McKnight United Methodist Church Pastor, Bruce Stollings

April 8, 2018

Psalm 139:1-18; Genesis 33:1-15

We welcome our preacher, Rev. Dr. William B. Randolph. Will is Director of Pastoral Care at Longwood of Oakmont (A Presbyterian SeniorCare Network Community). He served until recently as Director of Aging and Older Adult Ministries for the General Board of Discipleship of the United Methodist Church (based in Nashville, IN). Will and Pastor Bruce attended seminary together at Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington DC (and played many a game of basketball together). Will is a member of the Western North Carolina Conference (as is our incoming District Superintendent, Rev. Dawn M;. Hand), and will hold his Charge Conference affiliation with McKnight while living in Western Pennsylvania.

OLD TESTAMENT Psalm 139:1-18

1 O Lord, you have searched me and known me.
2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
   you discern my thoughts from far away.
3 You search out my path and my lying down,
   and are acquainted with all my ways.
4 Even before a word is on my tongue,
   O Lord, you know it completely.
5 You hem me in, behind and before,
   and lay your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
   it is so high that I cannot attain it.
7 Where can I go from your spirit?
   Or where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I ascend to heaven, you are there;
   if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there.
9 If I take the wings of the morning
   and settle at the farthest limits of the sea,
10 even there your hand shall lead me,
   and your right hand shall hold me fast.
11 If I say, ‘Surely the darkness shall cover me,
   and the light around me become night’,
12 even the darkness is not dark to you;
   the night is as bright as the day,
   for darkness is as light to you.
13 For it was you who formed my inward parts;
   you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
   Wonderful are your works;
that I know very well.
15   My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
   intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
16 Your eyes beheld my unformed substance.
In your book were written
   all the days that were formed for me,
   when none of them as yet existed.
17 How weighty to me are your thoughts, O God!
   How vast is the sum of them!
18 I try to count them—they are more than the sand;
   I come to the end—I am still with you.

OLD TESTAMENT Genesis 33:1-15

1 Now Jacob looked up and saw Esau coming, and four hundred men with him. So he divided the children among Leah and Rachel and the two maids. 2 He put the maids with their children in front, then Leah with her children, and Rachel and Joseph last of all. 3 He himself went on ahead of them, bowing himself to the ground seven times, until he came near his brother.

4 But Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept. 5 When Esau looked up and saw the women and children, he said, ‘Who are these with you?’ Jacob said, ‘The children whom God has graciously given your servant.’ 6 Then the maids drew near, they and their children, and bowed down; 7 Leah likewise and her children drew near and bowed down; and finally Joseph and Rachel drew near, and they bowed down. 8 Esau said, ‘What do you mean by all this company that I met?’ Jacob answered, ‘To find favor with my lord.’ 9 But Esau said, ‘I have enough, my brother; keep what you have for yourself.’10 Jacob said, ‘No, please; if I find favor with you, then accept my present from my hand; for truly to see your face is like seeing the face of God—since you have received me with such favor. 11 Please accept my gift that is brought to you, because God has dealt graciously with me, and because I have everything I want.’ So he urged him, and he took it.

12 Then Esau said, ‘Let us journey on our way, and I will go alongside you.’ 13 But Jacob said to him, ‘My lord knows that the children are frail and that the flocks and herds, which are nursing, are a care to me; and if they are overdriven for one day, all the flocks will die. 14 Let my lord pass on ahead of his servant, and I will lead on slowly, according to the pace of the cattle that are before me and according to the pace of the children, until I come to my lord in Seir.’

15 So Esau said, ‘Let me leave with you some of the people who are with me.’ But he said, ‘Why should my lord be so kind to me?’

March 29 - April 1, 2018

Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Sunday Thoughts

A clergy colleague recently posted an interesting photo on Facebook:

Making whimsical use of the 1997 hit song "Tumpthumping" by the British band Chumbabwumba, this is again a really simplistic, but yet accurate, statement about Jesus' death and resurrection (which the hit song really is not even remotely about). The multiple forces-- local and cosmic, immediate and historical, contextual and universal--conspired not only to knock Jesus down--but to knock Jesus out. Death is usually the final reality. But as the Bible reminds us (Song of Solomon 8:6b): "love is strong as death, passion fierce as the grave". Jesus, in The Passion narrative, went to the cross and demonstrated this.

We know that this is true. Those who have died are still with us, in our hearts, in our minds, in our actions and priorities and decisions, because their love for us and our love for them, expressed in life on Earth, is love that is still active, still working, still guiding. The eternal love poured out by the one who IS love incarnate, is somehow even that much more powerful--and death couldn't hold it, or him. And because he got knocked down, but got up again, so can we, as we share in that triumph of love being as strong as death, passion as fierce as the grave.

And we truly are reminded of just what a "comeback" this is if we go through all of emotions and reminders of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter. From never ending love promised and symbols to keep engaging with to affirm that (Holy Communion), to denial and betrayal in the most vulnerable time, to mock trial and the most painful execution possible, to utter despair, to complete restoration in ways impossible and liberating and forgiving--all of this happens in those days, and our best attempts to recall and commemorate and celebrate them. It's bigger than any of us can fully comprehend--but what we can try to comprehend is love that doesn't let us go, no matter how much we try to push it away.

Read the "Passion Narrative". Matthew 21-28. Or Mark 11-16. Or Luke 19-24. It's the story that makes our stories possible.

march 25, 2018

“Desire and Obsession”

Psalm 51:1-17, 2 Samuel 11:1-26, Matthew 5:27-30; 21:1-11

Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan's book about that last week of Jesus' life (fittingly called "The Last Week") begins the way we usually begin that week in our church life--with Palm Sunday. Jesus enters Jerusalem from the east, at the beginning of the Passover festival (when the Jews celebrate Moses leading them from their slavery in Egypt--the biggest commemoration in their faith practice) to the cheering of the excited and energized crowd. It's almost like he's a conquering king, and it is likely that some of the crowd were cheering because that's how they saw him--as the one who would restore their rightful place as a free and sovereign nation, no longer occupied and ruled over by Rome. That he was riding a donkey was a fulfillment of a prophecy from their scriptures, from Zechariah 9:9: "Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem! Lo, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he, humble and riding on a donkey". The stage seems to be set for a conquering king.

At the same time, another procession enters Jerusalem from the west. Since it is Passover, and many many more faithful and devout Jews will be in their holy city of Jerusalem for the week-long festival, Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor, enters, accompanied by soldiers, and cavalry, and all of the trappings that demonstrate power. They are there to "keep the peace"--to remind the Jews that even though they are permitted to celebrate this festival of their religious heritage--a festival commemorating their freedom from an oppressive government--that they shouldn't get any bright ideas about seeking to gain their freedom this time.

"Lust" is not just a sexual thing, although it often is, and that is often the kind of lust that derails people (it led to Bill Clinton's impeachment). There is also the lust for power, and the desire run amuck to assert power and gain power at all costs, no matter who is hurt and who becomes "collateral damage". To "define" lust as Frederick Buechner did--as "the craving for salt of a person who is dying of thirst"--gets at the sheer mania of this obsession. Why, if one is dying of thirst, would one crave salt? Because the desire for what one lusts after is all out of proportion to good sense, clear thinking, and even physical health.

The Roman Empire had a lust for power--hence the desire to conquer the world. And the Roman Empire is no longer ruling over the world, nor could it even be called an empire in 2018. Although their desire for their freedom from Rome made sense, and although they saw rightly this action of Jesus as the action of their conquering King, they too were caught up in desire for power--they wanted what Rome had. What Jesus, their King demonstrated in this act was the very opposite of lust--that desire which seeks to dominate others in whatever way. "Triumphant and victorious is he" was celebrated--"humble and riding on a donkey" seemed to have been ignored. And when the rest of the week involved Jesus NOT seeking to assert power, and dominance, it became clear that he was not going to overthrow the power of Rome. He went to his death--at the hands of Rome--meekly, submissively, demonstrating forgiveness for those who clearly treated him horribly in every possible way. His way was clearly not a lust for power.

But his way was--and is--the way of a kingdom, and of a king--the King of all creation, and the Kingdom of God. A king who rules in hearts and changes them--who doesn't conquer by coercion but by love. A king whose giving of his life is for the life of the world; a king whose defeat and death triumphed over death itself, and gives that triumph to all who choose to receive it. Rather than lust for power and influence and dominance over others, Jesus models--and teaches--love for God and neighbor, which is stronger than death, and certainly produces more willing alliances.

Palm Sunday is indeed about lust--and the love that is more powerful, even when it doesn't look like it.

PSALTER Psalm 51:1-17

1 Have mercy on me, O God,
   according to your steadfast love;
according to your abundant mercy
   blot out my transgressions.
2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
   and cleanse me from my sin.

3 For I know my transgressions,
   and my sin is ever before me.
4 Against you, you alone, have I sinned,
   and done what is evil in your sight,
so that you are justified in your sentence
   and blameless when you pass judgment.
5 Indeed, I was born guilty,
   a sinner when my mother conceived me.

6 You desire truth in the inward being;
   therefore teach me wisdom in my secret heart.
7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
   wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
8 Let me hear joy and gladness;
   let the bones that you have crushed rejoice.
9 Hide your face from my sins,
   and blot out all my iniquities.

10 Create in me a clean heart, O God,
   and put a new and right spirit within me.
11 Do not cast me away from your presence,
   and do not take your holy spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
   and sustain in me a willing spirit.

13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
   and sinners will return to you.
14 Deliver me from bloodshed, O God,
   O God of my salvation,
   and my tongue will sing aloud of your deliverance.

15 O Lord, open my lips,
   and my mouth will declare your praise.
16 For you have no delight in sacrifice;
   if I were to give a burnt-offering, you would not be pleased.
17 The sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit;
   a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

OLD TESTAMENT 2 Samuel 11:1-26

1In the spring of the year, the time when kings go out to battle, David sent Joab with his officers and all Israel with him; they ravaged the Ammonites, and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem.

2It happened, late one afternoon, when David rose from his couch and was walking about on the roof of the king’s house, that he saw from the roof a woman bathing; the woman was very beautiful. 3David sent someone to inquire about the woman. It was reported, ‘This is Bathsheba daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite.’ 4So David sent messengers to fetch her, and she came to him, and he lay with her. (Now she was purifying herself after her period.) Then she returned to her house. 5The woman conceived; and she sent and told David, ‘I am pregnant.’

6So David sent word to Joab, ‘Send me Uriah the Hittite.’ And Joab sent Uriah to David. 7When Uriah came to him, David asked how Joab and the people fared, and how the war was going. 8Then David said to Uriah, ‘Go down to your house, and wash your feet.’ Uriah went out of the king’s house, and there followed him a present from the king. 9But Uriah slept at the entrance of the king’s house with all the servants of his lord, and did not go down to his house. 10When they told David, ‘Uriah did not go down to his house’, David said to Uriah, ‘You have just come from a journey. Why did you not go down to your house?’ 11Uriah said to David, ‘The ark and Israel and Judah remain in booths; and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are camping in the open field; shall I then go to my house, to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? As you live, and as your soul lives, I will not do such a thing.’ 12Then David said to Uriah, ‘Remain here today also, and tomorrow I will send you back.’ So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day. On the next day, 13David invited him to eat and drink in his presence and made him drunk; and in the evening he went out to lie on his couch with the servants of his lord, but he did not go down to his house.

14In the morning David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah. 15In the letter he wrote, ‘Set Uriah in the forefront of the hardest fighting, and then draw back from him, so that he may be struck down and die.’ 16As Joab was besieging the city, he assigned Uriah to the place where he knew there were valiant warriors. 17The men of the city came out and fought with Joab; and some of the servants of David among the people fell. Uriah the Hittite was killed as well. 18Then Joab sent and told David all the news about the fighting; 19and he instructed the messenger, ‘When you have finished telling the king all the news about the fighting,20then, if the king’s anger rises, and if he says to you, “Why did you go so near the city to fight? Did you not know that they would shoot from the wall? 21Who killed Abimelech son of Jerubbaal? Did not a woman throw an upper millstone on him from the wall, so that he died at Thebez? Why did you go so near the wall?” then you shall say, “Your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead too.” ’

22So the messenger went, and came and told David all that Joab had sent him to tell. 23The messenger said to David, ‘The men gained an advantage over us, and came out against us in the field; but we drove them back to the entrance of the gate. 24Then the archers shot at your servants from the wall; some of the king’s servants are dead; and your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.’ 25David said to the messenger, ‘Thus you shall say to Joab, “Do not let this matter trouble you, for the sword devours now one and now another; press your attack on the city, and overthrow it.” And encourage him.’

