Do No Harm

from my sermon on Nov. 28 and Gal. 5:15

Let me be the first to say to you, "Happy New Year!" I know our culture today tells time more by Black Friday and Cyber Monday, but we church people tell time by the coming of Christ. Today is the first Sunday of Advent, the first day of the Christian year, so Happy New Year. Today we celebrate Christ who has come and is coming. I am not focusing so much on the baby Jesus in the manger, but Christ who challenges us to follow Him.

Today marks the start of a short term study on the Three Simple Rules: A Wesleyan Way of LIving. I picked up this little book months ago and thought, "What a great way to celebrate Christ's coming! Not filling up our calendars with more things to do or our closets with more stuff we will never use, but living in Christ's presence. The simple rules are do no harm, do good, and stay in love with God.

Today, we start with do no harm. When I reread the chapter this past week, I thought this first chapter was pretty touchy-feely even for me. It said that words can wound, and relationships can rip. That's why the author, UM Bishop Rueben Job, chose this strange verse from Galatians, "If however, you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another." Paul writes to churches in the region of modern day Turkey. The imagery that he uses is that of a dogfight, with fangs barred and teeth going for the throat, that ends up with us destroying one another. He uses this imagery to describe the church! I know that none of you have ever experienced this level of hateful speech and relationships in the church!

What harm is done by our gossip, our envy, our backbiting in the church. Whoever said that "sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me" ...lied! I appreciate the honesty of the Bible in not sugarcoating over our differences. Around this church we try to practice the HEART principles to minimize the hurtful effects of our communication: Hear me and understand me, Even if you disagree don't make me wrong, Acknowledge the greatness within me, Remember to look for my loving intentions, Tell me the truth with compassion.

I know the most powerful words we say are "I love you." But I learned that the second most powerful words are "you may be right." Do no harm starts with guard our tongue against words that wound.

There are many of you in the medical field, in the healing arts. I bet you have heard these words before, "DO no harm." It is part of an oath that you take. It means at the very least don't do anything that would cause more injury. Sometimes the best thing for us to do is to pause before rushing in. Sometimes the best thing for us to do is nothing. Do no harm means we don't want to make a situation worse than it already is.

So at this point in the sermon it is Friday, and I am full of turkey and dressing, but short on the message. I prayed, "Surely Lord there is more you have for your people." I was led to the original context for Mr. Wesley's 3 simple rules. I picked up our UM Discipline. Discipline has in it the word disciple. This book contains how we UM Christians try to follow Christ.

In the year 1739, some 8-12 persons came to John Wesley wanting to save their souls. They asked him for guidance. After prayer, he came up with these 3 simple rules. I am going to read them now and update them. I would for you to be listening for one thing you might be led to change this Advent.

First, by doing no harm, by avoiding evil of every kind, especially that which is most generally practiced, such as:

The taking of the name of God in vain. This is the third commandment. You might think that it is about cussing and it could be. But more, it is about dishonoring God, taking God for granted. What got me is that we could hurt God's heart. Do no harm can mean do no harm to God.

The profaning the day of the Lord, either by doing ordinary work therein or by buying or selling. This is the fourth commandment. We forget that Sabbath rest is God's gift to us. We are not machines; we are human beings. Do no harm may mean do no harm to ourselves. We can unhook from the culture around us that says, do more, get more, work more.

Drunkenness: buying or selling spirituous liquors, or drinking them, unless in cases of extreme necessity ( much laughter from the congregation). Ah, there must be many cases of extreme necessity. In Wesley's day, gin was the common working person's antidote to the harshness of life. It was cheap and effective. There was a phrase from that time: you can get drunk for a half penny, dead drunk for a penny. The Methodists were abstainers because they saw what alcoholism could do to destroy a life or a family. Now 62% of Methodists drink. 10 to 15% of those who drink have a problem with alcohol. Maybe do no harm might mean you could start attending a 12 step group and get out of the shame cycle. I have helped any number of people over the years get freedom from this drug of choice. It could be another drug, even work or pornography.

Slaveholding; buying or selling slaves. Methodists were some of the first abolitionists. This was a radical stance back in the 1730's when much of the business model was built around this labor. Today do no harm means to be aware that many still don't make a living wage. Human trafficking still happens along the I-35 corridor as people are bought and sold like objects.

The next one really gets to that verse in Galatians. Fighting, quarreling, brawlin, brother going to law against brother; returning evil for evil, or railing for railing; the using many words in buying or selling ( here I drop a stack of newspaper ads from the holiday period). Just a small fraction of ads that have come to our house in the last few days.

There are many clauses that have to do with economics. The buying of selling goods that have not paid the duty. It was the black market in those days. Today we still try to get around paying taxes. We have get rich schemes like Ponzi schemes. We have robo-signing of home loans. Do no harm involves our economic lives. The giving or taking things on usury--i.e., unlawful interest.

This next one I want you to pay special attention to. Uncharitable or unprofitable conversation; particularly speaking evil of magistrates or of ministers (much laughter). I know we never speak uncivilly of civil servants. I know that you always speak well of your ministers!

The next one is the golden rule in the negative. Doing unto others as we would not they should do unto us.

Doning what we know is not for the glory of God, as:
The putting on of gold and costly apparel.
The taking such diversions as cannot be used in the name of the Lord Jesus.
the singing those songs, or reading those books, which do not tend to the knowledge or love of God.
Softness and needless self-indulgence.
Laying up treasure upon earth.

This next one I want to put a little different spin on. Borrowing with a probability of paying; or taking up goods without a probability of paying for them. On this day when we have the Hanging of the Greens in our sanctuary, I wonder if we are not harming our environment. We are borrowing from our future without a probability of paying. I fear we may have gone too far and caused irreparable harm. Do no harm means to take care of the world over which we have been made stewards. In Australia this summer, I was impressed by my friends Dennis and Lulu. Their house had a huge tank to catch the rainwater from the roof. They used the grey water from the dishwasher and the clothes washer to water their lawn. In the shower, they had a little 4 minute timer. Under the category of too much information, you might know that I use hardly any water in showering. I do a pre-rinse, turn off the water and lather up, and then rinse off. Maybe I use 1 minute of water. I grew up on a farm in the Panhandle of Texas. I know the value of water.

I have asked you to consider doing one thing that would fulfill do no harm. I would have you embrace that not as a rule but as an adventure. Do you hear the word Advent in adventure? I understand from the behavioral sciences that you need to practice a new behaviour for at least 21 days before it becomes a part of you. What a great season to get started! There is good news in this first simple rule: do no harm. Happy New Year!