Find Us Faithful
Hebrews 11:29-34; Hebrews 12:1-2 and Joshua 24:1-7; 13-15
Pastor Deb Troester, STHPC, Nov. 5, 2023
In 1978 the San Jose Presbytery decided to establish a Presbyterian church in south San Jose. Rev. Charles M. Webster was called to serve as the organizing pastor, and arrangements were made with the Rancho Santa Teresa Swim and Racket Club to use their premises as a temporary worship space. The first service was held on Palm Sunday, 1979. The Santa Teresa Hills Presbyterian Church was officially organized on December 8, 1979, with 55 charter members, some of whom are still with us today. (Ask anyone who is a charter member to stand.) [Cathy Warrick, Jerry and Carol Miller, and Glenda Nolt]
In the early 1980’s the church purchased this property where we are now worshiping. A ground-breaking ceremony was held on April 6, 1986 and building commenced. How many of you were here when the church was being built? The first worship service was held in this sanctuary on May 15, 1988. Later our pleasant courtyard and the beautiful stained glass windows were installed.
Santa Teresa Hills Presbyterian Church came to us as a labor of love and an investment of time, treasure, and talent from those who came before us, many of whom are no longer with us today, or have moved on to other places.
Most of us are here today because of people in our lives who guided us in the faith, or whose examples we followed. I am a pastor today in part because my grandmother read Bible stories to me as a child, my aunt taught me how to pray, my parents took me to Sunday School, and a friend invited me to her church where I responded to an invitation to accept Christ as my Savior. Along the way were Sunday School teachers and youth directors, each of whom devoted time to teaching me and other young people how to live the Christian life. Each of you can probably think of similar people in your lives who showed you the way to finding faith in God.
When I think back to my ancestors in the faith, I recall that my great-grandparents and great-aunts and uncles helped establish Presbyterian Churches in southern Illinois,
including the church where I was baptized. Some of the rest of you have similar stories to tell. Lucas Mudoh’s father was the first Cameroonian Presbyterian pastor to be ordained in his region. Lynn Hines’ grandfather was a missionary in Cameroon. My friend Pastor Jackie, who currently volunteers at a hospital in Northwestern Cameroon, told me that her uncle was an early missionary there, also in Northwest Province. I could probably go on – I am sure there are others who have forebears who were active in the church, whether here in the U.S., Cameroon, or another country.
Both passages we read this morning talk about ancestors in the faith – not only people who are directly related to us, but people who serve as examples, even today, of those who faithfully followed God. Joshua mentions Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Moses. The writer of Hebrews mentions Rahab, Gideon, David, and Samuel. I should add that along with these great men of faith, we could mention women such as Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, Leah, Miriam, Hannah, and, of course, Deborah, the judge!
In listing these ancestors, Joshua reminds the Hebrews of all that God has done for them – how God called Abraham out of the midst of a people who worshiped idols to go to a new land where he and his family could worship the one true God. Then, after Abraham’s descendants were enslaved in Egypt, God sent Moses to rescue them and lead them into a new land, a land where, as Joshua reminded them, they had not labored, to towns they had not built, where they ate the fruit of vineyards and olive groves which they had not planted.
In many senses, we are like these ancient Hebrews: we worship in a place most of us did not help to build; we are reaping the benefits of those who came before us, people who worked hard to establish a church here, and people in our own lives who cared enough about us to take us to church as children, or invite us as adults. People whose lives showed us the way to the cross and who embodied the love of Christ.
Now it is our turn. The writer of Hebrews reminds us that we have a race to run: more of a marathon than a sprint – a life to live looking to Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith –
some translations say “the author and finisher” or the “source and goal” of our faith. In this race we must persevere – that is, we must not give up; we must have patience and endurance. To help us, Hebrews reminds us that we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses – those who have gone before us – who are watching our progress from heaven’s grandstands, so to speak. If they are watching, surely they are encouraging us on.
This week many Christians observed All Saints Day, which was November 1. Here in California, Mexican traditions, such as the Day of the Dead, are prominent, but All Saints Day was celebrated as early as the 4th century, as a way to honor the martyrs of the early church. By the year 835 it was made an official church holiday in Europe as a day to commemorate all the saints, not just the early martyrs, with All Soul’s Day, November 2, honoring all the faithful who had died in Christ. So All Saints Day is a good time to remember those who came before us in the faith. One of the best ways to honor their memories is to live our lives in such a way that we carry on their work and their faithfulness.
Today we have the privilege and joy of confirming the faith of one of our young people, Lucas Maciej. His parents are here today and I understand that his grandparents are participating on Zoom. Confirmation is a wonderful way to show one’s commitment to Jesus Christ and to follow in the footsteps of those who came before us in the faith, whether parents, grandparents, friends, mentors, or others. When a young child is baptized, their parents or sponsors, such as godparents, make promises on behalf of that child, rejecting sin and acknowledging Christ as Savior. But there comes a time when that young person understands and accepts for themselves the faith that they have been taught. Confirmation is a public statement that one is a follower of Jesus Christ and that that person intends to serve God – through service to others, through growing in faith, through dedicating time, talent, and treasure to God’s work.
Joshua encouraged the ancient Hebrews to a similar commitment when he proclaimed, “Choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served in the region beyond the River,
or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living, but as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” They had to make a choice – to serve the old gods, which were idols, or the one, true living God.
Today we also must make that choice, for today we also have idols – not golden statues, but things like money, fame, pleasure, and power. Anything we devote our lives to other than God is an idol. Many people live with the false idea that if only they had enough money they would be happy, or if only they achieved the right social standing or got a better job they would have it made. Some people spend their lives searching for pleasure. Yet these things don’t satisfy. There’s a gospel song that goes:
“Like the woman at the well, I was seeking
For things that could not satisfy
And then I heard my Savior speaking
‘Draw from My well that never shall run dry.’
We are called to follow Jesus, “who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God.”
True joy is found in loving God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength, and our neighbors as ourselves. You may have heard this famous quote by Blaise Pascal: “There is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of each person which cannot be satisfied by any created thing but only by God.” Pascal lived in the 17th century, but that statement is as true now as it was then.
This morning as we celebrate All Saints Sunday, it is a good time to remember that we do not run this race alone. We are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses, our ancestors in the faith, and the Holy Spirit is ever near to help us. Let today be the day we affirm once again, “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” May God grant you grace, peace, and joy as you serve the Lord. Amen.
©Deborah Troester 2023