26When the wife of Uriah heard that her husband was dead, she made lamentation for him. 27When the mourning was over, David sent and brought her to his house, and she became his wife, and bore him a son.

But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord.

GOSPEL Matthew 5:27-30

27‘You have heard that it was said, “You shall not commit adultery.”28But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away; it is better for you to lose one of your members than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away; it is better for you to lose one of your members than for your whole body to go into hell.

GOSPEL Matthew 21:1-11

1When they had come near Jerusalem and had reached Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, 2saying to them, ‘Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me. 3If anyone says anything to you, just say this, “The Lord needs them.” And he will send them immediately.’ 4This took place to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet, saying,
5 ‘Tell the daughter of Zion,
Look, your king is coming to you,
   humble, and mounted on a donkey,
     and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’
6The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them; 7they brought the donkey and the colt, and put their cloaks on them, and he sat on them. 8A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9The crowds that went ahead of him and that followed were shouting,
‘Hosanna to the Son of David!
   Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the highest heaven!’
10When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in turmoil, asking, ‘Who is this?’ 11The crowds were saying, ‘This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee.’

March 18, 2018

“The Insatiable Appetite”

Psalm 145:8-21, Genesis 25:29-34, Luke 16:19-31

A friend of mine had a Sleeve Gastrectomy procedure in November (interestingly enough, before Thanksgiving), the surgery that makes your stomach smaller so as to eat less and lose weight. So far it's been a 60-pound weight loss. And some of how it happens (the resulting weight loss, not particularly the surgery itself) is very interesting to me, particularly as it applies to a sermon titled "The Insatiable Appetite", about the deadly sin of gluttony.

I, as many of you know, enjoy food. And I am ever ready to "blame" it on my Mom being an amazing cook--ask anyone who has eaten at her table; she really is amazing. So since it was always so tasty, I learned rather easily to really enjoy it. And since we were often enough reminded of those whose plates weren't as full, we were reminded not to waste food. "If you put it on your plate, don't waste it--eat it!" Somehow I failed to get clear that I didn't have to put so much on my plate.

My friend has a similar background, with similar results. And yet, now, after the surgery, not as much food can go in. Even if more is desired, it just won't fit. My friend feels full long before a big plate of food is consumed--and so has learned NOT to fill up the plate. We were at a restaurant recently that had a buffet, that sounded pretty enticing to me (you can REFILL your plate!), but my friend knew that the price would be outrageous since there was no way to consume enough food to make if worth the price. So not only is my friend not able to eat as much, my friend is learning why eating too much was never a good idea--and that other choices about food, and about other things, are much wiser, and much more healthy.

It is challenging, getting a handle on gluttony. It seems to me that of all of the Twelve Step groups, Overeaters Anonymous has the hardest task. The other groups are about addictions that it is actually possible for people to live without. It is possible to live without alcohol--there are people who never drink, perhaps never have, and ideally when one is a recovering alcoholic you never do. Sex addiction--it is possible to live without sex. Priests and nuns--those who take a vow of celibacy, live without it (and despite the priests' sex scandals, most do live without it). Narcotics Anonymous--again, like Alcoholics Anonymous, in recovery, one strives to live without such drugs. In all of these cases, with all of these addictions, NOT having the substance/behavior that is the addiction is the desired approach--not moderation. But Overeaters Anonymous? You really CAN'T live without food, without sustenance. It has to be about moderation. So how to work that program? Abstinence is not really an option, or even a healthy behavior--whereas with the others, abstinence is the desired behavior.

And yet, with all of these, the addictive substance/behavior is really not the disease as much as the symptom of a deeper disease. The deeper issue is spiritual. Frederick Buechner's quote is right on: "A glutton is one who raids the icebox for a cure for spiritual malnutrition". We know how it works. The "comfort food" after a bad day. The massive meal to fill up the emptiness of other parts of life. The filling ourselves up to combat what's missing in life. Perhaps the point that it gets to is making food our god because we're disconnected from God. Jesus is the Bread of Heaven, whose desire for us is that we be filled with God.

In the movie "Agnes of God," Agnes is a naive young novice (training to be a nun) who is frightened when she begins putting on weight because she's going through puberty. She has heard that Jesus said in Matthew 19:14 "suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven". The King James Version translation--published in 1611, over 400 years ago, does indeed say that. So Agnes wants to suffer like a child, and not get too big, so she will be able to squeeze into heaven. And therefore she hasn't been eating, except the bread at communion. The Mother Superior says, "But my child, that bread doesn't have the minimum daily requirement of anything!" "Of God," Agnes says. "Yes," said the Mother Superior. "Of God."

PSALTER     Psalm 145:8-21
8 The Lord is gracious and merciful,
   slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 The Lord is good to all,
   and his compassion is over all that he has made.
10 All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord,
   and all your faithful shall bless you.
11 They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom,
   and tell of your power,
12 to make known to all people your mighty deeds,
   and the glorious splendour of your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
   and your dominion endures throughout all generations.
The Lord is faithful in all his words,
   and gracious in all his deeds.
14 The Lord upholds all who are falling,
   and raises up all who are bowed down.
15 The eyes of all look to you,
   and you give them their food in due season.
16 You open your hand,
   satisfying the desire of every living thing.
17 The Lord is just in all his ways,
   and kind in all his doings.
18 The Lord is near to all who call on him,
   to all who call on him in truth.
19 He fulfils the desire of all who fear him;
   he also hears their cry, and saves them.
20 The Lord watches over all who love him,
   but all the wicked he will destroy.
21 My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord,
   and all flesh will bless his holy name for ever and ever.

OLD TESTAMENT Genesis 25:29-34

29Once when Jacob was cooking a stew, Esau came in from the field, and he was famished. 30Esau said to Jacob, ‘Let me eat some of that red stuff, for I am famished!’ (Therefore he was called Edom.) 31Jacob said, ‘First sell me your birthright.’ 32Esau said, ‘I am about to die; of what use is a birthright to me?’ 33Jacob said, ‘Swear to me first.’ So he swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob. 34Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew, and he ate and drank, and rose and went his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright.

GOSPEL Luke 16:19-31

19‘There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. 20And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, 21who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man’s table; even the dogs would come and lick his sores. 22The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. 23In Hades, where he was being tormented, he looked up and saw Abraham far away with Lazarus by his side. 24He called out, “Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in agony in these flames.” 25But Abraham said, “Child, remember that during your lifetime you received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in agony. 26Besides all this, between you and us a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who might want to pass from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from there to us.” 27He said, “Then, father, I beg you to send him to my father’s house— 28for I have five brothers—that he may warn them, so that they will not also come into this place of torment.” 29Abraham replied, “They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to them.” 30He said, “No, father Abraham; but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.” 31He said to him, “If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.” ’

march 11, 2018

“More! More!”

Jeremiah 6:10-21; Luke 12:16-21; Matthew 25:41-45

I am not an economist. I know very little about economics. But I do know that for most of my life, I was taught that the two overarching economic systems were capitalism and communism. And as someone from the USA, it was always made clear that capitalism was far superior, because there was no limit on how much money one could make, and YOU made it, and got it, and got to keep--and use--much of it. Communism meant that "the state" determined who could have what, and one's individual effort didn't accrue to that individual.

There is way more to it than this, and it's a whole lot more nuanced and complicated. But in broad sweeping terms, this is kind of how it was explained to me. And so, when Michael Douglas's character Gordon Gekko in the 1987 movie "Wall Street" insisted that "Greed is good" that fits with this assertion about capitalism's superiority. Here is the full quote from a speech that Gekko gave:

"The point is, ladies and gentleman, that greed -- for lack of a better word -- is good.

Greed is right.

Greed works.

Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit.

Greed, in all of its forms -- greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge -- has marked the upward surge of mankind.

And greed -- you mark my words -- will not only save Teldar Paper, but that other malfunctioning corporation called the USA."

But how is it possible, in that kind of a competitive system, that everyone wins? Is greed really good for everybody? There is a quote from an professor of economics in another movie that might get at it--"There are two kinds of people in business--the quick and the dead". There have to be winners and losers if the whole system is built on competition. If your store sells something to someone, then therefore mine doesn't. And plenty of small towns were destroyed by WallMart, who moved in, undercut the "Mom and Pop" stores and priced them out of business, and then decided they'd made a bad investment and moved out, leaving the town desolate. Sounds like WallMart's greed ended up messing up everybody except WallMart. Even lower prices aren't worth the destruction of a community.

This is not an attempt to downgrade capitalism and recommend communism. That system also has its problems. Maybe rather this is to consider that all of life isn't based on economics, and all of the wealth--and accumulations from that wealth--isn't the measure of a life. All of the "stuff" that you accumulate doesn't fill the God-shaped hole. Frederick Buechner, in his succinct and insightful way, nails it: " Avarice, greed, concupiscence, and so forth are all based on the mathematical truism that the more you get, the more you have. The remark of Jesus that it is more blessed to give than to receive (Acts 20:35) is based on the human truth that the more you give away in love, the more you are. It is not just for the sake of other people that Jesus tells us to give rather than get, but for our own sakes too."

OLD TESTAMENT Jeremiah 6:10-21

10 To whom shall I speak and give warning,
   that they may hear?
See, their ears are closed,
   they cannot listen.
The word of the Lord is to them an object of scorn;
   they take no pleasure in it.
11 But I am full of the wrath of the Lord;
   I am weary of holding it in.

Pour it out on the children in the street,
   and on the gatherings of young men as well;
both husband and wife shall be taken,
   the old folk and the very aged.
12 Their houses shall be turned over to others,
   their fields and wives together;
for I will stretch out my hand
   against the inhabitants of the land,

says the Lord.

13 For from the least to the greatest of them,
   everyone is greedy for unjust gain;
and from prophet to priest,
   everyone deals falsely.
14 They have treated the wound of my people carelessly,
   saying, ‘Peace, peace’,
   when there is no peace.
15 They acted shamefully, they committed abomination;
   yet they were not ashamed,
   they did not know how to blush.
Therefore they shall fall among those who fall;
   at the time that I punish them, they shall be overthrown,

says the Lord.
16 Thus says the Lord:
Stand at the crossroads, and look,
   and ask for the ancient paths,
where the good way lies; and walk in it,
   and find rest for your souls.
But they said, ‘We will not walk in it.’
17 Also I raised up sentinels for you:
   ‘Give heed to the sound of the trumpet!’
But they said, ‘We will not give heed.’
18 Therefore hear, O nations,
   and know, O congregation, what will happen to them.
19 Hear, O earth; I am going to bring disaster on this people,
   the fruit of their schemes,
because they have not given heed to my words;
   and as for my teaching, they have rejected it.
20 Of what use to me is frankincense that comes from Sheba,
   or sweet cane from a distant land?
Your burnt-offerings are not acceptable,
   nor are your sacrifices pleasing to me.
21 Therefore thus says the Lord:
See, I am laying before this people
   stumbling-blocks against which they shall stumble;
parents and children together,
   neighbor and friend shall perish.

GOSPEL Luke 12:16-21

16Then he told them a parable: ‘The land of a rich man produced abundantly. 17And he thought to himself, “What should I do, for I have no place to store my crops?” 18Then he said, “I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.” 20But God said to him, “You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?” 21So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich towards God.’

GOSPEL Matthew 25:41-45

41Then he will say to those at his left hand, “You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; 42for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.” 44Then they also will answer, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?” 45Then he will answer them, “Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.” 46And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.’

march 4, 2018

“So What Is The Point, After All?”

Ecclesiastes 1:2-11; Job 3:1-26

I have a friend whose sunny disposition is constant. No matter what he's been going through, when asked "How are you?" he inevitably responds "Never had a bad day in my life!" Objectively, there is no way that is entirely true. His wife, in particular, has had a number of very challenging health problems, and as he has aged (in his 80s now) he has had some of his own. But he's the kind of guy that, rather than his attitude being irritating, it's contagious, and it's genuine. And I have thought, more than once, "I bet he's never been bored".

The sin of "sloth" isn't exactly about being bored. It's not exactly about being lazy either. It's actually best understood by the Latin word "acedia", which is a state not as much of not wanting to do anything, as not even being able to rally oneself TO do anything. It's not that you don't want to; it's more like you simply can't. You are in such a state that nothing is interesting; nothing is exciting; nothing rouses enough interest to engage. It's a doldrums that is practically paralyzing (metaphorically).

