Deuteronomy 18:15-20
God will raise up a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him. For this is what you asked of God at Horeb on the day of the assembly when you said, “Let us not hear the voice of God nor see this great fire anymore, or we will die.” God said to me: “What they say is good. I will raise up for them prophets like you from among their fellow Israelites, and I will put my words in the prophet’s mouth. He will tell them everything I command him. I myself will call to account anyone who does not listen to my words that the prophet speaks in my name; but a prophet who presumes to speak in my name anything I have not commanded, or a prophet who speaks in the name of other gods, is to be put to death.”
Mark 1:21-28
They went to Capernaum; and when the sabbath came, he entered the synagogue and taught. They were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. Just then there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, and he cried out, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God." Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be silent, and come out of him!" And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him. They were all amazed, and they kept on asking one another, "What is this? A new teaching--with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him." At once his fame began to spread throughout the surrounding region of Galilee.
***********************************************************
Two things I have in mind as I start thinking today: one is right at the beginning of the Harry Potter series, when Draco Malfoy says to Harry ‘You don’t want to be seen with the wrong sort, Potter. I can help you there.” and Harry responds “I think I can tell the wrong sort for myself, thanks.” This one tiny part defines the whole of the ground of the Potter books - a young man who isn’t afraid to get hurt for what he knows is right, and another young man who is afraid. Harry is the prophet in this story, the one who walks willingly to death for what he believes is right - the power of Love.
The other is the story of First United Church in Vancouver’s Downtown East Side. In case you don’t know, the downtown east side of Vancouver is a centre of drug use and abuse, alcohol abuse, mental illness - and a life expectancy of about 32. First United Church has for many years run a centre where those people who struggle with demons can come for a meal, a place to sleep, connections to help, and unconditional love. First United never saw itself as a shelter, but rather a radical example of the Gospel in action. They became a shelter when the City of Vancouver asked them to do so, because there were not enough shelters for the many homeless. But their rdical living of the Gospel meant that they defied laws which restricted those who could come in to a particular number. They took in anyone who needed a place. They pushed the City to build more shelters. Local police complained they had to answer calls; ambulance attendants claimed they had to go in there to pick up people; there were a couple of assaults. In the end, the shelter will close at the end of March - at the direction of the Presbytery. The three staff who worked to live this radical and prophetic vision of Gospel were forced to resign.
Lots of people these days claim to be speaking on behalf of God. In the current election in the US, people of every stripe, every colour, every religious and political persuasion are all claiming *they* speak on behalf of God. And it’s interesting that much of what God says, according to them, is about hate.
In every denomination, at every level, people claim they speak on behalf of God. The staff at First United on the Downtown East Side said they spoke for God. The Prebsytery says it speaks for God. When we call our ministers, we write in our Joint Needs Assessments that we want strong, relevant preaching, current scholarship, and the word of God. We want prophets to to teach us - but what happens, of course, is that it’s the word of God, if it’s the word we personally agree with, and it isn’t the word of God if we don’t agree.
So the question is, how do we discern who really is speaking for God. Who really carries this authority? In the reading from Deuteronomy we get one idea. Moses is coming to the end of his time, and knows he will not enter the Promised Land. The Israelites want to know who will tell them what God wants, when Moses is gone. Moses tells them that “God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you shall heed such a prophet.” But Moses isn’t talking about one prophet, but a new prophet for each generation - the phrase is “raising up prophets.” who will continue to speak on God’s behalf.
In today’s world our guide is not Moses, but Jesus. Anyone who says they are speaking for God must be held up to the ministry and teachings of Jesus. So today Mark takes us to Jesus at the beginning of his public ministry, and in today’s passage, Jesus begins with a sermon in the synagogue in Capernaum. He and the disciples walk in to the synagogue, the resident rabbi hands Jesus the first scroll, and he sits down to teach. So he reads the lesson, and then opens the service with the traditional berakah, or blessing. Probably not more than five minutes into his sermon, it happens. Just when the congregation is starting to notice that the sermon notes are not on an old yellow legal pad, just when they discover that the topic is not being put to them the way the traditional scribes would, just when they are starting to see that faith without action in the world is a dead faith, a raving man in the middle of church shouts vague threats at the young preacher who dared to say something radical.
"I know who you are," the man yells. “You’re God’s holy messenger, come here to destroy us.”
"Be muzzled, you evil spirit" Jesus yells back, jumping up from his chair, "Leave him alone! Stop hurting that man." The man falls to the synagogue floor, tears and shudders going through his body, wails coming from so deep inside they seem to touch a primordial chord in everyone there. Then he becomes calm. He picks himself up, now tranquil and calm, and finds a seat in the congregation.
How would you respond if that happened here? Most of us would be so shocked that we would just sit. Some of us would leave making disgusted faces at such behaviour in church. Maybe we would have called the ambulance and told them to bring the jacket and restraints.
Would you walk out of the church complimenting the preacher on a great sermon? If the teaching went contrary to what you had always been taught by the scribes and Pharisees, what would you do? Isn’t that the LAST thing you would compliment the preacher for? A wonderful teaching, with fresh insight? Yet, that is what happened in Capernaum. The congregation leaves the synangogue commenting about how wonderful the teaching was. What has teaching to do with expunging a demon?
And the crowd is “astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority and not as the scribes.”(v. 22) This rabbi clearly is different – his teaching sets him apart from those who claim to be the successors of Moses, who claim to have authority from God. We don’t find out *what* Jesus taught, just that he did, and it made an impression.
The religious leaders who claim they speak for God have shunned a man who, according to them, has a “demon”. They have *talked* about the Realm of God on earth. They have used established procedures to interpret and debate the Law of Moses. Their interpretation might be intellectually demanding, but does not demand that they change the way they think, or change their lives.
Jesus is different, because he understands the scholarly interpretations, but he also knows that theory is useless unless it is put into practice. Jesus works to bring God’s realm right in the present situation. So when a man comes to the synagogue, clearly suffering social discrimination, Jesus acts to free the man, so that he has the courage to be who he truly is regardless of what the authorities claim is God’s law.
Jesus’ authority does not come from being born into the *right* family. His authority does not come from attending the right schools or studying with the right people and earning the right degrees. Jesus’ authority is granted by God, and is demonstrated through the many ways in which he works to make the Realm of God a reality throughout his ministry. Jesus is authoritative; but there is a difference between authoritative, and authoritarian.
Two words are crucial in this text; teaching, and authority. Mark wants us to see that in Jesus, God is among us to confront our own demons, the things which hold us back from Gospel of Love. When Jesus is the teacher, teaching is not a snore of a sermon! When Jesus is the teacher at Humber, we all are faced with a choice - to let the demons speak or let Jesus drive them from us so that we learn to live and love in the very same way Jesus did.
All churches tend to deal with issues through the rumor-mill, instead of honest inquiry and ensuring that there is truth. There is not a congregation in any denomination which is free of this behaviour. Talking behind, talking about, half-truth or incomplete information. Gossiping in front of others, putting down things or people. When this happens in a congregation, energies are turned inward, and commitment to the Gospel together is divided. The congregation is divided - the result often is people turn away, just not come because they expect more of us, and we let them down. And interestingly enough, mission and commitment to the world outside our doors begin to take a back seat. Martin Luther once said, "When the gospel is preached, devils are set loose and start to roam among us."
Rev. Thomas Hall, one of my favourite preachers, asks “Could it be that preachers have lost our nerve? Our voice?” I ask “Could it be that we don’t *want* anything transformative to happen at 11 o’clock on Sunday morning? That we don’t want to be disturbed by the Gospel?” Could it be that we preachers have lost our prophetic voice in the face of self-preservation? Could it be that we as a congregation of disciples have lost the sense of mission which brings us to God and then sends us out to Love in risk and sacrifice of ourselves? Could it be that this is a message we want to contain?
If we truly follow Jesus, the stark reality is that we are called to prophecy, even if it gets us hurt. That is the message of the Gospel; Love can get us hurt. Being church can get us hurt. Our task is to work tirelessly at being the “right sort”, so that we are recognisable; our task is to work together for the building up of the whole community of the Gospel.
May it be so.
Sources:
1. The Middle Generations, Joshua 24:1-24 January 27, 2012. A sermon by Rev Christina Berry, outgoing Moderator of the Synod of Lincoln Trails
2. Speaking on Behalf of God? a sermon based on Deuteronomy 18:15-20 & Mark 1:21-28
by Rev. Richard Gehring
3. A New Teaching a sermon based on Mark 1:21-28 by Rev. Thomas Hall
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Saturday, January 21, 2012
“Gifted, Called and Chosen” January 22, 2012 Humber United Church A sermon based upon Jonah 3:2-5, 10; Mark 1:14-20
The word of God came to Jonah a second time, saying,"Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim the message that I tell you." So Jonah went to Nineveh, according to the word of God. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly large city, a three days' walk across. Jonah began to go into the city, going a day's walk. He cried out, "Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!" The people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth. When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that would be brought upon them; and did not do it.
After John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news." As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea - they were fishermen. Jesus said to them, "Follow me and I will make you fish for people." Immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in their boat mending the nets. Immediately he called them; and they left Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him.
**************************************************************************
In December of 1955, Rose Parks was arrested in Montgomery, Alabama for refusing to move to the back of a city bus. Leaders in the African-American community organized a city-wide transportation boycott, and turned to the young black pastor, Martin Luther King, Jr. as the leader. King was just 26 years old, and was torn by issues of call - to ministry, to discipleship. God called him to a vastly different ministry - and the rest is history. He became President of a new organisation called the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. He organised the great civil rights marches. He received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. His call spelled the end of his life, figuratively and literally speaking.
January is Black History month, and in particular we remember the call of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, whose birthday was January 15, 1929. Had he lived, he would have been 83 now.
Poor old Jonah – he really thought he’d got away. In Scene 1, God tells Jonah to go to Nineveh. Jonah says “no thanks” , takes a ship, and ends up as fish food.
In Scene 2, Jonah is a prisoner in the dank, dark cavern of the fish’s belly. He prays a doleful lament ("God-get-me-out-of-this-jam, selah") that is both inspiring and effective. Up to this point, Jonah’s trip has been a real “downer”. If you follow the Hebrew language, the writer uses the word for "down" to describe Jonah’s journey. Jonah goes . . .
Down to Joppa, down to the ship, down to the innards of the vessel, down into the sea, down into the belly of the fish, down to the land of death.
Then the winds of destiny change. Jonah is now “up” on the beach, having just been dropped off by Moby Dick. Can you see him? He’s still pulling seaweed from his beard when he hears that unmistakable voice.
"Oh Jonah?"
"Yes . . .?"
"It’s me again."
