Know, Grow, Go!

So, as I mentioned to the kids, a little earlier, one of my hobbies, that one point of my life of which there have been probably about 35, too many was digging into my family tree. I had a great-uncle on my dad's side who traced my family's history, all the way back well into the 1600s and he did that by going to libraries. I mean d like hardmode way. And when I started getting interested, it was well, I've got the benefit of modern technology ancestry.com. Let me see if I can have a little hand at it and see what I can do. If any of you have done genealogy work, you know, it can be really fascinating Journey about how you have become you. I came to discover that almost every side of my family has been in North America since before this country's founding by at least a century in some cases. I have extended connections to those who traveled on the Mayflower. I've got connections to people who battled in the Revolutionary War people who battled in the Civil War and my family almost exclusively. Took up residence in the foothills of Pennsylvania and Kentucky. I am Midwestern to a fault for centuries. No one particular find in the course of this as one of the things I've learned and I'm going to apologize. Maybe the Mike's going to come in and out because we're working out the bugs. But one particular thing I found really fascinating was this picture? Now, it's just looks like a random Stone House. What does picture is, it's a picture of the original selders Homestead, which is my mom's father's side of the family, in Westmoreland County Pennsylvania, which is about 45 minutes, east of Pittsburgh right around the hometown of Mister Rogers. Here, since 1792 has stood a claim of my family. In there. If you zoom in a little bit it has a G+ as1179 to George and Alma selders from 1792. And this picture was taken like 2010, this building has been around for Centuries with my family's name on it. No, I have never been there in spite of the fact that I go to Pittsburgh on a regular occasion. I've only seen it in pictures. But for me, it has taken on all sorts of meaning. and just a random Stone somewhere in the neighborhood, in Pennsylvania because it meant that I had some sort of Legacy in this country, and some sort of heritage I think that's why we have interest in genealogy or even why we Mark a Sunday like this one, we talked about Heritage Sunday, we hang this plaid, we listen to Bad pipes. There is something about these things that connect us to something more of who we are. We look to this Sunday, as a chance, to have an identity and allow it to shape us even in some small part. But the have that beat truly valuable that would not just be another Sunday or some blip. Like, well, it's great. I couldn't find my killed this morning. So I just wore pants kind of think it's going to take a little bit of extra work. Especially to avoid traps, that can ultimately hurt us. If we're talking about identity and we're talking about Heritage. And so I want to offer today a few points to consider for this Heritage Sunday and how we Steward our past and how we Steward our future. You know, the first thing about this is at the core. The first part of any Heritage is simply knowing, even one. Frankie asked that question about what's in a last name. That I know what my last name Anderson came from

you know, when our song today, there is an initial knowing Thomas Begins by saying when the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion You know, I see people of Israel as they were going through. All sorts of. This was likely written during the Exile. They would have gathered around and they would have once again, heard as these songs were sung stories of God's faithfulness,

And these stories according to the psalmist, we're so Grand. And so miraculous that it was as though the people at the time We're Dreaming,

People of Israel were pinching themselves at God's faithfulness to them. And there would have course, been more stories that would have been told that shaped the identity of the ancestors of these people of Zion of the Patriarchs and matriarchs. Times that admittedly sounds real just ask anybody who is going through the Genesis bible study on Wednesday night and you start thinking, oh my gosh. Sounds a little less like scripture of more like Game of Thrones, but it's there for the stories to be told.

But there were also the mundane moments. Even this last Wednesday, we read basically a legal Treatise when Abraham purchase the burial plot to bury Sarah. And we talked about the fact that how many of us in the process of getting our Affairs in order, do the exact same thing.

The Surreal and the mundane all together in stories that are being told to a people to remind them who they are. No matter what the story is Friends, it would remind each of them who they are and who God is,

Because I found. My own 42 years of life that there very well, may be nothing new Under the Sun. Much as I'd like to think. We are blazing new trails. I am certain that, those who have gone before us, whose stories. We hear. And we tell went through times of Plenty and Times of want, What has been so consistent? Is that God has been there as well. And it is that knowledge. The cheap stuff in her identity, it's why. For instance, we've continued to work to tell our own stories again here at South Jax's. Jenny has continued to join us. It tells the story of our own identity. As a people on this corner in Jacksonville. And we tell the good stories. We tell the bad stories. We tell the hopeful stories and we tell disappointing stories. And we remember that the story of our own Presbyterian identity isn't just from this place.

