Lost Paragraph from Sunday’s Sermon
Here is a lost paragraph from my sermon on Sunday. The text for the day was Micah 6:1-8. Parts of this paragraph made it into the final text, but not in the structure below. The sermon was titled, “The Minimum”.
I think believers ask about the minimum because many are looking for a guarantee or at least an explanation of the expectations. We know what that sounds like: “How long does the paper have to be? Do I need to vacuum under my bed or just around it? How much can I claim of this business expense on my taxes? How many meetings does this committee have a year? How much diversity is enough in our schools to qualify for federal funding?” That has everything to do with our motivation, and motivation is where I think the Church, the universal Church, its ministers, theologians, councils, creeds, and critics have done a disservice for the followers of Jesus because we have placed the emphasis of faith on a Christological guarantee for living as a believer, rather than focusing on the living Jesus of Nazareth who made justice happen, loved through kindness, and walked humbly with his God. I think that’s the minimum.