"Oh."
"I still need you to help me."
"Okay, okay. I’ll go where you want me to go, do what you want me to do, etc."
Okay, I said I want you to go to Nineveh.
So Jonah finally arrives at Nineveh to preach. Let’s look at Jonah’s message.
How would you feel if this happened next Sunday at church? Call to worship, hymns, and when when it comes time for the homily, I tell you “In forty days this church will collapse to the ground. May God add his blessing to these words." Well, that is exactly how this reluctant prophet addresses the people of Nineveh. "In forty days Nineveh will be destroyed. The End." The end? What do you mean, "the end?" What’s the rest of the sermon?
Jonah’s message is abrupt. These are the briefest words of prophecy in the entire Bible. We don’t actually know where this brief message came from - God says go and give the message that I will tell you - but nowhere in the entire story does God actually give that particular message to Jonah. Elsewhere in the scriptures, every time a prophet said something, it always started with “Thus saith the Lord....” Every prophet stated clearly and precisely what repentance needed to be done.
We have an interesting insight here that will shed even more light on this revival. The writer carefully uses the word, "Elohim" as the word for "God." Elohim is a generic word, the kind of word you use when you’re not too familiar with God. The people have never heard of Yahweh, but even before all the facts are in, they turn their lives upside down. To the last citizen, the people of Nineveh repent at once.
A couple of thousand years later, Jesus stands before the religious leaders - the equivalent of bishops, and Popes, and says "The people of Nineveh will rise up against this generation on judgment day and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah. But someone greater than Jonah is here, and yet you refuse to repent."
I love comparing the styles of the Gospel writers. Luke is a storyteller, and the writing is graceful. Mark sticks to the bare bones of the story, the ultimate in mininal. Mark has telescoped events that occurred over days, or even weeks, into a couple of moments.
It makes us wonder what Mark considered not important. What’s missing from the text? Andrew was Peter’s younger brother - did he just follow whatever Peter did? What about James and John, the sons of Zebedee? Were they tired of cleaning fish and mending nets? Did they want to get out and see some more of the world?
Mark just tells us a few pieces of information. Two fishermen. Jesus. "Follow me." "At once they left their nets." Repeat again: another two fishermen. Jesus. "Follow me." "At once they left their nets." In five verses Mark tells us an account of how four fishermen just drop everything and follow after Jesus on the whim of an invitation--given in less than twelve words.
Doesn’t that strike you as just a bit odd? Did they really just get up and go, just like that? No
goodbyes? Just immediately drop their plans for their lives? No counting the cost. No weighing of options?
Let’s put it into a more modern context. What would be your response if your teen came to you with this piece of news?
"Guess what? I’ve met this cool guy over the internet."
"Oh? Really? That’s nice."
"Yeah, and he’s asked me to marry him right away, and I said yes!"
"Do you know where he lives? Who his parents are? Does he go to church? Is he Christian? Does he have a job? "
"No, but we’re going to get married right away! Isn’t that great?"
Maybe Jesus wasn’t talking about ‘chronos’ time - chronology, calendar, clock, aging. The words were “The realm of God has come near.” Kairos time, or God’s time. Jonah didn’t want to be part of God’s time, he wanted to do things on his own time. God kept coming after him. Remember the words of Psalm 139 from last week? If I go out into the universe, you are there. If I go to the darkest depths, you are there? Where can I go, that you are not there?
Maybe the fishermen recognised at some deep spiritual level that this was Kairos time. Mark records Jesus using the word "kairos”. God’s time. So when he says “Follow me” he is saying “turn from your sins and embrace this good news." Kairos time means a special time- God’s time - that is, the right time, a time in which your whole life is caught up in a moment, when everything crystallizes, and everything hinges on whether you say yes or no.
I wonder if, to each of us, there comes a time that is Kairos time - a time when we say yes and trust? Martin Luther King recognised that beyond a call to ministry, God called him into an unknown future. The civil rights movement was Kairos time - God’s time.
This isn’t a story about evangelism to other people. It’s a story of invitation--to invite us to open our lives to God’s kingdom. This morning God stands among us calling out to us in kairos time. Time to respond to what God wants to do in your life. Be impulsive! Make a response that comes from deep inside you. Follow your heart, not your head. Plenty of reasons to go back to fishing and mending nets. No time, too busy, have other things to do, gotta cook, work, get the kids through school, attend my aging parent, take a class, sit on a committee. Listen to your heart, respond to God without having all the facts, without knowing, without worrying, just doing it. That’s what being called and named is about.
CALLED
We are called
to leave behind our solitary searching,
to put on that single garment of destiny -
the uniform of faithfulness -
worn by creatures great and small,
old and forgotten,
young and eager,
broken and bewildered,
spirited and set on fire:
sisters and brothers who share not race or tongue,
but whose hearts are claimed by love,
signed by a cross.
Our future is together, arm in arm,
finding healing as we heal,
knowing freedom in our forgiving.
We are the strangest travellers:
seeking no reward at trail's end,
As long as we know the joy of journeying with him.
We are called
Disciples.
We are called His.
Sources:
1. “Called and Named” January 18, 2009 Rev. Fran Ota
2. “God Wants to Save Whom?” a sermon based on Jonah 3:1-5, 10 by Rev. Thomas Hall
3. “Fishers of People” a sermon based on Mark 1:14-20 by Rev. Thomas Hall
4. Poem by Timothy Haut, Deep River, Connecticut. January 18, 2009.
After John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news." As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea - they were fishermen. Jesus said to them, "Follow me and I will make you fish for people." Immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in their boat mending the nets. Immediately he called them; and they left Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him.
**************************************************************************
In December of 1955, Rose Parks was arrested in Montgomery, Alabama for refusing to move to the back of a city bus. Leaders in the African-American community organized a city-wide transportation boycott, and turned to the young black pastor, Martin Luther King, Jr. as the leader. King was just 26 years old, and was torn by issues of call - to ministry, to discipleship. God called him to a vastly different ministry - and the rest is history. He became President of a new organisation called the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. He organised the great civil rights marches. He received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. His call spelled the end of his life, figuratively and literally speaking.
January is Black History month, and in particular we remember the call of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, whose birthday was January 15, 1929. Had he lived, he would have been 83 now.
Poor old Jonah – he really thought he’d got away. In Scene 1, God tells Jonah to go to Nineveh. Jonah says “no thanks” , takes a ship, and ends up as fish food.
In Scene 2, Jonah is a prisoner in the dank, dark cavern of the fish’s belly. He prays a doleful lament ("God-get-me-out-of-this-jam, selah") that is both inspiring and effective. Up to this point, Jonah’s trip has been a real “downer”. If you follow the Hebrew language, the writer uses the word for "down" to describe Jonah’s journey. Jonah goes . . .
Down to Joppa, down to the ship, down to the innards of the vessel, down into the sea, down into the belly of the fish, down to the land of death.
Then the winds of destiny change. Jonah is now “up” on the beach, having just been dropped off by Moby Dick. Can you see him? He’s still pulling seaweed from his beard when he hears that unmistakable voice.
"Oh Jonah?"
"Yes . . .?"
"It’s me again."
"Oh."
"I still need you to help me."
"Okay, okay. I’ll go where you want me to go, do what you want me to do, etc."
Okay, I said I want you to go to Nineveh.
So Jonah finally arrives at Nineveh to preach. Let’s look at Jonah’s message.
How would you feel if this happened next Sunday at church? Call to worship, hymns, and when when it comes time for the homily, I tell you “In forty days this church will collapse to the ground. May God add his blessing to these words." Well, that is exactly how this reluctant prophet addresses the people of Nineveh. "In forty days Nineveh will be destroyed. The End." The end? What do you mean, "the end?" What’s the rest of the sermon?
Jonah’s message is abrupt. These are the briefest words of prophecy in the entire Bible. We don’t actually know where this brief message came from - God says go and give the message that I will tell you - but nowhere in the entire story does God actually give that particular message to Jonah. Elsewhere in the scriptures, every time a prophet said something, it always started with “Thus saith the Lord....” Every prophet stated clearly and precisely what repentance needed to be done.
We have an interesting insight here that will shed even more light on this revival. The writer carefully uses the word, "Elohim" as the word for "God." Elohim is a generic word, the kind of word you use when you’re not too familiar with God. The people have never heard of Yahweh, but even before all the facts are in, they turn their lives upside down. To the last citizen, the people of Nineveh repent at once.
A couple of thousand years later, Jesus stands before the religious leaders - the equivalent of bishops, and Popes, and says "The people of Nineveh will rise up against this generation on judgment day and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah. But someone greater than Jonah is here, and yet you refuse to repent."
I love comparing the styles of the Gospel writers. Luke is a storyteller, and the writing is graceful. Mark sticks to the bare bones of the story, the ultimate in mininal. Mark has telescoped events that occurred over days, or even weeks, into a couple of moments.
It makes us wonder what Mark considered not important. What’s missing from the text? Andrew was Peter’s younger brother - did he just follow whatever Peter did? What about James and John, the sons of Zebedee? Were they tired of cleaning fish and mending nets? Did they want to get out and see some more of the world?
Mark just tells us a few pieces of information. Two fishermen. Jesus. "Follow me." "At once they left their nets." Repeat again: another two fishermen. Jesus. "Follow me." "At once they left their nets." In five verses Mark tells us an account of how four fishermen just drop everything and follow after Jesus on the whim of an invitation--given in less than twelve words.
Doesn’t that strike you as just a bit odd? Did they really just get up and go, just like that? No
goodbyes? Just immediately drop their plans for their lives? No counting the cost. No weighing of options?
Let’s put it into a more modern context. What would be your response if your teen came to you with this piece of news?
"Guess what? I’ve met this cool guy over the internet."
"Oh? Really? That’s nice."
"Yeah, and he’s asked me to marry him right away, and I said yes!"
"Do you know where he lives? Who his parents are? Does he go to church? Is he Christian? Does he have a job? "
"No, but we’re going to get married right away! Isn’t that great?"
Maybe Jesus wasn’t talking about ‘chronos’ time - chronology, calendar, clock, aging. The words were “The realm of God has come near.” Kairos time, or God’s time. Jonah didn’t want to be part of God’s time, he wanted to do things on his own time. God kept coming after him. Remember the words of Psalm 139 from last week? If I go out into the universe, you are there. If I go to the darkest depths, you are there? Where can I go, that you are not there?
Maybe the fishermen recognised at some deep spiritual level that this was Kairos time. Mark records Jesus using the word "kairos”. God’s time. So when he says “Follow me” he is saying “turn from your sins and embrace this good news." Kairos time means a special time- God’s time - that is, the right time, a time in which your whole life is caught up in a moment, when everything crystallizes, and everything hinges on whether you say yes or no.
