xe = \\ ev sia You} Yo: * ~ tim A2—e gy

ms, 4 +S T

gat ta chapler or . hae oon, tl cs haber =e wa ot

your £ . es ey ee nm.

? > ©! 5 -* oS = ew 3 a. o a
& if Laken Prom What Magnt pe caret He mest
i wt + : fe yy 4}. es
empontant ehanton int HB.\ Paul's letter to lthe Gor, wre weitten
BP GEC Le oT W LULSNn

ver2l] years before the Gos
BES:

vO the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.\ Sertainiw Paul oRaces this clortous
a = hf. no oes arte
|
- ee ik e: = :
event av une eenter of the Gospel message and the life of the Church Line

words that hav

sO Whe gives us

oe a
Henge

x se ee Mine a tee
first thinker to consider the ood news of Jest

a & :
earoetematdasltiw ore : " > Mint pt 4
it Systematically and logically.\ Thia is an
esac

re
“ts oo 4 c mcs r. fF es 4 Fit ay m ; aes ¥ | 1
SY has g oa 3 e t L, ehh . Eis TACL di 2 SOMme wei a OE ret insult
et ¢3 thi Fi wa fy r Bea 1} 1 pi cd bo WSs Ea a hi ." a) mo f + q + 4
WA REARS Of FOUL 2S a man oF theology alone~-al man of words, and let it

|
Cy 2B c chet Baw Beis] Wwapoacs twats teat at 7 H 4 ‘ i ‘
SY Be Gets | OP Saul, wWoras Inevitably led to pete;:| beliefs were trans-
tt

em “ Saeeiae
Tatar - ™ 1 4 4 7 * | é
= fi a Wey Ta oat Fay eye 1 Ins ie erat =r
7s og es wt 6G > elie Wet ihe oy ealling on tine Oo i Pee pel LE Ve ay G0ine
icici | ME anaes
= ab sg i i ot : a = aia L. Pad
somtang. | For Psul the Christian life was a synithesis of ideas, theqglogical

= =

ey res — - Tae x a ae ey 4 PAA ete ee ts 4 2
move rom Hiasurrection to money; for him, to belive

MAS HiwPanacotée WE Peck me saeid Giccdlms sgdcost . ‘
2-525 Juxtoposition of believing and doing or giving is every bit as

F

important for modern Christians to understand ag it was for the let Cent

Hhys miatr tes = Wat cs 1 a4 a sqrt 4 i“ 4 oe a a o Tete ol
che wea > aet.\ Falth , L@48% according to Paul, is that special 1
omnes
ie ges 2 4 1 4 1
OF lief that eannoet b
—

the rey) everyday world

No betterillustration of the difficult oubndry we are in can be found
“ m7 >
than the N.T. commend to love one's neighbor.| No one with a grammar shhocl

eeaueintance with the Bible could say thst a Christian is free to love

or hate another min a

#

oO
oO
°
3
ery
=
C3
c
3

to how he feels at the nonent.\ Time after tim

Jesus told his disciples that the way to love God was to love men. {When he
a 7

was asked ®bout the identity of the neighbor to!) be loved, he made it celar

that even the most offensive person is our neighbor--and as Christians

we have ne option but to loge him. \ The lst lettr of John is a little more
cirect; \"If anyone says; "I love God" and hates|)his brother, he i ar."
we veda ov

And yet today we think nothing of giviee wrath on this group or that;

att

ca
js

a l

we think nothing of giving our assent to a philosophy of hatred for members

$* om ae 2 2 — Say pes ai = a PS " "
of another race; we think rothing of doing this|and then walking into

a

jing VI believe in Jesus Christ, His ony Son our ee

Apparently, to the modern Christian, faith and [life are two separate
a oo

entities, having nothing to do with each other, |\ Faith exists up here in
Ss

the mind, or in the heart or wherever you want ito place it--and it stays

a vid
there .\ Life goes on--as if it really didn't exttet .\"the Churech--once

| os ee
'

the fortress of men who would die for their faith--onee that communion
—_—_—_——t . } a

of Saints about whom it was written; Onward Christian soldiers, going forth

i

to war" wrt kk now finds itself harboring vast] throngs of rligious and

3
|

moral pacifists.| Instead of seeing the Church as that institution which

by its very nature has to do with economics, politics, the race question,
—— — -—

nity and honesty in the pyblic realm, the church
Ses. |

member today insists that his v8 that his church stay out of these thngs and confine

—

public morality, inte

as

itself to religion. eligion here being a set bs beliefs that have nothing

to do with life,

This pacif ism has been brewing in our churches, and in our culture.

