As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. – Ephesians 4:1-6

As promised, today I’m posting a link to Rebekah’s sermon from Sunday, July 13. She took a break from the “Judges” summer sermon series in order to address some of the controversy surrounding the recent General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church – PC(USA).

Of course (as is often the case with public discussion), there has been a lot of misinformation, over-generalization, fabrication, and obfuscation. Rebekah’s message, in my estimation, cuts through the distractions, the divisiveness, and the politics, placing the focus of our attention on:

• the Good News of Jesus,
• the unifying nature of God’s spectacular initiative of love,
• the central thrust of the Gospel, which is the invitation to be reconciled to God and the imperative to reconcile the world to God.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation – 2 Corinthians 5:17-19

THE MESSAGE: So here is the message – just click on this link “Rebekah’s Sermon, July 13” (I’d also recommend the entire series on Judges, beginning June 15). What is remarkable about her words, and – I believe – essential, is the fact that she never takes her eyes off of Jesus.

This is the message of the ministry of Wake Forest Presbyterian Church, in a nutshell. We stand in the middle of a messy, sin-saturated, secular culture; and we stand for Jesus. We stand for God’s invitation to enjoy a redemptive, hope-filled, promise-laden, restored relationship. And we stand as a forgiven people, charged with love, and motivated by that love to reach out with compassion into our community.

This is our mission statement: “Rooted in Christ; Growing together in faith; Reaching out to others.”

The second scripture Rebekah referenced in her message comes from Mark’s Gospel; it is the heart of what Jesus considered to be “The Most Important“:

One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”

“Well said, teacher,” the man replied. “You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”

When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And from then on no one dared ask him any more questions. – Mark 12:28-34

You can click here if you want to hear it directly from Rebekah: “The Most Important Thing.“

Peace and blessings – DEREK