This being the first Sunday of the month we will be celebrating the sacrament of Communion. This will be the last regular Communion service until September.
Early Thoughts: Many years ago, when I was in Junior Choir, we did a musical called the Music Machine. The premise was that there was a magical machine that would create a song about anything you put into it. Then they put in it a passage of scripture and we get a series of songs about the Fruits of the Spirit. That was my first introduction to this concept from Scripture (and I can remember snippets of some of the songs too--particularly the one about patience!)
Somewhere in my parent's house is this album that we bought around the time we did the show:
But since I probably should do something beyond playing the songs of the album...
In the Gospel of Matthew Jesus is recorded as saying (Matthew 7:15-20):
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.
You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles?
In the same way, every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit.
A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.
Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
Thus you will know them by their fruits."
Paul teaches that in Christ we are people of the Spirit, we are people who have received the Spirit. Paul also suggests that maybe if we are living by the Spirit people should be able to tell. Which do your lives show more, the works of the flesh or the fruits of the Spirit? Maybe we don't always want to know the answer to that question.
The story of Pentecost reminds us that while the central story of the Christian community is the life, death and resurrection of Jesus the power that pushes us onward is the breath of the Spirit, the same breath that blows over the primordial soup at the beginning of Genesis, the same breath that inspires the prophets, that descends on Jesus at his baptism. The Spirit of God is what changes and feeds our lives as people of faith -- if we let it.
We are known by our actions, by our words, by our fruitfulness. Do people look at us and see things like love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control?
--Gord
Early Thoughts: We often proclaim that God offers us freedom. Marcus Borg suggests that one of the meta-narratives of Scripture is that of the exodus, the freedom from bondage, and another meta-narrative is that of exile and return (which also has a flavour of freedom about it).
But freed from what? Freed to what?
For Paul freed from the law, freed from the bondage of sin would be a big part of what being in Christ means. Paul spends much time in his letters trying to determine the role of law and grace in the Christian life. In the end he comes down firmly on the side of grace, God's grace that brings freedom. And so we are freed from those things that once bound us, which includes status words like Jew and Gentile, male and female, slave and free.
It appears that the Galatian church, after being founded by Paul, was visited by a person or group of people who tried to convince the Galatians that they needed to follow Torah in order to be full members of the Christian community. Paul finds this a terrible idea (to put it mildly). In this week's passage Paul suggests that the law did once have a purpose but now it no longer does. The law was needed to shepherd God's people along until the coming of Christ (who is often called the Good Shepherd, following from the Gospel of John). But now that Christ has come (and more importantly for Paul, now that Christ has been crucified and raised) the law is not needed. We are freed from the (in Paul's eyes unattainable) standard that the law places on people.
Christians continue to maintain that Christ sets us free. In the forgiveness Christ preached (or offered) we are freed from the burden of guilt and shame. In the (freely offered, not earned by our actions) gift of the Holy Spirit that flowed from and through Christ we are freed to a life of where God is active in and through us. We can put the ways of the past aside and live into the new thing God is now doing.
Sometimes we in the church want to replace the old law with a new one. I think Paul might suggest that this is just exchanging one chain for another. Are we ready to be free?
--Gord
Early Thoughts: Who gets to be part of the community? What rules need to be met?
These are questions that the church has wrestled with from the beginning (and continues to wrestle with today).
The earliest church was a Jewish group. Jesus was Jewish, Jesus' disciples appear to have all been Jewish, the people who were flocking to the community in Jerusalem appear to have all been Jewish. But that only lasts so long.
In Acts Chapter 10 Peter has a dream, a dream in which he hears God challenging him to broaden the circle of belonging to includes Gentiles. In Chapter 11 Peter has to defend this action to some others in the community. As Paul begins his work he seems to have more success among the Gentiles than among the Jewish communities where he visits.
Which leads us to Chapter 15. Some people come to Antioch (where Paul is present, it is his "home base" at this point in time) and insist that all these Gentiles who have joined the Christian community need to be circumcised [and presumably follow the rest of the Law, though the text only talks about circumcision -- maybe a free pass for the female members of the community?]. The Christian community of Antioch discusses the question (Paul and his compatriot Barnabas appear to have led the argument against requiring circumcision) and are unable to resolve it. So a group are sent to Jerusalem to discuss it with the heads of the church. Probably a modern equivalent would be for a Roman Catholic group being sent to the Vatican to discuss and resolve an issue, or a United Church Congregation making a proposal to the next meeting of the General Council.
