Sermons
This week's sermon video and text are available below and on our ChatsworthUCC Facebook page, where you can also see previous sermons.
“Give Peace A Chance”
Rev. William S. Freeman
May 26, 2019
The Congregational Church of Chatsworth
A husband says to his wife on her birthday, “Well, happy birthday, Honey!” His wife says, “Thank you, Dear.” Then the husband says to his wife, “Remember that blue Lamborghini that you really wanted for your birthday?” His wife starts screaming and crying tears of joy. Then her husband says to his wife, “Well, Honey, I got you a vacuum cleaner that same color.” There’s not going to be much peace in that house for a while. Somebody’s probably going to be sleeping on the couch for a few nights, at least until peace returns to that house. Jesus speaks about peace, according to the Gospel of John.
Jesus is speaking to his disciples, toward the end of his life. Jesus speaks to them of God and the Holy Spirit. Jesus speaks to them of loving Jesus by keeping his word, and of God loving them. And Jesus speaks to them of the Holy Spirit, whom God will send to them, and who will teach them everything. Then Jesus says to them, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.” According to one commentary, by saying, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you,” Jesus was giving his disciples a kind of blessing, like “Peace be with you.” Elsewhere in the Bible though, Jesus is called: The Prince of Peace. So maybe Jesus was talking about peace in its various aspects. Not just peace as a blessing, but peace as something more. And this weekend we think about peace.
This is Memorial Weekend Sunday. Memorial Day, tomorrow, is when we remember those killed in war. Nearly 3 Million Americans have been killed in wars since the Revolutionary War, including the Civil War, the two world wars, Korea, Vietnam, the Gulf War, the Iraq War, and the War in Afghanistan. And who knows? We may be going to war with Iran soon. Jesus may have left us with his peace, but too often people — including Christians — seem to forget about Jesus’ peace and march off to war. I remember Memorial Day as a kid. The little town we lived in would pay tribute to those killed in wars, including my uncle. My Grandma was a Gold Star Mother. Her son, my Uncle Curtis, was killed in Korea. I can't think of a better time to remember and honor those killed in war, and to think about peace in it's various aspects, than during Memorial Weekend.
What are the various aspects of peace? Well, there’s inner peace: What do we mean by inner peace? There's also interpersonal peace: What do we mean by interpersonal peace? And then there's world peace: How can world peace be achieved? So, as you can tell, a light and breezy sermon for Memorial Weekend.
So, inner peace: What do we mean by inner peace? As you might guess, the Buddha knows a thing or two about inner peace.
The Buddha says, “Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without.” In other words you and you alone — no one else — is responsible for your inner peace. The Buddha knows that, and Jesus knows that, according to the Gospel of Luke, where what Jesus has to say can be summed up in the words of an old song: Don't worry. Be happy. Jesus is talking to his disciples in the Gospel of Matthew.
Jesus says, "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?” (Of course, vegetarians would probably say: No, you’re not.) Jesus continues, “And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will God not much more clothe you—you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ But strive first for the kingdom of God and God’s righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today's trouble is enough for today.” So Jesus says we are to trust in God. In other words: Don’t worry about the past. Live in the present. Have faith in the future. Now there are other ways to have inner peace besides not worrying. And this church practices a couple of those ways on Sunday morning before worship.
Some of us meet in my office, around 9-ish. We start off with a time of prayer. We go around the table and each person prays for what they are thankful for or concerned about. Then we have some quiet time. I start it off by reciting a psalm and inviting people to repeat it after me. And the psalm keeps getting shorter and shorter. I learned this in seminary. I say: Be still and know that I am God. And people repeat that. Then I say: Be still and know that I am. And people repeat that. Then I say: Be still and know. And people repeat that. Then I say: Be still. And people repeat that. Finally I say: Be. And people repeat that. Then we just sit quietly for a little while. Call it meditation. Call it contemplation. Call it silence. The key is to try to clear your mind of all thoughts and — just as the psalm says — Be. Then after a few minutes, I invite people to share with us the thoughts that went through their minds that they weren't supposed to be thinking. I believe all of this is one way to achieve inner peace.
What do you do to achieve inner peace? Are you able to avoid worrying, as Jesus says to? Do you practice meditation? If not, will you give it a try? Let’s move on now to interpersonal peace.