I wonder if, to each of us, there comes a time that is Kairos time - a time when we say yes and trust? Martin Luther King recognised that beyond a call to ministry, God called him into an unknown future. The civil rights movement was Kairos time - God’s time.
This isn’t a story about evangelism to other people. It’s a story of invitation--to invite us to open our lives to God’s kingdom. This morning God stands among us calling out to us in kairos time. Time to respond to what God wants to do in your life. Be impulsive! Make a response that comes from deep inside you. Follow your heart, not your head. Plenty of reasons to go back to fishing and mending nets. No time, too busy, have other things to do, gotta cook, work, get the kids through school, attend my aging parent, take a class, sit on a committee. Listen to your heart, respond to God without having all the facts, without knowing, without worrying, just doing it. That’s what being called and named is about.
CALLED
We are called
to leave behind our solitary searching,
to put on that single garment of destiny -
the uniform of faithfulness -
worn by creatures great and small,
old and forgotten,
young and eager,
broken and bewildered,
spirited and set on fire:
sisters and brothers who share not race or tongue,
but whose hearts are claimed by love,
signed by a cross.
Our future is together, arm in arm,
finding healing as we heal,
knowing freedom in our forgiving.
We are the strangest travellers:
seeking no reward at trail's end,
As long as we know the joy of journeying with him.
We are called
Disciples.
We are called His.
Sources:
1. “Called and Named” January 18, 2009 Rev. Fran Ota
2. “God Wants to Save Whom?” a sermon based on Jonah 3:1-5, 10 by Rev. Thomas Hall
3. “Fishers of People” a sermon based on Mark 1:14-20 by Rev. Thomas Hall
4. Poem by Timothy Haut, Deep River, Connecticut. January 18, 2009.
Saturday, January 7, 2012
“Getting to the Front of the Stable” Matthew 1:18-25 Humber United Church, Corner Brook, NL January 8, 2012
A Sunday School was putting on a Christmas pageant which included the story of Mary and Joseph coming to the inn. One boy wanted so very much to be Joseph, but when the parts were handed out, a boy he didn’t like was given that part, and he was assigned to be the inn-keeper instead. He was pretty upset about this but he didn’t say anything to the director.
During all the rehearsals he thought what he might do the night of performance to get even with this rival who got to be Joseph. Finally, the night of the performance, Mary and Joseph came walking across the stage. They knocked on the door of the inn, and the inn-keeper opened the door and asked them gruffly what they wanted.
Joseph answered, "We’d like to have a room for the night." Suddenly the inn-keeper threw the door open wide and said, "Great, come on in and I’ll give you the best room in the house!"
For a few seconds poor little Joseph didn’t know what to do. Thinking quickly on his feet, he looked inside the door past the inn-keeper then said, "No wife of mine is going to stay in a dump like this. Come on, Mary, let’s go to the barn." -And once again the play was back on track!
In all the Christmas pageants performed, Joseph doesn’t get a starring role, but he is far more important than we have ever made him. Think about what he did! Everyone praises the courage of Mary, but who praises the courage of Joseph? Here is a man of integrity who always obeyed religious law, who is engaged to a young girl - he finds out she is pregnant not by him. She says there was no other man, but the Holy Spirit which created the child.
By law he has two choices: he can go through a kind of “divorce”, severing his promise of marriage. Mary and her family would be forced to leave the village go somewhere else, public scrutiny would be too much; by law he could call for her to be stoned to death for adultery.
Yet here is a man who hears angels - and angel who whispers to him to take Mary as his wife, and trust God. So in the English translation, we are told he marries Mary even though she is a ‘virgin’.
However, In the Hebrew Scriptures, the Hebrew meaning of the word used is “young woman”. When the Gospels were written, they were first written in Hebrew - so for Joseph, Mary would not necessarily have been a technical virgin, just a young woman. The word is ‘alma’. In Isaiah 7:14, it says, “a young woman shall conceive and give birth to a child.”
When the Gospels were translated from Hebrew to Greek, there was no corresponding word - and the translator chose the Greek word meaning someone who has not been sexually active.
Yet there was a commitment and a promise between Joseph and Mary. Mary’s father was required to pay a dowry; even though they were technically not married, all the same rules applied. If Joseph should die, she would be called a widow. If she died, he would be called a widower. If the engagement broke up, it would be called a divorce. During the time they were engaged, they were called husband and wife. While they were engaged, they were both to be virgins. The engagement was to last one year and then they were to be married.
In the biblical text, we are told, “Joseph was a just man.” That means that Joseph was a good man, a kind man, an honorable man. The Bible uses the word, “righteous.” Joseph was a righteous man. Then we come to this beautiful line, “Joseph was unwilling to put her to shame.” That line says mountains to us about Joseph. He didn’t want to hurt Mary. He didn’t want to destroy her. He was not punitive. He was not revengeful. He wasn’t out for a pound of her flesh. Instead, Joseph had these feelings of grace towards her, and so he resolved to divorce her quietly. Not tell her parents. Not tell his parents. Not tell the rabbi. Not to tell the court so he could get his money back. So the first story about the birth of Jesus is a story of compassion, a story of grace, a story of a man who had been enormously violated by a pregnant woman and he vowed not to punish her. He had been deeply violated, yet he still cared for her and took care of her.
But the story continues. An angel or divine messenger appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Mary is pregnant by the Spirit of God. The Spirit hovered over her and she is now pregnant. You are to marry her and name the child Jesus for he will save the people from their sins. Call him Immanuel because God is always with us.” And so Joseph remained with Mary because he believed the dream and the message of the angel.
Notice that Joseph never says a word, in the few times he is mentioned in the birth narratives. He listens, he takes actions, but he never speaks. We might assume his words are recorded, because we can imagine the conversations he had with Mary, and the Angel Gabriel. He can “hear” him talking to the innkeeper. We can visualize him teaching Jesus about carpentry…but then he fades from the scene. It is widely thought that Joseph was much older than Mary, which would be consistent with cultural practices. When Jesus finally begins ministry, Mary appears alone - the assumption is that Joseph has died and Mary is a widow.
I think of Joseph as a man of integrity. He was a carpenter - not quite untouchable, but close to the lowest of the low. Yet he was also fluent in several languages - he would have to be, in order to work in the town of Sepphoris near Nazareth, where Greek, Roman and many other cultures rubbed elbows. He would also have been able to read. He seems like a man who plans carefully. When he was secure enough, he began to think about marriage, and approached Mary’s parents. Then he discovered that his bride-to-be was pregnant. As a man of integrity he wanted to do the right thing, in the right way. He considered divorcing Mary when he learned of her pregnancy, but wanted to do so without calling attention to the reason. Instead, he risks being questioned about Mary’s pregnancy and marries her. In those days, a marriage contract was worked out between families, and the engaged couple continued to live with their parents till their wedding. The townspeople could well have thought Mary and Joseph didn’t wait till their wedding. Joseph protected their reputation by moving up the wedding date, and the Roman census took them far away from the town’s questioning eyes.
Although Joseph came from the royal lineage of King David (thanks to the Gospel genealogy), we can easily picture him as a humble man. The brief portrait of him in Scripture suggests he was a quiet, unobtrusive man, available when needed, willing to endure hardship and disappointment. Looking forward to fathering his own child, his first was a child not his own. He accepted the humbling circumstances surrounding Jesus’ birth, and he trusted God as much as Mary did.
Instead of being indignant, Joseph accepted this child as his own. Joseph accepted the revealed will of God. He followed the instructions—journeying from Nazareth to Bethlehem, then to Egypt, then back to Nazareth. Instead of putting Mary aside, or rejecting the child, Joseph received the child as a gift from God.
I think it’s high time we take Joseph out from the back of the creche and put him up front, with Mary.
Ann Weems, a Presbyterian elder and lecturer, wrote this poem, called “Getting to the Front of the Stable” (read).
**Note: because of copyright issues, it isn't possible to include the poem here.
Sources:
1. “Getting to the Front of the Stable”, a sermon by Rev. Fran Ota, Christmas 2005.
2. “Joseph and the Virgin Birth”, a sermon by Rev. Edward F. Markquart, Grace Lutheran Church, Seattle, WA.
3. “Joseph—Father of Jesus” a sermon by Pastor Bob Leroe, Cliftondale Congregational Church, Saugus, Massachusetts
4. “Getting to the Front of the Stable”, a poem by Ann Weems. From “Kneeling in Bethlehem”. The Westminster Press, Philadelphia. 1987.
During all the rehearsals he thought what he might do the night of performance to get even with this rival who got to be Joseph. Finally, the night of the performance, Mary and Joseph came walking across the stage. They knocked on the door of the inn, and the inn-keeper opened the door and asked them gruffly what they wanted.
Joseph answered, "We’d like to have a room for the night." Suddenly the inn-keeper threw the door open wide and said, "Great, come on in and I’ll give you the best room in the house!"
For a few seconds poor little Joseph didn’t know what to do. Thinking quickly on his feet, he looked inside the door past the inn-keeper then said, "No wife of mine is going to stay in a dump like this. Come on, Mary, let’s go to the barn." -And once again the play was back on track!
In all the Christmas pageants performed, Joseph doesn’t get a starring role, but he is far more important than we have ever made him. Think about what he did! Everyone praises the courage of Mary, but who praises the courage of Joseph? Here is a man of integrity who always obeyed religious law, who is engaged to a young girl - he finds out she is pregnant not by him. She says there was no other man, but the Holy Spirit which created the child.
By law he has two choices: he can go through a kind of “divorce”, severing his promise of marriage. Mary and her family would be forced to leave the village go somewhere else, public scrutiny would be too much; by law he could call for her to be stoned to death for adultery.
Yet here is a man who hears angels - and angel who whispers to him to take Mary as his wife, and trust God. So in the English translation, we are told he marries Mary even though she is a ‘virgin’.
However, In the Hebrew Scriptures, the Hebrew meaning of the word used is “young woman”. When the Gospels were written, they were first written in Hebrew - so for Joseph, Mary would not necessarily have been a technical virgin, just a young woman. The word is ‘alma’. In Isaiah 7:14, it says, “a young woman shall conceive and give birth to a child.”
When the Gospels were translated from Hebrew to Greek, there was no corresponding word - and the translator chose the Greek word meaning someone who has not been sexually active.
Yet there was a commitment and a promise between Joseph and Mary. Mary’s father was required to pay a dowry; even though they were technically not married, all the same rules applied. If Joseph should die, she would be called a widow. If she died, he would be called a widower. If the engagement broke up, it would be called a divorce. During the time they were engaged, they were called husband and wife. While they were engaged, they were both to be virgins. The engagement was to last one year and then they were to be married.
