"Called to be children of God"
	Rev. Alan Jones

For the next nine weeks we will be reflecting week by week on the various lines of the Lord's Prayer.   The prayer is probably the best known and most frequently repeated teaching of Jesus.   Each week, in addition to a sermon there will be somebody invited to share a word of testimony… as we continue to reflect on the many different ways in which God is calling us.   Today Linda Kropff will be telling us about her call to live in community as a child of God.

The text of the Lord's Prayer is in two of the four gospels: Matthew and Luke. It doesn't appear in Mark or John.   It is part of that section of teaching the scholars call Q.   Q is a collection of parables and teachings which only appear in Matthew and Luke.   The background of all of this is important for understanding the purpose of the prayer.   In Matthew it is in the Sermon on the Mount, and, as such is intended for everyone, not just the disciples.   In Luke it is not in the Sermon on the Plain… instead it is in a section of teaching designed for the disciples alone.   The two gospel writers appear to have different understandings about the prayer.

Remember, when Jesus shared this prayer, the church as such had not yet come into being.   This is a traveling rabbi sharing a prayer that focused his teaching… other traveling teachers did the same kind of thing.

Bottom line here… is that for Matthew, the most Jewish gospel writer, it is clear that the prayer is designed for all people who choose to pray it.

This is important… because for me, maybe the most powerful word in the prayer is the first word “Our.”   It isn't “My Father”… it is “Our Father.”   And Jesus has just given the instruction to do your praying privately and personally.. go in a room and close the door… but even though you're alone, remember you are in community.   This is the most powerful answer to the old question about whether you can be a Christian without going to church.   In some ways you can, but it is clear that Jesus intended us to be a community of faith, not a collection of individuals.

Part of the power of the word “Our” is that it begs the question of who are “we?”   Who is “in” and who is “out.”   As a United Methodist congregation we believe that God's grace is for all people, no matter how different or deep their sin… because we're all saints and sinners.   As a reconciling congregation we have been very explicit in saying that we are a house of prayer for all people.

I believe that as we say the word “Our” at the beginning of our prayer we are committing ourselves to a radically inclusive community.   In saying the word “Our” we are taking a firm stand against racism, against sexism, against homophobia, against discrimination based on language, economic status, educational level or histories of criminal behavior.   In saying the word “Our” we are aligning ourselves with God's unbelievably radical unconditional love. In saying the word “Our” we are inviting all our sisters and brothers of the human family to join hands with us in seeking the world of God's kingdom which Jesus so powerfully proclaimed.    The word “Our” pushes us all to widen our circle of family, to include the whole human family… especially including those we find difficult to love.

If that isn't startling enough… the word “Father” we all know is not a good translation.   It should be “Daddy.”   I think it should be used like I hear even adults from the American South using the name.   “My Daddy always said…”   God is approachable, an intimate friend, the one who enabled our creation and cares for us at each step along life's journey.   And because we can all call God “Daddy” it is the great equalizer for the human family.   We are all indeed Children of God… there are no favorites or chosen people or favored religion.   Everyone is called to be a child of God in the teaching of Jesus.   The prayer as a whole is a powerfully invitational prayer.   It doesn't say “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven, otherwise you will be banished to Hell.”   No, it says, “Our father… Our Daddy.”

The children of our Sunday School found themselves focused on the notion of heaven as they thought about this phrase.   The two pictures you see here this morning are the children's understanding of heaven.   Heaven doesn't have a Zip Code.   It isn't a geographic location.   Heaven is a spiritual realm which transcends the universe as we experience it.   Any location can be heaven and any location can be hell.   Heaven can be experienced as a location, an interaction, an emotion, a prayer, a thought.   Heaven is a reality we can create when we are tuned into God's way, God's grace, and we see life and the world with God's eyes and God's heart.

The conversation about heaven being the place where people go when they die is a good conversation… but we all will be talking about realities where we have little hard information.   As we celebrated our dear sisters Almina and Mary this week I can confidently say I believe they have gone to heaven… but if you push me I'll admit that this isn't a geographic location deep in the outer cosmos.   Heaven is the eternal community of God's people transcending space and time.   These words are good and true… but you'll never be able to test the truth of what I say with scientific proofs… spiritual proofs are enough for me!

The Lord's Prayer is a powerful prayer.   Jesus chose the words very carefully.   Please pray the prayer as often as you can… and make it deliberate.

The prayer is powerful.   It may have more power for you than you know,   For many of us it is buried deep in our souls.  

I had a powerful experience working in a Los Angeles church… I was visiting a church member at UCLA hospital.   He was in some sort of coma.   They didn't know how long it would last, and whether the man would ever come out of the coma.   I knew that people often say that people in comas can hear what you are saying even though they can't respond.   So I was visiting this man weekly and praying with him, always ending with the Lord's Prayer.   After about four months, I was beginning to wonder whether this exercise was worth the time and energy… shouldn't I be visiting somebody else who could respond to my ministry?   Well, one day, I was going through my normal routine and was praying the Lord's Prayer, and suddenly I realized that somebody else was speaking the words with me… another voice… and it was the man in the coma… it was the words of the Lord's Prayer that enabled his brain to engage and began a slow   process of emerging from the coma.

This prayer has power… it has the power to change you and me and to heal and transform the world.   Let's take care to listen each time we pray the words “Our Father who art in heaven…”

July 8, 2007