Once you weren’t a people, but now you are God’s people. . . . Once you hadn’t received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
This is quite a Sunday we have coming up. It is going to be a wonderful day. We are celebrating the young people of our congregation through the confirmation of Erica and Olivia and the presentation of third-grade bibles to Dash and Elliot. We could not be prouder of our young people. They are fun to be around, dedicated, helpful, kind and generous. They love to help out and they love to be part of things. And we love that they are part of our church family.
With so much celebrating of our youth, it's a good time to reflect on the journey of faith we are on, directed by God's grace and mercy. 1 Peter says like a newborn baby, we desire the pure milk of the word... and with it we will be nourished and grow into salvation.
The Methodists call this journey sanctifying grace. We are first surrounded by prevenient grace, and then in our acknowledgement of what God is doing in our lives, we are recipients of justifying grace. The rest of our days we are headed toward what Wesley called "going on to perfection," heading toward wholeness and full salvation in God's grace... sanctification.
Big words, maybe, but the sentiment is straightforward. God loves you when you don't even know God is God. And God walks with you in ways that make you finally realize God is God. And God continues to walk with you all the days of your life as you journey ever closer to being one with God.
We come to worship this week knowing to whom we belong. And giving thanks for those whom we are privileged to share our own faith stories with so that they, too, can grow in the faith.
And it is in this continuing nurture of the next generation that we will all receive our sanctification. Helping a young person to grow their faith creates a legacy... and also a future. It gives us the ability to walk boldly into tomorrow hand-in-hand with the God who loves us all.
Now you are God's people. Now you have received mercy. Thanks be to God.
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