Sermon April 22 – Yes, We must…and Here’s How

Colossians 1: 15-23

I want to begin this morning by first thanking Curt and all of you for the invitation to be part of the worship leadership team while your pastor is on his sabbatical. It is an honor to be asked and I do appreciate the opportunity. Sabbaticals, of course, are always times for renewal, uniquely so in Curt’s case. I saw him on Easter and at that time he told me that he was worth almost $30.00 per pound in your Lose-Win campaign, so he expects to generate close to $6,000 for your New Beginnings project and who knows, perhaps he is worth even more than that now. A great idea, the Lose-Win scheme—really it’s a Win-Win for everybody … for Curt, for the church, and for those who will benefit from your commitment to New Beginnings.

Speaking of New Beginnings, congratulations on your willingness to take on congregational transformation! I honor that! It takes courage to look ahead and ask what continuing faithfulness demands of God’s people because … well, let’s face it, we live in crazy times. Nearly twenty years ago, Vaclav Havel described ours as a time when almost everything is possible and nothing is certain.* “There appear to be no integrating forces,” he said, “no unified meaning, no true inner understanding of phenomena in our experience of the world. Experts can explain anything in the objective world to us, yet we understand our own lives less and less. In short, we live in the postmodern world, where everything is possible and almost nothing is certain.” How do we proclaim and live the Good News of Jesus in this kind of a world? You have asked and are answering that question and again, I honor you for it.

Now, according to the church’s calendar, this Sunday is Earth Day. Earth Day reminds us of our responsibility as Christians to care for the whole of creation. More to the point, Earth Day compels us to enter into partnership with one another and with God to redeem the whole of creation, not just persons but the cosmos itself.

A tall order, redeeming the cosmos.

There is nothing particularly new about the message of Earth Day. In one form or another, I suspect most of us got the memo some time ago reminding us that we are stewards and caretakers and managers of God’s world. Like a letter from the local draft board, our faith simply tells us to report for caretaking duty.

Well, caretaking duty has become much more complex and demanding than was the case even a decade ago. At one time, at least when it came to our personal responsibilities, Reduce-Reuse-Recycle summed things up pretty well. I never heard anyone suggest that Earth stewards must also live redemptively toward the whole cosmos.

Of course, in the last decade we have become more focused on the health of the planet—and more alarmed by what we see. Clearly, our world is suffering serious environmental stress these days, but what to do about it—that’s the question—and interestingly enough, in general, we pretty much know how to fix things. We may debate how quickly we need to act, and how far we have to go, but the real stumbling block to addressing our environmental crisis is the failure to develop the political will to act.

Quite frankly, I find this puzzling. If the climate change people are right—and I conclude that they are—then we’re playing Russian roulette with a bullet in all six chambers. Of course, we rightly point fingers at politicians and the vested interests that hold them captive. All those K-Street lobbyists and the Super PACS and Big Oil and the 1% … really, what chance do the rest of us have?! What chance does the planet have?!

It does not take long to generate some real heartfelt, self-righteous indignation when it comes to politicians and the vested interests that hold them captive!

Then it dawned on me … I have vested interests myself in things running along pretty much as they are—don’t most all of us! Anybody here dependent on a pension—it’s invested someplace in our carbon-dependent economy. Anybody here attached to their cars … to cruise ships … to airplanes—the price is going up, but cheap energy makes them run. Anybody here like avacadoes … fifty cents, seventy-five cents, sometimes a whole dollar, Club Card price at Vons—have you ever looked at the little sticker that says from where they have come, frequently Chile. Sometimes Mexico. The carbon footprint is problematical but they’re so cheap! Anybody here grateful to have a job … is that job secure … and even if secure today how much of a disruption in the “way things work” would it take to change all that tomorrow? Talk about having vested interests in things running along pretty much as they are.

A moment ago I honored your willingness to embrace congregational transformation by becoming a New Beginnings Church. That takes courage, I said, because implicit in congregational transformation is fundamental change in how a congregation envisions and lives out its calling as a people of God. I applaud that.

Now, imagine a parallel process of transformation working its way through the social, cultural, economic, and political institutions of our country at whatever level is  necessary to heal our planet. It’s not hard to imagine what the result might look like because we pretty much know what to do; what’s hard to imagine is getting it done! Why? Because implicit in a transformative process is fundamental change in how we envision and live out a radically different style of life in community, and quite frankly we’re not that crazy about changing.

What to do? Well, for starters, we do what Christian stewards have always done when it comes to the planet. Again, the mantra:  Reduce—Reuse—Recycle.  In its longer form:  Use It Up—Wear It Out—Make It Do Or Do Without. When it does become necessary to replace big-ticket items like appliances and automobiles, energy efficiency is the first priority—we know that. Likewise with supporting business and political leaders who support smart public policies. Likewise, a willingness to pay for it in the form of higher taxes and higher prices. None of this is welcome news; all of it is old news; and in some combination we do need to put it to work in our own lives.

But by itself, this is no longer sufficient. As Christian stewards, we need to live redemptively toward the creation, the whole cosmos, and for a clue as to what that means, we turn to our text where Paul says that through Christ, God was pleased to reconcile to God’s self all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross.

We generally think of reconciliation as taking place between God and persons. We speak of a relationship with God, God’s relationship with us, our relationship with one another. We know that we depend on the world to sustain all manner of life, but we do not typically extend God’s reconciling activity in Christ to include the world. The world exists, obviously; if the world will continue to sustain future generations, we need to do a better job of caring for it, obviously; but the world itself—the whole of creation itself—as a realm of God’s saving purposes … not so obvious.

And yet, as Paul says elsewhere, the whole creation is groaning, longing, for its redemption (Rom. 8.22). Here in Colossians, Paul is just more explicit:  Christ is present at the beginning as a co-creator of the world (1.15ff) and even now continues to reconcile the whole universe to God (1.20). It’s almost as if John did not see the whole picture, the Big Picture. Yes, God so loved the world that God sent God’s Son, Jesus, such that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life (John 3.16), but from the cosmic perspective, what if God so loved the kosmos that God sent God’s Son to save … well, everything? Just think of the implications:  as disciples of Jesus, as co-creators with God, as agents of reconciliation (2 Cor. 5.11ff), we work not just within the realm of human relationships but within all the relationships that comprise the cosmic order.