In writing Acts, Luke has chosen not to tell us how the debate goes. We are left to guess how virulently the opposing sides made their arguments. He does say there was "much debate" and some of us in the church might have our guesses about how the debate might have gone --- based on our own experiences of the church discussing hot, divisive, topics. But really we jump to the decision. Peter reminds the listeners of his experience from Chapter 10. He reminds folk that at that time God showed Peter that God calls Jew and Gentile alike to the Spirit-led community of Christ. Paul and Barnabas share what they have witnessed God doing in their work among Gentiles. And then James, commonly believed to have been the leader of the Jerusalem church, speaks from the stories of Scripture. Interestingly, it appears to be James that makes the final decision, as listed in verses 19-21. The full Law is not required from Gentile Christians, only some very specific things.
So what does this have to do with us?
The church is often described as a family. Which works to a degree. The comparison reminds us to love and care for each other. And on the shadow side, church splits and disagreements can be just as hurtful and deep as some family estrangements. But the church is not a family.
Family tends to suggest a fairly homogeneous group. Family are those people who are related to us, for most of human history this has tended to mean that the members of our family are largely like us. Humanity being the tribal species that we are (or at least really tend to be), family can be a pretty closed circle. God might have different ideas.
I said above that "These are questions that the church has wrestled with from the beginning (and continues to wrestle with today). ". We continue to wonder where the boundaries of the faith "family" should lie. The challenge for us is to find where God is leading us in those discussions.
The gathering in Jerusalem does not decide that God has made a sudden turn. The acceptance of the uncircumcised is not a new thing God is doing. The gathering in Jerusalem determines that God has been at this work all along, God is just now calling the church to get with the program. They made that determination after considering Scripture, past practice, and lived experience. And it took time.
Luke tells the story in a few verses, accomplished in one meeting. But by the time of this one meeting it is likely that the discussion has been going on for years. [If we assume that Peter's dream in Chapter 10 was in the first year after the Easter experience. Paul tells us that after his conversion experience he went away for two years to be instructed in the faith, and now Paul has made his first journey so we know that time has passed.]
To follow God is a long-term proposition. To live in the the Kingdom of God takes time. Change does not happen as fast as some would like it to. It requires us to listen to each other and to hold each other in prayer. And sometimes we find out that God has a much broader understanding of grace and community than we once believed.
--Gord
This week we are celebrating the Sacrament of Communion. Normally our next Communion service would be May 7th but as the Youth Group is providing service leadership that day Communion has been moved up one week.
Early Thoughts: How is the Risen Christ recognized? What breadth of things might Easter mean?
Most of us associate the experience of Easter with the empty tomb stories. However a further reading of Matthew, Luke and John (Mark's original ending only has an empty tomb story and the women fleeing in fear) suggests that people experienced the Resurrection in a variety of places. Matthew and John suggest that some only truly got resurrection once they went home to Galilee. Luke and John suggest that a meal (in John a fish meal following a miraculous catch of fish, in Luke a simple breaking of bread) was a part of the Easter moment for some.
Which brings us to this week's story.
Two people traveling away from Jerusalem. A third joins them (the text is not clear--does he overtake them on the road? or does he just appear?). In response to a couple of questions they pour out their fear, their grief, their uncertainty, their shattered hopes following the arrest, trial and execution of Jesus of Nazareth.
Which cues the stranger to explicate Scripture to them, to review what those old passages might mean, to open their hearts to the possibility of Easter. Later the two will realize how their hearts burned during this part of the journey. Is this burning the fire of hope taking hold? Is it the Spirit stirring the embers back into life?
Then the journey comes to an end. It is evening. As a simple act of hospitality the two encourage the stranger to stay with them. But then...
The stranger takes on the role of host at the table, and as he breaks bread he is revealed as the Risen Christ.
