Annual Meeting Sermon

1 Corinthians 12:12-27

Just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body – Jews or Greeks, slaves or free – and we were all made to drink of one Spirit. Indeed, the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot would say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear would say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many members, yet one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, "I have no need of you," nor again the head to the feet, "I have no need of you." On the contrary, the members of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and those members of the body that we think less honorable we clothe with greater honor, and our less respectable members are treated with greater respect; whereas our more respectable members do not need this. But God has so arranged the body, giving the greater honor to the inferior member, that there may be no dissension within the body, but the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together with it; if one member is honored, all rejoice together with it. Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.

We cannot exist, really exist, without some form and for us, individually, that form is the human body. Without my body I am nobody! Likewise to be a Christian, I must be a part of a body as well as have a body of my own.

In Corinthians, Paul reminds us that we are more than just our own bodies. We are part of something greater than ourselves. We are, all Christians are, part of the Body of Christ, the Church.

Bodies are interesting things. If a body does not work together, the individual parts are imperiled. In fact if an individual part begins to really work against the body as a whole there are really only two choices, the part must be fixed or it must be removed. The best choice is to correct a problem by the least invasive and least radical means. So when we have a headache we generally turn to medication rather than decapitation!

Paul is saying the individual Christian must, as a part of the whole body, subordinate themselves to the whole body. The parts are not greater than the whole. In the act of subordination, the individual does not lose his or her individuality. We are the hands, the eyes, the ears of Christ in the world today. This is because Jesus is NOT physically present in the world but we are. As Christians we must function on Christ’s behalf in the world. We do not do this merely as individuals but as part of a larger body.

This notion of actual participation in Christ through our corporate function is one of the great ideas of Christianity. The church in Corinth was very troubled, perhaps not unlike any church today. Paul is trying to exhort the Corinthians to return to a proper way of living their lives together in Christ.

Today, we will have the annual meeting of our parish. This parish is part of the Church or as I said earlier the Body of Christ. In this meeting we will elect new members to the vestry, we will thank outgoing members and we will discuss our budget for 2010.

I want you, as members of Christ Church, to understand how things are with our body. So, I am going to tell you some very hard facts now about our situation. Everyone knows that the last couple of years have been difficult everywhere in our national economy and that is especially true here in Florida. Many have faced income and even job loss.

Last year, we cut every single clergy and staff salary. Let me repeat – every person had salary cuts. Some had their hours cut and some positions were eliminated. We also cut every place we could in all of our operating expenses. Thus at the end of 2009 we did not exceed our very spare budget.

We had hoped that our pledge campaign for 2010 would see an increase. As of this moment, despite having many new pledges, that has not happened.

In preparing our budget for this year we had hoped to rehire some of the staff we had lost. We hoped to restore lost program and operating dollars. But we could not do this. In preparing the budget you will see at the annual meeting, we had to again cut salaries and positions. Every staff member will have new cuts over and against the cuts from last year. That means that clergy, office staff – everyone – again will make less and have to do more.

We are consolidating the positions of youth minister and Sunday school director. Lynda Botzenhart will assume all those duties at the end of May. Kim Stadlin will be reduced to very limited hours and will then leave our staff at the end of May. We have no budget money for any new programs or even emergency needs should they arise. Every single clergy and staff member will have to do more with less. This is hard information to hear.

Perhaps you are wondering what can be done. I will suggest something to each and every one of us. Can we – you and I – reflect on whether to change the direction of the parish’s financial situation and reassess our giving? Am I giving enough to help with expenses?

Am I freely and joyfully giving to my parish family in this time of need?
I know in the past that some have withheld giving for a variety of reasons. If this parish is important to you as a place to worship, to study, to have fellowship and share Christ then isn’t this a time to support this place and forget past grievances? I do not think we can afford to cut any more staff or salaries and expect to do the mission and ministry that Christ has called us to do.

Do you value the Bible studies, the preaching, the teaching, Sunday school, pastoral visitation, VBS, youth group? These and many other things are provided by the staff and clergy of our parish.

I ask you, and the staff and vestry ask you, to pledge if you have not pledged, to increase you pledge if you have pledged. Your clergy also appeals to everyone here present to join with us in tithing (giving 10% of your income) to the parish. These are difficult times but difficult times pass. We need to keep spreading the Gospel even in the hard times knowing we have eternal glory ahead of us.

We are One Body. As one body we need to use all that God has given us to continue sustaining the Body of Christ in the world.

If in love, we receive the gifts God has given us, then there is only one way to exercise the use of these gifts. We will not use the gifts just for our individual benefit. No, we will use the gifts in love and for the benefit of Christ’s Body, the Church.

To be somebody we have to have a body. As Christians, our Body is one another in Christ. And we are to exercise our spiritual gifts with one another in love, as Christ loved us!