tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-52400364904274972612024-03-12T21:20:10.458-05:00Sermon ScriptsNormanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.comBlogger185125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-23466306355683040962019-01-16T15:10:00.001-06:002019-01-16T15:11:38.207-06:00Our Everyday Tests<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Matthew
4:1-17<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">For
Spirit of Peace Lutheran Church<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">January
20, 2019<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">© 2019<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4Rq-zcjVvCY/XD-cSS5JLaI/AAAAAAAACYs/bAZp4wp0Op094WWVThPoYIZ2sjnNWGJWgCLcBGAs/s1600/temptation-of-christ-rohann-zulienn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="700" data-original-width="525" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4Rq-zcjVvCY/XD-cSS5JLaI/AAAAAAAACYs/bAZp4wp0Op094WWVThPoYIZ2sjnNWGJWgCLcBGAs/s400/temptation-of-christ-rohann-zulienn.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rohann Zulieen 2009</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Well, we just heard the account
of Jesus’ temptation from Matthew’s Gospel. Comparing the Gospel accounts,
imagining Jesus and the devil going at it, pondering how much was internal and
how much was acted out, puzzling over the meaning of each test, and plenty more
easily scrambles our brains. My experience is that researching Bible
commentaries often muddies the water further. So I am going to take what I
think of as a contemplative approach to explore my own journey with Jesus. I
hope this will help you to meet the tests of anxiety, fear, and power on your
journey by cultivating active companionship with Jesus.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">First, I want to suggest a shift
in vocabulary from “temptation” to “test.” We typically think of temptation as
being lured into doing something evil, even against our will. Jesus was not
being attracted to something dirty. He was being tested to be prepared for his
ministry.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In the Lord’s Prayer, we say
“lead us not into temptation.” You may remember that Pope Francis recently got
in some hot water for suggesting a change of wording so as not to imply that
God tempts people. The NRSV correctly translates it as “do not bring us to the
time of trial.” So I want us to think about the daily tests we face.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Some of you may remember the
comedian Flip Wilson evoking laughs with the line, “The devil made me do it.”
We are going to avoid “Flip Wilson theology” today that leaves us feeling
helpless so we can focus on how our daily tests can benefit us.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Matthew and Luke say Jesus was
tested by the devil; Mark uses “Satan.” We tend to think of “Satan” as the
devil’s name and miss the point. Satan comes from the Hebrew <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">hasatan</i> in the Book of Job. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hasatan</i> is not tempting Job to some evil
but testing his integrity. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hasatan</i> is
the title of the prosecutor in a criminal court, the one who brings the
charges. This is in keeping with Revelation 12:10 in which the Messiah casts
down “the accuser of our comrades” (“the brethren” in KJV). So I would
suggest that when we go around making accusations of each other we are doing
the devil’s work. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">After fasting for the spiritual
strength for his test, Jesus was hungry and satisfying that bodily need was
certainly natural. With our joyful noise offerings we are reminding ourselves
that the congregation is in a time of need to provide the resources to keep
going. I expect most of us have times of holding our financial breath and
scrimping at least a little to get to the next paycheck to meet our basic needs
for food, shelter, and clothing. This can be a test of how well we trust God
with thanksgiving to meet our needs.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In the Lord’s Prayer we say, “Give
us this day our daily bread.” Not asking for our weekly, or monthly, or yearly
needs to be assured in advance is a test of faith.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus
assured us, “Do not worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’
or ‘What will we wear?’ … Your heavenly Father knows that you need all these
things. But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and
all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 5:31-33)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In explaining the Parable of the
Sower, Jesus said that what was sown among thorns is choked out by “the cares
of the world.” (Matthew 13:22; Mark 4:18; Luke 8:14) The point of this test is
not to scold us for worrying about daily needs but to free us from the
anxieties that interfere with our joy in daily walking with Jesus.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Over the years I have found I
often need to listen to my own sermons. Today is one of those. Our car goes in
for major repairs this week, and I feel the test to relinquish my anxiety about
paying for that and enjoy walking with Jesus. I am thankful we’ve got enough in
our reserve. The test is whether I trust our reserve or trust God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In my college days I enjoyed rock
climbing, even after having taken a pretty serious fall. Part of the thrill is
the exhilaration of feeling the fear of queasy legs from a perch viewing a
grand panorama not visible from another vantage point. For Jesus the test of
jumping from the pinnacle of the Temple may have been about doing something
spectacular, but imagining it reminds me of those fears on a rocky cliff. To be
sure we all face fears every day. Fears of violence and crime, fears of
political and economic chaos in the country, fears of compromised health, fears
of relationships gone sour. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">1 John 4:18 says that perfect
love casts out fear. Based on that, I have long said that the opposite of fear
is not courage but love. A mother does not dash in front of a speeding car to
snatch her child to safety because she is brave but because her love for the
child is greater than her fear. I suggest that when we feel afraid, we ask,
“How can I give (or receive) love?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In Luke 12.32: Jesus said, “Do
not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give
you the kingdom.” As small and weak as we may feel, God’s love is so great do
need to be intimidated by anything.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">And 1 Peter 3.14: says “But even
if you do suffer for doing what is right, you are blessed. Do not fear what
they fear.” Sharing love is more powerful than any of the threats that might immobilize
us.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The devil offered Jesus power
over all of the kingdoms of the world. So much of the political conflict in
churches, in our country, and in the world revolves around a lust for power.
With the #MeToo movement, we are hopefully learning that sexual harassment and
violence is often more about power than sex. All too often, “getting what I
want” outweighs “getting what is right.” Not that we don’t each have our own
yearning for power, but for most of us the test is how to respond to those who
exert power on us.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Jesus is the quintessential
example of the power of humility and service, which he equated with greatness
in Matthew 18:4; 23:11; Mark 9:35; 10:43-45; and Luke 9:48; 22:26. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">This kind of power culminates in
Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection. The prayer in Ephesians 1:19-20 asks for “the
immeasurable greatness of [God’s] power for us who believe. … God put this
power to work in Christ when [God] raised him from the dead.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">This is a great mystery. The
power of Christ-like non-violence is not capitulating to evil but confronting
evil with love. Finding the path between vengeance and victimhood is a profound
test that we can meet by cultivating intimacy with Jesus.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">All three synoptic Gospels
(Matthew, Mark, Luke) report that Jesus passed the tests and was ready to begin
his public ministry picking up where John the Baptist left off proclaiming, “The
kingdom of God has come near.” To pass the tests of your journey, cultivate
active companionship with Jesus who passed his tests. A number of years ago I
heard Father Thomas Hopko speak on cultivating the spiritual life. He has
retired but was then the Dean of St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Seminary in New York.
He said to us, “My mother used to tell me that if I wanted to grow as a
Christian I should read my Bible, say my prayers, and go to church. Now I am in
charge of training people for leadership in the church and I tell them to read
their Bibles, say their prayers and go to church.” I would add this from Father
Henri Nouwen, “The spiritual life is not complicated, only difficult.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">You don’t need to become a Bible
scholar to stick close to Jesus. I suggest just a single paragraph or episode
from a Gospel each day and pay attention to Jesus, especially how he treated people.
Don’t skip around (though you could skip the genealogies), just saunter through
one Gospel at a time. If you haven’t done this before, I’d suggest starting
with Mark and ending with John. Then go back and start over.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">When you pray, don’t make it too
complicated. You don’t need to be eloquent. Don’t stress over telling God what
to do. Just ask to recognize God’s presence and guidance on your journey.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Going to church is not a
religious duty or something we do to make God happy. Church is about being with
others who are also journeying with Jesus to support and encourage each other. As
you cultivate active companionship with Jesus who passed his tests, you will pass
the tests of your journey.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<br />Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-83651710669787354442019-01-02T11:17:00.000-06:002019-01-09T09:25:58.082-06:00Light Through Cracks in the Wall<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b style="text-align: center; text-indent: 0.5in;">Matthew 2:1-23</b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">January 6, 2019 Milwaukee Mennonite Church<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">January 12, 13 King of Glory Lutheran Church<o:p></o:p></span></b><br />
<b style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">© 2019</span></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RoxNob6FGBs/XDIYw_xKmxI/AAAAAAAACYg/av3FDq0vtnU5BRycuwa9i4wWih_Sg304wCLcBGAs/s1600/light%2Bthrough%2Bcracks%2B3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="860" height="185" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RoxNob6FGBs/XDIYw_xKmxI/AAAAAAAACYg/av3FDq0vtnU5BRycuwa9i4wWih_Sg304wCLcBGAs/s400/light%2Bthrough%2Bcracks%2B3.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">We have come through the Advent
and Christmas seasons with their emphasis on the prophecies of peace,
righteousness, justice, and prosperity to be brought by the Christ child, whose
birth is accompanied by praising angels and adoring shepherds in Luke’s Gospel.
We delight in the inspiring, if sometimes sentimental, music of the season. And
then we come to Epiphany and get clobbered by the clashing accounts of the Magi
and Herod in Matthew. Sure, we’d rather have the Magi arrive at the manger, simultaneously
with the shepherds or maybe after their departure, and skip Herod’s bloody
slaughter of innocent babies in Bethlehem.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Yet, that unsettling disconnect
simmers in our minds and hearts even as we celebrated hope and peace, joy and
love. As much as we push it into the shadows, the real events of our world and
even our personal lives ask where is the promised hope and peace, joy and love?
That is hardly a new anguish. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I well remember Simon and
Garfunkel’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">7 O’Clock News/Silent Night</i>,
in which real news events from August 3, 1966 were played over them singing <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Silent Night</i>. The jarring discontinuity
was just too easy. Not much creativity needed as the Vietnam War raged on.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">You may know the song <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day</i> with
its lyrics from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poem. It was written on Christmas
Day 1863 in the midst of the Civil War and published in February 1865, three
months before the war ended. The specifically Civil War verses are not usually
included in the musical versions. Longfellow clearly saw the Confederacy as an
evil threat to peace on earth. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Then from each black, accursed mouth<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The cannon thundered in the South,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">And with the sound<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The carols drowned<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Of peace on
earth, good-will to men!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Just an aside here. Having lived
in Texas for 17 years, I can tell you that plenty of people there still think
Abraham Lincoln and the Union Army were the real threat to peace on earth. Those
whose ancestors lived through that war call it The War Between the States or
even the War of Northern Aggression. Nevertheless, we all have moments of
identifying with Longfellow’s gloom.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">And in despair I bowed my head;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“There is no peace on earth,” I said;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“For hate is strong,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">And mocks the song<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Of peace on
earth, good-will to men!”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Matthew reported the birth of
Jesus by jamming the discordant stories of the Magi and Herod into each other.
This not only acknowledges our painful reality, but sheds light on the way to look
for Christ’s peace in our own troubled world and lives. Like light coming
between the cracks in a wall, the shadows within are illuminated and we get a
glimpse of the light beyond.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The Magi are mysterious figures.
We have more questions than information about them. Where did they come from?
How did they know that star meant a King of the Jews? How did they recognize
this humble baby as that king? If they saw the star rising in the east, how did
they know to go west? How did the star point out the house where Jesus was with
Mary? Did they not see Joseph in the house? How did they know their dreams were
from God and not eating strange food while traveling? How many were they? Of
whom did they inquire about the newborn King of the Jews – Temple leaders or
Herod? How did Herod know what they were up to? How old was Jesus when they saw
him? What did King of the Jews mean to them? Did they understand this baby was
the Jewish Messiah or God in human form? Were they historical, or legendary, or
both? As a masterful storyteller, Matthew answers none of our questions but piques
our curiosity to draw us deeper.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">As Matthew tells of mystery and
majesty of the visit of the Magi, he plants just enough foreboding of the
threat of Herod the Great that we are compelled to keep reading or listening
even though we know it will be dreadful. Herod probably thought he killed the
child who he thought threatened his power. The horror of killing the babies of
Bethlehem accentuates the intrigue of the escape to Egypt under cover of night.
Herod the Great had died before Joseph brought Mary and Jesus back from Egypt
and withdrew to Galilee because Herod the Great’s son Herod Archelaus was in
power in Jerusalem. By the way, Herod was the family name of a dynasty. After
Herod Archelaus, his brother Herod Antipas figures in the fate of John the
Baptist and in Jesus’ crucifixion. In the next generations Herod Agrippa I dealt
with the Apostles Peter and James, and Herod Agrippa II with Paul. That they
are all called by the family name Herod gets confusing. Here though, Matthew
wanted us to feel the suspense of the threats to the young Jesus.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Obviously Matthew did not tell
the stories of the Magi and Herod for children’s story hour. He told them to
evoke enough curiosity to keep us reading and engaged to the very end of his
Gospel. The child Jesus slipped away into obscurity until just the right moment
to proclaim a radically different kingdom than Herod or Caesar or any of the
Temple leaders imagined. Jesus’ eventual violent death accomplished God’s
purpose in God’s way. Yes, we ponder and puzzle about that too. Jesus’ resurrection
signals the triumph of this kingdom of peace. Rather than a coup to dethrone
those who rule by violent power, the proclamation of Jesus’ resurrection
renders their threats meaningless. The light shines in through the cracks in
the wall.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Simon and Garfunkel leave us
hanging with incongruity. Longfellow seems to defy his own logic as though
peace will inevitably come. He asserted that God was neither dead nor asleep,
but gives no sign of that hope. He made no reference to Jesus whose birth the Christmas
bells announced. He undoubtedly saw that in the Union victory in the Civil War,
though we know that was not peace.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Then pealed the bells more loud and deep;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“God is not dead, nor doth he sleep;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The wrong shall fail,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The right prevail,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">With peace on
earth, good-will to men.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Matthew, on the other hand, is
both more realistic and genuinely hopeful. The light of hope and peace, joy and
love shine through the cracks between Matthew’s stories of the Magi and Herod.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">First the story of the Magi tells
us that God is alive and awake in obscure and hidden people, neither the pious
nor powerful. This is not just wishful thinking; it is always God’s way. Like
the Magi, these folk may not fully understand what they are up to, but they are
still God’s agents of peace. And the story of Herod tells us that though the
people of violent power are visible, they are powerless to stop Jesus’ people
of peace.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Second, the light shining through
the crack between these two stories illuminates the darkness within. Within our
world and within ourselves. Where does the light coming through a crack
highlight someone acting as an agent of peace? A compassionate touch or act for
someone struggling? A reconciling word for those who have been alienated? Where
does the light coming through a crack light up a dark corner in your own soul?
Or an opportunity for you to encourage someone in pain? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Third, the light invites us to
come close to the wall and peer through the crack to recognize the light of
God’s peace on the move in the flow of human affairs. As Martin Luther
King Jr. paraphrased Theodore Parker (1810-1860), “The arc of the
moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.” Its meaning and truth are
debated, but Matthew’s accounts of the Magi and Herod affirm that God is alive
and active whether we recognize it or not. Perhaps we only hear the whisper of
one obscure voice, but when we look beyond our immediate situation, we can
recognize how God is fitting all of these seemingly insignificant pieces into a
redemptive whole. The Magi and Joseph got enough of a glimpse not to be
intimidated by Herod. Look through the crack to see the light of God around and
beyond us.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<br />Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-68254876975679461532018-09-30T16:00:00.000-05:002018-09-30T16:00:01.258-05:00Prayer: Tuning In<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4kCCSNPPwqQ/W6Z2Tp2ppEI/AAAAAAAACUM/2RwK1GL9fx0jWB1YGJosMrD2uBHHtvBTwCLcBGAs/s1600/preaching-for-results091311.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="260" data-original-width="537" height="192" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4kCCSNPPwqQ/W6Z2Tp2ppEI/AAAAAAAACUM/2RwK1GL9fx0jWB1YGJosMrD2uBHHtvBTwCLcBGAs/s400/preaching-for-results091311.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoTitle" style="mso-pagination: none;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Exodus
3:1-12; Matthew 6:7-15<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Milwaukee
Mennonite Church<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">September
30, 2018<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">© 2018<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I recently saw a video on Facebook that I
thought would be a good way to introduce today’s reflection. However, between
technical questions and the challenge of visibility on the screen, I thought a
little readers’ theater would be better.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Mom:
Last week I took my children to a restaurant. My six-year old son asked if he
could say grace. As we bowed our heads, he said,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Son: God is good. God is great. Thank you for the food, and I
would thank you even more if Mom gets us ice cream for dessert. Amen.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Mom: Along with the laughter from the other customers nearby, I
heard a woman remark,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Woman: That’s what’s wrong with this country. Kids today don’t
even know how to pray. Asking God for ice cream! Why, I never!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Mom: Hearing this my son burst into tears and asked me,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Son: Did I do something wrong? Is God mad at me?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Mom: As I held him and assured him that he had done a terrific job
and God was certainly not mad at him, a man approached the table. He winked at
my son and said,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Man: I happen to know that God thought that was a great prayer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Son: Really?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Man: Cross my heart. (Theatrical stage whisper indicating the
woman) Too bad she never asks God for ice cream. A little ice cream is good for
the soul sometimes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Mom: Naturally, I bought my kids ice cream at the end of the meal.
My son stared at his for a moment, and then did something I will remember the
rest of my life. He picked up his sundae, walked over and placed it on front of
the woman. With a big smile he told her,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: 143.05pt; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Son:
Here, this is for you. Ice cream is good for the soul sometimes; and my soul is
good already.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">So we smile a bit. Maybe you
wouldn’t grump like the woman in the restaurant, but you’re thinking that
there’s much more to prayer than asking God for ice cream. To be sure, but
something about a child’s spontaneous innocence puts us on the right track. That
he responded to the woman with his six-year-old act of kindness is the fruit of
prayer. Focus statement: God is always present and active in our lives and in
the world. Our practices of prayer are like tuning into a frequency that
creates an awareness of God’s presence all around us.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">If you listen to many prayers,
even your own, they can sound as though we think God needs to be told what to
do by us. Or that we need to talk God into doing what we want, and if enough of
us do it often enough, long enough, hard enough, God has to do what we say.
Think about it. Rather arrogant to presume that we should be telling God what
to do.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Something is a little awkward
about sharing prayer requests in a group and then praying about them, as though
God wasn’t listening until we formally started to pray. Not that we shouldn’t
be sharing our prayer joys and concerns with each other, but we can be aware
that God is listening at the same time as the rest of us. In New Jersey I led a
simple worship with lunch for what we might call street people. When prayer
time came, I would say, “What do you want to share with us so God will
overhear?” The wrap up prayer may not list every thanks or request but affirm
with gratitude that God heard.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">You may have heard the slogan
“prayer changes things” as an encouragement to pray, and more recently you may
have heard this appropriate corrective “prayer changes you.” Indeed, it is not
so much that by praying we convince God to do what we want, but when we pray we
get in touch with God’s perspective and God’s power. I have found this
understanding of prayer from the Russian mystics Dimitri of Rostov (1651-1709)
and Theophan the Recluse (1815-1894) to be both challenging and helpful.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">To pray means to stand before God
to gaze unswervingly at God and converse with God in reverent fear and hope.
The principal thing is to stand with the mind in the heart before God, and to
go on standing before God unceasingly day and night, until the end of life.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 8.0pt;">[<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Art of Prayer</i>, 1966, Faber and Faber
Ltd. London. pp. 50, 63]<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">So what do we expect when we pray
about and for specific people and things that are important to us? If God
already know both the concern and what to do about it, why pray?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In Luke 11:5-13, Jesus tells the
story of a neighbor who receives a late night visitor and awakens his friend to
ask for food to serve his guest. As an encouragement to pray with persistence,
Jesus said that even though the neighbor will not get up to give him anything
because they are friends, he will do it because of the friend’s persistence.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In Luke 18:1-8 Jesus taught about
the need to pray always and not lose heart by telling the story of a widow who
took her cause before an unjust judge, who finally renders justice for her, not
because he feared God or respected anyone, but because she kept bothering him.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Some years ago Roberta Bondi, who
taught at Candler School of Theology at Emory University, wrote a series of
articles on intercessory prayer for The Christian Century. Her starting point
was that in Jesus, God has become our friend, and friends talk over their
concerns, good and bad, with each other. More than enlisting the friend to
intervene, such conversations elicit the support and insight of the friend. She
suggested when we know God as our friend, we can discuss anything with God, and
God will support and guide us with loving wisdom. That doesn’t mean that God
doesn’t act on our behalf, but that God is constantly active for God’s friends,
including us.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Luke’s Gospel gives more
attention to Jesus’ practice and teaching of prayer than the other Gospels. In
Luke, the Lord’s Prayer does not come in the context of Jesus’ sermon, but in
response to the disciples’ request, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his
disciples.” (11:1) Sometime, like the woman’s response to the boy in the
sketch, I think our concern about praying the right way is connected with
thinking that technique will move God to the action we want. Yet, something
about feeling like an inadequate beginner is healthy for our prayer life. Theophan
the Recluse spoke eloquently of this.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Always pray as if beginning for
the first time. When we do a thing for the first time, we come to it fresh and
with a new-born enthusiasm. If, when starting to pray, you always approach it
as though you had never yet prayed properly, and only now for the first time
wished to do so, you will always pray with a fresh and lively zeal. And all
will go well.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Jesus gave us some important cues
in the Lord’s Prayer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">We’ve gotten so used to saying, “Our
Father,” that it has become a tired cliché, and in our time a battleground over
gender and hierarchy. But when Jesus said it, it was radical and new. The word
is Abba. “Dad.” Familiar, intimate address. Almost unheard of in the Hebrew
Scriptures, and even in Islam today, considered disrespectful if not
blasphemous. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">All of the pronouns are plural:
our and us. While prayer is personal, it is also experienced in community. So we
share concerns and joys together!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Your will be done on earth as it
is in heaven,” means that prayer is about our life here and now.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“Daily bread” keeps us focused in
the immediacy of the present, not wallowing in the past or fearing the future,
but trusting God day by day, moment by moment.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Forgive as we forgive means not
only that we don’t have to be fully righteous to pray but live in grace, not
only between us and God but with each other.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Several recent translations
render “deliver us from temptation” as “do not bring us to the time or trial”
or “testing.” This acknowledges that life will be challenging and God walks
with us in our distresses.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">And “deliver us from evil”
translated as “rescue us from the evil one.” To be sure, the “evil one” might
be the devil, but in the early centuries of the Church is was understood as
evil people who oppress not just Christians but all who are weak, poor, vulnerable.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Yes, I have led prayer workshops
and retreats, but my purpose with this worship reflection is not to teach you
how to pray. Rather I hope to give you a refreshing and liberating look at your
own prayers so you have an enthusiasm to begin again as if for the first time.