In a word, we live redemptively toward the creation, loving and healing wherever we go.

To accomplish that high calling, we need to give some attention to what former Vice-president Al Gore calls an “environmentalism of the spirit.” In his book, Earth in the Balance, Mr. Gore writes:

The more deeply I search for the roots of the global environmental crisis, the more I am convinced that it is an outer manifestation of an inner crisis that is, for lack of a better word, spiritual.

At the end of the book, he discusses the contours of a spiritual ecology. For example, to tend to the environment of the spirit is to conserve hope amidst the corrosive effects of fear and to recycle the wonder we felt as children. Spiritual ecology welcomes the “thrill of directly experiencing the vivid intensity of the ever-changing moment.”

Especially does the ecology of the spirit embrace faith in an open future, for nothing damages the spirit more quickly or thoroughly than the hopelessness of a future without options. The Catholic theologian Teilhard de Chardin was right when he said that “the fate of [human]kind, as well as of religion, depends upon the emergence of a new faith in the future.”

Apparently, giving up is not an option.

An environmentalism of the spirit nurtures the spirit by feeding it regularly. It connects with the idea of the sacred, that life is sacred, that the creation is sacred, that relationships are sacred.

To nurture the environment of the spirit is to remember what William Coffin said, that the test of religion is not about feeling good but being good which necessarily means doing good. Similarly with Dietrich Bonhoeffer:  what is Christianity, he asks? Christianity is not theory or doctrine or even private mystical experience but the responsibility we accept for living the life of Christ in the world … might we say living the redemptive life of Christ in the world.

In so living do we exercise our responsibilities as agents of reconciliation and, yes, this is a huge challenge for Christian disciples, but we must embrace it and not just because the time may be short but because it certainly contains the seeds of our own salvation. For we human beings are ourselves cosmic creatures and we belong to a Cosmic Christ who reconciles all things to God, things in heaven and things on earth, and it only follows that living like the saved is the key to our fulfillment as human beings.

Amen.

* Liberty Medal acceptance speech at Independence Hall, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, July 4, 1994.

 

Sermon April 8 – Receive the Holy Spirit

John 20: 1-10, 19-22

What an amazing last couple of years it has been.

My brother Andrew and I had a good life in Galilee as fishermen.  It was not an easy life, but it allowed us to provide for our families – and we assumed that it was what we would do for the rest of our lives.

But then, we heard about a man … a carpenter, rabbi, preacher, and prophet by the name of Jesus.  And one day, he came to us as we were cleaning our nets from a long and unsuccessful night of fishing.  When he saw that we had caught nothing, he told us to go back out and let down our nets one more time.  Andrew and I looked at each other and I said “We have already worked all night and caught nothing.”  But he just stood there, looking at us.  So I turned to Andrew, he shrugged his shoulders, and we went back out onto the lake.  And this time, when we let down our nets, we pulled in a catch the likes of which we had never seen before!  Amidst much shouting and laughter, we brought our great catch to shore, and Jesus came over to us, put his hand on my shoulder and said, “From now on, you will be fishing for people.”  I remember at that moment I had NO idea what he meant – but today … today I do.

Shortly thereafter we left our nets and began to follow him.  We witnessed him heal people – including my own mother-in-law, we listened to him open the meanings of the scriptures and the traditions of our faith in new and wonderful ways … we even heard him forgive people of their sins.  The priests and scribes accused him of blasphemy for doing so, but to those of us who were following him, it seemed perfectly natural … and exactly what God wanted him to do.

Ya’ know … I’m not sure why, but of all the stories he told us, the one that has stayed with me is one about a sower who went out to sow some seed.  And as he scattered it, some fell on the path, and the birds came and ate it up.  Others fell on rocks and sprang up quickly since they had no depth of soil.  But when the sun rose, they were scorched; and since they had no root, they withered away.  Some other seeds fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked the plants out before they could grow.  But some seed … some seed fell upon good soil, and they grew up to provide a bountiful harvest.

When Jesus finished telling us this story, we all looked at each other, wondering what he was trying to tell us – and he must have seen the expressions on our faces, so he explained.  He said that the seed that fell on the path are those who hear the word of the Kingdom of God, but because of their hardness of heart, the meaning is snatched away before it can take root.  And the seed that fell amongst the rocks are those who hear the word and receive it with joy, but because they have no depth of faith – when troubles arise, that person falls away and withers.  The seed that fell amongst the thorns are those who hear the word, but the cares of the world and the lure of wealth choke its power and meaning, and it bears nothing.  But the seed that fell upon good soil, those are the ones who hear the word, understand it, and allow it to take root in their hearts and lives – and these are the one in and through whom the Kingdom bears a bountiful harvest.

This makes so much sense to me – even though I’ve spent my whole life as a fisherman … and I’ve never heard anybody teach so simply and sensibly about how we are to live our life and faith before.

But then, something … changed.  Jesus began challenging the authorities – both at the Temple and the Romans.  And he started talking about his death – which we realized was more than possible with the way he was calling the authority of the Temple priests and of Rome into question.

The other night, when we were gathered together to celebrate Passover, he even said something about the bread being his body and the wine being his blood … this was very strange to me.

And then later that same night, when we went to the Garden of Gethsemane following our Passover meal, the Temple guards came and took Jesus away.  What has happened since then is a blur to me.  There was a trial I’m told before the Sanhedrin … then Jesus was taken before Pilate, and Herod, and then back to Pilate, and ultimately he was ordered to be crucified.

