Sermons

First Christian Church

Numbers 21:4b-9

“Shadowlands”

The people of God are complaining and for good reason because they've been in the wilderness for forty years and seem to be getting nowhere! God has sent them food to eat in the form of manna that they describe as “cakes baked with oil.” They're sick and tired of it, so they're speaking out against Moses, but something a bit different for our text is they're also speaking out against God.

So, God, in his infinite mercy and compassion sends poisonous snakes to bite them. We can assume here that unlike the flood where God is moved by grief that this is genuine anger caused by the people's lack of trust. God's anger is so potent that many Israelites are killed by the snakes and God gets the desired response which is for the people to repent. They plead with Moses to intercede, and he does and God instructs him to make a serpent of bronze and put it on a pole. Those who look upon the raised bronze snake will be healed.

Now, the people have been to Sinai, and they've received the covenant, and this lack of faith is a violation of that covenant. Therefore, we can begin to understand why God would feel the need to punish his children. Sometimes a parent needs to help their child develop good behaviors and teach self-control and a sense of responsibility through corrective actions. A term often used is “tough love.”

And this is tough love indeed as God doesn't take the snakes away but rather allows the snakes to physically and painfully bite the people who then become sick. What God does do is he offers a cure which is to gaze upon this serpent on the pole. At which point a person is healed but not before they suffer possibly becoming nauseous, vomiting, dizzy, pulse accelerates, and blood pressure goes up and if something isn't done organ failure and death.

This really exceeds the notion of “tough love” and could be seen as outright sadistic behavior. What in the world is the message here that God wants to convey not only to his people but to the faithful centuries in the future?

If we're not actually suffering in some physically painful way then we're surrounded by it every minute of the day. In the Sudan a humanitarian crisis of biblical proportions is occurring due to a civil war. Though aid is trying to reach the suffering it is being blocked by the parties involved in the war. What is happening in Gaza can also be described as a humanitarian crisis being perpetuated by a war between Hamas and the nation of Israel restricting aid that's trying to reach the suffering masses.

These humanitarian crises are not due to natural causes or climate change or deforestation or anything like that...the source of the crises is the human heart as recorded in the Book of Jeremiah: “The heart is hopelessly dark and deceitful, a puzzle no one can figure out?” (Jeremiah 17:9; The Message Bible))

Do you think it's possible that God, at times, is perplexed by our behavior? And when I say “our” it means I'm not just pointing a finger at the nation of Israel or the warring factions in Sudan or Putin or anyone else who is being dark and deceitful and violent. Jeremiah is pointing his finger at the nation of Judah, but when he describes the human heart, he means all of humanity. Father Rohr has more to say about this:

In many ways, the struggle with darkness has been the church's constant dilemma. It wants to exist in perfect light, where God alone lives. It does not like the shadowland of our human reality. It seems that all of us are trying to find ways to avoid the mystery of human life – that we are all a mixture of darkness and light – instead of learning how to carry it patiently through to resurrection, as Jesus did....

There are no perfect structures and no perfect people. There is only the struggle to be whole. It is Christ's passion that will save the world. Jesus says, “Your patient endurance will win you your lives” (Luke 21:19). He shows us the way of redemptive suffering instead of redemptive violence. Patience comes from our attempts to hold together an always-mixed reality. Perfectionism only makes us resentful and judgmental. Grateful people emerge in a world rightly defined, where even darkness is no surprise but an opportunity.

This week the Dalai Lama said something on my desk calendar very similar to Father Rohr's comments: When we meet tragedy in life, we can react in two ways – either by losing hope and falling into self-destructive habits, or by using the challenge to find our inner strength.

This last week there was a tragic event that occurred in the murder of Charlie Kirk a popular conservative activist who traveled around to different college campuses and held rallies. Charlie Kirk's worldview that he'd share with these young people is not something I could align with, but he was a child of God – loved and cherished by God as we all are. What happened to him is an expression of the dark and deceitful heart the prophet describes.

As people of faith, we need to respond in prayer for those closest to him, but also for those at the rally that day who witnessed his murder. No one comes out of such experiences without some degree of trauma that has to be worked through. When someone is murdered right before your eyes the everyday world you've become accustomed can suddenly change and any notions you've previously had about the world being a safe place may be shattered in an instant.

You can be virtually shocked into another reality and now run a very high risk of suffering from PTSD or other mental health complications in the long run. And this is happening to people on a daily basis across this country where the collateral damage from gun violence alone is staggering and incomprehensible.

One of the ways people respond is to point fingers and place blame upon other people who are seen to be the source of the problem. But it's that blame game that keeps us from finding the sense of community we need to effectively cope with these enormous social problems our culture faces. The blame game itself is not violent in nature, but it creates the seedbed for these violent acts.

Father Rohr hits the nail on the head when he says that Jesus has offered the world its salvation which comes not through redemptive violence, but through redemptive suffering and that's the key. Jesus demonstrated redemptive suffering upon the cross and sadly the world is largely ignoring the message even though it is the central symbol of the most practiced religion in the world.

I had a dream the night prior to writing this sermon which began in my office, and I was with a child who was possibly my youngest brother Jay who died after a long struggle with cancer. Suddenly, there was a sound in the next room of something tapping on a window. I was afraid to open the door not knowing the source of the sound and what I might be called to do about it.

Upon opening the door there was a black crow that had come through a hole in a screen and was trying to fly back out through the hole. It managed to get outside but became entangled upon a rod that ran parallel to the window. I found myself just above the bird as it struggled to be free and it did make some progress but needed help to complete the task.

I leaned over and picked up something that looked like an inflated Coke bottle made of some soft material and with it I helped the crow free itself by gently pushing it forward. It freed itself from the rod and dropped down something like five hundred feet toward the ground below and just before it struck the ground it flew! A happy ending!

The three most important symbols in the dream are the black crow and the black Coke bottle and my brother Jay who struggled five years with cancer. The black crow represents the dark human heart and the black Coke bottle that's used to free the crow is the dark human heart that becomes the instrument of salvation. My brother symbolizes redemptive suffering or the patience required for salvation to be granted. The crow almost hitting the ground before it flies away is also symbolic of the need for patience, even great patience, before salvation comes from God as sheer gift.