In the biblical text, we are told, “Joseph was a just man.” That means that Joseph was a good man, a kind man, an honorable man. The Bible uses the word, “righteous.” Joseph was a righteous man. Then we come to this beautiful line, “Joseph was unwilling to put her to shame.” That line says mountains to us about Joseph. He didn’t want to hurt Mary. He didn’t want to destroy her. He was not punitive. He was not revengeful. He wasn’t out for a pound of her flesh. Instead, Joseph had these feelings of grace towards her, and so he resolved to divorce her quietly. Not tell her parents. Not tell his parents. Not tell the rabbi. Not to tell the court so he could get his money back. So the first story about the birth of Jesus is a story of compassion, a story of grace, a story of a man who had been enormously violated by a pregnant woman and he vowed not to punish her. He had been deeply violated, yet he still cared for her and took care of her.
But the story continues. An angel or divine messenger appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Mary is pregnant by the Spirit of God. The Spirit hovered over her and she is now pregnant. You are to marry her and name the child Jesus for he will save the people from their sins. Call him Immanuel because God is always with us.” And so Joseph remained with Mary because he believed the dream and the message of the angel.
Notice that Joseph never says a word, in the few times he is mentioned in the birth narratives. He listens, he takes actions, but he never speaks. We might assume his words are recorded, because we can imagine the conversations he had with Mary, and the Angel Gabriel. He can “hear” him talking to the innkeeper. We can visualize him teaching Jesus about carpentry…but then he fades from the scene. It is widely thought that Joseph was much older than Mary, which would be consistent with cultural practices. When Jesus finally begins ministry, Mary appears alone - the assumption is that Joseph has died and Mary is a widow.
I think of Joseph as a man of integrity. He was a carpenter - not quite untouchable, but close to the lowest of the low. Yet he was also fluent in several languages - he would have to be, in order to work in the town of Sepphoris near Nazareth, where Greek, Roman and many other cultures rubbed elbows. He would also have been able to read. He seems like a man who plans carefully. When he was secure enough, he began to think about marriage, and approached Mary’s parents. Then he discovered that his bride-to-be was pregnant. As a man of integrity he wanted to do the right thing, in the right way. He considered divorcing Mary when he learned of her pregnancy, but wanted to do so without calling attention to the reason. Instead, he risks being questioned about Mary’s pregnancy and marries her. In those days, a marriage contract was worked out between families, and the engaged couple continued to live with their parents till their wedding. The townspeople could well have thought Mary and Joseph didn’t wait till their wedding. Joseph protected their reputation by moving up the wedding date, and the Roman census took them far away from the town’s questioning eyes.
Although Joseph came from the royal lineage of King David (thanks to the Gospel genealogy), we can easily picture him as a humble man. The brief portrait of him in Scripture suggests he was a quiet, unobtrusive man, available when needed, willing to endure hardship and disappointment. Looking forward to fathering his own child, his first was a child not his own. He accepted the humbling circumstances surrounding Jesus’ birth, and he trusted God as much as Mary did.
Instead of being indignant, Joseph accepted this child as his own. Joseph accepted the revealed will of God. He followed the instructions—journeying from Nazareth to Bethlehem, then to Egypt, then back to Nazareth. Instead of putting Mary aside, or rejecting the child, Joseph received the child as a gift from God.
I think it’s high time we take Joseph out from the back of the creche and put him up front, with Mary.
Ann Weems, a Presbyterian elder and lecturer, wrote this poem, called “Getting to the Front of the Stable” (read).
**Note: because of copyright issues, it isn't possible to include the poem here.
Sources:
1. “Getting to the Front of the Stable”, a sermon by Rev. Fran Ota, Christmas 2005.
2. “Joseph and the Virgin Birth”, a sermon by Rev. Edward F. Markquart, Grace Lutheran Church, Seattle, WA.
3. “Joseph—Father of Jesus” a sermon by Pastor Bob Leroe, Cliftondale Congregational Church, Saugus, Massachusetts
4. “Getting to the Front of the Stable”, a poem by Ann Weems. From “Kneeling in Bethlehem”. The Westminster Press, Philadelphia. 1987.
Saturday, December 31, 2011
The Seasons of Our Spirits A Sermon based on Ecclesiastes 3:1-13 January 1, 2012 Humber United Church
Ecclesiastes 3
There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:
a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace. What do workers gain from their toil? I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. That each of them may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God.
*************************************************************************
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRg9NkIdjVs
The book of Ecclesiastes is part of a genre of writing in the Hebrew Scripture known as Wisdom Literature. Job, Proverbs, Psalms are other examples. This particular passage is most often read at funerals, but the more I hear it the more I wonder if we are hearing it with the right pair of ears. We tend to hear it as if everything is preceded by “God has ordained........”, as if everything is out of our hands - and I am not convinced that’s what the passage means.
The question I have, always, is “Is this something God will do without us? Or is this something God will do together with us, when we have the will to do it.” Does planting just happen by itself, and harvesting? Or is it something we have to work at? Does loving and hating happen by itself?
Does peace just happen? Is it just absence of violence? Or is it a choice? I think peace will only happen when people have such a collective desire for war to be ended that there will be no other option, and there will be the will to make it happen. It is not that the differences between nations cannot be overcome - it is that we make choices, and get so attached to believing in the rightness of our way, that we cannot see beyond those things to a different way of being and doing.
It seems to me that this passage is a perfect description of the human condition. Yes, for each of us there is a time to be born and a time to die - and there are times between birth and death where we have a life to live; when there is death we mourn and where there is new life we celebrate. But we also make choices in the life we are given. Remember the words from Deuteronomy - “This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live.” Choose life!
So re-read Ecclesiastes now - but read it this way -
*we* choose the time to plant and a time to uproot,
*we* choose a time to kill and a time to heal,
*we* choose to tear down or to build up
*we* choose to weep and to laugh,
*we* choose to search and to give up
*we* choose to embrace and to refrain from embracing
*we* choose to keep or to throw away,
*we* choose to love or to hate
*we* choose to be silent or to speak
*we* choose war, and *we* choose peace
Between birth and death, our life is a journey. We are travelling a road, whether we like it or not. At Christmas God brought us life and light, and through the Christmas season and Epiphany, the light shines on the road. Every Christmas, God sets before us life and death, blessings and curses - but the *choices* are ours.
As I wrote this I had in the back of my mind the phrase “history repeats itself”, and a kind of niggling memory that it has its roots in Ecclesiastes. Sure enough, in the very opening passage of the book, we read Ecclesiastes 1:9-11
“What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. Is there anything of which one can say, ‘Look! This is something new?’ It was here already, long ago; it was here before our time. No one remembers the former generations, and even those yet to come will not be remembered by those who come after them.”
In Viet Nam I saw enough of war to believe that if we spent as much time and effort on making peace as we do on making war, we would have had real peace a long time ago. As I watch the news, and people who have become so obsessed by power and control that they will crush others, it becomes almost too much to bear. It seems as if people never change, and the possibility for change is not there.
And yet, the Revelation of John tells us that God creates a new thing, God can do something new, and will bring about a time when there is no more suffering or sorrow, no more pain, only peace and fulfillment for humanity. The question for me is, again, does God it alone? Or are we the ones who make choices to work for those things, with God’s help. As human beings there are lessons we need to learn, and choices which only we can make. As long as we choose hatred, or tearing down, we will not find love, or the building up. The new heavens and the new earth cannot come, so long as we make the wrong choices.
The birth of Jesus, and the life and teaching of Jesus, were a statement that it *is* possible to choose love over hate; it *is* possible to choose peace instead of war; it *is* possible to speak out instead of choosing to remain silent. So in this time, as we step off into a new year, another season in the life of faith, we have to ask what it means to us, individually and as a congregation. Do we take Christmas seriously? Do we take the birth, life and death of Jesus seriously? If we do, we have to believe that life and death, blessings and curses - are ours to choose - and that God wants us to make the right choices - but make no mistake, the choices *are* ours. And we want to make sure that the generations which follow will remember those lessons, instead of repeating the cycle, as we have been doing. Doing nothing is also a choice we make. Trying to hang on to things and keep them from moving is a choice - and with every choice there are consequences.
In his teachings, the Dalai Lama talks about basic steps for everyday living. Here is a smapling of them - what would happen if we all worked at these things?
Great love and great achievements involve great risk.
When you lose, don't lose the lesson.
Follow the three R’s: Respect for self. Respect for others. Responsibility for all your actions.
Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.
Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.
When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.
Open your arms to change, but don't let go of your values.
Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.
Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you'll be able to enjoy it a second time.
Share your knowledge. It's a way to achieve immortality.
Be gentle with the earth.
Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon.
There is no other person on this planet exactly like you.
“I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Choose life, so that you and your children may live.”
May it be so.
There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:
a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace. What do workers gain from their toil? I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. That each of them may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God.
*************************************************************************
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRg9NkIdjVs
The book of Ecclesiastes is part of a genre of writing in the Hebrew Scripture known as Wisdom Literature. Job, Proverbs, Psalms are other examples. This particular passage is most often read at funerals, but the more I hear it the more I wonder if we are hearing it with the right pair of ears. We tend to hear it as if everything is preceded by “God has ordained........”, as if everything is out of our hands - and I am not convinced that’s what the passage means.
The question I have, always, is “Is this something God will do without us? Or is this something God will do together with us, when we have the will to do it.” Does planting just happen by itself, and harvesting? Or is it something we have to work at? Does loving and hating happen by itself?
Does peace just happen? Is it just absence of violence? Or is it a choice? I think peace will only happen when people have such a collective desire for war to be ended that there will be no other option, and there will be the will to make it happen. It is not that the differences between nations cannot be overcome - it is that we make choices, and get so attached to believing in the rightness of our way, that we cannot see beyond those things to a different way of being and doing.
It seems to me that this passage is a perfect description of the human condition. Yes, for each of us there is a time to be born and a time to die - and there are times between birth and death where we have a life to live; when there is death we mourn and where there is new life we celebrate. But we also make choices in the life we are given. Remember the words from Deuteronomy - “This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live.” Choose life!
So re-read Ecclesiastes now - but read it this way -
*we* choose the time to plant and a time to uproot,
*we* choose a time to kill and a time to heal,
*we* choose to tear down or to build up
*we* choose to weep and to laugh,
*we* choose to search and to give up
*we* choose to embrace and to refrain from embracing
*we* choose to keep or to throw away,
*we* choose to love or to hate
*we* choose to be silent or to speak
*we* choose war, and *we* choose peace
Between birth and death, our life is a journey. We are travelling a road, whether we like it or not. At Christmas God brought us life and light, and through the Christmas season and Epiphany, the light shines on the road. Every Christmas, God sets before us life and death, blessings and curses - but the *choices* are ours.
