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“A Worthy Life”
A sermon preached by the
Rev. Douglas M. Donley
I have gotten a good bit of ribbing from a number of you
this week. Well deserved, I might
add. As you know I send out a weekly
e-mail newsletter that tells of the events of the week and whatever is on my
mind. I include a weekly calendar, a
prayer list and a brief snapshot of the coming week’s worship service. In trying to explain about this being All
Saints and our tradition of placing bells on the banners you see here today, I
said, “This Sunday is All Saints Day.
Each year, we pause to remember all those who have died during our
worship service.”
It’s like the story of the church that had the pictures
on the hallways of all the fallen soldiers.
One day a child asks the pastor who the people are in the pictures. She says, “They are all the people who died
in the service.” The child’s eyes got
really big and eventually asked, “The
In all seriousness, when I was at the Shady Grove Baptist
Church on Sand Mountain in Alabama during my sabbatical, the people told the
story of one of the members who died during an especially exuberant singing
during the worship service. On her
gravestone is a line from her favorite Sacred Harp hymn: “I want to go out
a-shoutin’”. And so she did.
I assure you, worship is nowhere near as lethal as I made
it out to be.
And yet, life is.
The fact of life is that death is a surety. We would
love it to come late in life and on our own terms. Sometimes this happens and other times it
does not. I think of those in this room
who have lost loved ones. An unexpected
death is always accompanied by violence.
Whether it’s caused by violence or not, it feels like violence. We react with shock and denial and bargaining
and anger before we get to acceptance.
It does violence to the way we thought our lives would be lead. It destroys the expectation of shared
experiences.
Bob Carmen’s sister, Miggie Tegenfeldt has just returned
from a volunteer stint in the Holy Lands with the Christian Peacemaker
Team. She tells the following story
about a family in grief:
“One
of the leaders of a Palestinian human rights organization told us about his
neighbor. She was old and dying and asked him to do one last favor for
her. Because she was never going to be able to return to her home, she
wanted at least to touch and hold a lemon from the lemon tree beside the
house. That house was in
At times like these when we find ourselves in a
reflective mood, we often look over the lives of ourselves and our loved
ones. We ask, “Have we lived a worthy
life?”
I think this is an important question. It can be guilt-inducing and that’s not
always good. It can also be a way of
keeping in mind what we want to accomplish, and who we want to be in our
lives. That’s what’s really
important.
The writer of Colossians says, that he prays that we will
“be filled with the knowledge of God’s will in all spiritual wisdom and
understanding, so that we might lead lives worthy of God as we bear fruit in
good work and grow in the knowledge of God.”
One commentator calls this worthy example, Christian
conduct and divine strength.
Think about what you might think are the attributes that
make for a good Christian character.
This certainly has to do with living an ethical life.
It has to do with looking out for the least of
these. It has to do with living by the
great commandment, the great criteria and the great commission. All of this is what might bear fruit in good
work.
Think of the good ethics that surround the lives of those
we admire. In thinking about good
ethics, we need to remember what Jesus said:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the
kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for
righteousness, for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the
children of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’
sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”(Matthew 5:3-10)
Pundits have poisoned the airwaves these past few months
about how one person’s ethics is worse than anther’s. Thank God this too will come to an end on
Tuesday.
The writer of Colossians says that we are to live lives
worthy of God and that a part of that is that we bear fruit in good work. This doesn’t say that work will save us. But
think of the work that those we admire do that makes life easier or better for
their neighbor. I want you to pause in
thanksgiving for those who have lived worthy lives.
Think of those who have born the fruit in good work. Think of them and call them to mind in a
brief moment of silence.
Knowledge of God is the other piece of this formula for a
worthy life.
So many of us go around acting like there is no God.
That
we are lone rangers.
Accountable
only to ourselves and perhaps our portfolios.
We
are to look out for number one and do unto others before they do unto us.
But to have knowledge of God is more than saying a
formulaic sentence or two of doctrine.
Knowledge of God has a lot to do with recognizing that we don’t have all
of the answers. That there is a mystery
out there that longs to be known and that we seekers look for understanding.
Knowledge of God is the recognition that all things and
all beings are created and watched over by a force that wishes peace and
harmony with all of creation. Therefore
our ethics are a recognition of whether or not we believe there is in fact a
God.
Hear these words from Psalm
25:
“To you, O YHWH, I lift up my soul,
O my God, in you I trust; do not let me be put to shame.
Do not let enemies exult over me.
Make me to know your ways O God; teach me your paths.
Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God
of my salvation;
For you I wait all day long.
Be mindful of your mercy, O God and of your steadfast
love,
for they have been from of old.
Do not remember the sins of my youth or my
transgressions;
according to your steadfast love remember me, for your
goodness’ sake.
For your name’s sake, O God, pardon my guilt, for it is
great.
Who are they that fear God?
God will teach them the way that they should choose.
Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and
afflicted.
Relieve the troubles of my heart and bring me out of my
distress.
Consider my affliction and my trouble, and forgive all my
sins.
Consider how many are my foes, and with what violent
hatred they hate me.
O Guard my life, and deliver me; do not let me be put to
shame.
May integrity and uprightness preserve me, for I wait for
you.”
Think about those who live a worthy life and who show knowledge
of God. Bring them to mind is a brief
moment of silence.
Finally, think about what you live for.
Think
about the way you live your life.
Think
about those who have gone before that have proved worthy examples of a
Christian life.
If
we can think of them and put them in front of us, maybe we can find ways to
make a portion of our lives worthy of the name Christian.
Let me close by sharing with you a favorite poem of mine:
The Dash by Linda
Ellis
I read of a man who stood to speak
At the funeral of a friend
He referred to the dates on her tombstone
From the beginning to the end
He noted that first came her date of her birth
And spoke the following date with tears,
But he said what mattered most of all
Was the dash between those years
For that dash represents all the time
That she spent alive on earth.
And now only those who loved her
Know what that little line is worth.
For it matters not how much we own;
The cars, the house, the cash,
What matters is how we live and love
And how we spend our dash.
So think about this long and hard.
Are there things you’d like to change?
For you never know how much time is left,
You might be at dash-midrange.
If we could just slow down enough
To consider what’s true and real
And always try to understand
The way other people feel.
And be less quick to anger,
And show appreciation more
And love the people in our lives
Like we’ve never loved before.
If we treat each other with respect,
And more often wear a smile
Remembering that this special dash
Might only last a little while.
So, when your eulogy is being read
With your life’s actions to rehash
Would you be proud of the things they say
About how you spent your dash?
Sisters
and brothers, we are called to live worthy lives.
May
we bear good fruit in good work.
May
we remember that God watches over and is in all things.
May
we remember that each moment is precious and a gift from God to us individually
and those we hold dear.
Each
of us is a gift and each of our lives are worthy. May we bear good fruit and grow in the
knowledge of God.