\u201cFirst,
\nLast, and In-Between\u201d<\/p>\n
Mark
\n10:17-31<\/p>\n
First
\nUnited Methodist Church, Schenectady, NY<\/p>\n
Chett
\nPritchett, Executive Director, Methodist Federation for Social Action<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Good
\nmorning,\n<\/p>\n
I
\nbring greetings today from the board of directors of the Methodist
\nFederation for Social Action and from our staff and interns in our
\nWashington, DC office. I\u2019m so thankful for the witness of this
\ncongregation, for those who have been part of the Troy, and now Upper
\nNew York Chapter, and for giving us your former pastor to lead our
\ncoalitional work toward General Conference.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
I
\nalso bring greetings from my home congregation, Dumbarton United
\nMethodist Church in Washington, DC. For 27 years, Dumbarton has been
\na reconciling congregation, welcoming persons of all sexual
\norientations and gender identities into the life and leadership of
\nthe church.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
I
\nam blessed to be in this sanctuary today. In a lot of way, I think of
\nFirst Church and Dumbarton as kindred spirits. Over the past three
\nyears as the executive director of the Methodist Federation for
\nSocial Action, I have come to know many such congregations. Although
\nit may seem like it, I am here to say, \u201cYou are not alone!\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cYou
\nare not alone\u201d seems to be a good place to start from today\u2019s
\nGospel lesson. As found in the Gospel attributed to Mark, this
\npassage of Scripture is part of a larger story. Jesus and Peter and
\nJames and John had left the glory of the transfiguration on the top
\nof the mountain and found their way, with the other disciples, in the
\nvalley, with their faces turned toward Jerusalem.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Here
\nis where Jesus began his teaching ministry. Those who had heard of
\nJesus\u2019 ability to perform miracles gathered around him and asked
\nhim questions. Some asked him trick questions and Jesus replied with
\ntrick answers\u2026I mean parables. \u00a0And so today, we find Jesus asked
\nby a rich young man, \u201cWhat Must I Do To Inherit Eternal Life?\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Jesus
\nreplied, telling the man, \u201cyou know the commandments,\u201d and then,
\nas a good rabbi would do, added instruction: \u201cyou lack one thing:
\ngo, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will
\nhave treasure in heaven, then come and follow me.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Wow.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Jesus
\nmust not have had his coffee that morning.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cIt
\nis easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for
\nsomeone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
This
\nJesus guy pulls no punches.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Then
\nthe disciples got scared: \u00a0\u201cThen who can be saved?\u201d they asked.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The
\ndisciples and the rich man were asking the same question. They were
\nconcerned with what they needed to do \u2013 how must we behave, what
\ncan we do. Peter even says it with a little snippiness: \u201cLook, we
\nhave left everything and followed you.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
We\u2019re
\nthe good guys. We\u2019re the ones who left our families and belongings.
\nWe\u2019re the ones facing ridicule for your sake. Surely, we\u2019re going
\nto be blessed! We have to be blessed! We\u2019re going to be blessed,
\nright?<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Jesus
\nassured them that now and it the age to come their goodness would be
\nnoted. But then he threw in a zinger:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cThe
\nfirst will be last\u2026and the last will be first.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
I
\nmean, come on \u2013 is it any wonder Judas betrayed him and Peter
\ndenied him?<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Before
\ncoming to the Methodist Federation for Social Action, I spent more
\nthan 7 years as a manager for Cokesbury, the United Methodist
\nbookstore. While there, I got to meet seminarians and clergy and lay
\npeople who were hungry to share their faith with others. One of the
\nmost curious books I came across during those years was a children\u2019s
\nbook with plastic relief faces on the cover. The title was \u201cJesus
\nand the 12 Dudes Who Did.\u201d I can\u2019t remember what the book
\nactually said, but I remember the cover and the title with great
\nclarity. \u201cJesus and the 12 Dudes Who Did.\u201d Placed alongside
\ntoday\u2019s Gospel reading, I think the author got the title exactly
\nright. The Disciples saw themselves as do-ers, part of the in-crowd,
\ndoing stuff, doing things, because they were going to be front and
\ncenter on the right side of history.\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
But
\nwhen Jesus says \u201cthe first will be last\u2026and the last will be
\nfirst\u201d \u2013 he\u2019s making a bold theological statement.\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
When
\nJesus says \u201cthe first will be last\u2026and the last will be first\u201d
\nhe\u2019s saying that good works are fine, but they aren\u2019t the be-all
\nand end-all of God\u2019s message.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
When
\nJesus says \u201cthe first will be last and the last will be first,\u201d
\nhe\u2019s stating that it\u2019s not about the ACT of selling your
\npossessions and leaving all you have that will help you gain eternal
\nlife. It\u2019s about the transformation, the re-orientation, the
\nnewness that comes when your life is turned toward God more fully.
