Looking Ahead to January 26, 2020

The Scripture Reading this week is Matthew 4:12-23

SOURCE

The Sermon title is Gone Fishing!

Early Thoughts:  What would happen if the Word-Made-Flesh showed up at your workplace? What if someone walked in while you were working and said "I have a better offer, leave this all behind and come with me right now"? What if the word 'better' was missing from that invitation?

This story possibly asks more questions than it answers, which may be why we read a version of it almost every year.

• why did Jesus choose them?
• why did they drop everything and go?
• did they have a clue what was ahead of them?
• what did their families think?

Answers to none of those are in the text. To a large extent these questions are never answered in the rest of the Gospel either.  For the most part they remain a mystery (other than the 3rd question -- I think it is safe to say they did not have a clue).  Still we have the story. We still we see people respond to a strange invitation with strange haste.

Jesus must have seen something in these fishermen by the sea. They must have seen something in Jesus. And what was seen led to them being called and, in turn, answering the call.

Which does bring us back to the question at the top. If Jesus showed up in the middle of your daily life and said "got something for you to do, come on!" how would you react? I suspect most of us would want more details first. After all it is only prudent to get more information before totally changing our lives. What would make the offer so intriguing that we would jump in without further investigation?

Usually in our culture Gone Fishing (or maybe Gone Fishin') is about leisure. It evokes images of escaping/running away from the trials and tribulations of daily life for a relaxing day on the lake. But if you make your living catching fish it has a very different meaning. Jesus is not inviting an escape from the world. Jesus is inviting hard work as these people will interact with the world in a new way.

I think Jesus offers us the same invitation. Following Jesus is not an escape from the world's troubles, following Jesus means engaging with the world and its troubles.  And we may not get a lot of information about what is coming.  Will we drop our nets and follow? Or will we pretend we don't hear?
--Gord

Looking Ahead to January 19, 2020

The Scripture Readings this week are:

• Isaiah 49:1-7
• John 1:29-42

The Sermon title is Behold! The Lamb Servant

Early Thoughts: What did John see?  When he saw Jesus baptized? When he saw Jesus walking that day? What did John see that lead him to say "Look, here is the Lamb of God"?

What did John's disciples see? What did they see (or hear) that made them take John's words seriously and follow Jesus? What did they see or hear that lead them to go find others and say "We have found the Messiah"? What was in their voices that prompted those others to seek out this man?

From such questions a movement is started.

As I mentioned about the so-called 'Servant Songs' last week, there is a strong tendency in Christian history to read this Isaiah passage as if it is talking about Jesus. On the surface it is not clear who it is talking about, but I doubt it was meant to be about one who would not be born for several centuries when the words were written. But for those who had seen and known Jesus, those who were trying to understand how God had been revealed in this man, reading the old words would have rung a bell.  2nd Isaiah was not talking about Jesus, but maybe we can use the words of the prophet to help us understand who Jesus was and is. Maybe we can use those words to try and clarify what God is up to in the world today.

We proclaim Jesus as the Light of the World.  A few verses earlier John talked about the Word as being the true light (which shines in the darkness and the darkness did not overcome it). Later in John's Gospel Jesus will say "I am the Light of the world". Isaiah proclaims that the servant of God will be a light, not only to Israel but to the nations.

We read that Jesus chooses to live and serve God. We read that because of who  Jesus is people choose to seek him out, to learn more, to ask questions. And some of them choose to follow him (I assume there are other who choose not to follow).

Two men heard John talk about Jesus and they got curious. One of them went to find his brother, who also got curious.  There is an attractiveness about the one who serves. It draws attention.

Almost 2000 years later we still have questions. We are still drawn to the one known as the Lamb of God, the Servant.  Will we be willing to ask our questions? Will we listen and watch for the answers? Will we share our curiosity with others?
--Gord

Looking Ahead to January 12, 2020 -- Baptism of Christ Sunday

On the first Sunday after Epiphany we are invited to reflect on Jesus being baptized by John the Baptist. And to reflect on our own Baptism.

