Presented to Trinity United Methodist Church
June 27, 2021
video link: https://youtu.be/_ivRylUn6_E
Ephesians 4:1-7; 11-16; 32*
Today's scripture selection from Ephesians is one of my favorites. The Letter to the Ephesians is thought to have been written in Paul's name in about AD 62. Paul had expressed the same idea in several of his earlier letters, beginning about a decade before in his letter to the Galatians, and then in Philippians, Romans and 1 Corinthians. Each of these earlier letters has been authenticated as written by Paul himself. So we know that this was an important theme that Paul returned to repeatedly in his preaching and teaching.
I think that Paul must have written so often and so consistently about unity and diversity because he was trying to hold together very diverse faith communities, made up of people from many different backgrounds and all walks of life. In Galatians 3:26-28, he writes, “You are all God's children through faith in Christ Jesus. All of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek; there is neither slave nor free; nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” If I were to try to paraphrase this in contemporary terms, I might say “there is neither white, nor black nor brown; there is neither rich nor poor, white collar nor laborer, nor is there male and female and lesbian and bisexual and gay and trans nor any other, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
Take a minute and look around at the people here this morning. What do you see? What I see are some similarities, but many differences. I see young and old, male and female, some with family, some single, some dressed casually, some dressed formally, a few in uniforms, no two alike. I see similarities, too. Fair skin, lots of gray hair. There are also differences and similarities among us that aren't visible. I know you all well enough to know that there are conservative thinkers and liberal thinkers present today, but I can't tell that just by looking. In fact, I may have already offended some of you, but I hope you'll stick with me for the next few minutes. We all share in common a commitment to Trinity United Methodist Church as demonstrated by our regular presence and participation here, by physically and financially supporting the church, and even by joining in virtual worship.
What I have to say this morning is that our differences are just as important to the vitality of our community of believers as are the values we hold in common. Unity is not the same as Uniformity.
Let's take our musicians as an example of the critical balance between unity and uniformity. Our choir members along with Warren, Cindy and Walter wear matching choir robes and stoles, a uniform. Why is that? That uniform appearance keeps us from focusing on them as individuals and lets us see them as a harmonious group. And harmonious is the key word. Within the group, each singer performs their own part – the bass, the tenor, the alto, the soprano. Together they produce a whole that is more beautiful than if everyone sang the same part. I'm not a musical expert, but I think it is important that they all usually sing the same melody and try to sing in the same key. I don't know how to do that!That's why I'm not in the choir. And Walter and Cindy at piano and organ, each produce their own sound. They don't play the same notes or just single notes. They play beautiful, chords composed different notes which all together produce a harmonious whole. Again, it is best they are both playing the same melody and key as the choir is singing. You get the point. It is the differences that make the whole richer and more beautiful, as long as there is a unity of purpose and spirit.
I regret to see that in our popular culture, differences are now seen more as threats than as assets. I first encountered the term “cocooning” in the late eighties. It was, and still is, used to refer to the trend of families retreating within their own homes and small social circles in response to the stresses of life. The person who coined the term described it as “building a shell of safety around oneself and one's family.” Self-contained communities grew during this time, like our own Tellico Village as places of safety, security and comforting sameness.
Then terrorists attacks on Sept 11, 2001, further shattered an already shaky sense of safety and security felt by so many. The trend of retreating into our safe places further accelerated as Internet connectivity became almost universal and bigger and better TVs made stay-at-home entertainment more appealing. The simultaneous rise of cable TV news and social media means that instead of receiving a broad spectrum of information and opinion, people can now tailor their information to reinforce their pre-conceived notions.
The result is that, whether we intended to or not, we all buried deeper into our cocoons, our comfort zones. Then came the pandemic. By forcing us to isolate ourselves, the pandemic just made things worse. We have been taught over these past decades, and especially in the last few years, to fear the “other.” It is not a left or right, liberal or conservative thing. We can see it all across the spectrum of society. We can even see it in the church. We talk diversity, but we don't practice it much. And often we are reluctant to express views that we think aren't in the mainstream of our group because we fear backlash. Again, this cuts across the whole spectrum of thought.
