10 Minute Message: Recent Episodes
Andrew Gillies
Sermons in advance. Revised Common Lectionary. From St Stephen's Toowoomba Australia. (Uniting Church in Australia.) Go to the website http://stteves10.libsyn.com/ for discussion questions and sermon notes.
Readings 1 Cor 12:31b-14:1a and Luke 4:21–30
The Greatest is Love
Misconceptions and Paul’s Teaching
The people of the church in the City of Corinth were convinced that being a good Christian and a good Christian leader was about spiritual gifts, clever ideas, eloquent language, or preaching. Some believed that Christians with greater gifts, impressive preaching, or even wealth should have more influence.
Last week (and throughout the book of Corinthians), we hear Paul say, "No." Being a Christian is about being part of the Body. There is one Jesus, who is the head, and all the rest of us are parts of the body, each with our own important place. Each has their own gift. Each is empowered by the Spirit and given their own role.
When we hear today’s reading about what love is, we must remember that Paul is saying that even these gifts of the Spirit are useless without love. Even our place in the Body is meaningless without love.
I want to say more about where love comes from in a minute, but first, let’s look at the reading to see what love is and is not.
Love Is More Than Words, Gifts, or Sacrifice
"If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal." (1 Corinthians 13:1 NRSV)
Some of you know that I am not very sentimental. I dislike flowery language and try not to use it in my sermons or conversation. Yet, for some people, words are the most powerful aspect of love. But words themselves are not love. They are only a way of expressing love. Even the most eloquent words, even the special gift of heavenly tongues, mean nothing without love. Words are not love.
"And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing." (1 Corinthians 13:2 NRSV)
Surely, if we have these gifts and exercise them, we must love God and others. Think of all the good we could do. Surely, at least the gift of special faith—the ability even to move mountains—must reflect love for God. No, says Paul. These great gifts and all the good they do are not love. These acts of service can express love, but they are not love themselves.
"If I give away all my possessions, and if I hand over my body so that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing." (1 Corinthians 13:3 NRSV)
We might think that love is about giving gifts or making sacrifices. But Paul says no—even if you give all you have away to the needy or the poor, it counts for nothing. Even if you give away your whole life, that is not love. These acts can be expressions of love, but giving and self-sacrifice are not love in themselves.
What Love Truly Is
"Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends." (1 Corinthians 13:4-8a NRSV)
That is what love is, and we have talked with the children about what some of these qualities might mean in practice.
One of the worst sermons I ever heard was at a wedding where the preacher inserted the names of the couple into this passage. The reason that’s so bad is that none of us could ever meet that standard.
Even worse, as I said to the children, love in this passage is not about our love—it is about God’s love for us. One of my lecturers at college, James Haire, once said that the only thing we could substitute for "love" in this passage is "Jesus dead on the cross." Paul is saying that the most important gift is God’s love for us—this gift of God’s love in Jesus. As we heard last week, we are part of a body, joined to Jesus by the Holy Spirit. We are part of the one Body of Christ.
Pursuing Love Through God’s Spirit
We can only love God and others if we have God’s supernatural love at work in us. If we do, then we can begin on the long road to loving others. As Paul says in the first part of Chapter 14:1, it is only then that we can:
"Pursue love." (NRSV) "Love should be your guide." (CEV) "Go after a life of love as if your life depended on it—because it does." (The Message) "It is love, then, that you should strive for." (Good News Translation)
And we will never fully attain that love in this life. As Paul says:
"For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known." (1 Corinthians 13:12 NRSV)
But even now, through the Spirit and through the gift of God’s love in Jesus on the cross, we have been given an amazing love, and that means we can begin to love others.
Conclusion: Loving as God Loves Us
To put it another way, in the words of one of my Favorite verses:
"This is what love is: it is not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the means by which our sins are forgiven. Dear friends, if this is how God loved us, then we should love one another." (1 John 4:10-11 GNT)
Nehemiah 8:1-10, Psalm 19, Luke 4:14-21
The Law That Refreshes the Soul How can the psalm writer describe the law as “refreshing the soul,” “giving joy to the heart,” “more precious than gold,” and “sweeter than honey”? For many, this is puzzling, especially when faced with laws like those in Leviticus about mildew in houses, requiring priests to inspect walls and prescribe scraping and replacement of plaster. These instructions may offer sound hygiene advice, but do they inspire joy or seem sweeter than honeycomb?
This sentiment reflects how we often view laws—as dry, tedious regulations. But for the people of ancient Israel, the law was far more than mere rules.
The Law’s Deeper Meaning The laws included principles of justice, compassion, and care for the vulnerable. Commands like treating foreigners as equals (Deuteronomy 10:17–19) showed that God’s law was deeply ethical, emphasizing love for the stranger, the widow, and the orphan.
Moreover, the term "law" in the Old Testament often meant much more than rules. Jewish poetry, like Psalm 19, uses parallelism, equating "law" with terms like "statutes," "commands," and "decrees"—or, in modern translations, "teachings" and "instructions." The law represented wisdom for living faithfully, revealing God’s character and guiding His people in love and righteousness.
Even more profoundly, "the Law" referred to the first five books of the Bible, known as the Torah. These books contain not just rules but also stories, poetry, and promises. They recount how God created the universe, made it good, and remained faithful to humanity despite sin. They include the promises to Abraham, the liberation of Israel from Egypt, and God’s covenant with His people. Together, these elements tell a grand narrative of God’s love, justice, and redemptive plan.
Joy in the Law When the psalmist called the law "sweeter than honey," it reflected an understanding of the law as a source of joy and life. If chocolate had existed in the psalmist’s time, they might have said, "The law is better than fine chocolate!"
This joy is evident in the story of Ezra and Nehemiah. After the Jewish people returned from exile in Babylon and rebuilt Jerusalem’s walls, they gathered to hear the law read by Ezra. As they listened, they wept.