Some dreams are just processing the events of the day, but others are a gift from God coming straight from the unconscious self or in spiritual terms what we might call the soul. Dreams can be a way God talks to us and should always be taken seriously, especially the ones that come from the depths of our being. Whenever God speaks to us it matters and there's another way God communicates and that's through his angels.

Karen and I have been watching “Touched by an Angel” a television series that ran on CBS around the turn of the century and is now on Netflix. They made around 200 episodes in nine seasons and were in the first season, so we'll be watching it for a while. I've already noticed a couple things Monica, the main character, often does which is to reveal her true identity at some point during the show.

She will tell them flat out that “I'm an angel” and then she starts glowing and the response is varied and frequently its some expression of fear at which point she'll often respond by saying “Don't be afraid.” When that happens she sounds just like the angels in the Bible who tell people like Mary, Joseph, Zachariah, the shepherds, and the women at Jesus' tomb to not be afraid. It's an important gospel message and as followers of Jesus we need to take it to heart.

On the day this sermon was written I drove past Roger Nydafur's home and his American flag being at half-staff reminded me it was 911. The violence that surrounds us every day whether it be gun violence or some other type is not going to magically disappear.

What God has given us is a choice as to how we're going to respond to it. The angels tell us to not be afraid of the darkness because salvation is reached by embracing it. Those suffering from PTSD must learn how to transform their suffering into healing and personal growth and that takes tremendous courage, hard work, and sincere, heartfelt prayer.

Rev. Mitch Becker

September 14, 2025

Port Angeles

First Christian Church

“Amen or Ouch!”

Luke 14:25-33

When we read the gospel sometimes, we can respond with a heartfelt “Amen,” but other times we just say “Ouch!” and this scripture text is definitely an “Ouch!”

We live in a consumerist society that's constantly trying to sell us products. Typically the products being sold are promoted as being low-cost and in some way or another low-risk. Our text today offers a challenge to the market driven approach. It begins by using a term that grabs our attention because it seems out of context with the rest of the gospel...the word used is “hate.” (Ouch!)

Using the word “hate” isn't completely out of context for Luke because a couple chapters prior to this he was talking about families being divided over the gospel message ((Luke 12:51-53). Therefore, it should not surprise us that an allegiance to Jesus might result in family strife. Still, the question remains: Does Jesus literally want us to hate some of the most important people in our lives?

First, we need to consider that Jesus sometimes uses inflated language to make his point. Secondly, Jesus' bible was the Old Testament where we can find the word “hate” used to more so indicate strong preference. When the narrative describes Jacob “loves” Rachel and “hates” Leah, that actually means he just loved Rachel more than Leah. (Genesis 29:30-31)

It really begins to come into focus when Jesus makes the comment about disciples needing to “carry the cross” indicating that self-interests, or any other competing loyalties, must be sacrificed for the sake of the gospel. This is then augmented with two short parables and The Message Bible does an excellent job of aligning the parables with the gospel message:

Is there anyone here who, planning to build a house, doesn't first sit down and figure the cost so you'll know if you can complete it? If you only get the foundation laid and then run out of money, you're going to look pretty foolish. Everyone passing by will poke fun at you: They started something they couldn't finish.

Or can you imagine a king going into battle against another king without first deciding whether it is possible with his ten thousand troops to face the twenty thousand troops of the other? And if he decides he can't, won't he send an emissary and work out a truce?

Simply put, if you're not willing to take what is dearest to you, whether plans or people, and kiss-it goodbye, you can't be my disciple.

To explore this a bit further let's look at an excerpt from the commentary I relied on by Jeannine Brown:

In this passage, Luke's Jesus calls people to a kind of discipleship that is not cheap....not easy, and not to be entered into without deep consideration of the consequences and cost. The passage speaks to the importance of loyalty and allegiance to Jesus over all other competing loyalties, including family, self-interest, and possessions....

We will always prefer teaching and preaching about God's grace, that is, God's own covenant loyalty to redeem and save, but we ought not neglect preaching about covenant loyalty that is expected from us in return. Salvation in Jesus is not merely a transaction. It is, at heart, a covenantal relationship. And no relationship lasts without loyal commitments and actions. Because the one that redeems us also calls us into costly discipleship. Jesus' command to “Follow me” is both gift and demand.

I was five years out of high school when I became a student at Linn Benton Community College. By the time I finished my first semester I was earning C's and D's and it was apparent that my aspirations as a student were in jeopardy. The problem was I had a competing loyalty at the time – I was an alcoholic. Drinking was at the center of my life as opposed to a commitment to my studies.

Then I found Christ and became a committed Christian virtually overnight. The grades I earned in the next semester were far more reflective of my actual ability as a student. Though I “fell away” from the faith after about nine months in that time of sobriety I learned how to be a student. What I learned carried me through to graduation and an associates degree in science.

One way to view this accomplishment is in terms of making a radical shift from being loyal to an addiction to becoming loyal to my studies and in that regard to my personal hopes and dreams. At the same time I was developing a new found loyalty to Jesus which eventually became the most important thing in my life. This was confirmed by the faith community that surrounded me in seminary and testified to it at my ordination.

Since my conversion to Christianity my life has taken on one commitment after the other always in the pursuit of what Father Rohr calls going “deeper into the mystery of Christ.” But at times when I enter unfamiliar territory I may have to back up a bit. The last time this happened I encountered what you might call: “no Time.” It was an inner experience of the artificial or false nature of Time.

One way to think about Time is to imagine it something like a grid on a map. The intersecting lines on a map create squares that help you narrow down where, for example, a town might be located. Map grids are artificial in the sense they're human made systems superimposed upon a map.

Time is also a human made system designed to help you structure your life, make plans, show up at appointments, achieve goals and so forth. Time is very important to us, but in reality its a human made construct. Infants have no concept of Time though begin to acquire some perception of it very early on. But anything that has been acquired can be unacquired. Maybe a more spiritual phrase to use here is “let go of.”

In the depths of quiet, centering prayer one morning I began to let of of my perception of Time to enter into what I'm calling “no Time” or the absence of Time. To do so feels like a heavy burden that one lets go of and when it happened to me it was so unfamiliar it scared me a bit. Even though it was a freeing experience it still felt like unexplored territory. Undoubtedly, “no Time” is an aspect of the kingdom of God and the liberation that comes with it, but sometimes you have to slow down and let the rest of your being catch up.

