It's Not Basy to Be a Christian
John 14:18-27
May 25 — Communion

I'm disturbed. On this gentle May Sabbath I'm disturbed as I haven't
been for some time. I share with you a very deep concern about the action of the
General Assembly of the United Presbyterian Church, mecting last week in San Antonio.
I am disturbed by the response to those actions which I have heard from the com—
munity, from members of other Presbyterian churches and from the members of this
congregation, But mostly I'm disturbed by two questions that are asked by the
General Assemblies' action and the people's response: "What binds us together as
Christian persons?" Does anything? Are we bound together in any way that is
different from the inter-personal relationships that prevail in, say, the P. T. A.?
The second question is this: "What binds us to the Church of Jesus Christ? Does
anything? Is there a substantial, tangible commitment to the church?

I guess I'm disturbed because the tempest in which I found myself this
week demands that those questions be confronted and answered. I operate under the
assumption that what binds us to the Church is our faith in and commitment to Jesus
Christ. I operate under the corollary assumption that the faith, and this commit—
ment, is expressed in our forgiving love and loyalty to each other. I operate
under the assumption that there is no earthly reason for our being here — our being
a congregation - other than this faith - this hove and loyalty.

The uniqueness of this faith, love and loyalty is that it either comes
first in our lives, or not at all. Faith in Jesus Christ is not conditional, I+
depends on nothing but Him. It judges all we are, every opinion we have. every
stand we take. And if it doesn't —- if it does not occupy that central position
where we live and move and have our being, we delude ourselves by calling it
Christian FAith.

And yet the church can survive on less than that: the church can exist
in society as an association of congenial people. Individuals can maintain their
church relatedness with far less than that radical trust in Jesus Christ -— so long
as no one rocks the boat; so long as no one makes the kinds of demands on them
that require giving Jesus Christ sufferance over everything else in life. It's not
difficult to be a Chritian until we come upon a week like last week.

I've heard from people last week I haven't seen in, lo, these many
months. I've heard people call their church a communist organization who haven't
bothered to worship in it -— or engage in its ministry -— or support its existence.
And I've heard from many responsible church members who are deeply concerned, and
who have asked me to speak to the situation. I have been doing that, of course,
but now I would focus on what happened and what it means. I would preface my
remarks by saying that I was as: surprised as you by the nows releases that began
last Tuesday. I have no more factual information than you; nor do I have spectacular
secrets to reveal. I have the rudimentary knowledge of how these things came
about,. and some opinions regarding the responsible approach to them.

The General Assembly meets once a year and is the highest judicatory
of our church. It is comprised of 420 ministers and 420 elders, elected as
commissioners by their Presbyterys. : The General Assembly guides, directs and
administers the work of the church. In addition it speaks to the church and the
world in its Social Pronouncements.

Social Pronouncements are, to say the least, a very sore spot with many
Presbyterians. Many believe that the church should not address itself to the world,
and I would disagree strenuously with this point of view. Apparently, so do tho
majority of commissioners to the General Assembly. Im any case, a Social Pronounce=-
ment is first drafted by the Permanent Committee on Church and Society, again a
committee representing the national church and including equal numbers of clergy
and laity. These people mect, several times a yoar, with the staff of the office
of Church and Society, to study, discuss and write the first draft papers that
will go to General Assembly.

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‘At the Assembly a standing committee on Church and Society is
appointed, again represanting all areas of the church, this committee received
the first draft proposals; studies, discusses, alters, deletes or defeats the
proposed pronouncements. After all of this, the distilled product is presented
to the whole assembly for approval or rejection.

Out of this process last woek came a position paper on Latin America,
one paragraph of which urges our government to re-establish Diplomatic Relations
with Cuba and to end the eight year old trade embargo on that nation. And be—
cause of that paragraph I am preaching this sermon.

