Sermon for September 15

The Readings

Genesis 18:1-15; 21:1-7

18:1 The Lord appeared to Abraham by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the entrance of his tent in the heat of the day. 2 He looked up and saw three men standing near him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent entrance to meet them, and bowed down to the ground. 3 He said, "My lord, if I find favor with you, do not pass by your servant. 4 Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree. 5 Let me bring a little bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on—since you have come to your servant." So they said, "Do as you have said." 6 And Abraham hastened into the tent to Sarah, and said, "Make ready quickly three measures of choice flour, knead it, and make cakes." 7 Abraham ran to the herd, and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to the servant, who hastened to prepare it. 8 Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree while they ate. 9 They said to him, "Where is your wife Sarah?" And he said, "There, in the tent." 10 Then one said, "I will surely return to you in due season, and your wife Sarah shall have a son." And Sarah was listening at the tent entrance behind him. 11 Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in age; it had ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women. 12 So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, "After I have grown old, and my husband is old, shall I have pleasure?" 13 The Lord said to Abraham, "Why did Sarah laugh, and say, "Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?' 14 Is anything too wonderful for the Lord? At the set time I will return to you, in due season, and Sarah shall have a son." 15 But Sarah denied, saying, "I did not laugh"; for she was afraid. He said, "Oh yes, you did laugh."

21:1 The Lord dealt with Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah as he had promised. 2 Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the time of which God had spoken to him. 3 Abraham gave the name Isaac to his son whom Sarah bore him. 4 And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him. 5 Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. 6 Now Sarah said, "God has brought laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh with me." 7 And she said, "Who would ever have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age."

The message

As we look at today’s reading, we have to start with 2 questions. First -What happened between creation last week and the events of this week, the good news to Abraham and Sarah that they will have a son and the birth of that son, Issac, Second -who are Abraham and Sarah, what happened to them up to this point


First, after creation, there is the fall, Eve and Adam disobey God’s command and eat fruit from a tree that God had told them not to. They do this so that they can have knowledge of good and evil, falling for the enticement of god-like power and knowledge. For this, they are punished, thrown out of the kind garden and left in a harsh world.   After jealousy over a sacrifice, one of their children kills the other, Cain kills Abel.  The world continues to deteriorate and grow further from God., ⁵ The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.  After this, there is the great flood to destroy a failed creation. Noah and his family build a very large boat.  Along with pairs of every animals, Noah and his family ride out the flood in the ark and spared.  When the waters recede, God sends them to “be fruitful and multiply”, to repopulate the new world.  After this, we have the tower of Babel. People come together to try and build a center of the world that is not God, a place of ultimate power that is not God, a place of decision that is not God. Part of this plan is a universal language and a city with a tower that reaches heaven.  In response, God scatters them and confuses their languages. 


After a series of genealogies that tell the generations of Noah and his children, we meet Abram, a descendant of Noah’s first born son Shem. In the midst of ordinary life, we suddenly learn The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.² “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great,
    and you will be a blessing.  I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”  So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot (Abram’s nephew) went with him.  Abram goes, building a family, encountering war, struggle and success.  The thing that was missing was a child, a son, a true heir with his wife Sarah. How could God’s promise I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you be true if he does not even have a single heir, who would this promise happen through.

With Sarah’s suggestion and permission, Abram did have a child, Ishmael, with Haggar, one of their servants. Although Ishmael was not considered a true heir, this creates a great deal of jealousy and a rupture in their house.  After this God once again repeats the promise to Abraham  “you shall be the ancestor of a multitude of nations” and more specific, “as for Ishmael, I will bless him but my covenant will be with Issac whom Sarah will bear in the season after next.   (To Abram and Sarah who are now old, disappointed and frustrated, this sounds impossible)

That brings us to today’s visit where the Lord appears in some way as these three visitors to Abraham and Sarah’s tent.  Starting here, there are moments in the story we are unsure about. We do not know if Abraham recognizes the importance of his visitors. Regardless, Abraham responds with immediate and great hospitality, insisting they stay, offering a little food and water and then giving even more. The guests repeat the promise that Sarah will bear a child. Sarah overhears this and laughs to herself (we learn at another point in the story Abraham laughs as well), We are not sure if this is a laughter expressing relief, a laughter sharing uncertainty or a laughter of seriously, now, after all these years, when I am too old you talk about this promise.   Sometimes, all we do is laugh at our attempts to figure things out or do them our way.

While Abraham and Sarah wait for this promise of a son, we have the destruction of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, places and communities so corrupted by sin, they must be destroyed (for instance, when angels of the Lord, disguised as men, go to visit Sodom and see what is happening, all the men of the city go out and try to rape them, not exactly the best thing they could have done during an inspection to determine the fate of their city).   