It wasn't in the hearing from the women who went to the tomb early that morning that Cleopas and friend felt the reality of Easter. It was not from the reminder of what Jesus had foretold. It was not in the detailed exploration of Scripture they heard along the road. It was in the Breaking of the Bread.
Gathering at table was a marker of the Jesus community throughout the Gospel account. Gathering at table remains a marker of the Christian community for most of us. We trust that we meet God at the table. We Break the Bread and we share the cup and we remember Jesus. But we also meet Jesus, the Risen Christ, the one who invites us to the table.
I suggest that it is not only at the Communion table that this is true. I suggest that, if we are open, if we allow our vision to be cleared, we meet Jesus at a variety of tables. Maybe at the lunch following a funeral. Maybe at the church picnic. Maybe at the community BBQ.
There is an old joke about the United Church (or sometimes about other denominations -- this version comes from a Methodist source).
A kindergarten teacher gave her class a "show and tell" assignment. Each
student was instructed to bring in an object that represented their
religion to share with the class. The first student got up in front of the class and said, "My name is Benjamin and I am Jewish and this is a Star of David." The second student got up in front of the class and said, "My name is Mary. I'm a Catholic and this is a Rosary." The third student got in up front of the class and said, "My name is Tommy. I am Methodist, and this is a casserole."
We sometimes laugh about the fact that so often in the church we find an excuse to eat together Personally I have been known to refer to the Sacrament of the Potluck. But maybe it is not a joke. Maybe we eat togehter so often because we know that in eating together we build community. We know that in eating together we meet Jesus, the Word made Flesh, the Risen Christ.
--Gord
The Scripture reading this week are some portions of the Story of Stephen, the first Christian Martyr. (The whole arc of Stephen's story starts at the beginning of chapter 6 with the decision to appoint deacons and continues through to his death and burial. The majority of chapter 7 is a sermon by Stephen which leads to his stoning.) We are reading Acts 6:8-7:2a; 7:54-8:3
The sermon title is Witness and Reaction
Early Thoughts: Who knows who Stephen is? For much of my life the only reference I knew of to Stephen was in the first line of the carol Good King Wenceslas where we are told that the king looked out "on the feast of Stephen". And then even the first few times I was referred to his story in Acts it was in relation to the end when we see a man named Saul watching Stephen's execution with approval (reading into chapter 9 we find Saul having an experience on the Damascus road which leads him from persecution to proselytizing and , name changed to Paul, becoming the leading spreader of Christianity in the New Testament).
At the beginning of Chapter 6 it is evident that the Jerusalem church is not the utopia described back in Chapter 2. Earlier we were told that all things were held in common and distributed to each person according to need, now in Chapter 6 we find that there is dissension about this very distribution. And the 12 seem to think that waiting on tables is below them, they have "more important" things to do (which may well be a possible future sermon, remembering the Christ who knelt down and washed their feet). And so they decide to name a group of 7 deacons whose task it will be to serve the community. Stephen is one of those 7. Which brings us to our reading...
Chosen to serve, it becomes obvious that God has other things in mind for Stephen. HE becomes known for being " full of grace and power," and doing "great wonders and signs among the people.". And this attracts attention (how could it not), which leads to Stephen being put on trial [with charges that seem eerily reminiscent of those laid at the feet of Jesus] for his preaching about Jesus and The Way.
Then follows one of the longer sermons in Acts (and there are some long passages of sermon/instruction in these earlier chapters of Acts). Stephen rehearses the entire salvation story from Abraham, through Moses, into the building of the temple,and the work of the prophets into the execution of Jesus (the Righteous One). He further accuses his accusers and those who stand in judgement of being in opposition to the Holy Spirit.
And this is where our reading jumps back in, at the end of the trial. For some reason the trial panel is not feeling warm and fuzzy after being called stiff-necked and labelled as betrayers and murderers. In the face of their fury Stephen remains grounded and trusting in Christ, sharing a vision of Christ standing by the throne of God. ANd then even as he is being stoned he dies in ways that are indeed reminiscent of the death of Jesus on the cross. Stephen becomes the first martyr for the sake of Christ.
Sometimes sharing God's vision for the world causes complicated reactions.
