God Was There

I preached this sermon on World Communion Sunday as a reminder that American churches of today are not the only ones in the world that have felt the presence of God.

Today is World Communion Sunday, the day that Christians all around the world gather at the table of the Lord to celebrate their oneness in Christ. No matter how different we are in our cultural background, in our understanding of just who God is and how God works, or in our style of worship, we are, in the end, all a part of the worldwide body of Christ. We are truly all one in the Lord! That’s why, on most World Communion Sundays, I use readings and prayers from all over the world. It’s good to be reminded that we middle-class North American Christians aren’t the only ones who sit at Christ’s table! But today, I’m doing something a little bit different. Instead of emphasizing that God is in all places, I want to highlight that God has been there in all times! The readings, prayers, and hymns in today’s worship began with some that were very old; and our worship concluded with a hymn that was written fairly recently.

Whenever we celebrate this sacrament, I proclaim the familiar words that Jesus said at the very first Holy Communion: “Whenever you eat this bread or drink this cup, remember me.” It was important to Jesus that we remember what God has done for us across the centuries. Whether we are sitting in a pew here in a Protestant church in the United States, sitting on a dirt floor in a small church in Africa, or standing in an Orthodox church sanctuary in Russia, we have a Christian heritage to celebrate and remember!

That heritage began with the very earliest church. We can all trace our beginnings to the early Christians who met in secret to hear scripture proclaimed, to sing hymns to the resurrected Christ, and to share a meal at the table. Some of them became martyrs, killed because of their faith. And whether they lived or died, God was there.

We remember the Christians who began monasteries where they could practice their faith without the temptations of the civilization that swirled around them. When they said their prayers at dawn, at noon, and in the evening, God was there. And we remember the Christians who stayed in the middle of civilization and raised children who grew up to be good Christians themselves. God was there with them, too.

We remember the schisms of the church: the fracture between eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Christians in the 10^th century; and the split between Roman Catholic and Protestant Christians 500 years after that. God was there with all of them, no matter where their faith led them.

We need to remember, too, the history of the Christian faith in cultures that are not our own. North African Christians remember those who held fast to their faith when, in the 8^th century, their Muslim conquerors wanted them to convert to Islam. God was there with them. Russian Christians remember those who resisted Lenin and Stalin in the early 20^th century when Christianity was outlawed, and churches were either demolished or turned into museums. They remember the priests who taught their children faith whenever and wherever they could gather them together. God was there with them. And Chinese Christians remember those who were executed by Mao Tse-Tung after the People’s Republic of China was established in 1949. Even now, Christianity is illegal in that country; but Christians still gather to worship in private homes, often putting their lives at risk. And God is there with them.

This morning, we will once again eat the bread and drink the cup; and we will remember what Jesus did for us so long ago. And I hope that we will also remember what Jesus has done for us over the centuries; and what he has done for all Christians, around the world, over those same centuries. Because of Jesus, God has been with Christians in all times and in all places. Because of Jesus, God has been with us, right here in Nashville UCC. And because of Jesus, God will remain with us forever! Thanks be to God!