Scripture returns to the story of Abraham and Sarah, with God’s promise kept, the birth of Issac.  Now Sarah said, "God has brought laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh with me” Issac’s name literally means “he laughs” and unlike the uncertain laughter of before, this is laughter of joy and relief.  It is an invitation for us to remember with God all things are possible. This story sits in the Bible as one of the first examples of the message, With God all things are possible.  The history of Israel is filled with examples of people who remember nothing is impossible for God who gave a child to Sarah and Abraham.   They will constantly experience this in their lives and their history. God will act powerfully and decisively in the world, There will be times when all their efforts fail or fall apart, wisdom is wrong, armies are powerless and all that is left is to depend on God.     

With God all things are possible is a quote we see printed on coffee cups, sewed on pillow cases, hung up on church banners (We had one right there for a long time), prayed before big moments, spoken in love to people in crisis to bring comfort, spoken in encouragement to people who have lost hope. Of course, with God all things are possible is not a magic phrase we can use to get what we want. If you say “With God all things are possible” 10 times and buy a lotto ticket, you are not guaranteed a win. This is not simply a self help trick, to encourage you to act boldly or stupidly assuming God will push the outcome in your favor.  It is a statement of God’s ultimate authority in and over the world. Like the rest of our long Advent, it is a promise that God is with us.   

With God all things are possible is the message Jesus shares in our verse from Mark 10. In that case, Jesus shares these words after a series of very difficult comments on how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God.  After laying out why it is virtually impossible, Jesus’ frustrated and scared disciples watch the crowds disappear and they had enough, they ask Then who can be saved?” ²⁷ Jesus looked at them and said, “For mortals it is impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible.”  Here, God’s power is applied to salvation,  it cannot be earned  by keeping the law, it cannot be purchased or accomplished by some (or a ton of) good works, it will be given as a gift because with God all things are possible.  Today, we say all things are possible for God who was made flesh and dwelled amongst us, who healed the sick, welcomed the stranger, taught the crowds, calmed the storms. who died and rose again.

Sermon for September 8

The reading

Genesis 2:4b-25

4b In the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens, 5 when no plant of the field was yet in the earth and no herb of the field had yet sprung up — for the Lord God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was no one to till the ground; 6 but a stream would rise from the earth, and water the whole face of the ground — 7 then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being. 8 And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east; and there he put the man whom he had formed. 9 Out of the ground the Lord God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food, the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. 10 A river flows out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it divides and becomes four branches. 11 The name of the first is Pishon; it is the one that flows around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold; 12 and the gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. 13 The name of the second river is Gihon; it is the one that flows around the whole land of Cush. 14 The name of the third river is Tigris, which flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates. 15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, "You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; 17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die." 18 Then the Lord God said, "It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper as his partner." 19 So out of the ground the Lord God formed every animal of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name. 20 The man gave names to all cattle, and to the birds of the air, and to every animal of the field; but for the man there was not found a helper as his partner. 21 So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then he took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. 22 And the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. 23 Then the man said, "This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; this one shall be called Woman, for out of Man this one was taken." 24 Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and clings to his wife, and they become one flesh. 25 And the man and his wife were both naked, and were not ashamed.

Mark 1:16-20 ¹⁶As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. ¹⁷"Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will send you out to fish for people." ¹⁸At once they left their nets and followed him. ¹⁹When he had gone a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John in a boat, preparing their nets. ²⁰Without delay he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him





The message


Happy Year 2, happy church new year. This morning, we begin another church year. Like our January 1^st New Year, this is a time for looking forward and for looking at what is important.  The narrative lectionary starts with a long Advent, the time of waiting for Christmas, centuries in a community where things were often not quick or easy, there were wars, famines, defeats, abandoned faith, disobedience, betrayals and horrible events. At Christmas, we often hear the word / name Immanuel, meaning God with us and that is the message of our church year.   


We will have a series of Old Testament readings that take us from creation to the birth of Jesus, we will (or should) struggle with some of them. We also need to make sure we do not get lost in the details. The first people to be healed by, talk with, learn from and experience God in Christ, knew these stories, hopes and voices well, we should too.  


This new year, we will focus on the Gospel of Mark. The Gospel of Mark is the earliest Gospel book that was written. It is fast paced (the Greek words Kai Ethos, and immediately occur every few verses, it was written to be read cover to cover in one sitting), 


The Gospel of Mark focuses on Christian Discipleship, what it looks and feels like to follow Jesus.  The Gospel centers around a series of escalating conflicts between Jesus and religious and or political empires.  You can’t do both, you can’t be fully part of the kingdom of God and of the world. At the same time, you can follow Jesus and work with faith, care for your family and community with faith, build relationships with love.
  

