Sermon 02.28.10
“The Multi-Faceted, Many Images of Jesus”
Is Jesus having an identity crisis? It might appear so, on a first reading of today’s text from the gospel of Luke. In the span of five short verses, he is like the month of March – roaring in like a lion and going out like a lamb. He starts out gutsy, telling the Pharisees to take a terse message to Herod. “Go tell that fox”, he says, and you can just imagine that he’s just plain aggravated as all get out. I picture flecks of spit coming out of his mouth as he asserts that he will finish the work that he has started.
And then, just as quickly, he dissolves from his anger, and bemoans the city that will be the place of his death, and wants to comfort it like a mother hen brooding over her chicks. In the other gospel accounts he is actually moved to tears as he pities the fate of Jerusalem and its inhabitants.
So what is going on here – is Jesus a keenly determined man or a a hand-wringing whiner? Now I mean no disrespect here, let me say that. But the character of Jesus changes so dramatically, it’s hard to tell where he is coming from. And it is that chameleon-like quality of Jesus – that he becomes something different for everyone he meets, that makes him just so interesting. He is multi-faceted, having many sides to his nature.
In the gospel texts, we almost see Jesus as the quintessential Renaissance man. He heals, he teaches, he preaches. He eats with sinners. He speaks in parables. He calms the storms. He is a sailor when he is in the fishing boat with Simon Peter. He is a dinner guest at the wedding at Cana. He is a host at the Passover meal in the upper room.
If you ask the priests and scribes who he is, the answer would be “the enemy who threatens the established norms of our faith traditions.” If you ask Pilate or Herod who he is, the answer would be “the thorn in our side whom the unwashed masses want to crown as King.” If you ask the Samaritan woman at the well who he is, the answer would be “the one who knew my entire past without me telling him.” Jesus is perceived differently by everyone he meets.
To illustrate this thought, I’ve brought some pictures with me today. Throughout the centuries, our images of Jesus have changed. The earliest recorded images that were painted in the house churches showed him as the Good Shepherd, carrying a sheep around his shoulders. It is an image, which many people like and identify with – Jesus as protector of the weak and helpless, Jesus as the one who tends the flock.
Think about the stained glass windows that you have seen in churches, or the artwork here in the sanctuary. The painting that we have here is The Head of Christ by Warner Sallman, made popular back in the 1940’s. This image has been reproduced over 500 million times, making it one of the most popular. It shows a serene, composed Savior, not the Jesus who overturned the money changers tables at the temple.
That Jesus was angry, unrestrained and not very shepherdly.
Another painting that is commonly found in the sanctuary is Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, by Heinrich Hofman. You know exactly the one that I mean. In the UCC churches of Western PA, where I was serving before I came here, it was this picture that was displayed most often. This Jesus is depleted and desperate, knowing that the time of betrayal is near and praying to his father that the cup might pass from him. He is pensive, and weighed down, with the inevitability of his impending death.
There are two more images that I would ask you to recall: The first is DaVinci’s masterpiece, The Last Supper. Jesus is serving bread and wine and telling the disciples that these symbols will continue forever to commemorate his passion. This Jesus is concerned with the final meal with his friends, his followers, the one who would betray him and the ones that would desert and deny him, the one who would need to touch Jesus’s side to believe in the resurrection.
These are the standard, classical pieces that many older people identify with. But there are newer pictures of Jesus, that again, show different traits and parts of his personality. And I wanted to show you some of them as well. Here is the laughing Jesus, whose head is tossed back in joy. I like to think that he enjoyed a good joke. And we cannot forget the Jesus who was frequently surrounded by little children. Kids don’t hang all over you unless you are fun to be with.
There’s a wonderful sculpture of Jesus on the cross wearing jeans, surely an image that resonates with youth. I’ve even brought two very modern images of images, both very different in nature. One is a wide-eyed country looking young Jesus, and the other shows a rough and tough Jesus with a tattoo marked “Father” on his arm.
With all these images, is there anyone who can’t find a Jesus to like. That perhaps is one of the messages from today’s text.
There are varied images of Jesus, some of which are dear to our hearts. We serve a risen savior who was not only gutsy, but gracious; not only in charge, but submissive to his father; not only weary and drained, but also glorious in his resurrection.
All of us identify with some image of Jesus, whether from a childhood raised in church surroundings, or from the more contemporary images that I have shown you. He appeals to all, in many roles, and in all surroundings. I think this embodies the words of the UCC statement of faith: “In Jesus Christ, the man of Nazareth, our crucified and risen Savior, you have come to us and shared our common lot, conquering sin and death and reconciling the world to yourself.” Find the Jesus that speaks the most to your soul and hold that for your image.
Our Jesus, the Jesus we love and praise here today, has shown his divinity and humanity in multiple identities, none of which constitutes a crisis. He is multi-faceted. Everyone who knew him during his time on earth saw something different, and all of us in this room have a unique relationship to him. All views are distinctive, yet Hebrews 13:8 tells us that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. No matter how we see him, this is truth indeed. Amen.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Sunday, February 21, 2010
"No Concessions, No Compromises"
Sermon 02.21.10
“No Concessions, No Compromises”
The children were all lined up in the cafeteria of a Catholic elementary school. At the head of the table was a large pile of apples. The nun in charge of the lunch hour had made a note and posted it on the apple tray. “Take only one,” it said. “God is watching”. Moving further along the lunch line was a large pile of chocolate chip cookies. A child had written a note and placed it beside the goodies. “Take all you want. God is watching the apples.”
The subject of temptation, specifically the temptation of our Lord, is the focus of the gospel text this morning. It’s a time prior to his ministry. He had been baptized by John in the Jordan River and is immediately led into the desert by the Holy Spirit. No miracles have been performed as of yet, no sermons have been preached, no healings have occured. Jesus is in a place of preparation, of testing, of contemplation, and of temptation. He is wondering at this point, perhaps, about what lies ahead of him as the Savior of the world.
There are 3 temptations, since trouble always comes in threes (you didn’t know that this had a biblical basis, did you?) The devil first appeals to the humanity of Jesus. The verses tell us that he had not eaten in 40 days and he was famished. The devil taunts him – “do a trick,” he suggests, “and take a stone and turn it into a loaf of bread. If you are the Son of God, this shouldn’t be a problem.”
The second temptation is one of power, of greed, based on Let’s make a deal. Bet you didn’t know that this was biblical. The devil says that He has the authority over all the kingdoms of the world, and this can all be had by Jesus, as long as he is willing to worship Satan. Jesus says, “No trade.” I’d like to think that he muttered to himself, “where does this guy get off saying HE has all authority – does he know who he’s talking to? I mean he just alluded to the fact that I’m the son of God.”
The third temptation is putting God to the test. The Devil says that Jesus can hurl himself down from the mountaintop and the angels will be there to protect him, according to the Scriptures. Jesus response: “Don’t even go there. Everyone knows that you don’t spit into the wind. Don’t test God. You will never, even win this one.”
The devil slinks off, but you know that he will eventually come back into the picture, as the text tells us, at an opportune time. But Jesus has held his resolve, relying on the Scriptures for all of his answers, with no concessions and no compromises.
You would think that this would be the model passage from the Bible to show us how to resist temptation. But it just isn’t, most of the time. For modern readers, the problem with the temptation story is that it seems unreal, far removed from our experience. The devil does not appear to us and transport us from place to place. The temptations we experience are often not so clearly recognizable. The choice is not between good and bad, but between bad and worse or good and better.
Let me go back to the very first story that I told about the apples and the cookies. Clearly, if we are told to take one of something, and we take two, that is wrong. But the child’s sign of, “Take all you want” is a can of worms waiting to be opened, a Pandora’s box. Taking an extra cookie for yourself may be an okay thing to do, and taking one for a friend is certainly a nice gesture. But if you take all the cookies for the kids in your neighborhood and leave none for the children behind you in the rest of the cafeteria line, this is not good, even if it sounds like a wonderful philanthropic act.
What we do learn from the story, however, are that there are some ethical instructions that cover the basis for most Christian living. In the first temptation, Jesus shows us that life is more than meeting one’s physical needs. You do not live by bread alone. There must be more and there is more. Selfishly satisfying your own desires is not the path we are called to take. Jesus tells us that that even a single loaf could lead to danger. We are called to lives that are sacrificial for the good of others.
In the second temptation, we are called to be faithful, not necessarily successful by the world’s standards. We cannot be dazzled and consumed by the riches of this world, when another world awaits us where the streets are paved with gold, and there is no more pain and tears. We are called to be true to ourselves and not to other people’s dreams of power and greed.
On the final temptation, we are taught that we must rely on God’s power in our lives. We are to serve God and God alone, and to relinquish control to God’s call for who we are to be. This is the hardest temptation of all, I think, because we all want to believe that we are driving the bus. It’s natural, in a country that takes pride in self-reliance, to think that we can take on anybody, even God. You would think that we would know better by now.
No concessions and no compromises. It’s a tough act to follow. But follow we must if we are to call ourselves Christians. When temptations come, we must find the courage to do as Jesus would have done: to put others before self, to not be seduced by submitting to the popular way, and to allow God’s hand to take precedence over all that we do. May our temptations be few, may our faith remain strong, and may we be led by the Holy Spirit. Amen.
“No Concessions, No Compromises”
The children were all lined up in the cafeteria of a Catholic elementary school. At the head of the table was a large pile of apples. The nun in charge of the lunch hour had made a note and posted it on the apple tray. “Take only one,” it said. “God is watching”. Moving further along the lunch line was a large pile of chocolate chip cookies. A child had written a note and placed it beside the goodies. “Take all you want. God is watching the apples.”
The subject of temptation, specifically the temptation of our Lord, is the focus of the gospel text this morning. It’s a time prior to his ministry. He had been baptized by John in the Jordan River and is immediately led into the desert by the Holy Spirit. No miracles have been performed as of yet, no sermons have been preached, no healings have occured. Jesus is in a place of preparation, of testing, of contemplation, and of temptation. He is wondering at this point, perhaps, about what lies ahead of him as the Savior of the world.
There are 3 temptations, since trouble always comes in threes (you didn’t know that this had a biblical basis, did you?) The devil first appeals to the humanity of Jesus. The verses tell us that he had not eaten in 40 days and he was famished. The devil taunts him – “do a trick,” he suggests, “and take a stone and turn it into a loaf of bread. If you are the Son of God, this shouldn’t be a problem.”
The second temptation is one of power, of greed, based on Let’s make a deal. Bet you didn’t know that this was biblical. The devil says that He has the authority over all the kingdoms of the world, and this can all be had by Jesus, as long as he is willing to worship Satan. Jesus says, “No trade.” I’d like to think that he muttered to himself, “where does this guy get off saying HE has all authority – does he know who he’s talking to? I mean he just alluded to the fact that I’m the son of God.”
The third temptation is putting God to the test. The Devil says that Jesus can hurl himself down from the mountaintop and the angels will be there to protect him, according to the Scriptures. Jesus response: “Don’t even go there. Everyone knows that you don’t spit into the wind. Don’t test God. You will never, even win this one.”
The devil slinks off, but you know that he will eventually come back into the picture, as the text tells us, at an opportune time. But Jesus has held his resolve, relying on the Scriptures for all of his answers, with no concessions and no compromises.
You would think that this would be the model passage from the Bible to show us how to resist temptation. But it just isn’t, most of the time. For modern readers, the problem with the temptation story is that it seems unreal, far removed from our experience. The devil does not appear to us and transport us from place to place. The temptations we experience are often not so clearly recognizable. The choice is not between good and bad, but between bad and worse or good and better.
Let me go back to the very first story that I told about the apples and the cookies. Clearly, if we are told to take one of something, and we take two, that is wrong. But the child’s sign of, “Take all you want” is a can of worms waiting to be opened, a Pandora’s box. Taking an extra cookie for yourself may be an okay thing to do, and taking one for a friend is certainly a nice gesture. But if you take all the cookies for the kids in your neighborhood and leave none for the children behind you in the rest of the cafeteria line, this is not good, even if it sounds like a wonderful philanthropic act.
What we do learn from the story, however, are that there are some ethical instructions that cover the basis for most Christian living. In the first temptation, Jesus shows us that life is more than meeting one’s physical needs. You do not live by bread alone. There must be more and there is more. Selfishly satisfying your own desires is not the path we are called to take. Jesus tells us that that even a single loaf could lead to danger. We are called to lives that are sacrificial for the good of others.
In the second temptation, we are called to be faithful, not necessarily successful by the world’s standards. We cannot be dazzled and consumed by the riches of this world, when another world awaits us where the streets are paved with gold, and there is no more pain and tears. We are called to be true to ourselves and not to other people’s dreams of power and greed.
On the final temptation, we are taught that we must rely on God’s power in our lives. We are to serve God and God alone, and to relinquish control to God’s call for who we are to be. This is the hardest temptation of all, I think, because we all want to believe that we are driving the bus. It’s natural, in a country that takes pride in self-reliance, to think that we can take on anybody, even God. You would think that we would know better by now.
No concessions and no compromises. It’s a tough act to follow. But follow we must if we are to call ourselves Christians. When temptations come, we must find the courage to do as Jesus would have done: to put others before self, to not be seduced by submitting to the popular way, and to allow God’s hand to take precedence over all that we do. May our temptations be few, may our faith remain strong, and may we be led by the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
"Forgiving Our Own Sinds"
Sermon 02.17.10 Ash Wednesday
“Forgiving Our Own Sins”
A very wise theological student wrote in a final examination on church history: “The Protestant Reformation is when the Protestants broke away from the church and began to forgive their own sins.”
Sins – tonight’s text are full of sins and confession of sins, from the prophets’ urging to repent, to David’s emotional outburst when confronted by Nathan about his rape of Bathsheba and murder of her husband Uriah, to Jesus’ condemnation of the practices of the false piety of the Pharisees.
Most churches do not talk a lot about sin anymore, and so I think a brief history lesson on sin and repentance might be interesting before my message. Now, we’re not going to go all the way back to Adam and Eve in the garden. What I want to explain to you is the process of repentance, penance, contrition and redemption that has fallen by the wayside, and brought truth to the statement written by the theological student.
In the early days of the church, during the first few centuries following Jesus’ death, the newly-formed Christian community found itself in the position of having to deal with those who had been baptized – an act that washed away the original sin of Adam & Eve – but were still back-sliding into old transgressions. They needed a way to systematically deal with this improprieties, and in particular, with those individuals who recanted their belief in Christ when faced with death or imprisonment during the Roman rule.
The leaders first response was to make the road back to full inclusion in the church community as long and difficult a process as possible. This is where the process of penance was created. Repenting members spent years being denied the sacraments, were often required to perform obnoxious, repellent tasks and made to focus the remainder of their lives on deeds and works of penance.
The point was to make a lasting impression so that there would not be a second fall from grace. However, the concept of a death-bed confession existed, assuring that someone could still live a lifetime of transgressions and suddenly be absolved at the last possible moment.
This was an attractive proposition to many and so it did little to appease the churches who found themselves up to their necks in young, healthy sinners. It was the Irish St. Patrick who created and popularized the system of private confession and repeatable penances, which he then passed on to parish priests. By the thirteenth century, the penances were lightened, and in some cases, simple contrition was enough to merit a priestly absolution.