As you know, Karen and I read a devotion from The Secret Place every morning and the devotion for the day I wrote this sermon was entitled “Jesus Glasses.” The author told a story from her childhood about becoming accustom to her lack of ability in reading signs or viewing the television in their home. She would just move closer to the television set. It wasn't until the teacher at school rearranged the seating assignments placing her at the back of the class making it difficult for her to see the chalkboard that she realized something needed to be done.

She ended up getting rosy-red framed spectacles to correct her vision and after that she could see every word on the board, the individual leaves on the trees, and even the laugh lines on people's faces. Up until this point she had no idea what she was missing!

We're missing a lot as well until Jesus clears our vision with his truth, compassion and forgiveness. But to get to that means to, and in his words, “renounce all that you have.” By that he means to let go of possessions, relationships, attachments (including addictions and bad habits), and even your very life.

What I'm describing when using the term “no Time” is a letting go of your life because it's the equivalent of letting go of the ego. The ego and Time are dependent upon each other because the ego is perpetually created by either anticipating the future or through memories of the past. But the only thing that is real is who you are and what you're doing in the Now. 

 To stay in relationship with God means to stay in the present moment which is the only place God ever is. Once you retreat back into your very selective memories of the past or envision the future whether fearfully or hopefully, you're back to creating your False self and out of relationship with God. To put it succinctly, if you want to follow Jesus you have to let go of both the past and future.

In our text today Jesus's audience is made up of mostly first century peasants. They're going to understand him when he talks about the high cost of discipleship in terms of letting go of people, plans and possessions. Letting go of the ego and the way Time makes the ego possible isn't going to mean much to them.

To twenty-first century middle class Americans a psychological term like ego and its spiritual equivalent the False self will be far more palatable. And it is Time that functions as the primary contributor to the perpetual creation of the ego. Eliminate Time and you eliminate the ego and then you can see the world and the people in it in the same way Jesus did.

From here sayings like “love your enemies” and “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” and what it means to be “born again” begin to make sense. Let go of Time and all that's left is Now and that's where you'll find God.

Rev. Mitch Becker

September 7, 2025

Port Angeles

First Christian Church

Hebrews 12:18-29

“Whole Lotta Shaking Going On”

One way to look at this portion of the Epistle to the Hebrews is with the following aphorism: “Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” It is typically attributed to the philosopher George Santayana (San-tee-yawn-nah) which gives a somewhat pessimistic spin to history and to human behavior in general.

Throughout the letter the author has been using history to talk about faith and the chapter which precedes today's text is sort of a Faith Hall of Fame where listed is a host of past faith heroes. They're characterized as people who lived “by faith” implying that we need to follow their example. But in the next chapter which we're considering today there's a shift that occurs where we're told to learn from history, but the big difference is to not repeat it.

Our passage today begins with fear and trembling at God's presence on Mount Sinai and is probably meant to remind the reader of fearful events during the Exodus. Looking at the big picture Mount Sinai can be considered a dangerous, and even treacherous mountain, but to the ancient Israelite's it was a holy place. The author of Hebrews is emphasizing the sacred nature of the mountain by invoking images of a different mountain - Mount Zion.

Another name for Mount Zion is Jerusalem and its from this holy place that the faithful acquire what they need to sustain them on their faith journey's. This is in stark contrast to what they experience at Mount Sinai with its darkness, fire, tempest, and loud words, yet this frightening theophany also has a place in developing one's faith. To experience the theophany is not pleasant but it is tangible and not to be discounted. Sometimes we need to be shaken up to get rid of the dirt and dust the community of faith has accumulated.

We prefer the more peaceful approach of Mount Zion with the festive angels and the new covenant in Jesus' blood, but the human ego being clever and often stubborn needs a more direct approach at times. Therefore, the author tells us: “His voice then shook the earth; but now he has promised, 'Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heaven.'”

A more appropriate term here might be “shakedown” indicating a radical change of the whole of Creation both spiritual and material. God becomes something of a house cleaner shaking the dust and dirt not only from the faith community but also within the spiritual realm. This leaves us with a twofold task to not only look for things to hold on to during God's shaking, but at the same time counter intuitively contribute to the shaking since its purpose is to cleanse the faithful.

Recently we've begun to take time out during worship for a “Moment for Movement” which is a few minutes of dancing or moving about to music. The idea for this came out of a workshop at the General Assembly where the workshop leader gave me special permission to include this in worship. By that I mean she said, “And Mitch here can call upon his congregation to dance during worship.”

Because she specifically chose me out of the crowd, I felt a nudge from the Spirit to follow through when I returned home. I was more than pleased, even a bit surprised, to see most everyone moving about on the first attempted “Moment for Movement.” It's not for everyone but it seems to appeal to most everyone. Some people are just talking, and some are not moving at all, but by and large there seems to be movement happening.

To bring this into context with our passage today we can think of the “Moment for Movement” as counter intuitively participating in God's shakedown. To act in a counter intuitive way means to do something that is unexpected and may even seem to be contrary to common sense, and it's typically the opposite of what you're used to doing.

People often resist counter intuitive behavior for the very reason Father Rohr shared with us last Sunday. He told us that we're much like our pets. We like things the way we like them and don't appreciate when change is introduced into our lives. I knew this before I tried this little experiment which is why I was surprised when most everyone did it.

In our passage today God promises to not only shake the earth but the heavens as well. Why would God want to shake up his Creation? To answer that lets consider the COVID pandemic which in many ways was a shakedown. It radically affected all of us and we had to respond in sometimes unusual and creative ways in order to stay in relationship.

My recent bout with COVID was not a pleasant experience but the worst of it was clearly the social isolation. I did not like having to wear a mask and beyond that being in exile in the guest room of our home. The isolation was compounded due to my poor hearing made even poorer by my congested sinuses. Karen and I responded in a resourceful manner by texting each other with our cell phones. Though awkward, texting allowed us to stay in relationship and since it circumvented my poor hearing altogether resulted in effective communication.

An even better example of how a shakedown results in relationship was the surge in use that occurred with the communications technology called Zoom. During the pandemic Zoom began to be put to use in myriad (mere-ree-ud) ways enabling people to safely stay in relationship. Today I meet with the regional minister and pastors in the region every Tuesday morning building upon relationships that would otherwise not exist.