We start the new year with 2 readings that show “God with us” is at the message told to us from the start. There is creation and Jesus first invitation to come and follow. Today, we start with the second creation story, from the very start, time with people, God being with us, is at the heart of God’s kingdom. Each verse has filled entire collections of books.  We can easily get lost in the details Now countless centuries of work and interpretation have been spent on these stories, their own origins, relationship with each other, relationship with science / what we can discover from observing what we can observe.  People have spent huge amounts of energy trying to figure out where these rivers are, where the garden was, what fruit was on the tree (probably not an apple), I want to look at something different, at the heart of this story is God with us.  God’s time together with people. The first creation story, God is in heaven looking down, seeing and saying “:it is good”, in the second story, God is in the garden, forming life from the earth, witnessing Adam’s loneness, feeling the wind,  God is very much with us.    Jesus first call of the disciples is simple follow me and I will make you fish for people.  Jesus goes to the center of the city and life, the place where people were fishing.  God is with us.  


We will hear a lot about the ways people have seen and felt God with us.  We will also do, show and help others experience God with us. In our ministry this year, I want to focus on a few main ways of care and community outreach.

1-      Our Rainbow Christian Preschool:

2-      Woodside Neighborhood Association: 

3-      Stacey’s food pantry

Sermon for September 1

Deuteronomy 15:1-2, 7-11; Luke 15:11-32

Deuteronomy 15:1 Every seventh year you shall grant a remission of debts. 2 And this is the manner of the remission: every creditor shall remit the claim that is held against a neighbor, not exacting it of a neighbor who is a member of the community, because the Lord's remission has been proclaimed.

7 If there is among you anyone in need, a member of your community in any of your towns within the land that the Lord your God is giving you, do not be hard-hearted or tight-fisted toward your needy neighbor. 8 You should rather open your hand, willingly lending enough to meet the need, whatever it may be. 9 Be careful that you do not entertain a mean thought, thinking, "The seventh year, the year of remission, is near," and therefore view your needy neighbor with hostility and give nothing; your neighbor might cry to the Lord against you, and you would incur guilt. 10 Give liberally and be ungrudging when you do so, for on this account the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you undertake. 11 Since there will never cease to be some in need on the earth, I therefore command you, "Open your hand to the poor and needy neighbor in your land."

The message

(I read our second reading in the middle)

This morning, we complete our Summer with our last readings on the Sabbath / Rest. Today does not focus on refraining from work on the Holy Day, it does not invite spiritual reflection, it invites real, scary actions. This part of the law focuses on something most of us pray everyday but don’t think a lot about, one of the petitions in the Lord’s Pray, forgive us our sins or debts as we forgive our debtors, those who sin against us (we do not use debt / debtors much but the original Greek word does have an economic tone). Without a sabbath, we struggle to realize we are loved by God and that it matters, without a sabbath, we struggle to realize just how bad life is for many people

Our reading from Deuteronomy presents a radical world view in a simple command (one that we are not sure was ever practiced), every 7^th year you shall grant a remission of debt.  It is work to be poor, it is work to be homeless, It is work to be part of a persecuted, discriminated against group, lots of stuff to think about and worry about. There is supposed to be a sabbath from that.  This is one of the verses that many people who focus on just a verse or two of scripture avoid. Inequality was not part of God’s creation and Sabbath is returning to God’s creation.  Poverty was not part of God’s creation and Sabbath is returning to God’s creation, Sabbath is not just for us to rest, it means understanding the consequences of our work and life in terms of relationship with God and understanding its impact on others, calling us to allow others to rest. We hear a lot about the impact of our life styles on others, environmental, world poverty, warfare, the use of others resources, slavery, the cost of cheap prices, distribution, a serious accounting of our impact on the world can only be done if we stop and notice.  

