Psalm 98

1 John 5: 1-4

John 15: 9-17

⁹"As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. ¹⁰If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. ¹¹I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. ¹²My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. ¹³Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. ¹⁴You are my friends if you do what I command. ¹⁵I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. ¹⁶You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit--fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. ¹⁷This is my command: Love each other.

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, good morning! I'd like to talk with you today about the three great steps of the Christian faith, kind of like a ladder. Each step is symbolized by a letter: C-A-P, CAP. The three letters stand for Choose, Accept, and Proclaim.

First of all, let me say this: Congratulations! You have been chosen! Congratulations! I want you to think of a time when you heard those words for yourself about something wonderful in your life. Maybe you've been chosen for a special sports team, those of you who play sports. Or maybe you were chosen for a special job, or perhaps for a promotion in a job. Or maybe you were invited to a wedding or a party, something where you felt chosen and lifted up. Think about it, won't you? Can you think of a situation where that happened for you and how special, how wonderful you felt?

One of us in this room was chosen to become pastor of Montgomery United Methodist Church . That's very special. It's a wonderful thing. I am privileged and blessed.

You are chosen by God! In the middle of the Gospel lesson this morning is this, Jesus speaking: "I chose you. You did not choose me. I chose you." In a very special sense, every relationship is adoptive, whether there's blood involved or not. Each and every one of us has been chosen to be in whatever loving relationship we're in. And the good news is that God has chosen you, not to the exclusion of anybody else, but because you are special. You are wonderful. You are beloved. And He has chosen you.

And so the first step of the Christian faith is to know that you are a chosen one. What does that bring you? Jesus told us, it brings us joy. He said, "I am come that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be full." What was His joy? His joy was knowing that He was chosen of God, that at His baptism God said, "You are my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased." And He said, "The joy that fills my heart, when I hear those words, I want for you. You are God's beloved child, in whom He is well pleased." Praise God! You are chosen.

How wonderful that we are celebrating a baptism this morning, before this little baby knows her own name! Parents and godparents and family are saying, "You are chosen, little one. You are God's beloved child. And as you grow, you will grow more and more into knowing that that is true." It's the first step, the step of joy, to know that you are chosen.

Once upon a time there lived a man who didn't feel particularly chosen. He felt very depressed. He felt like a total and complete failure. This man had given his life to the church and to God, or so he thought. But he felt like a complete loss. He'd given his life to God so much, so he thought, that he became a missionary and went to a foreign country and tried to convert people for God – and he failed. His success was minimal, and he returned to his homeland feeling totally dismal.

But what did he do? He did a good thing. He went to church. He went to church one gloomy, rainy Sunday night in May. He went to a little church – it was a lay-led service, by the way; there was a lay preacher that day – and there weren't many in the congregation. And on his way home, as he was walking down a certain street, he stopped. He thought about what he'd heard that night, that God loved everyone, even him. And it occurred to him that it was true for him personally. He was chosen and beloved of God, and everything changed in his life. His preaching changed. He walked tall and felt successful, from then on.

The date was May 24^th, 1738 . The place? London , Aldersgate Street . The name of the man? John Wesley, the founder of the United Methodist Church . And here we are today, because one man felt chosen all of a sudden. And so are you. You are chosen of God. It's the first step on the Christian ladder.

But you know what? You have to go a step higher. The second step, "A", is to accept the invitation. What truly makes you a Christian? Saying yes to being a Christian.  Saying yes to being accepted. You have to say yes or the deal isn't complete. You have to say yes to the invitation or the circle is not a complete circle in terms of your friendship with God.

I got an invitation to a friend's wedding not too long ago, dear people that I've known for so many years. But I wasn't a wedding guest until I said yes to the invitation. How about you? Some people feel the invitation of God and hear the good news and say, "Not for me." And some people say, "Maybe later." And some people say, "Okay, yes." Is that you?

You read in the Bible that Jesus had twelve disciples. How do we know that He only asked twelve people? We don't know that. The Bible doesn't tell us about it, but there were probably a bunch of people who said "No thanks" or "I've got other things to do." We read accounts of that – "I've got to take care of this"; "Maybe later, Lord". But what happens when it comes to you, when you know that you're chosen and loved? Will you say "yes" or "maybe later"? Friend, I pray that you say yes, because that's the second step of the Christian ladder, and that makes the circle of friendship complete between you and God.

But there is a third step. If you want to go a step higher, the third step is to proclaim, to become an inviter for Jesus Christ. That's the third step. God is calling you to become an inviter for Him. Once you've been chosen, and once you've said yes, it's time to be an inviter for Christ.

How do you do it? Only you and God know. Maybe you're teaching in Sunday School. Maybe you're extending a hand to someone who comes to worship who looks like he or she needs a hand to hold. Maybe you're leading someone in your household to Christ. Maybe you're inviting your children to a deeper relationship with the Lord. I don't know, but I do know this: once you're chosen and you say yes, it's time to become an inviter. And that is the joy. That's where the joy comes in, when you share your faith for Christ.

We had a woman here named Princess. How many of you knew Princess? Wasn't she remarkable? She was a wonderful, tall, black lady who was the caretaker for the Nystroms. She has since moved on to take another position with another fortunate family.

Princess was filled with joy! When Princess sang, you knew she was singing. Friends, as a speaker, I came to learn that when Princess was here, there was no such thing as a rhetorical question. Questions got answered directly. It was wonderful. Princess didn't have an easy life, but she had a life filled with joy. Amen? Amen! Her Bible was well-worn and well-used, and it brought her joy.

By the way, do you know what it means when a Bible is falling apart? When a Bible is falling apart, it belongs to someone who isn't.

Princess was that kind of a person. Her faith was the anchor and the joy of her life. She shared that good news. She let it glow, never heavy-duty, no pressure, but she let her light shine. And that's what I'm inviting you to do today. Let your light shine. Be a proclaimer for Christ, because that's where the joy is.

Now here's a story that you might not believe, but it's absolutely true. There was a family sitting in a restaurant one day, and they happened to be talking about wanting a church home, looking for a church home in this area. And there was another family not far away from them, and that family said, "You're looking for a church. I'm sorry that I overheard you, but I have a church home to invite you to. As a matter of fact, I happen to have a bulletin from church right here." And that family came to church and joined the church and are active in it. I'm happy to tell you, that family is here this morning. The Armentos are here, and the inviters are here, Lois and Edith. Bless you. What a wonderful thing!

Throughout our congregation are wonderful stories like this, of people who have let the voice of God speak through their human voices and become inviters for Christ. That's a powerful, high step. May it be yours. May you feel welcome, each and every one. And may you feel the joy of Christ so much in your heart that you can't help but let your let shine to others and invite them, too. God loves you. I do, too. Have a wonderful week. Amen.