One more example which I can't resist because it incorporates actual physical shaking is the 7.1 earthquake Karen and I experienced in Lancaster, California. As we were sitting in the theater everything began to shake and the lights came on. Suddenly, our individuality vanished as we in the theater became an instant community under threat by a natural phenomenon. We all looked at each other with these quizzical looks on our faces making comments about what had just happened. Without any kind of consensus, we all began to move toward the exits.

After arriving at our apartment complex, we began a conversation about earthquakes with two complete strangers. People wanted to talk about the earthquake and share what they did during the shakedown. Earthquakes can lead to social interaction that otherwise would never happen.

This last week the culture itself was shaken up by yet another mass shooting this one occurring in Minneapolis. An especially horrible shooting (though what mass shooting isn't) because this one targeted primarily children while they were praying during worship. Two are dead and one is in critical condition and eighteen people in all were injured.

I say we've been shaken up, but the reality is mass shootings have become so common place we're mostly numbed out by them. This is the thirty-third school related mass shooting and the four hundred and ninth mass shooting this year in the United States. In comments made following the school shooting the mayor of Minneapolis said, “We need more than thoughts and prayers.”

At one level I understand what he's trying to say which is we need to respond to these traumatic events with responsible legislation and effective mental health programs. But at the same time his comments reveal a common notion the culture holds about prayer which, among other things, encourages people to not take religion seriously.

There is no action more powerful nor more apt to lead to the transformation of one's soul than prayer. And I'm not just talking about quiet, centering prayer. I mean any prayer that's done in alliance with God's Spirit and comes from the heart. By “heart” I'm referring to the foundation of one's being as the Hebrew bible describes in 1 Samuel:

“When he (Saul) turned his back to leave Samuel, God gave him (Saul) another heart....” (1 Samuel 10:9a) And a few verses before that Samuel tells Saul, “Before you know it, the Spirit of God will come upon you and you'll be prophesying right along with them. And You'll be transformed. You'll be a new person!” (1 Samuel 10:6; The Message Bible)

And the transformation of a human being's heart is only one life altering aspect to prayer, Father Rohr tells us about another and in this case, he is talking about quiet, centering prayer:

Without a conscious living in the flow of the Spirit – through us, within us, and for us – and those are the three movements – I think prayer can become merely functional. But if we live within that flow, prayer can become an experience of mystical communion. There is no problem to be solved; it's simply enjoying what is, learning how to taste it, learning how to receive it, learning how to see God in it, and knowing that this “now” – whatever it is – is enough.

We might call this “contentment of being” and is something to seek especially in the later aging years of our lives where thankfulness becomes a typical response to life. Instead of looking ahead to the next ego desire to be acquired quiet, centering prayer develops within us a deep, abiding appreciation for whatever is present in the moment.

That sense of scarcity that the culture has implanted within us in order to sell us things gradually disappears leaving an internal state of peace that is independent of outside forces. It radically changes the way you see the world and best of all it brings you into intimate relationship with God which is the whole point of following Christ.

We may not view a shakedown as a positive thing, and certainly it often doesn't feel that way, but through the power of prayer any shakedown can bring us closer to God.

Rev. Mitch Becker

August 31, 2025

Port Angeles

First Christian Church

“Daughter of Abraham”

Luke 13:10-17

This “daughter of Abraham” has a disability that's caused by a demon or some other evil force. The woman had been suffering from her disability for eighteen years and probably couldn't imagine living in any different manner. She's in the synagogue, so we might assume she attended worship on a regular basis.

On this day there is an unusual amount of excitement because a prophet from Galilee is present, Jesus of Nazareth. The word was out that he'd be teaching in the synagogue. The woman had most likely heard the talk about him and about how he preaches the coming of the reign of God and heals people.

Surely, her life had been full of disappointments and she likely is trying to keep her hopes in check but she's not going to miss this opportunity to be healed. As she enters the synagogue there is a great deal of activity until Jesus begins to teach. After the teaching ends an invitation is extended and the woman is so severely crippled that she stands out from the crowd catching Jesus' attention.

He tells her to come closer and what happens next simply amazes everyone. He puts his hands on her broken, bent body and tells her she's free from her disability. She feels the power of the Holy Spirit surge through her and immediately straightens her once deformed back. She stands tall and praises God!

It's at this point the ruler of the synagogue, which would be a Jewish lay-leader in charge of administration and worship, confronts Jesus about healing on the Sabbath. Jesus responds with an argument about how people tend to their animals on the Sabbath, so why wouldn't he heal a “daughter of Abraham?” This designation as a “daughter of Abraham” also lends credibility to the healing occurring on the Sabbath. What more appropriate time to heal a faithful Jewish woman?

It's also a temptation to label the synagogue leader as a “bad guy,” but that really doesn't do him justice. After all, a faithful reading of the Torah will reveal that the seventh day was set aside for rest and work is prohibited. Second, Jesus isn't totally discounting Sabbath restrictions since his argument incorporates cases when people do legitimate work on the Sabbath such as the necessary care of animals. How much more important is it to heal a “daughter of Abraham!” The text ends by saying Jesus' adversaries experience humiliation while the people celebrate the amazing outcome of the realm of Spirit flowing out of Jesus into a broken world.

The “daughter of Abraham” had suffered from her disability for eighteen long years severely limiting her mobility. This would result in her being dependent upon family and friends and the synagogue for help and support. Then one day in the synagogue she's healed by a prophet passing through town. Not only would she now have essentially a brand new body, but she'd also be challenged with a totally different lifestyle. Now she'd be able to go to work and perhaps support herself and even contribute to the community. The last proverb in the Book of Proverbs describes what a woman might do in ancient Israel for work:

She seeks wool and flax and works with willing hands. She is like the ships of the merchant; she brings her food from afar. She rises while it is yet night and provides food for the household and tasks for her maidens. She considers a field and buys it; with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard. She girds her loins with strength and makes her arms strong. She perceives that her merchandise is profitable. Her lamp does not go out at night. She puts her hands to the distaff, and her hands hold the spindle.... she makes linen garments and sells them; she delivers girdles to the merchant. (Proverbs 31:13-19, 24)