The two passages from the Old Testament both depict this engagingly.

Job 3 is Job's own monologue/soliloquy, as he contemplates the utter devastation he has recently experienced--in rapid order--in his life. His family has all been killed in accidents; his livelihood has been destroyed; he has gone from the picture of perfect health to extremely sick. Anything that could possibly be good had been better than good--now anything that could possibly go wrong has gone horrendously wrong. So Job curses the day he was born. He doesn't blame God, but rather wonders why he had been allowed to live, only to have to go through all of this awfulness. We can understand how he feels like he doesn't have the "oomph" to do anything after everything has fallen apart. This isn't "boredom" or "laziness"--this is someone who has been so beaten down by what has happened that he is in despair. He can't pull himself up by his own bootstraps--he has lost his boots along with everything else. The energy to rally is entirely depleted.

We don't get quite that same sense in Ecclesiastes 1 that the person speaking has gone through such a life-obliterating ordeal. Quoheleth, "The Preacher", doesn't give us the same kind of detail that we get in Job; rather we get someone musing on life in general, on how it all seems to come to nothing. It's all a chasing after the wind. It's a world-weary tone he sets here, as--like the guy in the Farmer's Insurance ads--"he knows a thing or two, because he's seen a thing or two". The beginning of verse 8 sums it up for him: " All things are wearisome; more than one can express". Tough place to be in (although he works it out eventually to be more positive about things as the book of Ecclesiastes continues).

What is the remedy? Staying in the state of "acedia" is not the desired goal for Job, or Quoheleth. It certainly shouldn't be for us. As we mentioned last week, Job's so-called "friends" want him to own up to his own wrongdoing as earning him God's punishment--why else would such awful stuff have happened to him. Job maintains his innocence, and in the way that they are accusing him they are indeed wrong and he is indeed right. /But even if he has earned this, just acknowledging it doesn't fix the problem; because it has not been his evil that brought this about it doesn't make it any less acute. And as I said, one's own bootstraps are of no value here. Rallying by sheer force of personality is not an option.

"There is a balm in Gilead," the song goes. There is renewal through the healing power of God. It is not instantaneous, at least not usually. It takes time, and the healing is not so complete that one forgets the state of "acedia"--in fact, the remembering of it helps in appreciating its absence. Healing is often a long road, but can be a steady one. Friends unlike Job's can help. Remembering the little things that are evidence of God's goodness in the midst of all that can go wrong in life can help. But finally and ultimately, it is a work of God--a work of God in us. We have to be willing to trust God at work in us, even if it doesn't always feel like it is happening nearly as obviously as we wish it would.

OLD TESTAMENT Ecclesiastes 1:2-11

2 Vanity of vanities, says the Teacher,
   vanity of vanities! All is vanity.
3 What do people gain from all the toil
   at which they toil under the sun?
4 A generation goes, and a generation comes,
   but the earth remains for ever.
5 The sun rises and the sun goes down,
   and hurries to the place where it rises.
6 The wind blows to the south,
   and goes round to the north;
round and round goes the wind,
   and on its circuits the wind returns.
7 All streams run to the sea,
   but the sea is not full;
to the place where the streams flow,
   there they continue to flow.
8 All things are wearisome;
   more than one can express;
the eye is not satisfied with seeing,
   or the ear filled with hearing.
9 What has been is what will be,
   and what has been done is what will be done;
   there is nothing new under the sun.
10 Is there a thing of which it is said,
   ‘See, this is new’?
It has already been,
   in the ages before us.
11 The people of long ago are not remembered,
   nor will there be any remembrance
of people yet to come
   by those who come after them.

OLD TESTAMENT Job 3:1-26

1After this Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth.

2Job said:
3 ‘Let the day perish on which I was born,
   and the night that said,
   “A man-child is conceived.”
4 Let that day be darkness!
   May God above not seek it,
   or light shine on it.
5 Let gloom and deep darkness claim it.
   Let clouds settle upon it;
   let the blackness of the day terrify it.
6 That night—let thick darkness seize it!
   let it not rejoice among the days of the year;
   let it not come into the number of the months.
7 Yes, let that night be barren;
   let no joyful cry be heard in it.
8 Let those curse it who curse the Sea,
   those who are skilled to rouse up Leviathan.
9 Let the stars of its dawn be dark;
   let it hope for light, but have none;
   may it not see the eyelids of the morning—
10 because it did not shut the doors of my mother’s womb,
   and hide trouble from my eyes.
11 ‘Why did I not die at birth,
   come forth from the womb and expire?
12 Why were there knees to receive me,
   or breasts for me to suck?
13 Now I would be lying down and quiet;
   I would be asleep; then I would be at rest
14 with kings and counselors of the earth
   who rebuild ruins for themselves,
15 or with princes who have gold,
   who fill their houses with silver.
16 Or why was I not buried like a stillborn child,
   like an infant that never sees the light?
17 There the wicked cease from troubling,
   and there the weary are at rest.
18 There the prisoners are at ease together;
   they do not hear the voice of the taskmaster.
19 The small and the great are there,
   and the slaves are free from their masters.
20 ‘Why is light given to one in misery,
   and life to the bitter in soul,
21 who long for death, but it does not come,
   and dig for it more than for hidden treasures;
22 who rejoice exceedingly,
   and are glad when they find the grave?
23 Why is light given to one who cannot see the way,
   whom God has fenced in?
24 For my sighing comes like my bread,
   and my groanings are poured out like water.
25 Truly the thing that I fear comes upon me,
   and what I dread befalls me.
26 I am not at ease, nor am I quiet;
   I have no rest; but trouble comes.’

february 25, 2018

“That Ticks Me Off!”

Psalm 112; Job 32:1-5; Luke 15:25-32

As most of you know, I am a baseball fan, and in this town, that means I am a Pirate fan. I tend to be optimistic about what the Pirates might be able to do before a season starts.

As of late, however, I seem to be a notable exception. After the trades of Andrew McCutchen and Gerrit Cole, much of the fan base can be best characterized as "angry". Most of the anger seems to be aimed at Bob Nutting, the majority owner, who is seen as "cheap"--only interested in making money and not actually being willing to spend some of the profits on better players so as to put the best team on the field. That anger has resulted in a petition started by a fan on change.org insisting that Major League Baseball force Nutting to sell the Pirates--and as I write this over 60,000 have signed it. Anger. Palpable, widespread anger.

It can be argued that anger was the decisive factor in the most recent Presidential election--people angry that "Washington" has not been paying attention to the concerns of "regular folk"--and so the most non-Washington candidate won. And now, with that candidate seeming to continue the same ignoring of the concerns of those who voted for him, THAT anger seems to be resulting in "special election" defeats of the party of that President, even in places where he won by huge margins less than two years ago. Anger is a huge motivator, and in some ways it is good that anger can serve that function.

And yet, anger is unquestionably a bad thing at times. Often the mass shootings we seem to be plagued with in this nation are done by those who are angry--unhinged, clearly, but clearly expressing anger by doing them. Anger can be dangerous, to others as well as to ourselves. And anger as a predominant emotion can completely overwhelm reasonable thought. William Shakespeare's masterpiece "Othello" is about someone so overwhelmed with envy--and egged on by someone exploiting that--that his expressions of anger result in him killing the wife whom he loves.

Anger has its appropriate places. And it also has a whole lot of inappropriate places, and those are the ones that are sinful.

The passage from Job hints at some misplaced anger by one of Job's "friends" towards other of Job's "friends". The passage from Luke is part of a parable of a welcoming, forgiving father, and describes an older brother whose anger is misplaced. The misplacing is the problem most of the time. The degree to which it gets out of control is also a problem most of the time. The energy that is in anger needs to be better channeled than it often is, in ways that are productive, and not self-centered, and not destructive--of life and/or property, and of relationships.

OLD TESTAMENT Job 32:1-5

1So these three men ceased to answer Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes. 2Then Elihu son of Barachel the Buzite, of the family of Ram, became angry. He was angry at Job because he justified himself rather than God; 3he was angry also at Job’s three friends because they had found no answer, though they had declared Job to be in the wrong. 4Now Elihu had waited to speak to Job, because they were older than he. 5But when Elihu saw that there was no answer in the mouths of these three men, he became angry.

GOSPEL Luke 15:25-32

25 ‘Now his elder son was in the field; and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing. 26He called one of the slaves and asked what was going on. 27He replied, “Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he has got him back safe and sound.” 28Then he became angry and refused to go in. His father came out and began to plead with him. 29But he answered his father, “Listen! For all these years I have been working like a slave for you, and I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends.30But when this son of yours came back, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him!” 31Then the father said to him, “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours.32But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.” ’

february 18, 2018

“Gimme What You've Got”

Psalm 37:1-11; Genesis 4:1-16; Matthew 20:1-16

Our sermon series during Lent looks at some of the things in our lives we'd probably rather not look at--which is what the season of Lent is about, really, in looking at what God calls us to do and be and how we usually manage to short-circuit that.

On Ash Wednesday we looked at how we sometimes think we know better than God does what we ought to do and think. And how that often doesn't work out. Imagine that. God knows better than we do? What are the odds?

The first Sunday of Lent, we'll look at how our instincts for comparing what we have with what someone else has can mess with us. Even when we have been content, even happy, with what we have. if we discover someone else has something we don't have we immediately become unhappy. Rather than "count our blessings" we count someone else's and compare. And guess what? If we're better off, we're fine with that, but if we're not, then we're not, not even remotely.

You know, God loves us. God is with us. God desires us to be whole, and healthy, and cared for. God clothes the birds--we will be cared for. This thing we have about only being happy when we're better off than someone else is NOT what God desires for us, and it is not what indeed DOES make us happy.

The two Scriptures for this Sunday get at that. In Genesis 4, Cain is so angry that God prefers Abel's offering to him moreso than Cain's--even though God assures Cain that there is nothing wrong with his--that Cain kills his brother. Which, as you would suspect, does not make things better. And in Matthew 20, those who worked a full day and were paid the full day's wage are upset with the landowner who paid others the exact same amount--for working less hours. The first group were fine with their pay, until they found out what others got paid. Never mind if it is enough; it is a problem because it is less than someone else. In general we'd agree with that, I expect. But with exceptions--which we'll look at.

We struggle sometimes with God's sense of fairness, and all because we look at it in comparison--and are envious. And envy is one of the seven deadly sins.

OLD TESTAMENT Genesis 4:1-16

1Now the man knew his wife Eve, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, ‘I have produced a man with the help of the Lord.’ 2Next she bore his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, and Cain a tiller of the ground. 3In the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground, 4and Abel for his part brought of the firstlings of his flock, their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, 5but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell. 6The Lord said to Cain, ‘Why are you angry, and why has your countenance fallen? 7If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is lurking at the door; its desire is for you, but you must master it.’

8 Cain said to his brother Abel, ‘Let us go out to the field.’* And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him. 9Then the Lord said to Cain, ‘Where is your brother Abel?’ He said, ‘I do not know; am I my brother’s keeper?’ 10And the Lord said, ‘What have you done? Listen; your brother’s blood is crying out to me from the ground! 11And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12When you till the ground, it will no longer yield to you its strength; you will be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth.’ 13Cain said to the Lord, ‘My punishment is greater than I can bear! 14Today you have driven me away from the soil, and I shall be hidden from your face; I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth, and anyone who meets me may kill me.’15Then the Lord said to him, ‘Not so!* Whoever kills Cain will suffer a sevenfold vengeance.’ And the Lord put a mark on Cain, so that no one who came upon him would kill him. 16Then Cain went away from the presence of the Lord, and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden.

GOSPEL Matthew 20:1-16

1‘For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. 2After agreeing with the laborers for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard. 3When he went out about nine o’clock, he saw others standing idle in the market-place; 4and he said to them, “You also go into the vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.” So they went. 5When he went out again about noon and about three o’clock, he did the same.6And about five o’clock he went out and found others standing around; and he said to them, “Why are you standing here idle all day?” 7They said to him, “Because no one has hired us.” He said to them, “You also go into the vineyard.” 8When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his manager, “Call the laborers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and then going to the first.” 9When those hired about five o’clock came, each of them received the usual daily wage. 10Now when the first came, they thought they would receive more; but each of them also received the usual daily wage. 11And when they received it, they grumbled against the landowner, 12saying, “These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.” 13But he replied to one of them, “Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? 14Take what belongs to you and go; I choose to give to this last the same as I give to you. 15Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?” 16So the last will be first, and the first will be last.’

