DENVER (ELCA) -- Water sustains. We thirst, and water quenches the thirst. The Rev. H. George Anderson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in his sermon for the opening worship of the 1999 Churchwide Assembly talked of water which sustained life then and now.
The churchwide assembly, the chief legislative authority of the ELCA, is meeting Aug. 16-22 here at the Colorado Convention Center. There are more than 2,500 people participating, including 1,039 ELCA voting members. The theme for the biennial assembly is "Making Christ Known: Hope for a New Century."
When the wandering Israelites were thirsty, God quenched their thirst with water from a rock. Remembering this years later, during the Festival of Tabernacles, the priests went to the well of Gihon to draw water, then led a procession of joy with vessels of water, recalling the life-saving miracle of water coming from the rock in the wilderness, Anderson said.
Citing the Gospel of John, the words of Jesus were proclaimed, "Let anyone who is thirsty come to me!" the bishop said.
"This was more than an invitation," Anderson said. "It was a declaration of independence from temple ritual. It said that God would once again provide refreshment on a journey beyond Israel and into a wider world. Once again the stone would be struck and water would gush forth, and that water, says the Gospel, would be the Holy Spirit."
Jesus draws us with the invitation to "come," Anderson said. Who can resist that offer? Thirst is great among the people; and in the midst of thirst, Jesus offers a sustenance which can fill the gaps and weaknesses of unfulfilled needs, he said.
Anderson reminded the assembly of the apostle Paul's description of two thirsts: fear and weakness. Paul said fear is a thirst for confidence, and weakness is a thirst for competence. Looking to this assembly, Anderson confessed both fear and weakness.
As frustrations abound, tempers flare, motives are misunderstood, and fear is obvious, he said. As difficult topics, such as economic life and poverty or homosexuality are discussed, weakness is apparent.
"Fear and weakness, yes," said Anderson. "I have brought them here along with my canvas bag and my giant binder."
Focusing on a lesson from the biblical book of Romans, Anderson reminded participants that "the Spirit helps us in our weakness" and that the Spirit keeps us from falling back into fear. He referred to the Spirit as a "rising tide that lifts and bears us along." Anderson acknowledged that we are all children of God, and the Spirit drowns our fears.
Yet there is a challenge: We have become part of an unending stream of imperfect people. Jesus Christ has made us into instruments of mercy and hope for each generation, Anderson said.
"The Spirit supports us in our weakness," Anderson proclaimed, "by absorbing our puny efforts into a greater, fuller flood."
As the ELCA Churchwide Assembly begins, the group comes together in fear and weakness, recognizing that the Spirit is present. Let everyone who is thirsty come, Anderson said.
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About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with 2.8 million members in more than 8,500 worshiping communities across the 50 states and in the Caribbean region. Known as the church of "God's work. Our hands.," the ELCA emphasizes the saving grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, unity among Christians and service in the world. The ELCA's roots are in the writings of the German church reformer Martin Luther.
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