During Children's Time this week we will be invited to choose a "Spirit Word" to carry with us for the year. The idea is that we draw a word and are "asked to reflect on that word for the coming year. The people are invited to ponder what significance this word might have in their lives, and how God might be speaking to them through that simple message" (source and more on the idea here). Often this is done with Stars on Epiphany Sunday but we will use Doves, an ancient symbol of the Holy Spirit. and link it to the dove in the Baptism of Jesus story.

The Scripture Readings this week are:

• Isaiah 42:1-9
• Matthew 3:13-17

The Sermon title is Beloved Servant

Early Thoughts: Baptism. In Baptism we acknowledge the Baptisee as a child of God. In Baptism we are, as our Baptism liturgy says:

By water and the Spirit,
we are called, claimed, and commissioned:
we are named as God’s children,
claimed by Christ,
and united with the whole Christian community
of every time and place.
Strengthened by the Holy Spirit,
we live out our commission;
to spread the love we have been given throughout the world.

 When Jesus is baptized, over John's objections, Jesus is named as God's Beloved Child, with whom God is "well-pleased". As Matthew tells his story of Jesus' ministry this is the beginning. Yes we have a Christmas story with visitors from the East before now but this moment is the beginning of the ministry of Jesus, the beginning of Jesus starting to live out who he is called and formed to be.

Whoever that is...

In the writings of and stories about Isaiah we have these odd passages we tend to call the "servant songs". They talk about God's servant and what that servant will do.  We read one of those this week. There has been much debate about who the servant in these songs is meant to be. Is it the nation? Is it the "prophet like Moses" that tradition says will come? Is it the Messiah? Many Christian writers have read these passages and assumed that the servant is Christ. I think this is a reading backward, reading Christ into a passage that was not about him in the first place, an interpretive choice. Which does not make it automatically invalid, I just think we need to be honest about what we are doing.

If we read the servant songs of Isaiah and we see Christ then what to they have to say about Christ?

If we combine the "job description" from the servant song and the baptismal blessing then where do we end up? We end up with a Beloved Child and Servant. We end up with a vision for what Christ is all about. And since it has long been understood that to be Christian is to strive to be Christ-like we have a glimpse of who we might be called to be.

Are we ready to be Beloved Servants as well?
--Gord

Looking Forward to January 27, 2019

The Scripture Reading this week is Mark 2:13-22. (or here is the passage as Eugene Peterson put it in the Message)

The Sermon title is New Wine

Early Thoughts: Do we want new containers? If we are honest do we really want new wine?

Some people fall easily into comfortable patterns. Most organizations do the same. And once we are in the comfortable new wine and new wineskins are sometimes a threat.

This, I think, underlies much of the conflict Jesus has with the Jewish leaders of his day. From dining with the unacceptable to not being ascetic enough, to proclaiming God's healing forgiveness in a much broader way than ever before Jesus upsets the comfortable pattern.

Do we want new wine?  Do we want our comfortable way of being to be challenged? I know that while there are days I would say yes to those questions there are far more days I would say most definitely NO.  And yet I almost always will say that maybe we need some of that disruption.

Jesus speaks of the dangers of trying to use old containers with new stuff (though personally I always use old scrap fabric when needing to patch something, why would I buy new cloth for such a thing). One of the realities is that our old containers were made to fit the old contents. Sometimes we just can't force new contents into that box. Maybe, like the cloak, the new just moves or adapts to the environment in a way the old can not. Maybe, like the wineskin, the new is still lively and growing or fermenting and expands beyond the old boundaries. Maybe the new is just of a totally different shape or nature and it is like the square peg for the round hole. It just won't work.

I think that sometimes we in the church get it wrong the other way too. I think sometimes we think up new forms and structures and think they will solve all our problems and yet we don't change the stuff inside. While it is too soon to say for certain, I suspect this is what we may find with the recent restructuring of the United Church of Canada. WE have shaken up the structure, but lots of people want the church to operate the same way. Where is the new wine for these new skins?

