It was a defining moment for me. I hadn’t been a pastor very long, and one day I was planning a youth activity at the church I was at. There were one or two youth who I was hoping to get more involved, and I let the other youth know about that; but apparently one of our youth didn’t like one of the ones I was hoping to invite. He said to me, “If you invite him and he comes, then I won’t come.”
I wondered what I should do. Should I not invite the new kid so that the church kid would keep coming? Or do I extend the invitation to the new kid and risk losing the kid I already had?
Looking back now, I’m reminded of the shepherd who left the 99 sheep in order to seek the one that was lost. To see and welcome in that one lost sheep, he was willing to risk losing one of the sheep he already had...
I don’t remember how that youth event turned out. It’s possible that the event I was hoping to plan never even happened, since I don’t remember anything else about it. But that struggle remains: what happens when inviting someone new to join the church risks sending people already in the church away?
Jesus seems to have a similar problem in today’s scripture. People were bringing children to Jesus so that he might touch them and bless them. But in those days certainly, children did not belong in the presence of a respected teacher. They interfered with his teaching, and generally got in the way of important things.
And probably, there were some who felt that if children were allowed to be present, well, they would just leave, because children were annoying, children belonged at home, and if this wasn’t going to be a seminar for adults, then fine, the children could have it, but they were outta there.
But Jesus said, “Look at these children. These little ones who annoy you, who you want to prohibit from being present - you can learn at thing or two from them. They have something to teach you. But in order for you to learn from them, you have to accept them and welcome them.”
I think this is a good scripture for World Communion Sunday. World Communion Sunday reminds us of all those around the world who gather at the Lord’s Table - And, among them are many who can teach us a thing or two... but only if we look at them and welcome them.
But because they represent the entire spectrum of human diversity, that may not be easy for us to do. They may be so different from us that we’d rather keep them at arm’s length; keep them from eating from the same table we are eating (can’t we put them at the kids table? A table like ours, but separate?)...Or at the very least, can’t we insist that they become more like us before we welcome them to the table.
In my sermon last week, I mentioned the struggle I have in maintaining a commitment to Christian unity with those who put stumbling blocks in the way of others… people who present a false version of Christianity and actually turn people away from following Christ.
I recall that the only people Jesus ever condemned, the only people who really made him angry, were those who put obstacles in the way of those who were trying to follow the path of faith. Many people wanted to connect with God, worship in God’s temple, but these religious authorities built fences and walls to keep them out, and fashioned hoops they had to jump through, and did all sorts of things to make it nearly impossible for them to ever be welcomed in the house of worship.
And they’re the only ones who consistently made Jesus angry.
They based their actions on the purity laws given to Moses, but they applied those laws in a way that was harmful to all those who were - well, all those who were not like them.
Jesus did all he could to welcome in those who society labelled sinners and outcasts. The only ones he said might not find a place in God’s house were those leaders who were already in God’s house, working to keep others out.
Scripture has been used to justify keeping all sorts of people out of God’s house, hasn’t it? Church leaders past and present have used scripture to keep out people of different races, people of different genders and gender identities, people of different denominations, people of different sexual orientations, people without homes, people afflicted by addiction, people from other countries, people who have committed certain sins.
People in power, who decide who gets in and who doesn’t - for many of them, some sins are certainly more offensive than others. And the sins that upset them the most aren’t always the sins that seem to upset God the most. Like William Barber has said, “I keep asking myself why so many people are saying so much about things that Jesus said so little about, and so little about things that Jesus said so much about.”
According to some Christian leaders, what two consenting adults do in the privacy of their own bedroom is far more important to God than how people use their money, how they treat the poor, how they work to end oppression and injustice... , even though a quick read through the Bible shows that, in fact, it’s just the opposite.
The Bible is FAR more concerned with issues of justice and oppression and the right and good way to use one’s resources.
The Bible is FAR more concerned with how we treat people, how we welcome people, how we include them, how we show hospitality and love to others.
The authorities didn’t want lepers in, but Jesus embraced lepers. The authorities didn’t want women in, but Jesus talked with women in a way that recognized them as equals. The authorities looked down upon Samaritans and Gentiles, but Jesus and his followers welcomed them. The authorities enforced laws that forbade foreigners and eunuchs from entering the place of worship, but Jesus’s followers welcomed them into the church.
The authorities didn’t want children in - even Jesus’ own disciples had a hard time welcoming children - but Jesus welcomed children, and commanded his followers to do the same.
Just like in our own time, religion had become corrupted by those in positions of power and influence, who drew lines and boundaries between them and the rest of society. But the very people they excluded, Jesus welcomed and affirmed.
The very people the religious leaders excluded, Jesus welcomed and affirmed.
It was on World Communion Sunday in 2013 that Bixby Knolls Christian Church voted to officially become an Open and Affirming congregation.
To refresh your memory, our official Open and Affirming statement says that Bixby Knolls Christian Church “welcomes and affirms all God's children, regardless of race, gender, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, nationality, ethnicity, marital status, physical or mental ability, political stance or theological perspective.”
This is both a statement of who we are, as well as a challenge to be who we are better - to be who we are called to be, to live out our identity as a congregation that follows Jesus’ example of removing the barriers that keep people from entering into the place of worship.
And as your minister, I take this statement very seriously. A few months after we adopted this statement, I was pondering it, praying about it, and I realized that one of the categories listed - gender identity - I didn’t know much about. And through this statement that we adopted, God spoke to me and told me that I needed to learn more about issues surrounding gender identity, so that I could be more welcoming to those who have struggled with these issues, and so that I could lead us as a congregation in being more welcoming to them. I went to trainings, and listened to some incredibly brave transgender people tell their stories, so that I could learn and better understand.
I am still learning. I’m still learning how to better welcome and affirm all of God’s children.
World Communion Sunday is a day on which we recognize the oneness of Christ’s church, and focus on the truth that all those who desire to worship God, to take their place at Christ’s table, should be allowed to do so. That is a simple, basic truth, yet so important: all those who desire to worship God and take their place at Christ’s table should be allowed to do so. They should be welcomed, just as Christ has welcomed each one of us.
And anytime anyone seeks to prevent anyone from entering the place of worship, taking a seat at Christ’s table, we need to speak out against that. Anytime someone is prevented from using their God-given gifts for the sake of the church and for the sake of the world, we need to encourage the use of their gifts and welcome their leadership.
Because the people that so many are afraid of actually have a lot to teach us.
All the stories in the Bible take place in cultures that are very different from our own. I have learned that people today who are from different cultures than my own can help me better understand the stories and themes of scripture.
On World Communion Sunday, we recognize all those from every time and place who gather around Christ’s table, representing the full spectrum of human diversity. Now that we are all gathered around this table together, the best thing we can do is listen and learn to one another … and give thanks to God for bringing us all together - each and every one of us.
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