In the Protestant tradition, confession has been further weakened by making it a corporate element in the worship service. We confess our sins as a whole, and then assure ourselves of God’s grace. Little emphasis is placed on penance, if any at all. The sentiment is that basically people are okay, they mess up from time to time, and no real transformation of the heart is necessary.
Dietrich Bonhoffer, a Protestant German scholar and theologian argued in this manner: We must ask ourselves…whether we have not been confessing our sins to ourselves and also granting ourselves absolution. And is not the real reason perhaps for countless relapses and the feebleness of Christian obedience to be found precisely in that fact that we are living on self-forgiveness and not real forgiveness.”
And Bonhoffer pretty much nails this one. We are living in a society where there is still an “urge to purge”. Countless celebrity guests have told their deepest sins on the television shows of Jerry Springer and Montel Williams. We have elected officials at the press conference microphones confessing their infidelities. Stockbrokers and automobile makers have been exposed for their greed and disregard for their clients and customers. To be sure, there’s a lot of dirty laundry flapping in the wind, but no sense of contrition. And very little penance. Yes, we’re sorry. But the problem is that we are sorry that we got caught doing whatever we did.
Today, on Ash Wednesday, we are reminded that a little more is required if we are to be fully reconciled to God. The prophet Joel calls for the people to return to God with fasting, weeping, and mourning. I doubt that any of us is ready to take him up on that FULL offer. Paul tells the Corinthians that the person of Christ who knew no sin, became sin so that we might become the righteousness of God. In Psalm 51, King David displays the desperate remorse for his transgressions and offers to God a broken and contrite heart. We must truly confess our sins to God as well as to one another and be prepared to make reparations before absolution is given. Lent is the perfect season to put this into practice.
In the gospel text, Jesus specifically criticizes the Pharisees for their pretentions displays, and reminds them that they need not parade around for others to see their piety. Verse 18 urges them not to let others see their fasting, but by your Father who is in secret, and your father who sees in secret will reward you.” In other words, confess to God and not to the people on the street or to Geraldo Rivera. And certainly don’t look to them for your absolution.
As we enter this Lenten season, let us be aware of our sins against God and neighbor and the need for true contrition and reparations. It is the only means of being reconciled to God through Jesus Christ. Let us find a way of doing Protestant penance for our actions that separate us from others and from our heavenly Father. Rather than the foolish and insipid and lukewarm public confessions that we hear on a daily basis, let us seek time alone with God to declare our sins and our sorrow at having committed them.
As the psalmist says, “Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relents from punishing. May we bring our broken and contrite spirits before the Almighty, and allow God to do the forgiveness. Amen.
“Forgiving Our Own Sins”
A very wise theological student wrote in a final examination on church history: “The Protestant Reformation is when the Protestants broke away from the church and began to forgive their own sins.”
Sins – tonight’s text are full of sins and confession of sins, from the prophets’ urging to repent, to David’s emotional outburst when confronted by Nathan about his rape of Bathsheba and murder of her husband Uriah, to Jesus’ condemnation of the practices of the false piety of the Pharisees.
Most churches do not talk a lot about sin anymore, and so I think a brief history lesson on sin and repentance might be interesting before my message. Now, we’re not going to go all the way back to Adam and Eve in the garden. What I want to explain to you is the process of repentance, penance, contrition and redemption that has fallen by the wayside, and brought truth to the statement written by the theological student.
In the early days of the church, during the first few centuries following Jesus’ death, the newly-formed Christian community found itself in the position of having to deal with those who had been baptized – an act that washed away the original sin of Adam & Eve – but were still back-sliding into old transgressions. They needed a way to systematically deal with this improprieties, and in particular, with those individuals who recanted their belief in Christ when faced with death or imprisonment during the Roman rule.
The leaders first response was to make the road back to full inclusion in the church community as long and difficult a process as possible. This is where the process of penance was created. Repenting members spent years being denied the sacraments, were often required to perform obnoxious, repellent tasks and made to focus the remainder of their lives on deeds and works of penance.
The point was to make a lasting impression so that there would not be a second fall from grace. However, the concept of a death-bed confession existed, assuring that someone could still live a lifetime of transgressions and suddenly be absolved at the last possible moment.
This was an attractive proposition to many and so it did little to appease the churches who found themselves up to their necks in young, healthy sinners. It was the Irish St. Patrick who created and popularized the system of private confession and repeatable penances, which he then passed on to parish priests. By the thirteenth century, the penances were lightened, and in some cases, simple contrition was enough to merit a priestly absolution.
In the Protestant tradition, confession has been further weakened by making it a corporate element in the worship service. We confess our sins as a whole, and then assure ourselves of God’s grace. Little emphasis is placed on penance, if any at all. The sentiment is that basically people are okay, they mess up from time to time, and no real transformation of the heart is necessary.
Dietrich Bonhoffer, a Protestant German scholar and theologian argued in this manner: We must ask ourselves…whether we have not been confessing our sins to ourselves and also granting ourselves absolution. And is not the real reason perhaps for countless relapses and the feebleness of Christian obedience to be found precisely in that fact that we are living on self-forgiveness and not real forgiveness.”
And Bonhoffer pretty much nails this one. We are living in a society where there is still an “urge to purge”. Countless celebrity guests have told their deepest sins on the television shows of Jerry Springer and Montel Williams. We have elected officials at the press conference microphones confessing their infidelities. Stockbrokers and automobile makers have been exposed for their greed and disregard for their clients and customers. To be sure, there’s a lot of dirty laundry flapping in the wind, but no sense of contrition. And very little penance. Yes, we’re sorry. But the problem is that we are sorry that we got caught doing whatever we did.
Today, on Ash Wednesday, we are reminded that a little more is required if we are to be fully reconciled to God. The prophet Joel calls for the people to return to God with fasting, weeping, and mourning. I doubt that any of us is ready to take him up on that FULL offer. Paul tells the Corinthians that the person of Christ who knew no sin, became sin so that we might become the righteousness of God. In Psalm 51, King David displays the desperate remorse for his transgressions and offers to God a broken and contrite heart. We must truly confess our sins to God as well as to one another and be prepared to make reparations before absolution is given. Lent is the perfect season to put this into practice.
In the gospel text, Jesus specifically criticizes the Pharisees for their pretentions displays, and reminds them that they need not parade around for others to see their piety. Verse 18 urges them not to let others see their fasting, but by your Father who is in secret, and your father who sees in secret will reward you.” In other words, confess to God and not to the people on the street or to Geraldo Rivera. And certainly don’t look to them for your absolution.
As we enter this Lenten season, let us be aware of our sins against God and neighbor and the need for true contrition and reparations. It is the only means of being reconciled to God through Jesus Christ. Let us find a way of doing Protestant penance for our actions that separate us from others and from our heavenly Father. Rather than the foolish and insipid and lukewarm public confessions that we hear on a daily basis, let us seek time alone with God to declare our sins and our sorrow at having committed them.
As the psalmist says, “Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relents from punishing. May we bring our broken and contrite spirits before the Almighty, and allow God to do the forgiveness. Amen.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
"Dare to Glare"
Sermon 02.14.10
“Dare to Glare”
It’s too bad that sunglasses weren’t invented until 1929. Peter, James and John could each have used a pair up on that mountain top during the Lord’s transfiguration, because we read in the text that Jesus’ face changed and his clothes became dazzling white. In this same passage in Matthew’s gospel it says that his face shone like the sun. Shone like the sun. Something that we haven’t seen too often in Baltimore these days. I almost couldn’t find my prop this morning, since I’ve had very little occasion to wear them. And the disciples were blinded by this sight. On this mountain top experience, there was clearly a glaze.
Dazzling white, shining like the sun. How many here have a good working knowledge of astronomy? Me neither. Some of us have suffered through the science classes where you learn the names of the planets, and how the earth revolves around the sun, but I doubt that we recall many of the facts that we learned in school; only that this orb is very, very, very bright. In fact, the sun is the origin of virtually all of the energy that supports life on earth.
The sun has been burning for 4.6 billion years, yet only in the past two decades have scientists really begun to learn of its power. This planet is do big that you could put a million earths inside it, and it’s so dense that the sunbeams we see today began their journey from the center of the sun before the last ice age. It’s doubtful that we could get a full appreciation in a 15-minute sermon, and that would not be my purpose.
But one of the most interesting phenomena that I would like us to focus on is that the sun has a halo-like corona around it that is thousands of times hotter than the actual surface. The sun is surrounded by smaller suns that are hotter than the core. These mini-suns dare to glare even in the spectacular light of the one huge glow. Now hold that thought as we move through the rest of the Luke’s text.
It is Jesus’ face and body that are transfigured before the apostles that day, and they were blinded by the light. They are blown off their feet by what they see. Right before their eyes, Jesus begins to glow brightly with the glory that is reserved for heavenly beings. And transfigured is the word that is used to describe the process. This word is used only twice in the entire Bible, once in Matthew and once in Mark to depict the event that is the text for today. The Greek word is met-a-morph-o-they – from which we get our word metamorphoses, meaning a dramatic changing from one thing to another. That’s your vocabulary lesson from today’s Gospel.
Jesus’ appearance is dramatically changed. That’s scary enough. But then Moses and Elijah appear beside Jesus and start talking to him. I picture the apostles rubbing their eyes or even shielding them in terror as they watch this trio continue their conversation. Moses and Elijah are the two greatest Israelite prophets, loved and revered by the Jewish people. For one to show up is spectacular enough; for both, you almost need to put on your blinders. Then, there’s a repeat performance, reminiscent of Jesus’ baptism, when the Father’s voice breaks through the heavens to inform the disciples that Jesus Christ is the Son, the Beloved. This is what brings the apostles to their knees. Imagine the sun exploding in the sky.
Truly, Peter, James and John are blinded by the light. You know how hard it is to drive into the sun when it’s setting. Or to have a glare in the rear view mirror that makes you try to block and squint and shut it out. You can’t look at it, it’s just too bright. If you have remember occasions when they has been an elipse of the sun, one of the things that you should not do is look directly into it because it can damage your retina and cornea.
The problem in today’s text, however, is not that the apostles shielded their eyes. The problem is that the light was so bright that they had to blink, to close their eyes, even momentarily. It’s obvious that they can’t process what’s happening, because Pete starts babbling. Lord, how about if we throw up a couple of sheds and do a tad of worshipping here. It’s like he couldn’t figure out what to say, so he just utters the first dumb thing that comes to him. There’s a supernova zinging by, lighting up all of heaven, a solar flare that has gone out of control and Peter thinks it’s the Little Dipper.
We are always in the same situation as the disciples. We’re constantly shading our eyes or turning away when it gets too bright. Instead of basking in wonder and amazement and awe, Peter says, shouldn’t we be doing something? We put on our sunglasses so that we can blunt the light and reduce it to an energy source that we can handle. It is much easier for us humans to face a 10-watt night light that the mega electricity that comes from God’s power.
But, the good news in this text is that, as Christians, we are commanded to carry the light of Christ to the community. While we can never be the sun, we can function as the corollas – the smaller orbs that encircle the main planet. We do not have the transfigurative power to call up the ghosts of the prophets and hear heavenly affirmations from God the Father. But we can give off light in our own right. We can dare to glare. There are always opportunities to shine. After the apostles fall to the ground, I think it is significant that a bright cloud overshadowed them. And Jesus says, “Get up, don’t be afraid to pull out your flashlights and spread some of your light.
It is easy to recognize God when there’s a blaze of glory. The shining God moments are clearly visible: a baby’s birth, a gorgeous sunset, a double rainbow, the eclipse of the sun. It is far harder to recognize the smaller lights that are visible – the mini-suns that we carry to the world. But they are there and sometimes poke through the clouds and we can be blinded if we’re not ready for them. Sometimes we are on the receiving ends of the corollas of others.
Several years ago, in North Dakota, a teacher assigned to visit children in a large city hospital received a routine call requesting that she visit a particular child. She took the boy’s name and room and was told by the teacher on the other end of the line, “We’re studying nouns and adverbs in his class now. I’d be grateful if you could help him with his homework so he doesn’t fall behind the others.”
It wasn’t until the visiting teacher got outside the boy’s room that she realized it was located in the hospital’s burn unit. No one had prepared her to find a ten-year old named Martin who was horribly burned and in great pain. She felt that professionally she couldn’t just turn around and walk out, so she awkwardly stammered, “I’m the hospital teacher and your teacher sent me to help you with nouns and adverbs.”
The next morning, the nurse on the burn unit asked her, “What did you do to that boy?’ Before she could finish with a profusion of apologies, the nurse interrupted her. “You don’t understand,” she said. “We’ve been very worried about Martin, but ever since you were here yesterday, his whole attitude is changed. He’s fighting back and responding to treatment. It’s as though this young man has decided to live.
Martin later explained that he had completely given up hope until he saw the teacher. It all changed when he came to a simple realization. With tears of joy, he told the nurse , “Well, they wouldn’t send a teacher to work on nouns and adverbs with a dying boy, would they?”
The Transfiguration does not call us to be "a light at the end of the tunnel," waiting for people lost in the dark to blunder their way towards us. The church is to take the light of the world, the glory of Christ, boldly into the dark places. There is always a cloud lurking right outside our ring of light. Will we move forward and further towards it, like the teacher did, reaching out with the good news of the gospel?
Jesus is the sun, the Transfgured one, we are only the son beams. We are to live our lives in the light and lead others toward Christ by keeping the light alive.
Let us keep our eyes open for shining moments, for times when sunbeams break through the clouds. Let us see how we can brighten the world for others. Let us refrain from picking up the sunglasses, lest we look away or blink when the power from heavens is made manifest. Let us dare to glare in the lives of others. May we experience our own transfigurations so that our hearts and minds are changed forever. Amen.
“Dare to Glare”
It’s too bad that sunglasses weren’t invented until 1929. Peter, James and John could each have used a pair up on that mountain top during the Lord’s transfiguration, because we read in the text that Jesus’ face changed and his clothes became dazzling white. In this same passage in Matthew’s gospel it says that his face shone like the sun. Shone like the sun. Something that we haven’t seen too often in Baltimore these days. I almost couldn’t find my prop this morning, since I’ve had very little occasion to wear them. And the disciples were blinded by this sight. On this mountain top experience, there was clearly a glaze.
Dazzling white, shining like the sun. How many here have a good working knowledge of astronomy? Me neither. Some of us have suffered through the science classes where you learn the names of the planets, and how the earth revolves around the sun, but I doubt that we recall many of the facts that we learned in school; only that this orb is very, very, very bright. In fact, the sun is the origin of virtually all of the energy that supports life on earth.
The sun has been burning for 4.6 billion years, yet only in the past two decades have scientists really begun to learn of its power. This planet is do big that you could put a million earths inside it, and it’s so dense that the sunbeams we see today began their journey from the center of the sun before the last ice age. It’s doubtful that we could get a full appreciation in a 15-minute sermon, and that would not be my purpose.
