March 20, 2020

Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Px6qSjTadUE

We have been here before:  Not us, specifically. No one alive now has pastored, taught, gone to school, cared for their family, built houses, ran a restaurant, made decisions as an elected official or tried to save their business during a pandemic. This is the first one since the flu of 1918-19 and even the oldest people in the world (101 plus) were young children back then.  Perhaps, some people have memories of their parents, grandparents or great grandparents talking about that flu which infected 500 million people and killed 50 million plus people.  A lot of people forgot this could happen in our modern, scientific, technology filled world.   


There are historical records of the black death, horrible records of what things were like, with a focus on graphic images and terror. There are, of course, the often unmentioned who cared for others, helped or stayed out of the way. The people who worked sanitation and healthcare, who cared for the sick, who prayed and prayed and helped. Even further back, there are plagues and disasters. In all the times I have read the story of Exodus, as God leads the people out of slavery in Egypt after a series of plagues like locusts, hail that turns to fire, water turning to blood and the death of the first born, It was always a report of events that showed the power of God and stubbornness of people. I never stopped to think what it was like to live in Egypt at the time, to wonder if you would ever have water again or see your home destroyed and wonder where to live, to watch your crops, the food of your city and livelihood of your family disappear in a moment, to face the wrath of God as the magicians and priests and doctors of this great, unstoppable empire, looked on powerlessly.

In 1527 there was an outbreak of the plague in Wittenburg (the same illness that killed 2/3 of Europe about 2 centuries before). This city was Luther’s home and this time was one of the most intense of the Protestant Reformation he started.  As groups of churches and leaders began to spilt off from the Roman Catholic church over disagreements about authority and other issues, things were complicated to begin with. Many of the pastors and churches in Wittenburg asked Luther’s advice, should they close their churches or meet anyway, flee or stay behind and face horrible possibilities. Luther responds by saying if you do close or leave, make sure someone else will be there to care for, announce the Gospel to those who never heard it or never cared. provide the sacraments and pray with those in need, ensure that the sick and the poor, ignored on a good day, were supported.  This was no excuse to stop being Christian, this was no release from God’s commands.  Most fitting for today is a few lines from this 15 or so page document “Whether one May Flee From a Deadly Plague”

Very well, by God’s decree the enemy has sent us poison and deadly offal. Therefore I shall ask God mercifully to protect us. Then I shall fumigate, help purify the air, administer medicine, and take it. I shall avoid places and persons where my presence is not needed in order not to become contaminated and thus perchance infect and pollute others, and so cause their death as a result of my negligence.

Luther essential says he will pray and then follow the best known medical and scientific advice of the time, including doing whatever he can to avoid being infected and therefore spreading the plague.  Luther and his wife Katherine end up opening their home as a site to care for those sick with plague, praying with the dying, comforting the grieving, giving thanks with the recovered, sharing the good news of God’s promises, separating the sick from the healthy, offering whatever care was known at the time, doing this dangerous work when very few others would.

Today, the best advice from health care experts seems to be stay inside, to keep social distance, to protect the most as risk people, to help neighborhoods, cities or even entire nations, to slow down the inevitable spread of this virus.   We are essentially being asked to stay home (an impossibility for the homeless, a frightening prospect for workers not being paid or business owners on the verge of bankruptcy, a scary idea for people whose homes are not comfortable or safe, a too unnecessary sacrifice for those who own the brand “ I give no fucks” and  do not think this virus will hurt them).  For everyone else, this should be boring and uncomfortable but something we can do.


We are being asked to change our lives for the safety of others and we do not want to. We are being asked to admit that all our research, tools and discoveries, technology, wealth, resources and good vibes cannot make this go away. We have come up against something, we have been sold and told time and time again that does not exist, a part of ancient history from a less scientific world, something greater than us. We can track it, record it, tell exactly (sort of) what is happening, we can say when hospitals will be overrun but not do much to stop it.   We boldly or reluctantly say God’s will be done. The one unique part of corona virus is that at no other time in history could people follow a pandemic, second by second, 24 / 7 with 1000s of news sources fighting for your attention and a great range of perspectives competing for space on your screen.


All the stuff we have taken for granted, the stability in our lives, is shaking, the rocks on which we built our lives are cracking a little. That’s why the church is built on Jesus,  to paraphase the hymn Built on a rock, the church will stand, Even when steeples are falling (sung and shared so often with the steeples of Notre Dame falling in the fire last year).  Built on a rock the church will stand, even with social distancing, Built on a rock the church will stand, even if we lose ministries, schools and 2020 holy days. 


A lot of our actions and comments are making people more anxious, more scared.  empty shelves are a frightening sight for many of us who are not used to that (it is a daily event in some places around the world).  Temporary delays or outages are a cause for mass hysteria.  Many of us do not see spots that will be refilled, we see the end of the world.  We see whatever food I have at home is all I will get for me and my family.  We have no idea how much is available in the warehouses, manufacturers and farmers.  We do not know if our emergency stash of masks will put first responders and healthcare workers at risk, if the basement of hand sanitizer we are keeping to survive for the next 380 years will make this virus spread, we have no idea what difference our comments will make.  We do know that God’s promises are still good and God is here with us.  


We are now asking people to do things they do not know how to do all the time.  Teachers do not know how to prepare 3 or more weeks worth of school work to be done at home on a computer for students and families who will pass most of their waking hours on a screen already. How do you actually work from home or engage in something meaningful with time off, how do you invest or trade when markets are in free fall,  How do you counter the 24 7 anxiety, how do you prepare for worship with no people


There will be a different world when this is over, and its up to us what kind of world that will be. What we do will be remembered. There are young people partying on beaches, enjoying an extended spring break, There are other young people (and others) fighting to keep soup kitchens and food pantries open, rapidly trying to update churches so they can live stream, broadcast, share some good news, finding ways to support the most at risk in society. 