Start with the Lord’s Prayer, but if you want to keep learning to pray I have a
few suggestions.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Pray through the Psalms. These
have been the prayers of God’s people for over 3000 years.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Look up the prayers in the New Testament
Epistles and see how they will stretch your prayers into unexplored,
exhilarating territory.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In 1 Thessalonians 5:17 Paul
wrote to pray without ceasing. Many in the Eastern Orthodox Church have found
that repeating the Jesus Prayer enables this. It is based on the prayer of the
Publican in Luke 18:13. “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a
sinner.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">We easily focus so much on what
we say when we pray, that sitting silently with the mind and heart turned
toward God is also profound prayer, sometimes called Centering Prayer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I want to end by returning to our
focus statement. God is always present and active in our lives and in the
world. Our practices of prayer are like tuning into a frequency that creates an
awareness of God’s presence all around us.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<br />Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-48125383719414140972018-09-19T12:56:00.001-05:002018-09-19T12:56:20.288-05:00The Lord Is with You<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fqqCc_KJ4R0/W6KNsE1sS9I/AAAAAAAACT0/1DAEMHeVG2kqEBIo3EucxK_XzcsRYODtQCLcBGAs/s1600/070320.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="205" data-original-width="300" height="273" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fqqCc_KJ4R0/W6KNsE1sS9I/AAAAAAAACT0/1DAEMHeVG2kqEBIo3EucxK_XzcsRYODtQCLcBGAs/s400/070320.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoTitle" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Genesis 39:1-23<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">September 22,23, 2018<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">King of Glory Lutheran Church<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Spirit of Peace Lutheran Church<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">© 2018<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">This is a very tough story to
read aloud in worship. It jars our comfort level of expecting something
pleasant for church. I must tell you that especially as the substitute
preacher, I find it challenging, and want you to know it was assigned to me. I
didn’t pick it out so I could rattle anyone’s cage.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Longer ago than I care to count,
Joy Wilt was writing incisively about Christian education for children. She
said that the Bible should be “Rated R,” not so much for risqué stories like
this but because it was written for adults and children need adults to
accompany them as they are introduced to the Bible. My friend Joe Bayly, whose
career was in Christian education publishing, used to say that we should not
water down stories like this to make them “safe” for children, but wait to
introduce them when they are adolescents and can appreciate the power of the
encounters. Diluted versions only inoculate children against recognizing God in
the realities of life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I don’t want to get sidetracked
here, but not to mention that, even though Joseph was a male, he had his own
#MeToo experience. He was the victim of a predator who used sex for oppressive
power. Any of you who have had that experience know that sexual harassment is
about power with sex as the weapon.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">We Protestants are not usually
too familiar with the Apocrypha, but the story of “Susanna and the Elders” is a
classic case study of sexual harassment, with men as the perpetrators and a
woman victim accused unjustly because of her righteousness, as Joseph was. I
encourage you to find a copy and read it alongside Joseph’s story.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Five times the story says that
The <span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> was with Joseph (vv.
2,3,5,21,23). By exploring that, we can learn how to recognize that The <span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord </span>is with us too, in both our
apparent successes as well as our persistent struggles, and yes, even when we
are victims of injustice. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">We easily miss that when our
English translations use “The <span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord” </span>in
large and small caps, the Hebrew behind it is what is considered to be God’s
personal name: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">YHWH</i>. So when the
story says The <span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord </span>was with
Joseph, it implies a personal relationship between them. When Joseph refused
Potiphar’s wife’s advances, he said he could not sin against God. The Hebrew
behind that is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Elohiym</i>, which is a
general word for God or even gods. Joseph did not use the personal name for The
<span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord </span>but the general “God” with
this Gentile temptress.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">We easily recognize and celebrate
that The <span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord </span>was with Joseph when
Potiphar’s household prospered under Joseph’s management. The <span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord </span>blessed Potiphar because of Joseph.
Though in more difficult circumstances, clearly The <span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord </span>was also with Joseph when he managed the prison so well
that the chief jailer trusted him the care of all the prisoners. These
blessings seem to be The <span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord’s </span>promise
to bless all the families of the earth through Abraham’s offspring in Genesis
12:3.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Not so easy to see is that The <span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> was also with Joseph when he
suffered as a victim of injustice. His brothers sold him as a slave, which is
how he got to Egypt. When Potiphar’s wife couldn’t seduce him, she made false
accusations and he was thrown in prison. We read past these things in just a
few moments without realizing that Joseph endured these injustices for years.
Still, The <span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> was with him
building patience and character that would not have happened as the coddled
favorite son at home.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">One of the problems with getting
stuck with a children’s Sunday school version of this story is that we settle
for a shallow moral of the story: be a good kid like Joseph and we miss the
power of knowing that The <span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> is
with you in both apparent success and prolonged difficulty. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In some church circles people
speak of a personal relationship with Jesus in a way that can seem a little
pious and pretentious. However, when the Joseph story uses God’s personal name,
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">YHWH</i>, The <span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> is the one who is being personal and intimate. The <span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> is personally choosing to be with
you! Let that sink in for a moment.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">So when things are going well,
and you sense you are prospering, instead of imagining you’re good at relating
personally to The <span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span>, look
around to see how The <span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> is
prospering the people around you, whether it seems to come through you or not.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">And when you are enduring a
prolonged hardship, especially if it is the result of some injustice imposed on
you, remember that The <span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord </span>is
personally hanging onto you even when you feel you can’t hang onto The <span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord.</span> From the Hebrew Prophets, to
Jesus, to the New Testament Epistles, over and over again, Scripture assures us
that The <span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Lord</span> extends steadfast
love to the poor, the weak, the broken, the widow and orphan, the stranger and
outcast. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In Genesis 12 (which we read last
Sunday), when God promised to bless all the families of the earth through
Abraham’s descendants, Abraham responded to God’s call by leaving a settled
home and becoming a perpetual nomad. Every place he journeyed, Abraham pitched their
tent and built an altar. We know the tent was portable, but so were these
altars. They were made of earth and or stone to serve while Abraham sojourned
in that place and were not carried from place to place nor were they fancy
furnishing for a temple. When Abraham moved on, they returned to the earth.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In his <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Spiritual </i>Exercises, Ignatius of Loyola described the spiritual
journey as a rhythm of consolations and desolations. We see that in Joseph’s
story and know it on our own personal journeys with Jesus. Ignatius taught
recognizing the presence of Jesus whether your present path is one of
consolation or desolation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Recently, Pope Francis encouraged
people to connect with Jesus by spending two minutes a day reading from the
Gospels. If you don’t already have a way you watch for Jesus in the Gospels,
just start with Matthew. Skip the tedious parts like the genealogies, and just
read one incident and let Jesus meet you all day with it. I believe that will
help you recognize that he is right with you in your consolations and
desolations.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">As I was starting my career
nearly 50 years ago, Abraham “living in tents” as described in Hebrews 11:9-10,
became a guiding metaphor for the journey Candy and have been making. We have
pitched our tent in Illinois, New Jersey, Wisconsin, and Texas, with even brief
campouts in Ontario and Oklahoma. Now our pilgrimage has brought us back to
Wisconsin for our final sojourn until we reach the city with foundations, whose
architect and builder is God. To be sure, Candy’s Alzheimer’s is a season of
desolation. However, everyday our son and daughter-in-law and grandchildren
with whom we share a duplex are a great consolation. The support of the Spirit
of Peace and Milwaukee Mennonite communities have been the presence of Jesus to
us again and again. These have been consolation to us on this journey.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-91209732008267729012018-06-24T17:00:00.000-05:002018-06-24T19:18:05.036-05:00God’s Redemptive Love vs. The Myth of Redemptive Violence<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xzxT5hGZkUo/WzAxda1Mj3I/AAAAAAAACQU/DYYiEmN2n2MLELVYBwlIMyNHk1ncNQCdQCLcBGAs/s1600/20180624_155838.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a>
<br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Ray Gingrich and Norman Stolpe on</b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The Good Samaritan (Luke 9:51-56; 10:25-37)</b><br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">A little more detail on my journey and an exploration of the biblical, theological, and historical factors that convinced me to seek conscientious objector classification is available at http://nstolpepilgrim.blogspot.com/2018/06/my-conscientious-objector-journey-and.html </span><br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Norm</span></div>
</div>
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xzxT5hGZkUo/WzAxda1Mj3I/AAAAAAAACQU/DYYiEmN2n2MLELVYBwlIMyNHk1ncNQCdQCLcBGAs/s1600/20180624_155838.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xzxT5hGZkUo/WzAxda1Mj3I/AAAAAAAACQU/DYYiEmN2n2MLELVYBwlIMyNHk1ncNQCdQCLcBGAs/s1600/20180624_155838.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="982" data-original-width="1320" height="297" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xzxT5hGZkUo/WzAxda1Mj3I/AAAAAAAACQU/DYYiEmN2n2MLELVYBwlIMyNHk1ncNQCdQCLcBGAs/s400/20180624_155838.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QL46cHnt0r0/WzAxduT09VI/AAAAAAAACQY/c7li6l8J5CMbDCMcB7HZ6jeflqKeWN6lACLcBGAs/s1600/20180624_155855.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1482" data-original-width="1600" height="185" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QL46cHnt0r0/WzAxduT09VI/AAAAAAAACQY/c7li6l8J5CMbDCMcB7HZ6jeflqKeWN6lACLcBGAs/s200/20180624_155855.jpg" width="200" /></a><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
In the video
Ben identifies examples of the myth of redemptive violence. <a href="https://mcc.org/media/resources/3534">https://mcc.org/media/resources/3534</a>
In this brief video he can’t explore the presuppositions and even theological
rationales that prompt invoking redemptive violence in the admittedly
challenging and threatening conditions of our world. For me, the juxtaposition
of these two Samaritan stories in Luke brings rich illumination.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
Even though the
disciples had observed Jesus’ compassionate, counter-cultural interaction with
Samaritan people before, (John 4) they were probably a little uneasy in this
Samaritan village, which was accentuated when the people there rejected Jesus
because he was on his way to Jerusalem. James and John were offended and
indignant and bent on vengeful pay back. I am amused that they thought they
could call down fire from heaven to consume the people of this village. They
don’t ask Jesus to do it; they ask for his permission for them to do it.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
A lot of the
myth of redemptive violence arises from wanting people who have offended us to
pay a penalty, as though that works justice. When we hear arguments that those
who have caused injury only understand violence, therefore we must respond with
force, we are betraying our failure of imagination to find not only non-violent
but more effective ways of responding. Admittedly that is risky, hard work.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
This occurred
when Jesus was making his final trip to Jerusalem, knowing what fate awaited
him, so that the story we call the Good Samaritan is so close to it is not
accidental. It was shocking not only to the lawyer who questioned Jesus, but to
the disciples as well. Having recently been rebuked by Jesus for asking revenge
on Samaritans, for Jesus to make a Samaritan the hero of his story stung. In
that sting is the antidote to the myth of redemptive violence.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
I am pleased
and delighted that Ray and I can share our conscientious objector journeys with you.
We both faced the military draft at the height of the Vietnam War. Ray came to
this from within Mennonite tradition and did alternative service. I did not
come from an historic peace church. At first I felt that may have disqualified
me from speaking today. What could I say to you who have been steeped in this
tradition for centuries? As we talked, I think we both came to see that the
juxtaposition of our stories is enriching as are the juxtaposition of the
stories we have read in Luke and the journey Ben has been relating to us.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; tab-stops: center 3.25in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Ray Gingrich<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>One “Draft Dodger:” A Chronology<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
1944-61: When I was 8 months old, my dad was drafted and
served as a CO in Belton, Montana. Even though pacifism was preached my church,
Zion Mennonite, Whiskey Hill, Oregon, about half of the 20 or so men who were
drafted went into the military, the others into Civilian Public Service camps.
My church and my parents talked and taught a lot about the wrongfulness of
Christians participating in war. The Mennonite boys didn’t play with toy guns
at Whiskey Hill grade school. They wrestled and played football at Canby High
School to prove their masculinity. Gene Autry was singing, “At Mail Call Today”
on the radio.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
1961: The ministers of Zion Mennonite Church, conducted a
Sunday-morning prep for the 17-year old boys who would be registering with the
Selective Service. Started with a Bible-study of relevant passages: Gideon and
a few others from the OT and many from the NT, the SOM, Romans 12, and the
crucifixion most prominent. The last few sessions were prep for facing
interrogation at the draft board: they will ask you about Hitler. A possible
answer: “If I were a German youth and facing Hitler’s draft, I would probably
have joined up like all of my other Christian friends.” Q: “No, what if you
were an American youth in WW2?” A: “Well, hopefully, I would have been opposed
to America doing business with Hitler during the 30’s, and like most Americans
at the beginning of the war, I would have been opposed to going to war.” Q: “No,
what about after the war started?” A: “Well, like my father before me,
hopefully, I would have chosen to serve by binding up wounds rather than
causing them.” Q: “What if our country was invaded?” A: “I trust that God and
my church would show me the way at that time.” Pete Seeger was singing, “Where
have all the Flowers Gone?” on the radio.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
1964-66. Goshen College, majoring in Social Work. The
Vietnam War was gearing up. My resident mates in Yoder Hall, 3<sup>rd</sup> and
4<sup>th</sup> floors had all-night debates on the legitimacy of pacifism. I
was dating Lisa’s mom. Dr. Lester Glick was my social work professor. In March
of 66, Operation Masher had just completed in Vietnam with 288 American
Soldiers killed, 880 wounded; 1342 Viet Cong killed; more than 10,000
Vietnamese civilians with 125,000 left homeless. President Johnson changed the
name of Operation Masher to Operation White Wing to sound more benign. Johnson
said it was a success. The group of 7 Whiskey Hill kids at Goshen College met
with our former Zion pastor each week to study Gandhi, Dietrich Bonhoeffer and
Martin Luther King. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The war was just
getting into “full swing.” Phil Ochs was singing “What Are You Fighting For” on
the radio.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Spring 1966: The first Goshen College student caught smoking
pot was disciplined by the school. Joan Baez was just cancelled by GC because
she didn’t agree to wear shoes. We pacifists watched Hogan’s Heroes on TV:
sure, Nazis were funny, stupid and continually outsmarted by their American
POWs. In April, I got my orders from the Selective Service to report for my
physical for the draft within 30 days of my graduation on June 6. I informed my
draft board that I was registered as a CO. My draft board sent me a list of
potential sites for me to do my alternative service. A dorm-mate decided that
alternative service was too much cooperation with the government and was
heading for Canada. Pete Seeger was singing, “Bring them Home” on the radio.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
June 1966: Lisa’s mom and I were married at Iglesia Menonita
de Milwaukee on June 11. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had our
wedding date set for June 11 so my parents could attend my graduation and our
wedding on the same trip to the Midwest from Oregon. We had a one-day honeymoon
in Door County on June 12. The following day, I reported for my alternative
service assignment at Mt. Sinai Hospital. The personnel director welcomed me
with a somewhat derisive, “Oh, you’re the draft dodger.” As hospital patients
watched the news on TV of coffins being unloaded from C-130 cargo planes, I
felt some guilt at safely prepping patients for surgery, inserting urinary
catheters, emptying bed pans, prepping deceased patients for and transporting
them to the morgue and the various other tasks of a hospital orderly while kids
my age were dying in the war. Senator J. William Fulbright was holding hearings
on the legitimacy of the war. My senators from Oregon, Dem. Wayne Morse and GOP
Mark Hatfield both opposed the war. The draft resistance was just beginning.
The draft lottery wouldn’t begin for another 2 years. I read Senator
Fulbright’s book, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Arrogance of Power</i>,
during breaks at the hospital. That Christmas, Simon and Garfunkel were
singing, “Seven O’clock News/Silent Night” on the radio.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
July 30, 1967 a “race riot” broke out in Milwaukee, 1 of 159
in the U.S. that summer. A 24-hour curfew was imposed except for critical needs
workers which included hospital workers like me. National Guard troops were
stationed on the corner of 20<sup>th</sup> and State where we lived. I began
walking the 8 blocks to the hospital on July 31, only to be picked up and
transported by guardsmen. Four people died, many were injured and 1740 were
arrested.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Arlo Guthrie sang “Alice’s
Restaurant Massacre” on the radio.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
1966-68: The war raged on. I marched in many of the
Milwaukee peace rallies and open-housing marches. Martin Luther King was assassinated
on April 4, 1968, Robert Kennedy on June 5. In August, the Democratic National
Convention was more of a riot than a convention. The protest movement was split
between Eugene McCarthy and George McGovern resulting in the nomination of
establishmentarian Hubert Humphrey. November 2, 1968. Personnel office. Mt.
Sinai Hospital: Same personnel director as 27 months earlier, with a hint of
affection: “Oh, the draft dodger, if you know any others like you, send them
our way.” The war raged on. Joan Baez sang “Saigon Bride” on the radio.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
January 1983, after having read Donald Kauffman’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">What Belongs to Caesar</i>, I was faced with
paying income tax. For the first time ever, I owed more than was withheld
because of all the consulting work I had done the previous year. Kauffman
challenged the notion that Jesus’ was advocating paying taxes in his response
to the Pharisee trap question regarding taxes of “give unto Caesar what is
Caesar’s,” and examined the question: what belongs to Caesar and concludes that
taxes for immoral purposes do not belong to Caesar. So, I was struggling with
the possibility of war tax resistance. I was afraid to do it. I was in Austin,
TX, and did not have a Mennonite community to struggle with me. Then, along
came the motion picture <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Gandhi </i>and
challenged me still further—the movie that is. I saw the movie early in the
week before my birthday and Gandhi’s courage challenged my cowardice. Then, a
friend said she would like to surprise me for my birthday. I thought probably
dinner. No, we were at a theater to see <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Gandhi</i>.
I didn’t tell her until sometime later that I had already seen it and I took it
as a sign that I needed to do the war tax resistance. Which I did for four
years until Barb and I got married and we bought a house and I didn’t owe taxes
beyond withholding any more. When the IRS told me they might take my car or
garnish my wages I thought I better tell my boss. I invited him to lunch. I
failed to tell him that I wanted a confidential meeting and he brought a new
employee, a former West Texas police officer with him. I decided to tell him
anyway, in front of the new guy. My boss knew me fairly well by then and I knew
he wouldn’t be shocked by my decision. He told the new guy, “Ray is a
conscientious objector, so this a serious matter for him.” Finally, the new guy
asked, “Vietnam?” I said, no, all war—I registered as a CO in high school
before the war started. The new guy’s mouth dropped open and he said, “If that
would have happened in my high school, the football captain would have beat the
crap out of you.” My boss laughed. “Why are you laughing,” the new guy asked.
“Because he was a state champion wrestler,” my boss said. “And, the football
captain,” I added. Cognitive dissonance to the max. “You were a wrestler and
the football captain AND a conscientious objector?” Then, he shut up—didn’t say
a word all the way back to the office. The IRS garnished my wages. Randy Newman
was singing, “Song of the Dead” radio.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
I am grateful
to all of those who went before and on whose shoulders I stood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s more in my activist history but I
better stop.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; tab-stops: center 3.25in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Norman Stolpe<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>My Conscientious Objector Journey<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
My
conscientious objector journey is integral to and inseparable from my journey
to follow Jesus as his faithful disciple. Though I grew up in church, I mark
the beginning of my adult faith with the reading of Job and Archibald
MacLeish’s play <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">JB </i>in World Lit as a
high school senior in 1964. I began to see that God understood and cared about
the seemingly insoluble struggles of human experience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My new awareness of God’s perspective on
human reality and my growing aspiration to follow Jesus converged with the
escalation of the war in Vietnam. Five years of student deferments during my
college years gave me time to study and ponder how I would respond as a
disciple of Jesus. By the time those deferments ran out, I had become convinced
I could not live out my discipleship in the context of military service.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
My wife, Candy,
and I got married on January 25, 1969 and I headed to Wheaton Grad School and
began my ministry in Christian education curriculum development. I began
composing my letter to the draft board requesting conscientious objector
classification. Then in December 1969, the first lottery was held for the
Vietnam War draft. My lottery number was 315, making being drafted in 1970, the
only year of my liability, highly unlikely. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
At the time I
was working on a Christian education youth curriculum project that was based on
Elton Trueblood’s book <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The New Man for
Our Time </i>which had just been published based on the Quaker “saint” John
Woolman (1720-1772) as the model of someone who could think, act, and pray.
This prompted me to read <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">John Woolman’s
Journal</i> a decade before I had any idea I would live and minister in Mt.
Holly, New Jersey, his home town from 1980 to 1997. This confirmed my growing
conviction that sending my letter to the draft board was an essential
expression of my discipleship.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
I had grown up,
been educated, and was ministering in revivalist, pietistic evangelicalism.
Conscientious objection to war was known but not widely affirmed in my circles.
In the course of my investigations, I learned that Dwight L. Moody (yes, of
Moody Bible Institute, Moody Press, Moody Church) had been a conscientious
objector and refused service in the Union Army during the Civil War, describing
himself as “a Quaker” in this respect. Moody made nine visits to the
battlefields as a chaplain/evangelist to the wounded, insisting that
Confederate soldiers be as well treated as Union soldiers. This anchored my
conscientious objector convictions solidly in the evangelical tradition, of
which I am an heir. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
As a teen, I
remember being challenged with the question, “If you were put on trial for
being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?” I sensed
that my letter requesting conscientious objector classification was such
evidence. I knew of those who were not from historic peace churches whose
conscientious objector requests were denied, and when they refused military induction
were sent to prison. Just into the second year of our marriage and hoping to
start a family, I struggled with the prospect of prison before submitting my
letter and concluded I had to accept that as a possible consequence of acting
on my convictions. The reply I received was that since my lottery number was so
high, they would not process my request as they were fully occupied with other
responsibilities.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
When I was
ordained for ministry in 1975, I wrote a paper for the ordination council
presenting my faith journey and sense of call to ministry. I included my
conscientious objector convictions in that paper. I also described the profound
impact my father had had on my faith and sense of calling. At my ordination
service, my father embraced me with tears in his eyes to tell me how wonderful
he felt reading of his influence on me in my ordination paper.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
My father had
served as a medic with the Navy in World War II. When I was 10 or 12, I asked
him if he could tell me anything heroic he had done. He proudly described his
role as “helping to heal the wounds of war.” Before I sent my letter to the
draft board, I talked it over with my father. Though he did not consider
himself a pacifist, he affirmed and supported my decision to express my
Christian discipleship in this way.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
The Baptist
General Conference (once known as the Swedish Baptist Conference) in which I
grew up was not an historic peace church. However, at the beginning of the 20<sup>th</sup>
century, many young men from “non-conformist” (meaning non-Lutheran) backgrounds
in Sweden came to the United States to avoid being drafted, contributing to the
growth of that denomination. My father’s father was among them. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
Though my adult
church life and ministry career led me out of the Baptist General Conference, I
did not worship with or serve as pastor in historic peace churches. In those
years I hope I learned to have healthy dialog with those who do not embrace my
pacifist convictions. I respect and do not judge those who sincerely live out
their Christian discipleship in military service. I hope that they have been
able to respect without judgment my conscientious objection to war and military
service as my expression of sincerely following Jesus. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
I must confess
that this has been more challenging in my family than in the congregations I
have served. My brother-in-law Max still suffers with PTSD from his time in
Vietnam. My nephew Tom is a career Navy officer and in my estimation is an
admirable example of living as a disciple of Jesus in his marriage, family,
church, and yes his Navy career. Some of these issues are so sensitive, we all
cautiously put priority on loving relationships in the family.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
You all know
David and his commitment to peace and justice. Our oldest son Jon does not
consider himself a pacifist. However, after his sophomore year as a mechanical
engineering major at Grove City College, he was offered a Navy nuclear
scholarship – a high academic honor and financially substantial. Before making
his decision he spent an evening with a retired career Navy officer in our
church. Much to the surprise of the engineering faculty and fellow students,
Jon turned down the scholarship saying that he could not relinquish making his
moral decisions to the Navy or the US government. I don’t know that our
youngest son Erik has had occasion to consider this the way his brothers have,
and his personal spiritual journey is still very much in formation.