But one of the most interesting phenomena that I would like us to focus on is that the sun has a halo-like corona around it that is thousands of times hotter than the actual surface. The sun is surrounded by smaller suns that are hotter than the core. These mini-suns dare to glare even in the spectacular light of the one huge glow. Now hold that thought as we move through the rest of the Luke’s text.
It is Jesus’ face and body that are transfigured before the apostles that day, and they were blinded by the light. They are blown off their feet by what they see. Right before their eyes, Jesus begins to glow brightly with the glory that is reserved for heavenly beings. And transfigured is the word that is used to describe the process. This word is used only twice in the entire Bible, once in Matthew and once in Mark to depict the event that is the text for today. The Greek word is met-a-morph-o-they – from which we get our word metamorphoses, meaning a dramatic changing from one thing to another. That’s your vocabulary lesson from today’s Gospel.
Jesus’ appearance is dramatically changed. That’s scary enough. But then Moses and Elijah appear beside Jesus and start talking to him. I picture the apostles rubbing their eyes or even shielding them in terror as they watch this trio continue their conversation. Moses and Elijah are the two greatest Israelite prophets, loved and revered by the Jewish people. For one to show up is spectacular enough; for both, you almost need to put on your blinders. Then, there’s a repeat performance, reminiscent of Jesus’ baptism, when the Father’s voice breaks through the heavens to inform the disciples that Jesus Christ is the Son, the Beloved. This is what brings the apostles to their knees. Imagine the sun exploding in the sky.
Truly, Peter, James and John are blinded by the light. You know how hard it is to drive into the sun when it’s setting. Or to have a glare in the rear view mirror that makes you try to block and squint and shut it out. You can’t look at it, it’s just too bright. If you have remember occasions when they has been an elipse of the sun, one of the things that you should not do is look directly into it because it can damage your retina and cornea.
The problem in today’s text, however, is not that the apostles shielded their eyes. The problem is that the light was so bright that they had to blink, to close their eyes, even momentarily. It’s obvious that they can’t process what’s happening, because Pete starts babbling. Lord, how about if we throw up a couple of sheds and do a tad of worshipping here. It’s like he couldn’t figure out what to say, so he just utters the first dumb thing that comes to him. There’s a supernova zinging by, lighting up all of heaven, a solar flare that has gone out of control and Peter thinks it’s the Little Dipper.
We are always in the same situation as the disciples. We’re constantly shading our eyes or turning away when it gets too bright. Instead of basking in wonder and amazement and awe, Peter says, shouldn’t we be doing something? We put on our sunglasses so that we can blunt the light and reduce it to an energy source that we can handle. It is much easier for us humans to face a 10-watt night light that the mega electricity that comes from God’s power.
But, the good news in this text is that, as Christians, we are commanded to carry the light of Christ to the community. While we can never be the sun, we can function as the corollas – the smaller orbs that encircle the main planet. We do not have the transfigurative power to call up the ghosts of the prophets and hear heavenly affirmations from God the Father. But we can give off light in our own right. We can dare to glare. There are always opportunities to shine. After the apostles fall to the ground, I think it is significant that a bright cloud overshadowed them. And Jesus says, “Get up, don’t be afraid to pull out your flashlights and spread some of your light.
It is easy to recognize God when there’s a blaze of glory. The shining God moments are clearly visible: a baby’s birth, a gorgeous sunset, a double rainbow, the eclipse of the sun. It is far harder to recognize the smaller lights that are visible – the mini-suns that we carry to the world. But they are there and sometimes poke through the clouds and we can be blinded if we’re not ready for them. Sometimes we are on the receiving ends of the corollas of others.
Several years ago, in North Dakota, a teacher assigned to visit children in a large city hospital received a routine call requesting that she visit a particular child. She took the boy’s name and room and was told by the teacher on the other end of the line, “We’re studying nouns and adverbs in his class now. I’d be grateful if you could help him with his homework so he doesn’t fall behind the others.”
It wasn’t until the visiting teacher got outside the boy’s room that she realized it was located in the hospital’s burn unit. No one had prepared her to find a ten-year old named Martin who was horribly burned and in great pain. She felt that professionally she couldn’t just turn around and walk out, so she awkwardly stammered, “I’m the hospital teacher and your teacher sent me to help you with nouns and adverbs.”
The next morning, the nurse on the burn unit asked her, “What did you do to that boy?’ Before she could finish with a profusion of apologies, the nurse interrupted her. “You don’t understand,” she said. “We’ve been very worried about Martin, but ever since you were here yesterday, his whole attitude is changed. He’s fighting back and responding to treatment. It’s as though this young man has decided to live.
Martin later explained that he had completely given up hope until he saw the teacher. It all changed when he came to a simple realization. With tears of joy, he told the nurse , “Well, they wouldn’t send a teacher to work on nouns and adverbs with a dying boy, would they?”
The Transfiguration does not call us to be "a light at the end of the tunnel," waiting for people lost in the dark to blunder their way towards us. The church is to take the light of the world, the glory of Christ, boldly into the dark places. There is always a cloud lurking right outside our ring of light. Will we move forward and further towards it, like the teacher did, reaching out with the good news of the gospel?
Jesus is the sun, the Transfgured one, we are only the son beams. We are to live our lives in the light and lead others toward Christ by keeping the light alive.
Let us keep our eyes open for shining moments, for times when sunbeams break through the clouds. Let us see how we can brighten the world for others. Let us refrain from picking up the sunglasses, lest we look away or blink when the power from heavens is made manifest. Let us dare to glare in the lives of others. May we experience our own transfigurations so that our hearts and minds are changed forever. Amen.
Sunday, February 7, 2010
"Stretching Our Faithfulness"
Sermon 02.07.10
“Stretching Our Faithfulness”
“When they had brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed him.” Left everything. They had a lot to leave.
Recently, a first –century fishing boat was recovered from the mud outside of the sea of Galilee. The shell of the boat is 26.5 feet long, 7.5 wide and 4.5 feet deep. Now I’m not one of those people that can do the math here, but I can tell you that when this boat is full of fish and there’s another boat full of fish and they are both in the process of sinking from the weight of their catch, and that fish is the primarily item on the diet of the people in Jesus’ era, leaving this profession at this particular time to follow a non-fisherman is perfectly nuts. Yet three people were willing to take that chance: Simon, James and John.
The text doesn’t tell us that they brought in the fish, sold the catch, pocketed the money and then followed Jesus. They brought the boats to the shore, got out and left everything. No doubt their wives also thought they were nuts when they went home to dinner that night.
This call story from the gospel of Luke is particularly compelling, because it asks us to stretch our faithfulness in numerous ways.
First, it speaks to the disappointment of the disciples. It has been a terrible day, and they had caught nothing. They were in the process of washing out their nets, cleaning up, ready to call it a day. It meant no income for that day. They had been up all night and were exhausted and wanting to go home.
Jesus was not part of the fishing excursion to begin with; he happens to be preaching on the shore and is overwhelmed with the crowds. Wishing to put a little distance between himself and the throng, he invites himself into Simon Peter’s boat and asks him to sail out a little bit from the land. Notice that Peter doesn’t grumble or whine. He just sets out in response to Jesus’ request.
This is the first response of faithfulness, and many of us might find it familiar. After a full day of work on a paying job, there may still be work to be done after coming home – church committee meetings, PTA or Boy Scout commitments, taking meals to an elderly neighbor, telephoning to check in on an aging parent. Sometimes we’re just not in the mood or feel that we don’t have one more ounce of energy for anyone. But we do it anyway. Our faithfulness to respond to those in need or our volunteer activities is the first lesson from today’s text.
The second call to faithfulness comes when Jesus asks Peter to sail out a little further and put the nets out again. I can imagine him thinking to himself, “But I just cleaned those nets”. When our efforts have been less than fruitful, it’s easy to quit. James and John and Peter have been fishing all night with nothing to show for their efforts. Nada, zip, zero. Why in the world should we go through this torture again, was their unspoken response. I’ll bet that everyone in the congregation has been faced with a hopeless situation at one time or another. Can I get an Amen out there?
You have been disappointed over and over by a child, you have worried about a friend for months and months, you have stayed in a situation that is unhealthy waiting for a different response to happen, you have time and again hoped for something that has eluded you. Jesus says to the disciples. This time will be different. This time I am going to do all the work for you. Many times we work so hard without a consultation with the Master. Too often, we have said, “Here’s my plan, God, now please bless it.”
It is a stretch of faithfulness to let God work out God’s plan for our life, rather than thinking that we have to do it all. And curiously, in today’s text, this miracle has nothing to do with healing lepers or curing paralytics. Jesus justs asks the fisherman to do what they have always done – let out the nets. Only this time, he’s on board the ship. Maybe we need to ask Jesus into our boats.
The last stretch of faithfulness is the hardest – to give everything up. Unlike the fisherman, we are not being asked to give up our normal means of livelihood (unless you happen to be Pastor Karen) and leave our businesses and homes behind. Giving up means relinquishing the control, letting go and letting God, giving your heart over to the gospel message.
It’s like the story of a twelve-year old boy who became a Christian during a revival service. His classmates asked him the following week whether he had seen a vision or whether he had heard God speak to him. He told them no, nothing like that had happened, and so they laughed and asked how he could think of himself as a Christian. He thought for a minute and responded: It’s like when you catch a fish; you can’t see the fish or hear the fish, but you know he’s tugging on your line. I just felt God tugging on my heart.” Faithfulness asks not for proof, and that is why it always requires a stretch.
The good news from Luke’s text is the one heard so frequently in the gospel: Do not be afraid. Jesus tells the disciples that from now on they will be catching men. Quite possibly their wives wanted to know if this new occupation paid any better than the old one. But what Jesus is promising is that he has better things waiting for you if you are willing to trust him with your life. That’s really risky business and requires a final test of faith.
The disciples were not chosen because of their outstanding qualities and they were not called in holy places and circumstances. Like us, they were ordinary people who simply were asked to change their priorities and commitments for a life that required them to leave everything material to gain everything spiritual. Jesus says leave it, all of it. All of the baggage that we drag around, that weighs down the boats and causes us to sink. Let it sit on the shore, Jesus says. You won’t need it for the next journey.
Many years ago, in an African country, it was decided to put a suspension bridge across a wide gorge. No one could imagine the work involved or even how to get started. Someone finally decided to shoot an arrow from one side to the other. The arrow carried across the gulf a tiny thread and thus a connection was established. By and by the thread was used to draw a piece of twine across; the twine carried across with it a small rope; and the rope soon carried a cable across, and in good time came the iron chain that the bridge was to hang from.
Although often weak in the beginning stage, a seemingly small amount of faith can be stretched and made stronger. Jesus calls us to stretch our faithfulness to the limit, but promises to stand with us in the boat. Hear the prayer from an fisherman in Melanesia: O Jesus, be the canoe that holds me up in the sea of life; be the rudder that keeps me in the straight road; be the outrigger that supports me in the time of temptation. Let your spirit be my sail that carries me through each day. Keep my body strong, so that I can paddle steadfastly on in this voyage of life. May we cast our nets out just one more time in the spirit of faithfulness to God’s word. Amen.
“Stretching Our Faithfulness”
“When they had brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed him.” Left everything. They had a lot to leave.
Recently, a first –century fishing boat was recovered from the mud outside of the sea of Galilee. The shell of the boat is 26.5 feet long, 7.5 wide and 4.5 feet deep. Now I’m not one of those people that can do the math here, but I can tell you that when this boat is full of fish and there’s another boat full of fish and they are both in the process of sinking from the weight of their catch, and that fish is the primarily item on the diet of the people in Jesus’ era, leaving this profession at this particular time to follow a non-fisherman is perfectly nuts. Yet three people were willing to take that chance: Simon, James and John.
The text doesn’t tell us that they brought in the fish, sold the catch, pocketed the money and then followed Jesus. They brought the boats to the shore, got out and left everything. No doubt their wives also thought they were nuts when they went home to dinner that night.
This call story from the gospel of Luke is particularly compelling, because it asks us to stretch our faithfulness in numerous ways.
First, it speaks to the disappointment of the disciples. It has been a terrible day, and they had caught nothing. They were in the process of washing out their nets, cleaning up, ready to call it a day. It meant no income for that day. They had been up all night and were exhausted and wanting to go home.
Jesus was not part of the fishing excursion to begin with; he happens to be preaching on the shore and is overwhelmed with the crowds. Wishing to put a little distance between himself and the throng, he invites himself into Simon Peter’s boat and asks him to sail out a little bit from the land. Notice that Peter doesn’t grumble or whine. He just sets out in response to Jesus’ request.
This is the first response of faithfulness, and many of us might find it familiar. After a full day of work on a paying job, there may still be work to be done after coming home – church committee meetings, PTA or Boy Scout commitments, taking meals to an elderly neighbor, telephoning to check in on an aging parent. Sometimes we’re just not in the mood or feel that we don’t have one more ounce of energy for anyone. But we do it anyway. Our faithfulness to respond to those in need or our volunteer activities is the first lesson from today’s text.
The second call to faithfulness comes when Jesus asks Peter to sail out a little further and put the nets out again. I can imagine him thinking to himself, “But I just cleaned those nets”. When our efforts have been less than fruitful, it’s easy to quit. James and John and Peter have been fishing all night with nothing to show for their efforts. Nada, zip, zero. Why in the world should we go through this torture again, was their unspoken response. I’ll bet that everyone in the congregation has been faced with a hopeless situation at one time or another. Can I get an Amen out there?
You have been disappointed over and over by a child, you have worried about a friend for months and months, you have stayed in a situation that is unhealthy waiting for a different response to happen, you have time and again hoped for something that has eluded you. Jesus says to the disciples. This time will be different. This time I am going to do all the work for you. Many times we work so hard without a consultation with the Master. Too often, we have said, “Here’s my plan, God, now please bless it.”
It is a stretch of faithfulness to let God work out God’s plan for our life, rather than thinking that we have to do it all. And curiously, in today’s text, this miracle has nothing to do with healing lepers or curing paralytics. Jesus justs asks the fisherman to do what they have always done – let out the nets. Only this time, he’s on board the ship. Maybe we need to ask Jesus into our boats.
The last stretch of faithfulness is the hardest – to give everything up. Unlike the fisherman, we are not being asked to give up our normal means of livelihood (unless you happen to be Pastor Karen) and leave our businesses and homes behind. Giving up means relinquishing the control, letting go and letting God, giving your heart over to the gospel message.
It’s like the story of a twelve-year old boy who became a Christian during a revival service. His classmates asked him the following week whether he had seen a vision or whether he had heard God speak to him. He told them no, nothing like that had happened, and so they laughed and asked how he could think of himself as a Christian. He thought for a minute and responded: It’s like when you catch a fish; you can’t see the fish or hear the fish, but you know he’s tugging on your line. I just felt God tugging on my heart.” Faithfulness asks not for proof, and that is why it always requires a stretch.
The good news from Luke’s text is the one heard so frequently in the gospel: Do not be afraid. Jesus tells the disciples that from now on they will be catching men. Quite possibly their wives wanted to know if this new occupation paid any better than the old one. But what Jesus is promising is that he has better things waiting for you if you are willing to trust him with your life. That’s really risky business and requires a final test of faith.