Let's explore a bit further what this level of change might mean for the “daughter of Abraham” in spiritual terms. We can begin with some thoughts from Father Rohr helping us to not only understand the challenges faced by the woman in our story, but also how we are challenged when significant change enters our lives:

The Greek word for “repent (metanoia) means to change your mind. I'd like to emphasize change, because that's not something we humans as a species are attracted to. We're much like animals in this regard. Animals are creatures of habit. Those of us with a dog or a cat know their behavior is predictable. If we change some daily routine, they'll get upset. I'm afraid to say we're much the same. We like things the way we like things. And yet the first words out of Jesus' mouth tell us that he comes to give us a philosophy of change: “Repent,” – change your mind – “for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”

If people refuse to change, what my mother used to call “bullheadedness,” the world will only get worse. We have to learn how to dialogue, how to forgive, and how to trust, and how to give people the benefit of the doubt. In the United States, our country has become very cynical about truth and love. We hear politicians take oaths to be fair and just leaders and we all know it doesn't mean anything. We expect everybody to be for the truth of their group and their “kingdom.” But Jesus tells us to change our minds and accept the kingdom of God, which is what's good for the whole.

On the whole Jesus' words don't mean much to the swath of people in our culture giving way to the seduction of power. This isn't hard to understand because the human ego wants to feel special and achieves that in the presence of power. The inflated ego likes nothing better than to move people around like chess pieces on a board as C.S. Lewis describes in his book “Mere Christianity.”

Jesus has given the faithful an alternative path to follow in his ministry of healing and proclamation. If you read on after our text he immediately goes into a description of the kingdom of God using images of a grain of mustard seed and leaven a woman hides in flour. Everything he says and does leads at some point to the kingdom of God.

And what he says at the culmination of these two short parables is also of great import and speaks to our theme of change. He says, “Strive to enter by the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.” (Luke 13:24) The key image here is the narrow door meaning entry into the kingdom requires considerable discipline and dogged determination.

It requires the faithful to be open to change and as already described we're not particularly keen on change. And if that's not narrow enough for you consider the fact that being open to change isn't enough in itself. One must actually learn to invite change by living a life that freely moves into arenas of challenge and difficulty.

As you know Karen is with her daughter and our granddaughter at the writing of this sermon. By the miracle of modern technology Karen and I have been in communication via texting in real time. Her difficulty with the airlines began with a strike by the employees of Air Canada resulting in the cancellation of her flight home. She has rebooked and her last text revealed they're at a hotel in Zurich, Switzerland.

Her next flight to Paris will board at 7:25 the next morning. In Paris they'll board another flight to Newark, New Jersey and she was working on booking her final flight from Newark to Seattle. Obviously, things have not gone according to plan and Karen has had to reach deep down into her experience as both a traveler and a grandmother since Sadie is less than happy about it all.

Of course, Karen could not have anticipated these difficulties but that's not the point. The point of existence for those of us following Jesus Christ is to be open to challenges that result in growth and change. To resist growth and change will only make things worse in the world.

Challenges help us learn how to let go of things like attachments, desires and unhelpful emotions allowing us to resolve problems. And all of this amounts to practice leading up to the ultimate letting go of the False self – the collection of images, beliefs and teachings mostly acquired by conventional cultural conditioning. This collection of electronic messages in the brain constitute what most people think they're made up of. The True self cannot come forward to take its rightful place until one lets go of this False self.

Jesus describes this process as being “born anew” or being “born again.” (John 3:1-8) It is a psychological/spiritual change of such magnitude that the word “transformation” more aptly describes it. One huge hurdle that must be jumped is that since the False self is all a person has ever known when it is let go of it feels like dying. That in itself is enough to stop the process.

Again, it is spiritual discipline combined with some form of guidance and support by a spiritual director or wise therapist that helps you to keep moving forward feeding the transformation. Father Rohr beautifully describes it as “living deeper into the mystery of Christ.”

In these dark times we're now living through the need for the faithful to follow The Way that leads to enlightenment has never been more needed or important. God be with us.

Rev. Mitch Becker

August 24, 2025

Port Angeles

First Christian Church

“Divide and Conquer”

Luke 12:49-56

This morning Jesus begins by teaching his disciples but ends in speaking to the crowds. What he says appears to contradict everything he had taught about the kingdom of God prior to this text, and what probably grabs our attention is the notion that Jesus comes to bring not peace but division! We can make sense of this by simply putting our text into context with the whole of the gospel.

The division is a consequence of the radical nature of the gospel as it comes up against those in the world who invest their lives in pursuit of the ego's relentless desires, though not everything about the ego is bad. The human ego needs to be developed to both form distinct boundaries from the world and to create a self-identity but eventually must be let go of to allow the True self to come forward. This is all well and fine.

Problems begin to arise when the ego becomes inflated which means its importance becomes exaggerated to the point it begins to detach from reality. When this happens it primarily asserts itself in ways that are counter-productive to social well-being. The inflated ego becomes dependent upon power, fear and is overly disciplined to the point of punishing.

This is in direct contrast to the kingdom of God that Jesus has introduced and is promoting in his ministry. The kingdom is manifested not by power but in humility, not by fear but through acts of courage, not by punishment but by forgiveness. Those who are lured by raw ego pursuits are threatened by the kingdom of God and respond instinctively to counter its positive aspects.

This has always been the case and in the world today we see this instinctive negative response happening in more direct and shameless ways. Whereas in the past such responses were more so hidden and done in covert ways. So, in that respect what we see now-a-days is more open and revealed to the public giving us an opportunity to answer with the humility, courage and the forgiveness Jesus originally promoted in his time.

The division and general chaos we are living through should not surprise us. It is an indication that the kingdom is at hand and as people of faith we can move forward in confidence as we make our contribution to the Salvation of humankind.

As you know Karen is fourteen time zones distant leaving me to take care of the house and property and four pets. That sounds like a lot to do, but what makes the big difference is the element of autonomy. I do what I want when I want to do it. There is no honey-do list to attend to and I have the same type of freedom I did before I was married.

