Sermon: “On the Shoulders of Giants”
⚫Isaac Newton once said: “If I have seen farther than others, it is because I have stood on the shoulders of giants.”
I first heard that quote from my favorite high school teacher, who I had for algebra and computer science. His name was Dr. Sid Kolpas, and he had a fascination with Isaac Newton. Dr. Kolpas was ecstatic when he was able to acquire an early edition of Newton’s Principia.
When Dr. Kolpas shared that quote by Isaac Newton, I thought: “What a profound and humble thing to say.” Isaac Newton was a genius; yet he attributed his success to those who went before him. He saw his work as the continuation of a long line of scientific and mathematical thought.
We here at First Christian Church stand on the shoulders of giants. The first of these, as many of you know, is William T. Major.
⚫Fun fact: William T. Major’s middle initial stands for Trabue, which was his mother’s maiden name. I find that interesting because Barton Warren Stone’s middle name also comes from his mother’s maiden name. I don’t know if that was a thing people did in that time, or what, but I do know that one of my own children also has Ginger’s maiden name as their middle name!
William Trabue Major arrived in Bloomington from Kentucky, built a nice home at the corner of East and Front Streets, and then decided to organize a new congregation which began meeting in his home’s parlor.
Major decided to affiliate his congregation with the Restoration movement, the early Disciples of Christ fellowship of churches that I talked about last week. Major wanted the freedom to establish a congregation that stood against slavery, and the Disciples of Christ allowed him that freedom.
This was in the spring of 1837, 188 years ago.
Major’s congregation quickly became too big to meet in his home, so Major built a church in his backyard. Ten years later, the congregation outgrew that building, and our current property was purchased.
⚫The first building on this property was dedicated on January 1, 1857. 32 years later, that building was torn down, and a new one was built (the one in the photo); that would be the third building of First Christian Church; or, if you count Major’s home, the fourth building.
In 1931, the current educational building and fellowship hall were built. In 1959, the sanctuary in which we worship today was built—the fourth (or fifth) sanctuary building in First Christian Church’s history.
In all that time, and in all the different buildings in which we have worshiped, there have been giants, on whose shoulders we now stand. Some of them have their pictures hanging on the wall in the hallway that leads to the Fellowship Hall. Some of them have their names on plaques right here in our sanctuary. Some of them are on the list of honored servants, a list that we added to today.
The very first honored servants were recognized 58 years ago, in 1967. There were eleven servants honored that year:
Aaron Brooks, Amy Broughton, Bernice Hanson, Clarence Keighin, Edgar Lebkuecher, Louise Merwin, Lula Nierstheimer, J.R. Reeves, Sherman Whitmer, Lloyd Wilson, & Louis Wollrab.
⚫It takes a lot of work to keep a congregation going. It takes a great commitment by many individuals, all coming together, all sacrificing their own time and money for the good of the church.
I’m always in awe of those who dedicate so much of their lives to the church. And this is especially true when churches are first getting started, or when they are embarking on something ambitious and audacious, like building a new building.
I received a copy of a sermon preached by John Trefzger in 1968, commemorating the 10th anniversary of this sanctuary’s construction. I almost didn’t read it, but I did, and I’m glad I did.
In that sermon, Dr. Trefzger said that, when this sanctuary was being built it was common for people to ask him what was the largest gift for the new building. He answered by mentioning an elderly couple in the congregation who were on social security and without any other means of support, who pledged and gave $100. “They faithfully fulfilled their commitment,” Trefzger said, “by taking one dollar per week out of their funds that were budgeted for food over a two-year period.”
Trefzger then asked: “Wouldn’t you like to know what the smallest gift has been?” The smallest gift, he said, “was also $100! It came from a couple who both were employed, but were always too busy to worship or to study with their fellow Christians in the church, or to serve in any capacity through the total mission of the church. It was not surprising, then, that they thought that their one check for $100 was a generous gift.”
Trefzger also mentioned that the elderly couple who made a great sacrifice by their gift remained faithful members of the church, and I would certainly count them among the giants upon whose shoulders we stand today. Their greatest gift to the church was their faith and their dedication.
