Well, a joyous congratulations to you Immanuel United Church of Christ on your 150th anniversary as a congregation in Sedalia.  150 years is a significant length of time for a congregation, especially in this day in time when so many main-line protestant churches are struggling or closing.  And you have persevered with a history worthy of celebration.

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I want to congratulate you for many reasons as one of the senior statesman in the conference for embracing not only your own heritage over the years as a local church but also for continuing to embrace the heritage of this denomination.  A denomination that has such a rich and full heritage of its own that has helped give identity to Immanuel and hundreds of other UCC churches over the years.  And I want to congratulate you and thank you for the 3 years of this history that I was privileged and blessed to serve as your interim supply pastor.

The celebration of a church’s anniversary should be a lifting up of the legacy of its members (the laity) their contributions as well as that of pastoral leadership that has combined to leave its mark.

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I chose a scriptural text for today from Romans 12:9-13, from which Paul speaks to the early church challenging them with several themes that  give definition for the mission and ministry of the church. 

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Paul writes: “Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with brotherly affection; outdo one another with showing honor; never flag in zeal, be aglow with the Spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in your hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.  Contribute to the needs of the saints, practice hospitality.”

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A church’s anniversary is a time to look back at a legacy of authentic ministry.  And I think you realize that you would not have made it to 150 years without authentic ministry.  Ministry of not only pastoral leadership but that of the even more vital role of the members over these years. 

Now mind you, this church, as all churches, is comprised of humans and humans from time to time disagree and can be disagreeable.  But from my brief observations you have been a church that shares a genuine love for the lord and for one another.  And that has emerged from the beginning of this church from its founding members and has carried through the years as a cultural mind-set.  I have seen churches who from the get go have been bogged down with contentious attitudes toward one another and who relish controversy, where love has not been so genuine.   But I have not seen that here.  Your congenial nature has held fast to what is good, you have had numerous examples where you have replaced evil with good in your mission responses both through the denomination and locally.  I celebrate that with you.  Because I believe that a church’s strength is lies with its people and in sincere relationships and in its fostering a servant heart.

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Paul is calling the church to be fervent “Aglow” in the spirit serving the Lord, rejoicing in hope, and being patient in trials. I think that is why congregations can thrive over the years because they are patient during trials while being steadfast in the spirit.  Being focused on service and maintaining loving relationships among one another.  Just caring for one another.  That is so apparent in this church as at the very beginning of worship each Sunday you ask for prayers concerns.  You are concerned for one another and pray for each other rather than living with chronic fussing with one another.  You recognize that each human being has a right to be loved regardless of where they have been or currently are in life’s journey.  And you practice that with sincere hospitality toward one another and toward people with all kinds of backgrounds. You reach out to the downtrodden in this community through the various agencies you support.

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You know church anniversaries are a perfect time to honor the faithful volunteers, the staff, and founding members who maintained their zeal, contributed to the needs of others over the years.  It’s a perfect time to celebrate your ongoing hospitality and tireless service.  And we do so today.

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Paul in this text today from Romans also instructs the church to “rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep,” and live in harmony, associating with the humble.

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When we think back over the years this church has its history wrapped around a timeline of shared experiences.  How you have over the years celebrated life’s milestones:   baptisms, confirmations, marriages, (rejoicing) while acknowledging the seasons of grief, loss, tragedy, and hardship this church family has weathered together, all of which has made you stronger in your bond with each other and stronger as individuals.

Now, I would like to think back on the history this church has witnessed over the years.  From its beginning in 1876 to today.  It started right after the Civil War and lived through those turbulent years of reconstruction, and still being on the great American frontier in those days the challenges that went along with that.  Then there was the early beginning of the 20th century and the slow change to a  more industrialized nation from mostly just an agrarian nation.   You witnessed the challenges of both world Wars I and II.  The Korean War, the social revolution of the 1960’s and Vietnan, space travel, the transition to the computer age and technology.  To the current day of such deep divisions in our society and among religions.

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The history of Immanuel church is obviously tied to the history of our nation but also the United Church of Christ. The UCC was formed in the mid-west as the German Evangelical Church of the West on October 15, 1840, in Gravois, Missouri.  It united  various German church denominations in Missouri, Illinois, Iowa, and Indiana.  In 1866, our church denomination changed its name to the German Evangelical Synod of the West, and in 1877, it became the German Evangelical Synod of North America.

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You might be aware of the fact that Sedalia had a large German community at that time who had migrated here after the Civil War.  In 1875 Revered Charles “Carl” Krafft from Warrensburg, who represented the German Evangelical Synod of the West, visited here in Sedalia with the goal to establish a church for the German people who were living here at the time.   I found out that Rev. Krafft and nine other men from German families organized this church as an Evangelical Church as a union of Lutheran and Reform Churches on October 29, 1876.  I discovered that Rev. Krafft first preached in homes located on East Main Street, then in the First Presbyterian Church.  That same year, Krafft left his residence in Warrensburg to live in Sedalia.  In the spring of 1877 he opened a German Evangelical Sunday School located in the West Broadway school building.

The German  Evangelical Church, Immanuel Church paid $500 to Colonel J. F. Philips to purchase a lot on the southwest corner of 320 East Main and S. Washington Streets to erect a house of worship.  In 1878 members of the church, who were skilled craftsmen, built a 60 by 20 foot small-framed church, which included a 40 by 20 foot meeting space at the cost $4,075.  Rev Krafft used the four rooms in the back of the church as his residence.  About twenty families attended services.