As I wrote this I had in the back of my mind the phrase “history repeats itself”, and a kind of niggling memory that it has its roots in Ecclesiastes. Sure enough, in the very opening passage of the book, we read Ecclesiastes 1:9-11
“What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. Is there anything of which one can say, ‘Look! This is something new?’ It was here already, long ago; it was here before our time. No one remembers the former generations, and even those yet to come will not be remembered by those who come after them.”
In Viet Nam I saw enough of war to believe that if we spent as much time and effort on making peace as we do on making war, we would have had real peace a long time ago. As I watch the news, and people who have become so obsessed by power and control that they will crush others, it becomes almost too much to bear. It seems as if people never change, and the possibility for change is not there.
And yet, the Revelation of John tells us that God creates a new thing, God can do something new, and will bring about a time when there is no more suffering or sorrow, no more pain, only peace and fulfillment for humanity. The question for me is, again, does God it alone? Or are we the ones who make choices to work for those things, with God’s help. As human beings there are lessons we need to learn, and choices which only we can make. As long as we choose hatred, or tearing down, we will not find love, or the building up. The new heavens and the new earth cannot come, so long as we make the wrong choices.
The birth of Jesus, and the life and teaching of Jesus, were a statement that it *is* possible to choose love over hate; it *is* possible to choose peace instead of war; it *is* possible to speak out instead of choosing to remain silent. So in this time, as we step off into a new year, another season in the life of faith, we have to ask what it means to us, individually and as a congregation. Do we take Christmas seriously? Do we take the birth, life and death of Jesus seriously? If we do, we have to believe that life and death, blessings and curses - are ours to choose - and that God wants us to make the right choices - but make no mistake, the choices *are* ours. And we want to make sure that the generations which follow will remember those lessons, instead of repeating the cycle, as we have been doing. Doing nothing is also a choice we make. Trying to hang on to things and keep them from moving is a choice - and with every choice there are consequences.
In his teachings, the Dalai Lama talks about basic steps for everyday living. Here is a smapling of them - what would happen if we all worked at these things?
Great love and great achievements involve great risk.
When you lose, don't lose the lesson.
Follow the three R’s: Respect for self. Respect for others. Responsibility for all your actions.
Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.
Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.
When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.
Open your arms to change, but don't let go of your values.
Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.
Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you'll be able to enjoy it a second time.
Share your knowledge. It's a way to achieve immortality.
Be gentle with the earth.
Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon.
There is no other person on this planet exactly like you.
“I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Choose life, so that you and your children may live.”
May it be so.
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Angels and Stars a sermon based on Luke 1:26-38 Fourth Sunday of Advent Humber United Church
In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary. He came to her and said, "Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you." She was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Now, you will conceive and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end." Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I am a virgin?" The angel said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. Now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God." Then Mary said, "Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word." Then the angel departed from her.
*************************************************************************
How many people here believe in angels? There are, of course, many kinds of angels. Have you noticed that there is a lot of interest in angels today? There is some question as to whether or not belief in angels is a sign of spiritual confusion, or spiritual awakening. Believing in angels is not part of the articles of belief of Christianity. Paul’s letter to the Hebrews in the New Testament had to contend with the beliefs of a cult devoted to angels as the superior divine beings.
Angels are mentioned several times in the Christmas narratives of Luke and Matthew - an angel coming to Zechariah, to Mary, to Joseph - and then again when Jesus is about two years old and Joseph takes them into Egypt. Obviously this was important enough to mention.
Angels are depicted as messengers of God in the Hebrew Scriptures, the Bible, and the Quran. Both the Hebrew and Greek words originally mean messenger; they can refer to a human messenger such as a prophet or priest, or to a supernatural messenger, the "Mal'akh YHWH," who is either a messenger from God, an aspect of God (such as the Logos), or God as the messenger.
There are also the cherubim and seraphim (the chayot in Ezekiel's vision and the Seraphim of Isaiah). However, while cherubim and seraphim have wings in the Bible, no angel is mentioned as having wings.
The original word from which all the others come is “angello” which means "to bear a message, announce, bring news of". The Greek philosopher Philo identifies the angel as the immaterial voice of God. According to Aristotle, just as there is a First Mover, God, so, too, must there be spiritual secondary movers
The Bible uses the terms “mal'akh Elohim; messenger of God”, “mal'akh YHWH; messenger of the Lord”.
Gabriel (translation: the strength of God), performs acts of justice and power
Raphael (translation: God Heals), God's healing force
Uriel (translation: God is my light), leads us to destiny
Satan (translation: the adversary), brings people's sins before them in the heavenly court
Chayot HaKodesh (translation: living beings)
I have never seen an angel, to the best of my knowledge, although I believe I have encountered one. What I do know about angels is the mention in Scripture, pictures and drawings, literary depictions of angels, movies. Up until recently, there was little talk about angels, except at Christmas where they suddenly proliferate in scripture and hymn and Christmas card art. I really do not like the way angels are depicted.
C.S. Lewis, who wrote “The Chronicles of Narnia”, was one of the foremost Christian authors, and critics of the church. Lewis said that angels, along with much of Christian thought and symbol have been made sweet and unoffensive, soft and comfortable, so we don’t have to really grapple with what they actually were.
I believe angels are messengers of God, not Santa's elves here to help us attain our wishes. Nor do I believe they are around to protect us or watch over us somehow. I believe angels are messengers of God who bring both the mystery and meaning of God's power, presence, and purpose into the actuality and reality of our limited dimension of existence and being. Angels bring messages of great things to come - they are not soft, fluffy and white. They mean there is something of earth-shattering change about to happen.
Then there’s the star. Whatever it was - a comet, or an exploding or imploding body deep in space, it was seen as a portent of something great. We don’t know for sure if it was even there. Biblical scholarship tells us that if there were Magi, they came along a couple of years later, when Jesus and is family were living in Egypt, waiting for Herod to die. Yet in our Christmas narrative the star has been put in there right with the angels. Well, the star wasn’t an angel - but it was certainly something cosmic. The event of whatever caused it was violent and cosmic. It was not a sweetly shining, twinkling star that just kind of sat there serenely every night. This was another event big enough to make people afraid - and I am sure some of the more superstitious people were. The star - a cosmic ball of gas - or a comet of ice and rock - was a huge event which caused a whole number of people to leave their homes and their comforts, and go looking, no matter how long it took.
There is an old saying, "After the ecstasy is the dishes." What happened afterwards seemed so ordinary. There was a birth. There was a child to be raised. There was cleaning and meals and washing, and all the needs of life and work. Angels are not mentioned much after the shepherds returned to the fields. They went back to being shepherds; back in their ordinary fields. The magi had to go back home, back to their ordinary lives. And It was into such a world of ordinary needs and deeds that the most extraordinary event occurred. Jesus was born into an ordinary world, ate the same ordinary food as everyone else around him - yet the birth was important enough that it was announced by a cosmic event of some kind, and a being which started off saying “Don’t be afraid.”
So let’s put the angels and the stars back into Christmas. Because that’s how life is, isn’t it? There are these great cosmic events, and then we go back to being ordinary people living in an ordinary world. Let’s see the angels for exactly what they were - beings which commanded fear at the sight of them - which brought messages of life-changing events.. Let’s look again at what we call a star - a violent and frightening cosmic event in the universe which served as a portent of a birth which would change the lives of people everywhere. Amen.
Sources:
1. Angels and Stars - a sermon by Rev. Fran Ota December 2005
2. The Messenger, the Mystery, and the Meaning by DG Bradley, 1996.
*************************************************************************
How many people here believe in angels? There are, of course, many kinds of angels. Have you noticed that there is a lot of interest in angels today? There is some question as to whether or not belief in angels is a sign of spiritual confusion, or spiritual awakening. Believing in angels is not part of the articles of belief of Christianity. Paul’s letter to the Hebrews in the New Testament had to contend with the beliefs of a cult devoted to angels as the superior divine beings.
Angels are mentioned several times in the Christmas narratives of Luke and Matthew - an angel coming to Zechariah, to Mary, to Joseph - and then again when Jesus is about two years old and Joseph takes them into Egypt. Obviously this was important enough to mention.
Angels are depicted as messengers of God in the Hebrew Scriptures, the Bible, and the Quran. Both the Hebrew and Greek words originally mean messenger; they can refer to a human messenger such as a prophet or priest, or to a supernatural messenger, the "Mal'akh YHWH," who is either a messenger from God, an aspect of God (such as the Logos), or God as the messenger.
There are also the cherubim and seraphim (the chayot in Ezekiel's vision and the Seraphim of Isaiah). However, while cherubim and seraphim have wings in the Bible, no angel is mentioned as having wings.
The original word from which all the others come is “angello” which means "to bear a message, announce, bring news of". The Greek philosopher Philo identifies the angel as the immaterial voice of God. According to Aristotle, just as there is a First Mover, God, so, too, must there be spiritual secondary movers
The Bible uses the terms “mal'akh Elohim; messenger of God”, “mal'akh YHWH; messenger of the Lord”.
Gabriel (translation: the strength of God), performs acts of justice and power
Raphael (translation: God Heals), God's healing force
Uriel (translation: God is my light), leads us to destiny
Satan (translation: the adversary), brings people's sins before them in the heavenly court
Chayot HaKodesh (translation: living beings)
I have never seen an angel, to the best of my knowledge, although I believe I have encountered one. What I do know about angels is the mention in Scripture, pictures and drawings, literary depictions of angels, movies. Up until recently, there was little talk about angels, except at Christmas where they suddenly proliferate in scripture and hymn and Christmas card art. I really do not like the way angels are depicted.
C.S. Lewis, who wrote “The Chronicles of Narnia”, was one of the foremost Christian authors, and critics of the church. Lewis said that angels, along with much of Christian thought and symbol have been made sweet and unoffensive, soft and comfortable, so we don’t have to really grapple with what they actually were.
I believe angels are messengers of God, not Santa's elves here to help us attain our wishes. Nor do I believe they are around to protect us or watch over us somehow. I believe angels are messengers of God who bring both the mystery and meaning of God's power, presence, and purpose into the actuality and reality of our limited dimension of existence and being. Angels bring messages of great things to come - they are not soft, fluffy and white. They mean there is something of earth-shattering change about to happen.