I’m ashamed to say that the other disciples and I could not bring ourselves to watch Jesus die – plus we feared that if they put him to death, they might come after us next, so we went into hiding.  I understand that when he died, a member of the Ruling Council, Joseph of Arimathea, provided a tomb for Jesus’ hasty burial – simply wrapping him in a cloth and placing him in the tomb just as the Sabbath was about to begin.

And then this morning, when Mary Magdalene went to the tomb to finish properly preparing Jesus’ body for burial, she found the tomb … empty.  She immediately came and told me what had happened, and John and I ran to the tomb to see for ourselves.  Had someone stolen the body, or … didn’t Jesus tell us not only that he would die, but that on the third day he would rise from the grave?

We didn’t know what to think … but later, when we were all together, trying to decide what to do next, all of a sudden – Jesus was there with us!  He said “Peace be with you … As God has sent me, so I send you … Receive the Holy Spirit.”  Receive the Holy Spirit … and as he said those words – all fear left me, and I found myself filled with the light of God like I have never felt before!

When I first met Jesus, he told me that from now on, I would be fishing for people.  Well … I think it’s time to begin doing just that.

Who would like to go fishing with me?

Sermon March 25 – What a Waste!

John 12: 1-8

There is so much about Jesus that I don’t understand – and probably just as much that I disagree with him on!

Have you seen some of the people that he has called to be his closest followers … his disciples?  I understand him calling Matthew and me, because we are educated, and have shrewd minds when it comes to money matters.  But the others … common laborers for the most part, who can hardly carry on a conversation – unless it’s about fishing or herding goats.

Then there’s Magdala!  How can he allow himself to associate and be seen with such a woman?

And then there’s Jesus’ cousin – John the Baptizer.  At least Jesus had the common sense to keep his distance from him, or he might very well have met with a similar fate.  What was John thinking when he called into question the marriage of  King Herod to Herodias – just because she had been previously married to his brother Phillip?  Regardless of what one might think of such an arrangement, it is not wise to call the King into question over who he decides to take for a wife.  Is it any wonder that it cost John his life?

It is also not wise to ignore long standing customs and traditions.  When we were traveling to Galilee and stopped at Jacob’s well to get water – what was Jesus thinking when he spoke to a woman who was a stranger to him … a Samaritan woman no less!  One does not speak to a woman one does not know in public, and we do not spend time with Samaritans.

This is our way, and some things do not change!

For instance, did not God say that the Sabbath was to be a day of Holy Rest, upon which we should refrain from all work?  So when Jesus came upon a man by the pool of Bethesda who was ill, why did he insist on healing him on the Sabbath, bidding him to take up his mat and walk – which is in direct violation of our prescribed Sabbath laws?  Not only did the man get in trouble for carrying his mat on the Sabbath, but when he told the Temple officials who had healed him, they began looking for a way to do Jesus harm.

And then, as if that wasn’t bad enough, a woman was caught in the act of adultery and brought before the Temple officials for judgment – which, as prescribed by the Law of Moses, is to be taken outside of the city and stoned to death.  And seeing Jesus, they asked him “Rabbi, what do you say her fate should be?”  And do you know what he said?  “Let any among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.”  Right in front of everybody – he called the Temple officials sinners … and then he went on to forgive the woman of her sins!

It is not wise to accuse and call into question the authority of those in power in such a public way.

And then, just the other night, when we were sharing the evening meal with Jesus’ friend, Lazarus, along with his sisters, Mary and Martha, in Bethany, toward the end of the meal, Mary took some perfume and began putting it on Jesus’ feet, and wiping them with her hair.  I pointed out that this was a waste of such fine perfume that could have been sold for a considerable sum… to be given to the poor.  And do you know what he said?  He said “leave her alone.  She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial.  You will always have the poor with you … but you will not always have me.”

This is not the first time Jesus has spoken of his death – which also makes no sense to me.  As much as I may disagree with some of the things he says and does, there is no doubt that the power of God is in him … but he continues to waste that power in feeding and healing people, rather than using it where it will do some real good – challenging the power of Rome, and giving our people their lives back as the Chosen people of God, living our lives in peace and prosperity as God intended us to do when we were brought out of Egypt by God’s mighty hand and led to the Promised Land!

There must be a way to convince Jesus to use his power in … wait.  …..  As much as he has spoken of his death, I can’t believe that he really wants to die – and if he is who Peter says he is, the Christ, the Son of the Living God, then I can’t believe that God would allow him to die. But what if he were put in a position where he would have no choice but to use his power, or die?

Yes … yes – that’s it!  And if I’m lucky, there might even be some money in it for … well – for the poor, of course!

 

 

Sermon March 18 – Born of the Spirit

John 3: 1-10

Thank you for allowing me to speak to you my friends – for indeed I consider you to be my friends, in addition to serving with you on the Ruling Council … for a goodly number of years now with some of you.

The reason I have asked to speak is to discuss a matter that I believe is of great importance.  …  It’s a person actually – the carpenter from Nazareth, known as Jesus bar Joseph, who has been teaching and preaching in our area for the last couple of years.

To some, he is just one more in a long succession of itinerant preachers and prophets that have been a part of our history and faith tradition for centuries.  But to others, Jesus is much more than that.

Some believe he is the long awaited Messiah.

Now I, for one, am not convinced he is the Messiah.  But where others might rush to accuse him of blasphemy for seemingly making such claims, I found myself wanting to learn more about him … to hear what he has to say with my own ears … and to see with my own eyes some of the miraculous things I’ve been told he can do.

And so, the other night, I sought him out – and I told him that I recognized the presence of God in what he said and did.  And do you know what he said to me?  He said “No one can see the kingdom of God without being born anew from above.”

And so I asked him how it was possible for this to happen … how can a grown person reenter their mother’s womb and be born anew?

To which he replied “That which has been born of the flesh is flesh.  But that which is born of the spirit is spirit.”  And then he added “The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes.  So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

And when I told him I did not understand what he was trying to tell me, do you know what he said?  He said “Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things?”