What do we do with a martyrdom story in 21st century North America?
Do we ask what the price is for being part of a counter-cultural movement (as the church is becoming once again)?
Do we remember our brothers and sisters in Egypt whose churches were bombed on Palm Sunday?
Do we ask how willing we are to witness and test the reactions?
--Gord
The emotional life of Holy Week is a true roller-coaster.
We start in triumph on Palm Sunday with the parade into the city.
Then we get somber with the Last Supper.
Then we go down in to the valley of the shadow of death as we watch the crucifixion and burial.
and then...
then there is a BIG SURPRISE!
This year we will be reading the Easter story as it is told by Luke (Luke 24:1-12)
The Sermon title is Risen!
Early Thoughts: The climax of the Christian year has come!Without the Easter story we would not tell any of the other stories. We would not talk about a baby in a manger. We would not talk about a Cross on a hill. Without Easter there is little reason to believe that the other stories of Jesus of Nazareth, that the movement that coalesced around him, would have survived long past his death.
The women go to the grave to weep and mourn. They go to perform that basic act of mourning (anointing of the body) that was not possible before the burial. And when they get there...
A new beginning! New life! New possibilities!
AS Natalie Sleeth says in hymn (VU #175):
“This is the day that God had made! Rejoice! Rejoice, and be exceeding glad! This is the day that God has made! Rejoice! Rejoice! Hallelujah! Christ has conquered death at last, Left the tomb that held him fast! Gone the sorrow, gone the night, Dawns the morning clear and bright! Jesus lives who once was dead, Lives forever, as he said! Risen now our Saviour, King; Songs of gladness let us sing!”
The world is changed. Life wins. Can we believe it?
The other disciples couldn't. They dismissed the women's story as an "idle tale" (one commentary suggest a more idiomatic way of saying that might be "a load of...", or more politely "wishful thinking"). Jesus was dead. They all knew it. Only when he went to the tomb himself did Peter believe.
Can we believe it? Can we trust that the end is not the end? Is the Risen Jesus here alive and among us?
More from Natalie Sleeth (VU #703)
In our end is our beginning, in our time infinity in our doubt there is believing, in our life eternity In our death a resurrection; at the last a victory unrevealed until its season, something God alone can see.
The Scripture reading for this week is Luke 15:1-32
The Sermon title is Lost and Found
Early Thoughts: What makes something (or someone) worth finding?
These three parables suggest that God might answer that question differently than some of us.
Suppose you have 100 sheep and one goes missing. What fool would leave the other 99 alone in the wilderness (therefore in danger) to find the lost one -- who is likely dead or injured anyway?
OR...
You have lost 10% of you money. Surely it makes sens to do everything that you can to find it. But then to celebrate finding it by having a party -- and therefore spending what you just found?
OR...
You have 2 sons. One of them violates every norm of politeness and parental respect by claiming his portion of the family's wealth before you are even ill, much less deceased. Then when he comes back you abandon all sense of propriety by running down the road to greet him. Then you abandon all sense of fiscal management by giving away property (robe and ring) that theoretically now belongs to the elder brother (when you eventually die) and by throwing a party that involves killing a prized animal -- and forget to send someone to the fields to invite the elder brother. Then you tell the elder brother [who is having a very understandable temper tantrum] to get over it and come on inside.
These stories tell of the God who keeps looking, even when it makes no sense. They tell of the God who rejoices in the lost being returned to where it belongs, no matter the cost of the celebration. They tell of the God who, in grace, welcomes the wanderer home even before the wanderer makes an apology.
Robert Fulghum, in a story in one of his books,
suggests that sometimes we get lost on purpose -- only we call it
hiding. And then we sometimes hide so well that we get mad when people
seem to stop looking for us. Fulghum also suggests that we try the same
thing with God.
But of course the witness of Faith and of Scripture is that God doesn't
stop looking. Or God never stops waiting for us to "come to our
selves" and decide to stop being lost/hiding. And then there is a
party! There is always a party!
So maybe we who sometimes feel lost, adrift, wandering aimlessly, need
to all our selves to get found? Maybe we who sometimes get really good
at playing hide and seek need to "accidentally" let our arm poke out
from behind the bush? And then we can join the party too!