Then there’s the star. Whatever it was - a comet, or an exploding or imploding body deep in space, it was seen as a portent of something great. We don’t know for sure if it was even there. Biblical scholarship tells us that if there were Magi, they came along a couple of years later, when Jesus and is family were living in Egypt, waiting for Herod to die. Yet in our Christmas narrative the star has been put in there right with the angels. Well, the star wasn’t an angel - but it was certainly something cosmic. The event of whatever caused it was violent and cosmic. It was not a sweetly shining, twinkling star that just kind of sat there serenely every night. This was another event big enough to make people afraid - and I am sure some of the more superstitious people were. The star - a cosmic ball of gas - or a comet of ice and rock - was a huge event which caused a whole number of people to leave their homes and their comforts, and go looking, no matter how long it took.
There is an old saying, "After the ecstasy is the dishes." What happened afterwards seemed so ordinary. There was a birth. There was a child to be raised. There was cleaning and meals and washing, and all the needs of life and work. Angels are not mentioned much after the shepherds returned to the fields. They went back to being shepherds; back in their ordinary fields. The magi had to go back home, back to their ordinary lives. And It was into such a world of ordinary needs and deeds that the most extraordinary event occurred. Jesus was born into an ordinary world, ate the same ordinary food as everyone else around him - yet the birth was important enough that it was announced by a cosmic event of some kind, and a being which started off saying “Don’t be afraid.”
So let’s put the angels and the stars back into Christmas. Because that’s how life is, isn’t it? There are these great cosmic events, and then we go back to being ordinary people living in an ordinary world. Let’s see the angels for exactly what they were - beings which commanded fear at the sight of them - which brought messages of life-changing events.. Let’s look again at what we call a star - a violent and frightening cosmic event in the universe which served as a portent of a birth which would change the lives of people everywhere. Amen.
Sources:
1. Angels and Stars - a sermon by Rev. Fran Ota December 2005
2. The Messenger, the Mystery, and the Meaning by DG Bradley, 1996.
Saturday, December 10, 2011
“The Words of the Prophets” December 11, 2011 Third Sunday of Advent Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11; Luke 1:47-55
The spirit of God is upon me, because God has anointed me, and sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to provide for those who mourn in Zion-- to give them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit.
For I the Lord love justice, I hate robbery and wrongdoing; I will faithfully give them their recompense, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them. Their descendants shall be known among the nations, and their offspring among the peoples; all who see them shall acknowledge that they are a people whom God has blessed. I will greatly rejoice in God, my whole being shall exult in my God; for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation, he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.For as the earth brings forth its shoots, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up, so God will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations.
Luke 1:47-55
And Mary said:
“My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for God has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me - holy is his name. God’s compassion extends to those who are filled with awe, from generation to generation. God has performed mighty deeds with his arm, and has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. Rulers have been brought down from their thrones, but has lifted up the humble. The hungry have been filled with good things, but the rich have been sent away empty. God has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants forever, just as our ancestors were promised.”
Play “The Sound of Silence”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvsX03LOMhI
And the sign said, "The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls nd tenement halls, and whispered in the sounds of silence.”
The prophecy, according to Simon and Garfunkel.
In the third section of the Book of Isaiah, the prophet says these words: “The Spirit of God is on me because God anointed me. He sent me to preach good news to the poor, heal the heartbroken, announce freedom to all captives, pardon all prisoners.” In today’s language, that would be those people who pack the subways, who live in tenements, who are held captive by failing economic systems, by corrupt systems, by war or famine.
What does it mean, to preach good news? Is it only salvation? Is it that getting into heaven is the most important thing. That's not what Isaiah said. This is not about some kind of future salivation where we will inherit some wonderful experience in the sweet by and by. The words of the prophet Isaiah are stark and different. The words of the prophet Mary are equally stark.
Think for a moment; the poor, the heartbroken, captives and prisoners. These are real people in the here and now, not folks who are looking for something way ahead in the future. Salvation, according to Isaiah, is not about getting to heaven, but about a quality of life in the here and now.
And what would that look like?
Isaiah says “God sent me to announce the year of jubilee - to comfort all who mourn, to care for the needs of all who mourn in Zion, give them bouquets of roses instead of ashes, messages of joy instead of news of doom, a praising heart instead of a languid spirit.
Isaiah says God called HIM. So I we read those words now, what do they mean or us? Don’t they mean God calls US? Yes, God calls US to mission. Mission happens when we turn our attention to those who are named as recipients of the Good News: the poor, the oppressed, the broken, the captives, the poor in spirit. But when we are called to turn our attention to those God names, we are also called to engage with them, not only through donations or overseas relief or the food bank - those are part of engagement - but we are also called to engage right in the here and now, in Corner Brook, with those on the streets, or living below the poverty line but out of direct sight.
Each time I read Luke, I am always amazed by the revolutionary words that spring from Mary’s mouth. The hungry are filled with good things, and the rich are sent away empty. Mary, even as a young woman of about fourteen, already understands the radical nature of these words.
As we look at the book of Luke, we see that the perspective of the participants in the birth of Jesus was always from the underside. These were not the movers and shakers of their society. These were not the people that all the world was watching. No, indeed, in this story, the good news comes to those who live on the fringes of society, to the poor and obscure, to the oppressed.
But if we want to see what God is up to, we need to look, and listen to those who are on the margins. And that is one of reasons that many of us have chosen this group of people as our faith community. Because through this community, we are able to connect with those who live on the margins, to hear those songs of the underside.
I want to tell you a story of a friend of mine rom Iran, who at 15 was married to her high school English teacher, a man twice her age. He and her parents came to an agreement, and she agreed - as she said she was happy with him as a choice. So she was married at 15 and had her first child at 16. Shortly after her daughter was born her husband decided to go to school in the US, to get a PhD, and she went with him. She was terrified, having to leave her country, go to a new place with a baby, not speaking English, not knowing anything about the culture.
In fact, this is a very old practice. Mary was betrothed to Joseph in an agreement made between him and her parents - she likely could have refused, but it would not have been wise. I don’t visualise Mary as thrilled about the marriage; I don’t visualise her as thrilled by the angel’s announcement. I see her as sullen, and somewhat argumentative. In the movie “Nativity”, Mary asks why she has to get stuck with a man she doesn’t know and doesn’t love. Not long after the engagement, she becomes pregnant, and goes to her cousin Elizabeth, to spend time thinking.
When Mary returns from visiting Elizabeth, and it is clear she is pregnant, her parents are angry, Joseph considers cancelling the agreement; in Hebrew culture, she could be stoned to death. Yet Mary is also a rebel, in my mind, and I see her refusing to be put down or put aside. She is going to wear her pregnancy and wear it openly. She believes that she is meant to have this child - knowing that she could be disowned by her family, cut off by Joseph, and even stoned for committing adultery, she still somehow finds faith to be open to the unprecedented event, and trust that God knows what will happen.
Perhaps she recognised that regardless of how it happened, the child is not at fault. Perhaps her acceptance was a way of stating again the sanctity of life. While the commandments said “No killing”, stoning was allowable for adultery; sending a woman into prostitution, or to beg was considered appropriate. The religious “laws” which supported the cultural ethos were man-made, not God-given. Yet from somewhere she gets the strength to trust God, and have the baby. She moves from a sullen girl in a snit, to a strong woman of faith.
Into the text comes a song - lifted from the Hebrew Scriptures, the song of Hannah - words inserted 75 years after Jesus’ death when Luke was writing the text. Luke who states right at the beginning that he is writing down what he has been told. So *he* doesn’t know whether or not Mary was happy - it’s a story, handed down by word of mouth and embellished along the way.
Yet many of us would take offense at these words, if they were not written down as Mary’s words. We tolerate them because Mary said them. But they are harsh nonetheless, and make us a little uncomfortable. They are the words of a prophet.
Mary’s story is one of turning the recognised way of things upside down. God has given a gift, not a king to the wealthy, but to a young peasant girl in a backwater village in a tiny country under occupation. Her family are labourers - not quite the bottom o the social heap, because carpenters were in demand, but they were close enough. So the one who is to free Israel from its oppression is being born to a nobody, nowhere. Mary recognises that to God, that’s exactly the idea - to turn everyone’s preconceived notions upside down, and do something no one expects. In this turnabout, the rich are sent home with nothing, while the poor are fed; the proud are scattered, the mighty are taken down from their thrones. - and the most stunning part of all, God comes to a simple young girl - a child by our standards - who is to be married off by her parents against her will - a piece of property, a good trade for having a strong man like Joseph look after the whole family.
The great Reformers in the church didn’t give a lot of attention to Mary, and given that God’s grace was central to their faith, Mary probably should have had more attention. She illustrated that every one of us is, in a sense, a virgin recipient of God’s calling. Christianity is a religion of what God has done for us and to us, and then calls us to do. God has given this gift to the poorest on our streets, to the captives of economic insecurity, of wars for profit. God has given this gift to those who struggle to eat, and ind a place to sleep, whose children die of hunger.
So to preach good news means we cannot remain passive recipients of God’s grace. Mary received the gift, but then took an active role. God graces us so that we will be active and creative, but at the root of everything is God’s initiative and grace. Everything that is comes from God; every hope for the redemption of all things comes from God. If we think in these terms, how can we fail to realise that we are all Mary, made pregnant with the gifts of God’s grace.
Isaiah says “God has anointed me, and sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor....”
Mary sings prophetic words - the hungry will be filled with good things, and the rich will be sent away empty.
The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls, and tenement halls.....
And so I hold up Mary, the humble servant - a young woman at the bottom of the social scale, receiving a great gift. Each of us at Humber is called to be a humble servant, and we are individually, and collectively, the humble, barefoot recipients of a grace and a call that are the foundation of all we can ever hope to accomplish. Maybe God needs us to continue to sing the song of the prophets, which came down through the ages, through Isaiah, through Mary, and more like her.
Sources:
1. Sermon “The Words of the Prophet”, by Rev. David Shearman, December 11, 2011.
2. Song From the Underside, a sermon based on Luke 1:47-55 by Rev. Cindy Weber
3. Singing of Joy , a sermon based upon Luke 1:47-55 December 14, 2008 Rev. Fran Ota
For I the Lord love justice, I hate robbery and wrongdoing; I will faithfully give them their recompense, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them. Their descendants shall be known among the nations, and their offspring among the peoples; all who see them shall acknowledge that they are a people whom God has blessed. I will greatly rejoice in God, my whole being shall exult in my God; for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation, he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.For as the earth brings forth its shoots, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up, so God will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations.
Luke 1:47-55
And Mary said:
“My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for God has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me - holy is his name. God’s compassion extends to those who are filled with awe, from generation to generation. God has performed mighty deeds with his arm, and has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. Rulers have been brought down from their thrones, but has lifted up the humble. The hungry have been filled with good things, but the rich have been sent away empty. God has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants forever, just as our ancestors were promised.”
