Preaching in the Prophetic Key: HMPC Today

Preaching in the Prophetic Key I: HMPC Today

May 8, 2005

Psalm 68: 32-35; Acts 13: 16 – 31

Psalm 68, our Old Testament Reading for today, begins with the admonition that the peoples should “Sing to God!” We should be joyous and grateful – we should sing to God! From where I sit, that seems as good a starting point for the mission of the church as any that I know.

In the event that you have never heard this, or even If you didn’t know this existed our church has a mission and a mission statement. A little later this morning you’ll hear Tom Cordle during our congregational meeting read our mission statement our church has a mission statement that folks approved back when you all were searching for me. The Mission statement of HMPC is as follows:

Mission Statement of Howard Memorial Presbyterian Church:

Howard Memorial Presbyterian Church is a group of persons united in the belief that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior. Our mission is to worship, serve and love God so that we may grow in faith and live lives which are pleasing to God.

To fold this back into the first statement I made this morning, we might say that in worshipping, serving, and loving God, in growing in faith and living God-pleasing lives we are singing a great and wonderful song of praise to God. In fact, we have been doing just this is various ways now here in Tarboro for 131 years since our founding in 1874.

II.

Today in our worship and at our congregational meeting we are going to talk about where we are as a church as a way to begin to imagine together where it is that God wants us to go. In having this conversation this we are going to talk about “mission” and “mission” statements.

Mission is a complex word that for most of the modern era has referred to “what we do for others” – bringing the gospel to Africa, digging wells in the desert, etc… Mission, though, is and was a far more complex idea than that. Mission is from the Latin missio which means “sending.” So when we talk about our mission as a church what we are asking really is: where is God sending us? Into what new areas of ministry? Into what new practices of worship? Into what new challenges in Education and Bible Study? The question about mission implies and suggests that we are interested in knowing what the practices and behaviors, the kind of ministries, we should be involved in and with as we set the table and lay the foundation for the next 131 years of this place.

The question before us: Where will God send us next?

III.

Now I don’t know how many of you are navigators – either armchair or trained. But regardless of the total number of navigators in our church, anyone who has ever navigated can tell you that to chart a course to anywhere, or anyplace, one needs at least three points of reference.

1. An origin – you have to know where you are starting.

2. A destination – you have to know where you are going; and if not exactly a point of destination, then at the least one must have an approximation of and a direction towards where you are going.

3. A point of reference – some constant that was consistently constant at both the origin and the destination (so that when, during your return trip your original origin becomes your destination you have some idea as to where you are going). Old navigators of seas and such used the North Star as their constant – it was very consistent just as it still is.

In the church our point of reference, our constant is God. At Howard memorial our point of reference is specifically that mission statement – which talks about how we are going to approach God in our practices and common devotions. It is a fixed point on the horizon.

Here at Howard Memorial, our origin point is where we have been until now. It is how we were founded, it is the practices of this place over the years have shaped and guided who we were and who we were becoming.

Finally we get to our destination – the exact details of which remain to be seen. But, just like old-time navigators, we can get some idea, some direction, of where we might go by affixing the first two points on our charts.

IV.

Now, to be sure, thinking about the future is never easy. There is always a little risk involved: What if we choose the wrong point? What if the path we choose is misguided and rife with obstacles? What if our zeal for what is to come is not respectful of the past that shaped us thus far?

While this is true enough, that discussions about the future always bear some risk, I think it is equally true that the opposite risk is greater – the risk that comes with never discussing what is to come and never charting a course to new and enlivening destinations. This opposite is what I call the “The Sandlot Syndrome” where everything is unknown.

If you have never seen the movie “The Sandlot” then you have missed out on something special and wonderful. If you have seen it then you know the story: the boys of summer playing baseball everyday in the sun; the prized collectors baseball hit over the fence; the HUGE dog – the biggest dog, the largest junkyard dog you’ve ever seen. The boys spend the whole movie trying to get the ball back from the dog-giant; elaborate schemes leading to depressing failures. In desperation they finally go over, and when they do have the courage to peer over the fence and meet the dog and its owner, they see that the dog is not so big after all – he’s just a dog -- and the Junk Yard guy is a baseball fan and would’ve gotten the ball back in an instant if only they would have asked. He turns out to be a great man. Only they never knew any of this before because they never had the courage to look over the fence and get beyond the limits of where they already were.

There is an old saying that goes, “If you don’t know where you have been, how can you know where you are going?”

Another one – “Those who do not know their own history are doomed to repeat it, and those who do are able to build the triumphs of tomorrow on the successes of yesterday.”