Nevertheless, he does have an acute sensitivity to issues of peace and justice.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
While I have
necessarily focused on my conscientious objector journey, I hope you can see
how this is inseparable from my intent to live in such continuous awareness of
the presence of God that my heart and character are in increasingly congruent
harmony with Jesus Christ. I resonate with the prayer of Richard of Chichester
(1197-1253) which some of you may know from the musical <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Godspell</i>. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<span style="color: #333333; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Thanks be to thee, my Lord Jesus Christ,<br />
for all the benefits thou hast given me,<br />
for all the pains and insults thou hast borne for me.<br />
O most merciful redeemer, friend and brother,<br />
may I know thee more clearly,<br />
love thee more dearly,<br />
and follow thee more nearly, day by day.<br />
Amen.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Ray Responds to Norm</b><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
I am grateful to
be able to stand in the 500 year teaching of my Mennonite discipleship that requires
non-participation in war. That position as a subset of allegiance to Jesus
rather than the state has been a minority position—a small minority—among Christians
since 1525. And, I stand in awe of those early Anabaptists who were drowned and
burned for their discipleship. Being labeled a draft dodger pales in comparison
to our ancestors’ persecution.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
But, in the
present era, when the laws of our country’s religious freedom allows for our
minority stance without persecution, my admiration for people like Norm exceeds
that of people like me. As to Christians participating in war, Norm comes from
a tradition much older than my own, which dates back to Constantine early 4th
century. Shortly after marching his armies into rivers for baptism, Augustine
of Hippo led the church’s heretofore teaching against participation in war to a
new doctrine of sanctioning participation in “just war.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I went with the flow—with my teaching from
childhood at very low cost to me. Norm went against his tradition, his church’s
teaching, his parents’ teaching and followed his own conscience. Norm, I admire
you for your bravery and for your witness.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Norm Responds to Ray<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
I was intrigued
that Ray used the term “draft dodger” from the way he was greeted on arrival
for his alternative service assignment at Mt. Sinai Hospital. From my
perspective, as one who performed alternative service facing both its ridicule
and opportunities, I hardy consider the term appropriate for him. I suppose it
might better fit me as one who was not drafted because of student deferments
and a high lottery number. Of course, we both know the term “draft dodger” was
applied more to those who illegitimately manipulated the system with minor
medical or other excuses rather than deal with issues of conscience.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
I was also
intrigued that Goshen College students debated pacifism. I would have assumed a
uniform pacifist consensus. At community college in 1964-67, it was much
discussed but without reference to Christian convictions. Many of us Bethel
College students wrestled together about how to follow Jesus in the pursuit of
both peace and civil rights. I naively imagined that if I had been in an
historic peace church setting, this would not have been such a struggle. I am
encouraged to know that those in pacifist traditions were also wrestling and
not just accepting inherited presuppositions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Thanks, Ray, for sharing your story.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-64348987613447535112018-05-05T14:36:00.000-05:002018-05-05T14:36:07.509-05:00 Partnership in the Gospel<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JEYl3L0KoWA/Wu4HId3c2ZI/AAAAAAAACNg/Vq5dkld3ktUveydNsoWGW-ZYrAovrKuyACLcBGAs/s1600/prayer%2Bsculpture%2B09-67.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JEYl3L0KoWA/Wu4HId3c2ZI/AAAAAAAACNg/Vq5dkld3ktUveydNsoWGW-ZYrAovrKuyACLcBGAs/s400/prayer%2Bsculpture%2B09-67.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I carved this little guy 5" tall from plaster of Paris and vermiculite in September 1967 and used him for the children's time with this message to talk about praying.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoTitle" style="mso-pagination: none;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Philippians
1:1-18<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">May
5 and 6, 2018<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">King
of Glory Lutheran Church<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Sprit
of Peace Lutheran Church<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">© 2018<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Formal prayers mark the steps as
we move through our corporate worship. We give people opportunity to express
their joys and concerns in a shared prayer. As familiar as we are with this, many
people are intimidated by the prospect of leading public prayer. Together as
church we seldom talk about our private prayers. We are a little squeamish
about something so personal and intimate as our confidential conversations with
God. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Luke reports Jesus praying more
than the other Gospels. So for him to tell that the disciples asked Jesus to
teach them to pray is not at all surprising. (Luke 11:1)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In Romans 8:26, Paul acknowledges
that “we do not know how to pray as we ought,” but rather than scolding for
that, he assures us that the “Spirit intercedes (for us) with groans too deep
for words.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Three patterns of prayer in the
Bible have enriched my own practice of private prayer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">When the disciples asked Jesus to
teach them to pray, he gave them what we call “The Lord’s Prayer.” I suspect he
repeated this several times, as it occurs as a model prayer in Luke and in the
Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 6.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Dietrich Bonhoeffer called the
Psalms, “the prayerbook of the Bible,” suggesting Jesus learned to pray from
them, and they shaped and informed Jesus’ praying. He got me started on a
routine of praying with the Psalms I have followed for 48 years.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">By my count, the New Testament
Epistles include 15 prayers that I find particularly challenging. They push me
to pray well beyond my comfort zone.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Today’s reading from Philippians
includes one of those prayers in verses 3-11. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">When we started the service by
naming people for whom we are thankful, we were following Paul’s pattern of
being thankful for the people of the Philippian church. Not that we shouldn’t
be thankful for the things we enjoy, but our prayers grow as we are thankful
for the people who have been part of our lives. When I start making an
inventory of people for whom I am thankful, I begin to feel joy welling up from
within me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Even all these years later, I
feel joy as I remember how my 6<sup>th</sup> grade teacher Bill Miller sparked
a love of learning in me, and as I remember how my 11<sup>th</sup> and 12<sup>th</sup>
grade English teacher Margaret Abbott invested herself in cultivating my
writing. As you are thankful for the people who have contributed to you, your prayers
will grow in joy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Paul was thankful for the people
of the Philippian church who had been partners with him in the Gospel. I have
been very thankful for those with whom I have been privileged to serve in
ministry: among them Jim Kraft and Phil Olson in NJ, Anita Dunlevy in TX, Julia
Jordan Gillett in OK. I must tell you I am thankful for Pastor Tim who has
nourished my journey with Jesus this year.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Paul was in prison when he wrote
to the people of the Philippian church, and he longed to be with them. Who are
the people you ache to see face to face? Candy and I are planning to go to PA
in June for our grandson Isaac’s high school graduation and are anticipating
seeing them. Thank God for the people you’d like to see.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Sometimes when I listen to
prayers, including my own, I chuckle as they sound as if we think God is so
stupid that God needs us to inform God about what needs attention in our lives
and in our world and needs us to tell God what to do about them. If we start
praying the things Paul asked God to do for the Philippian church for ourselves
and the people we care about, our prayers will take us to a new depth of
listening for what God wants for us, beyond what we want for ourselves, those
we love, and even our world.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Overflow with love<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Overflow with knowledge and
insight<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Determine and discern what is
best for making decisions and taking action<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">To be pure and blameless. Rather
than thinking of that as superficial moral piety, I suggest what Søren Kierkegaard
wrote in his book <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Purity of Heart is to
Will One Thing</i>. Based on Jesus’ Beatitude in Matthew 5:8 “Blessed are the
pure in heart, for they will see God,” he suggests if the only thing you want
in your heart, unmixed with other desires, is to see God, you will indeed see
God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Produce a harvest of
righteousness<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I want to end by giving you an
opportunity for guided private prayer informed and nourished by the prayer of
Philippians 1:3-11. I know that sitting together in silence can be difficult
and feel awkward, but I hope you will find this experience enriching. If you
wish you may have a Bible open to Philippians 1, but that is not necessary. We
will begin with a few moments for you to gather your thoughts about praying
from the passage. If you wish to make a few notes, that is fine but not
necessary. Then I will suggest people for whom you may pray for a few moments
in silence using what you gained from the passage. You may relax and trust me
to keep moving.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 1.0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">For
yourself<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 1.0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">For the
people of this congregation<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 1.0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">For
others who follow Jesus in Milwaukee and Wisconsin, in the United States, and
around the world.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 1.0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">For
people who make no claim of a relationship with Jesus, though they may have
some faith in God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In the name of Jesus, I will read
the prayer of Philippians 1:3-11 aloud as our shared prayer. I will invite you
to say “amen” at the end.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
<sup><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">3</span></sup><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I thank my God every time I remember you, <sup>4</sup>constantly
praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all of you, <sup>5</sup>because
of your sharing in the gospel from the first day until now. <sup>6</sup>I
am confident of this, that the one who began a good work among you will bring
it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
<sup><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">7</span></sup><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">It is right for me to think this way about all of you, because you hold
me in your heart, for all of you share in God’s grace with me, both in my
imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. <sup>8</sup>For
God is my witness, how I long for all of you with the compassion of Christ
Jesus.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
<sup><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">9</span></sup><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">And this is my prayer, that your love may overflow more and more with
knowledge and full insight <sup>10</sup>to help you to determine what is
best, so that in the day of Christ you may be pure and blameless, <sup>11</sup>having
produced the harvest of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the
glory and praise of God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Together we say, “Amen.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-81880647657872479672018-04-29T16:00:00.000-05:002018-04-29T16:00:16.060-05:00Good Shepherd<br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">1 John 3:16-24; John
10:11-18<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Milwaukee Mennonite Church<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">April 29, 2018<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">© 2018</b></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GbMKlDZqOqI/WuCwVKrLczI/AAAAAAAACMY/lmlj8mmicJMERR0UdOUlAuYljoNLRKFPQCLcBGAs/s1600/CatacombGS_331x314%2Bcropped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="247" data-original-width="177" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GbMKlDZqOqI/WuCwVKrLczI/AAAAAAAACMY/lmlj8mmicJMERR0UdOUlAuYljoNLRKFPQCLcBGAs/s400/CatacombGS_331x314%2Bcropped.jpg" width="286" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Good Shepherd was a most popular way of portraying Jesus in the first three centuries of the Church. These come from the 2nd and 3rd centuries in the Roman Catacombs. I am impressed with how young Jesus appears and how his Mediterranean ethnicity is so obvious. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gfk0ZESSwuc/WuCwVDGGCnI/AAAAAAAACMc/ktFXhSaS7msOWymcSfpXpvM95CEJtEmMwCLcBGAs/s1600/Good_shepherd_02%2Bcropped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="367" data-original-width="276" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-gfk0ZESSwuc/WuCwVDGGCnI/AAAAAAAACMc/ktFXhSaS7msOWymcSfpXpvM95CEJtEmMwCLcBGAs/s400/Good_shepherd_02%2Bcropped.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6pXfcXB_mUA/WuCwVLlNkcI/AAAAAAAACMU/BLV0IpwsR3AuEJFP1sGCgKnbfi6ysJxcQCLcBGAs/s1600/shepherd%2Bcropped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="347" data-original-width="255" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6pXfcXB_mUA/WuCwVLlNkcI/AAAAAAAACMU/BLV0IpwsR3AuEJFP1sGCgKnbfi6ysJxcQCLcBGAs/s400/shepherd%2Bcropped.jpg" width="293" /></a></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
Jesus calls
himself “the Good Shepherd.” I am going to begin and close today by telling you
about two men whose examples of following the Good Shepherd have spoken to me
as I walk with Candy on her Alzheimer’s journey. She knows I am telling you
about these men, though she doesn’t know them.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">In 1990 Robertson McQuilkin resigned as the president of Columbia
Bible College and Seminary in South Carolina, a position he had held since
1968. He retired at 62 years old to care for his wife Muriel whose Alzheimer’s
had progressed in five years to the point she needed round the clock care. The
school’s regents offered to pay for the best in home or residential
professional care so he could continue as president.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">In 1987, they tried using in-home nursing care, but Dr. McQuilkin
realized that as competent as the nurses were, Muriel was distressed and even
terror stricken when she couldn’t find him. She began to walk the mile round
trip from their home to the school as many as ten times a day. When helping her
undress for bed at night, he often found her feet bloody. “What love!” their
family doctor said. “The characteristics developed across the years come out at
times like these.” Dr. McQuilkin responded, “I wish I loved God like that, desperate
to be near God at all times. Thus she teaches me, day by day.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">Determining that caring for his wife was his next ministry, Dr.
McQuilkin observed, “This was no grim duty to which I stoically resigned,
however. It was only fair. She had, after all, cared for<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">me for almost
four decades with marvelous devotion; now it was my turn. And such a partner
she was! If I took care of her for 40 years, I would never be out of her debt.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">Muriel died
in 2003, and when Dr. McQuilkin died in 2016, their story was retold in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Christianity Today</i> and other places.
Though Dr. McQuilkin and I would certainly have had some theological
differences, I have retold their story several times as a model of following
the Good Shepherd, well before Candy’s Alzheimer’s diagnosis. I would not come
close to putting myself in Dr. McQuilkin’s league, but when we got Candy’s
diagnosis, I have found him to be both inspiring and instructive. I retell it
again for you to ponder as we consider Jesus as the Good Shepherd.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
John 9 reports
Jesus healing a blind man that brought down the wrath of the Pharisees on the
man who has been healed, his parents, and of course, Jesus. In response Jesus
identified himself as the Good Shepherd of God’s people and labeled the
religious leaders as hired hands who do not really care for the sheep.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
The metaphor of
God’s people as a flock of sheep recurs repeatedly in the Hebrew Scriptures. So
Jesus’ audience was familiar with the analogy and could easily read between the
lines. The hired hands are interested in the income they earn by tending the
sheep, but they are not interested in the sheep themselves. When danger comes,
the hired hands abandon the sheep to the wolves. Ezekiel 34:17-22 examines this
same image from within the flock and how the different animals treat each
other.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">As for you,
my flock, thus says the Lord God: I shall judge between sheep and sheep,
between rams and goats: Is it not enough for you to feed on the good
pasture, but you must tread down with your feet the rest of your pasture? When
you drink of clear water, must you foul the rest with your feet? And must
my sheep eat what you have trodden with your feet, and drink what you have
fouled with your feet? Therefore, thus says the Lord God to
them: I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean
sheep. Because you pushed with flank and shoulder, and butted at all the
weak animals with your horns until you scattered them far and wide, I will
save my flock, and they shall no longer be ravaged; and I will judge between
sheep and sheep.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
By contrast, the
Good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The Good Shepherd knows the
sheep and the sheep know him. The Good Shepherd gathers sheep that are far away
and welcomes them into the one flock. The sheep know and follow the voice of
the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd does not value the sheep as a commodity
but loves them together and individually.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
As sheep of the
Good Shepherd, we bring his life and presence with us wherever we go. We bring
the Good Shepherd to everyone in our network of relationships. We are not hired
hands nor are we the fat sheep who push and butt the lean sheep.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
I don’t want to
dwell on the hired hands so much that I distract us from the Good Shepherd.
However, think we all know plenty of hired hands are masquerading and expecting
to be revered as though they are good shepherds. Investors buy up companies
they can split up and sell off in pieces of debt while paying themselves huge
dividends. Politicians peddle their influence to cultivate power and wealth.
Even pastors distort the Gospel to manipulate people to give so they can enjoy
lavish lifestyles. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
I think John may
have been remembering Jesus as the Good Shepherd when he wrote in his first
Epistle (3:16-24) how we are to shape our lives after Jesus.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">We know love
by this, that he laid down his life for us—and we ought to lay down our lives
for one another. How does God’s love abide in anyone who has the world’s
goods and sees a brother or sister in need and yet refuses help? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">Little
children, let us love, not in word or speech, but in truth and action. And
by this we will know that we are from the truth and will reassure our hearts
before him whenever our hearts condemn us; for God is greater than our hearts,
and he knows everything. Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have
boldness before God; and we receive from him whatever we ask, because we
obey his commandments and do what pleases him. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">And this is
his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and
love one another, just as he has commanded us. All who obey his
commandments abide in him, and he abides in them. And by this we know that he
abides in us, by the Spirit that he has given us.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
I never met
Robertson and Muriel McQuilkin. I only know their story from what I have read.
I told their story as an illustration in one of my first sermons of my interim
pastorate with First Christian Church of Albany, Texas. Albany is the county
seat, a town of about 2,000 and First Christian Church has about 150 members. Besides
the ranching and oil you would expect in West Texas, Albany has a wonderful art
museum and a very active artists’ community. Of course, I did not realize that
in just a few weeks, I would be called back to Dallas to start the journey in
which Candy’s Alzheimer’s would be diagnosed. Nor on that Sunday did I realize
that Jon Rex and Ann Jones had already been on that journey for several years. I
don’t pretend to explain God’s role in some of these things, but I do recognize
that God was present in this convergence that headed our lives in a new
direction.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">Jon Rex Jones
is the choir director for First Christian Church of Albany, Texas. Ann sits on
the chancel with the choir, though she does not sing. When Jon Rex would sing
in an ensemble or teach the congregation a new hymn, Ann would stand silently
beside him behind the pulpit. Jon Rex taught an adult Sunday school class with
Ann at his side. She always accompanied Jon Rex when he attended committee or
board meetings.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">When I was
there, the Albany High School basketball team qualified for playoffs at their
last game of the season. I was in the stands with several folk from the
congregation along with Jon Rex and Ann Jones. They were part of a small group
of couples who went together to Dairy Queen for ice cream cones faithfully one
night a week. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif;">Though they
have in-home health care for Ann, Jon Rex takes her along on his business and
errands whenever possible. They are recognized as an item around town.
Everyone, including me, is impressed with Jon Rex’s gentle guidance and effort
to include Ann in as much of the life of the community as possible. Though
“famous” in Albany, Texas, Jon Rex and Ann Jones are unlikely to get the
national recognition that came to the McQuilkins, but getting to know them
first hand, albeit briefly, has been a gift to me and Candy and I walk our
Alzheimer’s journey. Jon Rex lived the life of the Good Shepherd before my
eyes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<br />Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-64350767333559752742018-03-04T16:00:00.000-06:002018-03-04T16:01:03.251-06:00Me and You and Darkness in View<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Bx0FHkQO0es/WpWbEnjmZbI/AAAAAAAACKU/6fmyd74OCwAXaKfjw-6m7jg1TDyZrxxIQCLcBGAs/s1600/18-03-04%2BRod%2Bof%2BAsciepius.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="486" data-original-width="722" height="268" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Bx0FHkQO0es/WpWbEnjmZbI/AAAAAAAACKU/6fmyd74OCwAXaKfjw-6m7jg1TDyZrxxIQCLcBGAs/s400/18-03-04%2BRod%2Bof%2BAsciepius.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Though similar to the bronze serpent from Numbers 21, sometimes called "Nehustan," the Rod of Asclepius (left) comes from Greek mythology and has become a common symbol for medical arts. It is sometimes confused with the Caduceus (right) with two snakes and wings. It also comes from Greek mythology as the symbol of Mercury or Hermes the messenger of the gods. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Numbers 21:4-9; John 3:14-21<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Milwaukee Mennonite Church</b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">March 4, 2018<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">© 2018<span style="font-size: 20pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">During Lent we typically look at our human
need for God’s grace brought to us through Jesus’ death. We may say we agree
with the theme for this Sunday, “Between Me and You, even in darkness, God’s
promise and God’s love grow all around us.” But we struggle with our
experiences of impenetrable darkness. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The daily news can overwhelm us with the
sense of darkness around us, but more difficult and more important is when we
are unable to navigate the darkness within us, when God seems silent,
withdrawn, absent.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Just before what we read in Numbers 21, God
had delivered the Israelites from some Canaanites who attacked them, and almost
immediately they complained that God wasn’t with them. They even called the
manna God gave them to eat “miserable food” (v. 5) So God sent poisonous
serpents into the camp and people were dying painfully. At Moses’ appeal, God
instructed him to make a bronze serpent and lift it up on a pole. Those who
were bitten could look at and be healed. In order to live, they had to look at
the very thing that plagued them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">What we read from John 3 compares Jesus being
lifted up with the serpent in the wilderness. Scholars are not sure if Jesus
said this to Nicodemus or if it is John’s commentary on their conversation. In
any case, pointing ahead to Jesus’ crucifixion, we are called to look directly
at the darkness of Jesus on the cross for the light of salvation. We love John
3:16 with its declaration of God’s love for the world, but we ask, “How can we
believe God loves that world in which people love darkness rather than light?
As we fix our gaze on the darkness of the crucified Jesus, we are drawn to come
close to God’s light.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Perhaps you have heard of the “Dark Night of
the Soul.” John of the Cross was a sixteenth century Spanish Carmelite friar,
priest, and mystic who is best known for his book <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Dark Night of the Soul</i>. Though we don’t talk about it much, I
would venture to say that anyone who has seriously journeyed with Jesus for an
extended period of time has had at least one experience of the “Dark Night of
the Soul.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I had a dark night of the soul in 1977-80. I
felt I was thriving in my part-time pastoral ministry and ready to move to
full-time when dynamics in the congregation brought my part-time ministry to an
end before I could seriously explore full-time. The way this happened brought my
whole sense of calling into question. This was not about the circumstances but
about crying out to God for leading and vision, and I was getting no response.
My cries seemed to go into a dark hollow without an echo or glimmer of light.
While I did feel down and desolate, it wasn’t the same as being depressed. My
other part-time work became full-time in perfect sequence, but Christian
education curriculum research, writing, and editing were not as satisfying as
pastoral ministry. Yes, I was functioning using my skills and thankful to be able
to provide for my family. I do believe my work helped people. But I could not
sense God calling me forward or even personally present for almost three years.
I kept up my daily spiritual disciplines and fellowship with the church, but
felt as though God was hiding behind my daily scripture reading, absent from
weekly worship, and my prayers seemed to be limp, punctured balloons littering
the floor of my spirit. The breakthrough came when our small group was
discussing Proverbs 17:22. “A cheerful heart is a good medicine, but a downcast
spirit dries up the bones.” For me this was not an admonition to “fake it until
I could make it,” but more as a light in the distance of my darkness that I
could follow to journey through the dark. That job change had me taking the
Chicago-Northwestern train to the Chicago Loop every day for six months. I made
this plaque of the ticket stubs, which I keep on the bookshelf in my office to
remind me of that dark night and how God did guide me through it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mjMLPIpk4y0/WpWc753WLsI/AAAAAAAACKs/6z2Rf8M0HroQQ24QhVlPaLHBxfLGjIyhwCLcBGAs/s1600/18-03-04%2BCNW%2Btickets.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="641" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mjMLPIpk4y0/WpWc753WLsI/AAAAAAAACKs/6z2Rf8M0HroQQ24QhVlPaLHBxfLGjIyhwCLcBGAs/s320/18-03-04%2BCNW%2Btickets.jpg" width="128" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I had already been into my discipline of
praying through the Psalms each month for about six years at the time. I
identified with certain lines as they encountered me each month. The NRSV
translates Psalm 88:18 as “All my companions are in darkness,” but I really
resonated with the NIV translation, “Darkness is my only friend.” I took some
hope from Psalm 139:11-12. “If I say, ‘Surely the darkness shall cover me, and
the light around me become night, even the darkness is not dark to you; the
night is as bright as the day, for darkness is as light to you.’” I prayed that
God could see me even if I couldn’t see God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I finally came to accept the assurance of
Psalm 139:17-18, that God was thinking about me. “How weighty to me are your
thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! I try to count them—they are more
than the sand; I come to the end—I am still with you.” This is echoed in the
words of Simone Weil, early 20<sup>th</sup> century French mystic. “It is not
up to me to think of myself. It is up to me to think of God. And it is up to
God to think of me.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">One of the challenges and benefits of Lent is
that it prompts us to look closely at things we would prefer to avoid. I appreciate
the approach suggested by our Leader materials for today. I certainly hope you
are not overly distressed that I have asked you to gaze into the darkness. In
fact, I hope that you are encouraged by acknowledging that it is a normal and
even healthy part of the journey with Jesus. I want to share with you insights
that I have found helpful from Cistercian monk Thomas Keating in his book <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Intimacy with God</i> </span><span style="font-size: 8.0pt;">(1995, Crossroad Publishing, New York. pp. 87-88)</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">God,
too, seems to withdraw, to our great consternation. Instead of being present
during our time of prayer, God seems not to show up anymore; it feels as if God
could not care less. This is especially painful if the former relationship was
very satisfying, exciting, or consoling. The thought rises, “God has abandoned
me!” When the dryness is extreme, [Bible reading] is like reading the telephone
book and spiritual exercises are just a bore. We are irritable and discouraged
because the light of our life has gone out. It took so many years to find God
and now God has gone away. There is a constant temptation to think we have done
something wrong, but we can’t figure out what it was. Our tendency is to
project onto God the way we would feel in a similar deteriorating relationship
with another human being, namely, hopeless. This judgment is most unfair to
God. At this point a lot of people throw in the towel and decide, “The spiritual
journey is not for me.” … If we are very quiet in the night of sense, St. John
of the Cross writes, we may notice a delicate sense of peace and may even begin
to enjoy the more substantial food of pure faith. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In his <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Spiritual
Exercises</i>, Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556) wrote of the spiritual life as a
rhythm of consolations and desolations. He offers some very practical guidance
for the seasons of desolations. </span><span style="font-size: 8.0pt;">(tr.