At first, I was angry with his response … I am a teacher of Israel!  I have spent years studying our faith and the scriptures, and have served proudly and honorably on the Ruling Council for many years now.  How dare he question my understanding of such things!

But then I found myself recalling the words of the prophet Isaiah where he wrote: (reading from scroll – Isaiah 11:1-6)

 A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots.

 The spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.

He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide by what his ears hear; but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.

Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist, and faithfulness the belt around his loins.

The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them.

In what we believe to be one of the passages where Isaiah speaks of the coming of the Messiah, he says that the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him … the spirit of wisdom and understanding … the spirit of counsel and might … the spirit of knowledge … and a little child shall lead them.

Jesus says that we must be born anew of the spirit … like a child … with a new spirit of wisdom, understanding, and knowledge … perhaps in much the same way he is teaching so many new understandings of our faith, and inviting us to reflect upon long standing thoughts and traditions with new eyes and open hearts … like a child.

I am still not certain by any means that Jesus is the Messiah, but maybe … just maybe he is – and if he is, shouldn’t we be listening to what he says with open hearts and minds?

He may indeed be challenging our long standing understandings and traditions, but if God’s purposes are to be fulfilled … maybe that’s exactly what needs to happen.

May God be with us all, my friends, in the days ahead as we seek to find God’s truth for us – in this place, and at this time.

Thank you for listening.    

 

 

 

Sermon March 11 – The Wedding at Cana

John 2: 1-12

Have you ever been in charge of planning a wedding before?

Now I don’t mean as a parent of the wedding couple, or even as a bride or groom – but the person actually charged with overseeing ALL the details of the 7 day long feast and celebration?

When my master told me his daughter was getting married, it came as no surprise, for she and her betrothed have been together for nearly a year now.  But I had no idea how much work was involved in planning such an event!

There was the food, the wine, places for close friends and family members to stay, musicians, making sure the rabbi was available – and it soon became clear that the list of invited guests was becoming much longer than anybody had originally anticipated!

And so, the day arrived … it was a beautiful wedding!  My master’s daughter was a beautiful bride – and her face glowed with the light of love, as did her groom’s.

The first 2 days of the celebration went smoothly enough, but on the third day, suddenly the groom approached me and told me that we had run out of wine … how could this be?  I had made careful plans, and arranged for ample supplies of food and drink!

And then one of the servants found some additional wine – 6 stone jars full no less!  He brought me a cup full to sample before serving it to the guests, and it was some of the sweetest wine I have ever tasted!  I asked the groom where the wine had come from, and he had no idea – so I assumed my master must have arranged for it!  Most people serve the best wine first, and save the lesser wine for when people’s senses have been … well, dulled a bit.  But my master had obviously saved the best wine for last … a truly generous and hospitable surprise on his part for the wedding guests!

But then I noticed that a number of the servants were talking among themselves, and pointing toward one of the wedding guests – a carpenter from Nazareth I was told … Jesus I think was his name, a distant relative on the groom’s side of the family I believe.  And they said … well, they said that the jars had actually been filled with water – and that this Jesus had turned the water into wine!  Have you ever heard anything so foolish?  Who could do such a thing?  But they were very insistent that this is what had happened.

So I started asking a few questions of the other wedding guests about this Jesus – and I learned that he was much more than a mere carpenter.  There were those who were with him who said he was a great teacher and healer, who had the power of God at his command to … well, I suppose turn water into wine if he so chose! It will be interesting to see what comes of him in the future.

Who knows … maybe he is the Chosen One of God that we have waited for for so long!  I’m sorry – that’s just more foolish talk on my part from a man who has hoped for so long to see God’s Chosen before my eyes close in death!

And now, you’ll have to excuse me … for if I don’t get back to serving our guests, the time of my death will be near at hand – at the hands of my master!

God be with you … and please – make sure you try some of that wine.  It really is rather remarkable!

Sermon March 4 – The Light of God

Mark 9:2-9

Have you heard of the man called Jesus … and have you actually had a chance to hear him, or see what it is I’m told he can do?

I’ve spent my entire life fishing for a living here on the lake in Galilee, and up until a couple of years ago my sons, James and John, worked alongside of me.  They were good workers – although they also had their wild side, often getting into trouble and fights when they weren’t working.  As a matter of fact, they came to be known as the “Sons of Thunder” because of their raucous ways.

And then one day, after we had been out fishing and were cleaning our nets, Jesus came by the lakeshore and asked James and John to follow him.  I figured there was little chance of them saying yes to his offer … what would they want with the life of following an itinerant teacher around the countryside?  But much to my surprise, they did say yes, and I’ve only seen them occasionally now for going on … it must be 3 years.

During that time, I’ve heard many stories about Jesus – mostly about his ability to heal people.

I was told that he healed a man who had been paralyzed – telling him his sins were forgiven … can anyone but God forgive sins?

Another time I understand a man with a withered hand approached him at the synagogue on the Sabbath, and there were those who said he should not heal him – because it was the Sabbath … and Jesus responded by saying “Is it lawful to do good or do harm on the Sabbath, to save life or to kill?”  And so he healed the man’s hand … that seems like the right thing to have done to me.

When Jesus was in the country of the Gerasenes, I’m told he came upon a man who was possessed by evil spirits – and he drove them out of him, telling him to tell his friends what God had done for him, and what mercy had been shown to him … is Jesus another of God’s great prophets in our day, much like the prophets of old?

As Jesus returned to Galilee, some people brought a deaf man to him, begging him to lay his hands on him.  I understand Jesus took him aside, put his fingers in the man’s ears – and they were opened … he could hear!  But to this man he said “Tell no one what has been done for you this day.”   Why would Jesus want to keep such a thing a secret?

One time when Jesus was in Bethsaida, a blind man was brought to Jesus, and his friends begged Jesus to touch him.  So he took the man outside of the village, spit into his hands, and laid his hands upon the man’s eyes.  At first, the man said his vision was still a bit blurry – so Jesus laid his hands on his eyes a second time, and his sight was restored!  But again, Jesus told him to not tell anyone in the village what he had done for him.  This makes no sense to me.  If Jesus has been given the power to heal from God, why would he not want people to know about it?

