Sunday Sermon - Freely & Confidently

Ephesians 3:7-13

7 I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God's grace given me through the working of his power.

I once played a butler in a play called “Shall We Join the Ladies?” written by J.M Barrie, the author of Peter Pan. It’s a murder mystery set in the dining room of a country manor. The guests all have a connection to the victim and they try to elicit clues from one another as they talk at the dinner table. The butler does not say a word in the play and must be attentive to each of the guests by bringing and removing silverware, plates and glasses. It’s only a one act play, but it’s one of the most intense murder mysteries I have been involved in and being the butler I had to fully concentrate on what was being said, done and expressed by the whole cast.

I literally had to become a servant to all of the other actors on the set to make the plot work.

Paul does the same when he’s writing to the Ephesians. The plot of the Gospel is to save the entire world and the mystery is how God accomplishes this through grace. When Paul declares himself to be the servant of the gospel, he’s letting the Ephesians knows that his life is dedicated to serving God’s purpose, attending to Christ’s demands, and fulfilling the tasks that are set before him. Paul doesn’t leave it to someone else to get things done – he’s on a mission for God and that mission is to spread the Gospel, preach the Kingdom, and glorify Christ all over the Mediterranean.

The Ephesians understood what it meant to be servants; after all, they had served Diana, their goddess, for hundreds of years. Their culture, their economy, their reason to exist was built upon serving the Great Temple of Diana, one of the ancient Seven Wonders of the World, and devoting their energy, gifts and resources to maintaining her relevance in the civilized world. Without Diana, Ephesus would have been bypassed long ago. Without the temple, the Ephesians would just have been just another small Mediterranean town.

So they understood service and being servants, which is why Paul emphasizes his own servitude to Christ. He wants to link with their experiences and relate his faith to their life style. He wants to match his purpose with theirs. He is looking for ways to make faith in Christ attractive and acceptable to the Ephesians by meeting them on their own terms, in their own cultural ways. He is finding a way to tear down the walls of being a Jew in a Gentile world. Paul is making inroads with his Gospel message by using the culture to convey his beliefs.

This is something that our own church did nearly 130 years ago. Out of all the names that we could have been known by, our spiritual forefathers and foremothers chose the name “Erin.” It was the name of this district a long time before it became known as Bearden, but when we were established we could have easily been called Bearden Presbyterian Church. So why did the charter members choose the name “Erin?” It all had to do with cultural relevance and Missional outreach to the surrounding community.

Erin is the ancient Gaelic name for Ireland and it means “the beautiful island.” It’s a poetic and lyrical name for the old country. Anyone who was a Scots-Irish Protestant in this area would have been drawn to the church by the old Gaelic name. We were established to serve God by serving as a spiritual home for the Scots-Irish in this area. It’s part of our heritage. It’s a wonderful part of our history. And if you have a look at the church register for the last 130 years, you’ll see that Scots-Irish names still make up the majority of those written in its pages.

So, in order to be culturally relevant, the original charter families chose the name “Erin.” For Paul to be culturally relevant to the Ephesians, he used the term ‘servant’ to describe membership in God’s Kingdom through Christ.

8 Although I am less than the least of all God's people, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ,

Some servants are more important than others. In Victorian households, the butler was the chief manservant who organized all the servants below him. He acted as concierge and confidante to the family; he saw to it that all the duties assigned to the household servants were accomplished. His role was chief servant and steward to the entire household. He ensured that all the family’s resources for domestic purposes were not squandered or wasted.

In Paul’s time, there was a also chief servant attached to every successful household. His duties as overseer were practically the same, so the Ephesians would have understood that with service and servant hood, there was some sort of order and hierarchy. So they expected Paul, as preacher and teacher to their church, to be the chief servant – but Paul would not accept that mantel of esteem. In Christ’s kingdom, all servants are equal because all are preachers, teachers, ministers and priests for the sake of the Gospel. No one servant lords it over another. There is only One Lord – Jesus – and all of His followers are servants.

