Sermon No. 9

Weight Of A Snowflake

The sparrow sat on a limb and spoke to the dove, "Tell me the weight of a snowflake."

"Nothing!"

"Nothing?"

"Nothing point nothing," said the dove.

"Nothing point nothing?"

"That's right -- zero point zero!"

"In that case," said the sparrow, "Let me tell you a story. I sat on the branch of a fir tree, watching the snow come down. It was a quiet, gentle snow, so I counted the snowflakes as they fell on the twigs and needles of the branch. I counted 3,741,952. And then, when the next snowflake fell, weighing 0.0, as you say, the limb broke off."

Having finished her story, the sparrow flew away! The dove tho't for awhile and said to himself, "Maybe one person can make a difference!"

"But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, tho you are tiny . . ." begins our Old Testament reading. And it closes with "then his greatness will reach the ends of the earth. And he will be their peace."
(Micah 5)

A tiny town. A tiny baby. "And he will be the world's peace." He was Jesus -- God with us!

Baby Jesus grew into adulthood just as you and I grow. Day by day. Year by year. Experience by experience. Little thing after little thing!

Today's Epistle reads: "Sacrifice and offering you did not desire . . . with burnt offerings and sin offerings you were not pleased . . ." (Hebrews 10)

Remember Micah 6? "Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God."

Then, with what, God, are you pleased? What do you want of me? Jesus answered the question as we should answer it: "Here I am . . . I have come to do your will."

If God did not desire sacrifices and offerings, then why were they the center of Jewish life and economy?

Let me ask it another way -- for today: If liturgy and formal worship are not required, or pleasing to God, what is? The answer, I believe, is the same today as it was for Jesus: "I have come to do your will."

God is more pleased with the commitment of a dedicated soul than by all the pretense, pedantry and prudery, all the displays, ceremonies and TV Christmas specials.

Somehow, we seem to evaluate success by size, numbers, popularity. If Jesus were born today, we would not likely accept him as the Messiah, because he would have been born in a Cass Corridor tenement, a tiny apartment, or maybe one of the vacant houses.

You are only one person. I am only one person. The good news is that you can make a difference, and I can make a difference. Each of us can make this a better world. You may be the one snow-flake which breaks the bough of injustice, which provides a poor family with a desperately needed meal, which rights some wrong in society. Just one little snowflake, weighing "nothing point nothing!"

The Moravian Church was formed after the martyrdom of John Huss in Bohemia. In 1735 some of them came to America. They needed a name for their community, so to emphasize their simplicity and their small number, they chose the name Bethlehem.

It is ironic that the city in Pennsylvania which was given the name synonymous with "little" became the home of Bethlehem Steel, which provides beams and girders and rails and pipes which form a framework for our huge, mighty nation!

Tiny baby Jesus, born in a dark and damp cave, came not with power but with peace, not with fame but with silence, not with riches but in poverty. Jesus made a difference!

In Porbandar, India, a little seaport town, Mohandas Ghandi was born. Biographer Louis Fischer described Ghandi as a blundering boy whose "origin was ordinary, his childhood normal, his student days uneventful and his early professional career a failure."

Did Ghandi make a difference? One "blundering" boy?

That small-statured man made a difference in his violent society. He toppled a government, inspired a world, changed the course of history -- without ever holding public office or wielding weapons or even accepting the authority his people wanted to give him. Ghandi was a gentle soul, gentle as a snowflake! What a difference he made!

Dear saints, you do not need to be famous or rich or powerful to make a difference in the world. You may be the snowflake which breaks the branch of trials for some soul! How? I don't know. The Holy Spirit must lead you.

The writer of our Epistle quotes the Psalmist, Samuel, Isaiah and other prophets. They all seemed to say that animal sacrifices were man's idea, not God's! "With burnt offerings and sin offerings" the Israelites appeased their consciences (and enriched the coffers of the temple!) but apparently did not satisfy the requirements of God. They served to provide an excuse for the people to sidestep the real challenges of God -- to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, free the oppressed, care for the sick and the imprisoned, exhibit love!

Is there a danger for us today, a danger that we have a "form of godliness but deny the power," the spirit of Jesus' teachings? Is it possible that Micah has a lesson for you and me -- a lesson of justice and power thru humble gentle means? Gentle, like in snowflake?

Jesus said, "I have come to do your will." That needs to be the prayer of every saint in Dearborn Heights!

It is clear in both the Old Testament and the Epistle that ritual, no matter how symbolic or well-intentioned, can not substitute for a commitment to hear and do God's will.

Human standards cannot be used to judge God's will for us. Jesus made plain that God's way is the opposite of society's way.

Micah seems to summarize the messages of Amos (God desires justice) and Hosea (God calls for compassion) and Isaiah (God honors humility) in a profound and compelling call to make Christ and his righteousness the center of our lives. No wonder Micah is taken seriously by all who take God seriously!

Meister Eckhart, German mystic, had a significant influence on Martin Luther, on the Reformation, consequently on us. He de-emphasized the external acts of penance in favor of what Jesus called the "born-again" experience of conversion. Eckhart felt that people can get lost in the ecclesiastical trappings and not find the true Kingdom of God which is in the human heart renewed by the power of the Holy Spirit.

The people of Jesus' day did not understand Jesus. They surely did not understand him as King of a spiritual kingdom. Nor did the Jews understood it in the days of Micah. I wonder if we understand Jesus today?

Think of the mighty souls who have made a difference in the world -- Moffat, Livingston, Schweitzer, Ghandi, Mother Teresa . . . They were famous; you and I will never be famous.
But remember that it was one tiny snowflake that broke the limb. One snowflake, weighing zero-point-zero! You are a snowflake, and you can make a difference!