| | pest -net tA Che re -
for a long cine. | And against it has risen up ae movement of activists.
ee, activist
These

people are genera lly called nee their faith is tht

Truth is not a mental concept, an eternal reality to be hallowed and talked

a

about and wors hipped .\ Rather truth is very cown to earth and concrete--

GQ vryetu
truth is something that transpires when 3 cara ee integrity. Goodness is
— —_—.._
not a virtue sealed in books and prayers ira ther |goodness is something men. do
~— Weed tion Was Ac
ye? to each other. | The First Christian iliac ae ie was the man who serie Givi -|
We Ajo UBe doers of the word and not hearers only." ) dale ot others there —fottene

Christiaity as . fonee dinving them inte—-—tHfe-of

ipation in the warla Such 5 ma 5

ie
0

ae who reminds himself of the true option —in nad paeeeereco

are “IOvely, dark -and Swap ernie Ihave many mi fa

Paul Tillich the great Christian Philosopher seems it up when he

says: | Truth is seomthing new, somthing which is done by God in history, anc

because of this, something which is done in the individual léfe.| Truth

is a stresm of life, centered in Christ, actualized in everybody who is

connected with him, organized in the Assembly gf God, the church.| In

et

Christianity truth is found if it s€ done, and idone if it is found. )

|

his question of doing the truth, of doing the work of Christianity

gets very specific when we begin to talk about money .\ Money is part of

the real world--the world we try to keep separatefrom our faith. \ aust as we

ee

want to love God while hating our neighbor, so we want to call ourselves

Chrstians while giving an infiitesimal amount of our money to the practical

doing of Christianity.\ When the Legions of Rome swept up through the

continent of Europe, bringing the Barbarian tribes under Roman rule, it

ne

Was their practice to Bantise the Franks and the Gauls and the Goths into

the Christian Faith. | Now these were not praticularly peace loving people.

Human life was of little value; and it wags terminated et the slightest prova
a oe

es

al The Barbarians realized, however, that their Baptism by immersion

Was supposed to make them new men; and one of those things which would be

¢ hanged would be their enthusiastic dispatching of one another.

And so they would carry their battle axes into ‘the river with them_and as

they were immersed hold their right arms and axes high in the air; to

prevent that part of them from being changed. | They would then emerge as
~ kee te _—_
Christians--all but “SS means of Bes cruel ion, ana life wuld go on as it

5
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inp
fe)
yt
@

We have all committed our lives to Christ;, wrte-set-allof ue have

heen emersed, we have promised to live as new men; to become Christ's faithf

disciples till our life's end..\ I suppose a11 of us_have held something

back as we entered our relationship to Christ through his Church dewithhela

something; something that we didn't want changed by the Gospe1\ Obviously

=

3
some of us have held our politics out of the water; verhaps it was our

economics; if you will alow me to stretch the metaphor, certainly a lot

—

of us have held our wallets and pocket books high and saia (“Take me Lordg--

all I am is yours, all, that is, but this; this) is mine. After I've

used this as I want to use it I'll see that you; get a little of what's left

Sienna

over," >

Ancé so when we talk about money in the ces ti we are really talking

—

about practical Christianity; \and practical Christianity is true faith--

a faith that exists, not in an ivory tower--or @ quiet sanctuary, but in

the give and a&ake of every day ire .\ People regent hearing talk about

i

money from the pulpit--and essentially it is a le mate complaint--

but a deeper resentment ought to be over the fa¢t that it is necessary. |

bits asad commentsny_on_oup faith whee the-hiseh ef geen ist 0.
!
beg—tor—nenci+to—_eateyont ite pen, one, | dilemma is erystallized in the

following paragraph written by Josep h M¢Cabe:

"You can't scold them into thi S, for if yau do, shat -_ raise money;
but it will not be Christian Stewardship, You dan't shame people into this,
for then you are really encouraging subtle foum of seit leine sa. for they
Will give in order to be free from their cense 4? 2 You musn't pressure
s20ple * Late 3 1 ll devises and
methods of raising money within the ¢ not for unded on man's

esponse to the Gospel will go to pieces on the jrock of man's selfishness."
F : |

right back where we began--

Where does that leave ova (oan It leaves

with St. Paul announcing the Resur ection of Jesus Christ and in the same

breath urging the Cor. to give their money for the poor in Jerusatem. | As

we draw near to Campaign Sunday, this is my appeai.\ Our pledges to the work
ST ——_—$—— ss | eee nenneeenneme

