"chocolate chip cookie @ Eagle's Nest" by ledge, on Flickr

1 Corinthians 9:16–23
If I proclaim the gospel, this gives me no ground for boasting, for an obligation is laid on me, and woe to me if I do not proclaim the gospel! For if I do this of my own will, I have a reward; but if not of my own will, I am entrusted with a commission. What then is my reward? Just this: that in my proclamation I may make the gospel free of charge, so as not to make full use of my rights in the gospel.

For though I am free with respect to all, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I might win more of them. To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though I myself am not under the law) so that I might win those under the law. To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (though I am not free from God's law but am under Christ's law) so that I might win those outside the law. To the weak I became weak, so that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that I might by all means save some. I do it all for the sake of the gospel, so that I may share in its blessings.

Mark 1:29–39
As soon as they left the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. Now Simon's mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told him about her at once. He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up. Then the fever left her, and she began to serve them.

That evening, at sundown, they brought to him all who were sick or possessed with demons. And the whole city was gathered around the door. And he cured many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.

In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed. And Simon and his companions hunted for him. When they found him, they said to him, "Everyone is searching for you." He answered, "Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do." And he went throughout Galilee, proclaiming the message in their synagogues and casting out demons.

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Sam and I were out for a walk on Friday afternoon, enjoying the sunshine and mild weather. I had to run a few errands, one of which was stopping by Java John’s to pick up a few gift certificates. When I got there, I noticed that Sam had fallen fast asleep, and I decided to take advantage of the situation. I ordered myself a cup of tea, with plans to sit and read for a while. As I finished paying and was dunking my tea bag into my mug, Mike appeared at the edge of the counter with a broken oatmeal chocolate chip cookie on a plate.

“Could I interest you like a free cooking for...free?" he asked. Apparently a broken cookie has no place in the pastry case.

I commented that a free cookie for free was a much better deal than free cookie that cost something. And then said that I supposed I could help him out, just this once. Even if it meant eating a cookie. Yeah, I'd make that sacrifice. It was a most delicious free cookie for free.

Paul in 1 Corinthians today talks about his obligation to preach the gospel free of charge. For those of us who understand the gospel message as God’s free grace and salvation, proclaiming a gospel "free of charge" might sound almost as silly as getting a free cookie for free.

Whether we begin worship with confession or with thanksgiving for baptism, each week we hear that that God's forgiveness is freely given to us out of his enduring and unsearchable love. And this is a lovely message. Our hearts need this message of freedom, because we know very well that there are plenty of things out there that try to bind us: our fears, our failings, the violence and greed and divisiveness in our world. It is a much-needed balm to our weary souls to hear that we are free from all of that.

But freedom, as we know, is not just a matter of being free from. It is also a matter of being free for. If you've been paying attention these last few weeks, Paul has been instructing the church at Corinth in the ways of Christian freedom. The Corinthians had some strong ideas about what the gospel of Christ freed them from, but they often missed the boat when it cam to what the gospel of Christ freed them for.

In his letter, Paul address everything from food sacrificed to idols to issues of sex and relationships; over and over again he has to remind the church at Corinth that being free in Christ means nothing if your freedom hurts others or causes them to stumble in their own walk of faith.

In today’s reading, Paul uses words that Martin Luther will later quote almost verbatim in his treatise "On the Freedom of a Christian.” Paul says, "though I am free with respect to all, I have made myself a slave to all.”

Paul goes on to talk about how he becomes all things to all people, that he might proclaim the gospel of Christ. “Becoming all things to all people” means approaching his task with humility, not lording the gospel over those to whom he preaches, but instead trying to embody their cares and concerns, that he might best speak a word of grace and hope to them. For Paul, his freedom in Christ is not an excuse to boast or to act recklessly. His freedom in Christ is a reason to serve others and to preach the gospel in a way that others will be able to hear it.

There are echoes of this sentiment in today’s gospel. Simon’s mother-in-law, being freed by Jesus from her illness, responds by reaching out in service. The crowds, being freed from various illness and demons, search for Christ, that they might better understand and share his message.