Jesus is about healing our dis-ease. WE need Jesus not because we are healthy but because we have dis-ease -- and sometimes we don't really want to be healed. Jesus is inviting us to celebrate because God is with us, and sometimes our ideas of what it means to be decent and orderly seem far from a celebration. Jesus is about transformation, about new things happening, about new growth springing from the old. WE need healing, we need to celebrate God's presence, we need to be transformed. We need new wine AND new wineskins.  ARe we ready?
--Gord

Looking Forward to January 20, 2019

The Scripture Reading this week is Mark 1:14-28


The Sermon title is Why did they do that?

Early Thoughts: To be honest I just don't get it. What leads these men to just get up and follow this stranger? And as a side question what did Zebedee think when his sons just walked away from the family boat?

As Mark is telling the story of Jesus it is logical to think that this is the first interaction that Simon and Andrew and James and John have with Jesus. Given verses 14 and 15 it is possible that they have heard about him through the grapevine,  possibly they were standing in a crowd to hear him speak. But even if they have heard of him, even if they heard him speak once, it seems like a huge leap or faith to drop everything an follow him -- immediately. Maybe they had poor impulse control?

I think a big part of the answer lies in the verses that follow. Twice in the back half of the passage we hear that Jesus teaches with authority, authority unlike the scribes, authority that even unclean spirits obey. That speaks of the Charisma Jesus exudes. And those of us who have heard stories (or who remember directly) the effect that leaders like Pierre Trudeau, and John Kennedy and Barack Obama had on people know the power of Charisma to get people energized and fired up. It is apparent that when people heard and watched Jesus they saw and felt that something extraordinary was happening.

And so some of them made choices that, on the surface, make little to no sense. They dropped everything to follow him.

There is a follow-up question. What would make us do that?

The YouTube video above is the final hymn we will sing on Sunday. It asks Will you come and follow me if I but call your name? Well would you?

I believe that Jesus, the Risen Christ, is indeed calling our names. I believe that Jesus is inviting us to a new way of living. I believe that Christian faith is about being willing to be changed, transformed, led in a whole new direction. I also believe that sometimes dropping everything to respond seems unrealistic, or illogical, or unwise, or even dangerous.

What would help us do what Peter, Andrew, James, and John did?
--Gord

Looking Ahead to February 4, 2018

This being the first Sunday of the month we will be celebrating the sacrament of Communion.

The Scripture Reading this week is John 4:1-42

The Sermon title is He Asked For a Drink...You Won’t Believe What She Said

Early Thoughts: A strange encounter, possibly a chance encounter, is the story for this week. A conversation about a cup of water takes on a whole new dimension.

It is a story about boundary crossing:  male-female, Jew-Samaritan.

It is a story about needs being met. What are people in the story thirsting for?

It is a story about God being revealed, and about a witness sharing the news.

It is a story full of questions.

This woman at the well is pretty amazing. Her life has not been easy.  She has either been cast-out/abandoned/divorced by multiple men or she has been widowed multiple times. It seems she is now relying on a relative (possibly the brother of a dead husband following levirate law) for shelter. And yet she has the gumption to engage in a theological discussion with this strange man from another place. Then she has the courage to go and tell everyone she knows "you gotta come see/hear this guy".

What strange things can happen when one person asks for a drink of water.
--Gord

Looking Forward to January 28, 2018

The Scripture Reading for this week is John 3:1-21

The Sermon title is God Loves the World

Early Thoughts: God loves the world. God loves the world and all that is in it. Do we believe that?

This week's reading includes one of (if not THE) the best known verses in Christian Scripture. "For God so loved the world..." But I think that we miss the point of that verse when we forget to read the next verse.  Verse 17 reads "Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.".  The point of the Christ event is that the world be saved, because God loves the world.

So why do so many people talk about what God hates? Why do so many people talk about what God condemns? (conveniently it seems that often God condemns and hates the same sorts of things that the speaker condemns and hates...)

In the beginning of the faith story we have a hymn to creation. And the refrain to that hymn tells us over and over again that God looks at what is created and says it is good. Because God calls the world good, because God created the world, God loves the world and desires the best for it.

This is the reason God becomes flesh. To show love for the world, to teach the people that they are loved, to redeem and save the world from itself.

