This Thursday is our traditional American day to express gratitude for all the blessings of our lives.  Under normal circumstances we’d consider today Thanksgiving Sunday, but this year it’s Stewardship Sunday.  Same thing!  It is a day for giving thanks. 

    I want to give thanks this morning for Christ’s teaching that we are One Body, and for the confidence that Paul attests to in Romans 8, when he writes:  “There is nothing in all creation that can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.”  To me, that’s foundational. That’s why I am a Christian.  That’s also why I love my church.  This church is where I come to be reminded of and to celebrate that truth.  We are One.

    In the Jewish tradition, this morning’s passage from Deuteronomy is called the “shema.” The word literally means, “hear” in Hebrew, and it is the simplest, deepest and most profound prayer that can be offered:  “Hear O Israel, the Lord your God is One.  You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.”  God is One.  There is no separation.  When we recognize that, everything else follows naturally. Think about the implications.  God is One, and we are also One – one with God, and one with each other.  How we think about one another and how we speak to one another is a reflection of how we think about God and speak to God.  No separation.  That’s why kindness and gentleness are so important.  That’s why forgiveness is so important.  And that’s exactly the point Jesus made when he was challenged about which commandment was the greatest.  Without missing a beat he responded by reciting the shema as the first and greatest commandment, “Love God.” Then he added a passage from Leviticus 19:18, saying, “And a second is like it, ‘you shall love your neighbor as yourself.’”  Then he concluded,  “On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” 

    That’s it. That’s all there is to religion.  That’s really all there is to the church.  Love God and love one another. That’s the essence of who we are and all we are created to be as individuals and as a church.  Oh, we do a lot of things.  We’re very, very busy people, involved in hundreds of activities.  That’s why we have a health ministries team to check our blood pressure every month and keep us healthy! In the final analysis, as important as what we do is - how we do it is even more important.  We do it for God, and we do it with love.  We do it with the grace and confidence that comes from knowing we are One.  What we truly give to God, we are giving to ourselves and to all the people of God. 

    Tim Hansel, a contemporary writer, has written:  “The discipleship lifestyle is becoming all you were meant to be, and then giving it all away.”  That is, develop your full human capacities, and then use them to express yourself, serve others, and make a positive difference in your world.  That’s the essence of discipleship.  That’s the essence of stewardship.  Church is where we learn that truth, are reminded of that truth, practice that truth, and celebrate that truth.

    I can remember as a child going to Sunday school with my dimes for the offering tied up in the corner of a handkerchief.  It was my first lesson in stewardship. The children’s Sunday school offering probably didn’t impact the church budget very much, but that wasn’t the point.  It was a teaching on stewardship that impacted our hearts.  It was an important teaching about the importance, and the blessing of sharing.  Even as a kid I was one with the Body of Christ and played a part in living out the truth of Christ’s love.

    Every one of us here this morning has experienced the difference this church has made in our life.  The worship, the music, the fellowship we have with friends who are, in many cases, among the best friends we’ve had in our entire life; the opportunities for service as we participate in the various outreach activities this church sponsors - all of these not only comfort and inspire us, they also provide a way for us to reach out and make a positive difference in the world.  I thank God for the men’s and women’s covenant groups, for the retreats and the camps that bond us together in spiritual intimacy and challenge us to grow in our love of God and in loving support of one another.  Thank God for all the blessings and the opportunities for service this church family provides, in and through the Spirit of Christ. 

    The examples of your stewardship, of becoming all you can be and then giving it all away, are endless, and everyone here this morning is involved in one way or another. From the choir and worship committees to Christian education, and everything in between, we are a generous and dedicated church family. Our trustees put in uncountable hours around this place.  The finance committee volunteers huge amounts of both time and expertise. And this church literally could not operate without all that the membership nurture and care committee does.  I mentioned the stewardship ethic of the United Methodist Women last Sunday and the United Methodist Men are equally generous with their labor and the fruits of their labors. People throughout the community and even the world have been affected by your generosity as it is channeled and expressed through the work and witness of our church in the world committee. We have a long history of being faithful to the teaching of Jesus Christ that we are One with each other and One with all the people of the world. 

    As we all know, a lot of things are different this year, and they’re going to stay different for a long time.  The stewardship history of this church has been exemplary, and we have a right to be proud of all that we’ve done.  But our building program is now challenging us in a way that we’ve never challenged ourselves before, and the fact of the matter is that the ordinary, everyday, annual budget expenses are not going to go away.  We want to build for the future, but we are building on the foundation of the present, and that’s what our annual operating budget supports. 

    So, that’s pretty much the end of my stewardship sermon. I have been deeply touched by your generosity.  You are a gracious and a loving congregation, and I have seen you go the extra mile more times than I can even count. You don’t need a sermon from me about stewardship. The fact of the matter is, I’ve learned more from you than I could ever teach.  You love your God, you love your church, and when you see a need and believe in the reality of that need, you give generously, even sacrificially. 

    We are One.  Thanks be to God.  Amen.