Lancaster United Methodist Church - Sermon Resources

"ABLE!
"We Are Able: Name, Ability, and Action as Children of God "

Sermon Resources

Title: Able: Name, Ability, and Action as Children of God

Sermon Summary: Drawing from 1 John, Christian Washington builds on the previous week's message about being named children of God by extending that identity into what it means to be "able." Using the story of Cain and Abel as a launching point, he argues that those who belong to God are descendants of Abel -- the righteous one -- and that with the name "child of God" comes a Spirit-endowed ability to love and act in the world. That ability, however, is not passive. Love must move from identity to action, as demonstrated both in Scripture and in the tangible ministry of the congregation's soup kitchen. The sermon closes with a deeply personal account of Christian Washington's own healing journey, where he discovers that the assurance of Jesus walking with us through our deepest wounds is itself a gift that empowers us to carry God's name and ability into the lives of those who are waiting for it.

Key Points:
Being named a child of God is not merely a title but comes with a Spirit-given ability to love and act in the world
The story of Cain and Abel frames the sermon's central idea: believers are descendants of the righteous Abel, called to live out that righteousness
The ability to love crosses racial, cultural, and social boundaries, as demonstrated through the lineage from Rahab to Boaz to David to Jesus
Love is not simply spoken -- it is demonstrated through concrete action, as illustrated by the congregation's Monday and Thursday soup kitchen ministry
Religious rules and traditions can become obstacles to loving one's neighbor when they are placed above the greatest commandment
Believers can sometimes be their own harshest judges, and the assurance of Jesus walking with us through our deepest wounds is a core part of what we receive as children of God
Name, ability, and action work together: identity leads to capacity, and capacity must lead to engagement

Scripture Reference:
1 John, the passage continuing from the previous week's sermon, addressing love in action, the reference to Cain, and the warning that one's own heart can condemn
Matthew chapter 1, verse 5, which places Salmon and Rahab in the lineage of Jesus
Hebrews chapter 11, the hall of faith, which includes Rahab among its honored figures
The Parable of the Good Samaritan, referenced as the story Jesus told in response to the question "Who is my neighbor?"
The Shema and the Greatest Commandment, cited as the foundation for the discussion of loving God and neighbor

Stories:
Cain and Abel: used to frame the idea that believers are called to the righteousness of Abel, and that the world may hate them for it just as Cain hated his brother
Rahab and the spies: the story of a woman of ill repute who hid the Israelite spies, negotiated protection for her family, and was ultimately brought into the covenant community, later appearing in the lineage of Jesus
Boaz and Ruth: presented as an example of love that crosses racial and cultural lines, rooted in the example Boaz inherited from his parents Salmon and Rahab
The lineage from Rahab to David to Jesus: traced to show how God works through unlikely and marginalized people to accomplish redemptive purposes
The Parable of the Good Samaritan: recounted to illustrate that love is not theoretical but demands action, and that religious obligation must never override human need
Christian Washington's personal story of church planting and declining attendance, leading to a guided prayer therapy session in which a suppressed childhood memory of learning he was adopted was brought to the surface and met with the healing presence of Jesus

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Discussion Questions

The sermon draws a parallel between Abel's righteous offering and our call to love sacrificially -- in what areas of your life might God be asking you to bring a better, more wholehearted offering of love?

Rahab was an outsider and someone society dismissed, yet she appears in both the lineage of Jesus and the hall of faith in Hebrews 11 -- who in your community might you be overlooking as a vessel of faith and purpose?

The priest and the Levite in the parable of the Good Samaritan allowed religious rules to override the greatest commandment to love -- can you think of ways that tradition or religious habit might be causing you to walk past someone in need?

The sermon emphasizes that love is a verb requiring action, not just words or sentiment -- what is one specific, tangible step you can take this week to move from ability to action in loving someone around you?

Boaz inherited the capacity for unconditional, cross-cultural love from watching his parents Salmon and Rahab navigate ridicule and scrutiny -- how have the people who raised you shaped your ability or inability to love those who are different from you?

The lawyer in the parable asked 'Who is my neighbor?' as a way of finding the limits of who he had to love -- honestly examine yourself: who are the people or groups you are most tempted to place outside the boundaries of your compassion?

The sermon describes how buried trauma can quietly undermine our sense of worth and our ability to serve -- how might unresolved pain from your past be affecting the way you show up for others in the present?

