FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, ATLANTA, GEORGIA

Communion Meditation by Dr. George Bryant Wirth

 

World Communion Sunday

October 7, 2007

 

CHRIST AT THE CENTER: LIVING TOGETHER

 

Scripture:  Romans 12

 

INTRODUCTION

 

Back in the 1980’s, my grandfather, George Peter Wirth, who had retired as a corporate tax specialist from the old Standard Oil of New Jersey Company and moved to St. Petersburg, Florida – my grandfather met a woman named Mae in the Presbyterian retirement center there where both of them resided and they fell in love with each other.

 

My grandmother had died many years earlier, and my grandfather was 91 – Mae was 90 and had never been married before.  So knowing they weren’t getting any younger, and eager to enjoy their life together, right after the proposal but prior to the wedding date, my grandfather suggested that he and Mae might “consolidate” their condominiums which were directly across the hall, one from the other.

 

As my grandfather later told the story, Mae looked him right in the eye and replied “George Peter Wirth, if you are suggesting that we begin living together without the benefit of clergy, you’ve got the wrong gal.”  Within a month they were married, they moved into her condominium, and lived happily ever after until my grandfather died at the age of 95.

 

In our society, “living together” has taken on a wide variety of meanings, and according to one study, the numbers have increased by 1100% since 1960.  In the midst of that dramatic shift, one thing is the same in each case: for those who don’t make promises, there’s a way to exit the premises.  In other words, if the relationship doesn’t work, you can walk out.  And that, of course, has been the source of pain and sorrow for far too many people who are “living together” today.  (Rutgers National Marriage Project, quoted from Harvard Magazine, November-December 2004 in an article entitled “The Future of Marriage,” page 42)

 

I

 

When the Apostle Paul wrote his letter to the Romans, he weighed in on some of the Jewish laws concerning marriage (see chapter 7).  But the primary purpose of this epistle was and is about living together in Christ’s love, and celebrating peace and unity in the church.  In chapter 12, he frames a picture for us as to what our life together as a Christian community ought to look like:

 

          For as in one body, we have many members, and all the members do not have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ…having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them…

          Let love be genuine; hate what is evil and hold fast to what is good…outdo one another in showing honor…be aglow with the Spirit, serve the Lord, rejoice in your hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.  Contribute to the needs of the saints, practice hospitality…rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep, live in harmony with one another…repay no one evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of all.  And if possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all people… (Romans 12, selected verses)

 

My friends, that is Paul’s picture of what the church could and should look like when we focus our hearts, souls and minds on Christ at the center of our life together.  The apostle uses the image of a body to describe it – the church is likened to the Body of Christ, created in diversity with a wide variety of members, gifts and functions, yet bound together in unity, peace and harmony through faith in Christ as the Head and the Heart of our community.

 

As long as we are centered in Jesus, He will show us how to love one another and to live together through forgiveness and reconciliation.  But when we insist on our own way, or point our fingers at others with self-righteous indignation, then the body begins to fall apart and can be fractured by division and separation.

 

Now there are two words which come out of this 12th chapter in Romans that I want us to focus our attention on today – the first is harmony and the second is unity.  Those words are sisters to each other, but they are not the same.

 

II

 

When Paul encouraged the Roman church to live in harmony with one another, they knew exactly what he was talking about.  They were fighting and fussing amongst themselves about many things, including theology, faith and works, the law and God’s grace…and some practical concerns like adhering to Jewish rites and rituals and food laws…and finally, personality conflicts among some of the leaders that was tearing up the place (read chapter 16).

 

So Paul wrote them an urgent request, asking that they would stop hurting each other and learn to live together in harmony as sisters and brothers in Christ.

 

Now, I’m glad and grateful to report that in this church we are not fighting or fussing about much of anything these days.  To the contrary, we are making some beautiful music together in our ministry and mission!  And the capital campaign, which has just raised more than $15.1 million, is evidence that we are in sync and on the same page with each other as we embrace God’s vision for our future.

 

What concerns me, however, is how we can stay open to Christ’s Spirit of harmony and celebration during the many months of renovation and dislocation that lie ahead.  We are making plans, and that is good and typically Presbyterian – we like to do everything decently and in order!  But how will we sustain the spiritual passion and ardor that makes our life together so exciting and fulfilling?

 

So here’s the analogy: we have a wonderful ministry of music in this church with multiple choirs for children, youth and adults, bell ringers, a seraphim brass ensemble and a full fledged orchestra called St. Cecilia Consort.  We love to hear the glorious music in this place, and we enjoy singing the great hymns of faith Sunday after Sunday.

