple reasons that seem to make sense. The safety and security of these egg laying areas provides protection for their new salmon. Many more of their eggs will survive if hatched upstream then they would if opened near the ocean where so many predators could snatch them up for a meal. The ocean with its heavy currents can wash away newly laid eggs. Still, it is mind boggling to think that these fish give everything they have to make this trip just to lay some eggs. For distance sake, let find out just how far 2 miles is. The thought might make you wrinkle your eyebrows. It is 2.5 miles from the Thornville United Methodist Church out to Deere Valley on St Rt 204 east of the Village. That really doesn't seem very far. Most folks probably think they could walk there and back in one afternoon. Why would it take these fish weeks to get from point A to point B on the map?

Now, imagine if you will with me that the whole trip is uphill, as if Deere Valley were on top of some distant mountain. We are doing it on foot. These fish are swimming upstream. The current is coming at them, downhill, toward the ocean. To make the matter harder to deal with, some times there are man made dams in the way. These are necessary for the preservation of some rivers and lakes. But, its another obstacle making the trip tougher for the fish. If we were on foot and the wind were blowing hard from the east, right into our faces, how hard would it be to make that up hill walk? I dropped Caleb off at school on Tuesday morning when the wind was blowing really hard from the Southwest. Many of the kids had taken refuge around the corner of the building as they waited for the doors to open and let them in for the day of classes. Have you ever driven your car down the road on a day like that? Even zipping along at 55 MPH it can feel like your car is going to blown off the road. 

You might be thinking, where are you going with all this preacher? That's partially my point. We don't process illustration very well. We want to be told what to believe and we don't want to have to think for ourselves. Can we put ourselves in the shoes of the salmon fish for a moment and liken it somehow to our own uphill struggle in life? What if the whole trip from here to Heaven and being with Jesus were only a simple 2.5 mile trip? But its all uphill with the wind in our face? There's nothing but water crashing against us as we are jumping waves and currents and trying to get over man made barriers put in our path? I say all of this to you today to reassure you of this. There is nothing wrong with you. This is how it's supposed to be. Salmon fish give everything they have for the simple cause of giving birth to new offspring that will venture down stream, back toward the ocean and repeat the same process their ancestors did. Our cause is to reach people with the love and grace of Jesus Christ, giving of ourselves all along the way for the betterment of others. If we can parallel the analogy to our own lives and church, we see the struggle is very similar. High points. Low points. Times where the river is calm. Times where the river is a battle just to stay afloat or alive. The enemy wants us to give up on the trip. The river itself challenges us to keep going. We might lose some people along the way. The destination is always out there in front of us. We keep pressing on until we reach the goal. Until we have reached another person for Christ. Until we see Him face to face. Until we hear "Well Done." 

And the journey will have been worth it.

Commitment in the Water

 

we start off January with a look at the

It means "something sacred". 

There are certain practices in our Christian faith that bring us closer to the Lord in a special, holy way. There are specific actions or ways of living we have seen our Lord and Savior do himself that significance to our faith and our journey in this Christian life that we feel need to be held up as a way of divine connection. A couple of those practices we deem as Sacraments. In the United Methodist Church we focus on Baptism and Holy Communion (or the Eucharist) as those ways of being in touch with God's Grace. 

 

To take a closer look for yourself at the Sacraments in the UMC, click the banner below.

Many of us are doers by any logical sense. We want something we can do to help or make up for what we have done (or not done) in our lives. Many of us have been raised in what we would call a "believers baptism". You might be saying, "Its my decision and my right to be baptized." I was also raised in this tradition. I was baptized when i was 13 or 14. Went through church membership class. Was baptized on Palm or Easter Sunday. Then i stood down front of the congregation to declare my affirmation that I did believe in Jesus Christ. "Do you believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God?" Many of us understand our baptism through such channels of religion. But what if we looked at through another avenue? What if we looked at it through the lenses of God's Grace?

John Wesley, our theological founder and father of Methodism, would define baptism as "the initiatory sacrament that enters us into covenant with God." We should understand be now what a sacrament is, but do we understand the covenant part? What is it we are getting ourselves into? 

As United Methodists, we come to baptism through means of sprinkling water on the person. This has much to do with our beliefs of infant baptism. We do baptize little one in our tradition. We obviously cannot fully immerse a small baby. So, we have used the method of sprinkling and have given that mode of baptism to everyone. Some traditions pour water over the subject. And, many of us are familiar with the mode of full immersion. In all ways of doing baptism there is water present. Water is important. In an article from 2005 in Good News Magazine, the subject of baptism was front and center with questions about which mode was the correct way and how much water should be used. The question was answered with an interesting take. "As much water as possible." There really is no correct way. We could get all fundamental about it and say that we have do it as Jesus did it. If we come at it from that angle, we miss the point of true baptism. The Apostle Paul really hits the nail on the head here in his letter to the Romans. 

When we read the bible in our Western tradition, I would plead the case that we read to often looking for what our responsibility is. We like to be in control. We hear about God's grace, but too often look for what we are suppose to do. In our United Methodist view of baptism, we present the sacrament from the realm of God's grace for all. It is an interesting take if you have been brought to look at baptism from the view of responsibility on your part. Yes, there are duties and issues that we must confront in our Christian life. The direction is influenced by the Grace of God. That is where we should begin regardless of the subject matter. God draws us into His presence. He wants to make us a child in his family. Think of baptism as God wrapping his arm around you and making you one of his own. That is something that does not need to be repeated. Once God has made you His child, there is no need to do that over again. Which leads us into some deeper thoughts that will resonate into next week's message. 

The issues of backsliding and re-commitment will come up in the next sermon. I heard an old Nazarene revivalist preach years ago on these matters. He used the analogy of a bus trip. Lets say we are headed up I-71 toward Cleveland. Two hours into the trip, we experience a flat tire. Do we haul the bus all the way back to Columbus to fix the tire and then start the trip all over again. NO! We fix the tire where it is at and we continue heading to our destination. I have been fully immersed twice in my life. That church membership class in my early teens and then when I was 22. We were at a church service near a pond at a congregant's house. I felt I needed to do that. It is something I look back on with great fondness. But, later in life, hearing about God's Grace and becoming his child, I realize that I don't need to do that over and over. If I need reaffirm my covenant and my desire to follow, that is surely needed. We don't need to start the whole trip over again ( and again). 

God will walk with us and share with us until we reach our destination.
The journey will be a good one.