Ephesians 1:15-23 NRSVUE
15 I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, and for this reason 16 I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers, 17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, 18 so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may perceive what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power. 20 God put this power to work in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come. 22 And he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

Paul didn’t write what we just read.  Bible scholars know this because Paul was kinda dead at the time it was written.  Also, the earliest known copies of this letter are not addressed to the Ephesians.  They aren’t addressed to any particular community of faith.  The oldest copies of this letter are addressed, “to the saints who are faithful.”

So in a way this letter was a creative writing project by some unknown second generation Christian.  As if the author of this letter sat down, around the year 90 (we think), to write a sermon based on the question: if Paul was alive today, what would he write to the “saints who are faithful?”

If Paul was alive today, what would he write to us?

What would Paul say to us, the faithful saints of Montavilla UMC who have continued to show up and be the church in a time when being a part of a church isn’t a popular choice?

And let’s be honest.  This lack of popularity is intimidating.

Many of us can remember a time when this sanctuary was full on Sunday mornings.  When the basement classrooms were crowded with children.  When the church was the center of family life and a good influence on the community at large.

There are some who remember those times with joy and gratitude.

And there are others who remember those times with hurt because they were excluded from the in-group.

Our Bishop, in his Episcopal Address — there’s a link to the whole thing in the All church email and it’s on the Greater Northwest Website if you want more–

Our Bishop, in his Episcopal Address, wrote to us:

This season demands courage—not just from leaders, but from every United Methodist. We need courage to release what no longer serves, to embrace new models of ministry, and to stand firmly for justice and compassion in every aspect of our common life.

The reason this season demands courage is because we’re all a little afraid of the future right now.

We’re afraid about the future of the church.

The future of this country.

The future of the economy.

Our own personal futures.

All sides of All the arguments are afraid of the future.

• The people who want to turn back time to some idealized version of past greatness are afraid of the future.
• The people who want to preserve hard fought gains in civil rights are afraid of the future.
• The people who benefit from the way the economy works now are afraid of the future.
• The people who are being crushed by the current economic system are afraid that the future will only be worse!

We have experienced so much change, so quickly, over the past few decades and even the past few years that even people who like change are tired of all the change!

It takes real courage to look at the future with hope instead of fear.

It takes courage to give thanks for what used to work really well.  To honor the courage of those who came before us and did their best to adapt to the challenges of their times.  And it takes courage for us to admit that some of our ancestors’ choices no longer serve us.

It takes courage to honor the hurts of those who were excluded and harmed by what worked for many, but not for all, and to choose to stand firmly for justice and compassion in the ways we move forward together.

It takes courage to make intentional choices about how we feel called to approach the future.  It takes courage to recognize that the choices we make now define the future we give to the next generation.  

And it takes courage to recognize that not making a choice is a choice.

We can, we absolutely can, choose to do nothing, to change nothing, to wait until it is once again 1956 outside.  But I’m pretty sure that it will never be 1956 again….

But I think this letter to the Saints who are faithful, written as if Paul was here to talk to you today, instead of just me, is for us.

You can open up your bulletin and follow along, because I’m just going to join in on this exercise on what Paul might write to us if he was here today.

Having heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love towards all the saints, wouldn’t Paul give thanks for you?

I believe that Paul absolutely would give thanks for you, the faithful saints who are still here practicing the teachings of Jesus more than 2000 years later!

I think that it would bring Paul to tears to know that we are still here and we are still faithful to Christ Jesus.

Paul would not cease to give thanks for you and remember you in his prayers, that God would give us a spirit of wisdom and revelation, because we definitely need God’s wisdom and revelation now!

So that…with the eyes of our hearts enlightened we may see past the fear, see past the past, see past our own comforts and preferences…

And perceive what is the hope to which God has called us.

What is the hope to which God has called us?

Because, Beloveds, we are called to hope.

We are called to hope.

We are called to hope.

What are the riches of Christ’s glorious inheritance that we are called to leave to the next generation of saints?

And what is the immeasurable greatness of God’s power for us who believe?

Don’t we share in Paul’s courageous hope that the God who got us this far, can carry us into the future according to the working of God’s great power???!!!

Isn’t the power that raised Christ from the dead enough to give us hope?

Isn’t the power of Christ seated in the heavenly places, far above all rules and rulers, all authority figures and all earthly powers and nations, and above *every* name, not only today, but yesterday, today and tomorrow…

Isn’t God’s well demonstrated power enough for us to listen to Jesus telling us again and again, “do not be afraid?”

God has put all things under his feet, so can’t we trust in God’s power?

God is the head over all the things for the church!

So can’t we place our hope, our trust, our faith in the fact that we are still the Body of Christ?

That God has made us the embodiment of the fullness of Christ who fills all in all?

And because we are in God and God is in us, we don’t have to be afraid of the future.

I believe beyond believing that God has already given us a spirit of wisdom and revelation so that we may perceive what is the hope to which we have been called.

I believe that Paul trusts us to make choices about the future of the church.

That Paul trusts us to listen to Spirit.

That Paul trusts God to still be God, 2000 years later.

And I trust you.  The good people of Montavilla UMC, to listen to Spirit as we consider the future of the church today.

Because it’s not about me.  

Pastor’s come and go.

It’s about hope.