George E. Ganss, S.J., 1992, Loyola University Press, Chicago, pp. 122-123)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">During
a time of desolation one should never make a change. Instead, one should remain
firm and constant in the resolutions and in the decision which one had on the
day before the desolation, on in a decision in which one was during a previous
time of consolation.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Although
we ought not to change our former resolutions in a time of desolation, it is
very profitable to make vigorous changes in ourselves against the desolation,
for example by insisting more on prayer, meditation, earnest self-examination.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">God’s
help always remains available, even if we do not clearly perceive it. Indeed,
even though the Lord has withdrawn from us his abundant fervor, augmented,
love, and intensive grace, he still supplies sufficient grace for our eternal
salvation.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-pagination: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">We will be singing Brian Wren’s hymn <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Joyful Is the Dark</i> as a way of
personalizing our experiences of the darkness in view.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Joyful
is the dark,<br />
holy, hidden God,<br />
rolling cloud of night beyond all naming:<br />
Majesty in darkness,<br />
Energy of love,<br />
Word in Flesh, the mystery proclaiming.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.3); font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Joyful is the dark,<br />
Spirit of the deep,<br />
winging wildly o’er the world’s creation,<br />
silken sheen of midnight,<br />
plumage black and bright,<br />
swooping with the beauty of a raven.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.3); font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.3); font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Joyful is the dark,<br />
coolness of the tomb,<br />
waiting for the wonder of the morning;<br />
never was that midnight<br />
touched by dread and gloom:<br />
darkness was the cradle of the dawning.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.3); font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.3); font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Joyful is the dark,<br />
depth of love divine,<br />
roaring, looming thundercloud of glory,<br />
holy, haunting beauty,<br />
living, loving God.<br />
Hallelujah! Sing and tell the story!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.3); font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.3); font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Joyful is the dark.<br />
Joyful is the dark.<br />
Joyful is the dark!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.3); font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="copyright" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.3); font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.0pt;">Words Copyright © 1989 by Hope
Publishing Company, Carol Stream, IL (www.hopepublishing.com) for the USA,
Canada, Australia and New Zealand; and Stainer & Bell Limited, London,
England, (www.stainer.co.uk) for all other territories.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-79887425198801286012018-01-27T10:00:00.000-06:002018-01-28T13:20:13.619-06:00Conversation with Jesus about life’s persistent questions: How can I explore spiritual mysteries when physical reality scrambles my brain? <div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b>John 3:1-21<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b>January 28, 2018<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b>King of Glory Lutheran Church</b><br />
<b>Spirit of Peace Lutheran Church</b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Milwaukee, Wisconsin</b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b>© 2018</b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YE-IgSEYRAQ/WmZvfRmfMpI/AAAAAAAACJg/tdswaJKNBfIqptEqNUslqtX8uz3nf8CMwCLcBGAs/s1600/12065485_918984398169558_5524234530136345304_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="958" data-original-width="960" height="398" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YE-IgSEYRAQ/WmZvfRmfMpI/AAAAAAAACJg/tdswaJKNBfIqptEqNUslqtX8uz3nf8CMwCLcBGAs/s400/12065485_918984398169558_5524234530136345304_n.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Perhaps you remember “Guy Noir, Private Eye” from the more innocent
days of <i>A Prairie Home Companion</i>. He
was in pursuit of answers to life’s most persistent questions. In their
conversation, Nicodemus and Jesus, they are pursuing this question. <span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">How can I
explore spiritual mysteries when physical reality scrambles my brain?</span> We may think we understand the wind better
than Nicodemus did, but like him, pondering the material universe can boggle
our minds and interfere with grasping more profound spiritual realities.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Considering the origins of the universe is both fascinating and
incomprehensible. Everything from black holes to Higgs boson particles prompt
pondering. What was there before the big bang? What is outside of the universe?
We ask: How did we get here? How did I get here?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Everything from evolutionary theory to human genome study asks what it
means to be human. Who are we? Who am I? Why are we here? Why am I here?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Everything from the expansion of space and the burn out of the sun to
climate change anticipates the eventual demise of the universe. What is our
destiny? Where are we headed? Where am I headed?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
British preacher C. H. Spurgeon<span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 8.0pt;">(1834-1892)</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> </span>is reputed to have said that John’s Gospel
was “Shallow enough for a child to wade in and deep enough to drown an
elephant.” Spurgeon’s observation certainly applies to Jesus’ conversation with
Nicodemus. Jesus explained how being born from above is to live a reality more
profound than the most mind boggling research about the material universe yet
as simple as wind.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Sometimes Nicodemus is portrayed as timidly sneaking into see Jesus at
night and not bright enough to understand Jesus’ spiritual basics. But Jesus
called him “<i>the</i> teacher of Israel”<span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 8.0pt;">(v. 10 – not “<i>a</i>
teacher” as in some English translations)</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">. </span>Certainly
one of the leading teachers among the Pharisees on the Sanhedrin, he was probably
checking Jesus out for them, but informally and not officially. I think he picked
up from Jesus, this uneducated country rabbi, something deeper than more than a
millennium of Hebrew scholarship could grasp. I think he wanted it for himself.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Jesus told Nicodemus that no one can perceive the Kingdom of God
without being born “from above.” Nicodemus’ responses indicated he understood
Jesus to say “born again.” Jesus was speaking about the source of our birth and
Nicodemus about the number of times we are born. The same Greek word can mean
both, so here is a play on words. Jesus and Nicodemus were speaking Aramaic that
would not have the same play on words as Greek, so whatever went on between
them, John captured cleverly. Nicodemus was not so dense as to think Jesus
meant physically going back through his mother’s womb, but thinking he was too
old and set in his ways, making a spiritual rebirth seemed as impossible as a
physical rebirth. He was sure that what he wanted was unavailable.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Nicodemus was a late bloomer or slow learner. When the Sanhedrin began
its open opposition to Jesus, Nicodemus spoke up for just and fair due process
for Jesus<span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 8.0pt;">(7:50-52)</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">. </span>Along
with Joseph of Arimathea, <span style="font-size: 8.0pt;">(identified as a
disciple in Matthew 27:57; Mark 15:43; Luke 23:50-53 and some women per Matthew
27:61; Mark 15:47; Luke 23:55)</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> </span>Nicodemus assisted with
Jesus’ burial, indicating a faith even at the point at which Jesus’ mission and
message seemed to have failed.<span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 8.0pt;">(19:39-40)</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> </span>Only being born from above could bring that
insight.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
To be born from above is to live a reality more profound than the most
mind boggling concepts about the material universe. Scholars continue to debate
what Jesus meant when he said that entering the Kingdom of God required being
born of water and Spirit. I think the simplest answer is that they describe
what is involved in being born from above.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Nicodemus was certainly familiar with the recent ministry of John the
Baptist. He called people to show their repentance by being baptized, just as
Gentile converts to Judaism were baptized. The religious leadership, of which
Nicodemus was a prominent leader, was offended at the very idea they needed to
repent and be baptized like an unclean Gentile. To be born of water (from
above) is to turn from the life below and humbly begin anew in the life from
above.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As the teacher of Israel, Nicodemus knew that in Ezekiel 36:25-28, God
promised to sprinkle clean water to cleanse from sin and to put a new spirit
within to follow God. Throughout Hebrew Scripture, water is associated with the
Spirit of God. The promise of the prophets was that God’s Spirit would one day
empower the righteousness that always seemed to elude them. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Spirit brings another word play that works in Greek and Hebrew, where
the same word in each language means spirit, breath and wind. Jesus emphasized
to Nicodemus the freedom of the wind and the Spirit. The Spirit of God is not
limited to a pious or theological elite, or confined to established traditions.
The most unexpected people, under unexpected circumstances are born from above
by the life giving power of God’s Spirit.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When Nicodemus asked Jesus, “How can these things be?” (v. 9) he
wasn’t expressing incredulity but a hunger to know how he could be born from
above. Jesus responded with a story from Numbers 21. As punishment for
revolting against Moses, poisonous serpents swarmed and bit. At God’s
instruction, Moses made a bronze serpent and raised it as a sign for people to
look at and be healed. Jesus compared himself to the bronze serpent, pointing
ahead to the cross. God’s redemption was a great reversal. The object of
punishment became the means of restoration. All that was required was to trust
that a simple look brought wholeness. To be born from above, look at Jesus with
faith. Those who are born from above find answers to life’s persistent
questions.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Who am I? Where did I come from? I am created in the image of God. My
life comes from the Spirit of God who lives in me.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Why am I here? What is my purpose? As Jesus gave himself for me, I give
myself so others can receive his love too. Jesus did not come to condemn but to
give eternal life. My purpose is to invite people to be included, not to decide
who’s excluded. Martin Niemöller was one of the founders of the Confessing
Church that opposed the Nazis in Germany. After World War II he said, “It took
me a long time to realize that not only did God not hate my enemies, he didn’t
even hate his enemies.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What is our destiny? Where am I headed? I am on my way to the Kingdom
of God, which Jesus calls eternal life in John’s Gospel. Having been born from
above, I am already living eternal life as part of the Kingdom of God, the
reality more profound than the most mind boggling research about the material
universe.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-89990511436572400122018-01-20T18:13:00.001-06:002018-01-20T18:20:49.003-06:00Good News: Your Time Has Come<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>Jonah 3:1-5,10; 1 Corinthians 7:29-31; Mark 1:14-20<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>January 21, 2018<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>Jackson Park Lutheran Church</b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>Milwaukee, WI</b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>© 2018<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4IKy3I272cI/WmPa2XPTuaI/AAAAAAAACJQ/NrFchVEFBsAWk7jMy5NxoeXd9dFpxXhxACLcBGAs/s1600/time%2Balmost%2B12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="439" data-original-width="660" height="265" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4IKy3I272cI/WmPa2XPTuaI/AAAAAAAACJQ/NrFchVEFBsAWk7jMy5NxoeXd9dFpxXhxACLcBGAs/s400/time%2Balmost%2B12.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Good morning. I’m sure you are as surprised to see
me here as I am to be here. My name is Norman Stolpe, and I am a retired pastor
of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). I won’t try to trace all the
steps that brought me to be with you today. Only yesterday afternoon was I
asked to fill in for your pastor Fred Thomas-Breitfeld. I assure you, we have
spoken on the phone, and he has invited me to help out in a sort of time
crunch. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Perhaps you noticed, as I did, that each of the
Scriptures for today make a reference to the urgency of time.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Jonah proclaimed, “Forty more days and Nineveh will
be overthrown.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “The appointed time
has grown short, for the present form of this world is passing away.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
After John the Baptizer was arrested, Jesus picked
up with the same message, right where John left off, “The time is fulfilled,
and this kingdom of God has come near, repent and believe in the good news.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Each morning during my breakfast is use a
Benedictine discipline known as <i>lectio
divina</i> or holy reading with the lectionary readings for the coming Sunday. So every morning this week, without knowing I would be with you in worship
today, I have been listening for God’s word about propitious timing, which has
been a central aspect of our experience this past year plus.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My wife, Candy, and I had been in Dallas, TX since
2000. I had served Central Christian Church as their pastor until I “retired”
in 2011. Then I did five interim pastorates. During the last of those, in April
2016 my wife was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, and we knew we needed to make some
changes. Our Dallas house sold more quickly than we expected, so we came to
Milwaukee in February and stayed with some friends of our son David and
daughter-in-law Rachel until we could move into a duplex downstairs from Rachel
and David and their children Sam and Elizabeth in August. David is an impact
teacher at Lane Intermediate School in West Allis.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We left our youngest son, Erik, behind in Dallas. He
is a musician, and he has blossomed now that we’re not there to hold him back. Our
oldest son, Jon, is an engineer who lives north of Philadelphia, PA with his
wife, Leanne, and their children Hannah and Isaac. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Now that we have gotten settled and are feeling at
home, I have been looking for some ministry opportunities that work with making
every day the best it can be for my wife. I have been telling God I’d like to
do one thing a week after New Year’s. Well, last week I conducted a funeral for
a family without a pastor. Today I here with you in worship, and next Sunday I’m
preaching for the folk of Spirit of Peace Lutheran Church, just four blocks
from our home. I’m feeling confirmed in the timing of our next steps.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Besides hoping this helps you know a bit about me, I
think this gives you some idea of why we have been paying so much attention to
timing this year, and why I resonated as I meditated on the urgency of timing
in these passages this week.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Though Jonah preached to Nineveh in a spirit of
judgment and hostility rising out of ethnic, cultural and religious prejudice
and hatred, his message was God’s good news to the people of Nineveh. They recognized
the urgency of timing, turned around, and God was merciful to them.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I don’t know about you, but Paul’s instructions to
the Corinthians about how to live given the urgency of their time makes me
uncomfortable. Having said that, I found his tone remarkably appropriate this
week as Congress failed to meet the deadline for keeping the government
running. I don’t want to get overly political, especially with people who don’t
know me, but just as this past year was a time of unprecedented transition to a
new phase of life for our family, the past year since the last election has
brought our country, and in some measure our world, into uncharted, uncertain
territory with an urgency of timing. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
John the Baptist introduced Jesus and his ministry,
which Jesus kicked into high gear after John was arrested. This certainly shocked
Herod Antipas who thought he had eliminated John’s troublesome preaching only
to hear that Jesus preached the same message, “<span style="background: white; color: #010000;">The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom
of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.” Like the game <i>Whack a Mole</i>, Herod got caught in a game
of <i>Whack a Prophet</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Many sermons on this passage focus on the pairs of
fisherman brothers: Simon and Andrew, James and John. But it also affirms that
this is just the time for God’s good news.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
God’s good news is that “the time is fulfilled.” The
start of Jesus’ ministry was the turning point in God’s plan to redeem
humanity. Jesus’ preaching invited people to an unprecedented opportunity to
participate in God’s redemptive plan. Whatever they might have been waiting
for, the decisive moment had arrived. The rest of the New Testament extends the
propitious moment to us.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
All through Hebrew history God’s people had been
waiting for the Kingdom of God to dawn. They saw a few brief glimmers such as
the good years of David and Solomon, but from Moses to Nehemiah and Ezra they
mostly experienced yearning and disappointment. Jesus preached that heaven had
come to earth for those who would believe in and live in it. For us too, God’s
good news is to live in the exuberant confidence of the Kingdom of God
regardless of our circumstances.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Repent just means to turn around. Repentance is not
about feeling miserable or wallowing in guilt, shame and regret. Repentance is
God’s good news that we are no longer captives of our past but welcome home.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
John the Baptist had introduced the four fishermen
to Jesus so when Jesus called, they received and followed God’s good news! It
was their time to embrace God’s new life of unlimited, exuberant confidence.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
You may feel your life is in a holding pattern. That
tug deep inside that wants more is the Holy Spirit saying, “Now is your time!
The circumstances you think are hindrances are God’s opportunity.” The Kingdom
of God may seem obscure, but Jesus wants you to know that it has come near, not
at an exotic, unattainable distance but in your small daily details. So let go
of your regrets and inhibitions, your uncertainties and inadequacies. God is
welcoming you to exuberant confidence as a resident of the Kingdom of God,
which while hidden from ordinary folk is your most enduring and substantial
reality.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
With the church I served in NJ, I lead a weekly
lunch with worship for street people. Joe was a developmentally disabled man
who helped set and clear the table and played a hymn on his harmonica as part
of our worship. One day he said, “I’ve been working on something special for
today,” and played Handel’s <i>Hallelujah
Chorus</i>.<i> </i>A dozen or so unlikely
people got a taste of the Kingdom of God! If you pay attention, you will hear Jesus
saying, “The time is fulfilled, and this kingdom of God has come near, repent
and believe in the good news.” Your time for unlimited, exuberant confidence is
here.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-61296706334442563052017-12-17T16:00:00.000-06:002017-12-17T16:00:04.927-06:00Let It Be Whole<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-o5pbLbZ2Z80/Wi7EkQjinoI/AAAAAAAACE0/-_ztxIlHqBQ83g5rn4OeKAIpvxcc5mZfACEwYBhgL/s1600/John%2Bthe%2BBaptist%2B2Flyer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="481" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-o5pbLbZ2Z80/Wi7EkQjinoI/AAAAAAAACE0/-_ztxIlHqBQ83g5rn4OeKAIpvxcc5mZfACEwYBhgL/s400/John%2Bthe%2BBaptist%2B2Flyer.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br /><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>Isaiah 61:1-4; 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24; John 1:6-8,19-28<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>December 17, 2017<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>© 2017<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->I.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Advent is a season of ambivalence as Rachel and Peter made so clear with their
creative, humorous approach last week. While our society rushes around in a
frenzy, we wait for a hidden hope to be revealed. Advent acknowledges our human pain and cries
to God for intervention that brings wholeness to obvious brokenness.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list 1.0in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->A.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->I understand the Eash-Scotts host a “longest night” service on the
winter solstice. Building on that ancient Celtic tradition, for several years I
have led the churches I have served in a service the first Sunday night of
Advent that I called “Give God Your Holiday Blues.” It gave people opportunity
to express their feelings that seemed at odds with the seasonal celebrations.
Sometimes grieving a recent death or struggling with sickness or a personal
crisis. One of the most memorable was when 35 year old Christopher Clifton, who
had been struggling with brain cancer for several years, lit a candle and said
“I have just been told I have six weeks left to breathe. Whether it is six
days, six weeks, six months, or six years, I want them to be for Jesus.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list 1.0in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->B.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Simon and Garfunkel’s 1966 song <i>Silent
Night/7 O’clock News</i>, captures this Advent incongruity. That it took so
little creativity to do so speaks to what we all feel. <span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">Play
CD. </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8d5C8kPlJA"><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8d5C8kPlJA</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->II.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->We sang <i>My Soul Cries Out</i> <span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;">(<i>Sing the Story</i>, 124)</span> which each verse of anticipation is answered with the
refrain in hopes that “the world is about to turn.” The scriptures we have been
reading through Advent
acknowledge our human pain and cry to God for intervention that brings
wholeness to obvious brokenness.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list 1.0in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->A.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Isaiah 64:1 cries out to God “O that you would tear open the heavens
and come down.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list 1.0in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->B.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Isaiah 61:2 proclaims “the day of vengeance of our God.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list 1.0in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->C.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Quoting Isaiah 40:3,6-7, John 1:23 announces John the Baptist’s
ministry of baptism for repentance as “making straight the way of the Lord.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->III.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><!--[endif]-->When we sang <i>My Soul Cries
Out</i> at the hymn sing a few weeks ago,
repeating “the world is about to turn” evoked both longing and frustration in
me. How could I believe that “the world is about to turn” toward peace and
justice, righteousness and mercy with all that is happening right now? I was
ready for Advent
to acknowledge our human pain and cry to God for intervention that brings
wholeness to obvious brokenness. But I still am having trouble getting hold of
it.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list 1.0in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->A.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Since moving into our duplex, Candy and I have been listening to music
from the 60s and 70s, the early days of our relationship: Peter, Paul and Mary;
John Denver; Joan Baez; Simon and Garfunkel. We enjoy it, but I feel a deep
sadness, that what so many of us worked for seems to have been washed away, and
the world has regressed.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.5in; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list 1.5in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->1.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->I wasn’t a wild radical but did march and write hoping to end the war
in Viet Nam, and I requested conscientious objector status from my draft board.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.5in; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list 1.5in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->2.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->I continued to support civil rights efforts, participating in an open
housing process when we lived in Carol Stream, Illinois. I engaged with
homeless people when we were in Mt. Holly, New Jersey, even standing in
solidarity with homeless people who had pitched a tent city on the county
courthouse lawn and attending the court proceedings.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.5in; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list 1.5in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->3.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->I won’t say much about this, but the recent flood of news of sexual
misconduct by public figures has stirred up painful memories of having to deal
with a number of cases of such cases involving clergy colleagues, some even
good friends.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list 1.0in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->B.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Needless to say, the current news has me asking which way the world is
about to turn: toward peace and justice, righteousness and mercy, or toward
deeper corruption?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.5in; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list 1.5in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->1.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Violence and war are ubiquitous: as though more violence will address
the threats from North Korea, Iran, Isis; as though more guns will protect us
from crime and mass murder.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.5in; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list 1.5in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->2.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Regardless of the politics and economics of what emerges from tax and
health care reform, the way it is playing out generates the anxiety of
uncertainty for those who depend on things like Medicare, including Candy and
me.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.5in; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list 1.5in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->3.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Scandals of money, sex, and power are hardly new, but it feels like a
dam has burst, and asking if there will be any men left in public roles seems
reasonable.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->IV.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><!--[endif]--> So yes, Advent acknowledges our human pain and
cries to God for intervention that brings wholeness to obvious brokenness. As
discomforting as appearances may be, Advent doesn’t leave us in despair but
offers some secure anchors that we can depend on to hold in this storm. Advent shifts
our focus from the distresses we’d rather ignore during the holidays to a
reliable hope for wholeness.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list 1.0in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->A.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->The anchor has been a Christian symbol of hope for centuries. The small
ships of ancient times needed a way to weather sudden violent storms. The
anchor was not used in the harbor, but in open water it was lowered from the
bow of the ship to keep the prow pointing directly into the wind of the storm.
That way the ship could ride up and down with the waves without rolling and
capsizing. But when the anchor was doing its job, it was unseen, deep below the
water’s surface. The security of the Advent anchor keeps us facing directly
into the storm. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list 1.0in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->B.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->I don’t think Advent is a formula for easy comfort, but the scriptures
we have been reading are like the unseen anchors that can keep us stable in the
midst of our current turmoil, facing directly into the storm. They guide us to
the wholeness we desperately crave and need.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.5in; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list 1.5in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->1.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Isaiah 40:1 introduces the section that was apparently written for
Judah when they were carried into captivity in Babylon. In the worst crisis of
their history, God said, “Comfort, O comfort my people.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.5in; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list 1.5in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->2.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->When we are impatient for the world to turn toward peace and justice,
righteousness and mercy, 2 Peter 3:15 reminds us to regard God’s patience as
salvation, not as permitting evil to thrive.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.5in; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list 1.5in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->3.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Isaiah 61:1 pointed ahead to Jesus’ mission that has been passed on to
us because, the Spirit of the Lord God is upon us, because the Lord has
anointed us; he has sent us to bring good news to the oppressed, and bind up
the broken hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the
prisoners.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.5in; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list 1.5in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->4.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->1 Thessalonians 5:23 assures us that the God of peace will sanctify us
entirely, so we may be blameless.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.5in; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; mso-pagination: none; tab-stops: list 1.5in; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->5.<span style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->As we read in John 1:23, John the Baptist still calls us to “make
straight the way of the Lord,” in our own time and place.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Benediction from 1 Thessalonians 5:23-25<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white; color: #010000; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">May the God
of peace sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept
sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls
you is faithful, and will do this.</span><span style="font-size: 20.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-55754617193178428922017-12-06T12:23:00.001-06:002017-12-06T12:24:29.378-06:00Seeing the Image of God in Disabled People<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RqTh-FSJmRg/Wig1dWSeQBI/AAAAAAAACEk/QLf1ELx3cVw1fY_ZyvrqqwIPC0PZ6shiQCLcBGAs/s1600/Jean%2BVanier.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="597" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RqTh-FSJmRg/Wig1dWSeQBI/AAAAAAAACEk/QLf1ELx3cVw1fY_ZyvrqqwIPC0PZ6shiQCLcBGAs/s400/Jean%2BVanier.jpg" width="321" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoTitle" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<b>2 Timothy 1:1-14<o:p></o:p></b><br />
<b>preached for Milwaukee Mennonite Church</b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<b>September 24, 2017<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<b>© 2017<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
I have noticed that a number of
you open your worship messages with the prayer from Psalm 19:14, “May the words
of my mouth and the meditation of our hearts be acceptable to you our rock and
our redeemer.” I feel the need to do a little more today. With the instability
of our situation since leaving Dallas, I have not felt I had the spiritual
equilibrium to speak in worship yet. A few of you have asked me when I would
take a turn at preaching, and when I saw the plan of the worship team for this
fall, I told myself I wasn’t ready to handle any of these. But in my morning
meditation and prayer later that week, I was drawn to today’s concern for
disabled people. With our experience in the L’Arche Daybreak community for
mentally disabled adults 25 years ago, I began to feel I do have something to
share with you. As I have been praying about and assembling today’s message, I
have had a personal encounter that has tested my ability to live out what I am
going to say today. I have no great triumph to report, but my praying for what
I say and what you hear has been intense.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
Michael Arnet was one of the
“disabled” core members at Daybreak who lived at Stevenson House, which was our
home base in the community, though we lived off campus.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
In our first week or two there, a
group of a dozen or more went for an outing at the lakefront in Toronto.
