!1 "JOURNEYING TO THE PROMISED LAND (#2): TEAMWORK" (Exodus 19:1-8, 14) 2017 Rev. Dr. Brian E. Germano [LaGrange First U.M.C.; 3-19-17] --I-- 1. Read Text: Exodus 19:1-8, 14. Pray. 2. [TELL LINUS-LUCY STORY...] In one of the "Peanuts" cartoons, Lucy walks into her den, where her brother Linus is watching TV, and demands that he change the channel. So Linus asks,"what makes you think you can walk right in here and take over?" And showing her hand, Lucy responds, "These five fingers. Individually they're nothing, but when I curl them together like this into a single unit, they form a weapon that is terrible to behold." To this, Linus replies, "Well, which channel do you want?" Then, turning away and looking at his own fingers, he "Why can't you guys get together like that?" 1 3. Now, we might chuckle at Lucy's pretense & Linus' bumbling, but the fact is that this story illustrates the two main ways that we as human beings tend to engage the world around us: either individually/by ourselves; OR together with others. A--Well, last week we began a new sermon series called Journeying To The Promised Land, in which we're using the story of Israel's journey/trek to the promised land to suggest some of the things that we might need along our journeys towards the respective "promised lands" of our lives, both individually and corporately. B--And while we talked last week about the importance of Faith in the presence of God, today I want us to focus on the thing that Lucy reminds us we'll need if we're to reach our "promised lands": TEAMWORK -- understanding the importance of working together with others, rather than trying to "go it alone." --II-- 4. Today's scripture from Exodus 19 illustrates this very thing. A--Here we read about how God led the people of Israel out of Egypt and into the wilderness, where Moses ascends Mt. Sinai to receive instructions about how they are to reach the "Promised Land." B--But notice that when Moses comes back down, rather than just telling them what to do, Verse 7 says that Moses "...called together the people's elders, & set before them all these words that the Lord had commanded him..."
1--In other words, instead of being a "lone ranger" leader (like our culture idolizes today) Moses basically said, "Look, I've heard from God what we need to do, but I'm not going to try to do it all by myself. I need your help. I need YOU be my TEAM!" 2--And then notice in Verse 8 that "The people all responded with one voice: 'Everything that the Lord has said we will do,'" and then in Verse 14 it says that after reporting all this back to God, "Moses went down the mountain to the people [and] made sure their they were holy/consecrated..." -- 3--...Again basically saying,"though I'm your leader, we're going to stand and succeed OR falter and fail together as a team!" C--Moses, you see, knew that success in life is not accomplished by "lone rangers" who try to handle life's challenges by themselves, but by those who are willing to surround themselves with others who can help them face these together! 5. The whole Bible, in fact, is a book about the power of teamwork. A--For one, teamwork reflects the very nature of God, as seen in the concept of the "Holy Trinity": that God is a team of Father, Son, & Holy Spirit (Creator, Redeemer, Sustainer). B--Consider, also, the many examples of famous "heroes" of the Bible whose success was not due to their "American work ethic" (i.e., their rugged individualism, "pulling themselves up by their bootstraps"), but to their teamwork with others: 2 1--For example, besides Moses and the "elders" of Israel, consider the stories of... Noah and his family, -------> Moses and Aaron, Joshua and Caleb, -----------> Ruth and Naomi, Ezra and Nehemiah, --------> Simeon and Anna, Mary and Martha, -----------> Peter and John, Paul and Barnabas, ----------> Paul and Timothy, Paul and Silas, ---------------> Acquilla and Priscilla, and many others! 2--Remember, too, that teamwork was at the very heart of Jesus' own ministry. After all, even the Son of God didn't try to save the world by himself, but instead gathered a few ordinary but willing people to help (the "Disciples"). 3 C--My point in all of this is that "teamwork" is not some new-fangled idea from today's secular business world, but, in fact, originated with God himself, and has been used by people of faith for thousands of years. 6. So what, then, does all of this have to do with you & me today? Well, several things: --III--!2
7. First of all, from an INDIVIDUAL perspective, I think this means that if you and I are to successfully reach the "promised lands" of our lives, then we need to learn how to accept help and care from others who're on the same journey with us. A--You know, many of us (even as Christians) struggle unnecessarily with the pains and hurts and challenges in life either because we're too proud or too afraid to accept help from God or anyone else. 1--How many times have we all heard the phrase, "God helps those who help themselves"? But it's a myth! 2--The Bible doesn't teach that! Instead, it teaches that "God helps those who are willing to BE helped & those who are willing to help OTHERS." B--Most of us probably know John Donne's famous saying, "No one is an island" -- like it or not, we humans are integrally connected with one another, and so, if we're to survive the struggles & challenges of life, then we need our relationships w/others. 4 C--In our individual and personal lives, for example, this might mean that... 1--If we're struggling with a broken marriage or other relationship, perhaps it means us being willing to get up the nerve to go talk to a pastor or marriage counselor and let them guide us to find healing in our relationship(s) again. 2--If we're struggling with loneliness or grief after a loss, or just having a hard time with life, then instead of trying to "gut it through" on our own, perhaps we need to be willing to accept the help and care of one of our church's Stephen Ministers who'll confidentially walk with us through our challenge. 3--If we're struggling with an addiction of some sort, then rather than trying to break its chains alone and by ourselves, maybe we need to be willing to get the help of a support group ministry here at our church or elsewhere. D--My point is that "teamwork" from an individual perspective means each of us being willing to BE helped BY, and to OFFER help TO, others along life's journeys. 8. And from a CORPORATE/GROUP perspective, I think "teamwork" has a similar meaning -- that we be willing to work together towards a common vision or goal. A--For instance, it means that effective leaders understand (like Moses in today's story) that -- far from being a threat -- delegating and including others in our work is actually the very best way to get our group to their "promised land." 5 B--In a church, for example, it means that ministry is the responsibility of ALL of our church's members, NOT just of the pastors, staff, or elected leadership.!3