The leader describes Jesus walking with him into the most painful memory of his life as a source of deep assurance -- in what difficult or shameful room of your own story do you need to invite Jesus to walk with you?

The lineage from Rahab to Boaz to Ruth to David to Jesus shows how one act of courageous, boundary-crossing love can ripple across generations -- what legacy of love are you building right now that might shape those who come after you?

The sermon closes with the affirmation that we are not only named children of God but are also endowed with the ability to love -- what does it mean to you personally to carry both an identity and a calling, and how do those two things challenge each other in your daily life?

5-Day Bible Reading Plan and Devotional Guide
Based on the Sermon "We Are Able" by Christian Washington
Day 1: You Are Named
Reading: 1 John 3:1-3

Devotional: Before you were given a name by your parents, before the world assigned you a label, God had already spoken your identity into existence. The passage in 1 John 3 describes a love so extravagant that it results in a name -- child of God. That name is not honorary or conditional. It is a declaration of belonging. In ancient times, being called a child of God was reserved for emperors and rulers. God extended it to the forgotten, the overlooked, and the outcast. Whatever name the world has called you, God's name for you stands above every other. Receive it today.

Reflection: What names has the world placed on you that contradict what God calls you?

Application: Write down three names or labels you have carried that do not align with your identity as a child of God. Beside each one, write what God says instead.

Day 2: The Abel in You
Reading: Genesis 4:1-10 and Hebrews 11:4

Devotional: Abel's story is brief but profound. He brought an offering that came from a right heart, and that righteousness made him a target. The writer of Hebrews tells us that through his offering, Abel still speaks even though he is gone. His life was cut short, but his legacy of righteousness echoes through generations. The sermon reminds us that we are Abel people -- those who choose integrity, generosity, and love even when it costs something. The world will sometimes respond to your righteousness with hostility. Do not be surprised. Abel was not celebrated by everyone either, yet God saw what he brought.

Reflection: In what areas of your life is God calling you to bring a more wholehearted offering?

Application: Identify one area -- your relationships, your work, your service -- where you have been holding back. Make a deliberate, wholehearted effort in that area this week.

Day 3: Love Is a Verb
Reading: 1 John 3:16-18 and Luke 10:25-37

Devotional: The Good Samaritan parable does not end with the Samaritan feeling compassion. It ends with him acting on it. He bandaged wounds, provided transportation, paid for lodging, and promised to return. Love in Scripture is consistently described through verbs -- actions taken on behalf of another person at personal cost. The passage in 1 John 3 reinforces this by pointing out that passing someone in need while possessing the means to help is a contradiction of everything God has placed within us. Talk is cheap, as the sermon reminds us. The name child of God comes with a job description, and that job description requires movement.

Reflection: Who in your life or community is lying on the side of the road, so to speak, waiting for someone to stop?

Application: Perform one concrete act of service this week for someone who cannot repay you. Do it quietly and without announcement.

Day 4: Unlikely Lineage
Reading: Matthew 1:1-6 and Joshua 2:1-14

Devotional: Rahab was a Canaanite woman whose profession made her an outcast by religious standards. Yet she is listed in the genealogy of Jesus and honored in the hall of faith in Hebrews 11. Her story teaches us that God is not limited by our past, our origin, our reputation, or what others have called us. She recognized something true about God before many of God's own people did, and she acted on that recognition with courage. From her line came Boaz, then Obed, then Jesse, then David, and eventually the Messiah himself. God has a habit of writing history through people the world has written off.

Reflection: Have you ever disqualified yourself or someone else from being used by God based on past failures or social standing?

Application: Think of one person in your life who seems unlikely to be used by God. Pray specifically for them today and consider how you might encourage them this week.

Day 5: Assurance in the Hardest Rooms
Reading: 1 John 3:19-24 and Psalm 139:1-18

Devotional: The sermon closes with one of the most vulnerable moments a person can share from a pulpit -- a childhood trauma, a blocked memory, and a therapy session where healing finally arrived. The scripture in 1 John 3 acknowledges that our own hearts will sometimes condemn us. Shame, rejection, and old wounds have a way of surfacing when we least expect them. But the text also assures us that God is greater than our hearts and knows everything about us. The psalmist in Psalm 139 describes a God who was present even before birth, who searches and knows us completely, and who remains with us in every dark place. You are not alone in your hardest room.

Reflection: What memory, wound, or season of life have you never fully allowed God to enter with you?