Our own family tree connects far further. in Germany, and in France and in Switzerland, and in Scotland Thousands and thousands and thousands of people connected to our Presbyterian, family tree, that shape our identity and remind us who we are and even our current denominational Heritage being in the Presbyterian Church. USA is shaped by divisions and reconciliations. If I were to show you the map of the Presbyterian denominations, it would be as though I grabbed a tire and entire handful of spaghetti noodles. And I threw them on the floor because it's a constant mix and match of things going away and coming back together over. What sometimes seem like the silliest things. Now, What mattered at the time.

and I think it can be tempting then especially in a time of progress, even here is were thinking about a new building to treat the stories of who we've been as a relic or even irrelevant

I find so often that this can be the progressives blind spot yet to do. So, ultimately limits, the celebration of God's presence in our lives, where we ultimately draw our identity leaving us to think that we are alone. Having got here on our own terms and whether we like it or not, we do carry the marks of our past. I am the product. It turns out of centuries of living in Appalachia, I might want to. Become a Cosmopolitan citizen Elevate above the hoi polloi. Talk about interesting subjects and recline at the country clubs. But my story is still in the foothills of Westmoreland County and Kane Pennsylvania.

I grew out of the Plains of Southern Indiana. In the corn fields around greenford Ohio.

I want to carry the stories of my blue color upbringing because no matter what I am grounded in the stories of God's faithfulness during that time as well. The Lord indeed has done great things for each of us in our past.

But I also think it can be tempting to see the stories of the past as something that must be enshrined which I believe can be at times the conservative blind spot but the past is better than the present better than the future. Can I find that ultimately that may have two problems Because I'm shrinemont to quickly creates an idol. Far too easy to worship on its own. Instead of a God who is beyond time and is still with us. And should we worship that Idol in a statue asked? Permanence is more apt to become for us a museum piece or perhaps worse. A mausoleum stared at and grieved over while the Lord might very well continue to be doing good things for us, in our present and should we continue to sow carry sheaves of joy. So, it seems that God is we consider our heritage might invite us to think, Beyond just simple binary. So knowing can't be enough. Instead, we have to grow a commentators argue in this. Psalm Psalm 126 the songs beginning is reflecting on the past and we hear it in the translation that God did do good things for us.

Do we have to take the places where our knowledge of the past and how it has shaped us can be changed and applied to us today? You know, it's reformed Christians at the root of our heritage. Is this phrase if lazy a ref formata semper reformanda, the church reformed always reforming.

And we believe this for two reasons.

When is this good calvinist that we are. We recognize our nature as fallen, and sinful individuals. As much as I'd like to think, otherwise we will make mistakes and we will fail.

And if we think that somehow by Building Together a group of people that will make mistakes and building institutions like the church, WIll suddenly make it possible that we won't make mistakes. We are deluding ourselves. Our institutions will fail because we are fallen and so we could send you to return to the core of what we're called to do as faithful people. And we make change it. We also recognize. But there is a God, who is still active and is not bound to the Past nor to a contemporary cultural moment instead. This opportunity to grow it, compels us to discern as best as we can to seek the very essence of our identity. It is good that we know, but how do we live in it and how do we continue to move with it? And I think we see this in Our Gospel text today, We meet Bartimaeus on the roadside.

and if she shouts rise above the crowds, To the point that those crowds aren't terribly, happy about it.

Just kind of want him to stop.

And perhaps the conventions of the day for that crowd, the ways that the people knew themselves would lead them to believe that. A blind man shouting on the roadside poor, and in need of help, was not worth the time of Jesus. Jesus is got better things to do things to crowd yet. Here we witnessed Jesus, not be bound by that. Cultural moment nor the past, but instead honor what his calling was. They talked about at the beginning of his ministry to literally restore sight to the blind.

and in that moment, then, Eustace that community of Believers even in their own following moment to consider a change. What will it be like the next time? One of those crowd members? Find someone who hopes to be healed shouting by the roadside.