February 11, 2018

“Do You See What I’m Saying?”

Psalm 41; Mark 2:1-12

One of the biggest criticisms out there of those who call themselves Christian is that they are hypocrites--defined by Merriam Webster as: "1. a person who puts on a false appearance of virtue or religion; 2. a person who acts in contradiction to his or her stated beliefs or feelings". It is possible, according to some recent research, that we indeed might be hypocrites, and not just perceived to be. A 2013 survey by the Barna Group actually found out that among self-identified Christians, self-righteousness is actually a big problem: "The findings reveal that most self-identified Christians in the U.S. are characterized by having the attitudes and actions researchers identified as Pharisaical. Just over half of the nation’s Christians—using the broadest definition of those who call themselves Christians—qualify for this category (51%). They tend to have attitudes and actions that are characterized by self-righteousness. On the other end of the spectrum, 14% of today’s self-identified Christians—just one out of every seven Christians—seem to represent the actions and attitudes Barna researchers found to be consistent with those of Jesus".

David Kinnaman, the author of this survey, and co-author of the 2007 book "UnChristian: What a New Generation Really Thinks About Christianity . . . And Why It Matters", says the following, based on more than a decade of this kind of research:

“Many Christians are more concerned with what they call unrighteousness than they are with self-righteousness. It’s a lot easier to point fingers at how the culture is immoral than it is to confront Christians in their comfortable spiritual patterns."

That's just what self-identified Christians portray according to themselves. What others see and describe is even worse. The research for "UnChristian" discovered that Christians are primarily famous for what they oppose than for what they are "for"--and that 85% of those surveyed (ages 16-29 then, so ages 27-40 now, eleven years later) perceive Christians as "hypocritical". And 87% perceive Christians as "judgmental".

Like with the TV with the sound off, when what we see may not match up with what is actually going on--our perceptions may not accurately reflect reality. And that is certainly our hope, that as Christians. that we don't come across as other than we are, and that the charges of hypocrisy and judgmentalism are actually the misperceptions of others (who aren't being honest about their own foibles). But the reality that we might is the challenge for being clear who we are and "whose" we are, and that "they will know we are Christians by our love" (as the song goes), and NOT by our judgmentalism and hypocrisy. Do our deeds match our words? Does our faith founded on our being forgiven express forgiveness? Does our faith founded on experiencing God's love in Jesus express love?

Again, a hymn nails it. The second stanza of "Dear Jesus, In Whose Life I See" goes like this: "Though what I dream and what I do in my weak days are always two, help me, oppressed by things undone, O thou whose deeds and dreams were one!"

GOSPEL Mark 2:1-12

1When he returned to Capernaum after some days, it was reported that he was at home. 2So many gathered around that there was no longer room for them, not even in front of the door; and he was speaking the word to them. 3Then some people came, bringing to him a paralyzed man, carried by four of them. 4And when they could not bring him to Jesus because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him; and after having dug through it, they let down the mat on which the paralytic lay.5When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, ‘Son, your sins are forgiven.’ 6Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, 7‘Why does this fellow speak in this way? It is blasphemy! Who can forgive sins but God alone?’ 8At once Jesus perceived in his spirit that they were discussing these questions among themselves; and he said to them, ‘Why do you raise such questions in your hearts? 9Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, “Your sins are forgiven”, or to say, “Stand up and take your mat and walk”? 10But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins’—he said to the paralytic— 11‘I say to you, stand up, take your mat and go to your home.’12And he stood up, and immediately took the mat and went out before all of them; so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, ‘We have never seen anything like this!’

February 4, 2018

“That Is What I Came Out to Do”

Psalm 147:1-11; Mark 1:29-39

In his "I Have a Dream" speech at the Lincoln Memorial, at the March on Washington on August 28, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. said: “We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy”. King was addressing a situation where, as Langston Hughes said, "a dream deferred" was constricting civil rights. Waiting was wrong; the "tranquilizing drug of gradualism" was a way to avoid it. NOW was fiercely urgent.

Jesus was dealing with the opposite of that in the passage from Mark 1:29-39.

Jesus has been casting out demons and healing, and he finds that people are responding to that. His fame is spreading, and it would seem that the larger the audience the more chance that his message gets out. And--I don't know how fully human he was, but I would imagine it must have been pretty exciting to get such a reaction. And yet, something wassn't quite "right". So Jesus went off by himself early in the morning and prays, and gets his clarity, his insight into just what wasn't "right".

It would seem that rather than the healings providing an audience, they instead produce more clamoring for more healings. And they have distracted Jesus from his real purpose. So when his disciples found him, and told him that more people were looking for him to heal them, he responded, "Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do". He continued to heal and cast out demons as they went on to other places, but he got clear that the urgent demands should not be allowed to distract him from "what I came out to do"--proclaim the message of the Kingdom of God (of which the healings were a sign).

The second stanza of the hymn "O Young and Fearless Prophet", affirms this. "We marvel at the purpose that held thee to thy course when ever on the hilltop before thee loomed the cross; thy steadfast face set forward where love and duty shone . . ."

We, too, need to keep "the main thing the main thing". We, too, need to keep true to our calling to be disciples of Jesus, and not let the distractions, even legitimate and appropriate ones, keep us from "staying the course"

GOSPEL Mark 1:29-39

29As soon as they left the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. 30Now Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told him about her at once. 31He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up. Then the fever left her, and she began to serve them.

32That evening, at sunset, they brought to him all who were sick or possessed with demons. 33And the whole city was gathered around the door. 34And he cured many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.

35In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed. 36And Simon and his companions hunted for him. 37When they found him, they said to him, ‘Everyone is searching for you.’ 38He answered, ‘Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do.’ 39And he went throughout Galilee, proclaiming the message in their synagogues and casting out demons.

January 28, 2018

"As One Having Authority"

Psalm 111; Mark 1:21-28

"By the power vested in me by the state of . . ." is a part of legal wedding ceremony in many cases. A phrase like this conveys that the officiant had the authority to do this thing--authority decreed by another source, authority sanctioned by an official entity. Authority is granted; it is not inherent, in this case.

"That person speaks authoritatively on . . ." This phrase conveys that said person is recognized as knowing something, and that you can trust that person's word. It seems less like the authority is conferred and more that it's inherent--who the person is, what the person has learned, is what makes it authoritative, not that "an authority" has sanctioned this person's authority.

Ideally, we are able to trust both kinds of authority. But, as we know, there are those times where someone has the first kind mentioned above--the authority decreed by another source--and the person doesn't seem to live up to it. In the corporate world, it's known as the Peter Principle--defined by Laurence J. Peter as the phenomenon of promoting a manager to a new position based on success in a current position and not considering how that person would perform in the new one--and what can result is that "managers rise to the level of their incompetence". The person may have the "official" authority to make certain decisions, but not the inherent gifts to have those be GOOD decisions. So someone with authority doesn't actually come across AS an authority.

We have the story about Jesus and his authority in Mark chapter 1 that begins like this: "They went to Capernaum; and when the sabbath came, he entered the synagogue and taught. They were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes". And then the impression they had of Jesus from his words got backed up by his actions--Jesus cast and unclean spirit out of a man, and they said: "‘What is this? A new teaching—with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.’"

For us, too, Jesus' authority is both what he says, and what he does. Even many who don't believe in him as the Son of God regard him as a great moral teacher--and of course, we who do believe in him as the Son of God certainly affirm that great moral teaching. And his healing power is well documented--even skeptical Biblical scholars emphasize the nearly universal historical recognition of Jesus as an exorcist (and there were many in those days). We know if we lived as he taught we should, it would be a more loving world. And most of us know of those who have been healed through the power of prayer, and even if not healed have been comforted and sustained through difficult times. And we ourselves may have been too.

Jesus still is authoritative. In both ways.

GOSPEL Mark 1:21-28

21They went to Capernaum; and when the sabbath came, he entered the synagogue and taught. 22They were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. 23Just then there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, 24and he cried out, ‘What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God.’ 25But Jesus rebuked him, saying, ‘Be silent, and come out of him!’ 26And the unclean spirit, throwing him into convulsions and crying with a loud voice, came out of him. 27They were all amazed, and they kept on asking one another, ‘What is this? A new teaching—with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.’ 28At once his fame began to spread throughout the surrounding region of Galilee.

January 21, 2018

"Form Passes Away, But Substance Endures"

I Corinthians 7:29-35; Mark 1:14-20

Paul writes to the church in Corinth, in response to their letter to him asking about how they should do their church organization and planning, and their life together in the congregation. Paul, like many in that time, was anticipating the return of Jesus--Paul, after all, had had an experience of Jesus' presence and was convinced that soon Jesus' return would make all things right. And since he was convinced that "brothers and sisters, the appointed time has grown short" that meant that nobody should make any big long-term life plans: "from now on, let even those who have wives be as though they had none, and those who mourn as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy as though they had no possessions, and those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it" (I Corinthians 7:29b-31a).

It makes sense not to make any long-term plans if you are convinced that absolutely everything is going to change very soon. However, nearly two thousand years later, those anticipated changes have not happened, and yet in different ways many many many other changes have.

If you're no longer approaching your life and your faith from the perspective that "the present form of this world is passing away" means it's all going to end soon, then "the present form of this world is passing away" is a recognition that things change. And already have changed, and will continue to change. And that means we need to rethink just what it means to be a follower of Jesus in terms of how we think, what we believe, and what we do.

If we do believe that we are to "love your neighbor"--is doing that different when we have more direct access to someone halfway around the world than we ever have before? Back when an 80 mile trip took three days, and news travelled so slowly that--for example, the War of 1812 ended by treaty in December 1814, which meant that there was no reason for the Battle of New Orleans to be fought the next month except that they hadn't heard about the treaty--we didn't even know about our neighbor halfway around the world. How do those drastic changes affect how we see who our neighbor is, and respond to our neighbor in love? This is but one example. There is a nearly inexhaustible number of other examples.

"For the present form of this world is passing away" (1 Corinthians 7:31b). It is. We constantly need to be thinking, praying, discerning, just what our faith--and our adherence to the values and practices Jesus advocates--looks like. "New occasions teach new duties; time makes ancient good uncouth. They must upward still and onward, who would keep abreast of truth." Indeed we must--particularly in responding to Jesus, who is the Way, the Truth and the Life.

NEW TESTAMENT 1 Corinthians 7:29-35

29I mean, brothers and sisters, the appointed time has grown short; from now on, let even those who have wives be as though they had none, 30and those who mourn as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy as though they had no possessions, 31and those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it. For the present form of this world is passing away.32I want you to be free from anxieties. The unmarried man is anxious about the affairs of the Lord, how to please the Lord; 33but the married man is anxious about the affairs of the world, how to please his wife,34and his interests are divided. And the unmarried woman and the virgin are anxious about the affairs of the Lord, so that they may be holy in body and spirit; but the married woman is anxious about the affairs of the world, how to please her husband. 35I say this for your own benefit, not to put any restraint upon you, but to promote good order and unhindered devotion to the Lord.

GOSPEL Mark 1:14-20

14Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news* of God, 15and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.’

16As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake—for they were fishermen.17And Jesus said to them, ‘Follow me and I will make you fish for people.’18And immediately they left their nets and followed him. 19As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending the nets. 20Immediately he called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him.=

PSALTER Psalm 62:5-12

5 For God alone my soul waits in silence,
   for my hope is from him.
6 He alone is my rock and my salvation,
   my fortress; I shall not be shaken.
7 On God rests my deliverance and my honor;
   my mighty rock, my refuge is in God.

8 Trust in him at all times, O people;
   pour out your heart before him;
   God is a refuge for us.

9 Those of low estate are but a breath,
   those of high estate are a delusion;
in the balances they go up;
   they are together lighter than a breath.
10 Put no confidence in extortion,
   and set no vain hopes on robbery;
   if riches increase, do not set your heart on them.

11 Once God has spoken;
   twice have I heard this:
that power belongs to God,
12   and steadfast love belongs to you, O Lord.
For you repay to all
   according to their work.

January 14, 2018

"The Secret Godliness"

I Samuel 3:1‑10; John 1:29‑42

It's not always easy to figure out just who you are and just what you're doing to "do when you grow up". Perhaps we need to take into consideration what GOD has in mind for us as we wrestle with this. In 1 Samuel 3, Samuel heard the voice of God three times, calling him. Eli helped him figure out what was happening, and that God had a plan for him.

