10 years can be a long time, especially in church life. But it is, in fact, only the beginning! As a thirty-something year old man, Andy has potentially another 30 years of pastoring ahead of him. As the walls of St. John’s can testify, congregations last even longer than pastors!
What is it, then, that drives us all on? What makes someone like Andy give up a potentially excellent career in teaching, with good job prospects and secure pension? What makes him give that up and risk everything to serve a group of people he doesn’t yet know? First in East London, then in Manchester.
What is it that compels people to seek out and become part of this congregation? To travel often many miles, giving up precious hours on much-needed weekends? Why do people in this congregation spend time in prayer, thought and study, working out how they can do even more for MCC?
Why? Because you have been “captured” by the call that God has given you. Each of us in this place tonight, and those who can’t be here, has been given a portion of Christ’s grace. This grace makes us restless, challenges us, and when we answer the call that God gives each one of us, it can be the best feeling in the world. We have a sense of wellbeing, a sense of what it means to experience “the fullness of Christ”.
The reading from Ephesians makes it clear that we each have different callings: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers. It also makes it clear that we are called by the same God, the same Spirit. This is the unifying factor in the rich diversity we experience.
And why has Christ given us our allotted share of restless grace? So that we can fulfil the Great Commission:
How have Andy and MCC Manchester fulfilled this Commission over the years?
Andy was one of the people who got out and started the feeding programme for those with HIV in MCC North London. This successful project became independent of the church, and still exists today. He was willing to reach out to a new “nation” by starting a new congregation in East London. He then moved to the north of England – another nation entirely!
At MCC Manchester you have got “out there”. MCC Manchester was one of the first MCCs to have an active ministry within the transgender community. When Princess Diana died, you got out there and held a memorial service in the village. You didn’t wait for people to come to you. When the tragedy happened on 11th September, you got out there again, giving people with no spiritual home a time when they could be closer to God. The money you collect for the Children’s Society and the food for the Booth Centre are all examples of MCC Manchester getting out there.
MCC Manchester gets “out there” through its web page, so ably run by Philip. And when people come to find you, you reach out to them with your welcome, offered by people like Smiley who put people at their ease and make them feel they belong.
Anyone who knows Andy would say he is a great teacher. He has used this gift within this church and through the District, with other congregations and through Samaritan Education in Europe. Other people in this congregation have also been teachers. Luke has taught us about transgender issues. Pam, Sue and Mary have represented MCC at the European Forum of Lesbian and Gay Christian Groups, teaching others what it can be like to be in a denomination like ours.
As for baptism, I don’t know how many you have actually had in MCC Manchester. Baptism is a symbol of belonging to the Christian community. I know that many people have come through the door of MCC Manchester, having already been baptised somewhere else. But, for the first time, perhaps in a long time, they have felt part of a Christian community that loves and values them as they are – a person with gifts, given through Christ’s grace.
All of this time, Christ has been with you, the Holy Spirit working among you to make miracles happen in the lives of the people that the congregation serves.
As we celebrate 10 years of ministry for Andy and for MCC Manchester, let us rejoice in the one Spirit who works through us, the one Christ who gives us grace and the one Parent who is over all and through all and in all.
Amen
This sermon was first preached in the Metropolitan Community Church of Manchester. Click here for further information.