Michael had already gravitated to me and wanted to hold hands as we walked by
the lake. I’m not sure I would have used the word ashamed, but I felt some
embarrassment holding hands with a grown man with an obvious disability in
public. Not wanting to let on to Michael, I worked this through in my mind and
grew more comfortable.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
My relationship with Michael
developed over our four months at Daybreak. Thursday nights I accompanied him
on his bedtime routine. Make lunch and lay out clothes for his next day’s work
in a sheltered workshop. Change into pajamas and put dirty clothes in the
laundry. Wash up and brush teeth. Pray with Michael before tucking him into
bed. He knelt by his bed and stared at a Latin American cross as he prayed
usually for 15-20 minutes, sometimes a half hour. This man who could not read
or write, whose speech was halting and slurred, whose movement were awkward,
prayed for people and crises all over the world. He knew where all of the
Daybreak members were from and who was travelling. I never heard him pray for
himself but for people he knew were hurting.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
At one afternoon worship, the
community was commissioning one of the assistant members to move to the L’Arche
community in Antigonish, Nova Scotia. About 30-40 of us gathered around her to
lay on hands and pray. I was standing next to Michael as he seemed to
restlessly lift his hand as though trying to find a place to make contact with
someone. When the rhythm of the prayers subsided, with his hand raised over his
head, Michael said with a firm, confident voice, “Go with God to Antigonish!”
With that the prayers ended and hugs were shared all around. Michael could not
have told you what an apostle was, yet he fulfilled the apostolic calling, and
the whole community recognized it.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
I learned from Michael Arnet how
my contemplative aspiration to see God is available in the people with
disabilities God brings across my path.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
Just a few weeks ago my
meditation on the Hebrew Scriptures brought me to Moses at the burning bush.
Exodus 3:6 says that Moses was afraid to look at God. I never want to lose the
awe, even terror, of seeing God.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
In Matthew 5:8 Jesus said that
the pure in heart would see God. So my contemplative ambition is not achieved
by trying to become a spiritual elitist but through disabled people whom God
brings to me.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
In his book <i>Purity of Heart is to Will One Thing, </i>Søren Kierkegaard explains
that Jesus was not speaking so much of moral purity, though that is important,
as having a single, pure desire uncontaminated by even good distractions. If
the only thing you want is to see God, you will see God.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
The 19<sup>th</sup> century
Russian mystic Theophan the Recluse wrote that “The principal thing is to stand
with the mind in the heart before God, and to go on standing before Him
unceasingly day and night until the end of life.” That does not mean dropping
out of life to gaze at God, but to intentionally live all of life aware of
standing before God.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
If you have ever looked at
Eastern Orthodox icons, you know they are different than the religious art we
are used to. They are not intended to be pictures to look at but windows to
look through to see a deeper spiritual reality. Michael Arnet was just such a
window, an icon, through which I learned to look for Christ for all the hurting
people of the world when I encounter disabled people.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
You may recall that in Matthew
25:37-40 Jesus said of those who reach out to people who are hungry, thirsty,
strangers, naked, and sick, “as you did it to one of the least of these who are
members of my family, you did it to me.” Leo Tolstoy wrote a short story about
Martin the Cobbler to illuminate this passage. Martin believed Christ had
promised to visit him on Christmas Eve, and he cared for several needy, hurting
people who passed by his shop, but didn’t think he had seen Christ until when
reading the passage he heard Christ say he had come in all those folk.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
As early as the 4<sup>th</sup>
Century John Chrysostom wrote, “If you cannot find Christ in the beggar at the
Church door, you will not find Him in the Chalice.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
In <i>Les Miserables</i>, Victor Hugo wrote that “to love another person is
to see the face of God.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
In our time Mother Teresa looked
for Christ in the faces of the people dying in the gutters of Calcutta. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
So when you feel ashamed,
embarrassed, or awkward with someone’s disability, even if it is your own,
Jesus invites you to look through that person as an icon, a window to see him.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
Disabilities come in many forms
and should not be ranked against each other. Some folk don’t recognize in
themselves what others consider a disability. Others plead for sympathy with
their disability that people around them don’t acknowledge. Some disabilities
are physiological, psychological, sociological, and still others spiritual.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
Looking for Christ in our own
disabilities may be most challenging of all. Candy and I have experienced this
in the past year and a half since her Alzheimer’s diagnosis. Loss of autonomy
and control looms large, as does anxiety about the pace of progression. In the
current <i>Christianity Today</i>, Matthew
Loftus reviewed John Dunlop’s book <i>Finding
Grace in the Face of Dementia</i>, which affirms the image of God even as our
minds fail.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
So the next time you feel
ashamed, awkward, embarrassed about someone with a disability, whether you
yourself, someone close to you, or someone you observe at a distance, pay
attention and you may just catch a glimpse of Jesus.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
I invite you to respond today by
praying together the L’Arche Prayer that we prayed together after supper every
evening at Daybreak.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="Default">
<i>O Father, we ask You to
bless us, and keep us in Your love. May L’Arche be a true home, where the poor
in Spirit may find life; A place where those who are suffering, may find
comfort and peace. Lord, give us hearts that are open, hearts that are humble
and gentle, so that we may welcome those You send, With tenderness and
compassion. <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="Default">
<i>Give us hearts full of
mercy , that we may love and serve; And where discord is found, may we be able to
heal and bring peace; And see in the one who is suffering, the living presence
of Your son. Lord, through the hands of Your little ones, we ask You to bless
us. Through the eyes of those who are rejected, we ask You to smile on us. <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>Lord, grant freedom and
fellowship, and unity to all the world; And on the day of Your coming, Welcome
all people into Your Kingdom.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-15039852286624225002016-03-23T19:00:00.001-05:002016-03-23T19:00:29.048-05:00Can You Imagine a Castle on a Cloud?<div class="MsoTitle" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Reflections for Easter Sunday</b></div>
<div class="MsoTitle" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"><b>Isaiah
65:17-25; John 20:11-18<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>March
27, 2016<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>© 2016<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Tjh7o0oU7LY/VvMt1dNXzFI/AAAAAAAABxU/A9rQG-1dFTQgL0CqZ2qitzrLZ0zTz9TFQ/s1600/Peacable%2BKingdom%2B-%2BHicks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Tjh7o0oU7LY/VvMt1dNXzFI/AAAAAAAABxU/A9rQG-1dFTQgL0CqZ2qitzrLZ0zTz9TFQ/s400/Peacable%2BKingdom%2B-%2BHicks.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
If you had the power to fix whatever
you think is wrong with the world, what would your new world look like? Artists
often express these dreams with great eloquence.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
Candy and I saw the <i>Les Miserables</i> movie at Christmas 2012,
having seen the stage play years ago in Philadelphia. Young Cosette’s song <i>Castle on a Cloud</i> is her dream of
escaping abusive servitude and drudgery. In the church I served in New Jersey,
it was sung by the school choir at the funeral for a girl killed in an auto
accident on her 13<sup>th</sup> birthday.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">There is a castle on a
cloud,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">I like to go there in my sleep,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Aren't any floors for me to sweep,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Not in my castle on a
cloud.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">There is a room that's full of toys,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">There are a hundred boys and girls,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Nobody shouts or talks too loud,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Not in my castle on a
cloud.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">There is a lady all in white,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Holds me and sings a lullaby,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">She's nice to see and she's soft to touch,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">She says “Cosette, I love
you very much.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">I know a place where no one's lost,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">I know a place where no one cries,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Crying at all is not allowed,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Not in my castle on a cloud.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
John Lennon’s <i>Imagine</i> has become
the anthem of a generation and identifies religion, nationalism, personal
property and the expectation of life after death as the sources of injustice
and suffering that need to be abolished. All of this is packaged as a winsome,
lyrical invitation to dream.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Imagine there's no heaven<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">It's easy if you try<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">No hell below us<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Above us only sky<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Imagine all the people
living for today<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Imagine there's no countries<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">It isn't hard to do<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Nothing to kill or die for<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">And no religion too<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Imagine all the people
living life in peace<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">You, you may say <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">I hope some day you'll join us<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">And the world will be as
one<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Imagine no possessions<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">I wonder if you can<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">No need for greed or hunger<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">A brotherhood of man<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Imagine all the people
sharing all the world<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">You, you may say <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">I hope some day you'll join us<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: .5in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">And the world will live as
one<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
Isaiah 65:17-25 envisions God’s
renewed world. This vision of hope answered the disappointments that came when
the people of Judah returned from captivity in Babylon and realized that it did
not inaugurate the ideal world. Through the prophet, God promised a new heaven
and a new earth, which is echoed again in Revelation 21:1. In a time when life
was short and any hint of personal, eternal life was vague at best, the defeat
of death was longevity measured by centuries and the age of trees. No longer
would people work to enrich others but would enjoy the fruits of their own
labors. The end of suffering and weeping is also echoed in Revelation 7:17. God
will not only protect but rejoice and delight in all who live on God’s holy
mountain.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-V8JhHyxWnko/VvMuAQjGKvI/AAAAAAAABxY/I-6ZjhHm-awKLvsEDCwCrzyU22bLqM--w/s1600/Mary%2BMagdalene%2B3%2Ba.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-V8JhHyxWnko/VvMuAQjGKvI/AAAAAAAABxY/I-6ZjhHm-awKLvsEDCwCrzyU22bLqM--w/s400/Mary%2BMagdalene%2B3%2Ba.JPG" width="287" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
For centuries people have
concocted all sorts of silly speculations about Mary Magdalene, though what the
New Testament tells us about her seems more than fascinating enough to me. She
is the main character in the account of Jesus’ resurrection in John 20. She,
probably with a few other women, was the first to arrive at the empty tomb at
dawn. She ran to tell Peter and probably John that Jesus had been taken out of
the tomb. Peter and John ran to the tomb but returned to the others without
seeing Jesus. Verses 11-18 report that …<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">… Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent
over to look into the tomb; </span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">12</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">and
she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying,
one at the head and the other at the feet. </span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">13</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">They
said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken
away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.”</span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">14</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">When
she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did
not know that it was Jesus. </span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">15</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Jesus
said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing
him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away,
tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” </span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">16</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Jesus
said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which
means <b>MY</b> Teacher).</span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">17</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Jesus
said to her, “Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the
Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and
your Father, to my God and your God.’”</span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">18</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Mary
Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she
told them that he had said these things to her.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
Mary’s experience with the risen
Jesus was intensely personal. Whether the other women were there at that
moment, John focused on the personal encounter between Mary and Jesus. Mary
recognized Jesus when he spoke <b><i>her</i></b> name, and she called him “<b><i>my</i></b>
teacher.” Emotionally overwhelmed, she clung to him, not wanting to let him out
of her grasp ever again. He said, “Don’t hold onto me.” Something bigger was
coming. He said, “I am ascending to <b><i>my</i></b> Father and <b><i>your</i></b> Father, <b><i>my</i></b>
God and <b><i>your</i></b> God,” bringing together the personal and the cosmic.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
Mary ran to proclaim, to preach
to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord!” Thus, as the first eye witness to proclaim
having seen the risen Jesus, she is called the first apostle and the apostle to
the apostles. Legend has it that she once had an audience with the Emperor
Tiberius and told how she met the risen Jesus. The Emperor replied that no one
could come back to life after a Roman crucifixion any more that the egg on the
table could turn red. The story is that the egg on the Emperor’s table
instantly turned red, and so many Eastern orthodox icons of Mary Magdalene show
her holding a red egg. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
The risen Jesus invites us to
join him in God’s future that is at once personal and cosmic, immediate and
eternal.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
I may have told you before of
hearing Fr. Thomas Hopko speak on the spiritual life when he was Dean of St.
Vladimir’s Orthodox Seminary in New York. He said that when he was a boy, his
mother told him, “If you want to grow as a Christian, read your Bible, say your
prayers, and go to church.” Then he said to us, “Now I am the dean of a
seminary training people for a lifetime of ministry, and I tell them to read
their Bibles, say their prayers and go to church.” As simplistic as it may
seem, Jesus meets us in the pages of Scripture, in the quiet conversation of
prayer and in the community of God’s people of faith.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
Jesus also calls us out of
ourselves to be his partners in his redemptive repair of this broken world. He
invites us bringing join him in the world of struggling people he is loving and
transforming, into his cosmic redemption of all humanity and all creation. Here
in Albany, TX, I have observed this in those who volunteer with Vittles by
Vehicle, Closet Angels, Neighbors in Need, the Food Pantry. By look into the
faces of the hurting, wounded people around us, they do much more than extend
the love of Jesus to them, they join Jesus in his redemptive mission for all
people in all times and all places. Beyond that, they see Christ looking back
at them and smiling at them through their tears.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-54907084102001938442016-03-23T18:52:00.000-05:002016-03-23T18:52:02.033-05:00What is in Your Heart Comes Out<div class="MsoTitle" style="text-align: center;">
<b>A Good Friday Meditation</b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>Psalm
22:1-15; Mark 15:33-41<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>March
23, 2016<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>© 2016<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-p1NnLbxX_P0/VvMsA-s78GI/AAAAAAAABxI/O1-yUC_KY80AqbWWr_zP9ATBjthZocgkw/s1600/The_Crucifix_image.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-p1NnLbxX_P0/VvMsA-s78GI/AAAAAAAABxI/O1-yUC_KY80AqbWWr_zP9ATBjthZocgkw/s400/The_Crucifix_image.jpg" width="341" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
In over 40 years as a pastor, I
have been with a lot of people while they were dying, sometimes even at the
moment of their passing. Christopher was 35 years old and dying of brain
cancer. He had agreed with his parents that when hospice told them his last day
had come, they were to invite me and the young adult group from church to be
with them. He had been a runner in his healthier years and asked his parent to
play a song called “He Finished the Race” when they could tell he would be
breathing his last, which they did. Sad? Of course! But this was a most holy
moment. What was in his heart came out. Sometimes what comes out as someone
dies is angry cursing, but sometimes sweet peace comes out even in pain. It all
depends on what was already in the heart.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
Mark 15:33-41 reports what came
out of Jesus’ mouth from his heart as he breathed his last. It had different
effects on those who were there to witness it.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">When it was noon, darkness came
over the whole land until three in the afternoon.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><sup>34</sup>At three o’clock Jesus
cried out with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My
God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><sup>35</sup>When
some of the bystanders heard it, they said, “Listen, he is calling for Elijah.”<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><sup>36</sup>And someone ran, filled a
sponge with sour wine, put it on a stick, and gave it to him to drink, saying,
“Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to take him down.”<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><sup>37</sup>Then Jesus gave a loud
cry and breathed his last.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><sup>38</sup>And
the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><sup>39</sup>Now when the centurion,
who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said,
“Truly this man was God’s Son!”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<sup><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">40</span></sup><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">There were also women looking on
from a distance; among them were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James
the younger and of Joses, and Salome.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><sup>41</sup>These
used to follow him and provided for him when he was in Galilee; and there were
many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
The bystanders misunderstood and
thought Jesus was calling the prophet Elijah to rescue him. They mocked his
words as foolish.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
The centurion recognized Jesus
was God’s Son in the loud cry of his last breath.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
I believe we know a lot of what
Jesus said from the cross because the women witnessed it and reported it. They
recognized that even their presence couldn’t relieve the acute abandonment
Jesus felt in those three dark hours.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
We typically think of Psalm 22 as
prophesying the details of Jesus’ crucifixion. That certainly makes sense, but
I think that by Jesus’ quoting Psalm 22 from the cross we can see deep into his
heart. This is not the only Scripture or Psalm Jesus quoted during his ordeal.
Jesus’ heart was so full of Scripture that he could draw on it for spiritual
sustenance each step of the way, even in the three hour darkness of being
abandoned by his Heavenly Father. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
Psalm 22 gave Jesus an honest,
intense way to respond to the pain of his abandonment. He didn’t have to pretty
it up with pious words. He could draw on Scripture to express his most
excruciating pain. He didn’t have to struggle to compose appropriate words. He
could draw on the words of Scripture already in his heart.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
That same Psalm also gave him a
way to hang onto trusting his Heavenly Father in the face of feeling total
abandonment and alienation. It gave him a way to appeal to his Heavenly Father
in his moment of extremity.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
Sometimes when we are at the
extremities of our lives, feeling abandoned by friends, family and even God, we
are afraid to express our emotions honestly. If we will fill our hearts with
Scripture, especially the Psalms, we can receive from God honest words to
express our pain and struggle to trust, knowing that since they come from
Scripture, they are acceptable to God. I would also say that by filling our
hearts with Scripture, we supply the Holy Spirit with raw material to bring
into our minds and out of our mouths for every circumstance of life from
deepest grief to most exalted joy.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-62661252919150641792016-03-19T20:38:00.002-05:002016-03-19T20:38:28.422-05:00God Meets Us in the Spaces Between … Humiliation and Exaltation<div class="MsoTitle" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"><b>Philippians
2:5-11; Luke 19:29-44<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>March
20, 2016 – Palm Sunday<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>© 2016<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vaopREFXbA4/Vu3-0Iv0s0I/AAAAAAAABw4/5hqjAHs2LaYP46r4fx4eeOYllh4GSpAFA/s1600/350px-Giotto_-_Legend_of_St_Francis_-_-06-_-_Dream_of_Innocent_III%2B%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vaopREFXbA4/Vu3-0Iv0s0I/AAAAAAAABw4/5hqjAHs2LaYP46r4fx4eeOYllh4GSpAFA/s400/350px-Giotto_-_Legend_of_St_Francis_-_-06-_-_Dream_of_Innocent_III%2B%25281%2529.jpg" width="350" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Palm Sunday is a bitter-sweet day
in the liturgical calendar. We want to welcome Jesus with cheers and not think
too much about what’s coming on Friday. Those who don’t have a Maundy Thursday
or Good Friday experience jump from “Hosanna!” to “He is risen!” without the
Last Supper, praying in the Garden, trial and crucifixion. The seemingly
anonymous overseers of the liturgical calendar have tried to remedy this by
inserting Passion Sunday to focus on the events around Jesus’ crucifixion
either the fifth or sixth Sundays in Lent. Few churches want to give up Palm
Sunday festivities on the sixth Sunday, and observing crucifixion on the fifth
Sunday, a week before Palm Sunday, is disturbingly out of rhythm. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I have heard plenty of Palm
Sunday sermons about fickle people who shouted “Hosanna!” on Palm Sunday and
“Crucify!” on Good Friday. Unique among the Gospels, Luke is clear that these
were two different groups. Vocabulary that is apparent throughout Luke becomes
blatant from Palm Sunday through Good Friday. Luke calls those who welcomed
Jesus on Palm Sunday “the people” or “the disciples,” meaning all of his
followers not just the Twelve. And Luke calls the mob that cried for his
crucifixion “the crowd.” Our English translations don’t always make this as
clear as it is in Greek.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">While John 12:12 emphasized that
pilgrims who had come to Jerusalem for Passover went out to greet Jesus on Palm
Sunday, Luke emphasized those who had followed Jesus from Galilee and witnessed
his deeds of power shouted praises as they approached Jerusalem. This is not a
conflict but the bitter-sweet way Luke 19:29-44 sets the stage for Jesus’
response as he came around the Mount of Olives for a panoramic view of
Jerusalem. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Jesus’ Triumphal Entry concludes
the transition we have been watching through Lent from Jesus’ ministry in
Galilee to his destiny with the cross in Jerusalem. In this space, Jesus was teaching
on the go and had become increasingly pointed, foreshadowing the climatic
confrontation with the Temple leadership in Jerusalem.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When he had
come near Bethphage and Bethany, at the place called the Mount of Olives, he
sent two of the disciples, <sup>30</sup>saying, “Go into the village ahead of
you, and as you enter it you will find tied there a colt that has never been
ridden. Untie it and bring it here.<sup>31</sup>If anyone asks you, ‘Why are
you untying it?’ just say this, ‘The Lord needs it.’”<sup>32</sup>So those who
were sent departed and found it as he had told them. <sup>33</sup>As they were
untying the colt, its owners asked them, “Why are you untying the colt?”<sup>34</sup>They
said, “The Lord needs it.”<sup>35</sup>Then they brought it to Jesus; and after
throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it.<sup>36</sup>As he rode
along, people kept spreading their cloaks on the road.<sup>37</sup>As he was
now approaching the path down from the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of
the disciples began to praise God joyfully with a loud voice for all the deeds
of power that they had seen, <sup>38</sup>saying, “Blessed is the king who
comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven, and glory in the highest heaven!”
<sup>39</sup>Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, order
your disciples to stop.”<sup>40</sup>He answered, “I tell you, if these were
silent, the stones would shout out.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><sup>41</sup>As he came
near and saw the city, he wept over it, <sup>42</sup>saying, “If you, even you,
had only recognized on this day the things that make for peace! But now they
are hidden from your eyes.<sup>43</sup>Indeed, the days will come upon you,
when your enemies will set up ramparts around you and surround you, and hem you
in on every side.<sup>44</sup>They will crush you to the ground, you and your
children within you, and they will not leave within you one stone upon another;
because you did not recognize the time of your visitation from God.”</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">For Luke, the bitter-sweet of Palm
Sunday was not fickle people but that Jesus’ disciples enthusiastically shouted
his praises, oblivious to his weeping over Jerusalem. Contemplating this
incongruity opens a vista into our spaces between humiliation and exaltation, where
we can listen for the voice of God to identify our growth zones.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Matthew 21:5 quotes Zechariah 9:9
to specify that Jesus purposely chose to ride a donkey as a sign of
humiliation. Jesus presented himself, not as a conquering hero on a white horse
but as a servant riding a beast of burden.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">In the midst of the exhilarating
exaltation of the cheers of his disciples, Jesus was insulted by the Pharisees.
Even deeper, his humiliation was knowing that he would not be recognized by the
Temple leaders in Jerusalem. He wept for the fate of Jerusalem. If only they
recognized him!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">In that space between humiliation
and exaltation, Jesus yearned for the people of Jerusalem, and I believe for us
to identify where we are growing in the things that make for peace: faith and
harmony with God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Philippians 2:5-11 is clearly a
hymn of the New Testament Church. Scholars speculate whether Paul inserted a
known hymn to make his point or whether he composed it himself. I’m inclined to
think Paul used something the Philippian church already sang in worship, but I
don’t think it matters. But recognizing how Paul introduced this exquisitely
theological praise is critical. “Let this same mind be in you that was in
Christ Jesus.” Paul is purposely practical!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Jesus leads the way for us
through humiliation to exaltation. When you think you deserve some respect or
appreciation, remember you are following the one who emptied himself of divine
prerogatives to ride a donkey to the cross, weeping, not for himself but for
people who couldn’t recognize the things that made for peace.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">In your spaces between
humiliation and exaltation, how can you listen for the voice of God to identify
your growth zones? We may squirm, but these are not deficiencies as much as the
zones where the Holy Spirit is encouraging us to grow. Do you feel your hackles
coming up when someone challenges you? Maybe it’s when you’re sure you’re right
and someone else tells you that they’re sure you’re wrong. Maybe it when you’ve
made a decision that affects other people and someone questions your right or
authority to make that decision. Behind the noise of your own heart, can you
hear the whisper of Jesus saying, “Here is where you are growing now”?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Much has been made of Pope
Francis being the first Latin American Pope, the first Jesuit Pope and the
first Pope to choose the name Francis. Francis of Assisi never aspired to be a
parish priest or bishop, much less a Pope. In fact, he clashed with Popes. Yet in
1208 Pope Innocent III had a dream of the Church sliding off its foundations,
stopped by the little monk, Francis. I have seen Giotto’s fresco of that dream in
the Basilica of St. Francis in Assisi, Italy. Francis refused to be called the
leader of the <i>Friars Minor</i>, “Little
Brothers.” We know them as the Franciscans. Francis would have been horrified
to have something named after him. He even refused to be the leader of the band
of 12 brothers with whom he lived and served. Though others recorded some of
Francis’ sermons, teachings and prayers (some of which are more legendary than
historical), he never wrote with the idea of leaving a legacy. Nevertheless,
Francis is one of the most influential Christian since the apostolic age. While
claimed by Roman Catholics, Protestants and even non-Christians love Francis.