So, interpersonal peace: What do we mean by interpersonal peace. Well, at the risk of stating the obvious, that’s the peace between two or more people. But fewer than a large number of people, like a country.
We see interpersonal peace in the news whenever world leaders get together — usually; either one on one, or in a group setting, like an economic summit. Perhaps one of the most famous interpersonal peace meetings in the news was many years ago, when President Jimmy Carter brought together the leader of Israel, Menachem Begin, and the leader of Egypt, Anwar Sadat, at Camp David. They signed the historic Camp David Peace Accords. So interpersonal peace brought about some semblance of world peace. (We’ll talk more about world peace in a bit.) For now, let’s continue with interpersonal peace. And Jesus’ impact on interpersonal peace. Throughout the Gospels, Jesus tells us and shows us how to practice interpersonal peace.
Jesus says: Love God. Love your neighbor. Love yourself. Love your enemies. Feed the hungry. Give drink to the thirsty. Welcome the stranger. Clothe the naked. Care for the sick. Visit the prisoner. Judge not and you will not be judged. Condemn not, and you will not be condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven. Turn the other cheek. Give to those who ask of you. If someone asks you to walk with them a mile, walk with them two. In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets. (It’s also the Golden Rule, found in every faith tradition.) Also Jesus helped people in need and healed people in need. Whether it was thirsty people at a wedding or children who had fallen “asleep.” So Jesus told us and showed us — and told the Church and showed the Church — how to practice interpersonal peace.
So, churches — hopefully — are places of interpersonal peace. People being honest with each other. People encouraging each other. People supporting each other. I believe this church is a place of interpersonal peace. People being honest with each other. People encouraging each other. People supporting each other. We practice interpersonal peace a couple times during each worship service. When we pass the peace and love at the beginning of our worship service. And when we hold hands and sing “Alleluia” at the end of our worship service. I belong to the Kiwanis Club of Chatsworth. They are people practicing interpersonal peace. I used to belong to the Rotary Club back where I used to live. Same thing: People practicing interpersonal peace. I remember my father belonged to the Lions Club. I imagine: Same thing — people practicing interpersonal peace. People belong to book clubs, writing groups, golf leagues. All the people in those associations probably practice interpersonal peace.
What does interpersonal peace mean to you? How do you practice interpersonal peace? What other ways might you practice interpersonal peace? Now, let’s move on to perhaps the most difficult type of peace to practice, because it’s not just up to us: World peace.
Why is world peace so difficult to achieve? If only world peace were as easy to achieve as it is to sing about.
“Let There Be Peace On Earth.” That hymn describes world peace. If only we could put it into practice. The hymn begins, “Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me. Let there be peace on earth, the peace that was meant to be.” World leaders should sing that hymn every morning. God must mean for there to be peace on earth. We read that scripture at Christmastime every year. “Glory to God in the highest, and peace on earth, good will toward all.” The Book of Revelation talks about the glory of God.
The Revelation writer describes a future time when there will be glory and honor among the nations, when there will be no need of sun or moon to shine, for the glory of God and the Lamb — Jesus — will be the light and the lamp. And the gates of the holy city Jerusalem will be open — and there will be no night. Presumably there will also be world peace. Now we just have to look for a sign of peace.
Actually, we have a sign of peace. It’s on a banner right in front of our church, along with a sign of love. Peace & Love. That’s what we hope for our church. That’s what we hope for Chatsworth and for all of Los Angeles. And that’s what we hope for the world. Peace & Love. Some of you may know I felt called to be a pastor on my birthday in 2001. My Birthday is 9/11. Then I was baptized — coincidentally or I believe providentially — in 2003 on December 7th: Pearl Harbor Day. The UCC church where I was baptized wanted me to say something that day during the worship service. So I said that I hoped those two dates — my birthday, 9/11, and my baptism day, December 7th — mean that my ministry will always be about Peace & Love. Maybe that’s an impossible dream for the world: Like a woman dreaming of a Lamborghini for her birthday, and ending up with a vacuum cleaner.