To forgive debts is not fair.  Nothing in this commandment for the forgiveness of debts has anything to do with deserving or fairness. We are called to be something better than fair. Our second reading is one of the most well known parables in the bible and world, it is not fair  

Luke 15:11 ( I added some comments in the parenthesis) Then Jesus said, "There was a man who had two sons. 12 The younger of them said to his father, 'Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me. (what, that’s a terrible thing to ask, that is like saying dad, act like your dead so I can party) ' So the father divided his property between them (what are you nuts, a friend should have dragged you to court for a judge to decide you were not of sane mind and couldn’t do this). 13 A few days later the younger son gathered all he had and traveled to a distant country, and there he squandered his property in dissolute living. (this guy is a grade A piece of crap) 14 When he had spent everything, a severe famine took place throughout that country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed the pigs. (sure now that hes abandoned and devested his family, he might as well turn his back on his faith, violate the laws that have organized his faith for centuries and take care of unclean pigs) 16 He would gladly have filled himself with the pods that the pigs were eating; and no one gave him anything. 17 But when he came to himself he said, 'How many of my father's hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger! 18 I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands."' (I think that’s the best way back in, let me practice it)  So he set off and went to his father. But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion (not anger, not practical thoughts,) ; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him. 21 Then the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.' 22 (this is an act of grace, the son’s well thought out line does not matter) But the father said to his slaves, 'Quickly,(restore him to his status as my son)  bring out a robe -- the best one -- and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 And get the fatted calf and kill it, an let us eat and celebrate; 24 for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!' And they began to celebrate. 25 Now his elder son was in the field; and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 He called one of the slaves and asked what was going on. 27 He replied, 'Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he has got him back safe and sound.' 28 Then he became angry (realizing that this kid who stole and devastated his father, who wasted so much of what was theirs was home and not in prison or killed or settling into slave quarters or punished at all)  and refused to go in. His father came out and began to plead with him. 29 But 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. 30 But when this son of yours came back, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him!' 31 Then the father said to him, 'Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. 32 T. But 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.'"

This parable comes about because the religious authorities see Jesus with the people, healing, teaching (while they are by and large ignored, a observation that enrages them).  They start to whisper, “he eats and tax collectors and sinners”.   This was not fair, if Jesus was the savior, the messiah, a healer, a prophet, a great teacher, the son of God, why wouldn’t he spend all his time with the deserving, the law keepers, the generous givers, reward the good people. 

Sinners had broken the law, Tax collectors were Jewish people who worked for the Roman Empire, collecting the “so the empire does not kill you all” payments from the people (and earning wages by overcharging)  The Pharisees would ever eat with these people,  why soil their image, there would be no social, economic or political gain.  When challenged about who he stays with Jesus responds with several stories Jesus responds by talking about a lost sheep (the shepherd leaves 99 to find the one) and a lost coin (the owner scours all over for it despite having so many others).   In the case of the coin and sheep, the ones left are less protected, watched or cared for. It is not fair.   The final outcome in the story of the prodigal son is not fair to the elder child,  The dad knows it is not right, everyone knows it is not fair.  It is better than fair, it is mercy, love and compassion, that is the way to joy.

A quote I share from St Issac the Syrian, a teacher and mystic in the early church (5^th century) Never say that God is just. If He were just you would be in hell. Rely only on His injustice which is mercy, love, and forgiveness.

Sermon for August 25

The readings

Genesis 2:1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all their multitude. 2 And on the seventh day God finished the work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all the work that he had done. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it God rested from all the work that he had done in creation.

John 15:9 As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. 10 If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. 11 I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete. 12 "This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command you. 15 I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father.

The message

We have our second week on the theme of Sabbath and rest.  The Sabbath is much more than avoiding work. The Sabbath is so much more than not doing laundry or sweeping on Sunday. It is a call to be God’s people. Nehemiah 10:30 shows a massive expansion of what keeping the Sabbath means.  "When the neighboring peoples bring merchandise or grain to sell on the Sabbath, we will not buy from them on the Sabbath or on any holy day. Every seventh year we will forgo working the land and will cancel all debts.  Debts are canceled because debt is not part of creation, the land rests, abusing the environment is not part of creation, The Sabbath remind us that the earth makes enough food for everyone without our interference, it is distribution that is the problem, Sabbath is a time to remember what we do matters and most of the time in very bad ways. Sabbath stops business as usual

The idea of a Sabbath, a day of rest, is built into creation. God, setting the example for us and showing the world is more than capable of sustaining life. In Genesis God blesses and hallows (makes holy, set apart) the Sabbath, establishing it as a day of rest to think about God’s love, power and presence. It is also a sign that creation is good, capable of functioning on its own, God does not need to micromanage, the sun will come up without God pushing it, the earth will spin without God winding it, gravity will keep stuff in place without God tying all of creation to strings and pulling things up and down, the thousands of perfectly tuned laws of nature will hold life together.