1--Some of you may know that that's why I don't refer to myself as a the "Senior Minister" of our church -- it's because while I may be your Sr. "Pastor", every one of us is a "minister" (the word simply means "one who serves" = all of us!) 2--And if that's so, then it means that every church member here at LaGrange First UMC (not just some) needs to be serving/volunteering in some sort of ministry. 3--It means that every member (not just Blake & I) has the responsibility of caring for and looking after our fellow church members, and every member (not just the Evangelism Committee) is called by God to invite others to worship, Sunday School, & other church events. 4--It means that every member and friend is called to give their financial resources for the work of God's church (not just the?% who currently do). C--Another way of saying all this is that biblical teamwork means that you & I cannot be an effective, growing, mature Christian without being actively involved in our church. 1--Maybe you've heard it said before: "A Christian without a church is like......a soldier without an army,...a student who won't go to school,......a citizen who won't vote,... a child without a family,......a drummer without a band,...a ballplayer without a team......a honeybee without a hive,... a coal without a fire,......a scientist who doesn't share the findings with colleagues,..." 2--[And my favorite of all:] "A Christian without a church is like having a party all by yourself!" 3--You see, imperfect though the church is (because it's made up of human beings), we need it and the relationships with others that it offers in order to be and become the kind of Christians God wants us to be. --IV-- 9. The bottom line is that for the people of Israel to reach their "Promised Land", they had to learn to act as a "team" -- as Verse 8 says, to "respond as one voice." A--For US as individuals today (and for us as a church here at LaGrange FUMC), if we want to reach the "promised lands" of OUR future, then WE (like the Israelites) will also need to practice "teamwork." B--So my prayer is that whatever "promised land" you are seeking, you will allow others through your church to help you -- to be your "team" from God to achieve success and victory along life's journey.!4
10. [PRAYER: "Lord, we know you've called us to face and tackle the challenges and struggles of our present and future. Forgive us for the times we've tried to accomplish things for you, for our church, for our ministries, for our families, and even for our jobs as "lone rangers," in our OWN strength alone. We know that not only are you a God of teamwork, but that you call us to accomplish your will in our world through teams, as well. Help us to draw on the "team" strength and power of the Holy Spirit made available through others as we follow you through all of life. In Jesus name we pray, Amen."] 11. [Suggested Traditional Service Closing Hymn: UMH #558, "We Are The Church"] ENDNOTES:!5 1 Bruce Shelley, What Is The Church, p. 38. 2 The the so-called "American work ethic" (e.g., us "pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps") is NOT all that its cracked up to be. While there's nothing wrong with encouraging good, honest, hard work, sometimes life doesn't reward that work; it isn't always fair. So, its really a myth to think that if we just work hard enough by ourselves then we'll be successful and reach our "promised land" -- sometimes there are forces beyond our control that prevent this! 3 Jesus equipped them to continue his work by preaching & teaching and healing in his name, and then gave them His Holy Spirit as power and assurance of his continued presence and support in that endeavor. In other words, just like we discussed Moses learning to delegate last Sunday, so Jesus knew how to delegate, as well. Though he may have had the power to do so, Jesus didn't just hand down "ultimatums from above," but instead worked to build consensus based upon the will and vision of GOD, then equipped them for the task of continuing his work. 4 For example, that's the very reason why God created not only marriage but also the family -- so that we wouldn't have to struggle through life alone. 5 As I've heard it said before, "Teamwork means that leaders are willing to give away power, and followers are willing to take it up!" Leadership consultant John Maxwell says that "Your candle loses nothing when it lights another" (John C. Maxwell, The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader, p. 58). "Power and leadership gifts multiply when shared" (Lovett Weems, Wesleyan Leadership, p. 68). In other words, the more power I give away as a leader, the more my share of power actually grows and increases. "Innovations sometimes succeed best when they have no obvious author" (Clark Kerr, cited in Weems, Church Leadership, p. 85) How many times have I seen church leaders get in a "tizz" because they think that the ministry or program that they lead is "theirs," & therefore have to jealously guard & protect it because no one else can do it right but them! Author Letty Russell calls this the "zero sum" game: "I have certain amount of the power 'pie,' you have the rest, and if I increase my share, yours will decrease" (Letty Russell, Church In the Round). Yet, far from hoarding power and being a "long ranger," Lovett Weems once said that "A good leader makes heroes out of many people" (Lovett Weems, Church Leadership, p. 85).