The first two steps in discerning a vision and charting a course for the future are 1) understanding where we have been and where we are today; and 2) mustering up the courage and the conviction to believe that God’s future for our church is as remarkable and rich as any time we could imagine – knowing that we go over the fence with excitement and anticipation.

VI.

This is what Paul is doing in Acts 13. He is preaching in the Synagogue at Antioch in Pisidia and there he essentially he tells the story of the Jewish people – the Patriarchs, the prophets, the law, the kings. Paul, like the Pharisee he was, retraces the steps that have allowed them, the Jews, to enjoy the day that they are enjoying.

Take note of what Paul is doing: 1) He sets for them the reference point – the God of Israel who chose, who elected, and who called their ancestors. 2) He talks of the ancestors themselves – their achievements and their contributions to the people; he talks of those upon whose backs they stand and in so doing he lets them know where they have been. 3) And all the while in this sermon he is pointing them to where they are being called – to Christ and to the resolution of their faith.

Paul is preaching here in the prophetic key – describing the past as a foundation for where they are, setting a reference point for who they are, and then in the same breath offering a challenge as to where they ought go next.

Following then Paul’s example: we have our reference point – a combination of our God, Christ’s gospel, and our mission statement; so, by assessing where we have been and where we are today we can understand our starting point as we look forward to coming years of ministry; we can begin to ascertain where we at Howard Memorial are “being sent” next – we can answer the question: what is our mission as a congregation going to look like?

VII.

So in an attempt to understand the foundation of past and present upon which we stand as we look ahead, here are some fast facts about who and where we are:

Briefly – Howard Memorial was founded in 1874. We are enjoying our 131 year of ministry in this town. Throughout that time we have been an asset and a blessing to our community as we have striven to make our witness to Christ with integrity and energy.
Today we have 336 or so members (+/- a few), with 390 or so total members and adherent – unconfirmed children are an example of adherent.
Last year we began the year with 331 members and we ended with 331 members – our net losses and gains were the same. This is key, because it means that unlike 2003 when our church gained 5 members and lost 13 members (net loss of 8), 2004 suggests that that trend is about to reverse. For 2005 we have had 2 membership losses and 7 new members thus far. Thus we are plus 5 for today.
For the last few decades, Howard Memorial Presbyterian church has been in membership decline. I am not so worried about this as it reflects overall trends in our denomination (the PCUSA has lost 40% of its members over last 30 years) and in our town. There are churches though, that are growing despite trends, and I hope and pray we can be one of them and counted in their number.
Your pastor has been here one year, and stands in the pulpit where some of the most influential pastors in our denomination, and our old denomination the PCUS once stood. Those that have gone before me included hymn writers, members of the mission board, and those who were famous for their stand for justice.
From amongst you all the membership of our church – we have had moderators of Presbytery, ladies heavily involved in Presbyterian women, and all sorts of folks who have been involved in the church at its highest levels.
In past years we have survived changes in ministers, the turmoil of the reunion of the denominations into the denomination that we have today, a change from a bicameral church structure to a unicameral church structure, and a flood of near biblical proportions in 1999.
Our budget is growing. Giving is up in every category and our church will have financial opportunities to make significant missional impact in the coming year.
Our staff is growing as we search for a new church educator and begin discussions about youth and community ministry.
Worship attendance is up for the year over last year and we enjoyed very high attendance during Christmas, Easter, and Lent.
Youth attendance is up and during the summer months we will be sharing in a variety of ministries with our young people that include a mission trip to Charlotte and a return to the Montreat Youth Conference...
Registrations for vacation bible school are up. We are offering a spate of summer programs for children.
Sunday school attendance is slightly up and some gains are noted. We are starting a new adult Sunday School class in the fall and this summer we begin summer Sunday School on a slightly limited schedule.
The Mission Committee of our church is currently undergoing a study about a foreign mission trip to learn and grow with brothers and sisters in faith in another country and culture.

My friends, I could keep listing strengths and gains for some time. The news around here is mostly good. We stand on strong legs. Our pillars are rooted deeply in this soil.

The past has been good and we are positioned well for today to enact our mission.

VIII.

Next week, preaching from Acts 13: 23 – 31, we will look at where that mission might be leading us. We do not define it so much as it defines us. Celebrating a grand past and sharing the strength of today is a good start, and a necessary exercise. Talking about the future, our next sending will be much more difficult.

Howard Memorial Presbyterian – where is God calling us, sending us, leading us to most completely enact and embody our mission and share Christ with the world and our community?