And then, just the other day, James and John stopped by to see me, and they told me the strangest story.  They said they had accompanied Jesus, along with another of his followers … I think they said his name is Peter, as he went up into the hills to pray.  And while they were there, Jesus’ robe began to glow with a light the likes of which they had never seen before – and then suddenly Moses and Elijah were standing there with Jesus!  At that point they fell to the ground and hid their eyes.  I believe they said Peter offered to make 3 tents for Jesus and Moses and Elijah, not knowing what else to say or do.  And then a cloud overshadowed the group, and they heard a voice from the cloud say, “This is my son, the Beloved; listen to him!”  And then suddenly, Jesus was standing there, alone.  And James and John tell me that Jesus instructed them to tell no one what they had seen until he had risen from the dead.

From what James and John have told me, this is not the first time Jesus has spoken of his death, and the fact that the grave will not be able to hold him … a very strange thing to be saying it seems to me.

There is much that is strange in what I have heard about this Jesus – but one thing I do know, and that is before my sons became his followers, they were known as the Sons of Thunder.  And now, there is a calm about them that I have never seen before, along with a sense of peace and happiness.  And although I would much rather have had them stay with me and help with the fishing, it is good to see them happy and at peace with themselves … what more could a father want for his children?

I just hope these actions by Jesus don’t arouse the Jewish or Roman authorities … that is something I would not wish upon an enemy – let alone the one who has brought such a wonderful change in my sons.  May God be with them … and with you my friends.

Now – I must get back to my nets … they don’t mend themselves you know.

Sermon February 26 – My Cousin Jesus

Mark 1:9-15

REPENT!!  Repent Children of Israel!  Come and be cleansed of your wicked ways and return to the ways of God!  I baptize you with water – but I tell you … there is another who will baptize you with the Holy Spirit!

I have been called by God to prepare the way for God’s Chosen – and now he is here!  And it is someone I know well – for the one we have waited for for so long is my cousin … Jesus.

Having been born just a few months before Jesus, I’ve known him … well, my whole life.  And my very first memories of him were that he was somehow … different than all the other boys.

When our families would gather in Jerusalem for holy days and festivals, and the boys would play games together, games that could get rough at times, I remember Jesus usually electing to observe rather than joining in – and yet if someone were to get hurt, he was the first one to offer a caring word and touch … a touch that seemed to be a healing touch.  I know I was not the only one to observe this … and yet, it wasn’t something we talked about.

One time I recall we were playing with some animal figures we had made from bits of clay we found on the ground by the potter’s wheel behind his shop – and as we played, Jesus breathed on the clay bird he had made … and it came to life and flew away!  We were all amazed – laughing and clapping with excitement as we watched it fly away … but Jesus just stood there with a puzzled expression on his face, as if he didn’t fully understand what he had just done.

And then there was the time our families went up to Jerusalem for Passover – the year that Jesus and I had had our bar mitzvahs, which meant this would be the first time we would be able to fully participate with the men in the main hall at the Temple … and we would probably be called upon to help lead our family Seder meal.  This was indeed a very special Passover for my cousin and me.

But then, as our families parted company – Jesus’ portion of the clan heading north, and ours heading south, after a day’s journey, I understand that Mary and Joseph suddenly realized that Jesus wasn’t among the group.  So they returned to Jerusalem, and after searching for 3 days, they finally found him with the elders and teachers of the Law in the Temple – asking and answering questions with a wisdom and knowledge far beyond his years.  When they found him, his mother asked him why he had wandered off, causing them such worry – and I’m told he simply responded, “Why were you searching for me?  Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?  He called God “Father” – and I think it was then that some of us within the family started to wonder about exactly what and who Jesus would become in God’s plan, and in the life of our people.

It was shortly thereafter that Jesus’ father, Joseph, died, and it fell to Jesus as the firstborn son to take over the family carpentry business, and the training of his younger brothers – as well as the responsibility of providing for his mother and sisters.  And so, for a number of years, this was Jesus’ life and purpose.  We still saw each other at the festivals and holy days … but gone were the games that we played as boys.

And then suddenly, we quit seeing him at family gatherings for holy days and festivals.  When I asked about him, I was told that once he had trained his brothers and was convinced they could carry on with the family carpentry business, he had traveled south to the region of the Dead Sea and the community of Qumran, to live and study with the Essenes, who spent ALL their time in prayer, studying and discussing the scriptures, and living apart from everybody else in an attempt to achieve a certain spiritual purity.  This seemed like a very logical and appropriate life for Jesus to me, and I was happy for him.

However, I felt God calling me in a different direction – to a life of preaching the message of repentance to all who would listen, and preparing the way for the coming of the Messiah. And then suddenly, there was Jesus, standing before me – and I knew … I knew he was the one.  I told him I should rather be baptized by him.  But he insisted that I baptize him … and when I did, a beam of light broke through the clouds, shining directly on Jesus – and I heard a voice saying, “This is my beloved son, with whom I am well pleased.”

Jesus told me that he must now go into the wilderness to be with God, and to fast and pray, in preparation for … well, I’m not exactly sure what he’s preparing for – but I have no doubt that God has special plans for his life.

I hope he’s careful out there – for God is not alone in the wilderness … the Tempter is to be found out there as well.  …..  May God protect him from harm, and us as well, during these challenging times.

Sermon February 19 – Elijah’s Flying Machine

1 Kings 2:1-12

 

Last July, NASA’s space shuttle Atlantis flew its last mission, and now there’s lots of speculation about where the space agency will turn its attention. Recent inventions, however, may turn the attention from outer space to inner space – namely, the space right above our heads.

The folks at NASA have come up with “The Highway in the Sky,” a computer commuter system designed to allow millions of people to fly wherever they please, so long as it’s under 400 feet in non-restricted air space – no pilot’s license, airport body scan or luggage fee necessary.  Inventors are jumping all over this, which means that sometime in the very near future, the 1950s vision of flying cars shuttling people about may well be a 21st-century reality.