Play “The Sound of Silence”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvsX03LOMhI
And the sign said, "The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls nd tenement halls, and whispered in the sounds of silence.”
The prophecy, according to Simon and Garfunkel.
In the third section of the Book of Isaiah, the prophet says these words: “The Spirit of God is on me because God anointed me. He sent me to preach good news to the poor, heal the heartbroken, announce freedom to all captives, pardon all prisoners.” In today’s language, that would be those people who pack the subways, who live in tenements, who are held captive by failing economic systems, by corrupt systems, by war or famine.
What does it mean, to preach good news? Is it only salvation? Is it that getting into heaven is the most important thing. That's not what Isaiah said. This is not about some kind of future salivation where we will inherit some wonderful experience in the sweet by and by. The words of the prophet Isaiah are stark and different. The words of the prophet Mary are equally stark.
Think for a moment; the poor, the heartbroken, captives and prisoners. These are real people in the here and now, not folks who are looking for something way ahead in the future. Salvation, according to Isaiah, is not about getting to heaven, but about a quality of life in the here and now.
And what would that look like?
Isaiah says “God sent me to announce the year of jubilee - to comfort all who mourn, to care for the needs of all who mourn in Zion, give them bouquets of roses instead of ashes, messages of joy instead of news of doom, a praising heart instead of a languid spirit.
Isaiah says God called HIM. So I we read those words now, what do they mean or us? Don’t they mean God calls US? Yes, God calls US to mission. Mission happens when we turn our attention to those who are named as recipients of the Good News: the poor, the oppressed, the broken, the captives, the poor in spirit. But when we are called to turn our attention to those God names, we are also called to engage with them, not only through donations or overseas relief or the food bank - those are part of engagement - but we are also called to engage right in the here and now, in Corner Brook, with those on the streets, or living below the poverty line but out of direct sight.
Each time I read Luke, I am always amazed by the revolutionary words that spring from Mary’s mouth. The hungry are filled with good things, and the rich are sent away empty. Mary, even as a young woman of about fourteen, already understands the radical nature of these words.
As we look at the book of Luke, we see that the perspective of the participants in the birth of Jesus was always from the underside. These were not the movers and shakers of their society. These were not the people that all the world was watching. No, indeed, in this story, the good news comes to those who live on the fringes of society, to the poor and obscure, to the oppressed.
But if we want to see what God is up to, we need to look, and listen to those who are on the margins. And that is one of reasons that many of us have chosen this group of people as our faith community. Because through this community, we are able to connect with those who live on the margins, to hear those songs of the underside.
I want to tell you a story of a friend of mine rom Iran, who at 15 was married to her high school English teacher, a man twice her age. He and her parents came to an agreement, and she agreed - as she said she was happy with him as a choice. So she was married at 15 and had her first child at 16. Shortly after her daughter was born her husband decided to go to school in the US, to get a PhD, and she went with him. She was terrified, having to leave her country, go to a new place with a baby, not speaking English, not knowing anything about the culture.
In fact, this is a very old practice. Mary was betrothed to Joseph in an agreement made between him and her parents - she likely could have refused, but it would not have been wise. I don’t visualise Mary as thrilled about the marriage; I don’t visualise her as thrilled by the angel’s announcement. I see her as sullen, and somewhat argumentative. In the movie “Nativity”, Mary asks why she has to get stuck with a man she doesn’t know and doesn’t love. Not long after the engagement, she becomes pregnant, and goes to her cousin Elizabeth, to spend time thinking.
When Mary returns from visiting Elizabeth, and it is clear she is pregnant, her parents are angry, Joseph considers cancelling the agreement; in Hebrew culture, she could be stoned to death. Yet Mary is also a rebel, in my mind, and I see her refusing to be put down or put aside. She is going to wear her pregnancy and wear it openly. She believes that she is meant to have this child - knowing that she could be disowned by her family, cut off by Joseph, and even stoned for committing adultery, she still somehow finds faith to be open to the unprecedented event, and trust that God knows what will happen.
Perhaps she recognised that regardless of how it happened, the child is not at fault. Perhaps her acceptance was a way of stating again the sanctity of life. While the commandments said “No killing”, stoning was allowable for adultery; sending a woman into prostitution, or to beg was considered appropriate. The religious “laws” which supported the cultural ethos were man-made, not God-given. Yet from somewhere she gets the strength to trust God, and have the baby. She moves from a sullen girl in a snit, to a strong woman of faith.
Into the text comes a song - lifted from the Hebrew Scriptures, the song of Hannah - words inserted 75 years after Jesus’ death when Luke was writing the text. Luke who states right at the beginning that he is writing down what he has been told. So *he* doesn’t know whether or not Mary was happy - it’s a story, handed down by word of mouth and embellished along the way.
Yet many of us would take offense at these words, if they were not written down as Mary’s words. We tolerate them because Mary said them. But they are harsh nonetheless, and make us a little uncomfortable. They are the words of a prophet.
Mary’s story is one of turning the recognised way of things upside down. God has given a gift, not a king to the wealthy, but to a young peasant girl in a backwater village in a tiny country under occupation. Her family are labourers - not quite the bottom o the social heap, because carpenters were in demand, but they were close enough. So the one who is to free Israel from its oppression is being born to a nobody, nowhere. Mary recognises that to God, that’s exactly the idea - to turn everyone’s preconceived notions upside down, and do something no one expects. In this turnabout, the rich are sent home with nothing, while the poor are fed; the proud are scattered, the mighty are taken down from their thrones. - and the most stunning part of all, God comes to a simple young girl - a child by our standards - who is to be married off by her parents against her will - a piece of property, a good trade for having a strong man like Joseph look after the whole family.
The great Reformers in the church didn’t give a lot of attention to Mary, and given that God’s grace was central to their faith, Mary probably should have had more attention. She illustrated that every one of us is, in a sense, a virgin recipient of God’s calling. Christianity is a religion of what God has done for us and to us, and then calls us to do. God has given this gift to the poorest on our streets, to the captives of economic insecurity, of wars for profit. God has given this gift to those who struggle to eat, and ind a place to sleep, whose children die of hunger.
So to preach good news means we cannot remain passive recipients of God’s grace. Mary received the gift, but then took an active role. God graces us so that we will be active and creative, but at the root of everything is God’s initiative and grace. Everything that is comes from God; every hope for the redemption of all things comes from God. If we think in these terms, how can we fail to realise that we are all Mary, made pregnant with the gifts of God’s grace.
Isaiah says “God has anointed me, and sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor....”
Mary sings prophetic words - the hungry will be filled with good things, and the rich will be sent away empty.
The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls, and tenement halls.....
And so I hold up Mary, the humble servant - a young woman at the bottom of the social scale, receiving a great gift. Each of us at Humber is called to be a humble servant, and we are individually, and collectively, the humble, barefoot recipients of a grace and a call that are the foundation of all we can ever hope to accomplish. Maybe God needs us to continue to sing the song of the prophets, which came down through the ages, through Isaiah, through Mary, and more like her.
Sources:
1. Sermon “The Words of the Prophet”, by Rev. David Shearman, December 11, 2011.
2. Song From the Underside, a sermon based on Luke 1:47-55 by Rev. Cindy Weber
3. Singing of Joy , a sermon based upon Luke 1:47-55 December 14, 2008 Rev. Fran Ota
Saturday, November 19, 2011
“Hard Sayings of Jesus: One of the Least of These” a sermon based on Matthew 25:31-46 Reign of Christ Sunday Humber United Church, Corner Brook
“When the Son of Man comes in glory, with all the angels, he will sit on a glorious throne. All the nations will gather before him; he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on the right, goats on the left.
“Then the King will say to those on the right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by God; take your inheritance, the realm prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you gave them to me, I was sick and you cared for me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ Then the righteous will ask him, ‘When did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
Then he will say to those on the left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
They also will ask, ‘When did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
*************************************************************************
Here we go again, with Jesus throwing out an incredibly hard and harsh saying, which by its nature would seem to negate the grace of God. Somewhere back in Sunday school, we learned that separating sheep from goats means division - the good from the bad, the wrong from the right, the insiders from the outsiders. In our human tendency to arrogance we hold that all wrongs - perceived or otherwise - must be judged by our system and our sense; those who do the wrong thing must pay; all rip-offs must be brought to justice. We have told ourselves that this is how God does it, so we can as well. - and we tell ourselves that God reserves a special day on the calendar to do the same thing as we do here. We believe God goes to court to determine who’s innocent and who’s guilty.
That’s where we are this morning- in a courtroom with the gavel pounding, the doors opening and the Judge of all creation enters the courtroom. All humanity--like a flock of animals are herded into God’s huge Hall of Justice. There all humanity is separated into two camps based not on race, color, national origin, sex, disability, or age, but on the basis of what we’ve done in this present life. Judgment begins.
Theologians are all over the map when it comes to this gospel lesson. One says faith plays no role whatsoever in this vision, it isn’t even mentioned. Another says that all the nations --the word “ethnoi” in Greek, refers not to Jews or Christians only but to all the others. In the biblical stories, it didn’t take long for devout Jews to discover some genuinely good people among the gentiles, those they considered unclean. Or for Christians to discover some genuinely good and spiritual people among non-Christians who, though not converting to Christianity, offered a warm meal, the shirt off their back, and even visits in prison.
As I was researching this sermon, I came across website after website which claimed that God will take all the Christians, and those who have not found Jesus will be left behind. Who’s going to make it and who’s not. Harold Camping and his crew, who predicted the rapture, were sure all of them would go and those of us who don’t agree with his vision will be left. I remember commenting that I prefer to sit on my deck with some popcorn and watch, and stay down here with real people struggling with real life.
This whole issue bugged the daylights out of Paul the Apostle. He knew just too many good people who were not Christians. In Romans 2 Paul says that Gentiles with no connection to God through the Law can still fulfill the law. During the holocaust, there were an incredible number of non-Jewish in Holland and elsewhere, who were called "Righteous Gentiles" by the Jews, because they were the ‘ethnoi’, the ‘other nations’ who protected Israel’s little ones in the time of trial.
Catholic theologian, Karl Rahner calls such people "anonymous Christians" - people whose actions are more faithful than baptized, proclaiming Christians. The prophets spoke of those who do the right thing because the law of God is already written on their hearts. They do what is right not because they learned it in Sunday School or read it somewhere in the Bible, but because it is a part of their very being, and they could not be any other way.
In this visionary story, we hear that the one on the throne will separate sheep from goats. Sheep will be on the right and goats on the left. Matthew is clear that the shepherd will know which is which.