My church clothes (the black shirt and pants with the little white collar tab) are stained with those red / orange bleach marks from that morning I bleached all the surfaces in the church in preparation for worship.  My phone bears the scars of being dropped a lot as I worry about virus on it but keep calling people, especially those with limited or no access to the internet.  My head is filled with anxieties about work at food ministries and opening our emergency food pantry tomorrow, about safety for the guests and volunteers.  If I get this virus, I’ll know I caught it while living out my faith in a God who loves all people, who is with us here, in the valley of the shadow of death, which has lost its sting.  


I wish it was all back to normal, I could just go about my daily life with no worries, do more, be more thankful, see more places, share the Gospel more, invite others into joy and peace and comfort and belonging and community.  I had planned a 5 or 6 week series on invitation, to church, to community, to fellowship and now I’ve taken some short cuts, saying uncertain things like invite others into relationship with God, into community, without saying or showing you how exactly does one do that, 

 I am starting a series on how, exactly, we can do these things.


Stay tuned for more on:

How do we pray?

How do we call people?

How do we counter false teachings?

How do we read the Bible?

How do we live out our faith?


Remember

Now may the God of peace, who brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant,  make you complete in everything good so that you may do his will, working among us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. 

Sermon for March 1

The reading

Mark 10:17-31

17 As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up and knelt before him, and asked him, "Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" 18 Jesus said to him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. 19 You know the commandments: "You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You shall not defraud; Honor your father and mother.' " 20 He said to him, "Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth." 21 Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, "You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me." 22 When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions.

23 Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, "How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!" 24 And the disciples were perplexed at these words. But Jesus said to them again, "Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God." 26 They were greatly astounded and said to one another, "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."

28 Peter began to say to him, "Look, we have left everything and followed you." 29 Jesus said, "Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields, for my sake and for the sake of the good news, 30 who will not receive a hundredfold now in this age -- houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields, with persecutions -- and in the age to come eternal life. 31 But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first."

The message (well a very rough draft, no manuscripts for the next few weeks)

In a few words: we are invited to see there is an emptiness all around us that only God can fill, impossibilities only God can do. 

This Lent, these forty days (not counting Sundays) until Holy Week,  I am going to have a sermon series (my first one I think) on invitation.  The Gospel of Mark is an invitation to faith, a rapid and immediate book, inspired by the Holy Spirit, given to us.  We will look at what, exactly are we inviting people into, relationship, prayer, service, peace and rest. No manuscripts, different readings, just a chance to talk about what we are invited into and how to invite others.  

Most of us like getting invitations to parties, to speaking, to interviews, to weddings or special events. To be invited makes you feel good, like you belong, like you are on some sort of exclusive list.  Sometimes, it can mean too much planning and preparing, too much effort or stress. There are the invitations to a party we really don't want to go to, the one that's really awkward, frightening, at an inconvenient time or out-of-the-way place. A party packed with people you don't like or even worse. a room of people you don't know.   Then there are invitations that are just plain hard to accept, There is a couple struggling to conceive or who just lost a child going to a baby shower, a man who cant find a partner or someone who just lost their spouse going to a wedding for someone else, a woman at a retirement party for a friend while she still has 10 years at a job everyone hates.  What kind of invitation is church?

In today’s gospel reading, Jesus shares some invitations, inviting this decent, wealthy man into conversation. Inviting him to think about his faith and how it is lived out.  Inviting him into love and relationship and  finally inviting him to give away everything he owns and follow Jesus:  For the weathly man, Jesus accepting his invitation to talk is exciting,  Jesus invitation and interest in the man, have you kept the law is great, is a relief, the man has since childhood, Jesus last invitation, sell all you have, give to the poor and follow me, well that’s the invitation to the party he does not want to go to, the planning and preparing is just too much.  Jesus loved this man, but offered him an invitation there is no way he would accept (unless he did and we would be in st wealthy man, hey we would even know him name)  You want to follow the rules, okay, here’s the rules.  This is a reminder that we cannot depend on our works, our resources or our goodness for salvation. 

  

This week for Ash Wednesday, I shared an invitation, this one to the community on facebook / social media and old school signs on the fence, doors and a sandwich board.  I opened our doors for a few hours in the morning and afternoon for anyone who wanted to come in to receive ashes. We had about 35 people stop in, We spent our time together sharing a quick why ashes and introduction to lent, a time of prayer where I invited people to share any prayer requests and the placing of ashes (the reason most folks came).  The invitation to prayer led to some serious concerns, a relative having a cancer biopsy as we spoke, the need to confession a sin (and hear it is forgiven), the start of a very important evaluation in about 10 minutes.    

My message on ash Wednesday was an invitation for us to remember we are dust and to dust we will return and to remember we are dust that is loved by God. I got a reminder of that on Friday, I was working with someone who was pushing me about the witness, growth and poor attendance of my church, I got defensive, really defensive for about 20 minutes.  After a while, I though, hey, you know what, we are broken, failing on our own.  If everything was fine, we couldn’t see what is new, if everything was okay, the world would look different.  If nothing was wrong, there would be no need for church. The community is as dusty as the people on Ash Wednesday, we have things that are missing, that only God can fill, our neighbors have things that are missing, spaces in life that only God can fill  

Sermon for February 23

The reading

Mark 8:27 - 9:8

8:27 Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that I am?" 28 And they answered him, "John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets." 29 He asked them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered him, "You are the Messiah." 30 And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him. 31 Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 32 He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33 But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things." 34 He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 35 For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. 36 For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? 37 Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? 38 Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels."

