Neh. 8 I Cor 12:12-131,Lk.4:14-21
Nehemiah built the ruins of Jerusalem into a city worthy of the name. We have the river lined with too many rusting hulks of industry, and St Louis has the interstate bordering far too many abandoned ruined buildings.St Louis dreamed of building a new stadium in an old site near the river. Right here, we have the Stratford, Grand, post office and the YMCA standing empty for too long. I so admire the wedding shop at the corner by the Frews for renewing that corner and then Elijah Ps opening along the same thoroughfare.Nehemiah knew well that physical structures matter in a community.
Obstacles always occur. One of the reason I treasure this book is its flurry of obstacles that get in the way of his plans and work. Nehemiah makes the most of his limited resources.Impediments, predictable and surprising, afflict his goal, but he stays on course and gets the wall rebuilt.
In order to stress community, Paul reinforces the three key words, “arrange” (12:24), “suffer,” and “rejoice” (12:26) The Greek preposition syn (meaning “with” or “together,” as in the w“symphony”) is prefixed to each of these key verbs. It is as if to underscore the assertion that our oneness is a matter of God’s design. From creation God has “mixed us all together,” that we might suffer and rejoice together in a mutual harmony.
Now we meet even one more key insight of the body language as Paul develops it for the Corinthians. The body is composed of many parts and each part has an important function. Weight is added in the assertion that all of this is by God’s design...interrelation of the weaker and stronger members of the body. Because “God has arranged the body, giving greater honor to the inferior member,” (12:24) we are led to imagine and discover the implications of the members’ mutual “care for one another” (12:25) mutual edification of a community, a body of which Christ is also a part, through the mutual care for one another in both the sufferings and the successes of life.(see James Boyce). The critical language has its focus on working together. That was the theme of the march on MLK Day here just this past week and perhaps the theme of the gathering on the 12th concerning the closing of the old coal-fired power plant. It is not easy for us to hear. Yes we are called to be responsible adult, rep sponsible individuals. At the same time we are tied together in society, in community, in a congregation. Some things we do not do well alone. we require a common purpose with common effort.Congregation renaissance requires the guidance of god and the joint vision and effort of a congregation.We have a Nehemiah task before us for first Presbyterian Church.
The Vitality Group wishes to focus on emphasizing our identity as a formal worship center, a beacon for sophisticated liturgical worship. We could have moved from out location a quarter century ago, but we decided to stay in the heart of Alton.At this point that means touching our community with a variety of servies and information on programs in the disparate stew that marks Madison county social services. It seems as if we have a wall around us that we need to dismantle, of folks either not knowing u of us, hence varieties of advertising/getting our name out and a misperception about our life and work here. When I first came here, we read from John’s gospel where Jesus says come and see. That,I am convinced, will open the door for people to join with us and give us a launching pad for a new future beyond our best dreams.
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