Psalm 139 gives us some insight into just how well God knows us, and that God might indeed know what our purpose in the world is. From Psalm 139: 1-18:

OLD TESTAMENT 1 Samuel 3:1-10

1Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord under Eli. The word of the Lord was rare in those days; visions were not widespread.

2At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see, was lying down in his room; 3the lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was. 4Then the Lord called, ‘Samuel! Samuel!’ and he said, ‘Here I am!’ 5and ran to Eli, and said, ‘Here I am, for you called me.’ But he said, ‘I did not call; lie down again.’ So he went and lay down. 6The Lord called again, ‘Samuel!’ Samuel got up and went to Eli, and said, ‘Here I am, for you called me.’ But he said, ‘I did not call, my son; lie down again.’ 7Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him. 8The Lord called Samuel again, a third time. And he got up and went to Eli, and said, ‘Here I am, for you called me.’ Then Eli perceived that the Lord was calling the boy. 9Therefore Eli said to Samuel, ‘Go, lie down; and if he calls you, you shall say, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.” ’ So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

GOSPEL John 1:29-42

29The next day he saw Jesus coming towards him and declared, ‘Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! 30This is he of whom I said, “After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.” 31I myself did not know him; but I came baptizing with water for this reason, that he might be revealed to Israel.’ 32And John testified, ‘I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. 33I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, “He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.” 34And I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God.’

35The next day John again was standing with two of his disciples, 36and as he watched Jesus walk by, he exclaimed, ‘Look, here is the Lamb of God!’ 37The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. 38When Jesus turned and saw them following, he said to them, ‘What are you looking for?’ They said to him, ‘Rabbi’ (which translated means Teacher), ‘where are you staying?’ 39He said to them, ‘Come and see.’ They came and saw where he was staying, and they remained with him that day. It was about four o’clock in the afternoon. 40One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. 41He first found his brother Simon and said to him, ‘We have found the Messiah’ (which is translated Anointed*). 42He brought Simon to Jesus, who looked at him and said, ‘You are Simon son of John. You are to be called Cephas’ (which is translated Peter).

Psalm 139

To the leader. Of David. A Psalm.
19 O that you would kill the wicked, O God,
   and that the bloodthirsty would depart from me—
20 those who speak of you maliciously,
   and lift themselves up against you for evil!*
21 Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord?
   And do I not loathe those who rise up against you?
22 I hate them with perfect hatred;
   I count them my enemies.
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
   test me and know my thoughts.
24 See if there is any wicked* way in me,
   and lead me in the way everlasting.*

January 7, 2018

"To Fulfill All Righteousness"

Isaiah 42:1-9; Matthew 3:11-17

John is proclaiming a Baptism of repentance--a turning away from sins and turning toward right living. And Jesus comes to be baptized. John knew who Jesus was--besides his cousin, he knows that Jesus is the one whom John is preparing the way for. And so John asks basically the same question that we do about why Jesus would come to him. We ask from the other side of the story--after Jesus' life, teachings, death, resurrection. John asks before, but knowing what Jesus is about. Matthew says it like this (Matthew 3:14-15):

"John would have prevented him, saying, 'I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?' But Jesus answered him, 'Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness.'"

It kind of seems like play-acting. Jesus, we would assume, has nothing to repent about, and to seem to be repenting could almost be seen as making a mockery of the very act of repentance. So how does this "fulfill all righteousness" if it seems like a fake thing, done only for appearance? It would seem like the opposite of righteous, if it is an acted-out lie that Jesus didn't need to repent.

Maybe it's that we need to understand what "sin" is, as opposed to "sins". Bear with me--this may seem like a semantic game, but it actually is pretty important to understand. "Sins" are what we usually think about when we think about this kind of thing--individual acts of messing up. Telling a lie is a sin. Being cruel to someone is a sin. When we confess our "sins" this is what we are referring to.

But "sin"--without the "s" at the end of the word--is a state of being. Sin is the reality that we can't work our way out of. The sin of racism is a good example. We, all of us, have entered into a world where racism exists. The structures of the society in which we live are already set up with racism as a part of it, with advantages for people of certain hue of skin, and disadvantages for people of certain other hues of skin. Nothing that any of us can individually do can free us from that reality; even as we can make choices about our behavior we can't make choices about whether we are advantaged or not. And therefore, no matter how pure our motives or our behaviors, we are still motivated and behaving in a context of sin.

In this way, Jesus, like all of us, participated in sin. He was born into a particular society, at a particular time, with certain social and economic and human rules and realities and prejudices and circumstances that he could not escape, any more than we can escape them. They were the dynamics as work, and his choices and motivations, although seeking to transcend the prejudices and advantages/disadvantages that existed, he still had to live within them. Nothing he could do could make him escape from being a Jew living in a nation occupied by the Romans, with certain rules of life and practice within which he had to function. So he participated in the sin of an oppressive society, with slavery and misogyny and racism and military force used to "keep the peace" when anyone sought to proclaim equality in an unequal society.

And so, from the beginning of his life, he "took on sin"--even while not committing "sins" (we've come to assert, within the Christian understanding of who Jesus is)--and so entered into the ambiguities of our lives. His identifying with us was to live in a society--like all societies--where "sin" is an ever-present and unmistakable reality--and, in his death and resurrection, not only to defeat "sins", but to defeat "sin"--a victory we can affirm even as we are surrounded by it.

OLD TESTAMENT Isaiah 42:1-9

1Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations. 2He will not cry or lift up his voice, or make it heard in the street; 3a bruised reed he will not break, and a dimly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice. 4He will not grow faint or be crushed until he has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands wait for his teaching.

5Thus says God, the Lord, who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and what comes from it, who gives breath to the people upon it and spirit to those who walk in it: 6I am the Lord, I have called you in righteousness, I have taken you by the hand and kept you; I have given you as a covenant to the people, a light to the nations,7to open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who sit in darkness. 8I am the Lord, that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to idols. 9See, the former things have come to pass, and new things I now declare; before they spring forth, I tell you of them.

GOSPEL Matthew 3:11-17

11“I baptize you with water for repentance, but one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 12His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and will gather his wheat into the granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”

13Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. 14John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” 15But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. 16And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. 17And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.”

December 31, 2017

"I Will Greatly Rejoice"

Rev. Kathy Clark Isaiah 61:10- 62:3

The people of Israel had been taken into exile. The prophets had been warning them for some time that they needed to be much more intentional about the practice of their faith--not only the integrity of their worship of only Yahweh God, but the integrity of their treatment of the widows and the orphans and those in need. They had been warned that their Sabbath time, no matter how beautiful and meaningful, was in essence ugly and meaningless if their lives were no different the rest of the week--and that if they didn't get it together, that bad things would happen. But, at times riding high with prosperity and international renown, they got complacent about what Yahweh God wanted, as the prophets warned them. And they were conquered, and taken away, and now they not only weren't powerful, they weren't even home, and all of that worship in their Temple that they had taken for granted they couldn't do. It had all fallen apart.

And here is Isaiah, as they are in exile, coming out with a different tune. Now, when they are helpless, powerless, miles and miles from their own country, comes Isaiah's unlikely affirmation: "I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my whole being shall exult in my God; for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation, he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels". The people had to be wondering just how he could say something like this--how could he say that God had done such wonderful things when they were in such an awful situation? And how could he go on to say the next thing: "For as the earth brings forth its shoots, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up, so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations".

This seems absurd. They are in exile, with no future prospects of national freedom, much less national greatness. Their lack of righteousness has brought them to this, they have been told, and their praise was seen by God to be disingenuous--and, they had to admit, it certainly had gotten to be that way. And now this prophet is piping up with such optimism?

As I often say, we know the rest of the story. God did restore their fortunes, but in a way that was for not only their fortunes, but for all nations. The King that restored them was Jesus, born King of the Jews, but proclaiming the Kingdom of God, in which ALL are citizens. And so in the season of Christmas we consider how all of the promises of God come true, in ways that nobody saw coming.

OLD TESTAMENT Isaiah 61:10-62:3

10I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my whole being shall exult in my God; for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation, he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. 11For as the earth brings forth its shoots, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up, so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations.

1For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until her vindication shines out like the dawn, and her salvation like a burning torch. 2The nations shall see your vindication, and all the kings your glory; and you shall be called by a new name that the mouth of the Lord will give. 3You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God.

December 24, 2017

"The Wonder of Christmas: 2. The Wonder of a Promise"

Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:18-25

Promises, promises. The British new wave band “Naked Eyes” had a hit single in 1983 by that name. The refrain:

“You made me promises, promises Knowing I'd believe
Promises, promises You knew you'd never keep . . .”

I suspect most of the discussion about promises is when they haven’t been kept, for whatever reasons. As a person who is divorced, it might be fair to say that I didn’t keep the promises I made on that wedding day in 1984. The reasons why I didn’t live up to those promises—or why anyone who divorces doesn’t live up to those promises—are many, varied, and at times understandable. But however understandable the reasons, the promises weren’t kept.

Politicians are famous for making promises that don’t get kept. The recent tax bill that Congress passed can be seen from one nuanced perspective as keeping promises—and as not keeping promises from another nuanced perspective. It’s not always easy to be clear when promises are kept—and it’s also not always easy to be clear when promises are made.

That same “not always easy” can be applied to God’s promises too. Many of us find ourselves furious with God when something terrible happens to us, or to those we love. People die horrible deaths—isn’t that God reneging on a promise to protect and care for us? People die period—people we miss, and the death can devastate us—how in the world is God to be let off the hook for that? And those people God gave us to support us—how about when they fail us? What was God thinking to give us such fickle people?

And it all gets heightened at Christmas, when we want things to be smooth, and joyous, and with the traditions we so value continuing to play out in the special way that we want them to. And sometimes they don’t—and it gets at us in ways that take away all the joy we’re expecting to experience. But God surprises us, if we stop to take notice.

God surprises us by not doing the “all powerful” thing that we would certainly do if we were God. God, rather than bursting on the scene in big, flashy, splashy, impressive beyond imagining ways, and fixing everything, comes as a newborn baby, in a barn, at the end of a long arduous journey by Mary and Joseph. Angels announce it, of course, but they announce it to shepherds, and nobody is paying any attention at all to shepherds. The first visitors to the one who would be King of the Jews—King of the World, actually—are these disregarded members of society. God willingly gives up all of that God-power (created the world, etc.) with which you’d think God would fix everything, and comes in complete and utter powerlessness (it would seem) and vulnerability. To keep the promise to love us and be with us.

When you’re going through all of that hard stuff, what you really need is someone WITH you in the midst of it. I am reminded sometimes by my wife Susan that often all she’s asking for is for me to be supportive, NOT to try to fix things. God comes as one of us, to get what we go through and to go through it WITH us--as the Christmas hymn “Lo, How A Rose E’er Blooming” says: “True man, yet very God, from sin and death now save us, and share our every load”. And, as the Christmas hymn “Once in Royal David’s City” says: “Jesus is our childhood pattern; day by day, like us, he grew; he was little, weak, and helpless, tears and smiles like us he knew; and he feeleth for our sadness, and he shareth in our gladness” (underlines mine).

God kept God’s promise never to leave us or forsake us. God didn’t promise to keep us from pain, or loss, or all of the realities of human life on this earth. But God kept God’s promise to be God WITH us—in the most “with us” way possible in human experience. And as Linus said, “That’s what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown”.

OLD TESTAMENT Isaiah 7:14

14Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel.

GOSPEL Matthew 1:18-25

18Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. 19Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. 20But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”22All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: 23“Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel,” which means, “God is with us.” 24When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife, 25but had no marital relations with her until she had borne a son; and he named him Jesus.

December 17, 2017

"The Wonder of Christmas: 2. The Wonder of a Manger"

Luke 2:1-16

It has been said that "necessity is the mother of invention". And it would seem that when God enters the world incarnate in the newborn baby Jesus that that was true. No room at the inn, so the couple stayed in the barn. No bed for Mom and Dad; no bed for the newborn baby. So the barn sufficed for the suddenly expanded family to stay, and the feedbox for the cattle sufficed as the first bed for the new human life that was indeed "God with us". There is never a worry that there is not room for God.

God makes it work. That is the wonder of a manger--that even what seems not to be made for the purpose God uses if for can be used by God for that purpose.

Some of our previous generations knew this. Some of us probably knew people who used a dresser drawer as a place for a baby to sleep. You make do with what you have, even if it's not the ideal situation--even if it's not the intended purpose--as long as it does what it needs to do. That is how God entered the world--and that is how God still enters the world. And that is how God makes use of us. None of us are ideal, but God can use all of us.