One such invention is called the “AirScooter,” invented by Woody Norris. The AirScooter will be able to fly for two hours at 55 mph and go up to 10,000 feet above sea level.  Everything is controlled with a motorcycle-like handlebar, which manages two helicopter-like, counter-rotating blades.  With NASA’s “Highway in the Sky,” the commuter pilot only needs to focus on one computer screen with a box on it.  Keep the AirScooter’s nose centered in the box, away from other personal flying machines, and the computer will guide you to your destination.

Norris says he’ll sell the AirScooter for $50,000.  He, like many other inventors, believes that today’s jets and planes will eventually become relics, replaced by these machines that will make your average city look like something out of a Star Wars movie, or a Jetsons cartoon.  In a few years, Ford, GM, Chrysler, Honda and Toyota dealerships may be replaced by salespeople hawking AirScooters, Skycopters, CarterCopters and personal jetpack devices called Springtails.  Harry Falk and his team at Trek Aerospace are developing the Springtail, and Falk describes the revolution taking place.  ”Clearly, we’ve caught the wave of the future,” says Faulk.  ”NASA’s building the ‘Highway in the Sky’ program is what really develops the infrastructure for us to put these things in the air and fly them safely.”

It’s an interesting concept, thinking that you could start every day by getting a literal bird’s eye view of things – no cramming into the isolated space of your car, no smog-choking traffic jams or road construction.  Traveling by straight-line distance would cut down the time you spend commuting, though the flying experience may tempt you to circle awhile and look around, getting some perspective on things before you land in your personal, um, landing space, and start the workday.  

The idea of futuristic flying cars was certainly way out of the realm of imagination in Elijah’s day, and yet this week’s text tells the story of him “taking flight,” tooling around in a flying chariot (the ancient ancestor to the car).  What an amazing image for the first readers of this passage when Elijah reportedly got scooped up and was being shuttled to a heavenly destination in his own personal divine flying machine.

Did he ask God to circle him around a bit (it was, after all, a “whirlwind,” according to 2 Kings 2:11)?

Did he take a while to survey the landscape, not only of the Jordan River Valley, but of the places where he had toiled as a prophet of God?

 What did he think about before putting his heavenly destination squarely in the navigation screen box?

All of this is pure speculation, of course, but the account of Elijah’s takeoff via a personal flying machine certainly indicates that he’d lived a unique kind of prophetic life, and earned a status before God that warranted this kind of exit. Only two others had reportedly previously been given the opportunity to take off from the earth without dying in the usual way.  In Genesis 5, we read about Enoch, an ancestor of Noah, who we’re told lived 365 years and fathered the long-living Methuselah.  Unlike the wicked people of the pre-flood generations, Enoch “walked with God” and, instead of dying in the usual way, the writer of Genesis says that God “took him” (Genesis 5:24).  The curse of death outlined in Genesis 3 didn’t apply to this righteous man, and he was presumably brought directly into the presence of God as a result of his faithfulness.

The story of Elijah’s departure, however, is connected to the more familiar story of Moses’ departure.  As Elijah approaches the Jordan River, with his eager protégé Elisha tagging along behind, we’re told that he rolls up his mantle and strikes the water, parting it so that both prophets could cross on dry ground – a definitive reference to the prophetic power of Moses.  When Elijah crosses the river, it’s no coincidence that he has entered into the same region where Deuteronomy tells us that Moses died (Deuteronomy 34:5-6).  No one, of course, knew exactly where or how Moses had died, or where he had been buried.  This hint of the mystery of Moses’ departure in 2 Kings 2 sets up the idea that Elijah is in the very same class as Israel’s liberating prophet, and that Elijah will have a similarly mysterious departure.

Like Moses, Elijah’s life was a study in contrasts.  Both prophets emerged from the desert, and both spoke the truth to the powers of their day – Moses to the enslaving Pharaoh, and Elijah to the corrupt King Ahab and his meddling wife Jezebel.  Both reportedly performed miraculous feats of power.  We’re told that Moses parted the seas, brought water from a rock, and stood in God’s presence on top of Mount Sinai, while Elijah was sustained by ravens in the desert (1 Kings 17:1-7), brought a child back from the dead (1 Kings 17:17-24), and defeated the prophets of Baal in a winner-take-all contest between deities on Mount Carmel (1 Kings 18).  Both prophets worked to train their replacements, too, as Moses instructed Joshua, and Elijah, albeit a bit more reluctantly, prepared Elisha to take up his mantle.

Yet, the Bible reveals that both Moses and Elijah were flawed leaders – and timid prophets as well.  When through a burning bush God confronted Moses with the mission of leading the Israelites out of Egypt, Moses, lacking confidence in himself, balked in fear of the Pharaoh.  He sometimes let the anxiety of his people get the best of him.  Elijah demonstrated a similar bent when he ran for his life in the desert after being threatened by Jezebel, and hid in a cave until God talked him out of it with a display of divine power (1 Kings 19:1-10).

But, fortunately, God does not seek the flawless when looking for those to be in service.  Being flawed and having shortcomings and weaknesses does not mean God’s going to pass over and look for someone else to do God’s work in the world.  When, like Moses, we say, “I can’t do this; find someone else,” God says, “I don’t want anyone else.”  When, like Elijah and Jonah, we run away, God finds us.  

Ya’ know, Elijah was a bit of a curmudgeon, which means he was like so many of us who swing between the poles of victory and defeat or contentment and crisis, on a regular basis.  Sometimes, however, God offers us a bird’s-eye view of our lives, allowing us to take it all in and understand that everything we experience, both good and bad, can teach us and provide experiential fuel for the journey we’ve undertaken.  Elijah doesn’t engage in a deathbed reflection, but a flight of grand proportions that signifies that God honors those who are faithful in spite of their fears, and those who are willing to rise above adversity instead of grumbling in the traffic of an overly ordinary life.  