Legend has it that in 1219, during the 5<sup>th</sup> Crusade, Francis crossed
enemy lines for an audience with the Sultan of Egypt who is reported to have
said, “If more Christian were like Francis, I would consider becoming one.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">For centuries the Jesuits and Franciscans
have been rivals, making Pope Francis’ choice of that name extraordinary. Francis
of Assisi shows us the journey through humiliation to exaltation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">From Luke’s bitter-sweet account
of Palm Sunday, as you join the cheers of the multitude of Jesus’ disciples,
can you also watch Jesus weeping and hear him whisper, “These things make for
peace. You are growing here.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-43396762531939985172016-03-12T13:07:00.002-06:002016-03-12T19:17:50.718-06:00God Meets Us in the Spaces Between … Then and There, Here and Now<div class="MsoTitle" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Isaiah
43:16-21; John 12:1-8</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">March
13, 2016<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">© 2016<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3J4Ezxn8maQ/VuRoruhmgpI/AAAAAAAABwY/1alRK2B0V5AhOt9tg7TJbWx08Ai9yJxeA/s1600/anointing-his-feet-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="296" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3J4Ezxn8maQ/VuRoruhmgpI/AAAAAAAABwY/1alRK2B0V5AhOt9tg7TJbWx08Ai9yJxeA/s400/anointing-his-feet-2.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">My friend Caela is a pastor in Kansas.
She and her husband David have two boys. While watching his Mom read the news
on the internet, then three year old Maitland said, “Oh, I see the Pope! Pope
Francis. He is a pastor, just like my Mama.” Of course, he is too young to
grasp the many layers of irony that make us laugh at his observation. Yet,
making the connection between a married, woman Protestant pastor and the Pope
surrounded by centuries of tradition and trappings is something of a metaphor
for living between the then and there, here and now.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">We all know that as an interim
pastor I will be with you for a brief but important time. Candy and I are also
aware of living between our then and there, here and now. We’ve begun checking
off the lists of what we need to do for the next steps of our journey. During
Holy Week Candy will be with our son David’s family in Milwaukee and hopes to
see her Dad to dovetail our plans together. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Today’s Scripture is about
emerging from the past so we can embrace the future. It can help us listen for
God in the spaces between then and there, here and now. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Providing pastoral leadership and
care while the Search and Call Committee looks for another pastor is only part
of the ministry of an interim pastor. Equally important is creating a space
between pastors that insulates the new pastor from comparisons with the
previous pastor. In my time with you, I hope I am helping you listen for God in
between pastors.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Isaiah 40-55 was pointedly
applicable to Judah’s Babylonian Exile and prepared them to return to their
homeland. 43:16-17 recalls God opening the Sea (of Reeds) so they could escape
Egyptian slavery on dry ground. But when they were captives in Babylon, a
desert rather than a sea was the barrier they would have to cross to get to
freedom. Instead of dry land through the sea, God would make a river in the
desert; instead of a pursuing army, God would use a pagan King to launch and
finance their return to the Promised Land.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The prophet asked Judah, “Do you
not perceive the new thing God is doing through you?” Seen from a New Testament
perspective, Judah’s return from Babylon was far greater than the Exodus from
Egypt, as it set in motion the coming of the Messiah. On a congregational
scale, I am convinced God is saying to this congregation, “In your space between
pastors, the future I have awaiting you will far exceed the best of your past.
I’m about to do a new thing. Can you not perceive it?”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ctRJB0OoUiE/VuS_m36fjiI/AAAAAAAABwo/a60c3tdYs-8fnAxEBrFJlqpSorrr4dqNw/s1600/Isaiah%2B43%2B19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="332" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ctRJB0OoUiE/VuS_m36fjiI/AAAAAAAABwo/a60c3tdYs-8fnAxEBrFJlqpSorrr4dqNw/s400/Isaiah%2B43%2B19.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What new thing can you see God doing around you?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Lent, also, is a space between then
and there, here and now. We look back at our spiritual struggles and wandering,
and we look ahead to redemption and resurrection. Lent is an annual reminder
that we are neither chained to our past nor fully living our future. In Luke’s
Gospel, we’ve been following Jesus through the spaces between his Galilean
ministry and his redemptive mission at the cross. Today we jump to John 12:1-8
for a poignant, personal glimpse into one of those spaces. All four Gospels
record a woman anointing Jesus. Scholars love to debate the identity of the
women and the exact occasions of the anointings. That could be another fun
Bible study, but too detailed for a sermon. I will tell you this much. I
believe Luke 7 was a different woman much earlier in Jesus’ ministry. Matthew
26 and Mark 14 are almost certainly reporting the same incident. While I can’t
prove it, I suspect John 12 is the same woman and incident as Matthew and Mark,
that John has told in his own way of making the dramatic transition to the
events of Holy Week.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #010000;">Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, the home of
Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">2</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">There
they gave a dinner for him. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those at the
table with him. </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">3</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">Mary took a pound of
costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped them with her
hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">4</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">But
Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was about to betray him),
said, </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">5</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">“Why was this perfume not sold for three
hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?” </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">6</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">(He
said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he
kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it.) </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">7</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">Jesus
said, “Leave her alone. She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of
my burial. </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">8</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">You always have the poor with you, but you
do not always have me.”</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The dinner for Jesus at Bethany
seemed to be out of gratitude for the raising of Lazarus. Though unlikely that
Mary bought the perfume thinking of Jesus’ burial, he pointedly turned it into
a stark precursor of his death.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">When Jesus quoted Deuteronomy
15:11 about always having the poor, both the context of that verse and his own
life, preclude using it to rationalize withholding generosity from the poor. By
saying “you do not always have me,” he focused this occasion on his coming
death.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">For Mary to anoint and let her
hair down in public to wipe the feet of a man who was not her husband was
scandalous intimacy. I believe I hear the voice of God in the spaces between
the past and the future inviting us to a similarly close relationship with
Jesus.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">In Isaiah 43:21, God called Judah
“the people I formed for myself so that they might declare my praise.” Each
time we see Mary of Bethany, she is an icon of deep closeness with Jesus: the
dinner in Luke 10:38-42, the death of her brother Lazarus in John 11:28-33 and
the anointing we read today.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Paul wrote in Philippians 3:10-11
that he wanted “to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the
sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death, if somehow I may
attain the resurrection from the dead.” He wasn’t thinking of a seminary
degree. He wanted to be so absorbed in Jesus that he could live every day by
the power of Jesus’s resurrection.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Paul also knew that for Jesus’
resurrection to be his daily reality, not just a past event or future hope, he
would also share the fellowship of his suffering. To be with Jesus in the
spaces between then and there, here and now is to be with him wherever people
suffer as you journey toward the future with hope.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-indent: .25in;">
<br /></div>
Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-87240663776091220242016-03-04T22:25:00.003-06:002016-03-04T22:25:51.768-06:00God Meets Us in the Spaces Between … Previous and Next<div class="MsoTitle">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>Genesis
15:1-12; Luke 13:31-35<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>March
6, 2016<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>©
2016 <o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bn93gmeQvEQ/VtpftzT58NI/AAAAAAAABvo/aiFOF8YGgAM/s1600/little%2Bfox%2Bbig%2Bhen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bn93gmeQvEQ/VtpftzT58NI/AAAAAAAABvo/aiFOF8YGgAM/s400/little%2Bfox%2Bbig%2Bhen.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Listen to this quote and think about who
might have written it and when. “Our earth is degenerate in the latter days.
There are signs that the world is speedily coming to an end. Bribery and
corruption are common. Children no longer obey their parents. Everyone wants to
write a book, and the end of the world is evidently approaching.” Does this
sound like some Christian doomsday prophecy preachers? Every few years another
one writes a book. Or maybe a commentary on our current election cycle. We know
that Socrates and others made similar observations about the impending collapse
of Greek and Roman culture over 2,000 years ago. This was quoted from an
Assyrian clay tablet dated to 2800 BCE, 4800 years ago – closer to Abraham than
to us. (<i>Chicago Tribune</i> December 9,
2012 quoted by <i>Christian Century</i>,
January 9, 2013, p. 9)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Rather than dismissing our present anxieties
by comparing them to ancient anxieties, I want to ask, how can we keep
believing God has a redemptive plan when generation after generation sees so
much doom?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Whom do you trust when the dark spaces in
life seem interminable? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
What do you hear when you listen for God in
the dark, interminable spaces of life? Many spiritual giants through the
generations have faced what St. John of the Cross called the dark night of the
soul. I expect some of you have had experiences you think of in the same way.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
When you heard the story in Genesis 15, did
you think, “That’s strange?” At that time, when two nomadic chieftains made a
treaty, they each brought an animal which they cut in two and holding bloody
hands walked between the halves of the animals before offering half of each
animal as a sacrifice to each of their patron gods. When our English
translations of the Hebrew Scriptures say “made a covenant,” the literal
translation would usually be “cut a covenant.” <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
In the Bible fire and smoke are often signs
of God’s presence. Here the smoking fire pot and flaming torch that pass
between the halves of the animals signify that God alone is responsible for
keeping the covenant with Abram. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Though Abram does nothing to show he was
responsible for the covenant, verse 6 says, “He believed the Lord and the Lord
reckoned it to him as righteousness.” This may be the most important single
line in the entire Bible. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
About 1400 years after Abram, the prophet
Habakkuk (2:4) made it the core of God’s expectations of all people, “The
righteous will live by their faith.” The New Testament traces the Gospel to
this seed in Romans 1:17; 4:3; Galatians 3:6,11; Hebrews 10:38; James 2:23.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
The usual English translations say Abram
“believed the Lord.” We tend to use “believe” to mean agreeing that something
is true. So we speak of believing in God as meaning we believe God is real. But
Genesis makes an entirely different point that could probably be better
translated “Abram trusted the Lord, and the Lord reckoned it to him as
righteousness.” <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Abram trusted God’s covenant promise of
descendants and land, even though both seemed impossible. Abram and Sari were
well beyond childbearing years. They were landless nomads among hostile people
who were not about to give them any land. The rest of Genesis records how Abram
and his immediate descendants repeatedly do things that seem to interfere with
the covenant, but God fulfills it anyway with Isaac’s birth, and five centuries
later Joshua led Israel into the Promised Land.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
God reminded Abram that God brought him out
of Ur of the Chaldeans to give him the land where he was then an alien (v. 7).
He had to live in the space between Ur and Canaan. The Ten Commandments open (Exodus
20:2) with God reminding Israel that God had brought them out of Egypt and
slavery to bring them into the Promised Land and freedom. For 40 years in the
wilderness they lived in the space between Egypt and Canaan, between slavery
and freedom.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Hebrews 11:9-11 explains that Abraham could
live in this in between space by looking forward to a city with foundations
whose architect and builder is God.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
During Lent we follow Jesus in the space
between his ministry in Galilee and his crucifixion in Jerusalem. Luke 13:31-35
comes as Jesus had been going through one town and village after another,
teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">At
that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for
Herod wants to kill you.”</span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">32</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">He
said to them, “Go and tell that fox for me, ‘Listen, I am casting out demons
and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work.</span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">33</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Yet
today, tomorrow, and the next day I must be on my way, because it is impossible
for a prophet to be killed outside of Jerusalem.’</span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">34</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Jerusalem,
Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to
it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers
her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! </span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">35</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">See,
your house is left to you. And I tell you, you will not see me until the time
comes when you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.’”</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
We compare a destructive person in charge of
something vulnerable to a fox in the hen house. Jesus gives the fox and the hen
a surprising, distinctly Hebrew twist. To call someone a fox was not so much
about their cunning but a contemptuous way of saying they were unimportant and
insignificant. So Jesus was saying that Herod, whose interest was immediate
power was not significant enough to keep him from his long-term mission in
Jerusalem.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Then Jesus compared himself to a hen
gathering her brood to protect them, but the chicks of Jerusalem insisted on
exposing themselves to danger. Like prophets before him, Jesus did not waver
from going to Jerusalem and the cross. What seemed like defeat was the path to
ultimate victory. Herod the fox lost, and Jesus the hen won.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Jesus’ lament over Jerusalem (vv. 34-35) was inner
anguished musing, not a speech to an audience. He quoted Psalm 118:26, “Blessed
is the one who comes in the name of the Lord” connecting Israel’s ancient hope
with his Triumphal Entry and his redemptive passion. In this space with Jesus, God’s
redemptive plan for all humanity was suspended between anticipation and
fulfillment.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
What do we hear when we listen for God in the
interminable, dark spaces of life?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
God says, “Trust me, however dark or long the
space.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
Some time ago I watched a program on Public TV about Chinese Jade. One
piece was about 4-5 feet high and 2-3 feet in diameter. It was intricately
carved with scenes of people in nature in elegant details that were visible not
only on the outside but through a latticework of passages and windows that went
all the way through. The history of this piece was that when it was found the
Emperor commissioned the premiere jade carver in China to create a work
suitable for the Imperial Palace. The carver began his work, and when his son
was old enough he taught him not only jade carving but also the design for this
special piece. The jade carver and his son also taught his grandson. Eventually
the original jade carver died, but his son and grandson passed both the skills
and vision for this very special piece of jade to his great-grandson. Shortly
before the original jade carver’s grandson died, he and the great-grandson
presented the finished carving to the great-grandson of the Emperor who had
commissioned the work. He received it with great pomp and gratitude,
exclaiming, “This is exactly what we in the Palace have been expecting for four
generations!”<o:p></o:p></div>
Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-47159477290577870402016-02-27T08:00:00.000-06:002016-02-27T08:00:21.147-06:00God Meets Us in the Spaces Between … Ambition and Vulnerability<div align="left" class="MsoTitle">
<b><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Isaiah 55:1-9; Luke 13:1-9</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">February 28, 2016<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">© 2016<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AaZ8gtgjujg/VssrovC453I/AAAAAAAABvI/_vwyigKXQbE/s1600/266_AlexanderMstrJHlsCrppWmnPrblBrrnFigKoninklijke_BibliotheekTheHague1430CROP.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AaZ8gtgjujg/VssrovC453I/AAAAAAAABvI/_vwyigKXQbE/s400/266_AlexanderMstrJHlsCrppWmnPrblBrrnFigKoninklijke_BibliotheekTheHague1430CROP.jpg" width="283" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">As a young adult Candy’s Mother wandered from
the faith and church of her parents. She described those years as wild and
wayward. The she contracted tuberculosis and had a long recovery in a
sanitarium. She credited her bout with tuberculosis with bringing her back to a
close relationship with God. Now, I don’t think God specifically steered some
TB bacteria her way. Her less wayward sisters also contracted tuberculosis.
Rather, I would suggest that God had been graciously calling to her all along,
and during her recovery in the sanitarium she was ready and quiet enough to
listen.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Whether you are grimacing or smiling, you
have certainly had occasion to ask why something particularly bad has happened
to you or to someone you know. We’ve all said, “They didn’t deserve that,” or
asked, “What did I do to deserve that?” When my friend Wes Kennedy was going
through all the procedures following a cancer diagnosis, intending sympathy, his
doctor asked, “Do you ever wonder, why me?” To which Wes responded, “Why not
me? I don’t expect to be exempt from the realities of life.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">In the spaces that bad things open up in our
lives, be ready to listen attentively for God’s call to renewal.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">As I’ve already said, during Lent we are
journeying with Jesus to the cross. In Luke 11-12, Jesus’ teaching to the people
on his path had become increasingly confrontational. In Luke 13:1-9 he was not
yet in Jerusalem, but it was on his mind as he headed there and was brought
gossip from Jerusalem.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #010000;">At
that very time there were some present who told him about the Galileans whose
blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">2</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">He
asked them, “Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way
they were worse sinners than all other Galileans? </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">3</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">No,
I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as they did. </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">4</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">Or
those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them—do you
think that they were worse offenders than all the others living in Jerusalem? </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">5</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">No,
I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish just as they did.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><sup><span style="color: #777777;">6</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">Then
he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he
came looking for fruit on it and found none. </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">7</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">So
he said to the gardener, ‘See here! For three years I have come looking for
fruit on this fig tree, and still I find none. Cut it down! Why should it be
wasting the soil?’ </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">8</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">He
replied, ‘Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig around it and put
manure on it. </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">9</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">If it bears fruit next
year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.’”</span></span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The first thing to notice is that Jesus
asserted that the tragedies were not punishment or even natural consequences
for the behavior of their victims. We can’t be sure of the specific events
Jesus was speaking about, but some things did happen that could have connected.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #010000; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Galileans were not too welcome
in Jerusalem. Many rebel movements started in Galilee, so the Romans were
suspicious that Galileans in Jerusalem were fomenting insurrection. Their
fellow Jews considered them to be uncouth and impious, not really worthy of
bringing a pure sacrifice to the Temple. On more than one occasion Pilate was
known to send soldiers into the Temple to assassinate any he thought might be
using piety as a cover for conspiracy. The Jerusalem Jews might suggest that
because the Galileans were ritually impure, God allowed the Romans to kill them
before they got to the altar. Maybe these deserved it.</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #010000; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Pilate wanted to build a Roman
style water works in Jerusalem, and he confiscated some of the Temple offerings
to pay for it. The Jews he hired to build it were considered wicked traitors.
