Sunday's Message: The Great Ends of the Church - The shelter, nurture and spiritual fellowship of the children of God

As a denomination, the Presbyterian Church (USA) has some guiding principles that shape our mission. They’re called The Great Ends of the Church, six statements written in the early 20th century that guide both the vision and work of the Presbyterian Church. And that’s going to be our focus during this series. You see, during the next six weeks, we’ll look at each one, seeking to understand what it means and how we can accomplish it within our community. 

• August 11 - The proclamation of the gospel for the salvation of humanity
• August 18 - The shelter, nurture and spiritual fellowship of the children of God
• August 25 - The maintenance of divine worship
• September 1 - The preservation of the truth
• September 8 - The promotion of social righteousness
• September 15 - The exhibition of the kingdom of heaven to the world

On Sunday, we continued the series by looking at the second great end of the church: The shelter, nurture and spiritual fellowship of the children of God. Below is the text and a recording of the sermon. You can stream the service by going to the Sligo Presbyterian Church YouTube Channel on Sundays at 10:00 a.m. (EDT).  You can hear a podcast of the service at the Sligo Presbyterian Church YouTube Channel or the Sligo Presbyterian Spotify Page. 

Just a few minutes ago, we did something we only do once a year; we blessed backpacks. Now I’ve got to admit, before coming here, I’d never done it nor even seen it done. But I’ve got to tell you, having blessed them now for the third time, I think it’s great. I mean, what a wonderful way to start a new school year, just knowing that God is with you as you leave summer behind and go back to the old grind.

Of course, having said that, when I was a kid, I’ve got to admit, going back to school wasn’t all that bad. As a matter of fact, I kind of looked forward to that Tuesday right after Labor Day. Now don’t get me wrong, summer was great, but frankly by the end of August, well, I was getting a little bored. And at least for me, going back to school was a positive. In fact, I kind of looked forward to getting back to Crossroads Elementary, there on the corner of Little Creek Road and Tidewater Drive. I mean, with those painted cinder block walls and bluffed linoleum floors and what seemed at the time, a huge athletic field with an air raid tower over in the left corner, for me, that was a comfortable place to be. And although I wasn’t a great speller, I loved math and science and history, and I particularly enjoyed checking out books from the school library with this rocket printed on the bottom of the spine. But what made my return really great was getting back with friends I hadn’t seen for the whole summer. You see, even though I’d been hanging out with Nicky and Blaine and Chuck for three months, I hadn’t seen my best friend, Rodney Rienerth, since June, because he lived on Sheppard and I lived on Moose. I guess for me, school was this really special place, and so, although I wouldn’t have said it at the time, going back was actually kind of nice.

And I’ll tell you, that’s what we’re going to be looking at this morning, and I’m talking about another place that can do for us what Crossroads Elementary did for me. As a matter of fact, I think that’s really what the second great end of the church is all about. You see, after stating that our first purpose was “the proclamation of the gospel for the salvation of humanity,” according to this list that really defines our mission as a denomination and a congregation, we’re also here to provide “the shelter, nurture and spiritual fellowship of the children of God.” And that’s what we’re going to discuss this morning. And as we did last week, we’re going to start by looking at what it means to provide shelter and nurture and fellowship. And then we’ll consider why this is important to do and then how it might be done. 

Of course, both the “why” and the “how” are pretty much meaningless if we don’t understand the “what,” you know, what it means to say that we’re here to provide “the shelter, nurture and spiritual fellowship of the children of God.” And since, in the statement itself, the meaning is broken down into three parts, that’s what we’re going to look at in order to understand it’s meaning a little better.

For example, first, the church is here to provide shelter, you know, a place of safety and protection as we try to be God’s people in the world that we have even if its not the world that we want. You see, in a real sense, it’s in this community or maybe better, in this family where we’re able to experience what the psalmist had in mind when he wrote this:

Live under the protection

    of God Most High

and stay in the shadow

    of God All-Powerful.

Then you will say to the Lord,

“You are my fortress,

    my place of safety;

you are my God,

    and I trust you.”

