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When were you born? 1955 or 65, 1942 or 72 1930 or 1990? Depending on the year, you’re part of a particular generation: there’s the lost generation after WW I, the greatest generation of WWII, or the baby boomers. If you’re born after 1965, you’re a member of Gen X or Gen Y. Madison and others born after the year 2000 are considered the “millenials.” The year we were born can shape who we are and how we live our lives. Various studies indicate that each generation has certain characteristics and perspectives: Think of the sense of duty and sacrifice for those of what we call the greatest generation, or the self-sufficiency of the baby boomers. There’s the uncertainty and desire to “live for today” of those born between 1965 and 1980, and– because of all the technology, there is strong ability to multitask of Generation Y. When were you born? Nicodemus, I think, would have a different answer: “I was born in the middle of the night!” But of course, Nicodemus is speaking about a different kind of birth, a type of birth that he learned from Jesus. It’s a birth that comes from above, From the wind of the spirit blowing where it will. The type of birth that Jesus talks about with Nicodemus and, I think, Desires for each of us, isn’t so much concerned about our physical birth or the year we were born. Jesus is talking about a spiritual rebirth, the type of birth that comes when you have an experience of coming alive – on a glorious day like today when you are filled with gratitude for all of God’s gifts. Being born from above is an experience of knowing God’s presence or power or peace in a new or deeper way, be it in a time of joy or sorrow. It’s truly understanding what it means to be a disciple – To know the joys and the costs - or feeling the spirit’s wind blow through your mind and heart bringing a fresh insight or understanding about faith. When were you born? The text reminds us that Nicodemus didn’t initially comprehend Jesus’ words and metaphors. A religious leader and teacher of the Torah, he comes to Jesus by night, hungering to know more about this man, this teacher, this rabbi who has demonstrated signs of power and wonder that surely can only come from God. Nicodemus listens to Jesus’ words, And he wonders what it all means. You can almost see him sitting the dark with a furrowed brow scratching his head. “How can you be born except from your mother?” He listens again to Jesus’ words and asks: “How can these things be?” Whenever we are confronted with a new idea or something that doesn’t fit the world the way we know it, we ask questions. It’s the way we seek greater understanding and insight and come to discern the right next step for us in life. And asking questions is exactly what we have done over the last two years as a community of faith. We have posed questions, questions that relate to the Open and Affirming process. Together, as a community, we have asked: What does it mean to be Open and Affirming? What does the Bible say? What is it like to be gay? To be the object of discrimination? How would becoming Open and Affirming affect us and life at our beloved church? During these last two years, we have discovered that there are different answers to these questions we’ve asked ourselves. We hold different interpretations of the biblical perspective on sexuality and hospitality. We have multiple understandings of what it means to affirm another’s life. Among us today, There are a variety of fears and hopes about the changes that would emerge should we become an open and affirming congregation. During these last two years, we have listened to each other – and to God as well – and we have arrived at the place of our congregational vote, the day when we decide whether or not to adopt the Open and Affirming statement as presented to the congregation in April. I have been preaching this morning standing between the font and the table, the place of the two sacraments that we celebrate as a church. This is where I stand because I believe that it is the place where each of us stands in our journey of Christian faith. Jesus says that we can be born from above many times – Indeed we need to be – And in our tradition, we are baptized only once. For most of us gathered here, Like Madison Michelle Burghoff, we have been baptized with water and the Holy Spirit. That same Spirit is with us as we discern how we will vote - individually and as a community of faith, how we think or feel God is calling us to be the church in this time and place. This is also the day, dear friends, when we journey to the table of plenty. We come like Nicodemus - hungry to know more, to feel more, to experience more of God’s presence and power and love and grace. This table is where all generations gather together: past and present, and future, too: The lost and the greatest, The boomers, the X and the Y. The table is where we gather with Christ, where we gather in Christ. where we gather in love. For in the end – and in the beginning, too - it is about love: About God’s love for the world and for each one of us – So deep and so powerful that it was made real In Jesus Christ. This is the love that saves us, that nourishes us, that changes us. This is the love we are invited to show each. Friends, we are all BORN AGAIN at the communion table! For Christ promises to be present to each of us no matter when we were born or how vote at today’s church meeting. No matter what our decision is today, we are bound together in Christ and bound together in love. This sacrament and grace is our solace and our strength, and it is from here that we will continue to receive nourishment for our hungry souls and thirsting hearts. Let us pray today for the Spirit to blow into our midst and bring us new birth this day and each day to come. Amen and amen. |