I think back to when I took my first driving lessons, after the first hours in the car, the instructor noticed that I had a habit of constantly adjusting the steering wheel to keep the car strait on the road. I started to think that the car was defective, maybe the wheels were misaligned or some issue with the tires being unbalanced.  My constant mini adjustments to the left, right and back to the middle would make a zig zag pattern and I would do it more and more to keep correcting.  I would constantly worry about drifting out of the lane so I would always end up going from line all the way to the other. After numerous attempts to explain to me that the car would go straight if I just left it alone, the instructor realized, I still didn’t get it, when he said “stop doing that”, I heard “your right to adjust, just do it little less and smarter”, which just led me to worry and correct more.   After this, we got to a stretch of straight, empty road and he tells me “okay, just take your hands off the wheel” and see what the car does. Sure enough for about 20 seconds the car went straight ahead in the lane with no zig zag or veering off to the left or right. It was not the car that was defective, it was me.  That was a truth I had to experience, I had to witness, I had to sit in and see.  After that I remembered that cars were designed to go forward in a straight line and did not need countless mini adjustments.      

John chapter 15 is focused on relationships, the believer’s life in faith, with Christ. These relationships will keep people on the right path, that place us in right relationships. . John 15 starts with Jesus explaining the relationship of believers with him. “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower. ² He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes^[a] to make it bear more fruit. ³ You have already been cleansed^[b] by the word that I have spoken to you. ⁴ Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me.  This is one of the 7 “I am” statements Jesus makes in John’s gospel (I am the Good Shepherd, I am the way, the truth and the life),

Next is about our relationship with each other, this time the defining word is love  "This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends

Chapter 15 ends with the believers relationship with the world, 18 “If the world hates you, be aware that it hated me first. 19 If you belonged to the world, the world would love you as its own. However, because you do not belong to the world, but I chose you out of the world, for this reason the world hates you.   We are in the world, it is the place we love, we live, we experience but we are also part of the kingdom of God.

We need a Sabbath to realize these things, to remind us God is in control

Sermon for August 18

The Readings

Deuteronomy 5:12-15; Matthew 11:28-30

Deuteronomy 5:12 Observe the sabbath day and keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you. 13 Six days you shall labor and do all your work. 14 But the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God; you shall not do any work—you, or your son or your daughter, or your male or female slave, or your ox or your donkey, or any of your livestock, or the resident alien in your towns, so that your male and female slave may rest as well as you. 15 Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm; therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the sabbath day.

Matthew 11:28 "Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."

The message

We are ending our Summer series with 3 weeks on the Sabbath, rest.  I wanted to start with a look back. This Summer, we sent 4 weeks on the book of Psalms, the ancient songs of worship in the temple.  These songs were written to express people’s experiences of God. We looked them in terms of how they shared faith, realistically. Using Walter Brugglemanns breakdown,  some were psalms of orientation, written and sung when things were good, when the world seemed fair and kind. Others were disorientation, when times were bad, collapsing, when there is chaos, loss and there seems to be no way out of suffering. Finally, there is reorientation, things are well again, the suffering endured and triumphed over, a drastically different world but one where the memory of things past remains and God’s presence is still known.

After this we had 5 weeks with the Letter to the Hebrews, written to try and restore, revitalize, wake a church community that started off great but quickly faded, grew dull and confused.  The author writes to try and wake people by focusing on Christ’s death and resurrection. They also define faith in word ( now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.)  and examples of people like Noah, Enoch, Abraham and Abel doing it.

We finish summer with 3 weeks about the Sabbath / rest. This is something I don’t do well. Jen can tell you I am not a fan of resting, its okay in small doses but much more then a hour and I start getting concerned. This leads to Jen and I’s annual vacation debates, Jen will say look at, want a nice hotel, I will say who cares, every moment spent in the hotel is time wasted, time better spent doing something, we need a hotel with a great location so we don’t waste 20 minutes getting to stuff.  If it has a view, balcony, something to look at, I could think of hotel time as doing something

I am coming up to 10 years of ministry here at St Jacobus, here in Woodside, and I must admit my approach to ministry has been very similar to my approach to vacation, we are in a time and world where the best answer to how are things? Is I am busy, I am very busy, I am overwhelmed with how much I have to do, it feels like I will never catch up, all that equals I am important, I am capable, I can list a whole bunch of stuff on the calendar, until whoever I am talking to mentions that enough,  wow you do a lot, that’s impressive becomes are you nuts, why are you doing all that, don’t you have help, cant you find others to work with you (probably, I barely ask and don’t want to put off doing) , how do you do any of that well, intentionally, how do you find time to connect, empower others ( I don’t, there is no time), you can do more together     

Perhaps this is why I have choose this series on Sabbath and rest, words I need to hear as much as you do.  We measure worth by how much we do, what our job is, what we have accomplished, what we are good for, once a week, that all disappears, on the Sabbath, we measure worth because we are loved by God.  I often hurry to see one more thing, get one more thing done without taking the time to ask “why”/  

One of the earliest commands on Sabbath rest (like do not steal, do not commit adultery and  share the good news, Sabbath rest is a command, not a thoughtful suggestion) Points you to the main things, Awake and think on the Exodus. This was the main event of the Old Testament, the God driven, miraculous escape from slavery in Egypt.  

