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This is a time of struggle for the Christian church in America...

Six Choices for Renewal: Choose Boldness over Fear - Genesis 12: 1-9; Acts 4: 5-13­January 20, 2008 - Cicero United Methodist Church - Everett J. Bassett

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This is a time of struggle for the Christian church in America. Many in this room grew up in a time when Christian faith was more prominent in our nation. Our perception of those days is that churches were more full, prayer was more open, children were routinely taught the faith, and America could legitimately be referred to as a Christian nation. Just how true that perception was is something we could debate about. But there is a sense that the glory days of the church have slipped away, and the influence of the Christian faith over society seems to be waning. The numbers bear this out. Most of the mainline denominations - including the Methodists -- that were so strong forty years ago have lost a third or more of their membership numbers since those days.

Many people, I suppose, see this as reason for despair. We wish things would go back to the glory days of the faith. I'm not one of those people. For one thing, as I study it, there was a lot about the church that was not so glorious. There are many actions and attitudes of the church in that so-called heyday that don't necessarily do us proud.

But the other reason I don't despair is that in this time when the church is challenged, and more and more is becoming one voice among many different voices in our society, we can recapture some of what the church was originally intended to be. Or, to put it in the words of one of the current presidential candidates, we can 'find our voice again.' In fact, we are much closer today to the situation of the church of the Bible. When the Christian faith was in its beginnings, it, too, was one voice among many. If you read through the Book of Acts,-you'll find the church facing atheism, superstitions, all kinds of other faith perspectives, all kinds of secularism and materialism, different philosophies - all the stuff we are seeing today. We are entering a time when the Book of Acts might make sense to us in a way it didn't before, because we're reliving it.

And so, we might ask, How did they do it? How did that little band of former fishermen, tax collectors, and women of various reputations find their voice? How did they hold together and start this movement called Christianity - a movement that has made its way around the world, a movement that has profoundly affected the course of history, a movement that you and I have chosen to be a part of, or at least to explore?

We believe, of course, that they had help way beyond themselves. For example, they had Easter in their hearts. They had witnessed the miracle of the Resurrected Jesus, and that would surely have tremendous impact. They also had the Holy Spirit - God's spirit had blown through them with awesome power, and the Spirit was guiding and inspiring the Church - touching hearts, and adding to the number every day, as we read last week.

But there were other things there in those people. In today's scripture story, one quality stands out, and that is their boldness. Acts 4 begins like this: "While Peter and John were speaking to the people, the priests, the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees carne to them, much annoyed because they were teaching the people that in Jesus there is the resurrection of the dead. So they arrested them .. ."

So that is how Peter and John ended up on trial before the high priests. These were not misdemeanor proceedings in front of fair judges; these high priests are the very people who had Jesus crucified just a few weeks back. Now think back on that: how did Peter and John respond back then? Remember how Peter sat in the high priests' courtyard and denied knowing Jesus three times? Remember how all the disciples scattered and deserted Jesus in fear?

Now here they are again, except something has radically changed. And it's that change that is the key focus for this morning's sermon. Jack and I are preaching, in these first Sundays of the year, about renewal-- and specifically about six choices we can make to invite new possibilities into our lives. The first choice was life over death - to

be part of something that is vital and growing alive, rather than something that is retreating and dying. The second choice we can make is community over isolation. There is life and power when Christian people bind together to serve the Lord.

And then today we make a third choice, the one those first disciples made in front of those high priests: we choose boldness over fear. Standing there in front of those high officials who held life and death power, Peter and John were filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke out. And here is how verse 13 of chapter four sums up what happened:

"... when (the high priests) saw the boldness of Peter and John and realized that they were uneducated and ordinary men, they were amazed and recognized them as companions of Jesus." What a change a few weeks make; and what a change faith makes: from fleeing and denying in fear, to speaking out boldly - so boldly that people were amazed, and

recognized that these men were companions of Jesus.

And that's what we need to recapture today. Here's what we read in verse 27. The disciples are praying these words: " .. .in this city ... both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed And now, Lord, look at their threats, and grant to your servants to speak your word with boldness ... " And then two verses later we read: "When they

had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God with boldness." Isn't it amazing that they didn't pray for safety; they didn't pray for an easy road, or for success? They prayed for boldness to live out their faith. They chose boldness over fear.

I believe that the church in 2008 in America has everything going for it that the early Christians had. We are challenged and sometimes ridiculed - they were too. We are one voice among many possible paths of spirituality - they were too. They banded together and discovered understanding, faith, and power that changed the world - and we can too. We need to pray for boldness. We need to put our fears behind us, and prayerfully step out to let the world know that transforming love has arrived in Jesus Christ.

Let me be the first to raise the red flag about being bold. The fact is, there are plenty of bold Christians these days. And one of the reasons we are not more bold is that we don't want to be identified with some of the things those Christian people are saying and bash people for their lifestyles; he didn't try to legislate morality or impose his way before others; he didn't insult other faiths, or spend his time worrying over every tiny application of the rules. There are a lot of people doing all of those things these days in the name of Jesus, but they are not imitating Jesus. And that is a problem - you can be boldly wrong, and that doesn't help anything. Jesus was bold for the ways of God - a way that chose people over rules, poor over rich, love over judgment, mercy over punishment. If we are going to be bold in the name of Christ, we need to make sure we're standing for the same things Christ did.

How appropriate to remember that on the weekend we honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., one of the true prophets of our time. Dr. King boldly confronted the injustices in the world, but always in a spirit of love, peace, and humility. He was criticized for being too soft, he was hated by many, he was attacked, and, of course, he was finally shot and killed. Along the way, he confessed his fears - but when it came to a choice between hanging back in fear, or stepping forward for justice and peace, his choice was clear.

I believe we see in him what was true in Peter and John - when you are bold in the spirit of Christ, it is a powerful force in the world. In the words of our scripture, people are amazed, and people recognize that you are walking with Christ.

There is so much today that is phony, so much that is arrogant, or self-serving, or fanatical- that when people witness the real thing, it stands out. You lose your wallet in a public place, and someone has turned it in, and all the money and cards are still there, it's like "Wow. I never expected that!" Or you're weaving along in traffic, and someone waves you in front of them - it's like, "Wow. Nobody does that anymore." Or you're in a setting where women are degraded, or someone is being bashed, or ethnic ridicule is taking place, and suddenly someone just says, "I prefer not to take part in this," and you go, "Wow. That took guts." Or someone goes the extra mile in caring, or forgives something unforgivable. Those things stand out; people are amazed. Living out authentic bold Christian faith is an astounding thing nowadays. You don't have to pound pulpits, push tracts, or bash with a Bible to touch peoples' lives - you just have to be a real Christian person, not afraid to step up and do the right thing, and then put the credit where it belongs - with a Savior who gave his life, whose teachings and example are worth living for, and even worth dying for.

I heard an equestrian say once that one of the biggest mistakes a rider can make is to pull in the reins just as the horse is about to leap. I think that is what holds the church back, and what keeps a lot of people living in timidity and fear. The Spirit of God is ready to move; but we pull up on the reins. It's scary to take that leap, after all. What might go wrong if I step out? It seems such a big step, so frightening and even impossible. The truth is, everything worthwhile that has ever taken place was once impossible, too difficult, too scary. Those who have prayed for boldness, and understood the true loving heart of Christ, and stepped out in faith, have found that God loves to tackle the impossible. Maybe you're being called to trust that. Maybe you have been fearful of a big step. Maybe you have been fearful to speak out. Maybe God is bidding you to trust, to dare, to step out in faith.