What will it feel like the next time? When their own tears, become shouts of joy.

What you doing with that gross? If we know, and we grow It begs another question. Can all of this growth fancy Latin phrases that get tossed about Can they stay static? We get to hold it in for ourselves. Does it get to be just for us? The answer. Surely has to be no. And so as we know and we grow, we must then go.

If you look at your Bibles and you look at Psalm 26 126 you'll see that it says a song of ascent and to be honest with you for years I saw that and said there's strange things in the song very wasteful on thing for you, David or some of this. I never really paid much attention to what the song of ascent is

Know what it is but it's a song. But it's meant to be sung as a group of individuals are off on a pilgrimage.

But this song would have been spoken, would have been selling his people were off on their own Journeys. Going to the next place that it wasn't just enough to know, it wasn't just enough to grow, but that it would be carried with them as they went on here. Again, Psalm 126 and Eugene Peterson's translation. It seems like a dream too good to be true. When God returned Zion's Exiles we laughed and we sang. We couldn't believe our Good Fortune we were the Talk of the Nation. God was wonderful to them. God was wonderful to us. We are one happy people and now God do it again. Bring rains to our drought-stricken lives to those who planted, their crops and despair, Will shout Harrah's at the Harvest. So that those who went off with heavy hearts, will come home laughing. With armload of blessing.

The knowledge of God. To the people. The growth of the people to know that God's faithfulness will not just be limited to one time and one era it rubs with the song shouting and now God do it again.

But it's not without their own effort.

The people will Journey, they will go on their pilgrimage. They will sow their seeds according to the psalmist, even if they are Weeping and they will come home with shouts of Joy, Their Blessings will be abundant, they will not be able to carry all that they harvest enjoy because of who God is and the work that they are willing to do.

Find this in my own life.

A God who has been present with my family since 1792? That same selders name is the name of my grandfather who was my pastor for so many years until my final year of Seminary, when he passed away?

God's faithfulness for hundreds of years and it is because of him that I am here today those initials that are inscribed and stone in Pennsylvania are a testament.

And of course, in all of the space between the dashes of 1792 and 2024, there are moments of weeping, there are moments of failure. There are moments that the family of my ancestry needed to grow. But I am here because of God's faithfulness, you are here because of God's faithfulness. And as I continue, then to be one more branch on an ever-growing tree. I will also be a story for generations to come.

As I've heard you tell the stories to Jenny, I hear the stories of people who I will never meet, who had impact on so many of you they come with you. They impact those who are here today. And when these words are written and they are projected out from here, they will care for the folks of years beyond the time that any of us call South Jacksonville Presbyterian Church home we as a church carry the same thing. And so why do we do any of this? Why do we care about Heritage Sunday? Why do we do stewardship? Why do we do any of this? It is because we Steward the Ministries because the stories of God's faithfulness ultimately matter.

Because I still e Stone in 1792 matters. Because the stories of praying around each other matter, because the stories of a church that has been in one place and now isn't another matters, because God's faithfulness is through all of it. And we take all of this.

And realized that we can't ignore who we've been.

Nor can we try to treat an institution as something? So, static, and brittle that the movement of time, and the Reformation of the body of Christ at South, would cause it to crumble. My Lord. And my God if we were so anxious about the Church of Jesus Christ needing to live in the past, our faith is too small and we need to know and grow and go. Friends. We don't change just for the mere sake of change.

We desire to live more like those, who believe that God moves with us.

That God is in our past weeping. Assisting us in our present sewing. And in our future abundant Joy. When we bring home the sheaves again and give thanks to a God who has been part of it all And sometimes be a god. To a god. Horror Story.

For all of the matriarchs and Patriarchs who have come before. For all of the matriarchs and Patriarchs. That are here now. and for all of those beloved, humble servants of God, who have yet to come,

goodbye to each of us. Be on this journey as well.