\nIt\u2019s about loving God with all your heart and mind and soul.\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
When
\nJesus says \u201cthe first will be last and the last will be first,\u201d
\nhe\u2019s making the most basic theological statement: \u00a0\u201cGod\u2019s grace
\nis available to all.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
This
\nis an interesting conundrum for those of us progressive,
\nsocially-aware, engaged United Methodists.\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The
\nProtestant work ethic did a number on most of us. We work hard to
\nmake the world a better place and provide for those who go without
\nand challenge the powers that be. We put in hundreds of volunteer
\nhours, we give money to organizations working to change the world
\n(thank you). And if Jesus came back, he\u2019d say, that\u2019s all well
\nand good \u2013 BUT\u2026<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
*You
\nare already good enough.\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
That\u2019s
\nall well and good \u2013 BUT\u2026<\/p>\n
*God
\nalready loves you and there\u2019s nothing you can do about it.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
And
\nhere\u2019s the scandalous part of Jesus\u2019 parable. God loves everyone
\nelse, too.\n<\/p>\n
*Your
\nannoying colleague at work. God loves them.<\/p>\n
*Your
\noblivious, unaware neighbor who always parks too close to your
\ndriveway. God loves them.<\/p>\n
*Your
\nracist, homophobic cousin. God loves them.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
And
\nthere\u2019s nothing you can do about it, except welcome them as they
\nare. And show a little love.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Because
\nthe reality, friends, is that we are, as Martin Luther once wrote,
\nsimul Justus
\net Peccator<\/i>.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Always,
\nat all times, we are somewhere in-between saints and sinners\u2013 in
\nthe same body, at the same time. \u00a0We never fully embody godliness,
\nand sometimes \u2013 OK, a lot of times \u2013 we are as oblivious as those
\ntwelve disciples.\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
You
\nsee, the human condition, is not, as pure Calvinists would say, one
\nof total depravity. \u00a0\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Instead
\nit is one of always being in-between.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Scripture
\nreminds us of this again and again.<\/p>\n
We\u2019re
\nin-between birth and death.<\/p>\n
We\u2019re
\nin-between fear and safety.<\/p>\n
We\u2019re
\nin-between chaos and community.<\/p>\n
We\u2019re
\nin-between joy and sorrow.<\/p>\n
We\u2019re
\nin-between what has been and what could be.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
For
\nmany of us, we know that it means to live in-between.\n<\/p>\n
Some
\nof us live in-between as exiles \u2013 either forced upon or chosen.<\/p>\n
Some
\nof us live in-between because the culture that formed us is different
\nfrom the culture in which we reside.<\/p>\n
Some
\nof us live in-between because it\u2019s how we must balance our
\noverlapping and multiple identities.\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
I
\ngrew up along the Ohio River in a town that was in-between
\nPittsburgh, PA and Columbus,OH and Charleston, WV. \u00a0In Appalachia, we
\nalways seemed to be in-between one place or another. \u00a0\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
In-between
\na mountain and valley.\n<\/p>\n
In-between
\njobs.<\/p>\n
In-between
\na pay day.<\/p>\n
In-between
\nillness, or a mining accident, or a chemical spill.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
When
\nI came out of the closet as a gay man in 1995, no one would have
\nexpected a United Methodist-related college in the middle of small
\ntown West Virginia to be a place of acceptance and welcome. For many
\nof my friends who grew up as good Methodists, my coming out forced
\nthem to think about sexual orientation in a new way. And for my
\nfriends who are LGBTQ, my faith has forced them to think about
\nreligion in a new way. Being queer and Christian is an in-between
\nplace I have learned to inhabit \u2013 and could only do so, not by any
\nacts of good works, but by God\u2019s grace. Grace, which on this
\nNational Coming Out Day, allows me to say boldly to those struggling
\nto reconcile their faith with their sexual orientation or gender
\nidentity, \u201cYou are not alone!\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
And
\nthat\u2019s what I do every day at the Methodist Federation for Social
\nAction. But not just for the LGBTQ communities, but for United
\nMethodists across our connection who are seeking ways to live into
\ntheir baptismal vows \u201cto resist evil, injustice, and oppression in
\nwhatever forms they present themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
One <\/p>\n Because <\/p>\n The <\/p>\n It\u2019s <\/p>\n Because, Brazillian \u201cMen This And Won\u2019t <\/p>\n
\nway we do this is through our involvement with the Love Your Neighbor
\nCoalition, the work of 12 United Methodist caucuses spanning
\nracial\/ethnic, progressive, and LGBTQ caucuses within The United
\nMethodist Church. I\u2019ll be talking a little bit more about our work
\nafter this service, but I want to encourage everyone here to go to
\nwww.lyncoalition.org<\/a> \u2013
\nI\u2019ll give you time to write it down and repeat slowly. Check out
\nour vision for The United Methodist Church and add your name as a
\nsupporter.\n<\/p>\n
\nthis work isn\u2019t done for extra jewels in our crown, it\u2019s not done
\nto show Jesus how much we love him. We do this work because we know
\nthe importance of lifting up the voices of those who find themselves
\nin-between: in-between the powers that be and loving our neighbors;
\nin-between justice and injustice; in-between hope (and fear) for the
\nfuture.<\/p>\n
\nwork of the Church must be to continue sharing the message of God\u2019s
\nlove and grace for all people.\n<\/p>\n
\nthat simple. And yet, you and I know, it\u2019s that difficult, too. I
\ncall it \u201cLiving in the Land of Maybe.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\njust like the rich young man, and just like the disciples, and just
\nlike the faithful saints and sinners who have composed the Church for
\nalmost two thousand years. Sometimes we get it wrong. And sometimes,
\njust sometimes, we get it right and we get a glimpse of the world as
\nit is and can be. A world that is chaotic, and messy, and downright
\nbeautiful, and loved by God, not because of what you or I have done,
\nbut because we have decided to participate in God\u2019s world.<\/p>\n
\nfeminist theologian, Ivona Gebara, imagines God\u2019s hope for the
\nworld in this way:<\/p>\n
\nand women will dwell in their houses; men and women will eat the same
\nbread, drink the same wine, and dance together in the brightly lit
\nsquare, celebrating the bonds uniting all humanity.\u201d1<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n
\nis no works righteousness folks, but this is to say that we can
\npartake in the presence of grace and love in the world.\n<\/p>\n
\nevery now and then, we get to join in the dance where we can proclaim
\ntogether \u201cyou are not alone,\u201d to a world in-between injustice and
\nrighteousness, in-between fear and hope, in-between saints and
\nsinners.\n<\/p>\n
\nyou join me in the dance?<\/p>\n