March 3, 2011 – 1 Corinthians 12

I gave a talk just recently in which I used a good chunk of this chapter.  Figured I would just share it and not reinvent the wheel.  I thought about editing it to make it more reader friendly, but figured you could get the meaning.  It was given to our Lifeteen group and talks about acceptance, but it can be applied to all of us in all our lives. 

Seeing God in Others

Matthew 25:36-40 Then the righteous will answer him and say, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? When did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? When did we see you ill or in prison, and visit you?' And the king will say to them in reply, 'Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me

The question is, do we really see God in other people.  Are we able to understand and live our lives in such a way that we treat everyone around us as a person that is loved by God.  Everyone in this room is created to be loved by God and therefore deserves to be loved by each one of us.  Do we really feel that way.  Nathan talked a little bit last week about loving others.  It is the second part of Jesus’ commandment for us.  And he talked about how it is toughest with the people we may not get along with.  A great example of this is from St. Therese. 

How did St. Thérèse live this little way? One example is enough. “There is in Community a Sister who has the faculty of displeasing me in everything, in her ways, her words, her character, everything seems very disagreeable to me. And still she is a holy religious who must be very pleasing to God. Not wishing to give in to the natural antipathy I was experiencing, I told myself that charity must not consist in feelings but in works; then I set myself to do for this Sister what I would do for the person I loved the most. Each time I met her I prayed to God for her, offering Him all her virtues and merits…I wasn’t content simply with praying very much for this Sister who gave me so many struggles, but I took care to render her all the services possible, and when I was tempted to answer her back in a disagreeable manner, I was content with giving her my most friendly smile, and with changing the subject of the conversation…One day at recreation she asked in almost these words: “Would you tell me, Sister Thérèse of the Child Jesus, what attracts you so much towards me; every time you look at me, I see you smile?” Ah! What attracted me was Jesus hidden in the depths of her soul.” (Chapter 10, Clarke 222-223)

But in the world around us, living a life of seeing God in those around us is not the way we are told to live.  The world teaches us that there is a hierarchy.  At the top are the have a lots, below are the have some, next the haves, then the have nots, down to the have nothing at all.  Whether it is possessions, talent, skills, or even health, or culture is about what can you do for me or can you contribute to us moving forward.  If you can’t, then you really aren’t worth my time.  We see this, with abortion and euthanasia, but even in other types of actions.  Marriages that end because people become tired of each other.  Corporations leaving a certain place and leaving people out of work to make more money somewhere else.  What we talked about very dryly last Sunday with the socialism of government.  The entire notion, all of these things are connected to this idea, this mentality that we are only worth what we can do, what value we bring, how we help people.

That is completely the opposite of how we are called to see the world. 

Consider your own calling, brothers and sisters. Not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. Rather, God chose the foolish of the world to shame the wise, and God chose the weak of the world to shame the strong, and God chose the lowly and despised of the world, those who count for nothing, to reduce to nothing those who are something, so that no human being might boast before God 1 Corinthians 1:26-29 

If that sounds vaguely familiar, it is from last Sunday’s readings.  God will take those that count for nothing, to reduce to nothing those who are something.  The world wants to discard those that are worth nothing.  God will elevate them. 

That is the teaching part.  That is what we are called to.  But what does this mean really.  Here is what I think it means here at Lifeteen and this can apply it everywhere, but let’s keep it simple.  Are you inclusive here at Lifeteen.  Are you welcoming to those that are here all the time and those that come for the first time.  To you reach out, or do you stay where you are comfortable.  The simple answer, the honest answer is that I stay where I am comfortable.  There are some of you I don’t talk to as much as others.  Why is that?  Because I know some of you more.  I try to be welcoming, but sometimes I do better than others.  And if you are one of the teens that I don’t know well, don’t think you are alone.  Rob and Jo have been around a while now, yet I don’t think I know them as well as I should.  I know Katrina very well because I very comfortable around her and I like being comfortable.  I really haven’t made the effort or taken the time to get to really know Rob and Jo. 

Does that make me a bad person, I don’t think so.  But here, at Lifeteen, the bar isn’t suppose to be “not bad people”.  The bar is Christ.  Would Christ take the time and make the effort to get to know them, absolutely.  So, I am not perfect, big shocker.  But what does that mean to you.  Who is here that you don’t know.  Whose face do you see around here every Sunday and you don’t know the person behind that face.  Is there somebody new here trying it out for the first time.  Are you going to be the one that makes them feel at home, or are you going to stay in your comfortable group.  Nobody here is naked and needs clothing, nobody is in prison and needs a visitor, at least not literally.  But they may be here looking for friendship, comfort, healing, God.  You are called to be that for them.  And when you are, you are that for Christ.  We are called to see Christ in everyone. 

But MILK, they are different than me.  Absolutely.  We are not identical and God did not create us to be that way.  As a body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so also Christ.

For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free persons, and we were all given to drink of one Spirit. Now the body is not a single part, but many. If a foot should say, "Because I am not a hand I do not belong to the body," it does not for this reason belong any less to the body. Or if an ear should say, "Because I am not an eye I do not belong to the body," it does not for this reason belong any less to the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? But as it is, God placed the parts, each one of them, in the body as he intended. If they were all one part, where would the body be? But as it is, there are many parts, yet one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, "I do not need you," nor again the head to the feet, "I do not need you."   1 Corinthians 12:12-21

We were all made very differently so that we can fulfill whatever God’s plan is for us.  Think about that when you think someone is so different from you that you couldn’t possibly hang out.  God made them exactly how He wanted them.  If you reject them because of their difference, you are pretty much rejecting God’s plan for them. 

Realize that the world has it completely backwards when it comes to this.  The world wants everyone to be exactly the same.  Same schools, teaching the same thing, taking the same test, watching the same TV.  When someone is different, they ridicule them for not being like everyone else.  When you do that, you have a Body that is all one part.  If the whole body is an eye, where is the hearing.  It’s a great question that the world doesn’t want to answer.  It is too busy trying to make everyone the same to think about what happens if that happens. 

We are all unique and God has done this on purpose, for His purpose.  We need to see God in others, see that God is working through others, and strive to be open to that.  Step out of the comfortable group were things are predictable, step into the uncomfortable world where you don’t know what is going to happen.  And this is about all of us.  I need to work on this as much as any of you.  But we need to do it to strengthen our Lifeteen community.  So, I challenge you, if you are sitting by someone you know or a group, watch the second half with someone you don’t know.  This is a social night, let’s be social.