Talked the other day with a friend who is active in his home church in another place. They are on their third pastor this decade, and you know what? It turns out that none of those pastors was "the whole package". Each of the three had certain gifts that were superb, and other gifts that were not nearly as good. And in the case of each one, the balance of those gifts was different. I found the conversation fascinating, because this person had figured out what has certainly made perfect sense to me. I have never known a pastor who had it all--because the "all" is really pretty much impossible for a human being. Nobody is absolutely perfectly good at everything that the role of pastor demands. Nobody is probably absolutely perfectly good at everything that ANY job calls for. But God can use us. All of us--even in our incompletenesses. And that is because there is always room for God--and the more we recognize that, the better God can work with us, and through us, even in those areas where we're not ideal--even in those areas where, metaphorically, the only bed we can provide is a feedbox. As my friend Rev. David Lee insists, "Bethlehem teaches us is that God comes into creation as effortlessly and completely as light into darkness. God fits here. God belongs here. God created all creation for incarnational presence, as well as transcendence" God is present incarnationally in each of us, as we recognize--and allow to work--God present in our lives, and through us, in the lives of others.

GOSPEL Luke 2:1-16

1In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. 2This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. 3All went to their own towns to be registered. 4Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. 5He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child.6While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. 7And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

8In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.10But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: 11to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. 12This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.” 13And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, 14“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!” 15When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.” 16So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger.

December 10, 2017

"The Wonder of Christmas: 2. The Wonder of a Name"

Luke 1:26-33; Matthew 1:18-25

Names matter—we know that. What a baby is named is not a casual decision—sometimes there is family history to consider; sometimes it is a negotiation between parents (and perhaps even other family members)—what my wife Susan might have been named was a bit of a fascinating negotiation, as I understand it.

In the Harry Potter series of books/movies, the mere name of the evil wizard is paid great respect—in fact, their newspapers refer to him as “He Who Must Not Be Named”. One of the sermons earlier in the year—in the series on Moses and the Israelites on their seemingly endless journey to the Promised Land--was based on the passage where Moses gets God’s name—and with a name, so much more is possible.

The Scriptures for the sermon on “The Wonder of a Name” (in our series on “The Wonder of Christmas”) give us the story of how Jesus got his name—with the same basic info communicated by an angel (in slightly different ways) to both Mary and Joseph. Our hymns at 11 am and our songs at 9:15 am will look at other names—more like images and metaphors—for this Jesus, in light of what he means to the world, both then and now. Suffice it to say that the respect due to this name—born in the manger, having given up the power of the one through whom the whole world was created—is beyond the respect due to any other name, as Paul reminds us in Philippians 2:5-11:

“Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death— even death on a cross. Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

GOSPEL Luke 1:26-33

26In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, 27to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28And he came to her and said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.”29But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. 30The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. 33He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

GOSPEL Matthew 1:18-25

DECEMBER 3, 2017

Hanging of the Greens

From the Friday December 1, 2006 edition of the "Daily Standard" newspaper in Celina, Ohio, the article "Time for the Hanging of the Greens" written by Shelley Grieshop.

COLDWATER - Wreaths adorn doors and strands of evergreens twirl along railings and banisters as the Christmas season approaches.

But the greenery that appears this time of year has a deeper meaning than just home decor. It is linked to the Hanging of the Greens tradition.

"The Hanging of the Greens is about bringing in the Advent season," says Margaret Hunter, the chairwoman of the worship and arts committee at St. Paul's United Church of Christ in St. Marys.

The church is one of many in the local area that observe the custom of draping evergreens near windows, in the sanctuary and at the entranceways to remind the congregation of God's eternal love. Congregation members will hang their greenery on Saturday, she says.

Early Christians adopted the use of the evergreen for the celebration of Christmas because its deep hunter green color remains vibrant when all other plants die in the cold winter months. Branches were cut from evergreen trees and placed in temples where they were worshiped for maintaining life throughout the winter and bringing the hope of the return of spring.

Evergreens also were an ancient symbol of immortality, life and growth. Centuries ago people hung evergreen boughs over their doors and windows - some believing the branches would keep away witches, ghosts, evil spirits and illness.

Different greens have special meaning: laurel and bay symbolize victory and triumph; yew and cypress stand for eternal life.

Wreaths, such as those that surround Advent candles used during the weeks leading up to Christmas, also have symbolic significance. Their endless circle teaches of the endless love of God, according to religious beliefs.

Hunter says the lighting of the Advent candle each week in church is her favorite part of the worship service during the holiday season.

"It's just such a special time for families to come up and light the candles one at a time," she says.

Marilyn Darr and several others from Coldwater United Methodist Church were busy Monday evening decorating their church according to custom, adding gold ribbons to some of the bushy evergreen swags. Darr says she also enjoys the tradition and the decorating process.

"Getting together, the fellowship, that's what makes it memorable," she says.

Each year about a dozen or so members meet first for a meal together before heading to the sanctuary to begin the decorating process, she says.

"It's a special time for us. We're a small church so we all have to work together as a team," she says.

November 26, 2017

"The Wonder of Christmas: 1. The Wonder of a Star"

Matthew 2:1-12

This may be the earliest I have ever "started" the time of preparation for Christmas. Of course, that still puts me weeks behind the retail industry. But with an extra Sunday between Thanksgiving and the beginning of the four weeks of Advent, and with the Hanging of the Greens, we start the journey to Bethlehem early--as did the wise men from the East who followed the star to find Jesus.

The Jews were suffering under Roman rule, and were heartsick that they weren't ruled by their own King, blessed by God to restore them to their rightful place in the world. This had been true for years and years and years, and the Prophets in their Scriptures (our Old Testament) had proclaimed that God would make it right. Both Joseph and Mary get insights from angels about who this Jesus to be born would be, and it tied in with the words from the Prophets. And these wise men also figured it out, and began their journey following this star to see the one through whom God would make it right.

Christ the King Sunday (the last Sunday in the Christian year, since Advent begins a new year in the church--kind of how August/September begins a new school year and July 1 begins a new fiscal year) affirms that Jesus the Christ indeed is king of the universe, and not just of a political entity like a nation. Jesus talked about the Kingdom of God--more than just a government, but a way of living and prioritizing how the world ought to be, with justice, and righteousness, and love as the foundation. The star led these wise men to THAT King--and it would make sense that those who were not Jews would visit the one who would be King in a much more universal way.

The star led them there. It was a different enough star that they--who studied the stars--were able to track its being an aberration. It demonstrates that from the beginning of Jesus' time on earth--even before he could do any of the amazing things he did as an adult--what he was to be about was bigger than anyone's hopes and dreams for a nation. Those who weren't even part of that nation which was yearning for restoration were to be part of this Kingdom.

We don't much get the "kingdom" thing. We left kings behind when we declared our independence from King George III. But the belief about kings has pretty much always been that they are chosen by God--and have the "divine right" granted to them. And since the Kingdom of God is all about what God wants for us . . .

November 19, 2017

"It Begins As It Began"

Joshua 3:7-17

We are in general big fans of symmetry. We like it when stuff happens like other stuff has happened. And we get that here--just as Moses led the Israelites FROM Egypt to journey to the Promised Land by parting the Red Sea so that they cross through on dry ground, so does Joshua lead the Israelites INTO the Promised Land at the end of their journey by parting the Jordan River so that they cross through on dry ground.

But there were two differences, besides the fact that it was Moses at the beginning and Joshua at the new beginning. The first difference is that as they crossed the Jordan nobody was chasing them. They weren't fleeing for their lives, but rather they were crossing into their new lives. The mood was less frantic, you'd expect, and more anticipatory. Finally! They get there! Now it can start!

The second difference is the key one. Rather than Moses and his staff parting the waters--as happened when they fled Egypt in haste--it is the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant who part the waters. They pass through the Red Sea to leave Egypt on a promise, and they pass through the Jordan River to enter the Promised Land with a covenant.

The Ten Commandments are in the Ark of the Covenant, and that covenant with God is what goes with them. They leave Egypt with God promising something; they enter this land that had been promised to them having agreed with God on something. The Covenant, expressed in the Ten Commandments and supplemented by other rules and guidelines for their lives, is "I will be your God, and you will be my people--and here are the terms of the agreement".

It would do us well to remember that arrangement--because such an arrangement applies to us in our covenant with God also. We have received Jesus as the bearer of the promise of God to heal us and forgive us. We have received Jesus as the one whose teachings we are to follow as citizens of the Kingdom of God. Just like the People of the Covenant entering the Promised Land, we don't get to negotiate the terms of our relationship with God, nor how the teachings of Jesus say we should live our lives and treat each other. We didn't create ourselves--God created us, and knows us better than we know ourselves. We don't determine how forgiveness and grace work; Jesus does, and did it on our behalf. We don't get to reinterpret what the death and resurrection of Jesus mean for our lives as followers of Jesus. It is God's wisdom at work, and we can do our best to understand and explain it, but we don't get to change the way it works. We are those whose very lives are gifts, and we are called to live then in gratitude.

November 12, 2017

"When We Don’t Quite Get What We Want"

Deuteronomy 34:1-12

Life is filled with those times when we don’t quite get what we want. We wanted the Pirates to win the World Series in 2013, the first playoff team after 20 consecutive losing seasons, and they did win the Wild Card game over the Reds, but the hated Cardinals won the next series. We wanted the Steelers to win the Super Bowl the last time they went, in 2011, but Green Bay won. I wanted to see Bob Dylan in concert on Monday, but I didn’t realize I wanted to until the few tickets available on Stub Hub were nearly $300, and I decided that I didn’t want to see him that much.

These are things we want but don’t quite get. Then there are those things that are more reflected in what Moses really wants but doesn’t get.

Moses had led the Israelites in the wilderness for 40 years. He had worked hard—with God’s help with some pretty intense plagues—to get Pharaoh to let them leave Egypt, where their free labor as slaves was keeping the Egyptian economy humming and the pyramids continuing to be built. He had been God’s instrument in parting the waters to lead them through the Red Sea to their freedom, in bringing them water from a rock, in praying to God to send them meat and bread from heaven. He had been God’s messenger to them, bringing the Ten Commandments, and their messenger to God, in reminding God of Gods having freed them, so please don’t smite them when they disobey. Moses had spent 1/3 of his lifetime in this crucial role, and in this long, arduous journey that was far from smooth. And how he sits, finally, looking down on the Promised Land they will enter. But he doesn’t get to enter. He dies.

We all know of those things we’d really like to see happen, and fear we won’t. Those milestones of kids and grandkids that we, like Moses, might not get to see, especially if we feel like we’ve been there cheering for them along the way. Our hearts are poured into them, and we really want to get to those milestones with them. But, like was true for Moses, we might only get so close.

How do we handle this knowing that it’s not entirely up to us how it shakes down? How do we entrust to those others who’ve been on the journey the joy of seeing what we might not get to? How do we trust what’s on the other side?

November 5, 2017

"Blessed Assurance"

Exodus 33:12-23

I said last week in the sermon (basically--perhaps not exactly like this) that sometimes when it feels like God is absent that we create a god to "fill the gap" that seems like is there, like the Israelites in the wilderness did with the golden calf when Moses was on the mountain, away from them for forty days. And that what we rather need to do is trust in God who is present even in what seems like absence, and that that seemingly absent presence is still with us through what feels like emptiness (Exodus 32).

The passage for this coming Sunday from Exodus 33 seems to show that it's not always that easy to do that--to hang in there when it seems God is absent, when you're feeling a void, and emptiness but you trust God is there anyhow. Because Moses, the great lawgiver himself, the one whose intimacy with God has led them from their slavery in Egypt to the Promised Land they will (eventually) enter--Moses himself could seem almost desperate to be assured of God's care and ongoing presence. Moses, in that intimate conversation with Yahweh God, is pretty forthright in asking for the assurance that God will go with them, and then even when Moses is no longer around that God will continue with them. Rather than hanging in there in what seems like God's absence, and being pretty OK with that, Moses is insisting that God assure him that God will continue to be with them, and go with them, and lead them.

Well, if Moses needed this, then we probably do too. Notice, however, that Moses seems not to be asking these things selfishly. First he asks for an assurance of who will go with him in leadership, then reminds God that this is the people God has called--so it's about Moses and his role with these whom he leads. Then he asks more specifically about "the people" whom God has called uniquely--and an assurance that they will continue in God's care and favor. Then, and only then, does Moses ask for himself to see God's glory--perhaps to assure himself that God indeed has what it takes to follow up on all of this.