The disciples were not chosen because of their outstanding qualities and they were not called in holy places and circumstances. Like us, they were ordinary people who simply were asked to change their priorities and commitments for a life that required them to leave everything material to gain everything spiritual. Jesus says leave it, all of it. All of the baggage that we drag around, that weighs down the boats and causes us to sink. Let it sit on the shore, Jesus says. You won’t need it for the next journey.
Many years ago, in an African country, it was decided to put a suspension bridge across a wide gorge. No one could imagine the work involved or even how to get started. Someone finally decided to shoot an arrow from one side to the other. The arrow carried across the gulf a tiny thread and thus a connection was established. By and by the thread was used to draw a piece of twine across; the twine carried across with it a small rope; and the rope soon carried a cable across, and in good time came the iron chain that the bridge was to hang from.
Although often weak in the beginning stage, a seemingly small amount of faith can be stretched and made stronger. Jesus calls us to stretch our faithfulness to the limit, but promises to stand with us in the boat. Hear the prayer from an fisherman in Melanesia: O Jesus, be the canoe that holds me up in the sea of life; be the rudder that keeps me in the straight road; be the outrigger that supports me in the time of temptation. Let your spirit be my sail that carries me through each day. Keep my body strong, so that I can paddle steadfastly on in this voyage of life. May we cast our nets out just one more time in the spirit of faithfulness to God’s word. Amen.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
"Unsportsmanlike Conduct"
Sermon 01.31.10
“Unsportsmanlike conduct”
Two friends, Bill and Tom, were drinking at a all night café. The got into a discussion about the difference between irritation, anger and rage. At about 1 AM, “Bill said, “Look, Tom, I’ll show you and example of irritation. He pulled out his cell phone and dialed a number at random. The phone rang, and rang, and rang. Finally, when a sleepy voice answered on the other end, Bill said, “I’d like to speak to Jones.”
“There’s no one here named Jones, “ the disgruntled man replied as he hung up.
“That”, Bill said to Tom, “is a man who is irritated.
An hour later, at 2 AM, Bill did the same thing, saying to Tom, “Now I will show you what anger is.” He dialed the same number and let it ring. Eventually, the same sleepy voice answered the phone. Bill asked, “May I speak with Jones>’
“There’s no one here named Jones, came the angry reply, this time louder than before. The man slammed down the receiver.
An hour later, at 3 AM, Bill said, “Now I will show you an example of rage.” He pulled out his phone and dialed the same number for the third time and once more it rang, and rang, and rang. When the same sleepy man answered, Bill said, “Hi, this is Jones. Have their been any calls for me?” (David Holdaway)
Such would seem to be the case in today’s text from Luke, which is a continuation from last week, but has a dramatic ending.. After Jesus says, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing,” the gospel tells us that the all the people in the synagogue spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. Then, in the space of 4 verses, all of this atta boy stuff turns ugly and Jesus is grabbed by both ears and dragged out of town to be thrown over a high cliff. It is the epitome of unsportsman-like conduct.
What on earth did he say to elicit such a dramatic response? Essentially he tells them what they do not want to hear. He has spoken the words of Isaiah the prophet, then told the priests and educated men that he is the fulfillment of the reading. And the people wrongfully assume, Wow – we finally have our own prophet here in Galilee. They are thinking – this is what we really need. The stories that we heard about you in Capernaum were smashing and we’re just so glad that we have you here now and that you’ll minister to us. There are lots of warm fuzzies going around when people think they have an exclusive – something that they have acquired and can claim as their own, do miracles just for them, cater to whatever spiritual condition was needed.
Jesus responds by recounting the stories other prophets, trying to explain that his ministry was not to be controlled and would not be centered in one small area and to one small group of people. He speaks of Elijah, who could not minister but to one widow, when many others in Israel were dying of thirst when there was no rain for 3 and a half years. Similarly, he tells them that the prophet Elisha only cleansed one leper when Israel was full of people in the same condition. Jesus has not come to be their personal prophet gopher to the people of Nazareth, but to all. He reminds them that prophets are never received with honor in their hometown.
What a crushing disappointment, an inconvenient confession, a turn of the tables. Jesus will be calling the shots and will take his ministry to places of his own choosing. His anointing by the Holy Spirit cannot be contained within certain borders. This is nothing but the truth. His reading from Isaiah mentions no specific boundaries and instead, clearly does not include a privileged class. He will be sent to the poor, the captives, the blind. Jesus has told the synagogue nothing but the truth and this has left them irritated, angry and enraged.
When the radical inclusiveness of Jesus’ message becomes clear to those gathered in the synagogue at Nazareth, their commitment to their own community boundaries took precedence over their joy that God had sent a prophet among them. In the end, because they were not able to be open to the prospects of others’ sharing in the bounty of God’s deliverance, they themselves were unable to receive it. It is a sad and bitter moment.
Their reaction is over the top, and in the space of an instant, mob rule takes over and the crowd, whose feelings have been dearly hurt, react in violence. I have seen this happen at youth soccer games, which is unbelievable. Parents who cheer for their children suddenly are upset by a referree’s call and end up rushing onto the field. Unsportsman-like conduct is an understatement. But for Jesus this is just a foreshadowing of what is to come.
This episode will be repeated on Palm Sunday when Jesus enters Jerusalem in triumph amid a grand procession and is dead on the cross 5 days later.
Anger and violence are the last defense of those who have been made to face the truth of their own traditions, which they have long defended and embraced. Learning what we already know is often painfully difficult.
All of us know what it is to be at war with ourselves, sometimes making casualties of those who are guilty of nothing but speaking the truth in love. As Christians, even we are offended that God’s grace would be extended to all. It’s especially hard when it is to people of whom we do not approve. We like to claim Jesus as our own, and speak in terms of personal salvation, rather than view Jesus as the savior of the world. One of my old pastors used to say that the most frequently used word in heaven will be “OH”. Many of us will be surprised and shocked to see who shows up. There may be the poor, the lepers, the marginalized peoples, the drug addicts, the prostitutes, and even those who profess to call themselves “Christians”.
Sometimes, (imagine this), Christians judge other Christians. Many times when I am out in public looking very pastorly with a big cross around my neck, I will find myself engaged in conversation with a person who usually asks, “Are you a Christian?’ Somehow in the course of discussion, I mention that my church is open and affirming to those in the GLBT community, that it includes those who are educated and those who did not finish high school, that it allows strangers to sit in the front pews and embraces all peoples, just as Jesus did, I find out that I am not quite the type of Christian that this person had in mind. They have their own rules about Jesus and religion, and if you don’t want to play, you are ostracized. Unsportsmanlike conduct pops up again. Some of you may have experience as well. This is the mindset of the folks in the synagogue at Nazareth, who expected to have a savior to serve only them, as they saw fit and whom they could control.
Perhaps this is the good news that we are to take from the text this morning. Church arguments will never go away and people will be continued to let their emotions rule over any rationality at times. Congregational divisions will occur and split the church with some degree of regularity, and we will travel the road together from irritation to anger to rage. We will have the truth preached to us by others and sometimes we will listen eagerly, and just as many times, we will be ready to bite off heads and throw the minister off the cliff (but hopefully not in the near future.)
We don’t own Jesus anymore than the people of the synagogue. He did not exclusively come to St. Mark’s UCC, or to all white people of the upper class or to African American pentecostalists who preach in tongures. Christ has come freely to all peoples at all times and in all places. As it says later in Mark’s gospel: For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many." For many. This is the good news, that we have a Savior who is gracious to all and came to bring all into the kingdom. Praise God for this freedom. Amen.
“Unsportsmanlike conduct”
Two friends, Bill and Tom, were drinking at a all night café. The got into a discussion about the difference between irritation, anger and rage. At about 1 AM, “Bill said, “Look, Tom, I’ll show you and example of irritation. He pulled out his cell phone and dialed a number at random. The phone rang, and rang, and rang. Finally, when a sleepy voice answered on the other end, Bill said, “I’d like to speak to Jones.”
“There’s no one here named Jones, “ the disgruntled man replied as he hung up.
“That”, Bill said to Tom, “is a man who is irritated.
An hour later, at 2 AM, Bill did the same thing, saying to Tom, “Now I will show you what anger is.” He dialed the same number and let it ring. Eventually, the same sleepy voice answered the phone. Bill asked, “May I speak with Jones>’
“There’s no one here named Jones, came the angry reply, this time louder than before. The man slammed down the receiver.
An hour later, at 3 AM, Bill said, “Now I will show you an example of rage.” He pulled out his phone and dialed the same number for the third time and once more it rang, and rang, and rang. When the same sleepy man answered, Bill said, “Hi, this is Jones. Have their been any calls for me?” (David Holdaway)
Such would seem to be the case in today’s text from Luke, which is a continuation from last week, but has a dramatic ending.. After Jesus says, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing,” the gospel tells us that the all the people in the synagogue spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. Then, in the space of 4 verses, all of this atta boy stuff turns ugly and Jesus is grabbed by both ears and dragged out of town to be thrown over a high cliff. It is the epitome of unsportsman-like conduct.
What on earth did he say to elicit such a dramatic response? Essentially he tells them what they do not want to hear. He has spoken the words of Isaiah the prophet, then told the priests and educated men that he is the fulfillment of the reading. And the people wrongfully assume, Wow – we finally have our own prophet here in Galilee. They are thinking – this is what we really need. The stories that we heard about you in Capernaum were smashing and we’re just so glad that we have you here now and that you’ll minister to us. There are lots of warm fuzzies going around when people think they have an exclusive – something that they have acquired and can claim as their own, do miracles just for them, cater to whatever spiritual condition was needed.
Jesus responds by recounting the stories other prophets, trying to explain that his ministry was not to be controlled and would not be centered in one small area and to one small group of people. He speaks of Elijah, who could not minister but to one widow, when many others in Israel were dying of thirst when there was no rain for 3 and a half years. Similarly, he tells them that the prophet Elisha only cleansed one leper when Israel was full of people in the same condition. Jesus has not come to be their personal prophet gopher to the people of Nazareth, but to all. He reminds them that prophets are never received with honor in their hometown.
What a crushing disappointment, an inconvenient confession, a turn of the tables. Jesus will be calling the shots and will take his ministry to places of his own choosing. His anointing by the Holy Spirit cannot be contained within certain borders. This is nothing but the truth. His reading from Isaiah mentions no specific boundaries and instead, clearly does not include a privileged class. He will be sent to the poor, the captives, the blind. Jesus has told the synagogue nothing but the truth and this has left them irritated, angry and enraged.
When the radical inclusiveness of Jesus’ message becomes clear to those gathered in the synagogue at Nazareth, their commitment to their own community boundaries took precedence over their joy that God had sent a prophet among them. In the end, because they were not able to be open to the prospects of others’ sharing in the bounty of God’s deliverance, they themselves were unable to receive it. It is a sad and bitter moment.
Their reaction is over the top, and in the space of an instant, mob rule takes over and the crowd, whose feelings have been dearly hurt, react in violence. I have seen this happen at youth soccer games, which is unbelievable. Parents who cheer for their children suddenly are upset by a referree’s call and end up rushing onto the field. Unsportsman-like conduct is an understatement. But for Jesus this is just a foreshadowing of what is to come.
This episode will be repeated on Palm Sunday when Jesus enters Jerusalem in triumph amid a grand procession and is dead on the cross 5 days later.
Anger and violence are the last defense of those who have been made to face the truth of their own traditions, which they have long defended and embraced. Learning what we already know is often painfully difficult.
All of us know what it is to be at war with ourselves, sometimes making casualties of those who are guilty of nothing but speaking the truth in love. As Christians, even we are offended that God’s grace would be extended to all. It’s especially hard when it is to people of whom we do not approve. We like to claim Jesus as our own, and speak in terms of personal salvation, rather than view Jesus as the savior of the world. One of my old pastors used to say that the most frequently used word in heaven will be “OH”. Many of us will be surprised and shocked to see who shows up. There may be the poor, the lepers, the marginalized peoples, the drug addicts, the prostitutes, and even those who profess to call themselves “Christians”.
Sometimes, (imagine this), Christians judge other Christians. Many times when I am out in public looking very pastorly with a big cross around my neck, I will find myself engaged in conversation with a person who usually asks, “Are you a Christian?’ Somehow in the course of discussion, I mention that my church is open and affirming to those in the GLBT community, that it includes those who are educated and those who did not finish high school, that it allows strangers to sit in the front pews and embraces all peoples, just as Jesus did, I find out that I am not quite the type of Christian that this person had in mind. They have their own rules about Jesus and religion, and if you don’t want to play, you are ostracized. Unsportsmanlike conduct pops up again. Some of you may have experience as well. This is the mindset of the folks in the synagogue at Nazareth, who expected to have a savior to serve only them, as they saw fit and whom they could control.
Perhaps this is the good news that we are to take from the text this morning. Church arguments will never go away and people will be continued to let their emotions rule over any rationality at times. Congregational divisions will occur and split the church with some degree of regularity, and we will travel the road together from irritation to anger to rage. We will have the truth preached to us by others and sometimes we will listen eagerly, and just as many times, we will be ready to bite off heads and throw the minister off the cliff (but hopefully not in the near future.)
We don’t own Jesus anymore than the people of the synagogue. He did not exclusively come to St. Mark’s UCC, or to all white people of the upper class or to African American pentecostalists who preach in tongures. Christ has come freely to all peoples at all times and in all places. As it says later in Mark’s gospel: For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many." For many. This is the good news, that we have a Savior who is gracious to all and came to bring all into the kingdom. Praise God for this freedom. Amen.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
"Fear of Great Expectations"
Sermon 01.24.10
“Fear of Great Expectations”
One day in July, a farmer sat in front of his shack, smoking his corncob pipe. Along came a stranger who asked, “How’s your cotton coming?”
“Ain’t got none” was the answer. “Didn’t plant none. Afraid of the boll weevile.
Well, how’s your corn,” the stranger asked.
“Didn’t plant none,” the farmer replied. “Afraid of the drought.”
“How about your potatoes?”
“Ain’t got none of those either”. “Scared of ‘tater bugs,” came the reply.
The stranger finally asked, “Well, what did you plant?”
“Nothin’” the farmer answered. “I decided to play it safe.”
What we have here is a fear of failure.
Now, every time a preacher begins a sermon in a pulpit there is a certain amount of apprehension and fear. Even if you are as accomplished as Billy Graham or Joel Olsteen, each message is for a different audience and in many cases you are trying to put a new spin or generate novel thoughts on subjects that have been spoken on by experts over many, many years.
The only person who seems to be cool as a cucumber in doing this is Jesus, when he speaks in the synagogue in Galilee from Luke’s text this morning. Maybe it is because he has being doing this for several years. Some of you may recall that our lectionary a few weeks ago was about Jesus remaining in Jerusalem after the Passover and his parents’ finding him in the synogogue. He is accustomed to reading and teaching there, and you can just imagine that when he accepts the scroll from the attendant and unrolls it, there’s no fumbling, dropping or losing one’s place.