9:1 And he said to them, "Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see that the kingdom of God has come with power." 2 Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain apart, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, 3 and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no one on earth could bleach them. 4 And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, who were talking with Jesus. 5 Then Peter said to Jesus, "Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." 6 He did not know what to say, for they were terrified. 7 Then a cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud there came a voice, "This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!" 8 Suddenly when they looked around, they saw no one with them any more, but only Jesus.

The message


A few months ago, Jen and I were in Michigan visiting the church and people who came here to NY over the summer for their mission trip. One night, someone said, the corn maze is open late, till midnight.  Corn maze in the dark sounded like something that just had to be done.  10 or 12 of us loaded into a few cars and went to the maze. (Jen had the sense to skip this particular outing).  It was about a 15-minute drive. When we got there, it was crowded, probably the most crowded event we saw over our week there.   At the entrance, there was a little sign by the ticket counter that said “ caution the maze is muddy”.  No one thought much of it.  The people at the ticket counter told every customer in front of us, “its very muddy, are you sure you want to go, its really bad, it’s the worst we’ve seen in a few years”.   When it was our turn, we got the same warning, its really muddy, its bad, are you sure you want to go in.  Realizing I was not from there and never been in a corn maze before, I was given an extra warning. After a mix of we are here, its my only chance to see it and I'm sure they are just exaggerating, being overly cautious, it can’t be that bad, we decided to go for it. 


We got our tickets and went to the maze. On the way, there was a parade of people walking out complaining it was just too muddy, they didn’t make it 20 feet in, what a mess. There was a handful of prepared people with fishing gear on, big boots and rubber overalls also walking out and saying “you don’t want to go in there”.  We dismissed this as some people are just too sensitive.  We entered the maze and turns out, the people who just went in and the people who worked there all day were right. We managed to get lost and stuck and lost again and stuck again in a corn maze where the paths were just 6 or 8 inches of deep, flooded clay mud.  As we wandered, we kept thinking oh, the next turn will be better (sometimes it was but most of the time, it just got worse).  Total time spent in the maze was way too long and total loss for the group was about 4 pairs of sneakers and a few pairs of pants that could not be saved.


I thought of this experience as I read Jesus’ warnings to his disciples, as Jesus began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.  This is something Jesus will say 3 or 4 more times before his death and resurrection.   The disciples constantly misunderstand, or more accurately choose to not accept what Jesus is saying. This is not what they wanted to hear. This is something the disciples will not listen to.   Then I looked at what did I not understand about “the maze is muddy”, what didn’t I get when people who just walked out covered up to their knees in mud said it was muddy, when the people who worked at the maze basically told people do not go in, those seemed like good authorities about the maze.  The truth is that I had an idea that this would be an amazing adventure, I wanted to go to the maze and I wanted it to be awesome (I think the kids today call this questionable decision making method, fomo or fear of missing out).                 


Jesus disciples had their own ideas about where Jesus ministry was going, about what would happen next and about the power and glory to come.  This conversation between Jesus and his disciples happens in an important time and place. Ceasera Phillipi was the edge of Israel at the time of Jesus (even today, the ruins of this place sit on the border with Lebanon, a region still littered with land mines and security measures).  Jesus has come to the furthest geographical point of his ministry. This is why the disciples are reflective and everyone’s mind is on what’s next.  Jesus asks the disciples, you have been in the crowds, with the healed, in the places I have done great signs, Who do people say that I am?" 28 And they answered him, "John the Baptist; and others Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets." 29 He asked them, after all you have seen and experienced with me,  "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered him, "You are the Messiah.  Amongst the disciples, this sets off great expectations of the glory to come, of very human things, perhaps a revolt against Rome and the re-establishment of the kingdom of Israel, places of power and influence in the temple and amongst the authorities, great riches and rewards, a chance to end to poverty, inequality and hunger, an army 
of angels to wage just war on their enemies.  


Peter’s excitement at these possibilities is great, it blocks out anything else, including Jesus own words.  When Peter hears Jesus shut down the great proclaimation “you are the Messiah, the long awaited savior”, by saying tell no one, when Peter hears Jesus say the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again, Peter is so disappointed, he cannot accept it. This is just too far from what he wanted. Like I thought the maze will be fine, Peter thought Jesus the messiah could not suffer.  Peter pulls Jesus aside and yells at him, shut up about all that death and rejection, we are going to do something great.  Jesus responds "Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things."  Here, Satan comes from the Hebrew word meaning an obstacle or adversary, someone in the way.


The same human expectations vs God’s plan plays out during the next part of our reading. The transfiguration, is an event that is always read on the Sunday that ends epiphany, the time when people figure out who was born on Christmas.  It is right before Lent starts.  It sits as a reminder of who it is that goes out to face temptation in the wilderness, that Jesus the Messiah is the one hungry in the desert, Jesus, the one with Elijah and Moses, is the one thirsty, Jesus God’s beloved son is the one being offered relief.  