We need reassurances along the way also. I pray that for you and for me, and for us together, that these seeking of reassurances follow this pattern of Moses--about others, about continued development of leadership, about assurance of God's continued care, and only then a personal reassurance--and a personal reassurance still tied in with concern for others.

October 29, 2017

"These Are Your Gods?"

Exodus 32:1-14

When you were a kid in school, what happened when you had a day with a substitute teacher? Let me guess--any momentum in learning about something was lost in the opportunity to act up. At least that's what happened when I was in school and we had a substitute teacher. Behavior was bad, focus was bad, attention span was non-existent. It's like that was the big chance just to goof off. When the regular teacher got back, it's like that person had to almost start all over again on the material we were supposed to cover with the substitute. No progress was made the day the teacher was away and we had a substitute.

I feel sorry for my former students who've had to substitute teach. And I actually feel bad in retrospect for the way we treated substitute teachers in my day.

That's the same kind of thing that happened with the Israelites in the wilderness. Moses goes to the top of Mt. Sinai, and will come back, it turns out, with the Ten Commandments. The people begin to get restless, since he's gone for a long time, and they get Aaron (Moses's brother) to ease their anxiety about whether or not Yahweh God is with them. So Aaron collects up all of their gold and has a calf made of it. Of this object Aaron says. " These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!". Well, the golden calf wasn't the god who brought them up out of Egypt, which Moses makes clear to them when he gets back.

Chances are they really didn't mean to transgress Yahweh God, and may not have even thought that they were. But they did, and indeed they were.

We generally don't try to transgress God when we get some shiny new thing. But sometimes we unwittingly do. Anything that becomes more important, more an object of worship and veneration, than our worship of God is like this golden calf--a distraction, a misappropriation, a substitute, an idol. Even if we're deeply committed to Yaweh God, the new bright shiny object that we pay so much attention to can distract us to the point that we've crossed the line about worshipping that bright shiny object. It happens subtlely, but when we realize we've done it, we're blatantly aware of it.

Remind yourself of what bright shiny object is commanding your attention. And check if it's the present-day equivalent of the golden calf. Because it might be.

It's not the end of your relationship with God if you get distracted--particularly if you don't stay distracted. Moses interceded, and talked God down from crushing them. God really doesn't want to crush us. But God also doesn't want us to be distracted in our worship of God by bright shiny objects.

October 22, 2017

In 2006 a book was published called "The Hip Hop Prayer Book". It grew out of the experience of an Episcopal Church in the South Bronx in New York City. The beautiful old building had a congregation of people who had all moved away, but came back on Sunday for worship. And it was in a neighborhood now drastically different from when all of those people were living in it. In order to be in ministry in that neighborhood, they had to learn the language spoken by those in the neighborhood. And so a "Hip Hop" worship emerged.

The "Hip Hop Prayer Book" takes the basic flow of the Book of Common Prayer (first published by the Church of England in 1549 and revised/updated a number of times) and "translates" it into the language of Hip Hop. That means a number of things, but one very obvious one is that after "Amen" it says "WORD!", which like "Amen!" serves to reinforce what was said, and acknowledge the importance of it, and perhaps even agreeing to act on it.

This Sunday's Scripture passage is Exodus 20, where The Ten Commandments are given. The words in Biblical Hebrew (transliterated into English as " aseret ha-d'varîm") can be translated as "the ten words", "the ten sayings", or "the ten matters". These "ten words" indeed do matter, as the guidelines for how to live given by the God who created everything and gave us everything we have, including our very lives. They are not really, as a friend in our college fellowship put it, the "ten suggestions". These ten "sayings" are how we engage and interact with the God who brought us to this place, and with those others in all places who are with us on this journey. To the people whom God freed from their bondage, they are the basis of The Law--the Torah.

Jesus said he came to fulfill the law, not abolish it, so even though we are not (for the most part at least) bound by the Jewish law in its totality (we don't have to abide by the dietary guidelines, and a chunk of the New Testament tells the story of negotiations about that), we still are to be guided by these ten sayings. And they do guide us on how we are to engage with God and with each other. In fact, they are summarized by Jesus as "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind" (which sums up the first four) and "You shall love your neighbor as yourself" (which sums up the last six) . The ten themselves provide a bit more specifics about what loving God looks like, and what loving neighbor looks like. Jesus adds, "On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets."

So these ten words/sayings/matters are still relevant. They still are touchstones for what love looks like--of God, and of the people God surrounds us with. And they are still guidelines for our interactions, and our choices, and our actions.

October 15, 2017

Jim Carrey's character in the movie "Bruce Almighty" thought he had a pretty good idea of how the world ought to run, and that if he were God it would be a lot different than how it was going, where he felt like things didn't ever work out for him the way he wanted them to.

Ever feel that way? Ever feel like God has it in for you, and isn't really looking out for you? Ever feel like if YOU were in charge it would all flow more smoothly and make a lot more sense? (At least for you?)

In the movie, Bruce Nolan gets that chance to be God, and to run things the way HE wants them run--sort of. The "sort of" is chock full of what he learns about how hard it is to be God. Instead of getting to complain, he has to deal with all the complaints. And when he pretty much blows off legitimately and seriously listening to each complaint (he certainly wasn't happy that HIS complaints were seemingly ignored and not given legitimate consideration before he had the "job" to listen) and just does a blanket "yes" to every prayer, it doesn't really work out for anybody. It clearly is a tough job, being God, and caring for each one of us individually, and all of us together, and with actually paying real attention to what each of us is crying out about and yet what all of us need.

Once again, as was true in last week's story when food is provided for them, so in this week's story, water is provided for them. Yes, they needed water. They didn't need to get cranky about it, although it's pretty easy to get cranky when you're thirsty. And the place where this water was first provided was renamed as a reminder that they got cranky--and seemingly doubtful that God, who had provided before to meet their needs, would provide again (they, and we have such short memories, it seems). Massah and Meribah basically mean "proving and strife" or "proof and contention".

Sometimes our crankiness can be excused; sometimes it's maybe not so excusable.

Sometimes we need reminders that our memories are short. Sometimes we need reminders that God provides. Sometimes you and I are just like the people at Massah and Meribah. And sometimes God is just like God is at Massah and Meribah. God provides.

October 8, 2017

Keith Green (who died tragically in 1982) was a funny, but pointedly insightful, singer/songwriter and pianist who had a real knack for lyrics that got right to the point. Here is his take on the "wandering in the wilderness and complaining about it" stage of the Exodus story, a song called "So You Wanna Go Back to Egypt?" I'll just let Keith tell it--very funny, but very pointed.

So you wanna go back to Egypt Where it's warm and secure
Are you sorry you bought the one way ticketWhen you thought you were sure
You wanted to live in the land of promiseBut now it's getting so hard
Are you sorry you're out here in the desert Instead of your own back yard

Eating leaks and onions by the NileOoh what breath for dining out in style
Ooh, my life's on the skidsBuilding the pyramids

Well there's nothing do but travelAnd we sure travel a lot
'Cause it's hard to keep your feet from movingWhen the sand gets so hot
And in the morning it's manna hotcakesWe snack on manna all day
And we sure had a winner last night for dinnerFlaming manna souffle

Well we once complained for something new to munch
The ground opened up and had some of us for lunch
Ooh, such fire and smokeCan't God even take a joke? Huh? NO!

So you wanna to back to EgyptWhere your friends wait for you
You can throw a big party and tell the whole gangOf what they said was all true
And this Moses acts like a big shotWho does he think he is?
Well it's true that God works lots of miraclesBut Moses thinks they're all his

Oh we're having so much trouble even now
Why'd he get so mad about that c-c-c-cow (that golden calf)
Moses seems rather idle He just sits around, he just sits around and writes the Bible!

Oh, Moses, put down your pen! What? Oh no, manna again?

Oh, manna wafflesManna burgersManna bagelsFillet of mannaManna patty
BaManna bread!

October 1, 2017

Exodus portrays a God who is decidedly active in the world. And as the story unfolds, and the Egyptians sent by Pharaoh to stop the Israelites from leaving struggle against the forces of nature seemingly unleashed against them--well this ancient passage of Scripture includes this gem: "The Egyptians said, ‘Let us flee from the Israelites, for the Lord is fighting for them against Egypt’". They concluded that the God of nature not only was active, but had chosen sides.

When I was in Dr. Beegle's Old Testament class in seminary, we talked about how all of the various events leading up to the Israelites being led out of Egypt could be explained by science to have been unusual events, but natural events. We can certainly understand a plague of locusts--happens every 17 years, right? We certainly experience "plagues" of stink bugs, with whom I seem to be sharing my study at the church. The Nile turning to blood--well, it could just have looked like blood, from erosion of particularly fertile, red, soil. Boils--sometimes those kinds of viruses go around. All scientifically explainable, it seems. A bit of a shock to some of the students in the class, actually.

But that doesn't mean that God didn't have something to do with it, now does it?

In today's passage, it actually gives the scientific, meteorological explanation for the parting of the Red Sea: "a strong east wind all night . . . turned the sea into dry land; and the waters were divided". Certainly could happen. But what Exodus adds is the first part: "THE LORD drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night, and turned the sea into dry land; and the waters were divided" . And after the Israelites had all gone through, on dry land, all night long, Exodus gives credit where credit is due: "At the morning watch the Lord in the pillar of fire and cloud looked down upon the Egyptian army, and threw the Egyptian army into panic. He clogged their chariot wheels so that they turned with difficulty. . . Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Stretch out your hand over the sea, so that the water may come back upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots and chariot drivers.'".

Those writing this history draw conclusions beyond the scientific, meteorological facts themselves. And before we get too postmodern and skeptical, we need to acknowledge that we do too. We acknowledge forces beyond us, in the storms that have ravaged in the last few weeks. "Acts of God" is the actual term used by insurance companies, I believe. Something is at work.

Now whether or not we assign favoritism to those who don't get crushed by nature's ravages, or assign blame to somebody because others DO get it (some of those assignations are too ludicrous to repeat; some of them by "Christian" preachers), we do tend to be pretty non-agnostic about such things. And if we believe that God created it all, and still undergirds it all (even the Deists acknowledge divine intervention at the beginning, with their "watchmaker God" who created it, set it in motion, and then remains utterly uninvolved), then the mystery we may never figure out this side of Heaven is just what motivations are at work. It is a challenge to always believe that God is benevolent when we see such devastation. But it is also a challenge not to see the love we've been given by God when our love expresses itself in caring and support and generosity in the midst of such devastation and the recovery from it.

September 24, 2017

It has been an interesting time in Egypt for the Israelites. They've been slaving away--literally, as slaves--and Yahweh God has promised Moses that they will be liberated from this oppression--which has gotten so bad that they have to make bricks without straw, and get beaten if the bricks are not good bricks. It is hard to make bricks at all without straw, much less good bricks, so they are pretty much set up to get beaten. Yahweh God had been doing some pretty funky things with the plagues he's been visiting upon Egypt--the Nile turned to blood, they were overwhelmed with frogs and flies and gnats and locusts (I guess even moreso than the stinkbugs we get visited upon us), all of the livestock of the Egyptians died, all of the Egyptians got boils--there were others, but you get the idea. All of this was so that Pharaoh would listen to Moses say that Yahweh God wanted Pharaoh to let the Israelites go free and leave--and Moses warned Pharaoh that each of these plagues would happen--but Pharaoh wouldn't respond. The Egyptians were very used to all of the free labor, and wanted to keep on with it.

Finally God is going to send the last plague--all of the firstborn--animals as well as humans--would die, except those who put the blood of a lamb around the doorposts of their homes--and the Israelites were the only ones who got the memo about the blood. But there were other instructions for the Israelites: tonight you will eat the lamb whose blood you used, and burn whatever you don't eat. And tomorrow you will leave. Period. You're done with Egypt, and you're taking off. No negotiation. And Moses tells them that God puts it like this: "This month shall mark for you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year for you".

Not only is their location going to change--and quickly--but their whole life is going to change--to the point that the calendar is going to change. This is going to be a complete and utter upheaval of their lives. It has been coming for awhile--the plagues have been setting this up--but here, now, it is an abrupt change. They will keep their names, and their heritage--this is the God of their ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob who is doing this, after all. But their reliance on this God will need to be total, and their trust in this God total, because their rescue by this God is total. And it is done for all of them, the community of God's people.