This sounds like a desirable place to be ultimately in charge of my life. Ironically, from a spiritual point of view its not so good. There is too much self-focus and if it weren't for our pets I'd be self-absorbed at home. Eugene Peterson says this about the consequences of too much alone time as he unpacks the beatitudes:

But it's trouble ahead if you think you have it made. What you have is all you'll ever get. And it's trouble ahead if you're satisfied with yourself. Your self will not satisfy you for long. And it's trouble ahead if you think that life is all fun and games. There's suffering to be met, and you're going to meet it. (Luke 6:24-25; The Message Bible)

And its not only individuals that can become too self-absorbed. Congregations can become spiritually challenged if they spend too much time focused upon their own needs and concerns. In the book I'm reading authored by Dick Hamm former General Minister and President of our denomination he shares his experience of congregations trying to preserve their own autonomy at the cost of spiritual well-being.

I'm happy to report that our congregation has been six for six in past years. We are lending financial support to both the Northern Lights Region and units of the General Church. The last offering we made was at Pentecost and that money goes to New Church Ministry which promotes the establishment of new church starts. New Church Ministry took Dick Hamm's 2020 Vision very seriously and in the span of twenty years started 1000 new congregations! A miraculous accomplishment!

We've also been intentionally in relationship with the Northern Lights Region in terms of financial support since we give to the Christmas Offering which supports the region, and I attend a weekly Zoom meeting with the regional minister and pastors, and in the five years I've been here we've had three visits from regional ministers.

You also supported our recent attendance to the General Assembly in Memphis of which you're still hearing about in both worship and online. All of this work and intentional connecting through financial support and personal interaction amounts to staying in touch with the wider church beyond the walls of this sanctuary. It helps to keep us from becoming self-absorbed with our own needs and concerns. To sum up – it's spiritually healthy.

The fact that this text about division is in the gospel at all is striking. Not unlike the texts about Jesus going off by himself to pray, so this one about division is both unusual and important. It's important because you have to have division before there can be reconciliation and relationship. The following story makes the point:

There was a family that lived in a little three-room house that was located off a gravel road. The road was used by log trucks hauling their loads to the mill. The road had to be oiled often to keep the dust down. Their house was about three miles from the nearest town which amounted to a little grocery store/post office and a couple gas pumps.

The family was very poor and were having trouble making ends meet, so there wasn't much that could be done for Cynthia who was in high school and suffered from Eczema. The Eczema would make her itch and would break out on her face, hands and arms. This made her self-conscious at school and she'd try to hide her face with her hair, but it didn't work very well. She always felt different from everyone and couldn't imagine ever fitting in.

Then one day something quite unexpected happened and she found an envelope taped to her locker. In the envelop was an invitation to the birthday party of Colleen Wigglesworth who was one of the most popular girls in her sophomore class. Cynthia was shocked to receive the invitation thinking her skin condition made her incompatible with the other girls let alone someone as pretty and popular as Colleen Wigglesworth!

Because of encouragement given by both her parents and at times when she saw Colleen in the hallway, she somehow found the courage to go to the party. To her surprise for the most part, she enjoyed herself and most of the girls made an effort to make her feel comfortable and accepted. Her acceptance by Colleen and the other girls opened the door to relationships with other peers. Cynthia's suffering in exile came to an end. She gradually lost her sense of being separate from others and grew in terms of self-confidence and social stature.

What preceded Cynthia's newfound sense of self-worth was a protracted experience of being in exile due to her skin condition. During her adolescence leading up to her sophomore year in high school she felt separated from her peers. But that all changed when she received an invitation by someone she considered of social importance. How we think about ourselves is often a direct result of how we believe others see us.

Our text today begins with threats of fire and division of families, but it leads to a very different place. Where it's all headed to is the kingdom of God. In the same way Cynthia finds acceptance after a long period of exile, so we too will find inclusion within the kingdom after we let go of our illusions of separateness.

But that letting go requires times of isolation, depression, and struggle. I recently recovered from a bout of COVID. It required me to socially isolate which was the worst part of the illness. Now that I've fully recovered from the dis-ease of COVID I'm experiencing vivid and prolonged connections with God's Spirit in the depths of quiet, centering prayer.

On one occasion last week during an afternoon sit I sensed a spiritual connection to everything including Karen who is in Turkey and some of the people I recently visited at my high school reunion. These people are physically distant from me, and especially Karen, but for the Spirit physical distance is of no consequence. We are all one in the Spirit and I can't even begin to explain that with words.

Jesus attempts to do it with parables about what he calls the kingdom of God. As Cynthia Bourgeault recently told us the key component of this kingdom is there's no separation between people, people and God, or people and the Creation. In the Spirit it's all one and there's no way to conceptualize that in your mind. Because the experience of this oneness has little to do with thinking.

In fact, to know the kingdom of God means to cease thinking, and then by God's grace you may enter into it. At that point we understand what the gospel is about and where its trying to take us. We can also know that the kingdom of God is the healing of humankind and is what's meant by Salvation.

So when you see division within yourself and in the world around you rejoice because the kingdom is at hand. And so our text ends in a somewhat appropriately harsh way like this:

And when you see the south wind blowing, you say, “There will be scorching heat;” and it happens. You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky; but why do you not know how to interpret the present time?

Rev. Mitch Becker

August 17, 2025

Port Angeles

First Christian Church

“Smoke and Mirrors”

Isaiah 1:1, 10-20

As far as the biblical writers were concerned Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed due to an act of God. The destruction was not due to inappropriate sexual activity as is sometimes given as the reason, but rather it happens because the people are neglecting justice for the marginalized (specifically the widow and the orphan) all the while putting great effort into their worship services.

It sounds like this: “Cease to do evil, learn to do good, seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow.” The prophet proceeds much like the prophet Ezekiel does by suggesting that “prosperity numbs the elites among God's people to the demands of justice.”

The people characterized in the text seem to be quite well off whereas they offer bulls, rams, lambs, and goats all that were costly not to mention how expensive it is to fatten these animals before they are brought to the sacrificial altar! But to do all this while ignoring the need for correction and accountability for those responsible for systemic injustice means the community values the appearance of righteousness over ethical behavior.

Therefore, worship provides the appearance of righteousness while doing nothing to meet the needs of the poor and destitute. People can continue on their merry way without making any substantial changes to their behavior. God does not appear the least interested in the slaughter of animals, but is deeply concerned about the slaughter taking place in regard to the violence being done to their fellow human beings.