The love that will not let us go is the love that keeps looking for us. The wonderful love of which we sing is the love that declares it is always worth looking for the one who is lost.
This is Grace. This is Redemption. This is Hope. Thanks be to God, the one is is always seeking. --Gord
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
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
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
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
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
This Sunday we will celebrate the sacrament of Communion.
From now until Easter the Narrative Lectionary will lead us on a journey through the Gospel according to Luke.
The Scripture Reading for this Sunday is Luke 3:1-22.
The Sermon title is Prepare!
Early Thoughts: In chapter 1 Luke tells us about 2 unexpected pregnancies. One or them, of course, is Jesus. The other is John the Baptist, son of Zechariah and Elizabeth.
Now we jump to chapter 3 and find the fully grown John making a bit of a name for himself. He is telling people to prepare for the coming of the Promised One. And he is not pulling any punches.
John is preaching "a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins". And to do that means you can not be shy about people's shortcomings. Not to mention that John apparently never read Miss Manners or "How to Win Friends and Influence People". No nonsense about winning more flies with honey here. As Luke describes it, John is all about the vinegar.
Is this how we prepare for the coming of the the Kingdom?
In part I think it is. In Scripture, in the words of the prophets and the teachings of Jesus, we find a picture of what the Kingdom of God is/will be. In the Gospels Jesus proclaims that the Kingdom has come to reality in him, but also that it has yet to come in its full glory. And yet I think that if we are really honest with each other we know the may ways that the world shows itself to not be ready for the Kingdom. Equally important, if we are honest with each other (and ourselves), we know that we do not always live as Kingdom people.
Self examination and confession and repentance are a touchy subject with some people. Some parts of the church have, historically and in the present, focused far too much on our sinfulness and brokenness -- to the extent that humanity is seen as beyond redemption, unable on its own accord to live in accordance with The Way of Christ. On the other hand some people are too uncomfortable with self-examination to take a solid look at their behaviour and so remain apparently oblivious to their own mis-steps and shortcomings (there is a potential that this obliviousness is a public face and they are internally wracked by guilt and insecurity). Some parts of the church focus almost exclusively on private/personal morality and miss cultural/social/systemic sinfulness. Some focus almost exclusively on social/cultural/systemic issues and miss out the discussion of private/personal sinfulness. And all parts of the church (and all of us as individuals) tend to rate sins as more or less important.
But to prepare for life in Christ is to look honestly at the issue of sinfulness, of where we (as individuals and as a collective) have missed the mark. This is what John can do for us. This is why it is important to read about John and not jump straight to Jesus (for the record Jesus also calls people to account for their individual and collective behaviour, as does Paul as part of instructing folk how to live as followers of Christ) and talk about God's grace and forgiveness. If the Kingdom is growing within, around, and among us then we are being changed and transformed. To open ourselves to that transformation is to know who we are and look to who we are becoming.
Yes John seems to be missing God's grace. But John is not the Promised One, John points to and prepares the way for the Promised One. Jesus comes to proclaim the Kingdom, to proclaim God's Grace, to invite us to share in the transformation of the world, a transformation that has begun and is continuing. Are we prepared? Are we preparing?
--Gord
Early thoughts: Hi Mary, favoured by God. Congratulations! You are having a baby!
Or maybe a more classic formulation:
Hail Mary, full of grace.
The Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou amongst women,
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
But what did Mary think? Did it really feel like a congratulations moment?
Mary is an interesting character in the faith story. Strong yet humble. Virgin yet mother. And, according to the Doctrine of the Immaculate Conception, she herself was conceived sinless. What do we do with her?
For many years some in Protestant circles have not done much, because to be too Marian was to approach Papist practices. But that seems to be ebbing, we seem to be talking about Mary a bit more. Still I am not sure what to make of her, what to make of this announcement.
Much of the talk about the Annunciation scene is about what God is doing (sensible since in the end that is the main topic of Scripture -- how is God active in our world). But if we take seriously that God is in relationship with God's people, a people who have free will, we have to talk about Mary's role in the story.