Why did they weep? Perhaps it was sorrow over their failure to live by the law’s commands to love God and neighbour. But perhaps it was also joy—joy at hearing the stories of God’s faithfulness, promises, and deliverance. They realized they were part of this ongoing story, for God had brought them back from exile, just as He had rescued their ancestors from Egypt. Nehemiah encouraged them, saying, “Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:10).
Fulfilment in Christ Centuries later, Jesus stood in a synagogue in Nazareth and read from Isaiah, proclaiming good news for the poor, freedom for captives, and healing for the brokenhearted. He then declared, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”
Jesus was not only announcing God’s promises; He was the fulfilment of them. Through His teachings, healings, and ultimately His death and resurrection, Jesus brought freedom, justice, and healing to humanity.
The law, as fulfilled in Christ, is no longer a mere set of rules but a living promise of God’s love and grace. It reveals the path to true freedom and joy—a restored relationship with God and one another.
Our Place in the Story Today, like the people in Ezra’s time, we may feel small and overshadowed by challenges—declining church attendance, global crises, and fractured communities. Yet, we are part of the same story of redemption.
The law calls us to weep—over our failures to love God, our neighbours, and the strangers among us. But it also calls us to rejoice, for God’s promises remain true. He heals, redeems, and includes us in His plan of restoration.
The law indeed “refreshes the soul,” “gives joy to the heart,” and is “sweeter than honey.” It is an invitation to accept our place in God’s ongoing story of love, justice, and hope.
Nehemiah 8:1–3, 5–6, 8–10 Australia Day: A Personal Reflection “... “This day is holy to the LORD your God; do not mourn or weep.” For all the people wept when they heard the words of the law.” (Nehemiah 8:9, NRSVue) When I read those words from Nehemiah it caused me to have a good hard think about Australia Day. Of course Australia Day is not a celebration of the rededication of the Temple after the return from exile but... Australia Day is a time to reflect on what it means to call this nation home. I take pride in our history of democratic innovation. We became a nation through a peaceful vote, the first to give women the full franchise not simply the right to vote but also the right to serve in parliament, and led the world with the first Labor government. We've championed workers' rights, contributed significantly during world wars, and played key roles in international law, human rights, and cooperation. From scientific breakthroughs to sporting achievements and vibrant arts, Australia is indeed a remarkable nation. But I cannot overlook the other side of our history. If my heritage were First Nations, this day would feel different. My ancestors might have lost connection to their land through colonization, disease, or missionary policies. Indigenous Australians were denied rights for much of our shared history—citizenship came late, voting rights even later, and equal pay only arrived in the late 1960s. Until 1967, Indigenous Australians weren’t even fully counted in the census but were classified under flora and fauna provisions. Stories like those from Mornington Island remind me of the impact of displacement and cultural disruption. There, traditional enemies and people from different areas were forced to live together. For three generations, children were raised in dormitories, severed from both traditional ways and mainstream Australian culture. Only people my age and younger had the chance to raise their children in their own homes. What does that mean for community stability today? If I were in their shoes, it would be hard to celebrate. I would think about grandparents and parents who lost their language and way of life, forced to trade it for a life that didn’t offer the stability of mainstream Australia. I would remember the sickness, displacement, and ongoing struggles. Like the Israelites hearing the story of their past, I would weep for all that was lost. Still, I acknowledge the achievements of mainstream Australia. The day we currently mark as Australia Day, January 26, commemorates the 1788 landing of Captain Arthur Phillip and the establishment of the colony of New South Wales. That event laid the foundation for modern Australia but displaced Aboriginal peoples through disease, violence, and settlement. For many First Nations people, it’s a day of mourning. As a descendant of free settlers, I celebrate our democratic beginnings and accomplishments on the world stage. But this celebration should also include acknowledgment and repentance. Just as the Israelites celebrated their blessings while mourning their failures, so should we. I am not sure if Australia Day the 26th of January is the right day but whatever day or days we have I believe it would be best to celebrate our achievements and blessings and to reflect on and address our national shortcomings. Whether on this date or another, we must honour the complexity of our history with honesty and hope. As I say every Sunday we should “acknowledge the loss, grief, benefits and blessings of our common history and pledge ourselves to the ministry of reconciliation. We [should] look forward to the time when Christ shall make all things new and every tear shall be wiped away.” Moreover as people who trust in a living and active saviour and God we should work for the reconciliation and healing that we know God can bring even right now. (See Rev 21:1-5, 2 Cor 5:16-20)
Some years ago I wrote a baptism hymn to the tune O Waly Waly which would be appropriate for this Sunday or for most Baptism Sundays. Image: I, Davezelenka, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons It's based on the Baptism of Jesus Passages eg Luke 3:15-22, on Romans 6:2-11, on Calvin's notion for regeneration or recapitulation as a central way to understand trhe atonement and on Jesus' discussion with James and John in Mark 10:35-38 “James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came forward to him and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” And he said to them, “What is it you want me to do for you?” And they said to him, “Appoint us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” But Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink or be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?”” (Mark 10:35–38, NRSVue Emphasis Added) When you were born you joined us Lord Words Andrew Gillies © 2002/2003 Used by Permission When you were born, you joined us Lord. You took our human way and strife, and in the Jordan were baptized. You took our place, remade our life. Then through your living and the cross, into the tomb and raised again, your gift for us was made complete, and through all this you cleansed our stain. And, so because you loved us first, we surely can bring everyone, obey your call that they should come, and be baptized, new life begun. To be sung to O Waly Waly - AHB 453, TIS 536 First written for the occasion of Tia Mary Wild’s baptism, Jan 13, 2002.