JEsus loves us, this we know...
--Gord

Looking Forward to January 14, 2018

The Scripture reading this week is John 2:1-11

The Sermon title is Party On

Early Thoughts: The party must go on.

Jesus and company are at a wedding. Weddings in their world were generally a multi-day affair. And after a couple of days the wine runs out. Not a good thing.

The (unnamed in this passage) Mother of Jesus encourages him to intervene. At first he is reluctant, but then accedes.  With the result that 120-180 gallons of good, indeed the best, wine are made available. And the party is able to continue. I suspect I have known a few people in my life who would welcome such a party.

[SIDEBAR: Raymond Brown has suggested that part of the reason that the wine ran out may in fact lie with Jesus and his friends. The wedding celebration may well have been a Bring Your Own Wine event. Jesus and his friends may have been living a life of voluntary poverty that did not allow them to bring wine...but would not have stopped them from consuming. As one blog I read put it "maybe if Mary had not brought all those "+1" the wine would have held out longer. It does help explain why Mary is so concerned that the wine has run out.  Another theory that has been posited for why Mary was so concerned is that the wedding was for someone in Jesus' family and so they were sharing the hosting duties]

Why tell this story?

For the writer of the Gospel this incident, like many other things that will come, is a sign pointing to what is happening in Jesus, it is a sign to reveal who Jesus is. That is one reason we tell this story.

WE also tell the story to remind ourselves of the abundant and overflowing grace of God. We remind ourselves that just when we think we have run out of resources Jesus, the one who Matthew describes as talking about the lilies of the air and the birds of the field who neither sow nor spin, is there to provide what is needed.

We tell the story to remind ourselves that the party continues. WE remind ourselves in this story that Jesus brings new wine, new hope, new possibilities and so in Jesus we celebrate the new wine, the good wine, the zestiness of life.

NOw I have to go research science experiments to turn water into wine...on Sunday you can find out if I have any success.
--Gord

Looking Forward to February 26, 2017 -- Transfiguration, Jesus' Identity

The Scripture reading this week is Luke 9:18-36, 44-50

The Sermon title is Missing the Point

Early Thoughts: Sometimes it is hard to keep track.  Sometimes things don't make a lot of sense. Sometimes we get it wrong.

These things have always been true. Even people we think really "get it" can misunderstand quite badly...

Peter, James and John. If there is a triumvirate of "Best" disciples the Gospels would suggest that this trio is right up there. Surely they, who are so close to Jesus, who get taken up to the top of the mountain and witness the Transfiguration, understand what is happening right?

Sometimes they do. Sometimes they certainly do not....

Peter confesses Jesus as the Messiah. Peter will also deny even knowing Jesus.

They hear Jesus say that the path he follows (and the path he invites them to follow) is not one of glory. At one point in the Gospels James and John ask for the prime seats at the table (this happens in Mark 10, when Matthew tells the same story he has their mother asking on their behalf).

Jesus proclaims the power of God to heal, to cast out demons. John gets worried about someone else doing the same thing, seemingly worried about the competition.

Sometimes it is hard to understand what it means to follow Jesus. The disciples are ample proof of this.

Maybe it is because some (much) of what Jesus says is counter-intuitive ("least among all of you is the greatest", the Messiah will be executed). Maybe it is because we don't want to hear. Maybe it is because we have yet to let go of more worldly understandings of 'how the world works'. But for the life of the Christian movement people have struggled with understanding. And that means we sometimes miss the point.

WE could beat ourselves up about that. OR we could remind ourselves that even Peter, James and John sometimes missed the point too. Sometimes they were afraid to admit they did not understand. [And I fully believe there are many things they did not understand until after Easter, when they looked back on what had happened, retrospection is a gift that brings understanding at times].

So to miss the point, to have questions, to be a little unclear makes us normal.

God help us in our understanding and in our confusion.
--Gord

Looking Forward to February 19, 2017 -- Jesus sends out the Disciples

The Scripture Readings for this week are Luke 9:1-6; 10:1-11

The Sermon title is Sent Out!

Early Thoughts:Building and proclaiming the Kingdom is a big job. Too big for one person.

It appears Jesus knows this. And it also appears that Jesus is willing to delegate.