To those of you who have disagreed with what you have read in the
paper I would say: let's wait until we have in our hands the full text of the
Latin America position paper before we question the motives of the General
Assembly. To those who feel they have reason to withdraw from the Church ~- or
to withhold money I say: let's weigh, very carefully, the implications and
effects of what we do. Frankly, I do not think it is responsible church manship
to take any kind of radical action until we have been better informed than we are
at this stage. To all the members of this congregation I would say, let's
acknowledge the discipline of listening to what our brothers in the Lord are
saying with open minds. There is nothing in the interior structure of Presby-—
terianism that requires obedience - as agreement with the pronouncements of the
General Assembly. But when we join this church we do agree to become part of a
system, and we do it seems to me, agree to be open to the ideas of our fellow
church members.

There are plans now to schedule, at the earliest possible date, a
forum to study and discuss the actions of the General Assembly. Let me urge
those of you who are concerned to take advantage of this opportunity as well.

In addition I will be more than happy to moderate a forum today - after the
coffee hour for those who wish to verbalize their feelings immediately.

Finally, may I remind you that in urging Diplomatic recognition of the
Cuban government the General Assembly is not, in any way, recommending that we
condone or approve of Fidel Castro, or Communism. In fact, the General Assembly
has recorded its unalterable opposition to Communist idcology and methodology on
several occasions. But our government does maintain diplomatic relations with
many Communist nations: to be precise — Russia, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Rumania,
Bulgaria, and Poland. Our government is, presently, in almost daily contact with
the Cuban regime through the Swiss embassy. The intent, I would presume, is to
keep the door of conversation open ‘at all times, and in addition to take a new
and creative initiative in waging peace with that unhappy nation.

Regarding the lifting of the trade embargo our church has spoken out
of a concern for individual men and women and children who are hungry. That is all.
The last Presbyterian missionary to leave Cuba, the Rev. Raymond Strong,told the
General Assembly that the trade ombargo has caused desperation among the Cuban
people. It has also given the Communist leaders of Cuba a convenicnt excuse for
their own inadequacies. Eight Roman Catholic Bishops in Cuba recently requested
the same action "for humanitarian reasons" and the action of the General Assembly
may be seen as supportive of their witness in this regard.

So much for Cuba. I would welcome your comments, your concern, your
ideas. ;

The General Assembly algo took action to channel money into and
raise money for the economic improvement of minority groups in our own nation. |
James Forman, militant head of the new National Black Economic Development con-
ference, who in past weeks has disrupted worship services at several large churches
and taken over the offices of our Board of National Mission in New York was in-
vited to address the Assembly. He presented th> ~ov famous "Black Manifesto".

On Friday I received a special comminication from the Moderator of the General
Assembly to all pastors explaining what happened. I wish to share part of it
with you. "This invitation in no way impliod any approval of Mr. Forman's program

and methods or of the "Black Manifest’ of which he is a chief mover. This mani-
festo obviously contains much that is impossible and much to which our Church must
be unalterably opposed. But James Forman is att present the most disturbing critic
of the churches from the extreme militant point of view. We need to hear him;

to listen thoughtfully to him, to try to understand what he represents.

"I have received telegrams and letters protesting the bringing of Mr.
Forman to San Antonio. Many have objected to the use of church money for this
purpose. Those who wrote may not have recognized that the Assembly heard him not
because it approved of him but because it needed him. And it would be unprecedented
for a speaker to be invited to come -to address the Assembly at his own expense.

"His coming makes it possible that some will misunderstand the most
creative actions of this Assembly as occasioned by the demands of the "Black
Manifesto" or as taken hastily in fear. Tho fact is that no church money is boing
put into funds which are under the control ofMr. Forman's group. The Assembly did
what it did, through its own channels, and in its own way.

"I write this letter because much of the CHurch may be where this
Assembly was seven days ago —- uneasy, puzzled, unsure. We have ended in a
wonderful spirit of harmony and satisfaction. I am convinced that this is
nothing clse than the working of the Holy Spirit in a group of carnest, secking
Christians who were gathered together in Christ's name. My prayer is that this same
unity, this determination to do unusual things in an unusual way, this facing into
an uncertain future in joy and trust may be characteristic of our whole church.
Faithfully yours, George I. Sweazey, Moderator, 18lst General Assembly."

