Even though it can be frustrating, when it comes to putting a project together it usually takes a good mix of people with different skills, abilities, and strengths to do the job well.  I’ve learned a few things since seminary so I usually don’t go back that far to illustrate a point, but I’ll share something that was actually quite memorable.

 

There were about 35 people in my leadership class and one of the things we did was to take a leadership-style test.  The test then put each of us into one of four categories.  I’ll let you keep guessing where I ended up, but the types of leadership were these: dominant, influencer, steady, and conscientious.  The assignment our professor gave us was simple.  We had to plan a weekend conference.  I forget what the topic was, but that was inconsequential.  What made the exercise humorous and memorable is that we had to plan the conference in groups and the groups were comprised of people with the same leadership style.  So one group had all dominant leaders, another group only had influencers, and so on.  Each group had 45 minutes to plan the conference and 5 minutes to present its work to the class.

 

After forty five minutes three of the groups were still working, but the dominant group had been sitting quiet for about twenty minutes.  The other group that had finished their retreat were the conscientious types finished the plans exactly on time and had thought of a lot of details that the dominant ones had left out.  But, while they had finished the project they didn’t have fun doing it, and didn’t allow for much fun time during the retreat.  The other two groups didn’t finish their retreat.  The steady leaders only got about three-fourths of the way through their project.  The funny piece of all this is what had happened with the influencers group.  They were the last to present their project.  They had only made it through one night of the retreat plans and were busy talking about invitations, topics, how much free time and getting to know you games people there’d be just on that one night.

 

The point of this was to show that while we may be comfortable with people who are just like us, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the best combination for getting things done well.  God has built us differently; I think we each know this intuitively.  And it’s in the way our differences work together that the best results happen.  One of my favorite committee experiences was in developing a website for a church with a group of eight guys.  Each of us had laptops, and sat in Panera for weeks coming up with designs.  Although we were men, that’s where the similarities ended because we each had different styles, but that’s exactly what made it work.  I had the larger picture perspective, two guys were writing code, four of the guys were interested in their areas of ministry, and one guy drove us all nuts with his editing.  But, we each needed the other people to make the whole thing come together well.

 

One thing I’ve noticed in churches that I’m sure happens in the business world, too, is that it can be difficult for people to think about their differences in positive ways.  It’s so easy to get accustomed to doing something one way, or keep thinking back on the good-ole’ days as the best ones.  But, after you’ve stripped away our common faith, it’s precisely the differences in style, perspectives, opinions, attitudes, strengths, and growth areas that makes a church thrive.  For example, one of the things I’m most proud about in you is that you’ve been able to accept that having two worship styles in one church works.  That’s not to say you all understand each other!  But, you’ve made the differences a part of the life of this church.

 

Another example, and more subtle than the worship difference, is that you’re spreading out the base of leadership in the church.  You’re opening up to calling people with newer faces to leadership as elders and deacons.  Neither of these changes have been completely comfortable, but to do church well going forward you’ve realized that you have to make them.  But, why is it in our differences that we are strongest?

 

I can’t answer this question from a psychological perspective, but theologically I can say a couple of things.  When Paul saw a church split apart by differences, he used the image of a body because a healthy body has different parts working together.  The body of Christ cannot function if everyone does the same thing, has the same interests, passions, styles, or strengths.  The diversity at Central is a remarkable gift that while it can create some frustrating moments, the Holy Spirit can wield that diversity into glory far better than He can if we were all the same.

 

Such diversity has created frustration for a long time, even for followers of Christ as close as Martha and Mary were.  What a great story this is; it’s one of those that could’ve been told in every generation who’s ever watched two sisters put on a dinner party.  One sister is doing all the busy work while the other sister is sitting with the guest of honor enjoying his company.  One woman is the busy body, the dominant one, who likes to take charge and make sure all the details are in order.  But, the details didn’t include her sister just sitting idly around and laughing it up with someone of such great importance as was Jesus.  So, Martha gets downright riled up with Mary.  You know it just dawned on me that we have two sisters in this congregation with similar names!  Okay, so I guess I better say this before going further: Marianne and Martha, no, I’m not aiming this at either of you!  Now that I’ve said that, let’s get back onto the topic.  Normally people talk about this story and try to identify themselves either as a Martha or a Mary.  But, that’s not the point I want to make today.  What stood out to me this time was that the differences between Martha and Mary created friction and it caused Martha finally to lash out at Mary basically for just sitting there like a duff while she did all the work.  Martha’s perspective was that being active was the only way to serve Jesus.

 

Now, before you rush to make a judgment about Martha, let’s step back a few verses.  The story that immediately precedes the one about Martha and Mary is a well-known parable about a Samaritan who served a Jewish man by taking care of his wounds.  He went out of his way to make sure that his natural enemy was in good hands and that his wounds were healed.  For generations this Good Samaritan has been praised and blessed as a model of service to those with whom we may have disagreements, and not just with words, but with self-sacrificial, even humbling, action.

 

So when we put these two passages together a different narrative emerges.  One story blesses active service but then Jesus blesses out Martha for serving at the expense of her enjoyment.  Do you see the dichotomy?  Why does Jesus praise active service on one hand, and then straightaway criticize the one who was doing the service at the dinner party?

 

It’s easy to take the Good Samaritan parable in isolation from the Martha and Mary story, and Christians do it all the time.  We hear a story like the Good Samaritan and make that the gospel truth.  Christian faith is about service, action, binding up the wounds of the broken hearted, being on the front lines of ministry to a hurting world.  But this really is only half the truth, because Christianity is also about sitting at the feet of Jesus and taking him all in, not doing a single thing.  There are different ways to serve the Lord, and rather than competing with each other over which way is right we should be looking at something far deeper: our hearts.

 

These two stories have to be combined if we’re going to understand what Luke’s teaching us about the Christian life.  It’s about service and silence; both can be expressions of faith.  We cannot be silent always, but there are times when all God wants from us is to be quiet and sit still without feeling guilty about our lack of activity.  We cannot sit and do nothing for long, or just come to church and think that’s enough, because Christ wants us out there making a difference in the trenches where it's risky and fraught with peril.

 

It’s not only about activity and silence though, rather these are two examples of the differences that can often divide Christians one against the other.  At Central you’re blessed with many gifts, strengths, abilities, and passions that any church needs to thrive in this day.  At the core of making this church work isn’t that some of you worship one way or the other, or have been here for more than twenty years while others of you have only been here five or even one.  To focus on the differences is to divide.  But instead, what Luke is saying in his tenth chapter is this: Christian faith is about the heart.

 

Worship isn’t about one style over another, it’s about the heart of the worshipper.  Service isn’t about the action itself, it’s about the heart of the server.  Silence isn’t about one’s laziness, it’s about the need to drink from the well.  God has called each of you here, and as I said to those worshipping in the 9AM service, it’s a wonderful thing that the church as a whole has come together under the banner of unity amidst our diversity.  I think the greatest damage that Christians do to each other is to misunderstand each other’s actions and form judgments about each other’s hearts.  What Luke is saying to us in these stories is that we’ve got to get deeper than the differences each of us brings to the table if we’re going to work well as a Christian community.  So rather than focus on the things that make us different, let’s be a church filled with members who affirm each other’s uniqueness.  Let’s continue to see what God can do in this church that’s filled by people who have differences but will learn from each other and work together toward building God’s kingdom while on earth.  I know this isn’t easy, but apparently it’s the way of Jesus, and you’re doing it well.  Hallelujah.  Amen.