That’s why I love being a Presbyterian. We don’t have a hierarchy in our denomination or church. Ministers of the word and sacrament are set apart, not set above the people, when they are ordained. Elders are chosen by the congregation, as is the pastor, so that all the people have a say in the shaping of the church, the direction it is headed in, and the vision for the future. We don’t have bishops, cardinals, or popes who individually decide things for us. We are all servants of God here; we are all called to do Christ’s bidding.

In recent years, our denomination has encouraged members of local churches to think about becoming commissioned lay pastors. Instead of going to seminary, those members in our midst, who have served at least three years as an elder, are given the opportunity to serve the church in a wider capacity as lay pastors. I’m delighted to tell you that both Charles Snodgrass and Katina Stair from our own wee congregation. In years to come, their service to our presbytery and church may be crucial for the PCUSA in this area. As servants of Christ, they will have opportunities to minister in specialized areas of our church’s life, work, and ministry. And I am hoping that they are the first among a whole group of Erin elders who will undertake, endure, and accomplish this special training.


9 and to make plain to everyone the administration of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things. 10 His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, 11 according to his eternal purpose which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.


When Paul was writing to the Ephesians about being servants, they must have asked themselves what that serving entailed. It’s easy to accept serving God, after all the Ephesians had served Diana for generations – all they had to do was transfer their devotion from one deity to another – but what was their purpose as servants, what was God calling them to do?

Paul is ahead of them with regard to this question – he states what service to God is all about – the church’s purpose is to make God known in the world and to let their community know that Jesus Christ is Lord of life. That’s the Gospel in a nutshell – that’s the message reduced to its most simplistic form. Where I come from in Glasgow, Scotland, my city has this motto: “Let Glasgow flourish by the preaching of the Word and the praising of God’s Name.” It’s the exact same message that Paul was expressing to the Ephesians in his letter – serving God meant preaching the Word; being servants involved the praising of God’s Name.

Perhaps we could adopt something similar as a new mission statement for Erin, something like: “We are called to be servants of Jesus, growing in God’s Wisdom and praising Christ’s Holy Name.”

And talking about service for Christ at Erin, in the next couple of minutes, we are going to welcoming new members into our church. They have expressed a desire to join with our congregation and we are absolutely delighted that they have chosen to do this. But how can we help them become servants of the Lord, as well as members of our church? What experiences, ministries and missions can we offer them to enhance their connection to God and their relationship with Jesus? Are we content just to let them worship with us on Sundays, or are we going to make it our intent to invite and include them in our classes, our studies, our fellowship, our teams, our programs, and our plans? They have reached out to us: how are we going to reach out to them, to learn their names, to know of their gifts, to encourage and support them in their walk with God? We are all servants here – let us therefore serve one another by reaching out to these new members with our hearts and hopes, our faith and friendship, our laughter and love.


12 In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.

Finally, Paul writes to the Ephesians about why service to Christ in God’s Kingdom is important. They knew what to do and how to serve, but why were they called to serve Christ?

Almost every religion in the world has this common theme: that one day, every person who has ever lived on earth, will stand before God and be held accountable for every thought, word, deed, misdeed, and mistake that they made during their existence on earth. In most faiths it’s called the Time of Reckoning and Christianity is no different from many others on this point. People worship God, or gods, or goddesses to preserve and protect them from the trials and snares that this life imposes upon them. They also devote themselves and serve their God, gods or goddesses, in order to placate, appease and please them.

Just the other day, a devout Hindu in India, sought to win favor from his goddess Kali by making a sacrifice. The sacrifice he chose was to cut off his right hand. He’s now in hospital undergoing emergency surgery. But if he was a Christian, if he served Christ, he wouldn’t have to fear his God. We serve Christ because He has sacrificed Himself for us, so there is no greater sacrifice that God would ask of us. We can freely and confidently, as Paul writes, approach God and be in his presence without fear of reproach, retribution or reckoning. Our everlasting destiny has already been prepared when we decided to become Christ’s servants. We look forward to a moment in glory when we will be united with Christ through the unsearchable riches of His grace. We have nothing to fear… and this is why we are called to be servants of the Lord, so that others who fear death, punishment, and eternal separation may hear, know, and accept the Gospel – which tells us that we are not doomed to death and destruction, but that we are made for light and everlasting love.