The Church of Jesus Christ is struggling today with a matter of life
and death - what is its role in the world? To what role is God calling his
Church? In secking to be a faithful communion, the Presbyterian Church has gone
out on a limb many times, endangering its membership and financial strength, but
only because the elected representatives of Presbyterian people have felt in
their hearts that God was calling them to a new stance of discipleship.

To atruggle with the role of the Church in the world is to begin with
the fact that it is a new kind of world - a new situation internationally - a
new set of realities domestically. The Church can decide to withdraw - to crawl
into its shell and pretend that it is still 1910. Or it can thank God for the
newness of the situation and engage it head on. I, for one, am. a Presbyterian,
because our church has consistently been alive to the world, and has tried
desperately to be guided by nothing but God's call to faithful obedience. When
we stop doing that; when we measure what we say and do. by any other standard, I
will withdraw because we will no longer have the right to call ourselves the
Church of Jesus Christ.

After all, the church does have some rather specific marching orders
as it secks to be the agent of God's love in the world. And those marching orders
do not contain warnings against tramping on toes, or offending political
ideologies, or losing lmembers or money.

I think the marching orders of Christian people are rather clear.
Listen to this paraphrase of the prophet Isaiah, written by J. Elliot Corbett,
(Prophets on Main Street, p. 66) “Have you not heard the injunction of the
Lord? If thine enemy hunger, feed him. Yet there are those among you who say,
‘Let them starve, and let hunger be the curse of Communism. Let us not show mercy
and love, but be as cold and calculating and ruthless as the enemy. Let's win
for a change! Is your memory so short? A man in Central Europe said, "Let us
waste no love on Jews, spare no mercy to captured Poles. Blot out the Bible
from your mind. The sword is more important than the Cross." That man wanted to
win, too. His name was Hitler. No, saith the Lord, do not adopt the attitudes
or ape the methods of those who hold an alien philosophy. What does it profit
you, if in the struggle with your adversary, you become identical with him? You
have your own ideals to promote, your own principles to uphold. It does not :
take fire to put out fire, but water - Living Water. Is your enemy hungry? Feed
him. «Does he slander? Bless. Is he hostile? Show friendship. Does he act

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belligerent? Be understanding. Is his mouth full of lies? .Speak the truth in
love."

This is Pontecost Sunday, the day which observes the birth of the
Christian Church. Actually, it was more of a jarring, disturbing ex»nerience
than a birthday party. The disciples were still in Jerusalem, following the
crucifixion and resureection of their Lord. They had been hiding, waiting,
perhaps planning to slip out of the city and back to their homes in Galilea. But
on Pentecost something strange and powerful happened to them. The author of the
Book of Acts describes it in terms of a rushing wind and tongues of fire. But
the essence is that a group of frightened, disillusioned men suddenly came alive
with courage and faith and commitment. Suddenly they told the story openly and
the Church was born. They went on from Jerusalem to the rest of the world and
eventually to death as martyrs.

That is the Holy Spirit experienced as a disturbing power that
provoked men to walk away from comfort and security and into the dangerous
tusiness of discipleship. But that is not all. That same Spirit drew them to~
gether and gave them a kind of peace they had never experienced before. Jesus
had promised that it would happen that way. “Peace I leave with you; my peace
I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts
‘be troubled, neither let them be afraid." (John 14;27)

That is the promise of Jesus Christ to all who would trust him and
obey him —- peace — the knowledge that one is acting honestly and rightly and in
obedience to him — "with whom we ultimately have to do." That peace is available
to you and me today, and to all who would commit themselves to Jesus Christ.

These are not easy days to be a Christian. I am reminded of the
words of Abraham Lincoln - in his first inaugural address; words I think are
supremely relevant; "The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy
present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we mst rise with the
occasion. As our case is new, so wo must think anew, and act anew. We must
disenthrall ourselves."

Those are wise and relevant words. These are not casy days; the
dogmas of the quiet past are not adequate to the stormy present. Let us
support each other as we seek for ways to obey our Lord. Let us keep talking
with each other, and disagreeing with each other, and - most of all -— loving
each other.

Let us begin here - at this table -— at this celebration of the
fact that the Risen Christ, that same Holy Spirit - is in our midst.

Alien.