Just for the record, the sending out is still in place.

Jesus sends his followers out to share in the work of the Kingdom. And to a large degree he sends them out on faith and trust, calling them to rely on the kindness of strangers and the law of hospitality. He also tells them to pay attention to the audience, if they are not open to the message, go somewhere else.

How do we live out this challenge?

How do we go out to proclaim the Kingdom, to bring health instead of dis-ease?

Are we willing to take risks with limited resources? Or do we want to make sure we have all the ducks lined up before we take the first step out the door?

Are we prepared to share something that might be offensive to or rejected by some? Or are we stuck in the need to be "nice" (and liked)?

What does it mean to describe ourselves as being sent out in Jesus' name?
--Gord

Looking Forward to February 12, 2017 -- John's Question

This Sunday we will be  celebrating the Sacrament of Communion.

The Scripture reading for this Sunday is Luke 7:18-35

The Sermon title is What Do You See?

(Found this one on Facebook)

Early Thoughts: Who are you? Are you the one we have been waiting for?

Sitting in his prison cell John has obviously been hearing reports about what Jesus is doing. So why is he confused? Why does he send people to ask Jesus who he is?

Maybe in part because John can not see in person, he is forced to rely on hearsay.

And maybe because Jesus does not quite fit the picture John was expecting. Jesus does not seem like the one who has a winnowing fork in his hand.  SO are you the Messiah?

JEsus' answer is pretty simple, if a bit non-responsive.  "Tell John what you have seen" Not a straightforward yes or no, but share what have you seen.  And then think for yourself, from what you have seen, what do you say?

In a couple of chapters Luke with share the account of Jesus saying to his disciples "who do you say I am?", a question they then have to answer based on what they have seen and heard and experienced. This is how God is known, by people sharing and reflecting on what they have seen and heard and experienced.

Even after resurrection, the presence of God is known because people share what they have seen and heard and experienced.

SO what have you seen and heard and experienced to "prove" that God is active in the world?

When you look at the world where do you see God at work?

If people ask you to report bakc on whether God is present, how could you answer?
--Gord

Looking Forward to January 29, 2017 -- Sabbath Controversy

The Scripture reading this week is Luke 6:1-16

The Sermon title is Choose!

Early Thoughts: How do we use the tools, traditions, and rituals of our faith to best serve the cause of love?

Do those rules, tools, traditions and rituals sometimes get in the way of the life of love?

Then what do we do?

Sabbath observance is there to serve the people of God. Sabbath observance is there because we know that we are healthier when we are on "on" 24/7. Sabbath also helps us remember that we are not in control, that God is.

That is all and good.  But what if we lose sight of the ultimate goal? OR what if the balance point is hard to find?

That is where the text takes us this week. Jesus is in a debate with others about how Sabbath ties in to the life of love.

Jesus reminds his opponents that God trumps Sabbath, that grace and mercy trump rules. Jesus reminds us that caring for each other trumps all else.

Sabbath is a vital part of what it means to be Jewish. To this day Sabbath is a central pillar of Jewish faith. I think it is safe to say that Sabbath-keeping is no longer a central part of what it means to be Christian in Western society. But I suspect the principle about rules vs. people is still at stake.

We are often called to see where the life of love leads us to endorse and follow rules and traditions and rituals as they have been passed down to us. We are also challenged to know when those things need to be recast, or put aside. And it is often unclear which is which.
--Gord

Looking Forward to January 22, 2017 -- The Call of the First Disciples

This week we will be celebrating the Sacrament of Baptism.

The Scripture Reading for this week is Luke 5:1-11

The Sermon title is Follow!

Early Thoughts:  What would it take? What would lead you to change your priorities and pledge to live life helping to grow the Kingdom?

Jesus commandeers a boat to provide himself with a speaking platform. And then he decides that he will tell professionals how to fish. much of the time this would be the beginning of a story about someone who is taking advantage of people, or is full of himself. (Imagine Justin Trudeau or Donald Trump doing something like this.)

But instead we have the set up to a miracle and call story.

The advice about how to fish is accepted, albeit a bit begrudgingly, and results in an amazing catch of fish. But there's more!