Calmly, Jesus selects a text from the prophet Isaiah and begins to read at exactly the right spot, a spot that he may very well have chosen himself. He says the spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he had anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.
Just as neatly, he rerolls the scroll and handed it back to the attendant, and sat down. The text tells us that all eyes were on him, waiting for him to give a lesson on Isaiah. And then he blows them away by saying “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”
I can imagine the buzz in the synagogue after that statement because it certainly isn’t modest or demurring. Jesus has just admitted to the learned men and scholarly priests that he is the chosen one, he is Harry Potter, so to speak. And he plans to do everything that he just read, through the power of the Holy Spirit. There are great expectations laid out in the scripture from Isaiah, but Jesus has no fear of failure.
No doubt there was mixed reaction to his statement. It would be like me reading the gospel of John and saying that I was the Word made flesh. I think most of you would be skeptical of that admission. Or like when Miss American says she wants to work for world peace. Another pipe dream that rarely holds water. Or most claims by politicians to lower taxes made by them at rallies before they are elected.
Some folks thought that there was a lot of hot air rising in the synagogue that morning. After all, this was a carpenter’s son, not born into a priestly family, and up to this point in Luke’s gospel no miracles have been performed. Jesus just seems to have the knack for public speaking. I’ll bet that there was a lot of eye-rolling and bulletin shuffling during the service at this point, and perhaps some disgusted people got up and left. The nerve of this unknown peasant, they clucked. How dare he claim to be the Messiah?!
Yet for others, the message was welcome. The people of Israel had clung to the passage in Isaiah, awaiting a savior who would proclaim good news and miraculous works to the marginalized peoples. Perhaps their response was “Oh My God – it’s him” with their jaws flapping in the wind. One thing is reasonably certain – when Jesus sat down and gave his pronouncement, no one’s reaction was neutral.
And indeed, when you continue with not just Luke’s gospel, but all the others, Jesus makes good on Isaiah’s words. He tells the people, “Blessed are the poor in spirit.” He releases people from their demons, cures those who are blind, and gives freedom to those who are in bondage due to their status or physical conditions.
The question I would propose for our consideration this morning is “How are we continuing this work now and how should we continue it in the future? Christ Jesus lays out great expectations, and I dearly want this congregation to pick up its dreams and move forward according to the gospel message. Isaiah has depicted a situation that is still with us today, over three thousand years later. We are the body of Christ, the saints anointed for ministry, and disciples committed to following Jesus’ lead.
How do we address the same concerns in a modern world, where there are people held captive by their addictions, there is poverty of material goods and spirit in the community, and there are those who need to be released from abusive situations? How are we, St. Mark’s United Church of Christ, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor? I would suggest to you that our fears and doubts are not about failure, but fear of great expectations. There are a ton of crops to be planted.
But there is another example of faith that I would like to share with you – a story about attitudes, which speaks to St. Mark’s current condition, about where we are as a congregation.
There’s a well-worn story about a man who approached a laborer who was laying bricks and asked him, “What are you doing?” The laborer said, in an annoying manner, “Can’t you see that I’m laying bricks.
The man then walked over to another bricklayer and asked, “What are you doing?” And the workman answered with pride, “I’m building a cathedral.”
One man had a job, there other had a vision. One man was just working on a building, while the other was dreaming of the finished project. They both had the same number of bricks to work with.
St Mark’s has done it’s share of walking the talk, as the saying goes. But we are not done yet, we are just beginning, starting over, getting our second wind. Jesus has great expectations for us, not simple tasks. And we need not fear them because we might fail. With God all things are possible. The needs are great in this neighborhood, and at times it may seem daunting to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. But we have an example to follow, and the Spirit of the Lord is indeed among us, and has anointed us for this purpose as well.
How shall St. Mark’s meet its challenges to thrive in a changing environment, to continue its tradition of extravagant hospitality, to be a beacon of light and hope in this community? As the new Council Members are installed later in the worship service, let us commit with them to not shy away from Christ’s great expectations, but find new ways of tending to the poor, the oppressed, and the captives. Unlike the farmer in my first illustration, let us plant all the crops that we can, expecting the harvest to be bountiful. The love of God and neighbor has permeated this sanctuary and these buildings over the years. Through grace and the direction of the Holy Spirit, may our efforts be worthy, true, faithful and fruitful. Amen.
“Fear of Great Expectations”
One day in July, a farmer sat in front of his shack, smoking his corncob pipe. Along came a stranger who asked, “How’s your cotton coming?”
“Ain’t got none” was the answer. “Didn’t plant none. Afraid of the boll weevile.
Well, how’s your corn,” the stranger asked.
“Didn’t plant none,” the farmer replied. “Afraid of the drought.”
“How about your potatoes?”
“Ain’t got none of those either”. “Scared of ‘tater bugs,” came the reply.
The stranger finally asked, “Well, what did you plant?”
“Nothin’” the farmer answered. “I decided to play it safe.”
What we have here is a fear of failure.
Now, every time a preacher begins a sermon in a pulpit there is a certain amount of apprehension and fear. Even if you are as accomplished as Billy Graham or Joel Olsteen, each message is for a different audience and in many cases you are trying to put a new spin or generate novel thoughts on subjects that have been spoken on by experts over many, many years.
The only person who seems to be cool as a cucumber in doing this is Jesus, when he speaks in the synagogue in Galilee from Luke’s text this morning. Maybe it is because he has being doing this for several years. Some of you may recall that our lectionary a few weeks ago was about Jesus remaining in Jerusalem after the Passover and his parents’ finding him in the synogogue. He is accustomed to reading and teaching there, and you can just imagine that when he accepts the scroll from the attendant and unrolls it, there’s no fumbling, dropping or losing one’s place.
Calmly, Jesus selects a text from the prophet Isaiah and begins to read at exactly the right spot, a spot that he may very well have chosen himself. He says the spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he had anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.
Just as neatly, he rerolls the scroll and handed it back to the attendant, and sat down. The text tells us that all eyes were on him, waiting for him to give a lesson on Isaiah. And then he blows them away by saying “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”
I can imagine the buzz in the synagogue after that statement because it certainly isn’t modest or demurring. Jesus has just admitted to the learned men and scholarly priests that he is the chosen one, he is Harry Potter, so to speak. And he plans to do everything that he just read, through the power of the Holy Spirit. There are great expectations laid out in the scripture from Isaiah, but Jesus has no fear of failure.
No doubt there was mixed reaction to his statement. It would be like me reading the gospel of John and saying that I was the Word made flesh. I think most of you would be skeptical of that admission. Or like when Miss American says she wants to work for world peace. Another pipe dream that rarely holds water. Or most claims by politicians to lower taxes made by them at rallies before they are elected.
Some folks thought that there was a lot of hot air rising in the synagogue that morning. After all, this was a carpenter’s son, not born into a priestly family, and up to this point in Luke’s gospel no miracles have been performed. Jesus just seems to have the knack for public speaking. I’ll bet that there was a lot of eye-rolling and bulletin shuffling during the service at this point, and perhaps some disgusted people got up and left. The nerve of this unknown peasant, they clucked. How dare he claim to be the Messiah?!
Yet for others, the message was welcome. The people of Israel had clung to the passage in Isaiah, awaiting a savior who would proclaim good news and miraculous works to the marginalized peoples. Perhaps their response was “Oh My God – it’s him” with their jaws flapping in the wind. One thing is reasonably certain – when Jesus sat down and gave his pronouncement, no one’s reaction was neutral.
And indeed, when you continue with not just Luke’s gospel, but all the others, Jesus makes good on Isaiah’s words. He tells the people, “Blessed are the poor in spirit.” He releases people from their demons, cures those who are blind, and gives freedom to those who are in bondage due to their status or physical conditions.
The question I would propose for our consideration this morning is “How are we continuing this work now and how should we continue it in the future? Christ Jesus lays out great expectations, and I dearly want this congregation to pick up its dreams and move forward according to the gospel message. Isaiah has depicted a situation that is still with us today, over three thousand years later. We are the body of Christ, the saints anointed for ministry, and disciples committed to following Jesus’ lead.
How do we address the same concerns in a modern world, where there are people held captive by their addictions, there is poverty of material goods and spirit in the community, and there are those who need to be released from abusive situations? How are we, St. Mark’s United Church of Christ, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor? I would suggest to you that our fears and doubts are not about failure, but fear of great expectations. There are a ton of crops to be planted.
But there is another example of faith that I would like to share with you – a story about attitudes, which speaks to St. Mark’s current condition, about where we are as a congregation.
There’s a well-worn story about a man who approached a laborer who was laying bricks and asked him, “What are you doing?” The laborer said, in an annoying manner, “Can’t you see that I’m laying bricks.
The man then walked over to another bricklayer and asked, “What are you doing?” And the workman answered with pride, “I’m building a cathedral.”
One man had a job, there other had a vision. One man was just working on a building, while the other was dreaming of the finished project. They both had the same number of bricks to work with.
St Mark’s has done it’s share of walking the talk, as the saying goes. But we are not done yet, we are just beginning, starting over, getting our second wind. Jesus has great expectations for us, not simple tasks. And we need not fear them because we might fail. With God all things are possible. The needs are great in this neighborhood, and at times it may seem daunting to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. But we have an example to follow, and the Spirit of the Lord is indeed among us, and has anointed us for this purpose as well.
How shall St. Mark’s meet its challenges to thrive in a changing environment, to continue its tradition of extravagant hospitality, to be a beacon of light and hope in this community? As the new Council Members are installed later in the worship service, let us commit with them to not shy away from Christ’s great expectations, but find new ways of tending to the poor, the oppressed, and the captives. Unlike the farmer in my first illustration, let us plant all the crops that we can, expecting the harvest to be bountiful. The love of God and neighbor has permeated this sanctuary and these buildings over the years. Through grace and the direction of the Holy Spirit, may our efforts be worthy, true, faithful and fruitful. Amen.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
"Beloved is your Name"
Sermon 01.1010
“Beloved is your Name”
Before we get into the meat of the sermon, I want to ask the mothers –both old and young - in the congregation. Once you found out that you were pregnant, be in two years ago or 40 years ago, what did you do after you relayed the news to your spouse?
My guess is that you almost immediately began to think about what to name the baby. Some of you knew that your son would be a junior, and others knew that a favorite family name that would be used. But I’m willing to suggest that many of you bought books about baby names, had arguments with your husband about who wanted what, and in some cases, went home from the hospital with a blank birth certificate until you had just the perfect name for your beloved child.
Today’s passages from both the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament talk about names. And their importance.
Isaiah’s text from the Hebrew Scriptures reports that God said, “I have redeemed you, I have called you by name, you are mine.
I have called you by name. Names have changed a great deal since the time of Isaiah and there’s a part of us that many wonder just how many names God can keep up with. In the year 1950, the most popular names were as follows:
1950 2009
James Mary Ethan Isabella
Michael Linda Jacob Emma
Robert Patricia Noah Olivia
John Susan Aiden Ava
David Deborah Logan Sophia
William Barbara Jackson Madison
Richard Debra Jack Chloe
Thomas Karen Ryan Abigail
Mark Nancy Jayden Addison
Charles Donna Matthew Emily
If you go to a baby name listing, it may begin with Aadi and end with Zan, and I challenge you to tell me if these are boys or girls named. There are all the names in between, like Virginia, and Nathan and Leroy and Katherine. God knows all of them. All of them. To give you just another taste of how many names are out there in the world, I put my own name into a google search and within .42 seconds I found that there were over 3,000,000 hits for Karen Lovelace, and that’s the regular spelling of Karen. Not Karin or Karyn. But God has no problem in remembering any of them.
Many of you can testify that names are particularly important when you are in trouble. What happens when you don’t clean your room or take out the trash or dry the dishes? (wait for response) Yes, one of your parents or guardians would use your entire name. “Timothy Peter Lovelace” I would call out, “You are going to miss the school bus if you don’t hurry. And if you have multiple children, I’ll also bet that you have run through all of them at one time or another before finally reaching the right name. Today our work is simple: the only name we have to remember is Beloved.
The passage from Isaiah speaks of God’s claim on the Israelite people, but it as powerful to us today. I have created you, I have formed you, God says. It doesn’t get more intimate than that. The God who made the asteroids, the sparrow, the earthworm and the glaciers also has fashioned us – mere mortals. And the next 4 verses are that of such a loving parent that I can’t imagine any better description that we could employ. “Do not fear, I have redeemed you, I have called you by name. You are mine.”
“You are mine.” The divine has told us that we belong, that we are held, that there is someone who loves us even when no one else does. How incredible to hear these words coming from a sacred being!! We are God’s beloved creation. My first image is always a mother or a father holding a child and whispering these words. But those of us who are no longer children still need reassurance from time to time and this is the passage to pull out. God knows your name, whether it is Elmer or Melissa or George and God cares equally for you as well as all the others. As the saying goes, if God had a refrigerator, your picture would be on it. I’m not sure if Sears makes a model big enough to hold them all.
But hear again, the promise of the God who has claimed Shirley and Anna and Lois, Frank and Harry and Terry:
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you and through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned and the flame will not consume you.
Not only are we God’s beloved, we are protected, guarded, shielded from harm. The God who has formed us and created us does not leave us helpless, but declares that we will not endure trials by ourselves. Named, claimed, and saved. No one in your life – not your spouse, your parents, your children or your partners can even come close to the grip that God has on our lives.
The same scene is repeated in Luke’s text concerning the Baptism of Jesus. In the first century, baptism was not originally a naming event, but a purification washing ritual, and interestingly, even in the UCC book of worship, there is no phrase that asks the name of the child.
But God turns the washing of Jesus into a naming occasion. The Holy Spirit appears in the form of a dove, and the voice of God comes from heaven, saying, “You are my Son, the Beloved, with you I am well pleased. The claim on the life of Christ Jesus is that he is the Son of the living God and his name is Beloved. Just as God loved Jesus, Jesus loves us. Beloved. There are many names in baby books that mean beloved, but curiously, the actual name of Beloved does not appear.
The Greek word for Beloved is agapetos. We get our word, agape from it, which means the greatest love that anyone can have. It is selfless love, unconditional love, the kind of love that protects from the storm and the fire. This is the love that God has given us through the gift of his Son, Jesus the Christ, name above all names. The Beloved.
The good news from today’s readings is that there is someone called the Beloved who calls each of us beloved as well, even if our given name is Gail or Judy or Steve or Danny. That person has claimed each of us, whether we are Millie or Amy or Frank or Rudy. We serve a God who has redeemed us, and given to us a Son who loves us enough to accompany us through troubles, misery and pain. Jesus will take the time to walk with every one of us - Sandy and Sheila, Loretta and Leonel, in times of peril and danger and will ensure that his children emerge unscathed and whole.
God says in verse 4: “I am with you because you are precious and my sight and honored and I love you. Do not fear, for I am with you. When was the last time we said something like that to a beloved person in our lifes?
This passage assures us that no matter what situation is in your life right now, no matter what is happening with work, friends, neighbors or relatives, you have a lifelong companion who is Jesus and you are beloved to him. We are God’s beloved people, even as Jesus is God’s beloved Son because we are heirs through Christ.