On this annual meeting Sunday, my heart is lingering on this question of what it means to use our freedom - and limit our freedom - in service of others. What it means to “become all things to all people” by entering into the cares and concerns of one another for the sake of building up the body of Christ.

When we meet later this morning, we will spend time checking on the state of our shared ministry here at First, and we will set priorities and goals for the year to come. This is a perfect time to think about how well we are accomplishing our task of offering to the world the free gospel…for free.

I was asked earlier this week, "don't you think we are really past the time when people still think of First as the college congregation?" It's an interesting question, one for which I don't know that I have a good answer. It is one of many questions we might ask ourselves in our current context.

Other questions we might ask ourselves:

• Does this congregation offer the same welcome to Luther College faculty and staff as it does to nurses and shopkeepers and elementary school teachers in town?
• Is our Norwegian heritage something welcoming to many? Does it close us off?
• Is our congregation a comfortable place for both academics and those without a degree?
• Is our worship life accessible and inviting both to musicians and to those who are tone-deaf?
• Is our sense of Lutheran identity something that makes us distinct and gracious? Does an emphasis on our Lutheran identity ever shut out those who are questioning, searching, or seeking?
• Are people likely to feel as valued in the congregation if they are well-off or if they are struggling financially?
• On an average Sunday, do people feel like they can walk into the sanctuary and find a warm welcome wherever they choose to sit?
• On an average Sunday, do people feel like they are welcome attend fellowship hour, and do they also feel confident that someone will invite them over to their table?

I need to be careful, and I need you to listen carefully to me in this moment. None of these questions are intended to be judgements. Every congregation has its own set of questions related to its identity and its ability to welcome those who don't fit that identity. And every congregation should regularly be asking itself these hard questions if we are to take seriously the idea that the gospel is something to be shared and proclaimed.

My hope this morning is to challenge us, as individuals and as a congregation, to consider both the ways that we are - and are not yet - "being all things to all people," by which I mean the ways that we are and are not yet willing and able to meet people where they are - theologically, financially, educationally, liturgically - all for the sake of serving them, loving them, and valuing them as partners in the gospel.

Because our call, as Christians, is not just to recognize the needs and concerns of one another, but to embody them, to bear them, to empathize with them, just as Christ bore in himself our own needs and burdens on the cross.

Without this Christ-like hospitality and mutuality, we risk offering the world a free gospel at a cost. Because let’s be honest. It's easier to welcome new members when they come from a Lutheran background or have a prior connection to Luther and to Decorah; and it's easier to plan worship when we all know the same hymns; and it's easier to plan projects when we all share the same values; and it's easier to plan adult education when we all are interested in the same topics; and it's easier to write budgets when we all agree on how our money should serve our ministry.

It is much harder to offer the free gospel for free, because it means embracing our diversity and being humble and honest about those who differ from us and those who do not yet find a welcome here.

Now, that being said, we have a fantastic groundwork set here. Turn to that welcome statement inside your bulletin. Right there is our shared commitment to offer the free gospel for free. We say, "no matter what," you are welcome. No matter who else has rejected you, you are welcome here, because Christ welcomes you and loves you and so we love you too. We say it

One of my hopes and dreams is that we continue to talk about this statement, and we continue to view it as our mission. A mission of welcome is a mission of freedom. Because it’s not just that it’s good to be different from one another. And it’s not just that our differences build up an increasingly intricate and beautiful body of Christ. It’s that our differences - and our willingness to humbly and purposefully engage those differences - push us ever closer to proclaiming a free gospel that is truly free, extended to all without reservation, without resentment, without restraint.

My brothers and sisters, you are each free and beautiful children of God. So are each of your neighbors. So are your enemies. Today, let us remain united in the truth of Christ’s saving death and resurrection - the truth that sets us free - and go forward to use that freedom for the sake of wisdom and understanding, partnership in the gospel, and holy hospitality, offering welcome to friends and strangers as they come to this place for hope, healing, and the grace of God.