Our calling as a church, as a congregation called Erin is to be that beautiful island of faith that everyone needs in their lives. Our task is to maintain the infrastructure of the Gospel, so that a bridge between heaven and earth can be experienced by as many people in our community that we know. And if we accept this calling of our hearts to serve Jesus, then one glorious day we will step forward, confidently and freely in the holy presence of our Almighty God to receive His eternal blessing and everlasting love. We will truly be Ephesian people, Erin Church members, and Christian servants, both now and always. Amen.

Sunday Sermon - Mysterious Promises

(Based on Ephesians 3:1-6)

Last weekend, Harry Potter was all the rage and many people lined up for hours at various stores all over the world, so that they could purchase the latest and last book about this modern young magician. For the past decade, millions of these books have been sold making the author JK Rowling one of the richest people in the world. Her own rags to riches story is in itself an example of how hard work, determination, and imagination can bring about well deserved fame and success. Seven books ago, JK Rowling was an unemployed single mom writing a story in her brother’s coffee house in Edinburgh, Scotland – today, she has even more wealth than her monarch Queen Elizabeth.

I guess mostly everyone got caught up in the Harry Potter craze. I even did a quiz on the internet to see which character I am most like. As I waited for the results to come in, I worried that I would end up being Siruis Black, the notorious prisoner of Azjekeban, or Severus Snape, the teacher of the Black Arts, or worst still, little Ginny Weasley, who has a crush on Harry Potter – but in the end my test results came back with a resounding 90% that my Harry Potter alter-ego is actually Albus Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts school that Harry attends. I guess that’s what I get for having a grey beard, teaching Sunday school and wearing robes!

But why is Harry Potter so successful? What has caught the hearts and minds of so many millions of people on the earth? Well, I think it’s because of several things. The books contain elements of magic, mystery and suspense – three ingredients that have sustained writers of books and religious communities for generations. When I was a teenager, Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, and Scooby Doo nourished my mind with magic and mystery. Dick Tracy, Batman, and Superman satisfied the generations before mine. And if you go back far enough, Tom Swift, Tom Sawyer, and Sherlock Holmes intrigued millions of readers with their own adventures, mysteries, and magic. It’s a formula that has worked since people were drawing in caves and telling stories around the tribal fires – it’s all about good versus evil with magic and mystery thrown in to make up a great story.

The element of mystery has always intrigued us. As human beings, the great unknown has always attracted us. Why else did Columbus set off in 1492? He wanted to explore the great unknown of his age, of what lay beyond the western horizon of the Atlantic Ocean. Why else did pioneers head out on the Oregon Trail in their wagons to settle on the other side of this continent? They wanted to begin a new life, in a new place, and explore the possibility of being successful. And why else did President Eisenhower sing the Space Act on this day in 1958 in order to establish NASA? He wanted America to explore the final frontier of space – that great unknown of which we still hardly know anything, and in which we are only making small steps.

Mysteries are what make us who we are. We are attracted to them – why else do you think that Adam and Eve succumbed to temptation in the Garden of Eden? Curiosity got the better of them – the tree of knowledge was a mystery to them and they just had to experience it. They were attracted to a mystery and they were tempted by the great unknown. They wanted something they couldn’t have, and they were frustrated by it. They needed to possess the fruit and eat it because they felt incomplete, insecure, and inconsolable without it. They wanted to solve the mystery, so they stole the fruit and set humanity on a course of unending curiosity, exploration, and wanderlust that will be with us until humankind returns to the dust from which we came.

Mysteries get the better of us. They become our obsessions, our longings, and our desires. We want to know how things will turn out, which is why millions of people queued up for hours last weekend trying to get their hands on a book. They wanted to be amongst the first to read all of the 760 pages to discover how it all turned out – and if you want to know, then don’t ask a Harry Potter fan – they’re good at keeping secrets – you’ll just have to buy it yourself, or wait for the movie version to come out in 2010.