Peter and the disciples who witness the transfiguration want to build booths to mark this moment, they want to bring this transfiguration show to the people, this powerful expression of who Jesus is, this glorious moment of revealing who was born on Christmas.  As we started Mark’s Gospel around Christmas time, I said this was a journey to Easter, Jesus ministry was not a journey to the transfiguration, it was a journey to the cross,  Jesus ministry was not a journey to worldly glory, it is a journey to the cross, following Jesus is not the journey to riches, it’s a journey to the cross.  We are not on a journey to a self helpy self actualization, your best life now or whatever, it’s a journey to the cross.  That is where God’s ultimate power, love and care will be revealed,  This is not what the disciples wanted, this is not what we want, this is not even what Jesus wanted, God with us will be revealed in the embarrassment of trial, the pain of the cross and the resurrection from the dead. 

Sermon for February 16

The reading

Mark 7:1-23

1 Now when the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around him, 2 they noticed that some of his disciples were eating with defiled hands, that is, without washing them. 3 (For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, do not eat unless they thoroughly wash their hands, thus observing the tradition of the elders; 4 and they do not eat anything from the market unless they wash it; and there are also many other traditions that they observe, the washing of cups, pots, and bronze kettles. ) 5 So the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, "Why do your disciples not live according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?" 6 He said to them, "Isaiah prophesied rightly about you hypocrites, as it is written, "This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; 7 in vain do they worship me, teaching human precepts as doctrines.' 8 You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition."

9 Then he said to them, "You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition! 10 For Moses said, "Honor your father and your mother'; and, "Whoever speaks evil of father or mother must surely die.' 11 But you say that if anyone tells father or mother, "Whatever support you might have had from me is Corban' (that is, an offering to God ) -- 12 then you no longer permit doing anything for a father or mother, 13 thus making void the word of God through your tradition that you have handed on. And you do many things like this."

14 Then he called the crowd again and said to them, "Listen to me, all of you, and understand: 15 there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile." When he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about the parable. 18 He said to them, "Then do you also fail to understand? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile, 19 since it enters, not the heart but the stomach, and goes out into the sewer?" (Thus he declared all foods clean.) 20 And he said, "It is what comes out of a person that defiles. 21 For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, 22 adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. 23 All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person."

The message

Today, we continue our journey to Easter through the Gospel of Mark.  At this point, we see the conflict between Jesus and the religious authorities (in this case the Pharisees, an elite group of scholars and experts in the law, one of several groups constantly fighting for power).  In this conflict we hear Jesus answer a question that many of us have, that many followers of Christ answer differently and even people outside the Christian faith ask and answer.  The question is how does a person live out their faith, how do you respond authentically to God’s grace, love and power, what do you do now that you know about Jesus and the kingdom of God.

The Pharisees had their answer to this question, living out faith meant obeying and keeping a series of rules, regulations and restrictions.  This argument between Jesus and the religious leaders is about some of those rules and regulations. In this case, ritual washing and codes for how food is processed, prepared and eaten. I’d like to start with saying this is not flu, germ and disease prevention, please continue to wash your hands after using the bathroom, blowing your nose, before eating, after taking the train, touching anything that has been near or in a preschool etc.  The type of washing that the pharisees are talking about is concerned with ritual purity, not public health.  Parts of the Torah, the laws in the old testament were meant to regulate life and point people to God’s power and grace. They do include laws regarding food.  Part of Leviticus 11 for instance: The Lord said to Moses and Aaron,  “Say to the Israelites: ‘Of all the animals that live on land, these are the ones you may eat: ³ You may eat any animal that has a divided hoof and that chews the cud. ‘There are some that only chew the cud or only have a divided hoof, but you must not eat them. The camel, though it chews the cud, does not have a divided hoof; it is ceremonially unclean for you. The rabbit, though it chews the cud, does not have a divided hoof; it is unclean for you. ⁷ And the pig, though it has a divided hoof, does not chew the cud; it is unclean for you. ⁸ You must not eat their meat or touch their carcasses; they are unclean for you.  

The Torah does not mention how to wash your hands, dishes, cups, bowls and plates.  Those laws were ones that the Pharisees created and added to the law during their quest for purity and remaining undefiled. These additions are not explicitly in the Torah but the Pharisees insisted their rules had the same standing.  Jesus is angered and must protest the claim that somehow, these human traditions had the same authority as God’s word. Jesus asks who gave them the authority, the right, the responsibility to make and then demand people follow these traditions like they were God’s law. 

Of course, this conflict immediately escalates as Jesus goes beyond how you clean your hands, dish cups and bowls.  These human traditions did not stop at how we clean our hands, dishes, cups and bowls so neither does Jesus.  Jesus looks at the practice of Corban, which allows breaking one of the 10 commandments, After this, Jesus goes even further, dismissing and replacing the whole idea of ritual purity, giving authority back to God. 

Jesus tells the pharisees You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition!   And then shows them how.  Putting the word of  Moses  "Honor your father and your mother'; and, "Whoever speaks evil of father or mother must surely die.'  Against the tradition But you say that if anyone tells father or mother, "Whatever support you might have had from me is Corban' (that is, an offering to God ) --  then you no longer permit doing anything for a father or mother,  thus making void the word of God through your tradition that you have handed on. And you do many things like this." 

Jesus goes on to clarify how we live out our faith properly. Obedience or life in the spirit does not come from trying to follow the pharisee’s complex and ever changing series of extra rules, it comes from the heart, not from how we wash our cups but what we do, not from how we wash dishes but how we treat others, not from when we wash our hands but how we use our resources, not from skipping that pork sausage but what we say, not from who we exclude but who we include.