Application: Set aside fifteen minutes today in a quiet place. Ask God to walk with you into one painful memory or current struggle. You do not need to have the right words. Simply invite his presence and sit with him there.
This reading plan is designed to be used over five consecutive days, but feel free to move at whatever pace allows for genuine reflection. The goal is not completion -- it is transformation.
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Small Group Guide
"We Are Able" | 1 John

Before You Begin
Open your time together by having each person repeat the affirmation from the sermon:
"I am a child of God, and I am able."
Then open with a brief prayer asking God to make your group good ground for the seeds planted in this message.

Overview
This sermon draws from 1 John to explore three dimensions of what it means to be named a child of God: we receive a name, we receive ability, and we are held by assurance. Using the stories of Cain and Abel, Rahab, Boaz, Ruth, and the Good Samaritan, Christian Washington traces a lineage of love that runs all the way from the earliest pages of Scripture to us today -- and calls us to move from ability into action.

Key Takeaways
Being named a child of God is not just an identity -- it is an endowment. The name comes with ability.
We are the descendants of Abel, called to bring righteous, loving offerings to God and to the world around us.
Love is not something we merely say. It is something we do. Love is a verb.
The world may hate us for our righteousness, and sometimes our own hearts will condemn us -- but the assurance of the Holy Spirit meets us in both places.
Our unhealed wounds can quietly shape how we show up for others. Healing is not separate from ministry -- it is part of it.

Discussion Questions

Opening Up (Choose One)
Christian opens every gathering with the affirmation, "I am significant because God says so." Is this easy or difficult for you to say and actually believe? What makes it feel true or untrue on a given day?
Think about a time someone showed up for you in a practical, tangible way when you were in need. What did that feel like? What did it communicate to you about how that person saw you?

Going Deeper
The sermon draws a contrast between Cain and Abel and frames the passage in 1 John as saying, essentially, "You are Abel people." What does it mean to you to identify yourself as someone who brings a righteous offering -- not just to God, but to the people around you?
Rahab was an outsider, a woman with a complicated reputation, and yet she appears in the hall of faith in Hebrews 11 and in the lineage of Jesus in Matthew 1. What does her story say about who God considers worthy of being used, remembered, and honored?
The story of Boaz and Ruth shows that the ability to love across cultural, racial, and social lines was something passed down through a family. Who in your life modeled that kind of love for you? How has it shaped the way you love others?
In the parable of the Good Samaritan, the priest and the Levite walked past the wounded man because a religious rule felt more important than the person in front of them. Christian says, "It's interesting when our religion gets in the way of our love." Where do you see that tension showing up today -- in culture, in the church, or in your own life?
The sermon describes 1 John's warning that sometimes your own heart will condemn you. Christian shared a deeply personal story about a blocked childhood memory that was quietly driving his feelings of inadequacy and abandonment. Have you ever noticed that an old wound was affecting how you were showing up in the present? What did that look like?
The therapist invited Christian to take Jesus into the worst room of his memory. What does it mean to you that Jesus is willing to go into those rooms with us -- not to fix the past, but to speak truth into it?
Bringing It Home
The sermon says love must move from ability into action. Christian points to the church's soup kitchen as a concrete example of what love looks like in practice. Where in your own life is God calling you to move from having the ability to love someone to actually doing it?
The closing prayer includes this line: "We know this city is waiting for us." Who in your neighborhood, workplace, or community is waiting for your name and your ability right now? What is one specific step you could take this week to show up for them?

Practical Applications
This Week, Try One of These:
Write down the names of two or three people in your life who modeled unconditional love for you. Reach out to one of them this week to tell them what their love has meant to you.
Identify one person in your circle who is in need -- practically, emotionally, or spiritually. Do one concrete thing for them before your group meets again. Come prepared to share what you did and what you noticed.
If you have been avoiding a painful memory or a wound you have never fully addressed, consider taking a step toward healing this week -- whether that is a conversation with a trusted friend, a pastor, or a counselor. Healing is not weakness. It is part of being able to love well.
Spend time this week serving somewhere -- a food pantry, a neighbor, a colleague who is overwhelmed. Notice what it feels like to move from ability into action.

Closing Reflection
End your time together by reading this line from the sermon aloud as a group:
"Your name is not just child of God. You're able."
Then close in prayer, asking God to show each person in the room who they are being called to love this week -- and to give them the courage to move from ability into action.