 

But what would happen if we brought in a consultant to tell us how to re-organize the ministry of music here, and to economize everything down to the bottom line?  Take for example our orchestra playing a Musica Sacra concert, and imagine what a consultant’s report might look like:

 

·        For considerable periods, the four cello players had nothing to do.  The number of cellos therefore should be reduced, and the work spread more evenly over the whole concert program, thus eliminating the peaks and valleys of activity.

·        All 20 violins were playing identical notes.  This would seem to be an unnecessary duplication so that staff of this selection should be cut drastically.  If a greater volume of sound is required, it could be obtained by electronic amplification.

·        The program noted that the leading violinist’s instrument was several hundred years old.  If normal depreciation schedules had been applied, the value of this instrument would have been reduced to zero and the purchase of more modern equipment recommended long ago.

·        In many cases, the musicians were using one hand to hold their instruments.  The introduction of a fixture would free that hand for other work.  Also, it was noted that excessive effort was being used by the players of wind instruments, whereas, one air compressor could supply enough air for all the instruments – and under more accurately controlled conditions.

·        Finally, there seemed to be too much repetition of some of the musical passages.  Therefore, scores should be pruned to a considerable extent.  No useful purpose is served by repeating on the horns something which has already been handled by the strings.  It is estimated that, if all redundant passages were eliminated, the whole concert time of two hours could be reduced to twenty minutes – and there would be no need for an intermission.

 

Now all of that is whimsical conjecture, but hopefully this analogy makes the point.  As we develop our plans to enter into a time of transition, and move forward toward the major renovation of these facilities, let’s agree that the Lord wants us to go on making beautiful music together in harmony…not just with our choirs and instrumental groups and congregational singing, but throughout this entire church as we press on with the dynamic ministries here and the mission vision out there across our city and around the world.  Jesus Christ has called us to live in harmony with one another, and I hope and pray as sisters and brothers in this family of faith, that we can and will sustain and increase the spiritual life and compassionate outreach that makes our life together so dynamic and deeply fulfilling.

 

 

III

 

If the first word from Romans 12 is “harmony,” then the second word we need to take to heart is “unity.”  Those words are similar, but not the same, and in closing, I want to tell you why that is so.

 

Harmony is a gift which Christ gives to the church.  Unity is a vision which He holds for all the people of this world (read Ephesians 1:5-10), and we Christians have been called to share that vision within our denominations, across this country, and with all the nations on earth.  And if you want to know what that vision looks like, then listen to this closing story.

 

Last month, on the 22nd of September, The New York Times ran a front page article about a church here in Georgia that was faced with a major challenge.  You may have read it yourselves.  It is entitled “As the World Comes to Georgia, An Old Church Adapts.”  It is about what was formerly called the First Baptist Church of Clarkston, right in the heart of that town, and what happened to them beginning in the 1990’s when the government decided to bring refugees there – more than 19,000 of them over the past 15 years to Clarkston, Georgia.

 

This Baptist Church was faced with a challenge – Do we keep our doors closed and stay just as we are, or do we open our doors and hearts to the community including all those refugees who are coming to us from all over the world?  Some of them wanted to keep the doors closed but most of them didn’t.  As this article goes on to say, Phil Kitchens, their pastor, steps into the pulpit every Sunday of what is now called Clarkston International Bible Church and stands eye to eye with the changing face of America in the pews before him – all kinds of older adults; men and women in their Sunday best and a few young people, but also refugees from the Philippines, and Togo, and war-scarred Liberia, Ethiopia and Sudan and even a convert from Afghanistan.  The church has changed, and they, as a congregation, have been able to grow in their faith.

As I read this article, I couldn’t help but think about our congregation and the incredible ways that God is weaving together all different kinds of people in this place, and it is a wonder to behold. 

 

CONCLUSION

 

Last week, our PCUSA Moderator Joan Gray, who is also our Parish Associate, together with some of us from this church attended the World Mission Conference: A Celebration of Grace, in Louisville, Kentucky.  And let me tell you, as a denomination that has been struggling with divisive issues for the last quarter of a century, what I saw was an incredible sense of unity among conservatives, liberals, people from the north, south, east and west, just like in the Bible, coming together to celebrate our unity with Christ at the center.  The closing hymn on the day that Joan and other leaders commissioned our missionaries to go out into the world was the same hymn we will sing today – “Blest Be the Tie that Binds.”

 

Harmony right here in this local congregation as we celebrate our life together, and unity out there among all the nations of this world as we learn to live together in peace.  That is the vision which our Lord holds before us on this World Communion Sunday!  And as we come to His table now, that is the vision which He calls all of us to embrace.

 

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen. 

 

 

 

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