This passage from Acts kind of takes the sting out of tax day, doesn’t it? I find it hard to even imagine being in those passionate beginnings of the Christian movement and making community such a high priority that one would voluntarily give everything to the greater purposes of the whole. Today, we look at those kinds of behaviors and think – cult – or at the very least that it’s a weird way to live. We give out of compulsion – like taxes, or out of obligation – to charity. It’s rare to have that strange moment in which giving it all sounds like a wonderful, joyful idea. It’s even hard to find people today that choose to be generous givers because of all they have. More often, we believe the cultural messages that tell us that we have what we have because we earned it through our hard work and determination. Sometimes it seems as though those who have great resources are inclined to want even more, so those that we expect to be able to give the most often give less – thought that isn’t always so.

This passage tells also us that, “With great power the apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all.” Again, the sense of community being conveyed here is great and powerful – dare we say “dangerous.” But we know all too well that great power can lead to great catastrophe. David Koresh comes to mind. But what doesn’t come to mind are the churches that I know best. Presbyterians in general are not known for tithing to their congregations, though we do tend to have resources left over in our checkbooks when some new program or project excites us. Presbyterians are also not exactly known for testimonies of great power. As a matter of both education and orderliness, our worship tends toward the cerebral more than the passionate. Just like Fozzie Bear said in “The Muppet Movie” when he walks in on a rock band practicing in a deserted church sanctuary, “They don’t look like Presbyterians to me.”

So what happened to this sense of community that seemed to ooze from the pores of the early church? What happened to the bold, dangerous, courageous, in-your-face faith that inspired this sense of sharing with one another and being true to one’s principles unto death? Well, part of it is a history lesson. The early Christian church was a movement – not the institution we have today. In fact, the early Christians were radically and diametrically opposed to the “institutional religion” of their day. After all, it was not just the state, but the church that hung Jesus on a cross to die. Those early believers were not necessarily the rich and famous. They were the boat-rockers, the justice seekers, the rabble-rousers, the underclass, the oppressed, and the downtrodden. They were men and women with a message that love conquers all else, and that God sacrificially bears that love for humankind.

At least they were a movement until about the fourth century. In the fourth century, things began to change for this new religion. The Emperor of Rome, Constantine, reversed the practice of his predecessor for persecuting Christians, and began a program of religious tolerance – eventually leading to him being known as the first “Christian Emperor.” The trajectory soon followed that Christianity became the official religion of the state, and the melding of culture and religion started down the path for Christianity as it had done before in Judaism and would again do in Islam. Religions tend to have a sedating affect on a populous once they pass those initial countercultural kinds of adventures. It’s as though they have to grow up, mature, pass that teenage awkwardness and invincibility and become a stable adult in society.

The Bible, the very Bible that has been a calming societal influence for centuries, is a surprisingly radical book. Just these few verses share some things that we wouldn’t even give a second thought in rational society today. Share everything, our houses, land, cars, and bank accounts in community? Testify to the resurrection, not with egg hunts and Easter lilies, but with a fiery passion for God? Imagine, grace, God’s grace upon us all so thick we could feel it wrap around us! It turns out that in different times throughout history, these embers of a more dangerous faith have been stirred up again after a long period of coldness and inactivity. Certainly it happened during the Reformation when persons of deep and persistent faith grew weary of the church and found new life by returning to the pages of scripture.

I wonder if we will have the wherewithal to do it again. I hate to say it, especially as a preacher-type whose job is tied to the institutional church, but there’s a lot of church type stuff that has grown stale, and is dying or dead at the core. In this country, ecclesial bureaucracies grew until they were dreary, slow, and bulky, and now they are collapsing in and on themselves. In the local church, we have learned to govern by the lowest common denominator of consensus rather than learn to lead from the strange inspiration of the Spirit. Sadly, I’ve seen too many people leave the church or simply choose not to come, not for theological differences or matters of conscience, but out of sheer apathy. The larger Presbyterian Church is not in danger of going down in a blaze of fire; instead, it will fade into the background and out of our corporate memory - death by boredom. Any honest young person will tell you that’s a real possibility!

But I’m here to tell you that our fate is in our own hands. It doesn’t have to be this way. It never did. We have a great and powerful testimony to offer. We have more resources than we ever thought possible. Jesus Christ has promised to be with us and love us always; and through the grace of God with the power of the Holy Spirit, we can cross any hurdle and we will break down every wall or fence in our way. Even our own sin need not hold us back. John’s letter reminds us that confessing both our faults and our sinful omissions always gives us a fresh start with God – so no matter how much darkness has clouded our view, when we turn to God, our vision becomes crystal clear.

I believe that here in this church, there are those of one heart and one soul, who together can and will do anything that God is calling us to do. The Psalmist says, “How very good and pleasant it is when kindred live together in unity!” Now, I do know you well, and I know with what strength of convictions your opinions can be, but trust me, even in your diversity, I am watching you become a unified church, a congregation that works together, plays together, cries together, and laughs together. Maybe now is the time to make our break from the institutional church of “what was” for the inspirational church of “what is to come.” I hope that doesn’t mean we will leave everything behind. Faith is transmitted from one generation to the next and if we lose touch with that, we could very well lose the wisdom of the apostles that keeps our testimony powerful and great. But I also hope and pray that together we will have the courage to be led by our faith and to put our trust in the community of the faithful.

I have a dream for this community that I love.

I dream that we will be a church led by love more than fear.

I dream that we will warmly welcome all God’s children: young and old, rich and poor, whether they are educated through the many trials of life or by many years of formal education.

I dream that we will find a place in this community for all the people God calls to serve among us regardless of gender, race, politics, or sexual orientation.

I dream that this will be a place of genuine care and concern for those whose lives have been torn apart and that it will be a place of growth and challenge for those who seem to have it all together.

I dream that this church will continue to honor its living traditions, those things that make this place unique and alive. But I also dream that we will no longer be held captive by the phrase, “That’s how we’ve always done it before.”

I dream that the people of this church would be known far and wide for their generosity, kind spirits, and ability to smile broadly any time they talk about this beloved community.

I dream that we will grow in spiritual maturity and strength of conviction so that our testimony can be like that of the apostles – powerfully attractive to those who need desperately to hear about God’s love.

I dream alongside of your Session that this church will become a fountain of living water, not only because of the difference our mission projects are making in Belize and Appalachia, but because this entire community has become transformed by following Christ, the living water.