Key texts Zephaniah 3:14–20; Luke 3:7–18
One of the key things about God coming to be one of us at Christmas, and the promise of his return to be with us again in the future is that in choosing our life, our death and in giving us new life and a future, God gives you and me and every human being dignity. God’s presence amongst us in Christ on the first Christmas and now through the Holy Spirit and his promised return enables us to overcome fear. We have a hope for the future and a promise of peace and wholeness or Shalom. We know that we are in God’s hands and in Jesus we have the final victory and we can live with God’s life, power and courage at work in us even now. The reading from Zephaniah is set at the time the people of Israel go into exile in Babylon. The temple had been destroyed Jerusalem had been reduced to rubble and many people would have been killed in the, siege, the battle and in the aftermath. It’s the sort of thing that’s happening in parts of Gaza right now. There is nothing like a siege and destruction of a city to destroy dignity. I would argue that the Gaza conflict and the terrorist attack that prompted it is destroying the dignity of the Hamas terrorists, the Israeli Army, the hostages and the ordinary people of Gaza. But it doesn’t have to be something as violent as war and siege. If you think back to last week’s reading Zachariah lived in a time of occupation too and he also faced personal threats to his dignity. The story of the leper I chose to tell the children and the story of Zachariah have certain things in common. Zachariah upon hearing of Elizabeth’s pregnancy doesn’t believe it. Because of this he is struck dumb. Some Jewish people interpreted the Old Testament law to say that anyone who was disfigured could not enter the temple. Zachariah struck dumb and the leper with his disfiguring illness could have been barred from entering the temple. For Zachariah as a priest that meant he would not be able to take his turn leading worship in the temple. For the Leper it would not only have meant being unable to worship, it would have meant being excluded from his work, and his family and all community life. As I said in broader terms in the time of Zachariah & the Leper the people of Israel were living in disgrace. Israel was occupied by the Romans. The Herods & the temple authorities were in collusion with the Romans. Zachariah was part of that system. This is the world John is born into. It is little wonder he calls the world to repent, for even the temple, the house of God is in disgrace. Zephaniah our Old Testament reading picks up on this theme of shame and brings a word of hope. He speaks of people receiving dignity. When I was a Uni student there were two intellectually disabled people in one of the congregations I worshipped in. Even though they were in their fifties they were members of a Sunday School class. They had grown up in a time when the intellectually disabled were treated in a very patronizing way - like small children. They were not allowed to make decisions for themselves, and they certainly could not become confirmed members of the church!! These women were both very faithful worshippers. They loved taking part in the service. They loved singing. If they said they would pray for you, you knew they would. And the people of the church loved them, BUT they were not members, and they had never been given the opportunity to publically declare their faith in Jesus. They had never been given the opportunity to be declared truly loved, forgiven and included by God. They had never been publically declared to be part of Christ's body. There is a sense in which these two women were outcasts. People left out, like the leper or Zachariah childless and struck dumb. People shunned, not just by the world, but even by the church. Well the promise of Zephaniah was for them: Through Zephaniah God says this: 19 ....I will save the lame and gather the outcast, and I will change their shame into praise and renown in all the earth. Zephaniah 3:14-20 (NRSV) At some point the congregation realized its mistake and invited these women to become part of the congregation, and to be confirmed in their faith. On the day of the service, both were overcome with emotion, the tears flowed. In the words of the service, in their personal testimony and through their tears, they powerfully confessed their faith in Jesus, and were publically assured that Jesus loved them, forgave them and included them in his body, the church. Those who had been outcasts were gathered into the church. Their shame was changed to praise. Their renown, their faith, was for the first time publically acknowledged by the congregation and today the story of their faith, their renown has spread to this congregation more thaqn 500 kilometres away. As Christmas approaches we come to the time of year when there are the most suicides, the most depression and the most family arguments. For many it is a time of loneliness and anxiety or even fear. And we live in a world in which many people are left out. They are left out because they are different to us, or because of the difficult circumstances of their lives. When Jesus, the second person of the Trinity, the Eternal Son of God became one of us 2000 years ago he dignified our life. He dignified it by reaching out, touching, healing, restoring and including the leper. He did it by being a guest in the homes of outcasts, the publicly notorious- like tax collecters and sex workers. He did it by embracing death, the most publicly shameful death imaginable, as a convicted criminal nailed probably naked to a Roman cross to die of exposure and torture in the open, for all to see. He also did it by being raised from the dead, by the Father in the Spirit, and by returning to heaven to the right hand side of God. From then on every human is not only made in the image of God, but part of the definition of God, part of who God is, is a human being like us. One who in the words of the carol “feels for all our sadness and shares in all our gladness.” Most wonderfully of all he will return and when he does all that is broken shall be renewed, and all that causes shame and takes away dignity, shall be destroyed. There will be a new heaven and a new earth. In the strange imagery of the book of Revelation Jerusalem will descend from the clouds, and there will be no more tears; Heaven and Earth shall become one. In this holy city all will have dignity “for all who would may enter and no one was denied.” The promise of Zephaniah and of Jesus, is that God is with us, right now working in our lives, and that God will one day be part of us in such a tangible way that all the bad in the world and all that's broken or bad in us will be made better and good. Jesus will return and it is at that time that all will be set right. Then we will be able to say... 17 The Lord your God is with you; his power gives you victory. The Lord will take delight in you, and in his love he will give you new life. He will sing and be joyful over you, 18 as joyful as people at a festival.” The Lord says, “I have ended the threat of doom and taken away your disgrace.” Zephaniah 3:17-18 (GNB)