It is remarkable how often I find my way back to the principles of the Twelve Step groups who in essence affirm these very same things for their own lives. The day you get sober is the first day of a new life, and everything dates from that. And no longer do you rely on whatever substance has in essence been determining every bit of your life, but you turn your self over to God, who alone can restore you to sanity. And your own individual journey begins at that point, but it is done accompanied by that community who all--and each one in it--affirm(s) these same truths about who they are and who God is, and what the reliance and trust must be. It's not a halfway thing. You're in, or you're not in, and if you're in your ALL in. It is all new, even as the reason it is all new lingers in the background as a reminder of why it has to be this way, and how much better it IS this way.

It seems to me that this lesson from Exodus, and from the Twelve Steps, is for each of us:

Reliance on God is total, and needs to be.

September 17, 2017

Moses has had an interesting life to this point--some of which he was too young to remember, some of which was very memorable, and some of which he'd like to forget. (Although the details of our own lives are undoubtedly very different, we, too most likely have also had all of those dynamics.) And now he is working for his father-in-law in the family business. He is tending sheep on the backside of the wilderness. This was not what he ever thought he'd be doing in those years when he was living in luxury in the palace of the ruler of Egypt. Then he realized who he was, and who his people were, and he got a little worked up one day and killed a guy who was mistreating one of his own people, and he had to flee. They didn't have witness protection in Egypt in 10,000 BC (or thereabouts), and he wouldn't have been likely to get into that program if they had had it. So he had to do the only thing he could do to stay alive--run away. He runs away to his wife's family, and all of the luxury of days gone by is long gone and far, far, away. He's never going back there--he's wanted by the law.

And then God talks to him out of burning bush. Didn't see that coming, like a lot of things in his past he didn't see coming, even though he's had to live with the consequences. And he has to live with the consequences of this, too--except this time God has a job for him. And he has to go back there. He swore he was never going back there. And now GOD is sending him back there--back there where he's a wanted man.

But God reassures him. All of his doubts, all of his excuses, all of his not knowing how to understand some voice speaking to him out of a burning bush (how do you understand that, anyhow?). This voice not only tells Moses "I've got your back" (colloquially), this voice also tells Moses who "I" is who has his back. And that's who I is--"I is". "I am". "I will be who I will be". "I have been who I have been"--not only will I AM be with him, but I AM has always been with him, and all those who went before him, and all those who follow after him.

Moses was the first to get God's name. The name of God--I AM--reassures us that God is at the core of all creation, and at the core of our own being. Moses getting the name of God reminds us that God wants to be connected with us, and wants to free us from our bondage, and wants to lead us to a new land (metaphorically). And God chooses someone like Moses to guide it all back then. Moses was not without skills, but Moses was significantly unrefined in those skills, and was, of course, being called to do something for which there was no blueprint or job description. But I AM promises to have his back. And I AM promises to have our backs too.

As the plaque on my desk to the left of where I sit now (a gift from you, the congregation) says, "God does not call the qualified. God qualifies the called". Often we're led by the Spirit of God to do something we've never done before. So, like when we learn to walk, we don't start out running. We start out with halting little steps, and fall down a lot. And then we get back up, and hang onto something, and take a few steps, and fall down again. And then we keep working at it. And eventually we find we're running, and don't even remember when we couldn't. That's how it is when, like God did with Moses, God calls us. We don't always get it right at first. But we keep trying, and God keeps sustaining us.

September 10, 2017

They are on the beach, having breakfast, having just caught 153 fish--which was an extremely large catch of fish, so many that the net had threatened to break. They are with Jesus again, after he has been raised from the dead. They seem a bit more used to the whole thing, since nobody is reported as being amazed that Jesus is there--except at the unorthodox method that Jesus suggested for catching such a huge number of fish. And they don't seem to be afraid any longer--at least until Jesus asks Peter "the question".

You might remember "the question". At a certain stage of our life, "the question" is central to our very existence. When we're trying to sort out and figure out just where we stand with that other person who is so intriguing, with whom we have so much joy spending time together, whose very voice causes us to tingle--and when we're not wanting to mess things up by being too eager, saying too much too soon, seeming "geeky" or (in the great tradition of "Wayne's World") feeling not worthy of that person's attention. At this reality in our lives, the whole "L" word question is so important--we want to know if the other person feels it, we want to say it, but we don't want to say it first in case we've really misread the situation in some sort of enthusiastic flight from reality. We're excited, and anticipatory--and afraid.

It's not exactly the same thing, but still pretty important in terms of their relationship--here is Peter on the beach, chilling, relaxed, breakfasting (with Jesus having made the breakfast). All feels peaceful and calm and "right with the world," and Jesus, NOT using the nickname Jesus himself had called him by for three years, drops the bomb on him: "Simon son of John, do you love me?"

This is a serious question. It seems to be an even more serious question because Jesus called him "Simon son of John" rather than "Peter" (kind of like when you were a kid and Mom used your whole name you knew something was probably really wrong). And then he asks him twice more after Simon has answered "Yes, you know I love you". What's up?

Love seems to be a multifaceted thing in the Kingdom of God which Jesus has been proclaiming throughout his earthly ministry the past three years. Drawing from the great tradition of their historical Jewish faith, Jesus has spoken about loving God and loving neighbor as the two greatest commandments. He explicates what loving the neighbor looks like in the Parable of the Good Samaritan. He even talks in the Sermon on the Mount about loving enemies and praying for those who persecute us. It seems that love is not just a one-sided, individualistic relationship--that loving God INCLUDES loving your neighbor. So Jesus responds to each of Simon Peter's "You know that I love you" with something for Simon Peter to do for others. And this may be the crux of the matter, both for Simon Peter and for us. It's not just loving God--it's not just an individual relationship with Jesus--it's not a one-dimensional private thing between me and God or me and Jesus. The love we have for God--the love we have for Jesus--is expressed both towards God--Jesus--in our prayer life, devotional life, and worship--AND in outreaching concern for the neighbor, for the enemy, for those given to us to love. Love isn't love until we give it away--and our love for God--and Jesus--isn't fully expressed until it is expressed towards others.

September 3, 2017

They had seen him dead. Really dead. Blood-covered, beaten up and whipped, sunburned, dehydrated, not-breathing dead. They knew he’d been laid in a tomb, awaiting the anointing of his body for proper burial. And now, here he was, with the same holes in his hands and the same deep gash in his side. And he’s standing among them.

They had thought he was gone, long gone, and all of their hopes and dreams and plans and expectations gone with him. And yet here he is. Not a ghost. Alive. Talking to them. Eating with them.

How did they react? In the story in Luke 24, their initial reaction in verse 37 was this: “They were startled and terrified, and thought that they were seeing a ghost”. After he shows them his hands and side, verse 41 describes their reaction as “in their joy they were disbelieving and still wondering”.

This makes sense. When something unprecedented and overwhelming happens—something that doesn’t fit any paradigm we’ve ever experienced or even imagined—of course we’re frightened at first—startled, terrified. And even once it sinks in a little bit, we’re still caught up in the moment of it all, with the entirely understandable pile of mixed feelings that they had: joy, disbelief, still wondering.

It takes time to process this stuff. And it seems that in this encounter that Jesus gets that—Jesus understands. He doesn’t immediately demand that they get off their collective duff and do something. He takes the time to explain what has come to pass, and help them understand a little better. But he also tells them that they will be needing to work through this initial reaction, because they will have a job to do (Luke 24:47b-48): “repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his [the Messiah’s] name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things”.

Maybe not now, in the midst of fear, and joy, and disbelief, and wondering. Maybe not until they get a little better sense of what it means that Jesus, indeed the Messiah, is raised from the dead. But, it seems, sooner, rather than later, they will be witnesses of these things—of what they’ve just witnessed, and what it means—and they will be proclaimers of repentance and forgiveness of sins TO ALL NATIONS. They get to sit with this for a bit. But then they have a life-changing message to proclaim.

Same with us. We can’t stay in the “wow!” stage of reaction to the love of Jesus touching our lives. We can’t just bask in the wonder and amazement. To pick on an old favorite hymn of some people, we can’t just go to the garden alone with him and hang out away from all of the other “stuff” in life that we’d rather avoid. We, too, are witnesses of these things. Love isn’t love until it’s given away, and Good News is only Good NEWS if it’s not kept secret.

We’re singing a song that I first learned at church camp this coming Sunday—that ends with these words: “I wish for you my friend, this happiness that I’ve found. You can depend on Him; it matters not where you’re bound. I’ll shout it from the mountaintop; I want my world to know; the Lord of love has come to me. I want to pass it on!”

August 27, 2017

Some moments in life are kind of transcendent. As a baseball fan, Josh Harrison's walk-off home run in the 10th inning last night is one of them--not only did he break up a no-hitter, he also won the game. It was the first time in the history of Major League Baseball that what he did has ever been done. It was exciting just watching it on TV--must have been amazing to be there!

But there are certainly other such moments that are clearly more profound. The first time you see that person whose love changes your life--the person who eventually becomes your life partner, or your first glimpse of your first-born child. The moment when you see clearly what you're to do with your life. You can think of others. Those moments sometimes can be anticipated, and sometimes they sneak up on us and "gobsmack" us. But they are, forever, entirely memorable and foundational. They are even transformational.

Such a moment happened to Cleopas and the other (unnamed) person in the passage in Luke 24:13-35. They are walking with a stranger, late in the day that they had heard that Jesus, who had been crucified and was obviously dead, was seen alive. This stranger hadn't heard that, and they engaged fully in an animated conversation with him about that--and he explained what it must mean. When they arrive at their destination they invite the stranger in, and something about the way he breaks the bread causes them to have one of those transformational, transcendent moments, because they see that this stranger is indeed Jesus. And he vanishes, and they realize that even when they didn't know who he was, it was still one of those moments that sneaked up on them, as they remembered: "Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the Scriptures to us?" It is easy to anticipate that their lives will be different from that point on. Encounters with Jesus can do that.

August 20, 2017

Because of what happened in Charlottesville, Virginia on Saturday, I changed what I was going to preach about. An unannounced until worship started sermon that could be called "Reflections on Charlottesville" is what I preached, from Galatians 3:26b-29 and Luke 18:9-14. The "Pastors Ponderings" from last week address what I'll be preaching this coming Sunday, and I won' repeat them--"you can look it up" as Casey Stengel used to say.

But to reflect further on Charlottesville, please see this letter from our United Methodist Bishop, Bishop Cynthia Moore-Koikoi.

http://www.wpaumc.org/newsdetail/bishops-statement-on-charlottesville-events-9025308

August 13, 2017

Some names get negative associations because of one person who has that name. For example, I would suspect very few, if any, American families with the last name of Arnold would name a child Benedict. And since the demise of the former Heisman Trophy-winning running back and Buffalo Bills record-setter, I would expect few families with an offspring named Oliver John or Oscar Joseph to refer to him as "O.J.". And has anybody named a son Adolph in the last 80 years?

That stated, it seems to me that Jesus' disciple also known as "Didymus" (because he was a twin) gets a bad rap. He is better known as Thomas--and not just as Thomas, but as "Doubting Thomas"--because he wouldn't believe what the other disciples told him, when they told him that they had seen Jesus alive after he had clearly and publicly been dead. As stated in John 20:25, his response was: "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe." It seems he needed more proof, that he didn't trust them at their word. (There may have been good reason not to trust them at their word, as it turns out--and not because of what they said, but because THEY said it.)

I really don't know why we have a problem with that. It seems increasingly difficult in this day and age to know what is actually true. "Fake News" is going on out there in our society--and it seems what one decides is "fake news" could be exactly the opposite of what someone else decides is "fake news". And flat-out lying (at least it seemed to me like flat-out lying) gets described as "alternative facts". In this world we live in, why would we believe anything anyone told us unless we can satisfy our own minds with our own experiences and draw our own conclusions? And by extension, why then would any of us have a problem with Thomas insisting on that same thing? Why would we agree to a characterization as derisive as "Doubting Thomas" when we ourselves pretty much demand the same thing as he did?

Jesus doesn't seem to chastise Thomas--in fact, Jesus shows Thomas his hands and side even before Thomas asks, and says "Do not doubt but believe" (John 20:27). And yet Jesus also says (verse 29): "Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe."

We cannot prove everything there is to prove about God. Heck, we can't even prove to ourselves everything there is to prove about ourselves. At some point we just have to trust and believe in some things that we can't prove--falling in love comes to mind as an example. We cannot empirically verify EVERYTHING--and we don't. If we think about it, we take a whole lot of stuff on faith. And yet, there is nothing wrong with wanting to know, with having a certain level of requirement of fact or certainty, before we believe absolutely anything.

It comes down to trust. But keep asking the questions!