But is it really necessary for us all be alike, to think alike, in order to have unity. You and I may not think just alike. I hope not. If we do, then I have nothing to learn from you. One of the spiritual thinkers that I read is Fr. Richard Rohr., a Franciscan. I was attracted to him by the name of his organization, The Center for Action and Contemplation. He teaches, “Unity, in fact, is the reconciliation of differences, and those differences must be maintained. We must actually distinguish things and separate them, usually at a cost to ourselves, before we can spiritually unite them....The great wisdom of the Pentecost is the recognition through the Spirit of an underlying unity amidst the many differences.”
I stand here today to celebrate our differences and promote unity, not uniformity. We grow when we are willing to hear new ideas or think about old ideas in a new way. One of the things I like about our little faith community here at Trinity, is that we have found ways to work together without having to agree on everything. Like a family. Wouldn't it be boring if we all looked alike or thought alike. If we all had the same talent or gift, how could society, much less the church, survive. I hope that we can all learn to celebrate our differences, and not be afraid of them. I mean both secular differences and theological differences. In our Trinity family, we've done a pretty good job of agreeing on the main thing, represented by the cross which is in the center of our vision, and agreeing to disagree about other things.
Paul reminds us again and again that our differences are ok. In fact, they are necessary. In order to have a beautiful, harmonious whole, we need lots of different people, each playing their unique part. All the gifts of the spirit are needed to make our church function: preaching and teaching, evangelism and mission. If I were to use contemporary roles, I would add administration and media, visitation and kitchen work, property maintenance and musical offerings. All the different parts are needed to make the whole. The same is true about our thoughts, ideas, opinions and beliefs. We need all our different thoughts and ideas and opinions, expressed with love, in order to grow into whole body of Christ.
Let me emphasize the point that we not each doing our own things in our own way for our own glory. In our highly individualized culture, it is easy to think that we can develop personal spirituality and personal holiness without the messiness of getting involved with a very imperfect church. It is important for us to develop our own personal spirituality, and to grow personally in faith and knowledge. But that is not enough to unite us as the body of Christ. In 1 Corinthians 12:7, Paul adds: “To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. If we desire unity for our community, if we want our community to thrive and grow, we must work toward a wholeness that is more than just personal holiness. As Fr. Rohr puts it, “As an individual, I participate in that wholeness that is holiness.. It is not my private holiness, it's our connectedness together.” I'm just one part of the whole body of Christ. I need the connection of our church family in order to participate whole body of Christ; in order to participate in the holy wholeness to which Jesus invites us. Going back to our choir metaphor, we each do our own thing, not for our own glory, but as a part of the harmonious whole.
And Paul gives us the key in which to sing: One Lord, one faith, one baptism and one God and Father of all, who is over all, through all and in all. God has given his grace to each one of us measured out by the gift that is given by Christ....By speaking the truth with LOVE, let's grow in every way into Christ, who is the head. The whole body grows in him, as it is joined and held together by all the supporting ligaments. The body makes itself grow in that it builds itself up with love as each one does its part.
Uniformity cannot lead us to unity and wholeness. Wholeness requires unity and unity requires the recognition of, and reconciliation of, our differences. The 4th chapter of Ephesians ends with these familiar and beautiful words which I learned as a child in the King James: "be ye kind, one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving on another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you."
I encourage you to go a step further with me, not just forgiving each other our differences, but celebrating them as essential elements in building our faith in order that we may become the whole holy body of Christ. In the name of Jesus who embraces us all. AMEN
*Bible Reference (CEB):
Ephesians 4: 1-7; 11-16; 32
Therefore, as a prisoner for the Lord, I encourage you to live as people worthy of the call you received from God. Conduct yourselves with all humility, gentleness, and patience. Accept each other with love, and make an effort to preserve the unity of the Spirit with the peace that ties you together. You are one body and one spirit, just as God also called you in one hope. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God and Father of all, who is over all, through all, and in all. God has given his grace to each one of us measured out by the gift that is given by Christ.
He gave some apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers. His purpose was to equip God's people for the work of serving and building up the body of Christ until we all reach the unity of faith and knowledge of God's Son. God's goal is for us to become mature adults—to be fully grown, measured by the standard of the fullness of Christ. As a result, we aren't supposed to be infants any longer who can be tossed and blown around by every wind that comes from teaching with deceitful scheming and the tricks people play to deliberately mislead others. Instead, by speaking the truth with love, let's grow in every way into Christ, who is the head. The whole body grows from him, as it is joined and held together by all the supporting ligaments. The body makes itself grow in that it builds itself up with love as each one does its part.
Be kind, compassionate, and forgiving to each other, in the same way God forgave you in Christ.