Sermon Live in Hope & Confidence [Title Slide] [1. A Vision of Hope] Christianity is a very uncommercial faith. We seem to do things a bit upside down. For Christians, Christmas does not begin until Christmas Eve, or Christmas Day. For the shops Christmas seems to begin in October. The church has begun the season of Advent. In our Bible readings we will be looking at the coming of Christ. Partly this is about Christmas Day, but mostly it's about when Jesus returns. It's about the future when God will make all things right. When the broken will be healed and the injustices fixed up. Jesus and Zechariah, and Mary and Elizabeth and the Prophets are all going to remind us that there is a future. Their vision of that future is sometimes scary, but it's also wonderful. It's a vision, of the world made right and of God truly being among us. It's a vision of a world where God is truly with us. It's a vision of the broken being made whole and the old being made perfect and new. Above all it is a picture of real peace and security. Contrast this wonderful picture with the shops. As Christmas approaches, they also want us to be thinking about our broken-ness, but not with the hope of wholeness coming from outside, or with the hope of Christ's return. They want us to believe that if only we had this gadget, that toy, this power tool, this piece of furniture and that kind of food, we would be made whole, and have a perfect holiday season. They want us to believe that the answer to all our problems can be found in products. They want us to believe that our aching longing to be complete can be filled by a hole in our wallets. That our emptiness can be filled up, if only our bank accounts could be emptied out. As Christians, instead of worrying about turkeys, mangoes, mixed nuts, exotic salads, chocolates, and consumer goods, Advent encourages us to watch and prepare for the coming of Jesus. It encourages us to look for signs of his approach. It reminds us too that we are meant to live with the knowledge and hope that Jesus will return, burning in our hearts. And that this fire should shine forth from us, in our actions, our words and our interaction with others. Jeremiah reminds us today that God's people will be restored to wholeness. A new king will come. 14 The Lord said: I made a wonderful promise to Israel and Judah, and the days are coming when I will keep it. 15 I promise that the time will come when I will appoint a king from the family of David, a king who will be honest and rule with justice. 16 In those days, Judah will be safe; Jerusalem will have peace and will be named, "The Lord Gives Justice." Jeremiah 33:14-16 (CEV) [2. Avoid Distractions] For me and for the Church historically we believe that King is Jesus. We believe that on the first Christmas Day that promise began to come true. We also believe there will be a new Christmas Day, a day when Jesus will return. A day when God's Kingdom really will be seen on earth. This is the hope that should burn in our hearts. Not the hope of owning a 210 cm tv, ane electric SUV, or of having all the money in the world, but the hope that in spite of the bad things and the good things, and the in-between things that happen to us, God is in control. Because of this our lives should be full of hope instead of fear. We should be generous, willing to serve, and give to others because God has served and given to us. We shouldn't live lives of fear or worry. Whether that worry is over climate change or personal finance or our relationships. We should live lives of hope and quiet confidence. We should hear Jesus advice from today's Gospel reading: In the reading from Luke Jesus gives us the promise that he will return. The signs, he says will be pretty obvious. But more important than the signs is that we should not get distracted. If Jesus were speaking today he might say something like “Don't get distracted by Christmas dinner, or by consumerism, or worried about crime or the wars in Ukraine & Gaza. Believe instead that I will return and act as though that is true. Act as though it will happen next week, not in 1000 years time. Act as though it will happen in your life time, and that you will be a part of it.” [3. Live with Purpose] It has been said we should live and behave as though Jesus is returning next week we should plan as though he is returning in 300 years. Too often in the last 200 years Christians have used Jesus return and the promise of eternal as an excuse to run things down. Some of the people Paul wrote to in the ancient Greek city of Thessalonika had given up on working because they believed Jesus was returning soon. Paul tells them to keep working and in today’s reading he prays that “the Lord [may] make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, ... strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones.” (1 Thessalonians 3:12–13, NIV) In other words when Jesus returns he should find you and me serving and loving the congregation, the community of faith, and our neighbours, caring for our city and our environment, and playing our part in community affairs. In all that we do we should be building for the Kingdom of God, building for the new heaven and new Earth, for the new Jerusalem, the new creation. We should not be distracted by the promise of heaven, we should be engrossed in the Kingdom of God. [4. Hope Over Fear] What is it that distracts you? Is it possessions? Is it food and drink? Or is it the fear caused by the "Global warming" and the uncertainty of international politics? The promise of this week's Bible readings and all the readings in Advent is that when Jesus returns all things will be set right. If God really is in control, then we don't need to be distracted. We don't need to be afraid. In this world and the new creation God will give us all we need, for the body and soul. Healing, justice, food, love, and God's presence will all be ours. It is this hope we should cling to, not food, not drink and certainly not worry or fear. As I said earlier, we should live lives that show we believe this to be true. We should live lives of hope and quiet confidence. We should love care for and seek to restore the good creation, the world for which Jesus died, be generous, willing to serve, and give to others because God has served and given to us. [Last Word: "Advent calls us to trust God, prepare for Christ, and shine His light in the world."]
Sermon - Prayer - What is it good for? If God is God, then what is the use of prayer? God must know what we need before we even need it. Telling God about things is surely useless. I can imagine God looking down on me and saying. “There he is, “personsplaining” to me again. I already know all this, better than he does. In fact I know everything!” Surely God does not need our prayer, to be made aware of things or in order to do something. It is not as though our prayer will make God more powerful. I believe that in the story of Job and our Gospel reading and also the Hebrews reading we see a number of the purposes of prayer revealed. Job loses all his children all his wealth and then becomes terribly and painfully sick. While we get some sort of explanation, Job is never given a reason for this. He is a very good man, like all of us imperfect but if anyone deserved to have a good life based on their character and care of family and neighbours including those less well off it is Job. Job spends most of the book begging for God to give him a chance to defend himself and state his case. Job never curses God but he certainly gets angry and upset. In the end God speaks to him and still gives him no answer. God basically just says - how dare you question me. I am the one who made and sustains the universe. ““Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation?... [when]“the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?” (Job 38:4,7 NIV) In today’s reading responding to God revealed in such a powerful way, Job humbly says “...Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know.” (Job 42:3, NIV) But God does not punish or tell Job off for crying out, for questioning God’s justice, for being angry and upset. In fact God says to Job’s religious friends that Job has spoken the truth about God’s character. This is the first purpose of prayer. God is someone to cry out to. God has pretty broad shoulders. Not just Job but David & Psalm writers and Moses, Ezekiel, Hagar, Hanah and a number of others cry out to God in anger, despair and frustration and none of them are condemned for it. When you cry out to God in faith even if it is mixed with doubt and full of pain or anger or fear, God will not condemn us. Bartimaeus cries out loudly from the roadside. “Son of David have mercy on me.” It annoys and embarrasses the crowd. They tell Bartimaeus off. But Jesus is not embarrassed any more than he is embarrassed by the mums bringing their small children. And as an aside I don’t think you should ever be embarrassed by the Uniting Church’s practice of baptising Children, for Jesus welcomes all the children who are brought to him. Even if you don't believe that God does, or any longer does the miraculous; who better to cry out to than God? This applies not just to those like Job or Bartimaeus who are suffering some terrible loss or illness, it applies to those who know they need mercy and forgiveness. So the first purpose - someone to cry out to. God is someone we can offload to, spit the dummy to. Second prayer reminds! Prayer declares to God and to you and to others God's Character and it also reminds you of others’ needs. Job's confession speaks of how God is too wonderful for words. Much of Job is prayer, it speaks of God's justice, God's power, God is not domesticated or tame but God is good. God’s Character is revealed in prayer. Bartimaeus’ plea for help reveals his need to others. It also reveals God's healing power and merciful character. “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me.” Prayers of praise remind us of God’s power and love and provision and awesome character. Prayers of confession remind you that God is merciful and forgiving. Prayers of intercession, prayers for others and yourselves remind you that God heals and provides and as others pray if it is a public prayer, it makes you aware , reminds you of the needs of others. Thanksgiving reminds you of how God has provided, in creation, in daily life and most wonderfully of all in the life of Jesus and in the puring out ot the Holy Spirit. First prayer gives you someone to cry out to. Second it reminds you of God’s character and others’ needs. Third it draws you into relationship. Public prayer, prayer with others in church or in Sunday School or a Bible study brings you into the lives of others and others into your lives. But in our Hebrew’s reading you also have this picture of being drawn into the divine relationship. You are brought by Jesus into the relationship which he shares with the Father and with the Holy Spirit. Jesus a human being like us but also God’s eternal Son brings us into the presence of God the Father. The Contemporary English version puts it like this: “He is forever able to save the people he leads to God, because he always lives to speak to God for them.” (Hebrews 7:25, CEV) Or as Romans 8:15-16 put it, his Spirit joins together with our apirit and we are able to Cry out to God “Abba (“Dad”), Father!” and so you know that you are brought onto a new relationship with God - You are God’s adpted children. First prayer gives you someone to cry out to. Second it reminds you of God’s character and the needs of others. Third, it draws you into relationship with God and with the church community . Fourth it gives you an opportunity to receive. Again in public prayer Bartimaeus’ need becomes known as does Jesus’ response and he his able to receive (help) an invitation through the crowd to meet Jesus. He receives word from Jesus - “Call him... What do you want me to do for you” Job also receives God’s word and through the witness of the Bible so do you. You hear the wonderful image of the beginning of creation, when the morning stars sang together and all the anges shouted for Joy. In answered prayer in the Boible and in your own prayer you receive the word of God. I believe you can also receive the miraculous. Job is healed and his fortune is restored. Bartimaeus receives his sight back. A little baby in the Tannum congrgation was prayed for and his bowel unblocked avoiding surgery in what doctors descibed as the worst blockage they’d ever seen cleared without surgery. In prayer you also receive forgiveness, the Holy Spirit and when you first come to faith you receive Jesus himself. Prayer gives you someone to cry out to, it reminds us of God’s character and other’s need, it draws us into relationship with God and others, it gives us the opportunity to receive and fifth... It gives you an opportunity to give. Often you are the answer to prayer. If we pray for lonely people perhaps God is asking you to be a friend. If you pray for the needy perhaps God is asking you to give. If you pray for the church or the community, perhaps God is asking you to lead or serve. People are so grateful to know that others pray. If only Job's friends had done what Job does for them and prayed for him instead of piling judgmental advice on him perhaps the book of Job would be shorter and less challenging. Sometimes you are the answer to prayer, sometimes God answers or provides and someime there is no answer you can see. You can not fix the problem or meet the need but you can take it and those who are in need to God. Ifyou can give nothing else you can still give prayer. So what is prayer good for? What is its purpose? It gives you someone to cry out to, it reminds us of God’s character and other’s need, it draws us into relationship with God and others, it gives you the opportunity to receive and fifth it gives you an opportunity to give.
Focus Readings Romans 8:12-17 John 3:1-17 Sermon text: In the whole of the Bible God is revealed as redeemer or saviour. Salvation from slavery, exile, enemies, sin. But there is a contrast In the Old Testament although God is spoken of as merciful and being characterised by steadfast love, essentially the picture of God in the Old Testament is as Law Giver and promise maker. God is One, indivisible, Holy, and unapproachable. There are images of God for instance in Hosea & Ezekiel as a loving parent but these are the exception rather than the rule. To see God is to die. For God is so holy & so powerful that anyone even the tiniest bit imperfect would be consumed if they saw God face to face. Even Moses was only allowed to see God’s back. In the New Testament on the other hand God is primarily revealed as relational. God is revealed as Father - the Father of Jesus Christ. God is revealed as Friend, the companion, the one who stands beside us and speaks up for us - The Spirit who prays for us and causes us to cry out to God as a child would cry out to a loving parent. “His Spirit testifies with our Spirit and so we cry out to God Abba Father.” God is revealed as our human brother, the pre-existent only begotten Son who shares his relationship with the Father, with us as a human being. Today is Trinity Sunday. It would be a mistake to think of the Trinity as an invention of the church in the fourth century. It is true that at the council of Nicea and later at the Council of Constantinople, a formal doctrine of the Trinity was worked out but that doctrine should not just be thought of as a purely political outcome imposed by the Emperor, nor should it be thought of as an invention of the councils. To understand how this idea of God being one but at the same time three arose we need to see that from its Jewish Heritage and the Old Testament the church believed God was One and no-one else is to be worshipped. By contrast in the early church and the New Testament, Jesus and not just the Father is worshipped as God, the Spirit is said to be the Spirit of Jesus and the Spirit of God. All three are also referred to in personal terms. The Trinity was the church's way of describing what they experienced of God and heard in the teaching of the Jesus and the Apostles. We hear Jesus’ teaching and the Apostles’ teaching today in the pages of the New Testament. A similar picture - an