In a complete upheaval of the ways things are done, by the time we get into the first years of the church, the dietary law itself will no longer be a part of how we follow God. This major change happens because of this conflict, Paul’s fierce, unstopping advocacy, Peter’s vision of clean and unclean animals and the Holy Spirit descending on the Gentiles apart from the law.    

In many ways, this reading, the actions of the pharisees and Jesus response, should sound familiar to us.  A system of non-biblical laws created and enforced by the Roman Catholic Church and placed on par with scripture is what provokes the protestant reformation a little more than 500 years ago.  The Medieval Roman Catholic church had developed their own human traditions, a series of rules, requirements and intermediaries added to and considered on par with scripture. The not so comforting and complex system of penance, the aggressive sale of indulgences and the church’s claim to ultimate authority were the last straws. After that people like Luther, Melchthon, Calvin, Zwingli did something. They said something, printed lots of things, dismissed human traditions and recognized the ultimate authority rested with God and God’s word.   Your sins were forgiven because Christ died and rose again, not because you had properly confessed all of your sins and completed the penance.   

Jesus answer to that question, what does it mean or look like to live your faith happens in community, Does your life, your actions announce the comfort of the Gospel with others, do you show God’s love to the others, did you see someone suffering and stop to help, sit there and say God loves you.

Sermon for February 9

The reading

Mark 6:1-29

1 He left that place and came to his hometown, and his disciples followed him. 2 On the sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astounded. They said, "Where did this man get all this? What is this wisdom that has been given to him? What deeds of power are being done by his hands! 3 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?" And they took offense at him. 4 Then Jesus said to them, "Prophets are not without honor, except in their hometown, and among their own kin, and in their own house." 5 And he could do no deed of power there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and cured them. 6 And he was amazed at their unbelief.

Then he went about among the villages teaching. 7 He called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. 8 He ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; 9 but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics. 10 He said to them, "Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave the place. 11 If any place will not welcome you and they refuse to hear you, as you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them." 12 So they went out and proclaimed that all should repent. 13 They cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them.

14 King Herod heard of it, for Jesus' name had become known. Some were saying, "John the baptizer has been raised from the dead; and for this reason these powers are at work in him." 15 But others said, "It is Elijah." And others said, "It is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old." 16 But when Herod heard of it, he said, "John, whom I beheaded, has been raised."

17 For Herod himself had sent men who arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, because Herod had married her. 18 For John had been telling Herod, "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife." 19 And Herodias had a grudge against him, and wanted to kill him. But she could not, 20 for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he protected him. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed; and yet he liked to listen to him. 21 But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his courtiers and officers and for the leaders of Galilee. 22 When his daughter Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests; and the king said to the girl, "Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it." 23 And he solemnly swore to her, "Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom." 24 She went out and said to her mother, "What should I ask for?" She replied, "The head of John the baptizer." 25 Immediately she rushed back to the king and requested, "I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter." 26 The king was deeply grieved; yet out of regard for his oaths and for the guests, he did not want to refuse her. 27 Immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard with orders to bring John's head. He went and beheaded him in the prison, 28 brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl. Then the girl gave it to her mother. 29 When his disciples heard about it, they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb.

The message 

Dear friends, this morning, we are here to remember and celebrate the life of John the Baptist, a young prophet whose work was completed but whose life ended too soon, a follower of God who did not live to see the incredible results of his faithful work. News of John’s undeserved death was sudden and shocking, King Herod ended up getting tricked into killing John in a very gruesome and public way.  Herod once protected John, saw him as a holy man and feared the crowd’s reaction if anything bad happened to him, This care and protection was all despite John’s open criticism of Herod’s questionable marriage to Herodias, his brothers wife. After John’s death, his body was quietly cared by for some of his disciples.  Afterwards Herod is afraid that John will come back and seek his very justified revenge.


I never knew John the Baptist, so I needed to depend on reports from the author of Mark’s Gospel. He was not very helpful with any information on John’s early life, I had to seek that information from others, the writers of the Gospels of John, Matthew and Luke.  Even with all four of these eyewitnesses and authors there is not much information.  They were all more concerned with bringing people to faith in Jesus Christ our savior, then they were in details about John the Baptist. That’s suitable since John was the same exact way.    


Luke does tell us early on that while John’s father Zechariah, a priest was at work in the temple, an angel appears, which startles and scares him.  “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John. ¹⁴ He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, ¹⁵ for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born. ¹⁶ He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. ¹⁷ And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord


In John’s life and work, all these promises the angel made to Zechariah were kept. To be really honest, John was not a warm and fuzzy guy, he did not fit in with other religious people of his time and didn’t get invited to too many parties. While others were fighting and jumping over each other for seats on councils, while pharisees and Saudacees were arguing with each other over the resurrection of the dead, the existence of souls and interpretations of the law, while everyone flocked to the temple, supported the temple, protected the temple, John had no interest in any of that, he went out to the wilderness,  John’s message was simple,  Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”. John also offered a baptism, a physical sign of forgiveness.


John did not have an easy life. He was an ascetic, living rough in the barren wilderness.  John had no hereditary claims to authority, no position in the temple or royal courts and no formal education in religious matters but he taught with authority and grew a great following. John was not politically savvy, John spoke God’s word, he was not calculating like Herod or Herodias, not beholden to anyone, not speaking or leading by others permission and support.  John shared God’s word.  When God’s word was condemning, John said it. Think of the time when he called the religious leaders a brood of vipers!


When he asked them Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?  When he demanded Bear fruit worthy of repentance. When he challenged their ancient claims to authority:  Do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our ancestor’; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham.  John spoke the truth to power, exposed their failure to practice what they preach, obey the laws they require or foster and share a faith that brings peace, comfort, equality and joy. Those authorities could have made John a rich and famous allstar but God’s word mattered more.  