No matter how fashionable name changes are through the years, there is no need to worry about a certain one making the top ten list. The name of the Beloved, the Son, Jesus our Savior, has not changed in over 2000 years, nor will it ever. We can stand on that promise.
God has redeemed all, claimed all, and has not forgotten all of our names. For this we give thanks and praise, that we are beloved in the eyes of the Almighty. Amen.
“Beloved is your Name”
Before we get into the meat of the sermon, I want to ask the mothers –both old and young - in the congregation. Once you found out that you were pregnant, be in two years ago or 40 years ago, what did you do after you relayed the news to your spouse?
My guess is that you almost immediately began to think about what to name the baby. Some of you knew that your son would be a junior, and others knew that a favorite family name that would be used. But I’m willing to suggest that many of you bought books about baby names, had arguments with your husband about who wanted what, and in some cases, went home from the hospital with a blank birth certificate until you had just the perfect name for your beloved child.
Today’s passages from both the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament talk about names. And their importance.
Isaiah’s text from the Hebrew Scriptures reports that God said, “I have redeemed you, I have called you by name, you are mine.
I have called you by name. Names have changed a great deal since the time of Isaiah and there’s a part of us that many wonder just how many names God can keep up with. In the year 1950, the most popular names were as follows:
1950 2009
James Mary Ethan Isabella
Michael Linda Jacob Emma
Robert Patricia Noah Olivia
John Susan Aiden Ava
David Deborah Logan Sophia
William Barbara Jackson Madison
Richard Debra Jack Chloe
Thomas Karen Ryan Abigail
Mark Nancy Jayden Addison
Charles Donna Matthew Emily
If you go to a baby name listing, it may begin with Aadi and end with Zan, and I challenge you to tell me if these are boys or girls named. There are all the names in between, like Virginia, and Nathan and Leroy and Katherine. God knows all of them. All of them. To give you just another taste of how many names are out there in the world, I put my own name into a google search and within .42 seconds I found that there were over 3,000,000 hits for Karen Lovelace, and that’s the regular spelling of Karen. Not Karin or Karyn. But God has no problem in remembering any of them.
Many of you can testify that names are particularly important when you are in trouble. What happens when you don’t clean your room or take out the trash or dry the dishes? (wait for response) Yes, one of your parents or guardians would use your entire name. “Timothy Peter Lovelace” I would call out, “You are going to miss the school bus if you don’t hurry. And if you have multiple children, I’ll also bet that you have run through all of them at one time or another before finally reaching the right name. Today our work is simple: the only name we have to remember is Beloved.
The passage from Isaiah speaks of God’s claim on the Israelite people, but it as powerful to us today. I have created you, I have formed you, God says. It doesn’t get more intimate than that. The God who made the asteroids, the sparrow, the earthworm and the glaciers also has fashioned us – mere mortals. And the next 4 verses are that of such a loving parent that I can’t imagine any better description that we could employ. “Do not fear, I have redeemed you, I have called you by name. You are mine.”
“You are mine.” The divine has told us that we belong, that we are held, that there is someone who loves us even when no one else does. How incredible to hear these words coming from a sacred being!! We are God’s beloved creation. My first image is always a mother or a father holding a child and whispering these words. But those of us who are no longer children still need reassurance from time to time and this is the passage to pull out. God knows your name, whether it is Elmer or Melissa or George and God cares equally for you as well as all the others. As the saying goes, if God had a refrigerator, your picture would be on it. I’m not sure if Sears makes a model big enough to hold them all.
But hear again, the promise of the God who has claimed Shirley and Anna and Lois, Frank and Harry and Terry:
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you and through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned and the flame will not consume you.
Not only are we God’s beloved, we are protected, guarded, shielded from harm. The God who has formed us and created us does not leave us helpless, but declares that we will not endure trials by ourselves. Named, claimed, and saved. No one in your life – not your spouse, your parents, your children or your partners can even come close to the grip that God has on our lives.
The same scene is repeated in Luke’s text concerning the Baptism of Jesus. In the first century, baptism was not originally a naming event, but a purification washing ritual, and interestingly, even in the UCC book of worship, there is no phrase that asks the name of the child.
But God turns the washing of Jesus into a naming occasion. The Holy Spirit appears in the form of a dove, and the voice of God comes from heaven, saying, “You are my Son, the Beloved, with you I am well pleased. The claim on the life of Christ Jesus is that he is the Son of the living God and his name is Beloved. Just as God loved Jesus, Jesus loves us. Beloved. There are many names in baby books that mean beloved, but curiously, the actual name of Beloved does not appear.
The Greek word for Beloved is agapetos. We get our word, agape from it, which means the greatest love that anyone can have. It is selfless love, unconditional love, the kind of love that protects from the storm and the fire. This is the love that God has given us through the gift of his Son, Jesus the Christ, name above all names. The Beloved.
The good news from today’s readings is that there is someone called the Beloved who calls each of us beloved as well, even if our given name is Gail or Judy or Steve or Danny. That person has claimed each of us, whether we are Millie or Amy or Frank or Rudy. We serve a God who has redeemed us, and given to us a Son who loves us enough to accompany us through troubles, misery and pain. Jesus will take the time to walk with every one of us - Sandy and Sheila, Loretta and Leonel, in times of peril and danger and will ensure that his children emerge unscathed and whole.
God says in verse 4: “I am with you because you are precious and my sight and honored and I love you. Do not fear, for I am with you. When was the last time we said something like that to a beloved person in our lifes?
This passage assures us that no matter what situation is in your life right now, no matter what is happening with work, friends, neighbors or relatives, you have a lifelong companion who is Jesus and you are beloved to him. We are God’s beloved people, even as Jesus is God’s beloved Son because we are heirs through Christ.
No matter how fashionable name changes are through the years, there is no need to worry about a certain one making the top ten list. The name of the Beloved, the Son, Jesus our Savior, has not changed in over 2000 years, nor will it ever. We can stand on that promise.
God has redeemed all, claimed all, and has not forgotten all of our names. For this we give thanks and praise, that we are beloved in the eyes of the Almighty. Amen.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
"One Holy Mess"
Sermon 12.20.09
One Holy Mess
An elderly woman named Elizabeth who had tried for many years to become pregnant finds herself suddenly with child. Her husband, Zechariah, is now mute, having been struck dumb by the angel Gabriel when he did not believe this possible. Mary, a poor teenager, who is Elizabeth’s cousin, has been told by the same angel that she will bear the Son of God and has conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit even though she is a virgin. Her fiancée, Joseph, is confused and upset and ready to call off the engagement. It may sound like a daytime soap opera or a nighttime reality tv show. Maybe it was Gabrial’s night out for mischief. What I call it is one holy mess.
And now these two women have come together in today’s gospel text to compare their obstetrical conditions. One would expect that there would be great amounts of anxiety and worry. Elizabeth had every right to be concerned about motherhood at such an advanced age. What 50 or 60 year old woman wants to deal with the terrible two’s after years of peaceful quietude? Who wants to be washing out diapers during one’s golden years? What unwed teenage mother hasn’t wrung her hands at her fate? How many have had to explain the situation to boyfriends who then dumped them and ran in the other directions.
Yet, curiously, in the midst of all of this fretfulness and apprehension, there is a calmness. There’s not pity party, no complaining, commiserating or even mild whining. The attitude of these woman is “the pull up your big girl panties and deal with it” practical thinking. And it’s even more.
Instead, there is the sense of joyful anticipation, rather than dread of the circumstances. Mary and Elizabeth have dared to call themselves blessed, rejoicing in the miracles that have taken place. Their worlds are about to be turned upside down, the unthinkable is happening to them, they are in utterly unstable places in their lives, It’s one holy mess and you’d think that eventually one of them would realize this fact.
But they get it in a different way, and at first they are so happy that you have to wonder which of the two is crazier. Even the baby in Elizabeth’s womb is rejoicing. They are looking at the good portions of their lives and praising God for their good fortunes. Mary’s song, called the Magnificat, is bursting with energy and passion. She was an average girl with an average life, who has come from lowliness and elevated to the status as the mother of our Savior. Elizabeth cries out, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.” And how wonderful it is that you, the mother of my Lord, has come to see me.”
Both Mary and Elizabeth have opened themselves up to the unexpected presence of the divine in their lives. The pattern of their lives has been interrupted with the unfolding of a miracle. God has come in, scrambled up everything, and turned their worlds on end, and Mary says, “The Mighty One has done great things for me.. Wow – talk about positivity in the face of calamity. We have so much to learn from their example.
Lots of us have holy messes as part of our lives. Right now there’s a great deal of Christmas chaos going on, with only four full shopping days left. For many folks, Christmas is not merry and bright. People worry about getting the right gift, folks fret over not sending cards to people because it’s gotten so expensive. Some family dread the forced-togetherness of the holidays because cousins Sue and Bob can’t be seated next to each other at the dinner table. There will be too many parties with too much fattening food or the parties won’t be as festive because of a separation, a divorce, a death. Unemployment takes the fun out of falalalala.
And yet God continues to draw near. There is no place in our lives that is so messy that God can’t seek us out and find us. There is no situation in our lives that does not contain a blessing or a reason for rejoicing. That is the good news that we need to hear this morning. As they say in the African American churches, “God is good all the time. All the time, God is good.”
But our human tendency is such that when the problems of our lives get too difficult, too overwhelming, too big, we get the sense that God has abandoned us. We shake our fist at heaven and ask, “God, where are you when I’m in such a mess?”
When our lives seem especially frantic…and this is the perfect week to be in this spot, Jesus will still find a way to speak out to us and remind us of his grace and his glory. Even in our busy-ness and even in our Christmas clutter, the Spirit will hover over wrapping paper and arguments with in-laws. In a season of chaos, God is still in control, and you can run, but you can’t hide. Your mess will still contain an element of holiness. God draws near to you, even if you can’t draw near to God. For that alone, we give thanks and praise to the Almighty.
Mary and Elizabeth were bright enough to understand that their predicaments still had profound possibilities. They were willing to look past the negatives and be receptive to God’s plans for their lives. They rejoiced and exalted and magnified the Lord. They did not shake their fists, but talked of promises fulfilled, mercy restored from one generation to another, and being looked upon with favor. Both, at the same time, however, realize their limitations as human mothers.
Rearing kids is like holding a wet bar of soap. Too firm a grasp and it shoots from your hand. Too loose a grasp and it slides away. A gentle but firm grasp keeps it in your control.
Kahil Gibran, in The Prophet, expresses well the hard task of a mother to love completely and deeply and yet always with the task of letting go. You may give them your love, but not your thoughts, for they have their own thoughts. You may house their bodies, but not their souls, for their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow; which you cannot visit. You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you, for life does not go backward nor tarries with yesterday. You are the books from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.
May we find time this season, as we consider our holy messes, to give way to rejoicing, for we know that God is at work in our lives somewhere and somehow. May we be open to finding the blessedness rather than the wretchedness. May we allow the spirit of God to lift us up when we are lowly and fill us with good things when we are hungry. May we see the riches of the our lives against the pain. The Spanish have a proverb that says that an ounce of mother is worth a pound of clergy, so think hard on the blessings of Elizabeth and Mary.
Let us rejoice and be glad and allow the spirit of God to do great things for us, so that we, too, may magnify the Lord. Amen.
One Holy Mess
An elderly woman named Elizabeth who had tried for many years to become pregnant finds herself suddenly with child. Her husband, Zechariah, is now mute, having been struck dumb by the angel Gabriel when he did not believe this possible. Mary, a poor teenager, who is Elizabeth’s cousin, has been told by the same angel that she will bear the Son of God and has conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit even though she is a virgin. Her fiancée, Joseph, is confused and upset and ready to call off the engagement. It may sound like a daytime soap opera or a nighttime reality tv show. Maybe it was Gabrial’s night out for mischief. What I call it is one holy mess.
And now these two women have come together in today’s gospel text to compare their obstetrical conditions. One would expect that there would be great amounts of anxiety and worry. Elizabeth had every right to be concerned about motherhood at such an advanced age. What 50 or 60 year old woman wants to deal with the terrible two’s after years of peaceful quietude? Who wants to be washing out diapers during one’s golden years? What unwed teenage mother hasn’t wrung her hands at her fate? How many have had to explain the situation to boyfriends who then dumped them and ran in the other directions.
Yet, curiously, in the midst of all of this fretfulness and apprehension, there is a calmness. There’s not pity party, no complaining, commiserating or even mild whining. The attitude of these woman is “the pull up your big girl panties and deal with it” practical thinking. And it’s even more.
Instead, there is the sense of joyful anticipation, rather than dread of the circumstances. Mary and Elizabeth have dared to call themselves blessed, rejoicing in the miracles that have taken place. Their worlds are about to be turned upside down, the unthinkable is happening to them, they are in utterly unstable places in their lives, It’s one holy mess and you’d think that eventually one of them would realize this fact.
But they get it in a different way, and at first they are so happy that you have to wonder which of the two is crazier. Even the baby in Elizabeth’s womb is rejoicing. They are looking at the good portions of their lives and praising God for their good fortunes. Mary’s song, called the Magnificat, is bursting with energy and passion. She was an average girl with an average life, who has come from lowliness and elevated to the status as the mother of our Savior. Elizabeth cries out, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.” And how wonderful it is that you, the mother of my Lord, has come to see me.”
Both Mary and Elizabeth have opened themselves up to the unexpected presence of the divine in their lives. The pattern of their lives has been interrupted with the unfolding of a miracle. God has come in, scrambled up everything, and turned their worlds on end, and Mary says, “The Mighty One has done great things for me.. Wow – talk about positivity in the face of calamity. We have so much to learn from their example.
Lots of us have holy messes as part of our lives. Right now there’s a great deal of Christmas chaos going on, with only four full shopping days left. For many folks, Christmas is not merry and bright. People worry about getting the right gift, folks fret over not sending cards to people because it’s gotten so expensive. Some family dread the forced-togetherness of the holidays because cousins Sue and Bob can’t be seated next to each other at the dinner table. There will be too many parties with too much fattening food or the parties won’t be as festive because of a separation, a divorce, a death. Unemployment takes the fun out of falalalala.
And yet God continues to draw near. There is no place in our lives that is so messy that God can’t seek us out and find us. There is no situation in our lives that does not contain a blessing or a reason for rejoicing. That is the good news that we need to hear this morning. As they say in the African American churches, “God is good all the time. All the time, God is good.”
But our human tendency is such that when the problems of our lives get too difficult, too overwhelming, too big, we get the sense that God has abandoned us. We shake our fist at heaven and ask, “God, where are you when I’m in such a mess?”
When our lives seem especially frantic…and this is the perfect week to be in this spot, Jesus will still find a way to speak out to us and remind us of his grace and his glory. Even in our busy-ness and even in our Christmas clutter, the Spirit will hover over wrapping paper and arguments with in-laws. In a season of chaos, God is still in control, and you can run, but you can’t hide. Your mess will still contain an element of holiness. God draws near to you, even if you can’t draw near to God. For that alone, we give thanks and praise to the Almighty.