In reality, Israel's sacrificial system actually was well oriented toward both social and legal justice issues and this was especially true in the temple. The sanctuary of the temple was a place where tithes were received. The tithes would not only support the temple personnel but also the widows and orphans in the land. Moses promised that when this system properly distributed the tithes the land would yield further bounty. On the other hand, if this proper distribution did not take place then the people could expect “to be devoured by the conquerors sword.”

Let's take a look at our own community of worship and ask ourselves in what ways are we meeting the needs of others and in what ways are we failing. Lets first listen to the words of Rabbi Sharon Brous (Browse) who describes what a healthy, compassionate community looks like:

If the sweet spot – is the intersection of mutual concern and shared purpose, I want to root in a community that stands at the same intersection. Such a community sees every ritual, every service, and every gathering as an opportunity for a deepening of connectivity. It invests in people as complicated, multi-faceted, wounded, beautiful individuals, each one essential to the greater whole....

This type of community establishes spiritual anchors – regular opportunities for people to pray, sing, grieve, learn, and reflect together. It recognizes the collective power of people of good will working to help heal the broader society and prioritizes creating pathways for the holy work to be done. It invests in the creation of sacred space that fosters not inclusion, but belonging, intimacy and authenticity, love and accountability....

(This) means to do everything we can to free our sacred spaces of shame and stigma. It means to speak honestly and openly about disconnectedness and loneliness, depression, anxiety, and addiction....Communities of love and belonging are spaces where even at our most vulnerable, we're still willing to show up and start walking, trusting that our community, those circling toward us, won't look away....

Disconnection is a plague on our society, a plague of darkness. The antidote is rich, meaningful connection. We all need someone to meet our vulnerability with concern and care, to weep with us through the night, and to stand with us in the trenches, working with love to build a better world.

Reading through Rabbi Brous words what came to mind is the work being done by our church to establish ties with Lincoln High School. Many of the young people who attend the high school are suffering because of the plague of disconnection that pervades our society. They need to establish meaningful connections with healthy, compassionate communities and we are in a position to offer that to them.

So far we've made 100 swim passes available to the high school and that's a good start in that we've established a certain degree of credibility. But we need to build upon that and to do so as soon as Fall classes begin. Trust takes time and it also requires a consistent effort being made to build upon an existing relationship. Ironically, Karen is the person that has spearheaded this effort to date and she's at some location in the Mediterranean Sea right now. But that's alright because this task needs to be a group effort.

The other obvious inroad to establishing connections with youth is in Janet bringing the kids to worship. This is also something we need to hope and pray begins to happen again in the Fall.

Our worship community in many ways is spiritually anchored and this is evident every Sunday where people linger for a long time following worship. We want to be in relationship and to that extent we have much to offer the youth. The downside is that we're quite old creating a substantial gap between the generations. We need to make an effort to close that gap and one way is by putting into practice something I was given permission to do at General Assembly.

At one of the workshops the leader specifically called me by name and said I could, by the grace of God, encourage my congregation to get up and dance! This all occurred while we were dancing to the beat of drums playing on a portable cassette player. Since I've been given permission I am at this time going to invite you to get up out of your seats and dance to the drums I'm going to play on my phone.

This comes easily for me since I often have to get up in the middle of the night to dance out excess energy in order to go back to sleep. That may not be a practice of yours and certainly not something you've done in worship. In that regard, you'll encounter a considerable amount of resistance to following through with this exercise.

What may help is to imagine youth sitting in our sanctuary who have come to attempt to connect with us and beyond that to breakthrough the general disconnect they experience everyday of their lives in our plagued society. They are wandering in a wilderness of loneliness, depression, anxiety and in many cases addiction. They've come in the hope that we may offer a different sort of world. We need to show them in some profound way that we are indeed different than they expect.

So, get up and move about not for our own salvation, but for theirs. Forget about yourselves and think only of them and their needs.

PLAY MUSIC:

Undoubtedly, any young people attending our worship service will come with pre-conceived notions about an aging congregation. What we want to do when that happens is breakthrough those images of a stuffy, oppressive worship environment giving them an opportunity to imagine something different.

The title of this sermon is “Smoke and Mirrors” and is a reference to the worship services the prophet was making commentary about. Worship services that served to promote an air of righteousness while the faithful were largely ignoring the needs of the widow and orphan. The widow and orphan being a way of talking about the marginalized in society.

We need to avoid the trap where the focus of our concerns rest solely upon our own well-being. God has given us a way to reach out and make a difference with youth in our community. These youth are not the widow and orphan of our text, though some may be orphans, but they are the afflicted of society and appear to be our Call to ministry. They too need love and support and God has empowered us to offer that to them.

We're already authentically spiritually anchored. Now let us share the gifts of the Spirit we've been given with a strata of society that needs our help, and even more so needs the intervention of the Holy Spirit in their lives giving them a spiritual anchor they can count upon in the adventure of life that awaits them.

Rev. Mitch Becker

August 10, 2025

Port Angeles

First Christian Church

“Can't Buy Me Love”

Luke 12:13-21

Our text is about money something Jesus is fond of talking about whereas the only thing he talks about more is the kingdom of God. In our story Jesus is about to give instruction regarding confession when he's interrupted by someone who wants him to settle a financial dispute. Jesus's response is to refuse to enter into this family squabble and instead launches into teaching about the seduction of wealth.

The farmer in the story is not characterized as being wicked. Nor is he portrayed as being especially greedy. He is even a bit surprised at his good fortune as he makes plans to accommodate for his abundant harvest. It is his spiritual lack of foresight that gets him into trouble. In a word it's his self-focused response that convicts him.

He makes no consideration in sharing his abundance with others nor does he express gratitude to God. What he does is fall into the unholy trinity of “me, myself and I.” This leads directly to his second error which is the belief that he can secure his future by an accumulation of wealth. This is best illustrated when he says, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”

Regardless of the advances we've made in terms of the sciences and technology we're all still fragile, vulnerable human beings. For this reason life is fraught with uncertainty and insecurity and we often seek control over our anxieties by our own efforts or accomplishments. The farmer is considered a “fool” not because of his wealth or ambition, but because he assigns infinite value to something that is finite.

The culture encourages us to insulate ourselves from our anxious thoughts by the accumulation of wealth and possessions. We're often disappointed when the new car or smart phone or pair of shoes doesn't do anything to relieve us of anxiety. Yet, the notion that material gain can absolve us of our sense of vulnerability is so deeply embedded in the culture that we often simply do more shopping!