of the Church--an¢e to the New Buiding ougt not to be given in resent, or

—

in shame; your church should not have to feel nesitatnt to ask you.| To -

gether, we should see the realtively simple act of signing a pledge card--

as the natural sequence to the affirmations we ma ffe on Sunday morning.
a

When Ged acted his love became inearnate dn a man .\ Likewise our love
? ne

for God mus ‘ bee come incarnate--it must break out of the realm of the

theoretical and become real in the lives we si (allies in our Participation

in the work of the Church, \ This is the only valid basis for your support
|

of the Building Fund and the Church program; and it is to that basis
|

re

that I appeal.| Because God has acted for us--im an outpouring of love and

life, we will act in grateful response. |

sana

In our concluding moments this morning T went to talk to you very
eee, ———

frankly about the project we are about to enter. \ I will not have another

opportunity. | I want briefly to point out what fit will mean to be a part
of the Building of a new church,

In a very real sense

» Money pledged to iy Nea fund will not be

Given away, but money inwested ‘\ For our dollars we will see wood, brick
— ey, —————

anc mortar; for our money we will get a building. \na building that will be

our Church; a building that will open up new horizons for the church

proaran.| We need more space for cn. 2a.) suitaing Fd. dollars will buy that
—_—_—_—_

enaon.| We need a larger congregation--building| fund dollars will put us

in a better position to serve more people.

a |
Money given to the Church this.all is money invested in the children
woe ’ :

who will use that building: money invested in our community.| Moner=eiven

—_______

tothe Church. this—fat4-wid++be—_inyestediin the-vital Work we are doing in
————,

ourcommanity : | Money given to the church this fall will be invested in the

vital work wax our church is doing throughout the worid.\ Giving money
ee

to the Church ) is a means through which you and | can participate directly

in doing the word of God here, and in Africa, and in Asia; in outposts

of merey and love throughout the world .| You and I cannot travel to all

these places; but we can be there, through our @ollars which make the

work possible.

—_

4

You know we Americans are willing to pay for what we really want | As
1 ° =

a nation we are going to pay some 30 Billions of dollars to put 2 man on
; |

the moon. Now I can't even comprehend that much money, but an editorial

i

by James Reston in the N.Y. Times helped me to understad What the money
it
could ao..| 30 billion dollars would do the following: it would give a 10%

v

raise in salary for 10 years to every teacher ih the v8.3 it would give
——,

10 million to each of 200 cotleges,| tt would finance seven year fellowships

at 4,000 a year for 50,000 scientists ena enginge ers;| it would buid and

more vermanent t Rockefeller

uy

endow 52 new universities | it would cfeate

foundations and after doing all this there would still be 100 million left

— ——

over,'

The purpose of this illustration is not to; question the wisdom of

the venture, although it does automatically for|me .| Rather it is to show
_ pcb Aman ma

|
that as 3 nation we are willing to pay for What) we vatue| when we are

detrmined to do something--we do it whatever it,costs us,

_————

In this building program we are not talking about 30 billion collars,

or the American people {| but we are talking about this congregation of 150

peopte.| We are asking that each one give serious consideration to what
—————

really matters--asrd how far we are Willing to &G@ to orovide for it.| We

—__,

|
have been as specific as our plans would allow us to be;
this new Church will be built if each member fanity gives 3 cents out of

every earned dollar A ite have said that the work jof Jesus Shrist can continue
as

we have said that

through this Church for another 2 cents out of gach dollar.) I cannot feel
—_e—,

thet this is excessive

- 2
-

lt will also be Thanksgiving

28 the Bide. sees 2 1896 of thie very significant convergence the

ession has decided that we should celebrate the Sacrament of Holy Com. o

that day. \It is =» time for considering God's goodness and offering our

—_—X—_—_—_——— # a
a * T — =

Tharnlkecivine mF wae |
anksgiving. | is 9 time to look forward to God's greatest act of piva
. fae Co She Set Le ay a ins
a

: hipt ia oot 4 4
the birth of Jesus christ .\ ‘nd it is 2° time to recall that Jesus Christ
3 ne a1) sus t

i

gave himself freely and comoletely for us
_ ie ae eal

i

‘S we approach this week, let ue one irpelv
» let us Open ourpelves to the full weight

or h ac oath € Fat - 4 TAt x |
of these events.| Let us Joyfully affirm our pbiier \ With the Anostle
ht ipostle,

meredilol
let us sine anew t * aseeiealabede 1
s ing anew the i rey good news thet God has visited hie
d hi:

repeat 2 Pg MR oe sad 1 |
pveetion.| ne then, hearing the “‘postle let ut follow through with the
i Ll Ug AF JO OO bg tees +b ile

Navurai Sscuence of Faith; embeipeSeeeteememmice Let sé
5 : eS J WEL US £e

a ttt eee

4.1, + + i
Chis Project

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