To pause for a Sabbath gives us a chance to remember why we are church,

Sermon for August 11

The reading

Hebrews 11:1-16 [12:1-2]

11:1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. 2 Indeed, by faith our ancestors received approval. 3 By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was made from things that are not visible. 4 By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain's. Through this he received approval as righteous, God himself giving approval to his gifts; he died, but through his faith he still speaks. 5 By faith Enoch was taken so that he did not experience death; and "he was not found, because God had taken him." For it was attested before he was taken away that "he had pleased God." 6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, for whoever would approach him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. 7 By faith Noah, warned by God about events as yet unseen, respected the warning and built an ark to save his household; by this he condemned the world and became an heir to the righteousness that is in accordance with faith. 8 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that he was to receive as an inheritance; and he set out, not knowing where he was going. 9 By faith he stayed for a time in the land he had been promised, as in a foreign land, living in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. 10 For he looked forward to the city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is God. 11 By faith he received power of procreation, even though he was too old — and Sarah herself was barren — because he considered him faithful who had promised. 12 Therefore from one person, and this one as good as dead, descendants were born, "as many as the stars of heaven and as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore." 13 All of these died in faith without having received the promises, but from a distance they saw and greeted them. They confessed that they were strangers and foreigners on the earth, 14 for people who speak in this way make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. 15 If they had been thinking of the land that they had left behind, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; indeed, he has prepared a city for them.

12:1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, 2 looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God.

The message

I thought I had just gotten over a cold / sickness that I was dealing with throughout the week and felt okay this morning, until about 2 minutes before church, when I started to feel very sick.  Also half way through my sermon a young kid from church loudly burst through the front door (about 10 ft behind me) just to say hello (I think).  All good stuff when we look at the fact that the point of this text is to call people away from distraction and towards God’s saving power, given to us through the gift of faith.  I also felt thankful that we had a church service / liturgy where God’s word, forgiveness and love was expressed in song, prayer, sacrament and fellowship, in spite of my not making a lot of sense, getting distracted,  not liking my manuscript halfway though and going off on tangents that didn’t make a lot of sense. An experience that reminds me, this is God’s work and having some order to church is good.     

This week, I hosted the Elmhurst Clergy meeting. It’s a monthly prayer group of pastors and other leaders from churches in the neighborhood (this time the woodside people actually outnumbered the Elmhurst folks). Since it was a nice day out and someone was allergic to cats, we meet outside in the backyard. As we meet, there was some construction going on next door, with all of the banging and machine noise that goes along with it.  We briefly thought about moving but all said, well we’re used to noise, even celebrating that we do ministry in life, in a city, with all the distractions that come with that work.  Our days are filled with distractions. We do not wait for things to get quiet, we share the word in all conditions.

Today, we finished our 4 weeks with the Letter to the Hebrews.  There are 2 lenses or ways of understanding the purpose and first audience of this letter.  First, they were Jewish in their history, understanding and tradition. They knew the Law, Old Testament and the expectations for the messiah well. When the first audience heard the stories of people like Abraham, Abel and Noah, they would have instantly said, oh yeah, that’s true.  Second, this communication was written to try and restore a community that had grown dull and lazy in their welcome, faith and attention to the word of God. We do not know if this fading in faith was due to rival teachers and world views influencing the community (like Corinth), persecutions or some other factor inside the community or outside the community.  The initial excitement in faith had been lost.  The community had become distracted from Jesus.

Today, we might call this burnout. It remains a concern for large churches with overwhelmed leaders during times of non-stop growth, adding new people, programs and missions, The joy of growth becomes a monster that must be fed. It is a problem for new or small churches whose members and leaders are overwhelmed with doing it all, frustrated with poor buildings, memories of the not so distant past and the failure of great ideas. Joy of salvation becomes fear for the future. 

All of these examples and countless others, are the same, the biggest distraction is we make church about us, our work, our ideas, our energy, our resources, our triumphs and failures.  Today, the author of Hebrews reminds us, faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

To address these distractions, the author of Hebrews focuses on Christ’s death and resurrection for the forgiveness of sins. Using the image of Jesus as the great high priest, who like ancient Melezidek, comes from outside the tradition and unlike anyone else whose sin offering is not temporary and whose sacrifice needs no repeating. The author also focuses on faith. 