But the busy couple that could have easily pledged much more soon drifted away.
All of our honored servants today, and all those we have honored in the past, give to the church in different ways. Not all of them give the same amount of time to the church, or the same amount of money, or provide the same level of leadership. But all of them are committed to the ministry of this congregation, and they—as well as many of the rest of you—are the giants upon whose shoulders future generations will stand.
In that sermon he preached in 1968, John Trefzger made use of several scriptures, including the parable of sower. Reflecting again on the construction of this sanctuary, he said:
“The truth of Jesus’ parable of the sower became evident with the passing of each day. The Word of God had come to many different kinds of people in our community through the ministry of First Christian Church. While the life in Christ had touched many, there were those who were too busy, those whose interest was too shallow, and those for whom the gospel seemed superficial; but we thanked God for the Word that had fallen upon good soil and brought forth the spirit of Christ many-fold.”
John Trefzger also told a story that, I think, he may have told more than once...
“In 1959,” he said, “a member of our congregation, a fine young serviceman named Sydney Schmidt, returned home from serving his country in the U.S. Navy. His father had died the previous September, and his family especially rejoiced in his homecoming. He was engaged to be married. His future was bright and promising…
“Then in September of that year he was killed in an automobile accident.
“Some years before as a youngster with a paper route he had been thrifty as well as industrious… After his tragic death his mother said, ‘the $1200 in Sydney’s savings account is not ours. We shall dedicate it to the work of God in his memory.’ Like the Word that fell on good soil and brought forth plentifully, the example of the Schmidt family inspired many others.”
John Trefzger then noted that in the ten years that followed, over $60,000 came to First Christian Church in memorial gifts and legacies… And much more has come in since.
I’m amazed and grateful for the times when, just since my arrival here in December 2023, that a worthy cause within the congregation was identified, and memorial funds were available to meet that cause.
Most recently, we used some memorial funds to purchase a new amplifier for our sound system. Before Easter, there had been some weird echoes and fading in and out of our audio in worship, which you may have noticed. But because we were able to access those memorial funds and purchase a new amplifier, we were able to resolve that problem and make a much needed improvement to our worship service.
Again, we are standing on the shoulders of giants.
188 years is a long life for a congregation. My previous congregation celebrated its 70th anniversary while I was there, and we made a big deal of that. I even invited the mayor to come, and to my surprise, he did! That mayor is now a U.S. congressperson.
Five years later, that congregation celebrated its 75th anniversary, which would have been an even bigger celebration, except it came right at the height of the pandemic.
188 is not a milestone year. It’s not 100, or 150, or 200. But 188 is significant, if for no other reason, than the remarkable span of time it represents.
So much has changed… yet so much has stayed the same.
I think of the time Jesus said, on one occasion, “I came not to abolish the law, but to fulfill the law;” and then, on another occasion, he said, repeatedly: “You have heard so-and-so, but now, I say to you…” and what came next wasn’t exactly an overturning of the law, but it certainly was a fresh, new interpretation of the law.
In the same way, our mission has not changed. Like William T. Major, we are focused on sharing the love of Christ with the community here in Bloomington and beyond. And just as William T. Major was committed to a liberating interpretation of the gospel, so, too, are we.
And we work on behalf of the people in our community, nation, and world, to liberate them from poverty, to liberate them from despair, to liberate them from injustice, and to liberate them from all forms of hate, including racism, homophobia, transphobia, and the persecution of immigrants.
None of this represents a change in our mission. Rather, it is our attempt to live faithfully, in our modern circumstances, to the calling Christ has placed on our lives; the calling Christ places on all who follow him and commit themselves to him.
The giants on whose shoulders we stand are a great inspiration. I am encouraged by their lives and their dedication, to likewise commit my life and my dedication to the ongoing building of Christ’s kingdom.
And I’m so happy to be doing so in the midst of a congregation that is likewise dedicated and committed to the ministry we share.
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