understanding that Jesus was somehow sent from God the Father and is in some sense divine emerges from nearly all of the writings of the early church, even those the early church decided not to include in the Bible. One way of looking at our faith is to see it as God sharing with us the personal relationships that Jesus, the Father and the Spirit share. We are children of a loving parent, companions with the Spirit and brothers and sisters of Christ. This was the experience of the early church. It’s what we have recorded in the New Testament. There is no better example of this than one of the most famous passages of the Bible. John 3:1-17... To see the kingdom of God - to have eternal life, Jesus explains to Nicodemus you must be “born of the Spirit”. He goes on to say that anyone who believes in Jesus has Eternal Life, and that Jesus is the one who has come down from Heaven and who will go back up to heaven. It also says that Jesus is God’s only begotten Son. More than that - Jesus is the sign, the proof of God’s love. To believe in Jesus is to be born of the Spirit. To be born of the Spirit is to believe in Jesus. To know and receive God’s love is about believing in Jesus the one who came down from heaven and who will return to heaven. That faith, that discovery of God’s Love is described as being born again, or being born from above or being born of the Spirit. What Jesus and John describe in John Chapter three might be a description of an actual event in the life of Jesus and Nicodemus. It might be a reflection on such a meeting, but whatever it is, it is a description of an actual event in the life of millions of Christians down through the two thousand years since Christ. It describes their experience of God. It describes Peter and the disciples following Jesus around Palestine, Paul on the road to Damascus, Lydia and her household by the river, St Augustine in the Thunderstorm, Martin Luther in the tower, John Newton out at sea caught in the storm, John Wesley feeling his heart strangely warmed at Aldersgate. It describes me, as over a long period of time, in church, at home, in Sunday School and on youth camps, hearing and seeing God’s love witnessed to. And there are I know scores of other stories and experiences in the lives of all of you before me. Stories of exactly the kind of thing that Jesus describes in John 3. For all these people and in all these stories there is a sense of being born again. A sense that life has begun anew. There is a fresh start. It really does feel as if the wind of the Spirit has blown into their lives. God is revealed to them and experienced by them as a loving and perfect Parent, as the one who Jesus called Father. All of this is somehow tied up with faith in Jesus. In the movie Amazing Grace, William Wilberforce is asked if he has found God. He replies, “No, God has found me.”! This is the kind of thing which is described in John 3. For Wilberforce this new start to life led him to be a life long campaigner for the abolition of slavery and for free education and numerous other causes. The Spirit had blown into his life, he had been born anew, and a new life began which transformed not just him, but the western world as well. My story and your stories are I am sure nowhere near as dramatic as those of Wilberforce, or Wesley, or The Woman at the Well, or Peter or Paul, but all the stories of people who have come to faith in Christ through the ages all have this same experience of new birth, of birth from outside, of a fresh start. As I said just a moment ago “It really does feel as if the wind of the Spirit has blown into their lives. God is revealed to them and experienced by them as a loving and perfect Parent, as the one who Jesus called Father. All of this is somehow tied up with faith in Jesus.” Or as Paul puts it in Romans 8 “Romans 8:15-17 15 For the Spirit that God has given you does not make you slaves and cause you to be afraid; instead, the Spirit makes you God’s children, and by the Spirit’s power we cry out to God, “Father! my Father!” 16 God’s Spirit joins himself to our spirits to declare that we are God’s children. 17 Since we are his children, we will possess the blessings he keeps for his people, and we will also possess with Christ what God has kept for him; GNT It is this close way that the Spirit and Jesus and God whom Jesus called Father are related that causes the Early church to describe God as Trinity. They believed there was only one God, yet the teaching of the Apostles and the New Testament and their own experience of God also revealed God as three distinct identities who related to each other and to believers. It was their way of describing their common experience of God. So what we celebrate today on Trinity Sunday is not some item of doctrine, or a piece of theological jargon. Instead we celebrate the way God has been revealed to and experienced by Christians throughout the ages. God the Father, a loving parent, loving us and the whole world so much that he sends his Son so that through the Spirit poured out into our lives we might have a new spiritual birth, a fresh life, a new start. A life which praises God for his love, and witnesses that love to others. Indeed it is this new life and this new start are what we are made for. We are made in order to live a life for the other, for God and our neighbours. We are forgiven in order to forgive. We are loved in order to love. We are born again, born from above, empowered by the Spirit, in order to turn away from our old selfish way of life and turn to God and our neighbours. This was the reality for Wilberforce, and Wesley, Newton and Whitfield. In later generations it was the experience of General Booth. It was when like Paul they discovered that God was the one revealed as Jesus whom they could know and cry out to as Father, for Spirit of God was with them and in them. It was when this happened that their lives began anew, and as a result England and arguably all of the English speaking world was transformed, as they preached the Gospel of Love, calling people to accept this new life of love from God, for God and for others. This new start, new relationship has transformed my life and I know it has transformed many of your lives and the lives of those around you. You have been drawn into the heaven and earth transforming relationship between the Father Son & Holy Spirit and so in you and among those who you relate with God’s Kingdom and will and the honouring of God’s name has grown at least a little bit. Therefore live by the Spirit. Live as the children of God. Live as those who can name God as a loving Dad and are adopted by God as brothers and sisters, co-heirs with Christ. People born from above, born anew, born by the Spirit. Amen.
Focus Readings Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16 Romans 4:13-25 Mark 8:31-38
Trust Fall
Have you ever done a trust fall. I can remember right back to my days at youth group and Year 12 when I lived on the South Side of Brisbane. We were introduced to “new games”. They included things like parachutes and earth balls, but they also included trust activities involving blindfolds and placing yourself in the hands of of others. The iconic activity of this sort was the trust fall. A person would stand on a table with their eyes closed and then fall backwards onto a group of colleagues standing in a line. This wasn’t just for high schoolers or for youth groups. These activities were done at corporate leadership retreats and in the leadership programs of large government departments. Behind this activity is something which is profoundly true. The more trust there is in an organisation, a church, a family, a community, and so on, the better it works, the more that gets done and the greater the happiness of both individuals and the community or organisation.
