Sermons

“Oh, How Good It Is, and Messy, and Fruitful”

Galatians 5:22-23; Psalm 133 – Rev. Rebecca Littlejohn

Vista La Mesa Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), La Mesa, California – June 28, 2015

Installation of Lay Leaders

Holy God, bless the speaking and the hearing of these words that we might celebrate with you the gifts of the Spirit poured out upon your people. We pray in the name of Jesus, Amen.

Disciples, as most of you know, have a thing about unity. It is one of our founding principles; it’s been called our “polar star,” meaning we look to it for guidance. These days, people are just as likely to say it’s in our DNA. The importance we place on the unity of the body of Christ is why you will always find Disciples churches involved in whatever local ecumenical councils are around, and ironically, it’s also why you’ll find such a broad range of beliefs within any one Disciples congregation. Christian unity is also part of the sub-text, if not explicitly the focus, when we gather every week for the Lord’s Supper.

So we shouldn’t be surprised to discover that Disciples are fans of Psalm 133. I mean, it actually has the word “unity” in it, after all! Along with the words “good” and “pleasant”! Of course we love this psalm. Except, usually, we just use the first verse. Because, quite frankly, the metaphors get a little weird and obscure after that. Certainly we know that Aaron is important, and that oil was considered precious and holy, but still, the image is a little more visceral than we’re used to. But when I was thinking about what biblical reminders we might need today, as we prepare to enter into another ministry year together, it seemed to me that the lessons from the entirety of this psalm might be fitting.

I want to start with that first idea by looking at the end of the psalm. Well, really by connecting the end to the beginning. If this psalm is about unity, the question becomes, unity among whom? We might read that first line with the words “when kindred live together” and assume that this psalm is about familial harmony. But that’s why it’s important to read the whole thing. If we skip to verse 3, we can learn something from the geographic references here. If we don’t know our geography, we will miss the point completely. As it turns out, this psalm is about a way broader unity than a single family. The psalm was written in a time when the kingdoms of Israel and Judah were divided. If we look at the map, we start to see just how ambitious this aspiration is. The unity the psalmist is describing is like dew landing on Mt. Zion, that is, Jerusalem, which is here, from Mt. Hermon, which is not just not in the kingdom of Judah, but way up practically past the northeast border of the kingdom of Israel, here. This is clearly not about reconciling disputes within a nuclear family. The definition of “kindred” here is the broad one, the one that tells us that all children of God are our brothers and sisters. This is a pretty Disciple understanding of unity, isn’t it?

So now that we’ve established that, let’s think about what it means to bring together a family with that broad of a definition. The second metaphor in this psalm reflects some truths about that as well. When you hear those words – “It is like the precious oil on the head, running down upon the beard, on the beard of Aaron, running down over the collar of his robes” – what is the first word that comes to mind? For me, that word is messy. And that’s exactly it. When kindred live in unity, it is messy. Things overflow their boundaries. Sticky situations are created. Stuff gets slippery and hard to get a handle on. Oil running down Aaron’s head in a painting is one thing, but living in unity, in reality, continually confronts us with the fact that all these other people we have to deal with are human beings – hairy, greasy people, some of whom may not wash often enough. So let’s just open ourselves to that at the outset. We’re going to be in ministry together, and it’s going to be messy. Most of the time, it’s good mess, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have to be cleaned up. Somebody’s always going to wind up with that job, but if we can hold onto the psalmist’s sense of joy in the mess, perhaps it won’t be as tedious as we might imagine.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, this psalm, which speaks to unity, also speaks to something else going on today. But again, we have to know some of the background. The psalmist didn’t just pull a crazy image out of nowhere. Aaron didn’t randomly run around pouring oil on his head because he liked the way it felt. The comparison here is that God’s people living in unity is beautiful in the same way that someone – in this case, Moses’ brother Aaron, the spiritual forefather of all the Levitical priests – is being anointed and set apart for a special leadership role. Both are joyful occasions because we know they will bear fruit.

And that is the beautiful thing about what we do here at Vista La Mesa Christian Church. We’re not just here because it’s fun. We’re not just here for the free food. We’re here because when we engage in ministry together, in Jesus’ name, with the Holy Spirit’s prodding and power, our efforts bear fruit. Love is shared, community is strengthened, lives are changed. Each of us has a part to play; each of us has a gift to share. The more people who get involved, the better and stronger and more effective our ministries will be.

We will set apart people for leadership today. I’m not going to be pouring oil on anyone’s head, but the grace and power of the Holy Spirit will hopefully be coming down like the dew of Hermon. But it’s not just the folks who come up front. Everyone here today, plus everybody playing hooky, and people we haven’t even met yet who will one day soon walk through our doors – we all have a part to play. That’s the wonderful thing about the unity we share here, the broad unity of God’s people described by the psalmist. It’s good and pleasant, and messy and fruitful, and everyone is welcome to join in!

Let us rejoice in the call of God on our lives, in the guidance of Jesus Christ our Lord, and in the power of the Holy Spirit, equipping us to serve God’s people in love and joy. Alleluia and Amen!