Musical Prelude and Service.

Acts 11:1-18 & Revelation 21:1-6
How secure are we in our understanding of the Gospel message offered to us by Jesus?
How much are we prepared to adjust our thinking if we are challenged at some point?
I want to share a story I heard while I served up North. This particular story happened before I was called to my previous church, St. Andrew’s. I was studying and considering the possibility of becoming an Affirming congregation. Affirming congregations officially acknowledge after study, prayer and agreement that they are absolutely committed to be welcoming to all people regardless of age, ability, culture, ethnicity, gender or sexuality. They are received as part of the Affirm movement and become part of that network of congregations. That process allows you to put up a flag that proclaims that status and offers assurance to people seeking a safe space to worship that you take this position seriously.
It was a process that encountered some significant opposition, as a number of people in the congregation were concerned. Some were outright opposed to the notion. Others, while intellectually okay with the movement, were concerned it would result in an exodus of members and bring significant financial harm.
There was this one gentleman who initially was opposed as he considered the consequences, but he was also involved in some significant bible study. That reading resulted in the reading of today’s reading from Acts and the words “What God has made clean, you must not call profane.”
It was one of those spirit-led moments. This man, very much a leader in that congregation; a man who always named himself a conservative; a man I had an untold number of conversations with in which we went back and forth on a variety of issues. A man whom I respected and liked very much.
I disagreed with him on a great many things, but also enjoyed and appreciated his presence and his contributions to the church immensely. His willingness to alter his stand on something so significant, was a lesson I have held onto ever since this story was shared with me, because he ended up standing in front of his congregation and told them he had changed his opinion. He still was convinced a great many people would leave their church, but he was willing to accept that because becoming an Affirming church was the right thing to do.
Are you wiling to acknowledge that the spirit is still at work and speaking to us and changing the ground we so securely walk on?
This is not a promotional speech for the Affirming movement. This is about how God keeps opening new doors and challenging our view of who is welcomed in to relationship with God, with Christ, with a church we call the body of Christ. It’s about how much we truly believe being in relationship with God is a transformational experience.
Peter, in the aftermath of the spirit moving through the Apostles on Pentecost is hard at work, visiting with people receiving converts to this new community of Jesus’ followers. But he is also rigidly conforming to the rules of his religion as he understands those rules.
This includes whom he can dine and socialize with. And those rules make few allowances, and strictly forbids those who are seen as unclean. People need to meet several criteria including being circumcised. What food you could eat is strictly monitored and a great many creatures are forbidden.
So, as he considers a request to sit down for a meal with a gentile, his first reaction is to say no. He stands on what he considers very solid theological ground. They are gentiles. Based on the rules of my religion they are excluded, and I can’t change that. And then he has a vision.
He is told to kill and eat after being presented with a host of creatures that he has been told his entire life are unclean and not to be touched.
Sure, this group may have come to them and expressed a desire and willingness to follow Jesus, but they were not adopting all the practises expected as part of the Jewish religion, its teachings and traditions. What God has made clean; you must not call profane. Keeping that covenant agreed upon by your ancestors is good. It is part of your community’s relationship with God. It is a reminder of who you are and where you come from, and the ways God has walked with you and guided you. But you cannot enforce it on others. You cannot use it to bar others from approaching God and entering into relationship.
God’s spirit is at work. The world is constantly shifting, and what you assumed was a perfect understanding of God’s place in the world and that your life is far from complete.
God is once again reordering the world, and Peter is part of the old order. Everything he has been taught is now in flux.
God now demands a wider view of the world. The world is larger, more diverse, and has more colours and sounds than Peter ever imagined. In many circles, this reading from Acts is called the Gentile Pentecost. This is the work of the spirit shaking the foundations of Peter’s understanding of God’s relationship with the world and the work of the spirit in his life, and people he was prepared to ignore. Peter is forced to go in front of the other apostles who are wondering what has come over him and explain that he has been transformed once again. God keeps surprising him, and he is still learning.
Peter, the rock upon whom Jesus is building his church, is experiencing the earth move beneath him. And yet, his faith – his trust in God’s presence and love remains solid. His idea of who is welcome, who is part of God’s world is broadened. His vision of what church looks like is transforming before his very eyes; but his commitment; his willingness to follow Jesus has not wavered.
We need to be prepared for change. We need to be willing to acknowledge that who we worship with; the space we worship in; the words and the songs we sing, might change or be added to. The spirit is always working. The table expands and Jesus is still out there on the streets inviting people we have never met to come and join us. What God has made clean, you must not call profane.
God keeps talking to us, but all-too-often we ignore the people God speaks through. We don’t think they look proper. They make us uncomfortable. They speak the wrong language or use words we consider profane.
But God is always creating. Always building. Always at work.
See, I am making all things new. I am the Alpha and the Omega. God has always been there and never stops working.
So how open are we? How prepared are we to have our views our notions of who God is and what God is doing in and around us and in our midst? How are we prepared to live out our proclamation of an ever present and all loving God who invites everyone to the table and to participate in the feast? Are we ready to hold onto the rock of our faith while also acknowledging there are some things we can let go of?
Transformation is a part of our faith. It has always been a key part of the story we read over and over in scripture. Things are changing. God keeps approaching God’s people with new promises and new covenants because we keep forgetting or struggling with what it means to follow.
Transformation is baked into the story. The body of Christ is constantly growing and adding colour and shape. We need to be willing to see that change and celebrate it and recognize that we are not the gatekeeper or the bouncer at this feast, but we are called to welcome and make room and invite the newcomers to add their voices to the chorus. Amen.
Rev. Warner Bloomfield

Music provided with permission through licensing with CCLI License number
2701258 and One License # A-731789