It might be instructive to consider the generosity often experienced in mission trips to the third world. Missionaries can be humbled by the generous responses they encounter by their hosts who don't harbor illusions about the effectiveness of material goods to save or transform us. These illusions are prevalent in our culture, and we all struggle with them despite what we know the gospel tells us.

However, we can achieve a certain degree of comfort due to material well-being. But the more important questions we need to consider is does wealth convey a sense of self-worth and put us into right relationship with God and neighbor? Certainly not! Only when we recognize that worth, dignity, meaning and relationship are gifts from God can we hope to be able to put wealth into a more holistic spiritual perspective.

On the morning, I wrote this sermon I was driving through the S-curves created on 101 by the workers attempting to improve the salmon runs up Ennis (Ee-ness) Creek. The traffic was dense, and I had to pay close attention to effectively negotiate the narrow lanes. Suddenly, I didn't feel alone in this effort, but I sensed we were all doing it together. It was a group effort, and I felt a part of what was happening.

After more than a week of COVID recovery which involved a lot of individual decisions along with social isolation the S-curve maneuvers were a spiritual experience! I said to myself, “You're a human being again.” That statement reveals the importance of human community in that when were disconnected for any period of time we somehow feel less than human. It was good to be back.

For the faithful person something very important happens at this point. At the moment of re-connection there is a distinct sense that what is happening is not a consequence of evolution. The re-connection with others happens because God has reopened one's mind and soul to the human community. For the faithful relationships are a direct consequence of God's grace.

That is one difference between being in the world as opposed to being a person of God. It's what the Apostle Paul is getting at when he says: “Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind....” (Romans 12:2a) The faithful live from day to day not by ambition and industriousness, but literally by the grace of God and that distinction makes all the difference.

It's not a huge jump from here to the awareness that wealth and material gain contribute very little to helping us acquire the things that truly matter. Things like self-worth, dignity, meaning and relationship. These things of deep value are a consequence of existence within the kingdom of God. This is why Jesus stresses the utmost importance upon his kingdom in the parables of the hidden treasure and the pearl of great price:

God's kingdom is like a treasure hidden in a field for years and then accidentally found by a trespasser. The finder is ecstatic – what a find! – and proceeds to sell everything he owns to raise money and buy the field.

Or God's kingdom is like a jewel merchant on the hunt for excellent pearls. Finding one that is flawless, he immediately sells everything to buy it. (Matthew 13:44-46; The Message Bible)

Now I've spoken of the kingdom as being a gift but that doesn't mean that right action and right practice doesn't need to precede it....it does as theologian Greg Boyd tells us:

The truth is that there's nothing obvious about the kingdom of God. In fact, if we humbly allow scripture to tell us something we don't assume we already know, we'll see that the meaning of the kingdom of God contradicts the most “obvious” truths of our culture and every culture. As is typical, instead of giving us an abstract definition of the kingdom of God, scripture gives us a narrative. It is the narrative that is centered on the person of Jesus Christ.

Throughout the gospels Jesus is depicted as the perfect embodiment – the incarnation – of the kingdom of God. When Jesus was present, scripture shows, the kingdom of God was present. He was in his incarnate form the dome in which God is king – the kingdom of God. According to the New Testament story, Jesus planted the mustard seed of the kingdom with his ministry, death and resurrection. He then gave to the Church, the gathering to all who submit to Christ's lordship, the task of embodying, living out and expanding this unique kingdom.

I'm a good way through Dick Hamm's book that I bought at General Assembly the highlight of the assembly being my brief conversation with him about the book. Now that I'm into the last chapters he has revealed the reason he resigned late in his second term as General Minister and President. He said it was because he realized he was a workaholic which had put him into “grave spiritual danger.”
In our conversation I spoke to him about my own father's alcoholism that led to my addiction to alcohol. He said he realized that could have easily been his own path since his father was also an alcoholic. In our conversation he did not reveal his workaholic behaviors but now it all makes perfect sense to me.

The reason I share this with you is that on the surface it may seem that our efforts are contributing to the expansion of the “dome of which God is king.” But this can be quite deceptive because if addiction is the source of our efforts, it is, in fact, inherently destroying “the dome,” along with our family and friendships, and our own mental, physical and spiritual health as he eventually describes in his book.

He had to resign and seek a healthier lifestyle before he did any more damage. As I told him in our conversation, I was one of the “lucky” ones who became aware of my addictive behaviors early on and was able to stop drinking and begin to develop a more redemptive lifestyle. This took place because I immersed myself into a church where Christians could support and guide me into a lasting sobriety.

Not unlike Dick Hamm, I too have sought Christian community and have delved deeper into spiritual practices like quiet, centering prayer and a daily study of God's word. I've even returned to my practice of journaling and continue to meet with my therapist on a monthly basis. Dick Hamm was not as “lucky” as me, but he no longer wanders in a wilderness of addiction. The light has revealed the error of his ways and the path ahead is much clearer for him.

When I was 12 or 13 years old, I took a trip with my friend Robert Pyburn and his family to their cabin at Camp Sherman, Oregon. Camp Sherman is on the east side of the Cascade range maybe an hours drive Northwest of Bend. During our stay we went on a horseback ride up into the mountains. The destination of the ride was an alpine lake.

The lake was surrounded by sheer rock on a clear summers day with the trout jumping in the lake from time to time. They cooked steak for us on an open fire and Robert and I hiked a bit around the lake. In my youth the alpine lake seemed a magical place and it left a lasting impression as evident in that I'm sharing it with you these many years later.

The kingdom of God is not a place but is something that can breakthrough into our conscious awareness as it did for me that morning on the S-curves. The reason I know it was the kingdom is because it came with the key component once described by Cynthia Bourqealt (Boar-show):

The kingdom of God is really a metaphor for a state of consciousness; it is not a place you go to, but a place you come from. It is a whole new way of looking at the world, a transformed awareness that literally turns this world into a different place. The hallmark of this awareness is that it sees no separation – not between God and humans, not between humans and other humans.

The kingdom of God is the Salvation of the world and though the world appears quite distant from it right now eventually that will change. We're a part of that change to the extent we practice right relationship with God.

Rev. Mitch Becker

August 3, 2025

Port Angeles