Sycamore Congregational Church, U.C.C.

By Sharon MacArthur

For Sycamore Congregational Church, UCC August 28, 2005

Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed. Then Moses said, "I must turn aside and look at this great sight, and see why the bush is not burned up." When the LORD saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am." Then he said, "Come no closer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground." He said further, "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.

Then the LORD said, "I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the country of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. The cry of the Israelites has now come to me; I have also seen how the Egyptians oppress them. So come, I will send you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt."

But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?" He said, "I will be with you; and this shall be the sign for you that it is I who sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God on this mountain."

But Moses said to God, "If I come to the Israelites and say to them, The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,' and they ask me, What is his name?' what shall I say to them?" God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM." He said further, "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, I AM has sent me to you.'" God also said to Moses, "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, The LORD, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you':

This is my name forever, and this my title for all generations.

Exodus 3:1-15

Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.

Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are. Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of all. If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God; for it is written, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord." No, "if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads." Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Romans 12:9-21

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Todays continuation of the story of the Nation of Israel in the Hebrew scriptures that Hiro read this morning finds us decades after the story of Shiprah and Puah...the two midwives that sharon Thornton preached about last week...the midwives who in a sense birthed a mighty Israel...

After all, it was they who made it possible for Moses to be be born live, to be hidden near the bathing spot of the princess of Egypt, to be raised by her in the royal court. And today we find Moses encountering God - in a burning bush...saying - Come, I will send you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.

Moses - he was just minding his own business, taking care of his father-in-law Jethros flock of sheep...he thought he was safe from any kind of hassle - he had fled away from Egypt after he had killed an Egyptian guard for mistreating a Hebrew slave...he now knew that he was part of the people of God - the Israelites - but to go back to Egypt and lead those people out? I dont think so - Im a wanted man now - Im not a dynamic speaker like that Charlton Heston who will play me in some Hollywood movie centuries from now - I have a new home here - Im married now...Youve GOT to be kidding! I lead sheep, not people - sheep I can count - the people youre asking me to lead is a HUGE group - lets see - the fighting men number about 600,000 and when you add the women and the children and the ones beyond fighting age - were talking two and a half million! If we were marching along ten abreast, thats a line over 150 miles long - it would take 8 or 9 days to march by any given point!

No wonder Moses was hesitant to answer Gods call. No wonder he felt inadequate and ill equipped!

Its a good thing for the Israelites and for us that God has another way of gauging our abilities...my friend Moira puts it quite succinctly when I sometimes complain to her about some new role I am asked to play. She says, very slowly and with textbook enunciation - Sharon, listen to me carefully - God doesnt call the equipped, God equips the called! And I listen and I move on and find that shes reminded me of one of Gods upside-down, inside out truths once again!

Its not easy to subscribe to this kind of perspective - the world around us measures and examines and assesses people and ideas in ways that weve become accustomed to....logically, orderly, predictably, statistically sound. The world doesnt take to kindly to unorthodox, throw-caution-out-the-window, illogical ways of thinking. Yet GOD asks us to!

There was this search committee looking for a new senior minister to lead them in a new direction and it was having difficulty making a decision. One member of the committee, who was admittedly tired of listening to the others argue about which candidate sounded better for their particular church, asked for their attention and wanted to read one last letter of introduction from a candidate. She read:

"To the pastoral search committee: It is my understanding that you are looking for a pastor, and I would like to apply for the position.

I can't say that I preach too well. In fact, I tend to stutter when I speak. I do have a lot of different experiences I could share with you, since I am over 75 years old.

I have only just recently had an encounter with God and, despite my initial resistance to the idea, I heard a Voice which told me personally that I was the one to do the ministry for you. One never knows when God will appear right before your very eyes.

As far as people skills go, I tend to lose my temper every once in a while. I also tend to want things done my way, and can get violent if it's not taken care of right away. Once I even killed somebody. But since I know you are gracious people, I know you will believe me when I say that's all behind me now.

I intend on showing up there in a few weeks to lead you into a brighter future. Although I was reluctant at first to work with you, I still feel called to be with you nonetheless."

The committee member glanced up at the rest of the group. "Well, what do you think? Can this person be our leader or not?"

The rest of the committee was aghast. Have an old, arrogant, temperamental, obviously neurotic, ex-murderer as their pastor? Was this committee member crazy? Who signed the letter of introduction? Who had such colossal nerve? such chutzpah? The committee member paused a dramatic pause before she answered, "It's signed, 'Moses.'"