Mysteries were a way of life for the people of Ephesus, which is why Paul mentions the word here in today’s Bible passage three times. The Ephesians lived in a place that was built upon magic, superstition, and mystery. The temple of Diana was a mysterious place where ancient rituals were carried out. Sacred secrets about the temple were passed from generation to generation amongst the priests. It was a place where people came to make pledges and sacrifices, to look for blessings and benevolence, to express their love of Diana their goddess, and to ward off the wrath of other Greek gods.

You see life was a mystery to the Ephesians and the people of that time. Disease, pestilence, famine, and war were rampant throughout the region. A person could be healthy one hour and dead the next. Infant mortality was high and life expectancy was low. People felt insecure all of the time, so they clung to mystery and magic, superstition and secrets as the means to ward off evil, to escape disaster, and to prolong their lives.

There were even mystery cults all over the region that people participated in. Most of these cults involved the use of drums and music, hallucinations and visions, virgins and temple prostitutes to placate the gods and bless their devotees. In other words, sex, drugs and rock ‘n’roll were as popular then, as they are today. People believed that if they could learn the secrets of these mystery religions, then they could guarantee long life, wealth, health and fame. Penetrating the Mystery was the means of discovering the real secrets about eternal life.

And we still are like this today – think about it. Famous people and ordinary people are looking for the secret of success, the secret of acquiring wealth, the secret of staying young and keeping fit. We all want to ward of death and dying, disease and discomfort, insecurity and inferiority. We all want to be something special, do something great, complete something that will change the world. We want to know that our lives have made a difference and that our time, our talents, and our treasures have been used to the best of our abilities, to reward ourselves and take care of our loved ones. That’s why books like The Secret, or the Da Vinci Code, or the Purpose Driven Life appeal to us – we all want to feel that we’ve solved the mystery of life and why we exist in the first place. That’s why people like Madonna are drawn to the Kabbalah – old Hebrew wisdom with hidden secrets in the Bible text – or Tom Cruise is drawn to scientology – a higher wisdom and greater spiritual plane than anyone else – or even Shirley McLaine and Reba who feast upon New Age ideas in order to cast aside their insecurities and put themselves at the center of the universe. It’s all the same stuff that’s been tried for thousands of years. It’s all the same old tested and tried ways of finding the meaning of life, the universe and everything that was even ancient history to the Ephesians two thousand years ago.

But Paul touches their hearts and minds; he penetrates their souls and spirits when he uses the word mystery and links it to Christ. He tells the people that the mystery they are longing to solve can only be found in Jesus. The purpose that they are yearning to find for their lives can only be discovered in Christ. The reason for their existence in the entire world can only be revealed through Jesus Christ for, as the scriptures say, there is no other name under heaven, given to humankind, through which we can be saved.

Life was a mystery way back then. Life is till a mystery today. We cannot hope to understand everything about life, but we have a Guide who has experienced life at its best and worst who can, if we are willing, lead us through this journey of existence and bring us to the shores of eternity. As Paul himself writes,

this mystery “has now been revealed by the Spirit to God's holy apostles and prophets. This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus. “

In other words, what was once given to the Jewish people almost four thousand years ago, has now been given to the entire world. The magic of life and the mystery of existence are rolled into one. We live because God loves us. We exist because God wants us to love His Son. It’s as simple as that. As the old question from the catechism once put it: what is the chief purpose of man? To glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.

So, what have we learned this morning?
That we all love mysteries and seek to solve them.

That we are part of a mystery called life and each of us is on a unique and personal quest.

That we can look in all the wrong places and never be satisfied with anything.

That we can look to Jesus and discover that He is the key to unlocking this mystery. He is indeed the great magic of life, the universe, and everything.

Prayer:
There's Just Something About That Name

Jesus, Jesus, Jesus;
There's just something about that name!
Master, Savior, Jesus,
Like the fragrance after the rain;
Jesus, Jesus, Jesus,
Let all heaven and earth proclaim;
Kings and kingdoms will all pass away,
But there's something about that name!