But trust comes with risk, cost and vulnerability. Over the years I bet there have been people who have refused to take part in a trust fall because for them the cost is too great. Sometimes they know the people whose arms they are meant to fall into too well. They know their flaws and failures and perhaps with some justification they are unsure if those people will catch them. Sometimes they are so keen on being in control and doing everything themselves that they are unwilling to let go and fall. If they can’t control it they won’t do it.
In today’s Gospel reading and in Genesis and Romans we hear two invitations to trust God. One is given to Abram who is renamed Abraham and the other is given to the disciples and also to us. Abram is promised that he and his wife Sarai will be the Mother and Father of many nations even though they are both very old and have no child of their own. In fact God Even changes Abram’s name to Abraham to mean Father of Many. In Romans 4 and chapter 15 of Genesis we hear that Abram believed God and God reckoned it to him as righteousness. Or to put it another way Abraham trusted his future, his life to God and God recognised him as his friend, or set right or in the good books. It must have been hard for Abram, he left his old home, went to a foreign land, gave up his old faith probably risking wealth, life and reputation and all at an age when perhaps he might have no future. It would have been easy for him to take control of his own life and say “No thanks” I’ll stick with what I know and live out my comfortable life at home with my beautiful wife. Instead he trusted God. He put on the blindfold and he allowed himself to fall into the unknown and God caught him and kept the promise. In his lifetime he continued to be blessed with wealth and he did have a son with Sarah who in turn had two sons who in turn had 12 sons who were th ancestors of the people of Israel. One of those sons Judah became the grandfather of Kings like David, Solomon, Josiah and Jesus and through them we and all the people of the world have been blessed. Abraham put on the blindfIold and fell and God caught him. God kept the promise made in Genesis 12, 15 and 17 in full. God proved to be trustworthy through famine, war, slavery, exile and occupation.
The other invitation is made to Peter and the disciples and you and me. Abram wasn’t perfect. There were a number of times when he didn’t fully trust God. By contrast before Easter Peter really struggled to trust God and to trust Jesus. We can’t really blame Peter. Peter has recognised something in Jesus, he has recognised that Jesus is the the promised one, the Christ, the Messiah the anointed one or the one especially chosen by God to be a new king like David to rescue and free Israel. Jesus this new king will bring freedom and full godliness to the nation and perhaps even to the world. His expectations of Jesus are very different to what Jesus says next. “I am going to die on a cross, the most shameful and humiliating way possible and three days later I will be raised from the dead.” The resurrection thing would have made no sense. The resurrection was to be for every faithful Jew, not just for one representative. The death on the cross made more sense but was much more confronting. If we look across the Bible stories of Peter we see a bit of a pattern of him wanting to be in control, of not wanting to trust Jesus. In Luke when Jesus calls him it is after the huge catch of fish where Peter afraid to trust in who and what he has just seen says “Go away from me Lord for I am a sinful man.” As we heard in the last few weeks when Jesus goes off to pray, Peter wants to bring him back to do more miracles for him, he wants Jesus to follow his script, but Jesus will not be controlled by Peter. And as well as today’s incident where Peter neither trusts or understands Jesus there are a number of others but the most well known example of Peter’s lack of trust is after Jesus’ arrest. Peter when confronted by the onlookers near where Jesus is under arrest and on trial, denies he even knows who Jesus is, he seeks to save his own life for fear of losing it.
But just as God proved to be trustworthy with Abraham and Sarah, Moses & Miriam, Jacob, Leah, Rachel, Ruth, David, Esther, Elijah, Josiah, Mary & Joseph, God proves to be trustworthy in Jesus. Instead of following your own plans Jesus tells you, to trust in my way and God’s plans. Let go, deny yourself, and trust me. Follow my example. In some ways for Jesus as the Son of God trusting Gof the Father and the Holy Spirit is no problem. Through eternity Jesus has been in a relationship with the Father & the Spirit that is so close that the early church described this reality as God being trinity, truly one and truly three. Trusting the Father and the Spirit would have been no problem for Jesus as the eternal Word of God. If we remember that Jesus was and still is truly human then the reality of the human experiences of loss, grief, hunger, thirst, injustice, betrayal, denial, torture, crucifixion and death must have all made it harder. It is not surprising that Jesus would say to Peter “Get behind me Satan” . The word Satan can certainly mean the devil, but it mostly means “tempter”. In saying to Jesus don’t take the way of the cross, the way of suffering and death, take the way of control, the human way, the way that Peter and you and me are always tempted to take, Peter was tempting Jesus to take control rather than to trust his human and devine life to the Father and the Spirit.
Jesus says, NO! That is not the way. The way is not to take control. The way is not to save yourself. The way is to trust me, and God the Father. The way is to deny yourself. For Jesus and Peter and Paul and others, denying themselves and going God’s way, trusting themselves to God meant death and suffering. God probably will not call us to that, but God the Father and Jesus, God the Son, does call us all to deny ourselves, to trust our lives, to give up our lives to them and to the Spirit. We are called to close our eyes, put on the blindfold, let go and fall. It is hard; like Peter sometimes we can and sometimes we can’t.
We worry. Will God catch us? Is this the end? If I don’t have control, will I survive? But on that score there are two bits of Good news. Firstly as I said a moment ago, the experience of the Bible tells us that God is trustworthy. We may have the blindfold on, we may be falling, but we are falling into the arms of the same One who gave Abram a Son, who rescued Jacob and his children from famine, who brought the people out of exile and who in time rescued us in Jesus. The second bit of good news is that a significant part of Jesus’ sharing his life is so that there is always someone to rescue us, to call us back, to seek us out and carry us back when we try to go our own way, and that is Jesus. He lifts Peter when he sinks in the water, he stills the storm, he does not go when Peter tells him to go. And risen from the dead he forgives Peter, and calls Peter to continue the work. All he asks is a little faith and a little love and even the faith itself is probably a gift. We are called to deny ourselves as Jesus did, to trust God the Father as he did, even if this means the cross. But we are called by the one who shares his death and life with us so when we fail God will still raises us up Just as he raised Jesus and just as Jesus lifted Peter from drowning in the stormy currents of the sea. Put on the blindfold, close your eyes and fall into the strong and mighty everlasting arms of God. Amen
Key text: Romans 12:1-8
In many of Paul’s letters he begins after a general greetingby dealing with the issues that are causing problems in a church. He then goes on to deal with how we live out our faith in our daily life or ethics. Paul is talking about how we lives which witness or reflect God’s love and how we can serve others.
