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SERMONS

Fifth Sunday of Easter
May 14, 2006
By Thomas Cavett

As humans we seek a kind of uniqueness. We seek individuality. It’s hard in this day and age to do what you want to do or to acknowledge what you truly think deep down inside. You have to look beyond all the commercials telling you how you should look, what you should wear, or what you should eat. This constant bombardment is a huge distraction from what we are called to do as humans, as friends, and most importantly as Christians. We have to reach out and experience new things and meet new people, share our differences and acknowledge other views and beliefs.

Some of you may know that I spent my sophomore year in Japan. Throughout that year I learned so much about people and life and in a roundabout sort of way God. That whole year I went to church probably 4 or 5 times. This was very strange for me because I was used to going to church at least 3 times a week. As the year progressed I started to feel like something was missing but I didn’t really understand what it was then. I felt a sort of emptiness or void. That is not to say that I wasn’t happy or that I didn’t have a good time because it was by far one of the most exciting and crazy years of my life. Before I returned home I was really getting excited about catching up with my friends and family especially my family here at the church. For most of the year the other youth and Nat used to call me during their regular Tuesday morning breakfasts. Even though we only got to say a few words or if they were really rushed to get to school they would conference call me and all scream at once, it still was a reminder to me that the church and the relationships I had built in the church were really important in my life. Once I got back I started really getting involved in the church. I resumed my regular schedule of church on Sunday morning, EYC Sunday night, and some sort of pseudo-bible discussion on Wednesday nights. I was drawn to it because of the immense amount of love and acceptance from all the people here. I then realized that the exact thing that was missing from my life was the love and friendship that I received from my church. In today’s lessons the idea of Duty is a major theme. We all feel different sorts of duty and responsibility whether it is to our families, friends, church, jobs, or favorite sports teams. A man has a duty to his wife and a woman has a duty to her husband. Likewise, parents have a duty to take care of their children when they are too young to do so for themselves just as children have a duty to their parents when they are too old. I think we can all agree that there is something powerful about the amount of duty our mothers feel towards us. They are willing to sacrifice anything to make their children happy. Today’s lessons tell us that as Christians we are called to follow the laws of God and believe and have faith in God and furthermore to teach unbelievers with love and compassion and empathy the joy of the word of God. If we follow in the examples of our mothers in their completely selfless sacrifices that they make for us everyday we can begin to get a glimpse of what it means to be a true Christian. Because God is love, in order to be as holy and Christian as possible, we must share that love to all we meet regardless of their race, color, creed, or sexual preference. The year I spent in Japan taught me that there are so many different kinds of people and so many different ways of viewing the world and experiencing life. God gives everyone the same power because Jesus died on the cross for ALL people. God gives us his word, his spirit, and his son. With these weapons we can conquer sin and the battles of our spiritual lives but we all make different decisions about how we go about fulfilling out duty to God and our faith as Christians. We all have a DUTY to serve in a righteous way. We have a tendency to be blinded by the materialistic world we live in. It is even possible to be blinded by the weekly regularity here at the Chapel. When Jesus was crucified it was because the Jews didn’t understand the laws and scripture that they taught. They got so caught up in the rights and rituals that they forgot the significance and the symbolism of their own teachings. In the reading from John Nicodemus speaks to Jesus and we discover that he only believes in Jesus because he has witnessed his miracles. Paul says that “A true Christian is not one that has been circumcised of the body but of the heart”. The true believers believe without seeing. They have faith and they uphold their duty in their Love and Acceptance of all people. So today as we celebrate the wonderful sacrifices of our mothers as they live out their duty to us, let it be a reminder to us that we all have a Duty to love one another and respect each other.