I suspect most teen girls in this day and age (or any other age for that matter) would not feel that congratulations were in order when they first got the news that they were pregnant at the wrong time. I wonder how many would feel blessed at first?
Luke's account of Jesus' birth focuses our attention squarely on Jesus' mother, Mary of Nazareth. Maybe to fully explore Luke's story and Luke's understanding of what God is doing we should take a closer look at her too.
--Gord
Early Thoughts: Free the slaves! Cancel the debts! Liberate the oppressed!
Scripture shows us that God has some strange ideas. Particularly where economics is concerned. Scripture [specifically Deuteronomy 15] shows us that God advocates for Sabbath years, a time where debts are cancelled and slaves are freed. And in Leviticus 25:8-55 God commands a Jubilee year on the fiftieth year (after a sabbath of sabbaths) when not only is the land left fallow (which hopefully has happened at other occasions as part of good land management) but all land is returned to the families to whom it originally belonged [Jewish families that is, not the Canaanites from who it was wrested to be distributed amongst the people of Israel]. Read about these rules for yourself here. Together the Sabbath year and the Jubilee year make a statement about freedom, about economics, about how we build a caring society.
As far as I have ever heard, there is little evidence for the Jubilee year happening on a regular (or even ever) basis. I suspect the rules of the Sabbath year were at best unevenly followed as well.
But what if they were? Would that be a sign of God's Kingdom breaking into the world?
I think Isaiah has Jubilee-plus in his mind in chapter 61. The year of the Lord's favour will certainly be a Jubilee year. The time when all will be set right is certainly a sign of (and a call for) Jubilee. It will be more than that though. Not only will land be returned (land is life in many cultures) and economics made level again but there will be healing and rejoicing and freedom. This is what it means to look for the Kingdom of God. We look for Jubilee.
I invite you to read Luke 4:14-31. The beginning of the public ministry of one Jesus of Nazareth. How does he begin his ministry? With Isaiah 61 and the year of Jubilee-plus. When God breaks into the world Jubilee comes. To Christian eyes Isaiah 61 is a foreboding of Jesus, a foretelling of what is going to happen in the life of the man from Nazareth.
Where do you see signs of Jubilee in the world? Do you see any?
What would it mean for Jubilee to become a reality here and now?
Is that the path to actual peace in the world? Is justice a pre-condition for peace?
Christmas is coming, are we ready for the world to be changed?
Are we ready for the possibility of Jubilee?
--Gord
Early Thoughts: Psalm 121 laments "I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help."
It then answers: "My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth."
This week we have a story of jealousy/insecurity. And a story of faithfulness in the face of threat. And a story of God's salvific power. Oh, and a few lions thrown in for good measure.
Living in exile, Daniel has become influential and powerful. And as often happens this makes some of his colleagues jealous and nervous. So they decide to get rid of him.
It is hardly unheard of for a power bloc in a society to manipulate the system and get a law passed that is targeted at a specific individual or group. In fact it is rather common. Then the person/group have to decide it they will play it safe or if they will continue to be true to who they are, knowing that this puts them in jeopardy.
Daniel chooses the latter. And Darius is caught in the trap. (The fact that Darius is so easily played suggests his strength is not in leadership)
But God intervenes. And Daniel is not broken and consumed by the lions. Then Darius has an attack of leadership and destroys those counselors who played him so well (which may be very politically expedient since it also ensures they will not plot against Darius himself in the future) before praising the God Daniel follows.
It is one of those stories many of us heard as children (though those versions might have omitted the wholesale slaughter of verses 23 and 24). But why do we continue to tell it? Specifically this week, as we head in to the season of preparation for the birth of Jesus. What does this passage tell us in 2016?
WE live in a world where jealousy and nervousness and insecurity and fear still drive and shape major policy decisions. We live in a world where it sometimes seems that playing it safe is wiser than wholeheartedly being who God has formed us to be. We live in a world where lion's dens come in a variety of shapes and forms.
We also live in a world of hope.
We live in a world where God is at work, sending visions and dreams. WE live in a world where the Kingdom is growing (slowly, sometimes with a setback or two) to full flower. We live in a world where we trust that, in the words of Dame Julian of Norwich, "all will be well".