NASA has created a targeted flying system that enables people who are willing to take the risk of flying to get to their destinations quickly and safely. Stories like those of Elijah remind us that the Scriptures have given us an even more definitive target for the destination of our lives: to be in God’s presence. When we point our lives in God’s direction, we can’t help but see things anew and move through life with purpose, simplicity, and excitement.

Indeed, the story of Elijah’s amazing flight reminds us that if we believe in God’s promises, our lives don’t ultimately end in death, but in the high-flying, above-ground reality of life everlasting.  Remember, we’re told Moses and Elijah both appeared with Jesus at the Transfiguration, which signaled to the disciples that death wasn’t the end – a fact they’d come to believe and preach in the days that followed.           

 In the meantime, however, we find ourselves like Elisha, and like those first disciples, staring and pointing into the heavens with wonder.  Having witnessed the resurrection power of a heavenly flight we, like Elisha, may find ourselves wanting a double portion of it (2 Kings 2:9).  We want the kind of boldness and perseverance that our spiritual ancestors and mentors displayed.  We want the kind of entrepreneurial spirit that fuels the vision of inventors and the passion of prophets.

To experience that, however, we have to be willing to build on the efforts of our entrepreneurial ancestors.  The flying car has been conceived by inventors for years, and just now is the technology starting to be perfected.  The legacy of Elijah is even longer, and we build on his prophetic work only if we’re willing to pick up the mantle and engage in our own journey.  The truth still needs to be spoken to those in power.  People are still in need of healing and need to be fed. And, if we’re really being prophetic, we’ll still experience times of fear and want to run and hide.

Through it all, though, God promises us that, in the end, we’re all going to fly toward a new destination – a place called the Kingdom of God.  But in the meantime, in the here and now, a New Beginning awaits us – calling us to take flight into an unknown and exciting future together … got your seatbelts fastened?

 

Sermon February 12 – 36,722 Years

1 Corinthians 13:1-7

The person who wrote the passage we heard this morning from what we know as 1^st Corinthians, as well as being the most prolific writer of other New Testament materials is … that’s right – Paul.

Now at times, even though Paul was a visionary, he was also a man of his day – and some of his views have proven to be problematic down through the years.

For instance, in what we know as 1^st Corinthians 7 (8, 28b), he says it is best to not marry – this, in a society where marriage was the expected norm.  Now, it’s not clear with any certainty as to why Paul felt this way about marriage.  Perhaps he thought that event that we usually refer to as “The Second Coming” was imminent, and it just didn’t make sense to invest the time and energy it takes to nurture a successful marriage relationship.  Or, maybe there were other reasons.

In 1^st Corinthians 14 (34-36) he says that women should be silent in church [hold for groan!].  The explanation of this comment that I like best is that because of Jesus’ open acceptance of women as equals in society, they were being allowed into worship for the first time as equals with their male counterparts, and they had many questions – so many, perhaps, that it was proving disruptive to worship.  So Paul’s admonition may have been for women to hold their questions until after worship, and then ask their husbands whatever questions they might have.

And then there’s the whole issue of Paul having a “thorn” in his flesh (2^nd Corinthians 12:7b), which he never really explains.  Some conjecture that maybe he had a lisp … or a limp … or some kind of skin abnormality – like a birth mark, or was prone to seizures … or that maybe he was gay.  To be a 1^st Century Jew and Roman citizen, where such things were not socially acceptable, would have been a real internal struggle for someone – knowing that you were attracted to men rather than women … a “thorn” in his flesh.  And IF this were the case, it might also explain some of his comments and feelings about marriage … but there’s really no way of knowing what his “thorn” was with the information we currently have.

But with all this being said, the fact of the matter is that Paul is believed to be the author of 1^st Corinthians 13:1-7 – what I often refer to as “Love’s Laundry List,” the scripture I use most often at weddings.  And, interestingly enough, the passage isn’t even specifically about marriage, but rather speaks to the nature of “Christian love” in ALL human relationships.  Can’t help but wonder what Paul’s thoughts might be on the whole current court battle and debate over Prop 8 and Marriage Equality, ya’ know?  

Now … what’s this 36, 722 Years number all about?

Well it’s the years of marriage of 829 couples who recently gathered for a special blessing at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington D.C.  In order to be part of the group, you had to have been married at least 25 years, and some of the couples represented had been married for over 70 years!

36, 722 years … that’s a pretty impressive number – especially when ya’ stop and think that 2000 years ago Paul walked the face of the earth, and 36,000 years ago, Neanderthals were killing each other with stone weapons!

Ya’ know, another impressive number is how many people walk by our booth at Farmers’ Market on a given 2^nd Thursday night of the month.  Last year some time, Kathleen Delzell was staffing the booth with me, and she counted the number of people who walked by our table for 1 minute.  If memory serves, it was about 100 people.  Now, take that times the 3 hours we are there, which is 180 minutes – and you get 18,000 people … another pretty impressive number!

Some months we have numerous people who stop and talk with us, inquiring about our church, and other months we have very few.  This past Thursday, I remember one conversation in particular.  A young woman, I’d guess in her 20s somewhere, stopped at the table, saying she’d been looking for a church, and was wondering if I could tell her about ours.  When the words “Liberal” and “Accepting of ALL people as being fully children of God” came out of my mouth, along with telling her where we were located, her face lit up as she said “Wait – I have totally been by your church … the one with the rainbow symbol on the sign, right?”  When I said yes, she asked “So I could even bring my bisexual boyfriend with me?!”  To which I said “Of course!” as I handed her one of our brochures with church location, time, etc.  She said “thank you” … possibly with a slight catch in her voice, as she turned and walked away. 

Numbers can be impressive … even when that number is the number 1 – a single conversation that touches a heart, offering the message of God’s all accepting love.