The Lord will keep you safe

from secret traps

    and deadly diseases.

He will spread his wings

over you

    and keep you secure.

His faithfulness is like

    a shield or a city wall. [Psalm 91:1-4, CEV]

You see, regardless of what’s happening out there, I mean, regardless of all those people and powers that seem so threatening and regardless of all the problems and pain that can surely appear overwhelming, right here we have a place where we’re able to feel protected and safe and secure. Now, to me, that’s what it means to provide a shelter.

But that’s not all, because, second, the church is also here to offer nurture. You see, it’s here where we can learn and grow and mature. In fact it’s here where we can be prepared to face all the mess that we have to slog through out there in the real world. And I’ll tell you, in that way, it accomplishes what I think we find in the Book of Deuteronomy:

Listen, Israel! The Lord our God is the only true God! So love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and strength. Memorize his laws and tell them to your children over and over again. Talk about them all the time, whether you’re at home or walking along the road or going to bed at night, or getting up in the morning. Write down copies and tie them to your wrists and foreheads to help you obey them. Write these laws on the door frames of your homes and on your town gates. [Deuteronomy 6:4-9, CEV]

You see, if we’re doing what we’ve been called to do, right here we’re creating a place where men and women can become everything that God has created them to be. And we can do it by helping them better understand God’s word but also enabling them to claim and develop the talents and abilities that they have. You see, in my opinion, that’s what nurture is all about.

But again, that’s also not all we can offer, because, third, we’re also here to encourage fellowship. In other words, God has called us together so that we might support and strengthen one another, and as a result, we can become a whole lot more than any of us would be on his or her own, not unlike how the Evangelist Luke described the first church. Just listen to what he wrote in Acts:

Everyone was amazed by the many miracles and wonders that the apostles worked. All the Lord’s followers often met together, and they shared everything they had. They would sell their property and possessions and give the money to whoever was in need. Day after day they met together in the temple. They broke bread together in different homes and shared their food happily and freely, while praising God. Everyone liked them, and each day the Lord added to their group others who were being saved. [Acts 2:43-47, CEV]

You know, it’s like it says in that old Gaither song, 

You will notice we say “brother and sister” ‘round here,

it’s because we’re a family and these are so near;

when one has a heartache, 

we all share the tears,

and rejoice in each victory in this family so dear. 

I’m so glad I’m a part of the Family of God;

I’ve been washed in the fountain, 

cleansed by His blood!

Joint heirs with Jesus as we travel this sod,

for I’m part of the family, 

the Family of God. [The Family of God, Bill and Gloria Gaither]

You see, along with providing shelter and offering nurture, I believe the church is here to encourage spiritual fellowship. And I’ll tell you, in my opinion, that’s what this great end is all about.

And as to why it’s important, why it’s important for us to have a place where we can feel safe and where we might have the chance to grow and where we’re able to draw strength from one another, well, for me, the reason is both extremely basic and yet also incredibly profound. You see, I think we simply need one another. 

For example we need one another as individuals. Years ago, I remember hearing a guy say that there are no lone wolf Christians, and I think he was right. And because of that, God has called us into communities, into congregations, into families, simply because, as Jesus Christ himself said, “Whenever two or three of you come together in my name, I am there with you.” [Matthew 18:20, CEV] And I’ll tell you, I think that’s something the Apostle Paul understood, and that’s why he wrote this to the Thessalonians:

My friends, we ask you to be thoughtful of your leaders who work hard and tell you how to live for the Lord. Show them great respect and love because of their work. Try to get along with each other. My friends, we beg you to warn anyone who isn’t living right. Encourage anyone who feels left out, help all who are weak, and be patient with everyone. Don’t be hateful to people, just because they are hateful to you. Rather, be good to each other and to everyone else. [1 Thessalonians 5:12-15, CEV]

As individuals, we really need one another.