When God’s word meant calling out the injustice of a king, even one who protected him, who could have given him great power and authority, John said it anyway. When God’s word meant speaking out on behalf of the poor, the ignored, the outsider and the unwanted, John said it.   When God’s word angered people, John said it, When God’s word brought joy, John said it, when God’s word placed him in danger, John said it anyway, When God’s word conflicted with religious traditions, John said it. When God’s word meant living like a crazy hermit monk in the wilderness John went.  When people laughed at and mocked John, he kept speaking, when others were getting fancy robes, places of honor, generous gifts, spacious homes, great meals and audiences with kings, John was just fine with his sand, hair shirt. wild insects and honey.  John pissed people off.  The very top levels of Government, political and religious wanted to shut John up. They could not buy, bribe or control what he said, they could not work with a man who didn’t care who or what he upset.  


Perhaps the lasting legacy of John the Baptist is that when God’s word meant John diminishing himself, John shared it, just think of his testimony when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?”  He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” ²¹ And they asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.” ²² So they said to him, “Who are you? We need to give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” ²³ He said, “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight^[h] the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.   John could have said yes, made bold claims about his own authority, his own power, he could have run a fundraising campaign, built a really big church, had crowds that rivaled Jesus. John did not.  He understood his role, his place in the kingdom, his work, crying out in the wilderness, prepare, ‘Make straight^[h] the way of the Lord, 


John had a long list of very important enemies but he had one even more important friend, Jesus. Years after John died, that Jesus would be known as the Christ, the savior, the long awaited Messiah. In the years after John’s death, Jesus will begin a public ministry that changes the world, that announces the kingdom of God, that brings the forgiveness of sins, the way to eternal life, the healing of the sick and the welcome of all into God’s care. John and Jesus had a complicated friendship, John’s biggest crowds and supporters drifted away from him because of Jesus, no, not drifted, John pushed them away, sending them to follow Jesus, the one who could baptize with the Holy Spirit. 

It would be crazy to end with saying “hey everyone, go out and be like exactly like John the Baptist”. Not everyone could and not everyone should.  There is not enough room in the wilderness, we offer a better Baptism, one joined to Christ’s death and resurrection, we do not need 2 billion prophets speaking and no one listening, we do need to follow John’s example, we need to put God’s word first, we need to be people who point to Christ,  

Sermon for February 2

The reading


Mark 5:21-43


21 When Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a great crowd gathered around him; and he was by the sea. 22 Then one of the leaders of the synagogue named Jairus came and, when he saw him, fell at his feet 23 and begged him repeatedly, "My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well, and live." 24 So he went with him. And a large crowd followed him and pressed in on him. 25 Now there was a woman who had been suffering from hemorrhages for twelve years. 26 She had endured much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had; and she was no better, but rather grew worse. 27 She had heard about Jesus, and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, 28 for she said, "If I but touch his clothes, I will be made well." 29 Immediately her hemorrhage stopped; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. 30 Immediately aware that power had gone forth from him, Jesus turned about in the crowd and said, "Who touched my clothes?" 31 And his disciples said to him, "You see the crowd pressing in on you; how can you say, "Who touched me?' " 32 He looked all around to see who had done it. 33 But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling, fell down before him, and told him the whole truth. 34 He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease." 35 While he was still speaking, some people came from the leader's house to say, "Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the teacher any further?" 36 But overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the leader of the synagogue, "Do not fear, only believe." 37 He allowed no one to follow him except Peter, James, and John, the brother of James. 38 When they came to the house of the leader of the synagogue, he saw a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly. 39 When he had entered, he said to them, "Why do you make a commotion and weep? The child is not dead but sleeping." 40 And they laughed at him. Then he put them all outside, and took the child's father and mother and those who were with him, and went in where the child was. 41 He took her by the hand and said to her, "Talitha cum," which means, "Little girl, get up!" 42 And immediately the girl got up and began to walk about (she was twelve years of age). At this they were overcome with amazement. 43 He strictly ordered them that no one should know this, and told them to give her something to eat.


The message


Today’s reading starts right after Jesus was chased out of Geresene.  In that gentile, non jewish town, Jesus had cast out a legion of demons from a suffering man who lived by and disrupted daily life from the cemetery outside of the town.  It was not your basic casting out of demons, in this particular, extreme case, Jesus allowed the demons to enter a herd of pigs, Immediately after, in a show of how bad evil is and how destructive unconfronted evil can be, the pigs run over the cliff to their deaths.  In thanksgiving and excited to share the good news, the healed man requests to join Jesus in his work,  Jesus refuses, instead Jesus sends him as the first missionary to the gentiles, to share his story and announce the kingdom of God has come near to the Decapolis, a group of Greek and Roman cities. Jesus does what a whole town couldn’t, power over forces that the entire community together, with their chains and practices could not effect. This scares the people to the point where they beg Jesus to leave.  Jesus, realizing things were too crazy to get much done and trusting this new co-worker to share the good news there, leaves.

