others found there, is a letter. However, there are a couple of things that are unique about this

Transcription

1 What Legacy Do We Leave? 2 Timothy 1:3-7 South Joplin Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) May 11, 2014 Rev. Jill Cameron Michel Today our passage came from 2 Timothy. This book of the New Testament, like so many others found there, is a letter. However, there are a couple of things that are unique about this particular one. First, it is one of three letters that are identified as Pastoral Letters in other words, they seem to be directed at pastors more than at entire congregations or communities and are therefore bent toward speaking about leadership issues. But even within the Pastor Letters, or Epistles, 2 Timothy is unique in that it reads a little more like a last will and testament, like the letter of a dying person to a child or successor. This letter is stated to be from Paul to Timothy, though most scholars agree that it was written at a later time and since it was not uncommon for letters to be written in the name of known leaders of the faith, the accuracy of the writer or addressee is inconsequential. The reality is that we can hear the same message even reading it as if from an unknown author to an unidentified pastor, or perhaps more likely, a group of pastors. What we are reading today is from the very beginning of this letter and I want you to hear a few of the verses again, I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that lived first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, lives in you. For this reason I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands; for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of selfdiscipline (2 Timothy 1:5-7). The writer begins this letter reminding the one to whom it is addressed of the legacy of faith that has been passed down to him. A faith, like that which so many of us have received,

2 that came through our ancestors, through in this case a mother and a grandmother, for some of us through other relatives, but often a gift that is passed down from generation to generation. And isn t that what a legacy is? Looking at dictionary.com, I found many definitions for that word. The first way it is defined is: A gift of property, especially personal property, as money, by will and this may be the legacy that gets more of our attention. The reality is that many of us are far more excited about the money Aunt Bertha leaves us when she dies than we are about the model of kindness or generosity that she was for us. And yet the second definition given of that same words is: anything handed down from the past, as from an ancestor or predecessor. And this reminds us that there are all sorts of ways that we not only can, but do, leave a legacy for those who come after us. But all too often we do this haphazardly. That is true whether we are talking about the very large percentage of people who die without an estate plan, whose property no matter how meager or how great has to go through probate where the courts decide who gets what, or whether we are talking about the spiritual or personal legacy we leave. All too often we do so with little intention. Several years ago I was trained to facilitate a curriculum called ARK: Adults Relating to Kids. Some of you have been through those classes. One of the things we are intentional about discussing is how often once we have children we simply repeat the patterns of our parents rather than considering whether or not those are the choices we want to make with our own children. This becomes particularly problematic when our own parents made many questionable or downright destructive choices, but even for those of us who had parents who did a good job parenting, the reality is that we have a responsibility to decide what legacy we will leave.

3 And this is not only true for those who are raising children. Each of us makes our mark on this world. Each of us has an impact on other people and on all of creation. And each of us has the responsibility to receive what has been given to us and consider, as we move forward, what we will leave behind. In this second letter to Timothy, the author remembers the legacy of faith given by a mother and a grandmother. But the author doesn t just say, So, that is enough The author doesn t just say, Ride on the coat tails of your grandmother or your mother and don t worry about doing anything for yourself. Rather the author celebrates the legacy of faith of Timothy s mother and grandmother and then goes on writing, For this reason I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline (2 Timothy 1:6-7). In other words yes, Timothy, you had a legacy left for you that is worth celebrating and now you leave one for others. Now you need to claim your faith for yourself and engage the ministry and the life to which you are called. That is the same challenge that is left for each of us. No matter how well or how poorly those who went before us did in leaving us a legacy no matter how good or bad our parents were no matter how well or poorly earlier generations did in caring for the earth or shaping the church or creating educational models or enriching our community regardless of what legacy we received, we have a responsibility to be intentional about the one which we leave. And this is on so many levels. In our own personal lives if we have been the beneficiaries of good parenting and kind neighbors, bosses who mentored us and teachers who invested in us, people who had a commitment to caring for people and for all creation well beyond their expected commitments, then we aren t just to ride on their coat tails but we are to

4 take that legacy and to build on it, to deepen our commitment to being a model for those who come after us whether in our own household or anywhere out there in the world. And if we have been those who were left a legacy from abusive parents or suspicious neighbors, systems that were structured so that we couldn t get ahead because of race or gender or economics or teachers who never saw our potential, even then we aren t just to be victim to what came before us but we are given the opportunity to leave something better for those who will come after, to decide how the impact we have will be different. And, church, this is about more than what we each do as individuals. As a congregation we receive the legacy of those who have gone before us. And as a congregation we are learning to differentiate between the parts of our history that we will not repeat and the parts that move us forward into who God continues to call us to be. The reality that those who have been around South Joplin for many years know is that many pastors here have experienced painful endings to their ministries. At the time I was called many leaders in this congregation had decided that this was a legacy to leave behind. When I came to South Joplin people promised to do everything in their power to make sure that my ministry didn t end in that same painful way that had become almost habitual around here. And together we worked for that to become different. Likewise, as I have shared before, the first week that Kathryn was on staff the grandson of a former minister came to the church. He was passing through town but because he was working on his family s geneology he came by the church. He shared that just a year or so before his grandfather came to South Joplin there had been a worship service here in our very own church at which the Klu Klux Klan had entered in full regalia and presented a flag. How overpowering it was to me to learn that we had chosen to break away from that legacy.

5 And the joy is that there are also many parts of the legacy we receive and the legacy that we are shaping to leave for others that are worth celebrating. There are things we will continue to choose to repeat things that are about love and connection, about taking care of one another and welcoming others openly, about continuing to grow and learn even when it means changing and even when it means setting aside things we once embraced. When I was a teenager I did a lot of babysitting. I remember my mother telling me that while taking care of the children was my first priority I should also always leave the house in better shape than I found it in. That might mean things as simple as picking up toys or doing dishes, but somehow the home and family should be better for my being there. This it seems is the assignment that we are given as people of faith as well. We are to leave those we come in contact with and the places and communities we interact with better for our having been there. We are not just to exist, not even just to enjoy the legacy of those before us, but to improve upon it, to show our care and to act out of courage because sometimes making things better means taking risks. I believe this is the ministry we have done together over the last 13 years not that we have never faltered but that as we prepare to end our ministry together we are made better because of it, we are leaving things better for those who have yet to come. And it is the ministry you will continue. Although we are better, we have not arrived, but you will continue to improve upon what we have done together you will continue to grow more faithful you will continue to live from the spirit of power and of love which has been given to you.