Mary and Elizabeth were bright enough to understand that their predicaments still had profound possibilities. They were willing to look past the negatives and be receptive to God’s plans for their lives. They rejoiced and exalted and magnified the Lord. They did not shake their fists, but talked of promises fulfilled, mercy restored from one generation to another, and being looked upon with favor. Both, at the same time, however, realize their limitations as human mothers.
Rearing kids is like holding a wet bar of soap. Too firm a grasp and it shoots from your hand. Too loose a grasp and it slides away. A gentle but firm grasp keeps it in your control.
Kahil Gibran, in The Prophet, expresses well the hard task of a mother to love completely and deeply and yet always with the task of letting go. You may give them your love, but not your thoughts, for they have their own thoughts. You may house their bodies, but not their souls, for their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow; which you cannot visit. You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you, for life does not go backward nor tarries with yesterday. You are the books from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.
May we find time this season, as we consider our holy messes, to give way to rejoicing, for we know that God is at work in our lives somewhere and somehow. May we be open to finding the blessedness rather than the wretchedness. May we allow the spirit of God to lift us up when we are lowly and fill us with good things when we are hungry. May we see the riches of the our lives against the pain. The Spanish have a proverb that says that an ounce of mother is worth a pound of clergy, so think hard on the blessings of Elizabeth and Mary.
Let us rejoice and be glad and allow the spirit of God to do great things for us, so that we, too, may magnify the Lord. Amen.
"Now Entering God's Construction Zone"
Sermon 12.06.09
Now Entering God’s Construction Zone
If you were to be sitting in a doctor’s office in the year 30 AD and paging through a copy of People Magazine, it is highly likely that you would find news about the people mentioned in today’s gospel text from Luke. One page might contain a picture of Emperor Tiberius on his way to an official royal event, another might show Herod chasing a new girlfriend. There would be photos taken at a party attended by Pontius Pilate and Lysanias, plus new book reviews of texts written by Caiphas and Annas. The only person not to be found in the pages of People magazine would be John the Baptist. John is the single most important individual in this passage, and apparently, he’s missing all the action.
John the Baptist is in the margins of the Advent season as well. Most of us love the pictures of Mary and Joseph with the babe in a manger. Some of you will send out cards depicting angels singing Glory to God in the highest. Even the Wise Men are a featured staple. But John the Baptist is not. I dare you to go into a Hallmark store this week and ask them where they have their John the Baptist greeting cards. You can get a card saying you’re sorry that a neighbor’s dog has heartburn, but there is no section for New Testament Prophets at the drugstore.
The problem is both the message AND the messenger. John is rude, crude and has a socially embarrassing attitude. The other gospel texts reveal that he lived alone in the desert eating locusts and honey and wearing a rough woolen garment. It’s certainly not an image that says “Holiday greetings”. He goes from town to town preaching a baptism of repentence. He’s a big pain in the butt for the religious authorities.
The message that he brings does not sound cheerful, upbeat, or jolly. “Get your act together” is what he tells the people. We really want to hear “Happy Holidays” or “Merry Christmas” or “Seasons Greetings” and here is a man who has the audacity to dash all of our jovial spirits.
The image that his uses is that of road construction, a hugely important task in the Roman empire: “Prepare the way of the Lord.” He tells the people that the path needs to be smooth. Mountains and hills need to be leveled, valleys are to be filled in. Anything that’s rough or crooked should be fixed.
We can all identify with these images. Our streets are continually being repaved, bridges are being rebuilt to meet safety standards, highway directional signals are repainted regularly and the traffic cone may as well be the state symbol.
But the roads that John talks about are the roads to our hearts, which need to be made straight to Jesus. All of us could use a little construction work at this time of the year.
Some of our paths are full of ruts from doing the same selfish deeds over and over again. Some of our lanes are constantly backed up due to our own pig-headedness in thinking that we own the road. Some of our driveways are too steep when we think that we are the most important people living on the top of the hill.
Some of us need to do repair work on the potholes that we have made in our relationships with co-workers, friends or neighbors. Occasionally, we’ve got to block the street to take care of a water main break or a sinkhole that has completely shut off the path when we have distanced ourselves from a loved one.
The bottom line is that John calls for everyone to put on a yellow hard hat and get to work on whatever it is that needs fixing because the Lord is coming, and it shouldn’t be a rough ride. He preaches a baptism of repentance in a season where the last thing on our minds is spiritual reconstruction. It’s no wonder that he wasn’t in that issue of People magazine.
How do we fix our roads and prepare our paths? How do we make the route ready for the coming King? The apostle Paul mentions one way in his message to the Philippians: He says, “And this is my prayer, that your love may overflow more and more with knowledge and full insight to help you to determine what is best, so that in the day of Christ you may be pure and blameless, having produced the harvest of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God.”
An increase of love might be the blacktop that is needed. A heart that is pure and blameless might be a fresh coat of macadam. The harvest of righteousness might be a small backhoe to attack our apathy, our prejudices, our willingness to look the other way when justice is not being carried out.
Road work is not easy. It takes pure strength and concentration to the task at hand. It takes place in all kinds of weather, there is always the potential to be hurt by an accident with the equipment, or even when a car careens by above the posted speed limit. It means that when there’s a blizzard and everyone is inside relaxing with their hot cocoa, you need to go out in the snow and pave the way.
Making our hearts ready to pave the way for the infant King and Lord of Lords is John’s message, whether we like to hear it or not. To be honest, most of us already have enough to do at this time of year, and would prefer to sub-contract all this road work out to somebody else. Christmas is a time of great preparation, and Lord knows, we don’t want to add sweaty, soul-searching to our already overloaded calendar.
But if we don’t repair the road, our spirits will suffer. You can only ride on ruts for so long before the shock absorbers will give out on the car. The time is coming, John the Baptist says in verse 6, “for all flesh to see the salvation of God.” Do we really want to welcome the Christ Child with a road full of detours and lane closures.
The good news from this morning’s gospel is that we will always have road work with us. It’s not seasonal, it never ends, and there are enough worksites for everyone to be busy.
Make yourselves ready this season by doing the necessary work to spiritually reconnect the path between your heart and the true reason for the season. Make a commitment to get out there and take care of whatever construction is necessary to clear the road and make it level and even. The coming of the Savior draws near; pick up your tools, punch in at the time clock and get on the Lord’s payroll. Put in some overtime if you need to. But get the roadwork done. Amen
Now Entering God’s Construction Zone
If you were to be sitting in a doctor’s office in the year 30 AD and paging through a copy of People Magazine, it is highly likely that you would find news about the people mentioned in today’s gospel text from Luke. One page might contain a picture of Emperor Tiberius on his way to an official royal event, another might show Herod chasing a new girlfriend. There would be photos taken at a party attended by Pontius Pilate and Lysanias, plus new book reviews of texts written by Caiphas and Annas. The only person not to be found in the pages of People magazine would be John the Baptist. John is the single most important individual in this passage, and apparently, he’s missing all the action.
John the Baptist is in the margins of the Advent season as well. Most of us love the pictures of Mary and Joseph with the babe in a manger. Some of you will send out cards depicting angels singing Glory to God in the highest. Even the Wise Men are a featured staple. But John the Baptist is not. I dare you to go into a Hallmark store this week and ask them where they have their John the Baptist greeting cards. You can get a card saying you’re sorry that a neighbor’s dog has heartburn, but there is no section for New Testament Prophets at the drugstore.
The problem is both the message AND the messenger. John is rude, crude and has a socially embarrassing attitude. The other gospel texts reveal that he lived alone in the desert eating locusts and honey and wearing a rough woolen garment. It’s certainly not an image that says “Holiday greetings”. He goes from town to town preaching a baptism of repentence. He’s a big pain in the butt for the religious authorities.
The message that he brings does not sound cheerful, upbeat, or jolly. “Get your act together” is what he tells the people. We really want to hear “Happy Holidays” or “Merry Christmas” or “Seasons Greetings” and here is a man who has the audacity to dash all of our jovial spirits.
The image that his uses is that of road construction, a hugely important task in the Roman empire: “Prepare the way of the Lord.” He tells the people that the path needs to be smooth. Mountains and hills need to be leveled, valleys are to be filled in. Anything that’s rough or crooked should be fixed.
We can all identify with these images. Our streets are continually being repaved, bridges are being rebuilt to meet safety standards, highway directional signals are repainted regularly and the traffic cone may as well be the state symbol.
But the roads that John talks about are the roads to our hearts, which need to be made straight to Jesus. All of us could use a little construction work at this time of the year.
Some of our paths are full of ruts from doing the same selfish deeds over and over again. Some of our lanes are constantly backed up due to our own pig-headedness in thinking that we own the road. Some of our driveways are too steep when we think that we are the most important people living on the top of the hill.
Some of us need to do repair work on the potholes that we have made in our relationships with co-workers, friends or neighbors. Occasionally, we’ve got to block the street to take care of a water main break or a sinkhole that has completely shut off the path when we have distanced ourselves from a loved one.
The bottom line is that John calls for everyone to put on a yellow hard hat and get to work on whatever it is that needs fixing because the Lord is coming, and it shouldn’t be a rough ride. He preaches a baptism of repentance in a season where the last thing on our minds is spiritual reconstruction. It’s no wonder that he wasn’t in that issue of People magazine.
How do we fix our roads and prepare our paths? How do we make the route ready for the coming King? The apostle Paul mentions one way in his message to the Philippians: He says, “And this is my prayer, that your love may overflow more and more with knowledge and full insight to help you to determine what is best, so that in the day of Christ you may be pure and blameless, having produced the harvest of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God.”
An increase of love might be the blacktop that is needed. A heart that is pure and blameless might be a fresh coat of macadam. The harvest of righteousness might be a small backhoe to attack our apathy, our prejudices, our willingness to look the other way when justice is not being carried out.
Road work is not easy. It takes pure strength and concentration to the task at hand. It takes place in all kinds of weather, there is always the potential to be hurt by an accident with the equipment, or even when a car careens by above the posted speed limit. It means that when there’s a blizzard and everyone is inside relaxing with their hot cocoa, you need to go out in the snow and pave the way.
Making our hearts ready to pave the way for the infant King and Lord of Lords is John’s message, whether we like to hear it or not. To be honest, most of us already have enough to do at this time of year, and would prefer to sub-contract all this road work out to somebody else. Christmas is a time of great preparation, and Lord knows, we don’t want to add sweaty, soul-searching to our already overloaded calendar.
But if we don’t repair the road, our spirits will suffer. You can only ride on ruts for so long before the shock absorbers will give out on the car. The time is coming, John the Baptist says in verse 6, “for all flesh to see the salvation of God.” Do we really want to welcome the Christ Child with a road full of detours and lane closures.
The good news from this morning’s gospel is that we will always have road work with us. It’s not seasonal, it never ends, and there are enough worksites for everyone to be busy.
Make yourselves ready this season by doing the necessary work to spiritually reconnect the path between your heart and the true reason for the season. Make a commitment to get out there and take care of whatever construction is necessary to clear the road and make it level and even. The coming of the Savior draws near; pick up your tools, punch in at the time clock and get on the Lord’s payroll. Put in some overtime if you need to. But get the roadwork done. Amen
"Resolving to do God's Business"
Sermon 12.27.09
Resolving to do God’s business
It’s the Sunday after Christmas, a rather forlorn time of the year as the holiday season winds down, but we still have the festivities of New Year’s Day and those darn resolutions that we still have yet to make. It’s that time of year when we review our lives and decide where we need to make adjustments, changes, decisions that may impact our well-being. You can’t make a resolution without thinking and mulling over what you have done.
In a Peanuts comic strip, there is a conversation between Lucy and Charlie Brown. Lucy said that life is like a deck chair. Some place it so they can see where they are going; some place it so they can see where they have been, and some place it so they can see where they are at present. Charlie Brown’s reply: “I can’t even get mine unfolded.”
So what does this have to do with the gospel lesson today? Jesus is keeping a resolution that has been made. He’s not lost in this text, he’s not the original poster boy for the Home Alone movies, and he’s not been misplaced by his parents. He is not disobedient. He is just being about his Father’s business, a resolution that begins in the manger as God’s gift to us, the Word made flesh.
We have very little information about the childhood of Jesus. There are a few gospels that were written about these years but never included in our Bibles for a lot of reasons: some depict him as a spoiled brat, others show him wielding his power over playmates. None are from reputable sources and rightfully have no place in the Holy Scriptures. So we are left wondering what happened from the time of Christ’s birth until he formally begins his ministry at the approximate age of 30.
Today’s text is a rare view, then: an appearance by the teenage Jesus, headed to Jerusalem with his family for the feast of the Passover. The fact that he is going at all shows him to be a religious, obedient youth. This passage is only recorded by Luke; none of the other gospel writers include it, which makes it stand out all the more.
After the festival, Mary and Joseph are anxious to return to Nazareth. There is carpentry waiting to be done and household duties. Anyone who has taken a vacation understands that you work twice as hard before you leave and three times as hard when you return.
In those days, folks – entire families – traveled together in caravans. It would not be unusual for Jesus to have been walking with his cousins or friends, and like the Home Alone movie, he is not noticed to be missing until a few days had passed. Mary and Joseph probably turned to each other and said, “But I thought you were watching him.”
Parental panic sets in and where do they find him? Not like a usual teenager, who would probably be hanging out at the mall. He is, instead, at the equivalent of the library. No lost teenager ends up at the synagogue. It’s like running away from home to go to school.
The worry and concern of Mary and Joseph is totally justified. Jerusalem was a big city with all sorts of inherent problems, and no parents wants his or her child to be in a dangerous situation. Plus, the feast of the Passover was over and it was time to end the festivities and go back to a normal routine.
++
But the young Jesus refuses to let his relationship with God be regulated according to some prearranged, culturally imposed schedule. Instead of going along on the return-to-business-as-usual attitude, Jesus answered the most important call of all – to be in his Father’s house, to be about his Father’s business.
What would it mean if we were to act in a similar fashion? What would it mean to live, not according to human expectations or cultural patterns, but according to what God required of us? What does it mean to be about God’s business, rather than other people’s business, or even other people’s definition of God’s business?
Jesus discovered that at this early age that answering God’s expectations can get you in trouble – even with your own family. In fact, focusing on God’s business may put an unexpected crimp in the family business. Business-as-usual may not be the way God does business. And the world and the church find that unsettling.
The ultimate New Year’s resolution does not challenge us to cut fat grams or quit smoking or start working out in an aerobics class twice a week. The ultimate resolution a Christian can make is to live in the light of divine intentions, not human norms and expectations. The New Year’s resolution to end all resolutions is to live under the umbrella of God’s kingdom here on earth and to make it our business to be partners in God’s business.
What is God’s business? It’s transformation. We’ve been given the Light of the world so that we can shine brightly, like a city upon a hill. We are to take the light and shine it down to others. We are to make ourselves over, but not on things like counting calories or pushups. We are to be a beacon of hope to others, a bright star that reaches out to neighbors and friends.
Jesus may have been doing God’s business at the synagogue that day, but he returned with his parents and went out into the world to do his ministry. Our resolutions for the new year should not all be self-centered, but might focus for a change on the bigger picture. Perhaps this is the time for a resolution to be part of a prayer chain ministry, or to take a volunteer position at a homeless shelter, or to tutor children who need help in math.
