Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and Jesus Christ the Lord and Savior. Amen.
This congregation is blessed with an abundance of gifts. The challenge comes in identifying, discerning, nurturing, and encouraging the gifted to serve together as God intends.
This challenge is not unique to us. Working together in community is a challenge that has existed since the church began. Paul wrote to the believers in Corinth because they were struggling with this issue. He also addressed problems with this same challenge with the Ephesians and the Romans. Being difficult did not diminish their call to meet that challenge.
We are the Body of Christ and are called to serve God and neighbor in this particular time and place. We all have different gifts as individuals. We face the challenge to foster an environment that lifts up gifts to do God’s work in community. It is daunting. It is risky. Being difficult does not diminish our call to meet that challenge.
The Gospel according to Matthew concludes with both a mission and a promise for the eleven. Jesus issued the mission: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19a). He then bestowed the promise, “remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20b) We too, as individuals and as a community, have received both Christ’s command to and His promise. Our mission is to make disciples. Our strength and guidance is the God who abides with us.
We do not face the challenge of being the church in this time and place alone. We rely on God and we rely on one another. “For as in one body we have many members and not all the members have the same function, 5 so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another.” (Romans 12:4-5) God surrounds us with a whole host of believers and knits us all into one body. “We must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.” (Ephesians 4:15b-16) United in Christ, we all participate in God’s mission.
Let us gather our gifts, go out, and make disciples. God is with us to empower and guide us until the end of the age.
The grace and peace which surpasses all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
In Christ,
Pastor Carla