Peter, recognizing that something special is happening, has a guilt attack. He is convinced he is not worthy to be in Jesus' presence.

Normally one would expect that the next line would be about forgiveness. After all that is what we find in the Isaiah story we read back in the fall. But Jesus appears to ignore (?) this guilt attack. instead he invites Peter to join in the new thing that is about to happen. And Peter, along with James and John, says yes. Jesus knows that they are not perfect (as they will prove more than once) but invites them along just the same.

What would it take to lead you to join in the building of the Kingdom? What sign of God's presence would change your life?

If God looks upon you while you claim to not be worthy and invites you to join in just the same, what would lead you to say yes?

And once you have said yes, what will it look like? DO you serve by leaving something behind? Do you serve by continuing to do what you are already doing, maybe with a new focus?

God and Jesus invite us to follow, as flawed as we are. How will we respond?
--Gord

Looking Ahead to January 15, 2017 -- The Temptation of Christ

The Scripture Reading for this week is: Luke 4:1-13

The Sermon title is Decide!

Early Thoughts: Who are you? How will you fulfill the mission God has for you?

That is a question we all need to wrestle with as we grow and mature as people of faith. God invites us to participate in the missio Dei, to share in the work God is doing in the world.

Turns out Jesus needed to do the same thing.

According to Matthew, Mark and Luke, right after his baptism Jesus is led (or driven depending on the Gospel) into the wilderness for a time of testing. This week we are reading Luke's version of that event.

The Tempter/Tester (because that is what Satan is in Jewish thought, a member of the heavenly court whose role is to test the righteous) offers the words "If you are the Son of God...". What does it mean to Jesus to be, as was affirmed at his baptism "you are my [God] Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased"?

In an exchange chock full of scripture references (on both sides) The Satan offers three different scenarios. Jesus could feed the hungry. Jesus could have political power. Jesus could be a miracle worker. Jesus turns down each of them. And, it would appear, in the process gains clarity about who he is and what his mission is.

What temptations might distract us from our vocations?

AS we explore who we are in this season of our lives, as we explore how God is calling us to join in the missio Dei what will we decide?
--Gord

Looking Ahead to February 7, 2016 -- Transfiguration Sunday

The Scripture reading this week is Mark 8:27-9:9

The Sermon title is The Path to Glory

Early Thoughts: Where does glory lie? That is a question this passage raises.

If we jumped from Peter's confession of Jesus of Nazareth as the Messiah straight to the glory of the Transfiguration we would get one answer. Glory lies in recognizing that God is present. Glory is what faith is about.

The only problem is that is not what Mark (nor Matthew and Luke who tell the story in the same order) does. The path between confession and transfiguration is interrupted with a reminder of suffering and struggle and the costs of discipleship. In short the path to glory is decidedly not glorious.

One commentary describes this passage as a sequence of Confession, Confrontation, Confusion. This commentary ends with the suggestion that if Peter (and we) stops and listens to the hard words he (and we) might end with clarity instead of confusion.

It is tempting to jump from recognizing who Jesus is to the search for awe and glory. But that is not the path Jesus offers us. Jesus offers us the foolishness of glory through struggle, life through death. Like Peter we might want to "correct" Jesus on these things.

AS we seek the path of glory, lets not forget that it leads through places we might not want to go...
--Gord

Looking Ahead to January 31, 2016

The Scripture reading this week is Mark 3:13-19; 6:7-16

The Sermon title is Where Are You Sent?

Early Thoughts: Spreading the Good News takes a lot of people.   Proclaiming and growing the Kingdom is a group task.

It has always been true. Being the people of God is a collective effort. Early in the journey across the desert Moses is overwhelmed by the task of leading the people and appoints assistants. And here Jesus shares the load by first appointing 12 apostles (those who are "sent out") and then later sending them out to teach and preach, to heal and cast out demons. 

ANd as a result the fame and knowledge of Jesus (which has already been growing steadily as Mark tells the story -- despite the number of times Jesus tells people not to say anything about his healings) grows even more. The work of the sent reflects the work of the sender. Which leads Herod to start to wonder who this rabble-rouser is. The suggestion that it is a resurrected John shows how concerned Herod is about this many and his disciples/apostles. In Jewish thought resurrection is a sign of how God is working to correct the wrongs of the world.