Today, we end our time with the author’s argument that faith comes through God’s word.  In our tradition, Luther wrote about word alone, that faith comes through hearing, that God’s word, read, preached and shared brings people to faith. (Faith is not simply another work, like keeping the commandments, loving your neighbor or not cheating)

What is faith?  Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.  Last week, the author of Hebrews the structure and order of the temple to illustrate the radical change that Jesus brings.  This week, the author uses examples from the ancient world, the stories of people that the first audience would have known well to show what does faith look like. Faith is not simply defined as the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen   The author of Hebrews defines faith through images, stories, the witness to the actions of God’s people. The ones mentioned, Noah, Abraham, Enoch, Abel all take bold, unusual actions with the assurance of things hoped for, a conviction of things not seen.  Abraham moves his family, when they had no logical reason to, becoming refugees in a strange land instead of keeping a good, stable life and inheritance right where they were. He moves with the assurance of things hoped for,  Noah builds a boat when there are no rain clouds in the sky and no history of it ever raining that much, Noah acts with the conviction of things not seen.  Abel, one of the children of Adam and Eve, his faith directed him to give a greater, more acceptable offering than Cain (there is no prosperity Gospel here, after this Abel becomes the first recorded murder, Cain kills Abel)   Then there is Enoch, whose story is mysterious but one where he lives in a certainty about thing unseen, who ascends to heaven (Genesis 5:24  Enoch walked faithfully with God; then he was no more, because God took him away).

The author goes way back into history, focusing on the first people to hear God’s word and respond, reacting with trust (mostly) and obedience (again mostly),  All of these died in faith without having received the promises, but from a distance they saw and greeted them. They confessed that they were strangers and foreigners on the earth,  for people who speak in this way make it clear that they are seeking a homeland.  If they had been thinking of the land that they had left behind, they would have had opportunity to return.  But as it is, they desire better country, that is, a heavenly one

Each of them, although only getting glimpses of God’s plan, put faith first, Noah, stops everything else to take on this all-consuming construction project, Abraham walks away from hard earned comfort to go to a new place, endure challenges, Enoch, walks with God, expecting no reward,  Abel, offers his sacrifice with no thought of self preservation, how will my brother react (poorly).   

 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us,  looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God

Sermon for August 4

The reading

Hebrews 9:1-14

1 Now even the first covenant had regulations for worship and an earthly sanctuary. 2 For a tent was constructed, the first one, in which were the lampstand, the table, and the bread of the Presence; this is called the Holy Place. 3 Behind the second curtain was a tent called the Holy of Holies. 4 In it stood the golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant overlaid on all sides with gold, in which there were a golden urn holding the manna, and Aaron's rod that budded, and the tablets of the covenant; 5 above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat. Of these things we cannot speak now in detail. 6 Such preparations having been made, the priests go continually into the first tent to carry out their ritual duties; 7 but only the high priest goes into the second, and he but once a year, and not without taking the blood that he offers for himself and for the sins committed unintentionally by the people. 8 By this the Holy Spirit indicates that the way into the sanctuary has not yet been disclosed as long as the first tent is still standing. 9 This is a symbol of the present time, during which gifts and sacrifices are offered that cannot perfect the conscience of the worshiper, 10 but deal only with food and drink and various baptisms, regulations for the body imposed until the time comes to set things right. 11 But when Christ came as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation), 12 he entered once for all into the Holy Place, not with the blood of goats and calves, but with his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption. 13 For if the blood of goats and bulls, with the sprinkling of the ashes of a heifer, sanctifies those who have been defiled so that their flesh is purified, 14 how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to worship the living God!

The message

For most of human history, teachers, leaders, prophets, priests and others have all realized that people remember, connect with and learn from images and stories better than simply facts or words.  Jesus did most of his teaching about the kingdom of God, about what God was doing in the world, who God is, through the use of parables, teaching stories meant to share deep truths we might otherwise miss. Instead of saying your neighbor is anyone, Jesus shares the story of the good Samaritan, where an unclean outsider risks his own life to save someone, Instead of Jesus saying “God is patient and forgives” Jesus shares the story of the prodigal son, who returns home to a great welcome after betrayal, waste and poor decisions.