From Gerense, Jesus walks into another chaotic scene. As we look at this reading, we remember these are not parables, there are real events with real people who have real feelings, hopes, doubts and concerns. We have Jarius, an insider, a leader of the synagogue and faith community. Then we have an outsider, an unnamed woman whose bleeding makes her ritually unclean and whose medical bankruptcy leaves her little help. Today’s reading, the uncomfortable mixing together of 2 anxious and pitiful stories show the different limits people place on Jesus and how wrong they are. Jarius and his friends do not believe Jesus can restore life to the dead, or heal from a distance (as the centurion later on will trust Jesus to do), the healed woman does not think Jesus will treat a thief who takes healing power and delays him with love and compassion, The crowd mourning the deceased girl, have no idea Jesus can restore life, they laugh at Jesus statement she is just sleeping.  In all these examples, Jesus is limited by people’s tradition and experience. Jesus can help the lame walk but cannot raise the dead, Jesus can cure those he has contact with but he cannot help from far away. Jesus can welcome tax collectors and prostitutes but not an unclean woman who sneaks up and touches him.   


As Jesus enters this scene, things are winding down, Jarius daughter is at the edge of death and the unnamed woman is out of options. Jesus is greeted by a great crowd of the curious, faithful and in need. There is an urgent request for help from an unexpected person. Jarius, a leader of the synagogue, has a very sick daughter. The religious authorities do not have a good relationship with Jesus, the conflict between Jesus and the powers that be is already strained and filled with growing jealousy and conflict, Since Jarius daughter is on the verge of death and he has tried everything else the world has offered as care or cure already he reaches out to Jesus.   For Jarius, his friends and family, this is a race. The sooner Jesus gets there, the more hope there is for Jaruis’ daughter to live.


That’s the first limit on what God could or would do, on Jesus power, on just how radical the kingdom of God is.  People admitted Jesus could do what they already saw him do or heard from trustworthy witnesses. Jesus could heal the sick, Jesus could heal the very sick, Jesus would cure anyone in need, sure, but raise the dead, no way. Jesus is the only one who knows that is wrong. Jesus is not limited by that timeline or that check on his power.  Once Jarius forgot about what people would say and think, once Jarius fell at Jesus feet and begged him repeatedly, "My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well, and live, Jairus’s daughter will be made well Once Jesus agreed to help, Jairus’s daughter will be made well, once the promise was made, Jairus’s daughter will be made well.  


On the way, things are slow, I imagine Jesus, Jarius and the others are plodding through the crowds, all the while Jarius’ anxiously yelling “move out of the way people, move out of the way, Jesus can heal your hurt toe, answer your question about the prophets or bless your child later, this is a matter of life and death”.  Jesus needs to get to my dying daughter.  Now, to make a bad situation worse, Jesus completely stops, that slow, frustrating progress comes to a halt.  Jesus asks what sounds like a ridiculous question, “who touched me”.  Jarius’ must be thinking “come on, are you serious, like a 1000 people have touched you (and slowed us down), even the disciples tell Jesus, you cant be serious, the whole city is pressing in on us.  People thought :ooh somebody is in trouble, no one realized Jesus is asking is “who amongst this crowd of curious, miracle seeking people have the faith I just witnessed, this must be lifted up”.  


The woman shyly comes forward with fear and trembling, as far as anyone knew she was just caught stealing power from God and was unsure of the consequences. The kingdom of God not limited to who Jesus talks with or touches personally. Instead of condemning, Jesus said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease."  She was not made well because she touched the right part of Jesus clothing at the right time, she was made well because of her faith, she was not made well because Jesus happened to be oozing healing power at that specific moment, she was made well because of her faith, 


As Jesus says this, news comes that breaks Jarius’ heart. They were too slow, his daughter died, that limit on Jesus power has been passed.  Jarius, frustrated and fed up, was thinking, this lady been sick for 12 years, she could have waited a little longer, I have been faithful for so long and this is what I get. Perhaps the unnamed woman also feels a sense of guilt along with joy, sure she has her life back but a little girl has died.  Now Jesus dismisses the crowd and goes on with just a handful of followers (im sure Jarius is thinking, oh, you can get all these people out of the way, why didn’t you do that an hour ago).  A little while later, after a few simple words, immediately the girl got up and began to walk about, Jesus strictly ordered the few people there to keep quiet, that no one should know this (this would not be the first time people disobeyed these instructions), Jesus also told them to give her something to eat.  That is to show she no ghost, no spirit or illusion, she is really alive. As we will see on Easter even death is not a limit on the kingdom of God

Sermon for January 26

The reading

Mark 5:1-20

1 They came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gerasenes. 2 And when he had stepped out of the boat, immediately a man out of the tombs with an unclean spirit met him. 3 He lived among the tombs; and no one could restrain him any more, even with a chain; 4 for he had often been restrained with shackles and chains, but the chains he wrenched apart, and the shackles he broke in pieces; and no one had the strength to subdue him. 5 Night and day among the tombs and on the mountains he was always howling and bruising himself with stones. 6 When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and bowed down before him; 7 and he shouted at the top of his voice, "What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I adjure you by God, do not torment me." 8 For he had said to him, "Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!" 9 Then Jesus asked him, "What is your name?" He replied, "My name is Legion; for we are many." 10 He begged him earnestly not to send them out of the country. 11 Now there on the hillside a great herd of swine was feeding; 12 and the unclean spirits begged him, "Send us into the swine; let us enter them." 13 So he gave them permission. And the unclean spirits came out and entered the swine; and the herd, numbering about two thousand, rushed down the steep bank into the sea, and were drowned in the sea.

14 The swineherds ran off and told it in the city and in the country. Then people came to see what it was that had happened. 15 They came to Jesus and saw the demoniac sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, the very man who had had the legion; and they were afraid. 16 Those who had seen what had happened to the demoniac and to the swine reported it. 17 Then they began to beg Jesus to leave their neighborhood. 18 As he was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed by demons begged him that he might be with him. 19 But Jesus refused, and said to him, "Go home to your friends, and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and what mercy he has shown you." 20 And he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed.