Let us pray . . .



		Weight Of A Snowflake
		The sparrow sat on a limb and spoke to the dove, "Tell me the weight of a snowflake." "Nothing!" "Nothing?" "Nothing point nothing," said the dove. "Nothing point nothing?" "That's right -- zero point zero!" "In that case," said the sparrow, "Let me tell you a story. I sat on the branch of a fir tree, watching the snow come down. It was a quiet, gentle snow, so I counted the snowflakes as they fell on the twigs and needles of the branch. I counted 3,741,952. And then, when the next snowflake fell, weighing 0.0, as you say, the limb broke off." Having finished her story, the sparrow flew away! The dove tho't for awhile and said to himself, "Maybe one person can make a difference!" "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, tho you are tiny . . ." begins our Old Testament reading. And it closes with "then his greatness will reach the ends of the earth. And he will be their peace." (Micah 5) A tiny town. A tiny baby. "And he will be the world's peace." He was Jesus -- God with us! Baby Jesus grew into adulthood just as you and I grow. Day by day. Year by year. Experience by experience. Little thing after little thing! Today's Epistle reads: "Sacrifice and offering you did not desire . . . with burnt offerings and sin offerings you were not pleased . . ." (Hebrews 10) Remember Micah 6? "Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." Then, with what, God, are you pleased? What do you want of me? Jesus answered the question as we should answer it: "Here I am . . . I have come to do your will." If God did not desire sacrifices and offerings, then why were they the center of Jewish life and economy? Let me ask it another way -- for today: If liturgy and formal worship are not required, or pleasing to God, what is? The answer, I believe, is the same today as it was for Jesus: "I have come to do your will." God is more pleased with the commitment of a dedicated soul than by all the pretense, pedantry and prudery, all the displays, ceremonies and TV Christmas specials. Somehow, we seem to evaluate success by size, numbers, popularity. If Jesus were born today, we would not likely accept him as the Messiah, because he would have been born in a Cass Corridor tenement, a tiny apartment, or maybe one of the vacant houses. You are only one person. I am only one person. The good news is that you can make a difference, and I can make a difference. Each of us can make this a better world. You may be the one snow-flake which breaks the bough of injustice, which provides a poor family with a desperately needed meal, which rights some wrong in society. Just one little snowflake, weighing "nothing point nothing!" The Moravian Church was formed after the martyrdom of John Huss in Bohemia. In 1735 some of them came to America. They needed a name for their community, so to emphasize their simplicity and their small number, they chose the name Bethlehem. It is ironic that the city in Pennsylvania which was given the name synonymous with "little" became the home of Bethlehem Steel, which provides beams and girders and rails and pipes which form a framework for our huge, mighty nation! Tiny baby Jesus, born in a dark and damp cave, came not with power but with peace, not with fame but with silence, not with riches but in poverty. Jesus made a difference! In Porbandar, India, a little seaport town, Mohandas Ghandi was born. Biographer Louis Fischer described Ghandi as a blundering boy whose "origin was ordinary, his childhood normal, his student days uneventful and his early professional career a failure." Did Ghandi make a difference? One "blundering" boy? That small-statured man made a difference in his violent society. He toppled a government, inspired a world, changed the course of history -- without ever holding public office or wielding weapons or even accepting the authority his people wanted to give him. Ghandi was a gentle soul, gentle as a snowflake! What a difference he made! Dear saints, you do not need to be famous or rich or powerful to make a difference in the world. You may be the snowflake which breaks the branch of trials for some soul! How? I don't know. The Holy Spirit must lead you. The writer of our Epistle quotes the Psalmist, Samuel, Isaiah and other prophets. They all seemed to say that animal sacrifices were man's idea, not God's! "With burnt offerings and sin offerings" the Israelites appeased their consciences (and enriched the coffers of the temple!) but apparently did not satisfy the requirements of God. They served to provide an excuse for the people to sidestep the real challenges of God -- to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, free the oppressed, care for the sick and the imprisoned, exhibit love! Is there a danger for us today, a danger that we have a "form of godliness but deny the power," the spirit of Jesus' teachings? Is it possible that Micah has a lesson for you and me -- a lesson of justice and power thru humble gentle means? Gentle, like in snowflake? Jesus said, "I have come to do your will." That needs to be the prayer of every saint in Dearborn Heights! It is clear in both the Old Testament and the Epistle that ritual, no matter how symbolic or well-intentioned, can not substitute for a commitment to hear and do God's will. Human standards cannot be used to judge God's will for us. Jesus made plain that God's way is the opposite of society's way. Micah seems to summarize the messages of Amos (God desires justice) and Hosea (God calls for compassion) and Isaiah (God honors humility) in a profound and compelling call to make Christ and his righteousness the center of our lives. No wonder Micah is taken seriously by all who take God seriously! Meister Eckhart, German mystic, had a significant influence on Martin Luther, on the Reformation, consequently on us. He de-emphasized the external acts of penance in favor of what Jesus called the "born-again" experience of conversion. Eckhart felt that people can get lost in the ecclesiastical trappings and not find the true Kingdom of God which is in the human heart renewed by the power of the Holy Spirit. The people of Jesus' day did not understand Jesus. They surely did not understand him as King of a spiritual kingdom. Nor did the Jews understood it in the days of Micah. I wonder if we understand Jesus today? Think of the mighty souls who have made a difference in the world -- Moffat, Livingston, Schweitzer, Ghandi, Mother Teresa . . . They were famous; you and I will never be famous. But remember that it was one tiny snowflake that broke the limb. One snowflake, weighing zero-point-zero! You are a snowflake, and you can make a difference! Let us pray . . .