What was true then is still true now.  Proclaiming and growing the Kingdom is still a collective task. As members of the body of Christ we are not just around to learn how to be "good" people, we are part of the body of Christ so that we can participate in the changing of the world. Faith is a participation sport.

We gather together to grow in discipleship and to be sent out. Maybe we are not called to  cast out demons or heal people. But we are all called to proclaim the Good News. We are called to share the possibility of the kingdom.

Jesus points out that this action is not always well-received. There are times when we need to know that it is time to cut our losses, to try a new audience. But the challenge the church faces is being willing to chance the rejection. If we wait until we are sure the message will be received we will never share it. On the other hand, sometimes we share a message we know to be unpopular over and over again to allow it to work into the consciousness of the listeners (every parent will recognize this tactic--both by using it and by having it used on them).  The important part is that we fulfill our calling to take part in proclaiming and growing the Kingdom.

As followers of Christ we too are disciples--learners. As followers of Christ we are sent to live our faith in the world.  So where are you sent?

Looking Forward to January 24, 2016 -- Those Poor Pigs

The Scripture Reading this Sunday is Mark 5:1-20.

The Sermon title is Madness and Calm.

Early Thoughts: What demon(s) would you want to get rid of?

In the Gospels Jesus is portrayed as being a healer, a teacher/preacher, an exorcist, and Messiah. Part of the way Jesus reveals the Kingdom is by driving out the demons that afflict people.

One of the things that jumps out at me in this story is the place of naming. Being able to name someone/something gives you power.  And so Jesus asks the demon what its name is before he can drive the demon away.

It also jumps out that the demon claims to know exactly what/who Jesus is.

And finally I can't help but notice that this is not a gradual return to "sanity". One minute the man is possessed/ill and a threat to life and property and the next he is sitting calmly with no sign of possession or illness.

So what do we do with this story? As inheritors of liberalism, modernism and the Enlightenment, which all had a focus on scientific inquiry and rationality what do we do with the stories of demons and possession and healing?

We could just dismiss them as superstition or myth.  But then why read them?

We could take this story and see it as a political allegory, especially since the name of the demon(s) [Legion] is described in one resource as

a Latin loan-word, denotes a unit of 6000 soldiers in the Roman army. Many Jewish and Christian texts, especially apocalyptic texts, express a belief that God would destroy the Romans.... {The Jewish Annotated New Testament Amy-Jill Levine and Marc Zvi Brettler editors p.69}

The same source then asks:

Do the swine represent the expulsion...of unclean animals or the Roman armies? Are the Gerasenes angry over a symbolic battle or the loss of their herds? {ibid}

But while such a reading makes the story somewhat easier to work with, I think it misses something.

I think that while we don't use that language anymore, preferring to use medical terminology, possession is an issue that people still face.  We still wrestle with things that change us, that lead us to be someone other than who we are, that makes us act in ways that are not socially acceptable, that covers who God calls us to be. We just don't call them demons anymore.

And so I return to the question at the top of these thoughts. What demon(s) would you want to get rid of? What is there in your life, or even in your self, that needs to be sent packing so that you can be who God has called you to be?

And in a strangely ironic sense, it is possible that being who God has called you to be, might make you stand out from society.  Maybe some of the demons we wrestle with make us "normal" in a world where we are called to be a little (or a lot) abnormal.

Wonder where this line will take the sermon.....
--Gord

Looking Forward to January 10, 2016 -- Entering the Gospel of Mark

The way that the Narrative Lectionary is built is that between Christmas and Easter we explore one of the Gospels, working our way through it in order. This year we work through Mark. And since Easter is on the early side (March 27, almost the earliest it can possibly be) our journey through Mark will hop skip and jump along to get to Chapter 16 by Easter Sunday. This means we will have some relatively long passages. But it also means that most passages will appear to have multiple sermon possibilities. Mark is a Gospel writer in a hurry, everything happens fast, and so when you read longer passages you likely have two or three discrete events recounted.