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After four years, in July 1880, the Synod appointed Rev. Charles Krafft to a post as a missionary preacher to Kansas and Krafft resigned his position.  In 1881, the Women’s Aid Society and a Widow’s and Orphan’s Aid were formed.  As you continued to grow the church needed to expand.  Immanuel paid $500 to remove the walls of the parsonage in the back and enlarge the meeting space and added a front entrance hall.  On May 14, 1882, the German Evangelical Church dedicated the new church.  At this time, about 40 families joined the congregation and about 200 children attended Sunday School.  In 1890, the Young People’s Society was organized.

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Plans to relocate the church began in 1892 due to the noise of trains disrupting services and the increasing commercialization on E. Main Street.  On May 8, 1895, the church purchased a lot at the corner of 418 W. 4th and S. Vermont Streets.  The next year, a $10,000-$14,000 new brick and stone structure was built that included stained glass memorial windows set in Gothic arch frames.  On September 27, 1896, the new Immanuel Evangelical Church was dedicated with a procession led by Rev. William Meyer, prayers, and the architect T. W. Bast and contractor C. M. Woodward, held the keys in ceremonial style to the door.

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In 1905, the first services in English were held on Sunday evenings. By 1909, improvements were made to the new building, including the transition from gas to electric.  In 1929, the $8,500, new church parsonage was completed.  Between 1926-1935, the last German services were conducted for the older members of the church. During the Depression, the church began to lose financial support and debt was rising.  In the 1940’s, a free-will giving contributions policy was established.  In 1934 the denomination once again made a name change as it merged the Evangelical Church with the Reformed Churches of North America and thus created the Evangelical and Reformed or E and R Church. 

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By 1957, the name of Immanuel was changed again from Immanuel Evangelical and Reformed to Immanuel  United  Church of Christ as result of the merger  between the E and R Denomination and the Congregational Christians.   I then discovered that in 1995 a complete remodeling of the church was initiated and completed.  And to my knowledge the church looks about the same as it did in 1995. 

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As we celebrate 150 years of Immanuel we lift up the fact, however, that a church’s strength is not in its history or building but in the sincere relationships that have developed over the years in each generation.  Church is about people, it is about community and it is bound together in its unity in Christ.

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I remember fondly one of the first classes I took in my first year at Eden Seminary was one taught by Dr. Gene Wherli on the book of Acts – and the development of the early church after Christ’s ascension.  That’s what Acts is essentially, a brief early history of the Church – written by the author of Luke’s Gospel to share the story of what happened in those early days with the disciples and followers of Jesus after Jesus’ ascention.

And Dr. Wherli always emphasized that the church is community. And from that word community when you split the word community in two  you  get two words “common unity” in that we are unified as one in Christ.  We also get the word communion from the word community. 

From Paul’s letter to the Romans our Epistle text for today we find Paul calls the community to be “fervent in spirit”, serving the Lord, rejoicing in hope, and being patient during trails.

In my opinion you have been faithful in all those categories.  And this has been demonstrated in your mission and programs.  So, among the many things we celebrate on this anniversary, is your ongoing hospitality and tireless service to fulfill your mission.  And it has been accomplished  among many things through your programmatic offerings.

Jesus urged his  followers to  not  only be “hearers” of the Word  but also “doers.” And as I  found from your  125th anniversary booklet it noted a lot  of “doing” has been going on in your past  to enable the church to arrive to this point in time through 150 years. You celebrate today because others have labored and held firm to the faith.  But many among you today are those “others” who have labored through the years.

As you move into the future, it is also good to lift up some of the major emphasis and accomplishments you have archived.

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I am pleased to say that Immanuel Church remains true to its rich  history rooted in the theology of the United Church of Christ.  And one of those components where it has remained  true is through its  rich mission and ecumenical heritage.    You have demonstrated that in numerous  ways  over these150 years.  You have been involved in the local Ministerial Association which has given you the opportunity to enjoy fellowship and ecumenical worship throughout the calendar year.  You have supported the Open Door Service Center as it provides persons in need with goods and services in accordance with their financial resources. You support CASA as it works to assist women caught in domestic abuse and Child Safe of Central Missouri, Inc. as it helps children in situations of  abuse, and you work  within the community to help develop and support people and agencies in the act of serving God through serving people.

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Over the years of your rich history you have been committed to the idea that the ministry of Jesus Christ is a ministry of all people.  You have welcomed all people no matter who they are, or where they are in life’s journey – which is also a core value of the United Church of Christ.  Over the years you have had an emphasis on Christian Education and Youth ministry, various Fellowship opportunities, and  Choir just to name a few all of which solicit dedication and involvement.

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As stated in your 125th anniversary booklet:  Immanuel Church subscribes to the values of a rich worship tradition. Believing that God works in many ways and that as persons experience God’s presence differently, new patterns and forms of worship have been instituted over  the years.  There is not change for the sake of change, but change for the sake of clarity, freshness and relevancy for the current day.  An example some 35 years ago the New Century Hymnal, prepared by the denomination and used here at Immanuel, reflects the values inherent  in the past and while ripe for the present and future. You believe in keeping up with God and that requires an openness to change.   You believe, in my opinion, that worship is still the heartbeat of the church.  I like what was written in your previous anniversary booklet:  “In worship  the individual expresses  gratitude to the Lord of the Church; in worship  visions  of  a new lifestyle are formulated; and in worship people receive strength to be what God calls them to be.”

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What was said 25 years ago still remains true to today: as was written, “We respect and affirm the prayerful actions of members who have gone before us.  We work together through good and difficult times to live the heart of the gospel, and we hope our faith, dedication and sacrifices will give our children and future members of Immanuel United Church of Christ the encouragement to keep faith alive.  

Such faith and practice is inherent in Immanuel’s history.  And this history on this 150 anniversary, is a history worthy of celebration.  Happy Anniversary Immanuel United Church of Christ and my God bless you into the future.  Amen.

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