The Letter to the Hebrews was written to try and restore, light a new fire in a once excited, Christ centered community that had grown dull and lazy Today, we hear the author of Hebrews try to do that through images and story, telling the church, Jesus sacrifice, his death and resurrection brings the forgiveness of sins, once and for all through using the image of the temple, something that was well known to the first audience.

The temple was very carefully constructed, down to every detail, there are about 6 chapters in the Old Testament describing the materials and dimensions of the ark of the covenant, the interior and exterior spaces and the overall layout.  These blueprints were a sign of obedience and a constant reminder that this is God’s temple. The temple was also a hierarchical building, there were areas where only some can pass, spaces only some could enter.  There was the holiest of holies, reserved for the high priest and even then only once a year. This barrier so many could not pass was one of the most well known, protected and respected barriers in the Jewish world.  There were questions of if the disabled or sick could even enter the first part of the temple, (Jesus often heals people outside the temple wall and then sends them in to see the authorities), those who were ritually unclean (having eaten something banned, came in contact with an unclean person) had to be purified first. 

The rituals and work of the priests serving at the temple were a central part of religious life. The most important of these rituals was the annual Yom Kippur sacrifice by the high priest in the holy center of the temple. If someone was asked, how do you know your sins are forgiven, he or she could point to this sacrifice and God’s promise attached to it.  Controversially and shockingly, the author of Hebrews describes this most sacred and ancient of work as incomplete, this sacrifice being unable to perfect the conscious of the worshipper, it would have to be done again and again, every year.  What if you sinned the day after the sacrifice, you would carry that sin all year till the next time the high priest did his work. What if you died in sin, after all, the covenant was still conditional what if what you did wasn’t included for some reason?     

This image of Jesus as the high priest takes us back to last week, Hebrews 8, where the author declares that Jesus is a priest in the same way and authority of Melchizek,.  This is a reference to a king that Abram encounters, right after a war is won and long before the temple, covenant or law exists. Melchizedek is identified as a high priest, blesses Abram and is given a tithe, 10 percent of the soils of war.   Abram’s actions, accepting the blessing and offering the tithe, establishes that Melchizedek, an outsider, not connected to any family, education or tradition, outside any normal or traditional process, is a high priest of God.

But when Christ came as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation),  he entered once for all into the Holy Place, not with the blood of goats and calves, but with his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption.

The image of the temple shows just how drastic the changes that take place when Jesus is born, dies and rises again really are. There is no longer a need for the sacrifice in the holiest of holies (an act that will soon become impossible once the temple is destroyed by the Romans around 10 years after this letter is written).  We can look at Jesus words in the days before his death and resurrection, that I will destroy the temple and rebuild it in 3 days, not one stone will be left on stone, The collapse of barriers: the tearing down of walls,  Faith will now live outside the walls of the temple,   Forgiveness of sins will not come through a high Priest doing an annual ritual, it will come because Christ died and rose again.  This might sound familiar, The reformation, the political and religious revolt that started our church, stemmed from the Roman Catholic church’s attempt to add obstacles to this news,, to put up necessary steps, indulgences, confession, penance, to make their priests the high priest activating and controlling the forgiveness of sins. This could not perfect people’s conscious, we are saved by faith alone, Christ alone can perfect consciousness.     

Perhaps as church, we need to always think of other barriers, I have been calling this church, a place for everyone, which is more ambitious that reality. if someone cannot sing, if they cannot read, if they cannot climb, if robes creep people out, have a bad history, abused by priests, exploited by bad pastors, The occasional phone call “is the building accessible” and the answer is no.  Is the kingdom of God. Yes, that’s what we need to say  

We had a special service here and a woman came up to the front steps in a motorized scooter. I saw her as I walked down the block and immediately knew I would have to tell her, I’m sorry, you cannot get inside the sanctuary. I walked slower and slower, I didn’t want to be the one who told her she could not enter the church, (but I also knew it was my responsibility and there was nothing that could be done about it).  Can I go to the service, no, is she in the kingdom of God, yes.

Several emails from a woman with a Transgendered child who was not welcome at her church, asking if the child would be welcomed by our community.  (you say you are a place for everyone, are you? Will people stare, will people make comments, this took me by complete surprise and I had to say “I don’t think there will be any issues but this has never come up before and im not sure” she ended up working it out with her priest and remaining at her church.  

A young severely disabled girl I meet at a hospital who could not be Baptized because the pastor at her church didn’t think she could make or express an informed enough decision to accept Jesus. Are you fully welcome in that community, no, are you in the kingdom of God, yes (a message we could show through having a baptism then and there)    

Sometimes, we may have to say, no you cannot enter here, join us, attend, but we must also make sure we always say you are in the kingdom of God.