Sermon February 5 – God’s First Words

Genesis 1:1-5

It’s usually pretty easy to remember some of the last words of famous and infamous people – you know, those last utterances before they exit the stage into oblivion. Like Civil War Union General John Sedgwick who, looking across a field at a bunch of Confederate snipers, said to his nervous aide, “They couldn’t hit an elephant at this distance.” He reportedly breathed his last moments later, victim of a sniper’s musket ball.

But what about famous first words – you know, those words that launched some new venture or discovery?  Sure, we remember Neil Armstrong’s first words upon stepping on to the moon: “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind” … and Alexander Graham Bell’s first words spoken on the telephone in 1875: “Mr. Watson, come here – I want to see you” – but lots of other first words that signaled the beginning of important events or technological advances, while less familiar, were no less revolutionary.

Many of these famous first words, like Bell’s call for his assistant, were uttered as a result of advances in communication itself.  Take, for example, the first words ever sent electrically over wires via telegraph.  While many others had experimented with the technology before him, Samuel Morse was the first to send a message over a real telegraph line on May 24, 1844.  From the old Supreme Court Chamber in the Capitol building in Washington, D.C., Morse sent the first message – a Bible verse, Numbers 23:23, chosen by Annie Ellsworth, the daughter of a friend, to his associate, waiting on the other end of the line in Baltimore.  The first electronic words were, “What hath God wrought?”

 More first words followed as communication technology advanced.  The first words spoken over a wireless radio were uttered on December 23, 1900, from a station on Cobb Island in the Potomac River by Reginald Aubrey Fessenden: “One, two, three, four.  Is it snowing where you are, Mr. Thiesen?” The first spoken word that ended the era of silent movies in 1927 was Al Jolson’s clever line in The Jazz Singer, “Wait a minute, you ain’t heard nothin’ yet.”  Dial the clock forward a bit and we read the first e-mail, sent by computer engineer Ray Tomlinson in 1971.  No, it wasn’t an ill-advised rant about his boss that got sent accidentally, it was just “QWERTYUIOP” – a test e-mail to himself using only the top letters of the keyboard.  The first Tweet was sent by Jack Dorsey in 2006, said, in a way that only people interested in the minutiae of life in the Twitter-verse can appreciate, “Just setting up my Twittr.”

Of course, important first words aren’t confined to the advent of communication devices.  The first words a child speaks, for example, are anticipated for months by parents who can’t wait to hear what junior actually wants.  In case you’re wondering – the nine most common first words for babies are dada, daddy, dad, mama, mommy, mom, cat, dog, and of course – NO!

If they say “money” first, then you actually have a teenager, not a baby.

First words announce that something new has begun, no matter how mundane those words may seem.  And no first words are probably more significant or momentous than: “Let there be light” (Genesis 1:3).  These first words were spoken not by humans, but by God, who utters those words at the beginning of a brand new project called Creation.  God’s words signify a major shift from the existing formless chaos on the earth, represented by the “deep,” toward order, separation, and goodness – represented by God’s illuminating presence.  The Creator, in other words, seems to be launching a new and transformational technology just by speaking a word.

Having recently made our way through Advent, Christmas and on into Epiphany, I suspect we can easily make the connection to the fact that the light that God has spoken into the Creation project reveals God’s own self and character to us.  “God is light,” says the writer of 1 John, “in whom there is no darkness at all” (1:5). The glory and truth of God, revealed in God’s own light and presence, exposes those who would continue to live in the secrecy and darkness of chaos.

Indeed, the gospel of John takes this understanding a lot further by connecting the Incarnation of God in Jesus to both God’s Word and to God’s presence as revealed in light.  Like Genesis, the book of John begins “In the beginning,” and says that Jesus was God’s ultimate “Word” spoken to the Creation, a light created to pierce the darkness of sin and death that can never “overcome” it (John 1:5).  Jesus’ life – God’s very life, was “the light of all people” (John 1:4).  Read Genesis 1:1-5 and John 1:1-5 next to each other and it’s easy to see how the themes run together.  God speaks, and the darkness and chaos of the earth are put in their places.

John was not the only one to pick up this theme that echoes all the way back to God’s first words. Paul would remind the Thessalonians that they were to be “children of light and children of the day, not of the night or darkness” (1 Thessalonians 5:5).  Paul reminds them that another day is coming, the beginning of the New Creation, when the darkness will no longer be present.  He urges them – and us, to step into the light and live in it, so that we might move out of the chaos of life and into God’s ordered way of life for us and the whole Creation.

These famous first words of God proclaimed at the very beginning of Creation are great first words for us, too, as we continue our journey into a new year, and as we live our way into our New Beginning program.  As people created in God’s image, we are called to recognize the separation of light and darkness in our own lives.  We live in darkness, for example, when we continue to engage in bad habits or hurtful behavior, when we take advantage of the people around us, when we’re bound by anger, or burdened with the regrets and hurts of the past.  If we’re finding our lives out of control, we can be sure that the swirling chaos of the darkness is holding us back from living lives that have meaning and purpose.

We can choose, however, to listen to God’s constant message to Creation: “Let there be light!”

“If we walk in the light as God is in the light, we have fellowship with one another …” says 1 John 1:7.  The Word that became flesh brought the light of God into the world in person, and calls us to live in the reality that no matter where we’ve been hiding in the darkness, God is inviting us into the light.  

God’s famous first words, after all, will also be some of God’s last words at the end of the Old Creation and the start of the New. In the New Creation, God says, God’s people will experience the light all the time because “there will be no more night” and God’s people will “need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever” (Revelation 22:5) – just as God said from the beginning.

The message the dark and chaotic world needs to hear is the one with which God started the whole project. What are some ways our church can offer these first words to people who may be hearing them for the first time?  What kinds of communication strategies and technologies can we use to bring people from darkness into light?  This is a great opportunity as we make our way into our New Beginning to invite our congregation to focus on the New Creation and our part in it.

What will be some of our congregation’s first words for this new year?  What do we hear God saying to us on the threshold of a new year?

It seems to me that it would be hard to do better than “Let there be light!”