One has to admit that Moses did not sound like a likely candidate to receive a call from God. He didn't seem to have "the right stuff." Isn't it amazing that God doesn't require the same qualifications for a job that we would?

And even more amazing - God takes us just as we are, each with our own foibles, gifts & failings and manages to weave together a people with hope that we will be one in holy harmony...living with one another, living in God....as Paul says in the Romans passage

And something amazing, mysterious, astounding happens when a disparate group becomes one - miracles. I remember the movie called Miracle - it was a movie about the 1980 US Olympic Hockey Team coached by Herb Brooks...he handpicked 20 young men with many different backgrounds and wove them together. He worked with each member, knowing how to pull the best out of each one - he helped them to believe in themselves and each other and this motley crew became one team - they compensated for each others weaknesses, lack of speed...they thought and played as one team...and you know the rest - this team whose average age was 21 played and defeated the team from the then USSR, many of whose team members had played together for 15 years...the team that had been the number one team in the world for many decades!

The US team played as one, and internally in harmony, honoring the diversity among them.. in harmony...We are one! When you miss the hockey puck, I ll be right there to scoop it up...when you send the puck on its way to goal, Ill be there to make sure it goes in, when it all works, Ill cheer with you.

My husband, Nowell, & I have been married 40 years now. We feel like one unit - we can anticipate each others moods, words, needs and so forth. So, now that my husband is getting a little hard of hearing - I realize that Im compensating automatically - whenever I speak to him, I turn toward him to make sure he sees my mouth moving and I speak a little louder and a little slower than I would speak to anyone else. And it was my 3 year old granddaughter Ikaika who brought this to my attention - one day when I was having a hard time understanding what she was trying to tell me - she sighed and said, PoPo watch my mouth and she repeated what she had already said - this time more slowly and more deliberately!

Yes - when we are one - we are a part of each other and adjust to work in harmony with one another.

How about you? What are your experiences about being a member of one body - where is God in that experience?

A friend of mine recently shared a story about a soldiers special training camp where she was the leader of a group who trained together very strenuously for two weeks. This training would culminate in a special event where each group would have to run a special obstacle course. In order for each group to receive a passing grade, everyone in the group would have to complete the course in three minutes.

Well, each member of the group were focusing on was doing quite well. By the end of the two weeks, each one was in very good shape and was able to complete the course well under 3 minutes. That is, except one person...He was really the cheerleader - he applauded his team mates when they beat their own records, he would high- five them at the dining hall. He was the glue and everyone responded.

This cheerleader was quite large and...lets just say that coordination was not his gift. It seems that during physical training, whenever he began to run at a decent speed, he would trip over his own feet, or a rock or something would happen..... any hopes of his breaking the 3 minute mark was slim at best.

Finally the day of the final race arrived - this race would determine whether or not each team would continue on to the next level. The members of our group performed gracefully and successfully...each one well under 3 minutes.

Then it was our cheerleaders turn. He began his run and was huffing and puffing by the time he was halfway. And he had already run 2 minutes. By the time he had completed the obstacle portion of the course and was heading toward the finish line...the countdown had begun and you guessed it - he tripped!

Cant you imagine what went through the minds of everyone there? The one who tripped must have been devastated...maybe he was hoping the world would open up and swallow him because he was about to prevent all of his team from going on to the next level. I wonder if the teammates were angry and upset that they had been placed on the same team as the most uncoordinated person in the whole program? I wonder if they rolled their eyes and muttered, Arggh - I cant believe he tripped again - not when its so important that he doesnt!

Faster than one can blink, an incredible thing happened - as if their movements were choreographed by some unseen force, his teammates leaped out onto the course, lifted him into their arms and carried his huge body over the finish line - at 2:59! They were ONE team! ONE BODY as they crossed over the finish line!

Friends, its not just about us - its about being one in Christ... its about us, just as we are, and being one body - the body of Christ, being the hands, voice, spirit of Christ on earth...its about trusting that when God whispers in your ear to do something you never would have imagined, God will equip you...its about being guided by Gods hope for the world and all who live in it...its about honoring and loving our neighbor (especially when they dont deserve it)...its about each of us orchestrating our very being and presence in the world that Holy Harmony resounds on Earth as it does in Heaven....may it be so....Amen.