How do you think the world can achieve peace? Does it start with ourselves achieving inner peace? Will that then spread to groups achieving interpersonal peace, and eventually the world achieving peace on earth? Let us hope. And…
Rev. William S. Freeman
May 26, 2019
The Congregational Church of Chatsworth
A husband says to his wife on her birthday, “Well, happy birthday, Honey!” His wife says, “Thank you, Dear.” Then the husband says to his wife, “Remember that blue Lamborghini that you really wanted for your birthday?” His wife starts screaming and crying tears of joy. Then her husband says to his wife, “Well, Honey, I got you a vacuum cleaner that same color.” There’s not going to be much peace in that house for a while. Somebody’s probably going to be sleeping on the couch for a few nights, at least until peace returns to that house. Jesus speaks about peace, according to the Gospel of John.
Jesus is speaking to his disciples, toward the end of his life. Jesus speaks to them of God and the Holy Spirit. Jesus speaks to them of loving Jesus by keeping his word, and of God loving them. And Jesus speaks to them of the Holy Spirit, whom God will send to them, and who will teach them everything. Then Jesus says to them, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.” According to one commentary, by saying, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you,” Jesus was giving his disciples a kind of blessing, like “Peace be with you.” Elsewhere in the Bible though, Jesus is called: The Prince of Peace. So maybe Jesus was talking about peace in its various aspects. Not just peace as a blessing, but peace as something more. And this weekend we think about peace.
This is Memorial Weekend Sunday. Memorial Day, tomorrow, is when we remember those killed in war. Nearly 3 Million Americans have been killed in wars since the Revolutionary War, including the Civil War, the two world wars, Korea, Vietnam, the Gulf War, the Iraq War, and the War in Afghanistan. And who knows? We may be going to war with Iran soon. Jesus may have left us with his peace, but too often people — including Christians — seem to forget about Jesus’ peace and march off to war. I remember Memorial Day as a kid. The little town we lived in would pay tribute to those killed in wars, including my uncle. My Grandma was a Gold Star Mother. Her son, my Uncle Curtis, was killed in Korea. I can't think of a better time to remember and honor those killed in war, and to think about peace in it's various aspects, than during Memorial Weekend.
What are the various aspects of peace? Well, there’s inner peace: What do we mean by inner peace? There's also interpersonal peace: What do we mean by interpersonal peace? And then there's world peace: How can world peace be achieved? So, as you can tell, a light and breezy sermon for Memorial Weekend.
So, inner peace: What do we mean by inner peace? As you might guess, the Buddha knows a thing or two about inner peace.
The Buddha says, “Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without.” In other words you and you alone — no one else — is responsible for your inner peace. The Buddha knows that, and Jesus knows that, according to the Gospel of Luke, where what Jesus has to say can be summed up in the words of an old song: Don't worry. Be happy. Jesus is talking to his disciples in the Gospel of Matthew.
Jesus says, "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?” (Of course, vegetarians would probably say: No, you’re not.) Jesus continues, “And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will God not much more clothe you—you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ But strive first for the kingdom of God and God’s righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today's trouble is enough for today.” So Jesus says we are to trust in God. In other words: Don’t worry about the past. Live in the present. Have faith in the future. Now there are other ways to have inner peace besides not worrying. And this church practices a couple of those ways on Sunday morning before worship.
Some of us meet in my office, around 9-ish. We start off with a time of prayer. We go around the table and each person prays for what they are thankful for or concerned about. Then we have some quiet time. I start it off by reciting a psalm and inviting people to repeat it after me. And the psalm keeps getting shorter and shorter. I learned this in seminary. I say: Be still and know that I am God. And people repeat that. Then I say: Be still and know that I am. And people repeat that. Then I say: Be still and know. And people repeat that. Then I say: Be still. And people repeat that. Finally I say: Be. And people repeat that. Then we just sit quietly for a little while. Call it meditation. Call it contemplation. Call it silence. The key is to try to clear your mind of all thoughts and — just as the psalm says — Be. Then after a few minutes, I invite people to share with us the thoughts that went through their minds that they weren't supposed to be thinking. I believe all of this is one way to achieve inner peace.
What do you do to achieve inner peace? Are you able to avoid worrying, as Jesus says to? Do you practice meditation? If not, will you give it a try? Let’s move on now to interpersonal peace.
So, interpersonal peace: What do we mean by interpersonal peace. Well, at the risk of stating the obvious, that’s the peace between two or more people. But fewer than a large number of people, like a country.