One etymology of the name Jeshua (Jesus) is God Saves. We await the birth of God Saves. That is where our hope lies. Even in the face of lions we await the birth of God Saves. Even in the face of threats that would push us to be less than who God has created us to be we have hope and confidence. We can share the visions and the dreams God has sent us because we have hope, because we know that God is in control (sometimes despite the seeming lack of evidence), because God is active in teh world.
Early Thoughts: A new covenant, a new way of directing how we live with each other and with God.
The story of Scripture in inextricably bound with the idea of covenant. After the flood God makes a covenant with Noah. Later God makes a covenant with Abram/Abraham. In the Exodus and at Sinai God makes a covenant with the people of Israel. Each covenant involves promises and expectations from both sides.
The life of faith is full of covenant imagery. We not only tell the story of faith and the covenants within that, we make covenants. When we are baptized, and when we re-affirm our baptism, we enter into and renew a covenant. When we dedicate our lives to one special partner we enter into a covenant. When we call a new minister to serve with a faith community we have a service of covenanting to begin that relationship. And again there are promises and expectations between all parties.
God is always faithful to the covenants. God's people on the other hand....
Within Israel and Judah, the work of the prophets was to call people back to living out the covenant. They are less than successful. Near the end of his career Jeremiah takes time to get the words he has spoken on behalf of God written down into a scroll (plausibly showing that the people are starting to transition from a primarily oral culture to a more literate culture). The king listens to the scroll read aloud and then systematically destroys it.
What is a God to do?
Oral reminders have not worked. The written reminder is subject to destruction. What if the covenant is written in the very beings of the people? Will that work?
For many years Christians have looked at those verses in chapter 31 and seen Christ. Jesus is said to have instituted the (or at least a) new covenant, the one that would be written on our hearts. And so we are people of the New Covenant (there are churches that have chosen that as their name).
God is still faithful to the covenants. God's people....well sometimes (often?) we struggle, we miss the mark [sometimes our aim seems 180 degrees off]. Thankfully the God who calls us into the covenant also pledges "for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more".
About 240 years ago John Wesley, the founder of Methodism (and so one of the Spiritual ancestors of the United Church of Canada), developed a service of covenanting. The idea of Wesley's covenanting service is that it is a chance to rededicate ourselves to live as people of the covenant, to live as people who seek to follow the Way of Christ, to live as citizens of God's Kingdom. Over time it became common in Methodism to mark the beginning of the New Year with the Covenanting Service.
Reign of Christ Sunday is a day when we remind ourselves that we are citizens of a different Kingdom, when we remind ourselves that we follow a different law. It is also a time of transition, the end of one liturgical year with Advent 1 (which is next Sunday) marking the beginning of a New Year. And so it seems appropriate that this Sunday when we talk about the covenant that is written on our hearts we will take time to join in the tradition of our Methodist forebears (and current sisters and brothers) and re-affirm our commitment to live as people of the covenant.
Is it really written on our hearts? How can we tell?
--Gord
Early Thoughts: How many of us have been asked to do something and was sure the WRONG person was being approached? This happens all the time in Scripture.
Amos was merely a vinedresser.
Jeremiah was a child.
Moses (it seems) had a speech impediment.
Peter was a rough and tumble fishermen.
Isaiah was painfully aware of his lack of holiness.
And yet all of them are called to take part in the Mission Dei, God's Mission. All of them are made worthy and able to do what they are called to do.
Isaiah is int the temple at at time of transition. The King is dead. The Assyrians are a clear and present danger to the little kingdom of Judah. The future is far from certain. Or even worse, what appears most certain is a less than positive future.
And then Isiah has a vision. Technically this is best described as atheophany, a manifestation of God. In the midst of this experience Isaiah realizes that he is doomed because he is so unworthy (and from a people who are so unworthy) to be in the presence of and see Yahweh Sabaoth, the Lord of Hosts.
But God has another answer.
God purifies Isaiah's lips (it is the lips that Isaiah specifically mentions in his lament of being unworthy) with a live coal. Fire is a common purifying element, albeit a rather painful one (sometimes God preparing us for service is a difficult, even painful process). [The purifying nature of fire is in fact where the practice of burning heretics at the stake is reputed to have come from] Then when God asks who will step forward Isaiah feels ready to go.