We don’t know if the tower that fell was part of that project or if those killed
were working on it, but the Pool of Siloam was a water source for Pilate’s
project. Gossip may have been that God purposely pushed the tower on them.</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #010000; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">While Jesus specified that
neither Pilate’s human cruelty nor the accidental collapse of the tower were
God’s punishment, he said in them God’s urgent invitation to repent could be
heard. Recognize that life is uncertain, and God is calling. Don’t miss your
opportunity to reply.</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #010000; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">That is the point of the
parable of the fig tree. Like the gardener, God is giving you an opportunity to
be fruitful, but it is limited. The time will come for the ax and saw, and the
opportunity may be missed. I doubt Jesus had this in mind, but the gardener’s
cultivating and spreading of manure can also be a parable for us about life’s
difficult times. These spaces stir up our lives and dump stink on us, but those
may be the triggers for our spiritual vigor.</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Scholars debate exactly how, who and when the
book of Isaiah came to be what we know. Exploring that could be a fun Bible
study, but they all agree that Isaiah 55 comes from the section written for
Judah when they were in Exile in Babylon. It is God’s word of hope in the
darkest space of their history.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">In vv. 2-3, God calls, “Listen to me, and I
will lead you to joyful, vivacious bounty. The dark space is temporary.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">In vv. 6-7, God calls, “This is the time of
opportunity. I am near right now. Turn to me and receive my mercy.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">In vv. 1-2, 4-5, God calls, “I want you to
flourish, to be so conspicuously inviting that you attract all people to me.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The ancient examples of Israel’s history
match Jesus’ commentary on tragedies of his time. Tragic events in our time
teach us to listen for God’s voice, turn to God, be nourished by God. In the
spaces that bad things open up in our lives, we may be ready to listen
attentively for God’s call to renewal.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I hope you do not think of my time with you
as your interim pastor as God’s punishment. I know that the interim between
pastors is a time of uncertainty. It is often a time of anxiety in which seeing
God’s bounty can be difficult. As an act of faith, I encourage you to pray and
step up your giving and involvement, building hope and expectation for the
ministry bounty God has waiting. Holding back with a “wait and see” attitude,
is to spend for that which does not satisfy. Instead, use God’s resources to
buy into God’s bounty.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Lent reminds us that our journey with Jesus
is not always a level, smooth path. Ignatius of Loyola imagined it as a rhythm
of consolations and desolations. (<i>Spiritual
Exercises</i>, 313-327) Of the 150 Psalms, ⅔ are laments or complaints. Passing
through the dark spaces does not mean we have lost our way. When we know we are
vulnerable, we are more inclined to listen for the voice of God and depend on
the mercy of Christ and the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Whether the challenge
is health, career, family, financial or relational, listen for the voice of
God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The recent political posturing of the presidential campaign reminds us
that many things over which we have no personal control can plunge us into
uncertain spaces. Though not nearly as extreme as Judah’s Exile in Babylon, the
prescription is the same. Informed by Scripture and attuned to the Holy Spirit,
listen for the voice of God – not about how to vote but about how to respond to
God’s invitation to spiritual renewal for you and your church. How to become a
flourishing community of hope so attractive, people trapped in their dark
spaces with flock to Jesus because you embody God’s bounty.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-59076257589787795992016-02-13T08:00:00.000-06:002016-02-13T08:00:08.210-06:00God Meets Us in the Spaces between … Purpose and Proof<div class="MsoTitle">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>Romans
10:8b-13; Luke 4:1-13<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>February
14, 2016<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>© 2016<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uVzIaS8cbns/VrtoD70AosI/AAAAAAAABu0/5lxvfZyAGS0/s1600/bread-and-stone2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="327" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uVzIaS8cbns/VrtoD70AosI/AAAAAAAABu0/5lxvfZyAGS0/s400/bread-and-stone2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VY_P9p4bCKA/Vrtn0s8YVlI/AAAAAAAABuw/M6EGxhzKtTA/s1600/temptation-of-christ-rohann-zulienn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VY_P9p4bCKA/Vrtn0s8YVlI/AAAAAAAABuw/M6EGxhzKtTA/s400/temptation-of-christ-rohann-zulienn.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Lent is a 40 day space between recognizing
Jesus as God among us after Epiphany and rejoicing in his resurrection on
Easter. We seek spiritual renewal and listen for God with greater
attentiveness. What is God saying in the spaces?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Personally we are always living in the spaces
between stages of family life (marriage, birth of children, school age,
adolescence, adulthood, empty nest, children-in-law, grandchildren). Stages of
career and job. Stages preparing for the prime of life and declining from our
prime. The spaces of interruptions longer than times of stability.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
In this interim time, this congregation is in
the space between pastors, the familiar and the unknown. The space between
ministry as we’ve done it and as we will do it. This is not like hiring a CEO
or manager. It is a process of patient spiritual discernment.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Jesus’ testing warns us not to take shortcuts
on our journeys as his disciples.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Luke 4:1-13 tells how Jesus was tested by the
devil in the space between his baptism and starting his ministry. The Holy
Spirit descended on him at his baptism so he could begin.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Jesus,
full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in
the wilderness,</span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">2</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">where for forty days he
was <i>tested</i> by the devil. He ate
nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished. </span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">3</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The
devil said to him, “<i>Since</i> you are the
Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.”</span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">4</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Jesus
answered him, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone.’”</span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">5</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Then
the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the
world. </span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">6</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">And the devil said to him, “To you I will
give their glory and all this authority; for it has been given over to me, and
I give it to anyone I please.</span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">7</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">If
you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.” </span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">8</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Jesus
answered him, “It is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’”
</span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">9</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Then the devil took him to Jerusalem, and
placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, “<i>Since</i> you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, </span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">10</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">for
it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you, to protect you,’</span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">11</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">and
‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot
against a stone.’” </span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">12</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Jesus
answered him, “It is said, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” </span><sup><span style="color: #777777; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">13</span></sup><span style="color: #010000; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">When
the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune
time.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
The 40 days of Lent are modeled after Jesus’
40 days in the wilderness. Sundays are not counted, and call us back to resurrection
joy. The 40 days of Lent also remind us that Moses was on Mt. Sinai for 40 days
receiving the Law, and the Israelites were 40 years in the wilderness.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
You may have noticed I said Jesus was
“tested” not “tempted.” The word can mean “tempt” but much more often means
“test.” The devil was not trying to trick Jesus into a sin but testing to
expose him as disqualified for his redemptive ministry. I also said “<i>since</i> you are the Son of God” not “<i>if</i> you are.” The devil was not trying to
get Jesus to prove he was the Son of God. He knew that. He was testing for what
he would do as the Son of God. Luke used the Greek word <i>diabolos</i> from which we get devil. Job uses the Hebrew word <i>hasatan</i> from which we get Satan. The
idea was a prosecuting attorney bringing accusations. That is what the devil
was doing here. Testing to get Jesus to take a shortcut on his mission.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Jesus’ testing warns us not to take shortcuts
on our journeys as his disciples.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Neither Matthew nor Luke report what happened
during Jesus’ 40 days in the wilderness, but they do describe these 3 tests
that kept coming, which prepares us for the tests we expect.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
To turn a stone to bread was not just about
satisfying Jesus’ immediate hunger but an attempt to get Jesus to use his power
as a magic shortcut to his ministry of meeting human needs, such as hunger. All
of the Gospels show that Jesus typically hid his miracles and met a need rather
than proved a point. Instead of a magic shortcut to address the needs of people
today, Jesus calls us to lifelong justice and compassionate generosity as his
disciples.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Though Jesus knew that God is sovereign over
the universe, he did not dispute the devil’s claim to the glory and authority
of the kingdoms of the world. He refused the shortcut offered by the devil. To
worship was not just to kneel and say some worship words, it would have been to
adopt the devil’s means of maintaining worldly glory and authority: the force
and violence of political and military power. As we read in Romans 10,
renouncing worldly power may feel weak, but God assures us that “no one who
believes in him will be put to shame.”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Central to Jesus’ mission was forming a band
of disciples through whom the Holy Spirit would build the Church. The devil
suggests the shortcut of a spectacular leap from the Temple pinnacle that would
surely attract a crowd. Jesus knew the difference between testing God and
trusting God. He refused the shortcut of instant results and stayed with the
long term plan of making disciples. While they may be legitimate tools, multi-media
worship with contemporary music, wiz bang advertising and electrifying
preaching are not shortcuts to evangelism and church growth that build
disciples. As we read in Romans 10, God’s long-range plan is for us to confess
with our mouths that Jesus is Lord. Word of mouth may seem slower than mass
media, but it is God’s solid way.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Jesus’ testing warns us not to take shortcuts
on our journeys as his disciples.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
If we are listening for the voice of God in
the space of Jesus’ test between his baptism and ministry, what can we hear
that will help us avoid shortcuts on our journeys as his disciples?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Jesus’ answer to each test was a word from
Scripture – all three of them from Deuteronomy 6, 8. Maybe you feel you don’t
know enough Scripture. Count on God to give you what you need to recognize a
shortcut and choose the path of discipleship. But don’t be complacent. Commit
to a lifetime of continuous learning the Bible, not just the information but
get so saturated with it that it changes you and becomes you. I love Abba
Poeman’s image. A stone is hard and water is soft, but a stone can be shaped by
repeatedly dripping water on it. Our hearts are hard and scripture is soft but
by repeatedly exposing our hearts to God’s Word, they are shaped to match the
heart of Jesus.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
The Holy Spirit descended on Jesus at his
baptism. He was full of the Holy Spirit when he went to the wilderness to be
tested. After the testing, he was filled with the power of the Holy Spirit when
he returned to Galilee to start his ministry. Sensitivity to the nudges of the
Holy Spirit will steer us away from shortcuts. Openness to the gifts and power
of the Holy Spirit will give us the ability and fortitude for the journey of
discipleship.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
When we refuse the devil’s shortcuts, we are
committing to the path of patience. Instant maturity is an oxymoron, but just
getting older doesn’t necessarily produce maturity. That requires awareness and
discipline. Lent is an opportunity to awaken our awareness of God and renew our
spiritual discipline: Bible, prayer and worship with God’s people. Whatever you
have chosen for a Lenten discipline, the persistence it requires is certainly
less than Jesus’ 40 days in the wilderness. Like training camp for athletes,
those 40 days were preparation for Jesus’ ministry. Our Lenten disciplines are
not an end or goal in themselves but are preparation for ministry of meeting
human need, building an outpost of the reign of God as a congregation, inviting
people to become Jesus’ disciples by word of mouth. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Jesus’ testing warns us not to take shortcuts
on our journeys as his disciples.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 1.0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-pagination: none;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<br /></div>
Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-89412339985222989292016-02-06T09:00:00.000-06:002016-02-10T11:06:57.483-06:00Prayer Unveils God’s Glory<div class="MsoTitle">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Y2QiCSq6mP0/Vq_WT4yTEnI/AAAAAAAABuk/eKfgz7aXTHM/s1600/transfiguration.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="306" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Y2QiCSq6mP0/Vq_WT4yTEnI/AAAAAAAABuk/eKfgz7aXTHM/s400/transfiguration.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoTitle">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>2 Corinthians 3:12-18; Luke
9:28-36</b></span></div>
<div class="MsoTitle">
<b style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">February 7, 2016</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoTitle">
<b style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">© 2016</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Twenty some years ago Candy
and I lived in the L’Arche Daybreak community in Richmond Hill, Ontario for
four months. I worked in the Woodery where I got to know Dave. Though he could
not read, he was able to operate a couple of the power tools. He was constantly
frustrated by his life struggles. Shortly after coming we attended community
worship in which Dave helped Father Henri Nouwen celebrate communion. When Dave
put on the alb, his face lit up. He treated the bread and wine with reverent
care. He knew he was handling the <i>holy</i>.
He was beaming as he served us. After worship I said to Candy, “That must have
been something of what Moses looked like after he had been with God.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">At first Moses was unaware
of the supernatural glow on his face. Paul wrote of Moses’ glow in 2 Corinthians
3:18 that as we see the reflected glory of God, we are being transformed from
one degree of glory to another. When we have been close to God, we can expect
God’s glory to radiate from us, just as it did from Dave.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Prayer lifts the veil on
God’s glory, so we may be transformed from one degree of glory to another.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Luke’s emphasis on Jesus’
praying is the context for the Transfiguration in Luke 9:28-36. But it started
in verse 18, when Jesus was praying and asked his disciples about who he was.
When Peter answered that he was “The Messiah of God,” Jesus told them he would
suffer and die and rise again. Then he said that anyone who wanted to be his
disciple would have to take up a cross and follow him, and that some of them
would not die before seeing the Kingdom of God.</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Now about eight days
after these sayings Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up
on the mountain to pray.<sup>29</sup>And while he was praying, the appearance
of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white.<sup>30</sup>Suddenly
they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him.<sup>31</sup>They appeared
in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish
at Jerusalem.<sup>32</sup>Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with
sleep; but since they had stayed awake, they saw his glory and the two men who
stood with him.<sup>33</sup>Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus,
“Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for
you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah” —not knowing what he said.<sup>34</sup>While
he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified
as they entered the cloud.<sup>35</sup>Then from the cloud came a voice that
said, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!”<sup>36</sup>When the voice
had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told
no one any of the things they had seen.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Transfiguration was a
crucial turning point in Jesus’ ministry. From here forward everything took him
to the cross. Just as at his baptism when he started his ministry, now as he
headed to the cross, the voice of the Father affirms him as the Son with the
Father’s blessing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Luke told the
Transfiguration with words and images that recall Israel’s Exodus from Egypt
under Moses. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Moses received the Law on
Mount Sinai. Elijah met God on Mount Horeb. Jesus will return to the Mount of
Olives, and was Transfigured on “The Mountain.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The cloud of God’s glory
covered Mt. Sinai. Jesus will return in the clouds, and a cloud overshadowed
the Mount of Transfiguration.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">For 40 years in the
wilderness the Israelites lived in shelters as Peter proposed for Jesus, Moses
and Elijah.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The Exodus was the great
redemptive event of Israel’s history, and the word for “departure” that Moses
and Elijah spoke about to Jesus is “exodus.” The “exodus” Jesus was to
accomplish at Jerusalem was the great redemptive event for all humanity: his
death and resurrection.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Prayer lifts the veil on
God’s glory, so we may be transformed from one degree of glory to another.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Jesus’ prayers mark the
beginning of two parallel sections meant to be seen together. In verses 18-27
the order is: he was identified as Messiah, he foretold his suffering and ended
with coming back in glory. The order reversed in verses 28-36 for the
Transfiguration. His glory was revealed while he was praying, he spoke with
Moses and Elijah of his departure, and the voice of the Father identified him
as the Chosen Son.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Luke wanted us to be sure we
knew Jesus was praying at this momentous turning point in his ministry. Since
our prayers tend to be asking God to do something for us, we may assume Jesus
was asking the Father for something: revelation of his glory, confirmation of
his identity and mission, strength for the ordeal ahead, maybe even a precursor
to his prayer in the Garden to let this cup pass from him. While these things
might have been included, I think Jesus’ conversation with Moses and Elijah
about “his departure that he was about to accomplish” points in a different
direction. I think Jesus was having a conversation with the Father about the
significance of his death and resurrection and what it would bring to people,
which continued with Moses and Elijah who had anticipated that redemption in
their times and could now see it far more clearly and full of glory.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">God does not need our
prayers to be informed and instructed about what to do. That is not to say we
shouldn’t ask God to act, but if that is most or all of our prayer life, we
will miss out on God’s glory. But if our prayers are a conversation with God in
which we do most of the listening, glory will shine through on us and we will
glow. The seventeenth century Russian mystic Dimitri of Rostov (1651-1709) defined prayer in a way I think gives us insight
into Jesus’ praying at his Transfiguration. “To pray means to stand before God
with the mind, mentally to gaze unswervingly at [God], and to converse with
[God] in reverent fear and hope.” <span style="font-size: xx-small;">(<i>The Art of Prayer</i>, Igumen Chariton,
Faber and Faber, Boston, 1936 Russian, 1966 English; p. 50)</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Prayer lifts the veil on
God’s glory, so we may be transformed from one degree of glory to another.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Even if only for the moment,
Dave was transformed from his frustrating disability to a degree of glory when
he distributed the communion bread and wine. We may not glow like Moses, but as
our praying brings us into God’s presence, we will be transformed from one
degree of glory to another. Like Moses, we may not notice it ourselves, but
others will know when we have been with God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The departures of Moses and
Elijah from this life were singularly attended by God. God buried Moses outside
Canaan. God took Elijah by a whirlwind. Death is under God’s sovereign control
and points to Jesus’ resurrection.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Though I thought of Moses
when I saw the radiance on Dave’s face at communion, I can’t say I’ve seen the
supernatural glow of Moses. However, I have been with many people as they are
dying and believe some of them have seen the glory of God absorbing them. The
account of the 4<sup>th</sup> century Desert Father, Abba Sisoes rings true.</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When Abba Sisoes was at the point of death, while the
[Brothers] were sitting beside him, his face shone like the sun. He said to
them, “Look, Abba Anthony is coming.” A little later he said, “Look, the choir
of prophets is coming.” Again his countenance shown with brightness and he
said, “Look the choir of apostles is coming.” His countenance increased in
brightness and lo, he spoke with someone. Then the old men asked him, “With
whom are you speaking, [Abba]?” He said, Look, the angels are coming to fetch
me. … Once more his countenance suddenly became like the sun and they were all
filled with fear. He said to them, “Look, the Lord is coming and he’s saying,
‘Bring me the vessel from the desert.’” Then there was a flash of lightning and
all the house was filled with a sweet [fragrance]. <span style="font-size: xx-small;">(<i>The Sayings of
the Desert Fathers</i>; tr. Benedicta Ward, SLG; Cistertian Publications,1975;
p. 215)</span></span>Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-57088691877144676372016-01-28T16:11:00.003-06:002016-01-28T16:11:23.315-06:00The Most Excellent Way<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-J7bFA4kLBoM/VqqR-8KCqrI/AAAAAAAABuQ/P42lAvU9tUI/s1600/a-most-excellent-adventure-navy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-J7bFA4kLBoM/VqqR-8KCqrI/AAAAAAAABuQ/P42lAvU9tUI/s400/a-most-excellent-adventure-navy.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div align="left" class="MsoTitle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>1 Corinthians 12:31b-14:1a;
Luke 4:21-30<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>January 31, 2016<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>© 2016<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Today we pick up where we left Jesus teaching
in the Nazareth synagogue. Luke 4:21-30 is a flashing series of snapshots of
the people reacting to Jesus’ reading of Isaiah 61:1-2. As was the custom, he
was seated for teaching.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Then he
began to say to them, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your
hearing.”<sup>22</sup>All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious
words that came from his mouth. They said, “Is not this Joseph’s son?”<sup>23</sup>He
said to them, “Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, ‘Doctor, cure
yourself!’ And you will say, ‘Do here also in your hometown the things that we
have heard you did at Capernaum.’” <sup>24</sup>And he said, “Truly I tell you,
no prophet is accepted in the prophet’s hometown.<sup>25</sup>But the truth is,
there were many widows in Israel in the time of Elijah, when the heaven was
shut up three years and six months, and there was a severe famine over all the
land;<sup>26</sup>yet Elijah was sent to none of them except to a widow at
Zarephath in Sidon.<sup>27</sup>There were also many lepers in Israel in the
time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the
Syrian.”<sup>28</sup>When they heard this, all in the synagogue were filled
with rage.<sup>29</sup>They got up, drove him out of the town, and led him to
the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they might hurl him
off the cliff.<sup>30</sup>But he passed through the midst of them and went on
his way.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Verse 22 is difficult to translate. Jesus
read in Hebrew and he and the people in the synagogue were speaking Aramaic,
which Luke translated into Greek. The typical English rendition seems to
suggest the first response to Jesus was positive. That is a possible
translation but probably not the best sense of the event. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
“All spoke well of him” could be rendered
“all bore him witness” that they realized he had stopped reading before the
line “the day of vengeance of our God.” They took offense at that because they
expected Messiah to vent retribution on Gentiles.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
“Gracious words” could better be translated
“words about grace.” The people figured out Jesus was extending God’s grace to
Gentiles, and they were perplexed and offended that someone who grew up in
their town would break from common opinion.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Jesus was anything but a politician. As the
hostility of the people’s reaction increased, Jesus did not reassure them or
soften their take on him. He purposely went on to give examples of Gentile
enemies who received God’s grace. The widow of Zarephath<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"> </span>through Elijah and Naaman the Syrian through
Elisha. Not only that, but Jesus used examples from Elijah and Elisha in the
collapsed Northern Kingdom that gave rise to the despised Samaritans. Jesus
gave this hostile audience the same message Paul gave in 1 Corinthians 13. The
most excellent way of the Holy Spirit is to empower us to love those who are
hardest to love.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
From 1 Corinthians 12:31b to 13:3, Paul
asserted the superiority of love over piety. He was not denigrating the gifts
of the Spirit, but he was clear that love is superior.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
His dissertation on spiritual gifts ends with
“I will show you a still more excellent way.” Many translations use the
comparative “more.” Some use the superlative “most.” Exclamative: “Most
Excellent!” Living love is great!<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
This paragraph suggests that great
communication, great understanding, great action and even great self-sacrifice
can all be done without love. We may think we’re working by the power of the
Holy Spirit, but if it doesn’t grow out of and extend love, it’s useless.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Paul did not stop writing about the Holy Spirit
between chapters 12 and 14. They are connected with the “Most Excellent Way!”
Love is the culmination of the work of the Holy Spirit. Only the Holy Spirit
can radiate God’s love to the people around us. Our human love is inadequate. Some
people are just too difficult to love on our own. The most excellent way of the
Holy Spirit is to empower us to love those who are hardest to love.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
Couples who are about to get married often describe
why they love each other like this: “She makes me feel secure.” “He makes me
laugh.” “She brings out the best in me.” “He helps me grow.” Romantic love is
measured by what the lovers get from each other. You may know that the New
Testament uses the Greek word <i>agape</i>
for God’s love. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 describes love that gives without
needing to receive.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
These verses sound ideal when read at a
wedding. They also need to be heard in the hospital and the courtroom, in the
unemployment line and in the in-laws’ house. This paragraph says that love is
specifically for when hard times come: when someone is injured or in trouble,
when someone is discouraged, when someone has hurt you.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
God’s love is always about the one being
loved. As Paul wrote in Romans 5:8, “God proves his love for us in that while
we still were sinners Christ died for us.” That is the model for the love the
Holy Spirit generates and radiates from within us. That is the love of Mother
Teresa cradling the dying in the gutters of Calcutta with no expectation of
even a thank you.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
In the concluding paragraph of his lyrical
treatise on love, 1 Corinthians 13:8-14:1a, Paul explains that love is the
more excellent way than all the spiritual gifts because the time will come when
the gifts will cease because they will no longer be necessary, but love endures
eternally. Because God is love!<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
We all know that this interim time between
pastors is temporary. You expect to have a new “permanent” pastor sometime
soon. However, even if your next pastor stays with you for 25 years, that is
not forever. Other pastors will come further into the future. But we do have a
longing for permanence. That why most of us resist change. I believe that is a
yearning for God’s eternal Kingdom, but to try to hang onto something that is
not God’s eternal Kingdom heads us toward idolatry. That’s why Paul wrote that
even the gifts the Holy Spirit gives the church are temporary. They help us on
our journey to the eternal. Thus the godly love that we just barely sample now
draws us deeper into God’s eternal love. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
With the artificial chapter breaks in the
Bible we can miss some important connections. So we started with 12:31b “I will
show you a still more excellent way.” We also have to include 14:1a to get the
full impact of 1 Corinthians 13. “Now faith, hope and love abide, these
three; and the greatest of these is love. Pursue love!” The theologian Reinhold
Niebuhr put these three in the context of our transitory lives.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Nothing
worth doing is completed in our lifetime; therefore, we must be saved by hope.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Nothing
true or beautiful makes complete sense in any immediate context of history;
therefore, we must be saved by faith. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: .25in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-pagination: none; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Nothing we
do, however virtuous, can be accomplished alone; therefore, we are saved by
love.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
“Pursue love!” Paul concludes. Love is the path through the temporary
to the eternal, to know God as fully as God knows us. On that journey,
conveying God’s love to others takes priority over our spiritual
accomplishments. On that journey, by God’s love we have the Holy Spirit’s
strength to absorb abuse and disappointment from those we love. On that
journey, passing God’s love to others guides us unerringly toward face to face
intimacy with God. The most excellent way of the Holy Spirit is to empower us
to love those who are hardest to love.<o:p></o:p></div>
Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-14989025092794894432016-01-21T14:54:00.001-06:002016-01-21T14:54:29.510-06:00Full of Power<div align="left" class="MsoTitle">
<b>Nehemiah 8:1-3, 5-6, 8-10; Luke
4:14-21</b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>January 24, 2016<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>© 2016<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GUbA1WOcIhc/VqFFPHJyoLI/AAAAAAAABtw/_stqzpW6thU/s1600/jacobs-ladder.big_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GUbA1WOcIhc/VqFFPHJyoLI/AAAAAAAABtw/_stqzpW6thU/s400/jacobs-ladder.big_.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">You have already been on the interim journey
between pastors for a while. Today I join you on this journey, which I believe
can be an adventure with Jesus for all of us. As your interim pastor my role is
to coach us in listening for and recognizing the voice of Jesus with us on the
journey. To help us with that, I will preach from the Bible passages suggested
by the Revised Common Lectionary with the goal of tuning into what God is
saying to us. Though I will be somewhat flexible with this, I will not pick
passages to play “gotcha” with a hidden agenda. As we listen for the voice of
God together, I hope to encourage and guide you in conversations about the
congregation’s heritage, mission, leadership, connections and future. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Two weeks ago we looked at how the Holy
Spirit dramatically came on Jesus at his baptism. Today in Luke 4:14-21, we see
how Jesus began his public ministry after forty days in the wilderness of testing
in which he overmastered the devil. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Then Jesus,
filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee, and a report about
him spread through all the surrounding country. <sup>15</sup>He began to teach
in their synagogues and was praised by everyone. <sup>16</sup>When he came to
Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath
day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, <sup>17</sup>and the scroll of the
prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place
where it was written:<sup>18</sup>“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because
he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim
release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the
oppressed go free,<sup>19</sup>to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” <sup>20</sup>And
he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes
of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. <sup>21</sup>Then he began to say to
them, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The scheduled reading from the Prophets on
the Sabbath when Jesus went to the Nazareth synagogue must have been from Isaiah,
since that scroll was handed to him. But he unrolled the scroll to purposely skip
the assigned reading to find the passage about the Spirit’s anointing to the
ministry of justice. That passage from Isaiah 61 is also quoted in Psalm
146:7-8, which is call a “<i>Hallel</i>”
Psalm that the Israelites sang in procession to the Jerusalem Temple on holy
days. No wonder the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. He changed
the order of worship! What was he going to say about this passage?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Jesus began to speak to them. As we shall see
next week, what he said was so shocking that they interrupt him. By saying this
scripture was fulfilled, he did not imply that justice had been permanently
established. Rather, he claimed that the Spirit had authorized and empowered
him for the ministry on which he was embarking.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">We are so used to having books in print,
radio, television and now electronic media that we may miss the power of
hearing Scripture read aloud as Jesus did in the synagogue. As we read from Nehemiah,
this same power is clear when Ezra read what quite possibly was part or maybe all
of Deuteronomy. Significantly, the people are gathered as a single body to hear
from God. Men, women and even children who were old enough to understand. They
responded as one body, much as today a congregation’s unity as the Body of
Christ is a living expression of God’s justice and compassion, joy and
strength.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">This was not a dull experience of sitting
still in silence while Ezra read. The people were actively engaged and
responded with voice and body. When Ezra unrolled the scroll to read, in unison
the people stood in respect, much as liturgical churches today stand for the
reading of the Gospel. The people lifted their hands and answered, “Amen!