We see interpersonal peace in the news whenever world leaders get together — usually; either one on one, or in a group setting, like an economic summit. Perhaps one of the most famous interpersonal peace meetings in the news was many years ago, when President Jimmy Carter brought together the leader of Israel, Menachem Begin, and the leader of Egypt, Anwar Sadat, at Camp David. They signed the historic Camp David Peace Accords. So interpersonal peace brought about some semblance of world peace. (We’ll talk more about world peace in a bit.) For now, let’s continue with interpersonal peace. And Jesus’ impact on interpersonal peace. Throughout the Gospels, Jesus tells us and shows us how to practice interpersonal peace.
Jesus says: Love God. Love your neighbor. Love yourself. Love your enemies. Feed the hungry. Give drink to the thirsty. Welcome the stranger. Clothe the naked. Care for the sick. Visit the prisoner. Judge not and you will not be judged. Condemn not, and you will not be condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven. Turn the other cheek. Give to those who ask of you. If someone asks you to walk with them a mile, walk with them two. In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets. (It’s also the Golden Rule, found in every faith tradition.) Also Jesus helped people in need and healed people in need. Whether it was thirsty people at a wedding or children who had fallen “asleep.” So Jesus told us and showed us — and told the Church and showed the Church — how to practice interpersonal peace.
So, churches — hopefully — are places of interpersonal peace. People being honest with each other. People encouraging each other. People supporting each other. I believe this church is a place of interpersonal peace. People being honest with each other. People encouraging each other. People supporting each other. We practice interpersonal peace a couple times during each worship service. When we pass the peace and love at the beginning of our worship service. And when we hold hands and sing “Alleluia” at the end of our worship service. I belong to the Kiwanis Club of Chatsworth. They are people practicing interpersonal peace. I used to belong to the Rotary Club back where I used to live. Same thing: People practicing interpersonal peace. I remember my father belonged to the Lions Club. I imagine: Same thing — people practicing interpersonal peace. People belong to book clubs, writing groups, golf leagues. All the people in those associations probably practice interpersonal peace.
What does interpersonal peace mean to you? How do you practice interpersonal peace? What other ways might you practice interpersonal peace? Now, let’s move on to perhaps the most difficult type of peace to practice, because it’s not just up to us: World peace.
Why is world peace so difficult to achieve? If only world peace were as easy to achieve as it is to sing about.
“Let There Be Peace On Earth.” That hymn describes world peace. If only we could put it into practice. The hymn begins, “Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me. Let there be peace on earth, the peace that was meant to be.” World leaders should sing that hymn every morning. God must mean for there to be peace on earth. We read that scripture at Christmastime every year. “Glory to God in the highest, and peace on earth, good will toward all.” The Book of Revelation talks about the glory of God.
The Revelation writer describes a future time when there will be glory and honor among the nations, when there will be no need of sun or moon to shine, for the glory of God and the Lamb — Jesus — will be the light and the lamp. And the gates of the holy city Jerusalem will be open — and there will be no night. Presumably there will also be world peace. Now we just have to look for a sign of peace.
Actually, we have a sign of peace. It’s on a banner right in front of our church, along with a sign of love. Peace & Love. That’s what we hope for our church. That’s what we hope for Chatsworth and for all of Los Angeles. And that’s what we hope for the world. Peace & Love. Some of you may know I felt called to be a pastor on my birthday in 2001. My Birthday is 9/11. Then I was baptized — coincidentally or I believe providentially — in 2003 on December 7th: Pearl Harbor Day. The UCC church where I was baptized wanted me to say something that day during the worship service. So I said that I hoped those two dates — my birthday, 9/11, and my baptism day, December 7th — mean that my ministry will always be about Peace & Love. Maybe that’s an impossible dream for the world: Like a woman dreaming of a Lamborghini for her birthday, and ending up with a vacuum cleaner.
How do you think the world can achieve peace? Does it start with ourselves achieving inner peace? Will that then spread to groups achieving interpersonal peace, and eventually the world achieving peace on earth? Let us hope. And…
Let us pray...
God of Love:
Help us to achieve inner peace.
Help us to achieve interpersonal peace.
And help us to achieve world peace.
Now and forevermore.
By the power of the Holy Spirit.
And in the name of Jesus.
Amen.
(This sermon was delivered without manuscript or notes,
and was based on the words in this text.)