This is good, because Middle Eastern sheep and goats in Jesus’ time didn’t look anything like the sheep and goats we know now. We have to remember that over 2000 years, animals have been bred for particular characteristics. Swiss Saanen goats are large, big-boned and have been bred for milk production with high butterfat content; the Swiss Toggenberg is smaller, has lower milk production and a lower butterfat content. The Welsh Llanwenog sheep, and the Sussex sheep, have been bred for different kas well. These are modern animals - larger and more inbred than the kind of sheep and goats of biblical times. Sheep and goats in Asia and Africa are often similar in appearance; sheep and goats are related animals, coming from the same origins and family of animals..
Those who are not shepherds would find it difficult to distinguish such sheep and goats, but the shepherd knows the difference and easily separates them. It has often been believed that sheep are good followers, and goats go their own way. Well, that’s true to some extent. But then we have biblical passages about sheep going astray. Anyone who has bred sheep and goats will know that there are some really pig-headed sheep, and some really docile goats.
The key, I think, to this “sheep and goats” thing is contained in Jesus’ distinction between those who care about others, and those who don’t. And it is this story which prompted Paul, and others, to look closely at the realisation of what Jesus had said all along - that those who say “Lord, Lord”, but do not care for their neighbour will be the ones who may find themselves at the end of the line rather than the front. Notice that Jesus keeps talking about the “least of these”. There is no distinction of race, colour, belief or anything else. Jesus talks about how people treat each other, about their acceptance and care for strangers, for those who are not like them.
There’s an old southern spiritual called “Judgment Day’s a- Rollin’ Around”.
Judgment, Judgment day is a-rollin’ around
Judgment, Judgment, Oh, how I long to go.
I’ve a good ole mudder in de heaven, my Lord, Oh, how I long to go there too.
I’ve a good ole fadder in de heaven, my Lord, Oh, how I long to go there too.
Dur’s a long white robe in de heaven for me, Oh, how I long to go there too
Dur’s a starry crown in de heaven for me, Oh, how I long to go there too
My name is written in de book ob life, Oh, how I long to go there too
Ef you look in de book you’ll fin’ em dar, Oh, how I long to go there too.
Brudder Moses gone to de kingdom, Lord…
Sister Mary gone to de kingdom, Lord …
Dar’s no more slave in de kingdom, Lord …
All is glory in de kingdom, Lord …
My brudder build a house in Paradise …
He built it by dat ribber of life …
Dar’s a big camp-meetin’ in de kingdom, Lord …
Come, let us jine dat-a heavenly crew …
King Jesus sittin’ in de kingdom, Lord
De angels singin’ all around de trone …
De trumpet sound de Jubilo…
I hope dat trump will blow me home …
This is a spiritual sung by a people in slavery - the “least of these” Jesus talked about - and if you listen, there is an absolute conviction that they will be vindicated in the next life. *They* will be the ones going.....
In fact, most of us are kind of sheep, and kind of goats, aren’t we? So what is God going to do with us???? Earlier in Matthew, Jesus is asked what is the greatest commandment; He answers with the “Sh’ma”. “Hear O Israel, the Lord your God is one. You shall love God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. And the second of these is likewise, you shall love your neighbour as yourself. On these two hang ALL of the law and ALL of the prophets.” So here is Jesus demonstrating to the listeners again what it means to obey the greatest commandment. Maybe the vision of Matthew is that God will judge us by how we have treated others - which may mean that a lot of people who call themselves Christian may be left out; and those who are not Christian but follow the WAY, will be included.
Jesus doesn’t ask a whole lot here, just a natural kindness and compassion shown to others in need. Maybe Jesus is saying we need to work on the side of ourselves which doesn’t come so naturally. Maybe Jesus hopes that we half sheep, half goats, will bear the kind of fruit that often comes naturally for the “least of these”.
Sources:
1. Judgment Day’s a Comin’ a sermon based on Mathew 25:31-46 by Rev. Thomas Hall
2. http://creation.com/separating-the-sheep-from-the-goats
3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goat
“Then the King will say to those on the right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by God; take your inheritance, the realm prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you gave them to me, I was sick and you cared for me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ Then the righteous will ask him, ‘When did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
Then he will say to those on the left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
They also will ask, ‘When did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
*************************************************************************
Here we go again, with Jesus throwing out an incredibly hard and harsh saying, which by its nature would seem to negate the grace of God. Somewhere back in Sunday school, we learned that separating sheep from goats means division - the good from the bad, the wrong from the right, the insiders from the outsiders. In our human tendency to arrogance we hold that all wrongs - perceived or otherwise - must be judged by our system and our sense; those who do the wrong thing must pay; all rip-offs must be brought to justice. We have told ourselves that this is how God does it, so we can as well. - and we tell ourselves that God reserves a special day on the calendar to do the same thing as we do here. We believe God goes to court to determine who’s innocent and who’s guilty.
That’s where we are this morning- in a courtroom with the gavel pounding, the doors opening and the Judge of all creation enters the courtroom. All humanity--like a flock of animals are herded into God’s huge Hall of Justice. There all humanity is separated into two camps based not on race, color, national origin, sex, disability, or age, but on the basis of what we’ve done in this present life. Judgment begins.
Theologians are all over the map when it comes to this gospel lesson. One says faith plays no role whatsoever in this vision, it isn’t even mentioned. Another says that all the nations --the word “ethnoi” in Greek, refers not to Jews or Christians only but to all the others. In the biblical stories, it didn’t take long for devout Jews to discover some genuinely good people among the gentiles, those they considered unclean. Or for Christians to discover some genuinely good and spiritual people among non-Christians who, though not converting to Christianity, offered a warm meal, the shirt off their back, and even visits in prison.
As I was researching this sermon, I came across website after website which claimed that God will take all the Christians, and those who have not found Jesus will be left behind. Who’s going to make it and who’s not. Harold Camping and his crew, who predicted the rapture, were sure all of them would go and those of us who don’t agree with his vision will be left. I remember commenting that I prefer to sit on my deck with some popcorn and watch, and stay down here with real people struggling with real life.
This whole issue bugged the daylights out of Paul the Apostle. He knew just too many good people who were not Christians. In Romans 2 Paul says that Gentiles with no connection to God through the Law can still fulfill the law. During the holocaust, there were an incredible number of non-Jewish in Holland and elsewhere, who were called "Righteous Gentiles" by the Jews, because they were the ‘ethnoi’, the ‘other nations’ who protected Israel’s little ones in the time of trial.
Catholic theologian, Karl Rahner calls such people "anonymous Christians" - people whose actions are more faithful than baptized, proclaiming Christians. The prophets spoke of those who do the right thing because the law of God is already written on their hearts. They do what is right not because they learned it in Sunday School or read it somewhere in the Bible, but because it is a part of their very being, and they could not be any other way.
In this visionary story, we hear that the one on the throne will separate sheep from goats. Sheep will be on the right and goats on the left. Matthew is clear that the shepherd will know which is which.
This is good, because Middle Eastern sheep and goats in Jesus’ time didn’t look anything like the sheep and goats we know now. We have to remember that over 2000 years, animals have been bred for particular characteristics. Swiss Saanen goats are large, big-boned and have been bred for milk production with high butterfat content; the Swiss Toggenberg is smaller, has lower milk production and a lower butterfat content. The Welsh Llanwenog sheep, and the Sussex sheep, have been bred for different kas well. These are modern animals - larger and more inbred than the kind of sheep and goats of biblical times. Sheep and goats in Asia and Africa are often similar in appearance; sheep and goats are related animals, coming from the same origins and family of animals..
Those who are not shepherds would find it difficult to distinguish such sheep and goats, but the shepherd knows the difference and easily separates them. It has often been believed that sheep are good followers, and goats go their own way. Well, that’s true to some extent. But then we have biblical passages about sheep going astray. Anyone who has bred sheep and goats will know that there are some really pig-headed sheep, and some really docile goats.
The key, I think, to this “sheep and goats” thing is contained in Jesus’ distinction between those who care about others, and those who don’t. And it is this story which prompted Paul, and others, to look closely at the realisation of what Jesus had said all along - that those who say “Lord, Lord”, but do not care for their neighbour will be the ones who may find themselves at the end of the line rather than the front. Notice that Jesus keeps talking about the “least of these”. There is no distinction of race, colour, belief or anything else. Jesus talks about how people treat each other, about their acceptance and care for strangers, for those who are not like them.
There’s an old southern spiritual called “Judgment Day’s a- Rollin’ Around”.
Judgment, Judgment day is a-rollin’ around
Judgment, Judgment, Oh, how I long to go.
I’ve a good ole mudder in de heaven, my Lord, Oh, how I long to go there too.
I’ve a good ole fadder in de heaven, my Lord, Oh, how I long to go there too.
Dur’s a long white robe in de heaven for me, Oh, how I long to go there too
Dur’s a starry crown in de heaven for me, Oh, how I long to go there too
My name is written in de book ob life, Oh, how I long to go there too
Ef you look in de book you’ll fin’ em dar, Oh, how I long to go there too.
Brudder Moses gone to de kingdom, Lord…
Sister Mary gone to de kingdom, Lord …
Dar’s no more slave in de kingdom, Lord …
All is glory in de kingdom, Lord …
My brudder build a house in Paradise …
He built it by dat ribber of life …
Dar’s a big camp-meetin’ in de kingdom, Lord …
Come, let us jine dat-a heavenly crew …
King Jesus sittin’ in de kingdom, Lord
De angels singin’ all around de trone …
De trumpet sound de Jubilo…
I hope dat trump will blow me home …
This is a spiritual sung by a people in slavery - the “least of these” Jesus talked about - and if you listen, there is an absolute conviction that they will be vindicated in the next life. *They* will be the ones going.....
In fact, most of us are kind of sheep, and kind of goats, aren’t we? So what is God going to do with us???? Earlier in Matthew, Jesus is asked what is the greatest commandment; He answers with the “Sh’ma”. “Hear O Israel, the Lord your God is one. You shall love God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. And the second of these is likewise, you shall love your neighbour as yourself. On these two hang ALL of the law and ALL of the prophets.” So here is Jesus demonstrating to the listeners again what it means to obey the greatest commandment. Maybe the vision of Matthew is that God will judge us by how we have treated others - which may mean that a lot of people who call themselves Christian may be left out; and those who are not Christian but follow the WAY, will be included.
Jesus doesn’t ask a whole lot here, just a natural kindness and compassion shown to others in need. Maybe Jesus is saying we need to work on the side of ourselves which doesn’t come so naturally. Maybe Jesus hopes that we half sheep, half goats, will bear the kind of fruit that often comes naturally for the “least of these”.
Sources:
1. Judgment Day’s a Comin’ a sermon based on Mathew 25:31-46 by Rev. Thomas Hall
2. http://creation.com/separating-the-sheep-from-the-goats
3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goat
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