The message


We continue our journey to Easter through the Gospel of Mark. We are now in the center of Jesus public ministry. Word about what Jesus was teaching and doing, the authority, the faith, the healings, power, casting out demons and miracles was spreading quickly.  People all over the place where buzzing, talking and thinking about the kingdom of God, the healed were telling the others, the cleansed leper was telling the others, the paralyzed man who could now walk was telling the others, the one who received forgiveness was telling the others, the welcomed tax collector were telling the others, the successful fishermen were telling the others.  Right before today’s story, Jesus had calmed a massive, powerful storm at sea, an event showing Jesus’ power, not only over the religious authorities, evil and the possessed and sickness and health but over creation itself.    


Today’s story is probably the most powerful exorcism in the new testament. Everything in this encounter with evil is extreme.  There are the most demons in a person, the evil spirts identify themselves as legion, a roman military term for a unit of 6000 soldiers, a group that often inspired fear in conquered territories. There is the most damage, the most disruption of the community, the most helplessness of a community to do something about it, their inability to restrain, quiet or comfort this person, the most unclean, insane actions by the possessed (living amongst the dead, next to the pigs, self-mutilation).   


I have struggled with this text, for reasons you might too. In particular, I ask why do the pigs, just minding their own business and eating lunch, get destroyed. What about the people / communities that depended on this herd for their work, food and living.  Wasn’t there a different, kinder way Jesus could cast out this legion. I don’t have a great answer to that question but I wanted to share some reflections.  I trust that there is something I do not know in the story, in the world, that makes the loss of the herd necessary. 


People have suggested that since pigs were a banned food under the Jewish law and covenant, they didn’t really matter This casting out of the legion happens in a non-jewish, gentile area. Since the pigs are not food for Jews, the fate of the pigs is barely an afterthought. Later on, we see Jesus care enough about the people here to leave the healed man as a witness and missionary, to tell them the kingdom of God is here. If Jesus wants them to hear the good news, im sure he wants them to eat too. Two of the greatest Christian theological minds, Augustine, the early church bishop in Africa and the medieval scholar Thomas Aquanis have looked at this passage and determined it means animals do not really matter to God, well at least not nearly as much as people do. This story means one person’s life is worth much more than 2000 pigs.  I think there has to be more to it than that, this is a one time event, there is no other example of Jesus sending a cast out demons into an animal, if it was that easy and animals didn’t matter, why not do this all the time. It could be but isn’t a routine event.  It is never part of Jesus instructions to his followers, not even an option, This is a one time thing.  A little later on in the story, there will be another one time thing, a hard to understand death, an unfair, unnecessary death that takes evil out of the world, this time it will be Jesus on the cross, who takes out the power of sin and death itself.  


Now we go back to people. I look at this as a story of yes and no, paying attention to who says yes and no and the consequences of each decision.  The first big yes is when the unclean spirits begged Jesus, "Send us into the swine; let us enter them." And Jesus gave them permission.   I do not think the legion planned to commit suicide by pig, perhaps they were imagining the rampage of damage they could do, of how many people and animals they could hurt, how far their damage can go. The end of this is instant, legion goes from person to pig to death.  What is left is some really pissed off swine herders and a town anxious about their food supply.  There are a few lessons here.  First, this is what happens when you make a deal with evil, when it seems tame and innocuous, when you wonder what harm can come, when you assume it will be under control and better than before.   The death of the pigs with legion is also an exposure of evil, a display of what evil can do if left unconfronted, unchecked and unchallenged, to reveal the ultimate goal of these demons and evil forces.  We also see when evil leaves, it does not go gently.  

The big no in the story is when the man who is healed, inspired by the desire to share what happened, asks Jesus to follow him, to go on with the disciples and others, so he can be a witness to God’s power and help them in their work, Jesus says no, he refuses.  Instead Jesus tells the man, "Go home to your friends, and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and what mercy he has shown you." Although not what he wanted to do, he says yes, he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed.

The Decapolis was a group of 10 (or maybe more) Greek then Roman cities. Today, the remains of these cities sit mostly in what is now Jordan, They were a center of Roman culture and religion.  I have been to one of them, Jeresh, even today, the massive stone and ruins of temples can inspire awe.  This area was not Jewish, they faithfully practiced the Greek and Roman religions. This means that the Gerssense deomoniac, the man disrupting an entire city from a cemetery on the outskirts of town,  a man struggling under the most extreme possession described in scripture, a person now healed and restored is the first disciple sent to the gentiles, to the non-jewish world.  This is a title usually given to Paul but as this man starts his ministry, by Jesus direct call and commission, Paul was known as Saul and might have still been in Pharisee school.  It is this man, whose name we do not even know, that goes to share the good news.  He goes to a familiar place, a culture and people he knows.  He has some story to tell, an event so powerful, that scares people so much, the first witnesses do not ask Jesus to heal, cure or teach, they ask Jesus to leave,  This is the first Christian example of a story of drastic change, still familiar and powerful today,  I used to be a drug dealer, criminal, sinner, atheist, hate church, exploiter now I am a pastor, believer, child of God, teacher, sharer of the gospel   


I hate to say no, sometimes you have to, for your own sake or for the sake of the kingdom of God.  I often say yes to too many things, which is not always the best thing to do.   This reading reminds us to think about our decisions, our work and ask “does this show the kingdom of God is here”