Technically the cycle began on December 27 but we were doing other things the last 2 weeks. So we jump in on week 3 of Mark and a reading from Chapter 2. More specifically our reading for this week is Mark 2:1-22.

The Sermon title is New Wine New Skins

Early thoughts: I see about 5 distinct, though inter-related sermon starters in these 22 verses.

You could focus on the opening story and the conflict over words of forgiveness.

You could look at the second story and talk about inclusion, bringing in the outsider.

You could take the third section and talk about fasting and feasting.

You could look at the whole and talk about the growing conflict between Jesus and the powers-that-be, a conflict that will eventually lead directly to a cross on a hill.

But I am not following any of those paths. I think the unifying piece to the passage is in the last few verses. Patching cloth and having it tear, using old wine-skins and heaving them burst.

Mark’s Jesus begins his ministry by proclaiming that the Kingdom is at hand. The time is now, the day has come. Does this perhaps mean that it is time for new cloth and new wine-skins? Are the healings and the teachings and the conflict signs that there needs to be a new way of looking at things? Even more, is there a hint that it is difficult to live the new way using old patterns?

It seems to me that this is the challenge of Christian faith. Mark has been clear thus far that interacting with Jesus changes life completely and immediately. And yet human nature, particularly within faith communities perhaps, tends to resist major change. We tend to try to slow it down, to make it incremental and reforming rather than sudden and revolutionary. We want to patch the hole, to make use of the old containers. This seems to be common sense. This seems to be prudent. This seems to be making best use of what has been handed down to us. Unfortunately it also seems that it often doesn’t work.

What cloth in our midst has been patched but is about to tear? What wine-skins have been used one or two times too many? Is there a need to punch a hole in our ceiling to allow wholeness to come in? Where is the new trying to break through?
--Gord

Looking Forward to February 15, 2015 -- Peter's Confession

The Scripture Reading this week is Matthew 16:13-28

The sermon title is Who do you say he is?

Early Thoughts:  It is one of the key questions for the Christian church.  Who is Jesus?  In fact many people have made a career in academia trying to answer that question.

Here Simon the Fisherman, Simon who will later (out of fear for his life) deny Jesus 3 times, looks at Jesus and says “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”.  True, only a few verses later Simon tries to instruct Jesus on what that means (and what it does NOT mean), but the confession remains.

Then comes the real kicker.  To follow this Messiah means taking up your own cross, means placing yourself second to the Kingdom, means risking everything.

The next thing that happens in the story (Matthew 17:1-8) is the Transfiguration. Jesus is revealed in his glory and God says again "this is my Beloved Son".  The one Peter has already called the Messiah is now claimed by God.  The one who will die, the one who calls his followers to take up their own cross, this is the one who brings God's kingdom into the world.

In that light, are we ready to share Simon Peter's assertion?

Of course then we might have to sort out what it means....
--Gord

Looking Forward to February 8, 2015 -- Feed the Multitudes, Walk on Water

The Scripture Reading this week is: Matthew 14:13-33

The Sermon title is Sink or Swim

Early Thoughts:  It is about trust. And maybe about power.  But then the use of power is also inextricably linked to trust.

Feeding the multitudes---trust that Jesus knew what he was doing.  The disciples were sure it was impossible.  Jesus knew it was.

Storm at sea, Peter stepping out -- trust.  Peter's mixture of trust and fear, which will win out?

There is, I believe, a multitude of hungry folk in the world today, hungry for many things.  Jesus tells us to feed them (as he does at the end of John's gospel).  Do we trust that we can?

There are many stormy winds buffeting us these days.  Sometimes we are sure the water will overwhelm us.  But God invites (or even commands) us to step out of the relative safety of our boats.  Will our fear or our faith and trust win out?

Peter stepped out--and he sank.  He could have given up then and there and drowned.  But Jesus wouldn't let him.  And Simon became Cephas, the rock of faith.

We need to step out, to sink, to swim...or possibly to fly...


As that other Peter tells us, all we need is faith, trust, and a happy thought (which may mean a dream, a vision for what could be?)
--Gord