What will it take for you to know that God has made you worthy? What will it take for you to be sure God has chosen the right person for the task?
--Gord
This being the first Sunday of the month we will be celebrating the sacrament of Communion.
The Scripture reading this week is Jonah 1:1-17; 3:1-10; 4:1-11. But it may be helpful to read the whole book, it is not that long all together -- in fact this reading is only missing the 10 verses of chapter 2.
The Sermon title is Love Your Enemies
Early Thoughts: How do you move past a tribal God? How do we love our enemies and accept that God also loves our enemies?
Jonah is a great story to explore these questions. Because it is about far more than the big fish (the word whale never actually appears in the text).
Jonah is called to witness to the people of Nineveh. It is only slight hyperbole to say this is akin to a mid-20th century Jew being asked to go witness to the guards at Auschwitz. Nineveh is the seat of the Assyrian empire:
If you visit the British Museum, you can see spectacular wall reliefs depicting Assyrian sieges. The famous siege of Lachish
shows multiple images of Judeans being impaled, and stacks of Judeans
heads (yes, disembodied heads) that were counted by Assyrian scribes,
presumably for a pay per head policy with the soldiers. Archaeologists
discovered this relief in Sennacherib’s palace in Nineveh (you can read
about them more about Sennacherib in 2 Kings 18-21). [SOURCE]
And so Jonah makes an entirely logical decision. Rather than walk to a place where he is likely to be slaughtered (what ARE you thinking of God?) he goes the exact opposite direction. Then there is a storm at sea, Jonah takes the blame, gets thrown overboard and is swallowed (through God's grace and protection) by a large fish. That is the part of the story we know best.
After three days in the fish belly Jonah relents. And he goes to Nineveh to preach their imminent destruction, something I have always thought Jonah is looking forward to watching.
But there is a problem. The king and people of Nineveh take Jonah seriously. VERY seriously. And so they put on sackcloth and ashes and show that they truly repent of their wickedness. Upon which God takes their repentance as valid and chooses not to destroy the city and slaughter the people.
Poor Jonah. He is most distressed at the very idea that God would show mercy to those horrible Assyrians.
Which brings us to our opening question. How do you move beyond a tribal God?
For most of the Jewish Scriptures God is, essentially, seen as a tribal God -- The God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, the God of Israel. This is the God who actively fights for the tribe, as in the story of the Exodus. But over time a new understanding of God erupts. Most often see it in the writings that come during and after the Exile, when the people discover (almost as a surprise) that even though the temple has been destroyed God is still with them.
They re-understand God as much more the a tribal God, they start to see God as, well, God, the God not just of Israel but of the people. And I have to believe that in some ways this forces them to start to wonder how they should see other people.
Then along comes Jesus saying:
You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in
heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends
rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? (Matthew 5:43-47)
Once we see that God is not just the God of our tribe, our people, those who are like us then we are forced to admit that maybe we should love them. Even if for no other reason than because God loves them. In this month when we pause to remember, when we remind ourselves Never Again, when we recall the horrible cost of hatred and fear of the other, it is good to remind ourselves that we have moved past a tribal God. And that God calls us to a higher way of living:
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. (Matthew 5:48)
Early Thoughts: There was a famine. Nobody had enough. How dare this man ask for some of the last little bit of food the widow had to feed herself and her son?
This passage is a pair of stories about God providing in the midst of true scarcity. As I read them I am reminded backwards to manna and quail in the desert and forwards to the feeding of the multitude in the Gospels. I am also reminded of the Jesus who tells his followers to stop worrying and to live with (through? on?) faith and trust.
Do we trust in God's abundance?
In a world where there are always people telling us that we lack something, that there is not enough to go around, do we trust God enough to use up the little bit that we have left?
The widow would have been justified in telling Elijah to get lost. That is the reaction we would expect isn't it? But for some reason (we are not told why) she listens to Elijah who tells her to let go of her fear and is blessed as a result.
IT makes no sense. But sometimes the thing to do when we are sure we are running out is to share it. You never know what might happen.