Amen!” much as we might see in a Pentecostal church today. At the pauses in the
reading, they bowed their faces to the ground to worship, perhaps somewhat like
we might see in a mosque today. In these pauses, the reading was translated for
those who could not speak Hebrew and then interpreted or explained so they
could understand and have their questions answered.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The people responded emotionally to hearing
Scripture read. They wept! They wept for joy to hear God’s Word after
generations of exile in Babylon. And they wept in repentance, knowing that had
not been living by Scripture. But Ezra thought the weeping defiled the
Scripture, so sent them out for a festival that included the wine of joy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The people responded to hearing Scripture
read with a celebration of sending festive food to those who couldn’t afford
their own parties. Rich and poor alike were one single community of God’s
people. Justice and compassion demanded that everyone share the joy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Jesus read from Isaiah in the synagogue of
Nazareth some four centuries after Ezra read from Deuteronomy at the Jerusalem
Water Gate. In both cases the reading of Scripture aloud made a powerful impact
on those who heard it. In both cases the theme was justice and freedom for
people who were brittle, broken and bound. As we have heard these two stories today, are
you hearing the voice of God for you and First Christian Church of Albany, TX? I
am just starting to get to know you and the people of Albany, but I am certain
there are people in this congregation and in this community who are poor,
captive, blind, oppressed, who have no celebration prepared. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">On your interim journey with Jesus, I believe
he will let you know who they are so you can be Jesus to them. I am not
necessarily suggesting programs but personal relationships with people, paying
enough attention with spiritual sensitivity for the Spirit to prompt you.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Twenty some years ago Candy and I took a four
month sabbatical, living in the L’Arche Daybreak community for mentally
disabled adults in Richmond Hill, Ontario. We were coached to be alert for the
presence of Christ in the pain of the disabled core members. It was one of the
most transformative experiences of my adult life. I continue today with a
spiritual discipline at the end of each day of identifying a wounded person I
contacted that day and asking how I saw Christ in them. This has been my
spiritual reward while driving funeral cars for 7 months.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">As I have walked this journey with Jesus, I
have learned to recognize his voice when I face my own wounds.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Jesus came to Galilee filled with the power
of the Holy Spirit. Nehemiah and Ezra
turned the mourning and weeping of the people into joy and strength by sending
them to share the celebration of God’s Word with those who had nothing
prepared. As we listen for the voice of Jesus on this interim journey, I
believe we too will receive God’s joy and strength.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Let us soak in Scripture until we are so
saturated with the voice of God that the Spirit can echo when we speak.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Let us pray for God to fill us with power and
joy that draws us into intimate relationship with Jesus on this interim
journey.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Let us find and celebrate the joy of Christ’s
presence by including the wounded people God sends us in our individual circles
of relationships and into the embrace of this congregation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<br /></div>
Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-50483597113351181402016-01-05T16:07:00.001-06:002016-01-05T19:09:55.487-06:00Dare to Pray<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>Acts
8:14-17; Luke 3:15-18, 21-22<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>January
10, 2016<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<b>© 2016<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-s8N7l5aJBrQ/Vow-DB74ClI/AAAAAAAABtQ/hmv0IANLH1M/s1600/Baptism-of-Christ.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="305" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-s8N7l5aJBrQ/Vow-DB74ClI/AAAAAAAABtQ/hmv0IANLH1M/s400/Baptism-of-Christ.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">In 313CE the Roman Emperor Constantine
claimed to have converted from paganism to Christianity, and in 346 CE he made
Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire. However sincere he may
or may not have been, he saw Christianity through the lens of empire building. He
had his soldiers “baptized” by marching his army along a river as priests used
tree branches to fling water over them, so they were now officially Christians.
In that atmosphere, the spiritual fervor and strength of the Church declined
precipitously. In response, a revival movement began, but they had no illusions
that the Empire could ever nurture authentic spiritual vitality. Many people
with spiritual passion withdrew to desert communities where they not only
pursued their own spiritual lives, but also instructed and encouraged
spiritually alert pilgrims who came seeking advice. We know them today as the
Desert Fathers and Mothers (Abbas and Ammas). They left us both their own
writings as well as legends, some of which seem rather fantastic but often
point to an important spiritual truth. Abbas Lot and Joseph is one of my
favorites.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Abba Lot went to see Abba Joseph and said to
him, “Abba, as far as I can I say my little office, I fast a little, I pray and meditate, I live in
peace as far as I can, I purify my thoughts. What else can I do?” Then the old
man stood up and stretched his hands towards heaven. His fingers became like
ten lamps of fire and he said to him, “If you will, you can become all flame.”</span> <span style="font-size: xx-small;">(<i>The Sayings of the Desert Fathers</i>; tr.
Benedicta Ward, SLG; Cistertian Publications,1975; p. 103)</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Whatever Abba Lot saw when Abba Joseph lifted
his flaming hands, it was a sign that God was present with him in a remarkably
immediate way. Throughout the Bible fire is a sign of God’s presence, from
Moses’ burning bush to the tongues of fire at Pentecost. This week you might
want to think about how often the image of fire in the Bible connects prayer
and the Holy Spirit.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Ephesians 1:14 says that the Holy Spirit is
God’s pledge of our inheritance of redemption. The idea is repeated in
Ephesians 4:30 and 2 Corinthians 1:22; 5:5. Having the Holy Spirit living in us
now is God’s pledge we’ll be in God’s direct presence in the resurrection to
eternal life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Like Abba Lot and Abba Joseph, I aspire to
become spiritually all flame. For me, I understand that as a prayer life of
total intimacy with Jesus. I encourage you to think about your spiritual dreams
and aspirations during these days of seeking a new pastor for your future.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Luke gives more emphasis to the Holy Spirit
and prayer in Jesus life than the other Gospels. The account of Jesus’ baptism
in Luke 3:15-18, 21-22 introduces Jesus ministry with high priority on the Holy
Spirit and prayer. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">As you listen, remember that Luke is not
presenting systematic, abstract theology but is describing the free work of a divine
person. In both Hebrew and Greek the same word can mean breath, wind and
spirit, which the New Testament writers often use in plays on words that we
miss in English. John 3:8 gives us a feel for this when Jesus said to
Nicodemus, “The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but
you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone
who is born of the Spirit.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">John the Baptist’s preaching attracted a
large following.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As the people were filled with expectation,
and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be
the Messiah,<sup>16</sup>John answered all of them by saying, “I baptize you
with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to
untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and
fire.<sup>17</sup>His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing
floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with
unquenchable fire.” So with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good
news to the people.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><sup>21</sup>Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been
baptized and was praying, the heaven was opened,<sup>22</sup>and the Holy
Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from
heaven, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.”</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">During this time when you are seeking a new
pastor, noticing Jesus praying at his baptism can shape your praying to ask for
the Holy Spirit with confidence that you are loved by God and give pleasure to
God. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">So Luke makes a very specific point that
Jesus was praying when he had been baptized and the Holy Spirit descended upon
him. George Hendry taught theology at Princeton Seminary for 24 years. “To take
the measure of other theologians, he would read what they had to say about
prayer. If a theologian took prayer seriously, Hendry took that theologian
seriously. ‘Prayer is the life line of theology,’ Hendry said.” <span style="font-size: xx-small;">(<i>Christian Century</i>, December 12, 2012, p.
8)</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Luke 11:13 concludes Jesus’ teaching on
prayer that is close to what Matthew included in the Sermon on the Mount, with
a very Lucian emphasis on the Holy Spirit. “If you … know how to give good
gifts to your children, how much more with the heavenly Father give the Holy
Spirit to those who ask him!” Would you like the Holy Spirit to be more active
in you? Jesus says, “Go ahead and ask! The Father will joyfully give you the
Spirit.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Acts 8 says that Peter and John prayed that
the new Samaritan disciples would receive the Holy Spirit. We need to
understand that the Church was still very young, and things are just starting
to unfold and not make sweeping principles out of their experiences. I am sure
we can recognize in those new Samaritan disciples our own experience of not
being aware of the Holy Spirit. I would also conclude that praying for the Holy
Spirit to be present and active is not just acceptable but good.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">During this time when you are seeking a new
pastor, noticing Jesus praying at his baptism can shape your praying to ask for
the Holy Spirit with confidence that you are loved by God and give pleasure to
God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">When Jesus had been baptized and was praying,
the Holy Spirit descended upon him. Our prayers may be inadequate but Romans
8:23 assures us that “The Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know
how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep
for words.” So the Holy Spirit recasts our prayers to be in congruent harmony with
the will of the Father.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">A central significance of baptism is the
cleansing of water that assures us that Jesus has washed our sin away. Fire also
purifies. Chaff burning fire may not sound like “good news,” but deep inside we
all long to be rid of spiritual contaminants. Getting pure may not be fun, but
being pure is wonderful! So pray that the Spirit will purify you.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> When
Jesus was baptized, he identified himself with us – broken, sinful humans. When
we are baptized, we identify with Jesus, the beloved Son well pleasing to the
Father. As we pray, the Holy Spirit sharpens our awareness of the presence of
God in the ordinariness of our lives.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Luke’s Gospel presents Jesus, not as a super
hero with super powers, but as a human totally empowered by the Holy Spirit.
Jesus’ insights into people were from sensitivity to the Spirit. Jesus got his
direction from the promptings of the Spirit. Jesus did his miracles by the
release of the Spirit. When you pray expect to be nudged, sometimes without
being fully aware at the time, toward people and situations in which you can
represent the grace of Christ. During this time when you are seeking a new
pastor, noticing Jesus praying at his baptism can shape your praying to ask for
the Holy Spirit with confidence that you are loved by God and give pleasure to
God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<br /></div>
Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-8869827373950851492015-05-22T17:58:00.000-05:002015-05-22T17:58:44.962-05:00Recognizing the Spirit’s Whispers<div align="left" class="MsoTitle">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><b>Acts 2:1-21; John 15:26-27; 16:4b -15</b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>May 24, 2015<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>© 2015<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5AHF9BqJnL0/VV-zJdf1lgI/AAAAAAAABhM/Y5q6-IsrNz4/s1600/Day-of-Pentecost_Mark-Hewitt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="280" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5AHF9BqJnL0/VV-zJdf1lgI/AAAAAAAABhM/Y5q6-IsrNz4/s400/Day-of-Pentecost_Mark-Hewitt.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Day of Pentecost<br />
Mark Hewitt</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: yellow;"><i>This is my last sermon as I conclude my interim ministry with Highlands Christian Church in Dallas. I hope to have another interim pastorate, but as yet do not have one in place. Thus, this will be the last sermon script posted here until I am serving another congregation. I will post notice of that on Facebook and Twitter when the time comes. Thanks to all who have read and encouraged my ministry.</i></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">In Jesus’ farewell message to his disciples
he warned them they would be hated (John 15:18-26) but promised them the coming
of the Holy Spirit in John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15. For me this brought together
Pentecost Sunday with my last Sunday as your interim pastor. Listen to Jesus’
farewell message to his disciples to recognize and follow the Holy Spirit’s
whispers. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; margin: 0in 0in 6pt;">
<span style="background-color: #fce5cd;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #010000;">“When the Advocate
comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who comes
from the Father, he will testify on my behalf.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">27</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">You also are to testify because
you have been with me from the beginning.<span class="apple-converted-space"> …
</span>I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with
you.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">5</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">But now I am going to him who
sent me; yet none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">6</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">But
because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your hearts. </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">7</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">Nevertheless I tell you the
truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the
Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">8</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">And
when he comes, he will prove the world wrong about sin and righteousness and
judgment:<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">9</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">about sin, because they do not
believe in me; </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">10</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">about righteousness, because I
am going to the Father and you will see me no longer;<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">11</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">about
judgment, because the ruler of this world has been condemned.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">12</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">“I
still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">13</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">When the Spirit of truth comes,
he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but
will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to
come.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">14</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">He will glorify me, because he
will take what is mine and declare it to you.<span class="apple-converted-space">
</span></span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">15</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">All that the Father has is
mine. For this reason I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to
you.</span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">To whom are you listening when the Spirit whispers?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Jesus called the Spirit “the Advocate” in
15:26; 16:7. The Greek word is <i>Paraclete</i>
which means defense attorney or legal counsel. Jesus envisioned a courtroom in
which accusations would be hurled against his followers, and the Holy Spirit
stands by them to defend them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The Holy Spirit is the opposite of the
prosecuting attorney called <i>hasatan</i>
in Job 1:6-2:7 and Zechariah 3:1-2, from which the New Testament gets the name
Satan, whom Revelation 12:10 calls the accuser.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Jesus also called the Holy Spirit the Spirit
of truth in 15:26; 16:13. The Spirit is the one who gives true testimony on
behalf of Jesus and us when we are accused.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">For what are you listening when the Spirit
whispers?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Jesus said the Spirit will prove the world
wrong about sin, righteousness and judgment (16:8-11). When the accusations
seem too much to bear, the Spirit becomes judge of the ruler of this world,
handling the condemnation of our accuser. The Spirit whispers truth freeing us
from shame.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The Spirit testifies on behalf (15:26) of and
glorifies (16:14) Jesus, so when affirming Jesus wells up in you, recognize as
the Spirit’s whisper and let it out knowing the Spirit speaks in and through
you.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Jesus said that all the Father has is his,
and the Spirit declares all that belongs to Jesus to us. (16:14-15) Thus the
Spirit whispers that you have complete and free access to all of the spiritual
resources of the Father in Jesus.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">So, in the cacophony of not just a noisy
world but an often noisy church, how do you discern the Spirit’s whispers?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Scripture is the starting place, not just
informational knowledge but absorbing it into your whole being as your body
absorbs nutrition from food. To change the image, keep filling the reservoir of
your heart with Scripture so the Spirit can bring relevant truth to the surface
at the exact moment you know your resources are inadequate.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Though Jesus said the Spirit “speaks,” I have
intentionally said the Spirit whispers. Noisy, cluttered minds tend to drown
out the Spirit’s whispers. Even our prayers can be chatter. We don’t let God
get a word in edgewise. One thing to pray for is to recognize the Spirit’s
whispers and then be quiet long enough to listen for them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The Pentecost story in Acts 2 says that they
were <b>all</b> filled with the Holy
Spirit, not <b>each one</b>. Yes, we each
have the Spirit indwelling us, but it is together as we listen to each other
that we recognize the voice of the Spirit in someone else’s words. When the
Spirit speaks to and through the church, all sense a confirmation of having
heard from God. I know the Search and Call Committee experienced that when they
discerned God called Jonathan as the next pastor for Highlands Christian
Church.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Though his disciples couldn’t grasp it at the
time, Jesus assured them that it was to their advantage for him to go away so
that the Holy Spirit could come. I am certainly not Jesus, nor is Jonathan the
Holy Spirit, but it is definitely to your advantage for me to go away and
Jonathan to come to you.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">As the Lone Ranger said to Tonto at the end
of every episode, and Mary Poppins said when she left the Banks family, “My
work here is done now.” Between what you have accomplished on this interim
journey and with Jonathan starting on as your pastor this week, mixing in some <i>Star </i>Trek, you are poised to follow the
Holy Spirit into a mission frontier to explore new ways to bring the Gospel of
Jesus to new people, to boldly go where Highlands Christian Church has never
gone before.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">During these last 9 months, I’d like to think
God has conveyed some wisdom, experience, insight and stability to you through Candy
and me. To boldly go where God is leading you, it is to your advantage for God
to send you energy and imagination through Jonathan. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I have mentioned before how impressed Candy
and I have been with the spiritual tenor of this congregation. Just as the Holy
Spirit came to propel the early church into their mission, recognizing and
following the whispers of the Holy Spirit is essential for you to boldly go
into the mission frontier God is opening ahead of you. It doesn’t happen
magically with the right pastor or the right programs, it happens when you
listen to the Spirit’s whispers together. If what you think you are hearing is
really from the Spirit others will confirm it. And if the Spirit is leading you
into unfamiliar territory, the Spirit will also equip you with all the
know-how, energy, ideas, resources, courage and people you need.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<br /></div>
Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5240036490427497261.post-11814850279259316372015-05-15T14:36:00.000-05:002015-05-15T14:36:04.952-05:00Power Blessing<div align="left" class="MsoTitle">
<b style="font-size: 12pt;">1 John 5:9-13; Luke 24:44-53</b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>May 17, 2015<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>© 2015<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-a1Fgy4yYpKM/VVZJn-dA9lI/AAAAAAAABgY/IWJp1pWz44Q/s1600/042915art.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-a1Fgy4yYpKM/VVZJn-dA9lI/AAAAAAAABgY/IWJp1pWz44Q/s400/042915art.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</o:p></div>
<h2 style="background: white; margin: 0in 0in 6pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><em><span style="color: #111111; font-size: 12.0pt;">Ascension</span></em><span style="color: #111111; font-size: 12pt;">,
miniature depicted in the Syriac Evangeliary of Rabbula (Biblioteca Medicea
Laurenziana, Florence, Italy)<o:p></o:p></span></span></h2>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td class="tr-caption">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #111111;">Art commentary by<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span>Heidi
J. Hornik<span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="color: #111111;"> </span></span><span style="color: #111111;">and<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>Mikeal
C. Parsons<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="background: white; margin: 0in 0in 6pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #111111;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The image of the ascension in the
illustrated Rabbula Syriac Gospels is one of the earliest depictions of the
scene on parchment (586 CE) and sets the iconography for centuries to come. The
figure of Christ is positioned in a mandorla (almond-shaped frame) with his
right hand in a blessing gesture and his left holding a scroll. Flanked by
angels, he is bearded and wears a golden nimbus. There is a clear distinction
between this heavenly realm and those figures who remain on earth. Center stage
in the earthly realm belongs to Mary, who stands directly beneath the mandorla
of Christ. Her hands are open in exaltation and direct the viewer to the angels
standing beside her. While Mary is not explicitly mentioned by Luke as being
present at the ascension, she is introduced immediately thereafter (Acts 1:14).
Her growing importance in the theological tradition had been signaled by her
designation as<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><em>Theotokos</em>,
“Mother of God,” at the Synod of Ephesus in 431, and she becomes more prominent
in both literary and visual presentations. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #111111; font-size: 8pt;"><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 8pt;">[Many Protestant scholars affirm the title </span><em style="font-size: 8pt;">Theotokos</em><em style="font-size: 8pt;"><span style="font-style: normal;"> for Mary but prefer to
translate it “God Bearer.”]</span></em></span></div>
</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JfGssFTbeGE/VVZJr-ygZyI/AAAAAAAABgg/XKkwhuGNMKo/s1600/050113art.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JfGssFTbeGE/VVZJr-ygZyI/AAAAAAAABgg/XKkwhuGNMKo/s400/050113art.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<h2 style="background: white; margin: 0in 0in 6pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><em><span style="color: #111111; font-size: 12.0pt;">He Was
Received Up Into Heaven</span></em><span style="color: #111111; font-size: 12pt;">, by Hanna Varghese<o:p></o:p></span></span></h2>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td class="tr-caption">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #111111;">Art commentary </span>Richard A. Kauffman</span><span style="color: #111111;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="color: #111111; font-size: 12pt;"><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Hanna Varghese is a Malaysian artist who often
works in batik, as she does with this image of the ascension. Varghese was born
to Christian parents, and she remembers her mother taking her to a different
worship service every week: “My parents encouraged me to attend different
churches so that my siblings and I would appreciate the liturgy and traditions
of the Christian believers of different denominations. Christians are a
minority in Malaysia so we continue to struggle for our identity in a Muslim
society.” The ascension reminds Christians everywhere of the coming of God’s
Spirit and that the reign of God is a universal one not bounded by nation
states.</span></span></div>
</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">When we lived in Daybreak, the Roman Catholic
community for mentally handicapped adults in Ontario, on Thursdays Candy and I
handled some of the supper, evening and bedtime routines with core members to
give house assistants a break. I helped Michael Arnett brush his teeth, get
pajamas on, set out morning clothes and get to bed. I knelt alongside Michael
as said his lengthy evening prayers for people all around the world but never
for himself. In one community worship, we laid hands on one of the young woman assistant
members to commission her to go to the community in <span lang="EN">Antigonish, Nova Scotia. As 30 or so folk gathered around
her and prayed, Michael raised his hand in the air. I thought he was having his
typical muscle coordination problem finding a place to connect with his hand.
When all of the prayers subsided, Michael said loudly with his halting voice, “Go
for God to Antigonish!” Michael’s apostolic blessing signaled the group that
the prayers were finished and they returned to their seats. Michael could not
have explained an apostolic blessing, but he knew how to give one, and the
whole community recognized it was his spiritual gift that he regularly gave
them.</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The whole Bible is replete with blessings
that are anything but polite well-wishing. A blessing invokes and confers on
someone God’s goodness and favor with confidence and authority. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Passing the Peace is rooted in the holy kiss of
the New Testament (Romans 16:16; 1 Corinthians 16:20; 2 Corinthians 13:12; 1 Thessalonians
5:26; 1 Peter 5:14) and was firmly
established in the Church’s worship before the 4<sup>th</sup> century. It has
been questioned in our day as wasting time and making guests uncomfortable.
When it is only an exchange of greetings, I agree, but when it is a real
blessing in which we confer Christ’s peace on each other, it can be powerful.
Similarly, the benediction is not a signal the service has ended but sends us
into the challenges of a new week with God’s empowering blessing. Even casual “bless
you” can be a real blessing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">To the extent that we are aware of God’s
presence in us, we are all authorized to confer God’s blessing on each other.
Those of us with spiritual leadership have special opportunities to bless those
we lead. As Jesus blessed his disciples at his Ascension, I affirm God’s
blessing on you as I conclude my interim pastorate with you.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Though the New Testament alludes to Jesus’
Ascension a few times, only Luke reports the actual event in Acts 1:6-11 and
Luke 24:44-53. In the Gospel account, Luke emphasizes three powerful blessings.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #010000;">Then he said to them, “These
are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you—that everything
written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be
fulfilled.” </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">45</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">Then he opened their minds to understand the
scriptures, </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">46</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">and he said to them, “Thus it is written, that the
Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">47</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">and that repentance
and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations,
beginning from Jerusalem. </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">48</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">You are witnesses of these things. </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">49</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">And see, I am
sending upon you what my Father promised; so stay here in the city until you
have been clothed with power from on high.” </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">50</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">Then he led them
out as far as Bethany, and, lifting up his hands, he blessed them. </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">51</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">While he was
blessing them, he withdrew from them and was carried up into heaven. </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">52</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">And they worshiped
him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy; </span><sup><span style="color: #777777;">53</span></sup><span style="color: #010000;">and they were
continually in the temple blessing God.</span></span><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">When Jesus says that “repentance and forgiveness
of sins is to be proclaimed to all nations” (v. 47), his echo of Genesis 12:2,
that this was the fulfillment of God’s blessing on Abraham, so he could be a
blessing, by which all the families of the earth would be blessed. On that
basis, 1 John 5:13 says we may know that we have eternal life, not arrogance
but as a blessing received from God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">By blessing his disciples at his Ascension,
Jesus closed what was left open in Luke 1:22 when Zechariah could not pronounce
the priestly blessing after the Angel Gabriel told him his wife would have a
baby, John the Baptist who would prepared the way for the Messiah. Jesus likely
gave the Aaronic benediction from Numbers 6:24-26, with which I will end
worship today.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">After Jesus blessed them, the disciples
returned to Jerusalem with great joy and were continually in the Temple
blessing God. They transformed the place where the religious leaders opposed
Jesus into blessing God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Jesus’ Ascension turns his farewell into a
love story. Some have suggested that by naming Bethany, Luke hints that Jesus
may have included his dear friends Mary, Martha and Lazarus with the disciples
when he ascended. Acts 1:14 also hints that his mother Mary may have been there
as well. As Jesus blessed his disciples at his Ascension, I affirm God’s
blessing on you as I conclude my interim pastorate with you.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The parallel is obvious between Jesus’ Ascension
and sending the Holy Spirit to the disciples and Elijah being carried to heaven
in 2 Kings 2:9-12 and his mantle signaling that Elisha had inherited Elijah’s
spirit.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Jews of Jesus’ time were hazy about
resurrection, which his disciples were working through when the risen Jesus met
them. His Ascension was a clear demonstration that he did not descend to Sheol
but to the abode of God, where he had promised they would join him.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">In a <i>Christian
Century</i> article (May 17, 2003), author Lawrence Wood wrote of his friend
Carl whose wife Ruth died during Holy Week, and his daughter meant to console
him by saying, “It’s especially hard to lose her this time of year.” To which
Carl responded, “Are you kidding? This is the best time for my Ruthie. She’s
with God now. That’s what this week is all about.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">As Jesus blessed his disciples at his
Ascension, I affirm God’s blessing on you as I conclude my interim pastorate with
you. So I give you these three blessings.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">You are blessed to know that you have eternal
life, not only affirmed in 1 John 5:13 but the purpose of John’s Gospel, so you
may believe you have life in Jesus’ name.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">You are blessed to know God is really among
you as the Israelites did when Aaron blessed them in Leviticus 9:22-24. Paul wrote
even outsiders would recognize God is really among us in 1 Corinthians 14:25.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">You are blessed that God is sending you
Jonathan Brink as your new pastor to lead you spiritual vigor, rigorous
discipleship and fresh mission engagement. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;">
<br /></div>
Normanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00701796828059197706noreply@blogger.com0