Instead of vowing to walk a mile each day, how about walking a mile each day and picking up trash along the way that is spoiling God’s beautiful creation? Instead of just cutting down on calories, how about donating the money that you didn’t spend on Twinkies to the local food pantry? Instead of just vowing to spend more time with your children, how about additionally including other children by volunteering with a boy or girl scout troop that needs new role models. Make all the New Year’s resolutions that you want, but make them bigger than yourself. Make them big enough to include others, your brothers and sisters in Christ.
Like Charlie Brown, it’s time to figure out how to unfold the deck chair as a starting point for reviewing your life and making changes. But then it’s time to take it down to the community center, the supermarket, the church and the office, where you can envision yourself doing more than just fulfilling personal resolutions.. Your life, your commitment to the ultimate resolution, can help the love of God through Christ to transform the world. The year is full of spiritual opportunities. May we each find a way to fulfill our commitment to resolving to do God’s business in the year 2010. Amen.
Resolving to do God’s business
It’s the Sunday after Christmas, a rather forlorn time of the year as the holiday season winds down, but we still have the festivities of New Year’s Day and those darn resolutions that we still have yet to make. It’s that time of year when we review our lives and decide where we need to make adjustments, changes, decisions that may impact our well-being. You can’t make a resolution without thinking and mulling over what you have done.
In a Peanuts comic strip, there is a conversation between Lucy and Charlie Brown. Lucy said that life is like a deck chair. Some place it so they can see where they are going; some place it so they can see where they have been, and some place it so they can see where they are at present. Charlie Brown’s reply: “I can’t even get mine unfolded.”
So what does this have to do with the gospel lesson today? Jesus is keeping a resolution that has been made. He’s not lost in this text, he’s not the original poster boy for the Home Alone movies, and he’s not been misplaced by his parents. He is not disobedient. He is just being about his Father’s business, a resolution that begins in the manger as God’s gift to us, the Word made flesh.
We have very little information about the childhood of Jesus. There are a few gospels that were written about these years but never included in our Bibles for a lot of reasons: some depict him as a spoiled brat, others show him wielding his power over playmates. None are from reputable sources and rightfully have no place in the Holy Scriptures. So we are left wondering what happened from the time of Christ’s birth until he formally begins his ministry at the approximate age of 30.
Today’s text is a rare view, then: an appearance by the teenage Jesus, headed to Jerusalem with his family for the feast of the Passover. The fact that he is going at all shows him to be a religious, obedient youth. This passage is only recorded by Luke; none of the other gospel writers include it, which makes it stand out all the more.
After the festival, Mary and Joseph are anxious to return to Nazareth. There is carpentry waiting to be done and household duties. Anyone who has taken a vacation understands that you work twice as hard before you leave and three times as hard when you return.
In those days, folks – entire families – traveled together in caravans. It would not be unusual for Jesus to have been walking with his cousins or friends, and like the Home Alone movie, he is not noticed to be missing until a few days had passed. Mary and Joseph probably turned to each other and said, “But I thought you were watching him.”
Parental panic sets in and where do they find him? Not like a usual teenager, who would probably be hanging out at the mall. He is, instead, at the equivalent of the library. No lost teenager ends up at the synagogue. It’s like running away from home to go to school.
The worry and concern of Mary and Joseph is totally justified. Jerusalem was a big city with all sorts of inherent problems, and no parents wants his or her child to be in a dangerous situation. Plus, the feast of the Passover was over and it was time to end the festivities and go back to a normal routine.
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But the young Jesus refuses to let his relationship with God be regulated according to some prearranged, culturally imposed schedule. Instead of going along on the return-to-business-as-usual attitude, Jesus answered the most important call of all – to be in his Father’s house, to be about his Father’s business.
What would it mean if we were to act in a similar fashion? What would it mean to live, not according to human expectations or cultural patterns, but according to what God required of us? What does it mean to be about God’s business, rather than other people’s business, or even other people’s definition of God’s business?
Jesus discovered that at this early age that answering God’s expectations can get you in trouble – even with your own family. In fact, focusing on God’s business may put an unexpected crimp in the family business. Business-as-usual may not be the way God does business. And the world and the church find that unsettling.
The ultimate New Year’s resolution does not challenge us to cut fat grams or quit smoking or start working out in an aerobics class twice a week. The ultimate resolution a Christian can make is to live in the light of divine intentions, not human norms and expectations. The New Year’s resolution to end all resolutions is to live under the umbrella of God’s kingdom here on earth and to make it our business to be partners in God’s business.
What is God’s business? It’s transformation. We’ve been given the Light of the world so that we can shine brightly, like a city upon a hill. We are to take the light and shine it down to others. We are to make ourselves over, but not on things like counting calories or pushups. We are to be a beacon of hope to others, a bright star that reaches out to neighbors and friends.
Jesus may have been doing God’s business at the synagogue that day, but he returned with his parents and went out into the world to do his ministry. Our resolutions for the new year should not all be self-centered, but might focus for a change on the bigger picture. Perhaps this is the time for a resolution to be part of a prayer chain ministry, or to take a volunteer position at a homeless shelter, or to tutor children who need help in math.
Instead of vowing to walk a mile each day, how about walking a mile each day and picking up trash along the way that is spoiling God’s beautiful creation? Instead of just cutting down on calories, how about donating the money that you didn’t spend on Twinkies to the local food pantry? Instead of just vowing to spend more time with your children, how about additionally including other children by volunteering with a boy or girl scout troop that needs new role models. Make all the New Year’s resolutions that you want, but make them bigger than yourself. Make them big enough to include others, your brothers and sisters in Christ.
Like Charlie Brown, it’s time to figure out how to unfold the deck chair as a starting point for reviewing your life and making changes. But then it’s time to take it down to the community center, the supermarket, the church and the office, where you can envision yourself doing more than just fulfilling personal resolutions.. Your life, your commitment to the ultimate resolution, can help the love of God through Christ to transform the world. The year is full of spiritual opportunities. May we each find a way to fulfill our commitment to resolving to do God’s business in the year 2010. Amen.
"The Will-Power of Looking Forward
Sermon 12.13.09
“The Will-Power of Looking Forward”
Well, this morning we have to deal again, with John the Baptist, being his usual cranky self. Despite the fact that it appears to be standing room only at the Jordan River, he’s not happy about his ministry. Let me read you the Bible translation from Eugene Peterson’s book called the Message:
When crowds of people came out for baptism because it was the popular thing to do, John exploded. “Brood of snakes! What do you think you’re doing slithering down here to the river? Do you think a little water on your snakeskins is going to deflect God’s judgement? It your life that must change, not your skin. And don’t think you can pull rank by claiming Abraham as father. Being a child of Abraham is neither here nor there – children of Abraham are a dime a dozen. God can make children from stones if he wants. What counts is your life. Is it green and blossoming? Because if it’s deadwood, it goes on the fire.
No doubt, some smart-aleck in the back row mumble, “Tell us how you really feel about us, John.”
What John is telling the people is that it’s not who you know, but what you do. The stories of Scripture are still relevant today, aren’t they? And in this case, John tells us that you will not receive a certificate of participation just by showing up and flashing your family coat of arms. He is telling the people that they must change their lives. Not an easy task, but one requiring will power. He has the nerve, once again, to call this the good news, after he has blasted half of the neighborhood of Galilee.
There are a number of different folks that are on the banks of the river listening. Rather than reacting with dismay at his rantings, they are ready to take the next step, to see what will power is needed. Each of them asks “what should we do?” Should is a future looking verb, a verb that defines an action that will be done in a later period of time. Those that respond to John’s message know that they must repent and make adjustments in order to get right with God; they can’t just get along because their parents were a “legacy”. They need to adopt the life-style of covenant people. And when they ask John for instructions, he is more than happy to tell them their assignments to move forward. Share what you have with others. Be honest in dealing with neighbors. Don’t accuse people of things that they didn’t do. And here’s a hard one: Be content with your pay.
These are not great acts of self-sacrifice, or assignments that can only be done by those who are holier than thou. Mother Teresa says that we may not all be able to do great things, but can do small things with great love.
While John’s gospel text emphasizes the “should and ought to do’s”, the text from the prophet Zephaniah relies on the words of “I will”, which are just as powerful. This is the work that God will do in the future, if we take the time NOW to repent and share John’s baptism. Listen again to the promises of the Lord…
I will rejoice over you with gladness
I will renew you in love
I will exult over you
I will remove disaster from you
I will save the lame and gather the outcast
I will bring you home
I will make you renowned and praised
I will restore your fortunes
Pretty strong statements from the God who has no problems with will-power. All of these promises are good and true for the future. All look forward to a time when the Lord shall reign over people who have been through a baptism of repentance and a baptism of the Holy Spirit. There is a wonderful vision of strategic planning on God’s part, and a reminder of the spiritual accompaniment that happens when you’re walking in the ways of the Lord.
Lastly, the Apostle Paul in his letter to the church at Philippi also provides the people with direct instructions on what they should do to benefit the whole community: rejoice, be gentle, don’t worry, keep praying. There is nothing complicated about these charges. Just use a little will-power. Paul also indicates that these undertakings must be done for the future, because in verse 5, he says the Lord is near.
Will Willimon, the great Methodist preacher, says all of these objectives are within our reach. “To all of you that live in some ordinary place, who lead ordinary lives, engaged in rather ordinary everyday things, besieged by all sorts of injustices and cares and concerns, there is good news. The Messiah is coming and he is coming to you. He calls you to follow him wherever you are , and in the process, to be whomever you can be.
The gospel text tells us this: what is important is your life. How you live it is what matters. Ask yourself the same question that the crowd asked: “what then should we do?” What can we change in our behavior in the future to be a better person. John the Baptist understood that each of us must answer that question as an individual before we can take on society’s problems. He talks about a personal ethical reform, rather than revolution. You can’t change the world unless you make the effort to change your own life first.
There is a story about a man in Jacksonville, Florida who was spending the day on the beach there. The undertow was unusually strong that day, and more than once, lifeguards jumped down from their towers to rescue swimmers from the treacherous surf. Finally, the man went to the lifeguard station to express his appreciation for the dedication of these men. When he walked inside, he noticed a sign on the wall in large red letters: "If in doubt, go!" And the man said, "Those same words should be on the walls of every church and on the wall of every person's soul." --
If in doubt, go. The time of the miracle of Christmas is coming near. Look toward the future, at the manger. Let us all respond with will-power to whatever it is that we should do. If in doubt, go and do the tasks that have been spelled out for you in today’s readings.
Look around. Look ahead. Look forward. God is near and will help us along the journey.
“The Will-Power of Looking Forward”
Well, this morning we have to deal again, with John the Baptist, being his usual cranky self. Despite the fact that it appears to be standing room only at the Jordan River, he’s not happy about his ministry. Let me read you the Bible translation from Eugene Peterson’s book called the Message:
When crowds of people came out for baptism because it was the popular thing to do, John exploded. “Brood of snakes! What do you think you’re doing slithering down here to the river? Do you think a little water on your snakeskins is going to deflect God’s judgement? It your life that must change, not your skin. And don’t think you can pull rank by claiming Abraham as father. Being a child of Abraham is neither here nor there – children of Abraham are a dime a dozen. God can make children from stones if he wants. What counts is your life. Is it green and blossoming? Because if it’s deadwood, it goes on the fire.
No doubt, some smart-aleck in the back row mumble, “Tell us how you really feel about us, John.”
What John is telling the people is that it’s not who you know, but what you do. The stories of Scripture are still relevant today, aren’t they? And in this case, John tells us that you will not receive a certificate of participation just by showing up and flashing your family coat of arms. He is telling the people that they must change their lives. Not an easy task, but one requiring will power. He has the nerve, once again, to call this the good news, after he has blasted half of the neighborhood of Galilee.
There are a number of different folks that are on the banks of the river listening. Rather than reacting with dismay at his rantings, they are ready to take the next step, to see what will power is needed. Each of them asks “what should we do?” Should is a future looking verb, a verb that defines an action that will be done in a later period of time. Those that respond to John’s message know that they must repent and make adjustments in order to get right with God; they can’t just get along because their parents were a “legacy”. They need to adopt the life-style of covenant people. And when they ask John for instructions, he is more than happy to tell them their assignments to move forward. Share what you have with others. Be honest in dealing with neighbors. Don’t accuse people of things that they didn’t do. And here’s a hard one: Be content with your pay.
These are not great acts of self-sacrifice, or assignments that can only be done by those who are holier than thou. Mother Teresa says that we may not all be able to do great things, but can do small things with great love.
While John’s gospel text emphasizes the “should and ought to do’s”, the text from the prophet Zephaniah relies on the words of “I will”, which are just as powerful. This is the work that God will do in the future, if we take the time NOW to repent and share John’s baptism. Listen again to the promises of the Lord…
I will rejoice over you with gladness
I will renew you in love
I will exult over you
I will remove disaster from you
I will save the lame and gather the outcast
I will bring you home
I will make you renowned and praised
I will restore your fortunes
Pretty strong statements from the God who has no problems with will-power. All of these promises are good and true for the future. All look forward to a time when the Lord shall reign over people who have been through a baptism of repentance and a baptism of the Holy Spirit. There is a wonderful vision of strategic planning on God’s part, and a reminder of the spiritual accompaniment that happens when you’re walking in the ways of the Lord.
Lastly, the Apostle Paul in his letter to the church at Philippi also provides the people with direct instructions on what they should do to benefit the whole community: rejoice, be gentle, don’t worry, keep praying. There is nothing complicated about these charges. Just use a little will-power. Paul also indicates that these undertakings must be done for the future, because in verse 5, he says the Lord is near.
Will Willimon, the great Methodist preacher, says all of these objectives are within our reach. “To all of you that live in some ordinary place, who lead ordinary lives, engaged in rather ordinary everyday things, besieged by all sorts of injustices and cares and concerns, there is good news. The Messiah is coming and he is coming to you. He calls you to follow him wherever you are , and in the process, to be whomever you can be.
The gospel text tells us this: what is important is your life. How you live it is what matters. Ask yourself the same question that the crowd asked: “what then should we do?” What can we change in our behavior in the future to be a better person. John the Baptist understood that each of us must answer that question as an individual before we can take on society’s problems. He talks about a personal ethical reform, rather than revolution. You can’t change the world unless you make the effort to change your own life first.
There is a story about a man in Jacksonville, Florida who was spending the day on the beach there. The undertow was unusually strong that day, and more than once, lifeguards jumped down from their towers to rescue swimmers from the treacherous surf. Finally, the man went to the lifeguard station to express his appreciation for the dedication of these men. When he walked inside, he noticed a sign on the wall in large red letters: "If in doubt, go!" And the man said, "Those same words should be on the walls of every church and on the wall of every person's soul." --
If in doubt, go. The time of the miracle of Christmas is coming near. Look toward the future, at the manger. Let us all respond with will-power to whatever it is that we should do. If in doubt, go and do the tasks that have been spelled out for you in today’s readings.
Look around. Look ahead. Look forward. God is near and will help us along the journey.
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