But I think shelter and nurture and fellowship are also important for communities. You see, although individually we can do great things, when we join with others, combining our talents and our experiences and our resources, what we’re able to accomplish goes through the roof, doesn’t it? And I think that explains why Paul wrote this to the Corinthians:

The body of Christ has many different parts, just as any other body does. Some of us are Jews, and others are Gentiles. Some of us are slaves, and others are free. But God’s Spirit baptized each of us and made us part of the body of Christ. Now we each drink from that same Spirit. 

God put our bodies together in such a way that even the parts that seem the least important are valuable. He did this to make all parts of the body work together smoothly, with each part caring about the others. If one part of our body hurts, we hurt all over. If one part of our body is honored, the whole body will be happy.

Together you are the body of Christ. Each one of you is part of his body. [1 Corinthians 12:12-13, 24b-27, CEV]

You see, in my opinion, we really need one another as both individuals and as a community, and I’ll tell you, that’s why I believe the shelter and the nurture and the spiritual fellowship of the children of God is important.

Which leaves us with how, how can we accomplish this, in other words, how can we become a place that shelters and nurtures and provides fellowship? Now, for me, that’s really what you could call “the rubber hitting the road” question. And even though I think we could spend hours talking about specifics, I believe it all starts with one simple and straight-forward decision without which the specifics aren’t really worth a bucket of spit. You see, if we want to be the kind of church that takes this second great end seriously, I think we have to decide that unity is going to be a priority around here. 

In other words, I think we have to decide that we’re going to reject all the divisiveness that’s become part and parcel of our society now-a-days. For example, we’re not going to allow ourselves to be divided over political parties. And we’ve not going to allow ourselves to be divided over political candidates. And we’re not going to allow ourselves to be divided over political issues. As a matter of fact, we aren’t even going to allow ourselves to be divided over something that’s way more important than politics, and I’m talking about when WVU plays Penn State down in Morgantown on August 31. Man, we’re going to reject those forces that threaten to divide us, just like Paul advised the Romans to do when he wrote this:

My friends, I beg you to watch out for anyone who causes trouble and divides the church by refusing to do what all of you were taught. Stay away from them! They want to serve themselves and not Christ the Lord. Their flattery and fancy talk fool people who don’t know any better. I am glad that everyone knows how well you obey the Lord. But still, I want you to understand what is good and not have anything to do with evil. [Romans 16:17-19, CEV]

If we’re serious about shelter and nurture and fellowship, we’ve got to reject divisiveness.

While at the same time, we can strengthen the body. I mean, we can work to build one another up. And we can do what’s necessary to empower the weak and to encourage the depressed. And we can establish opportunities to gather together, but not so we can complain and gripe and moan about how horrible things are. Rather, we can come together so that we can provide the shelter and the nurture and the fellowship that we’re going to need to step out and make our world a better place. In other words, we can decide that we’re going to do exactly what the writer of the letter to the Hebrews told his readers to do.

We must hold tightly to the hope we say is ours. After all, we can trust the one who made the agreement with us. We should keep on encouraging each other to be thoughtful and to do helpful things. Some people have given up the habit of meeting for worship, but we must not do that. We should keep on encouraging each other, especially since you know that the day of the Lord’s coming is getting closer. [Hebrews 10:23-25, CEV]

You see, when we reject divisiveness and strengthen the body because unity is our priority, I believe we’ll be becoming the place of shelter and nurture and fellowship we were called to be. 

And you know, this was actually the kind of place I remember school being when I was leaving behind the summer and reentering Crossroads Elementary for another year. Of course, I recognize that not everybody has the same positive memories of going back to school. As a matter of fact, I think some would probably rather have their backpacks go unblessed, if that would buy them another week of vacation.

But you know, regardless of how you feel or felt about school, our church can be a place of shelter and nurture and fellowship, something that I think will help us both as individuals and as a community and that we can build right here and now the minute we decide to make unity a priority by rejecting divisiveness and strengthening the body. This we can do. And I’ll tell you, when we do, I believe we’ll be providing for ourselves and our community a place of shelter, nurture and spiritual fellowship for the children of God.