This is exactly what he does in Romans. After his greeting he introduces himself to the church in Rome. Often Paul writes to one of the churches he founded to tell them how to deal with some of the problems or division in them. He didn’t start the church at Rome but he wants to visit it and get their support to continue his work of creating new Christian communities, maybe even going to Spain. So he outlines what he believes. He starts in Romans 1-3 by saying this wonderful & blessed creation of which we are a part and humanity we share which reflects the image of God is tarnished. He says that although every human being has within them a sense of right and wrong and a sense of the existence of God, none the less we all fall short of the Glory of God. We all fail to love as God loves, with our whole selves, and we fail to love our neighbours as we love ourselves. And this results in our death, our literal death our eternal death and the death of community of good relationships between people aand people and peqaople and God. The wages of sin is death! But from the middle of Chapter 3 right through to the end of Chapter 8 paul expounds on the idea that the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus. Jesus death for us, Jesus’ new life for us, the gift of the Spirit which pours the love of God into our hearts and the way in which through this new life of Jesus at work in human being the glory of God is being revealed and creation is being made new. The Spirit of God is at work in us creating a renewed humanity and a renewed creation. All this he says in chapters 9-11 is not just for Jewish people or for non Jewish people it is for all people. And reight fom Chapter 3 through to chapter 11 time and time again he make it clear that this is a gift of God. Throughout all of History even though we fall short God never gives up on us. God loves us with a love we don’t deserve. God is merciful or kind to us even though God doesn’t have to be. And the defining way God is kind to us even though we don’t deserve it is in Jesus, especially in his death and resurrection. So chapters 1-11 are about the kindness or the mercy of God to us in Jesus. In chapter 12 Paul begins to reflect on what this might all mean for living the Christian life. (Chapter 12 to half way though chapter 15.)
Paul’s main point is that everyone has an important place in the ministry and mission of Jesus and his church. Every member is called to witness and to serve. Every Christian is not only included in Jesus’ love and mercy. Every Christian is included in Jesus’ ministry and mission.
For the church and for individual believers this understanding that every Christian is included in Jesus’ work is a powerful and even transforming idea.
It reflects Paul’s revolutionary idea from Galatians 3:28 (and in all his writing) that every person no matter their gender, race or class are the objects of God’s love and mercy for all are one in Jesus.
If that is the case then everyone has a part to play in the ministry and mission of Christ. Every member of the church has a role to play.
To illustrate this passage as we go through it, and the idea that every person has a part to play in the ministry and mission of Christ and his church, I am going to tell a little bit of my own story.
Paul begins chapter 12 with the words. “I appeal to you by the mercies of God”. As I said a moment ago this little phrase links chapter 12 and what follows to the first 11 chapters of Romans. For in those first 11 chapters Paul has essentially been outlining the mercy or the mercies of God.
For Paul this was very personal. He had been a persecutor of the church. He saw the followers of Jesus as those who would destroy the Jewish faith and way of life. He threw them in jail and even approved when one was stoned to death. Yet for him his life was turned around when he encountered the risen Jesus travelling on the road to the city of Damascus in Syria. The risen Jesus did not destroy him as he had destryed iothers, Jesus forgave him and called him to to join the work of forgiveness, reconciliation and the renewing of all things.
My story is not like Paul’s. As a child I was shy, badly co-ordinated, I cried easily and so I was a natural subject of bullying. I did not see any blinding light. I was not a persecutor of others. Instead of being turned outward in anger and hatred like Paul I was turned inward on myself in despair and self loathing. But just like Paul I believe that God came to me in Jesus Christ. As I say, it was not in some blinding light, but as a slow burn, a slow realisation with some wonderful moments, that I was loved I was forgiven and that God had a piurpose for my life.
Though, my story and Paul’s story and the story of millions of other Christians is very different, none the less through the ages men and women of all walks of life have experienced or realized the same thing. They have been discovered by, they have met the mercy of God.
From the time Paul met Jesus on the Damascus road onward his life was radically transformed. He was so grateful that he dedicated his life to introducing others to the wonderful discovery of the mercy of God. It was not that Paul had discovered God but God had discovered him.
As we saw a moment Paul believed that this gift of mercy was for all people, Jews and Gentiles, men and women, young and old. I believe as do people like the historian Tom Holland that this radical inclusiveness of Christianity has also played a part in some aspects of Western culture becoming more inclusive and to the idea that every human being has equal dignity and rights.
Paul had a personal experience of this radical inclusion. A persecutor of the Christ and his church was not merely forgiven and given a new life, but he was also called by that same Christ to ministry and mission.
My experience was that I was not only forgiven, loved and befriended by God in Jesus Christ, but that I too was called to share that love with others. So when Paul says, I appeal to you by the mercies of God - he is I’m very sure speaking of all he has spoken of in Chapters 1-11 of Romans BUT he isn’t speaking about it as a theoretical framework, or a theological exercise, He’s speaking about it also as a matter of personal experience. (And we especially see that in the second half of chapter 7).
Paul is saying - look what God has done for me!!! Look what God has done for us. Look what God has done for creation. If God has done this for us then present yourselves as a living sacrifice for this is your reasonable worship - some translations have reasonable service... In any case the principle is the same - God has given himself to us, so in gratitude we should give ourselves to God and to others.
Now I need to make it clear that Paul is not asking us to nail ourselves to the cross. Instead he is saying that in the light of God’s mercy we should not give in to the thinking and standards of this world which in our times are about, money, power, celebrity and consumerism. He’s saying that instead we should set our minds on good and positive things instead of on things which are only to help ourselves or build ourselves up and tear others down.
He’s saying that we should not try to place ourselves over other people, but instead that we should use the gifts that God has given us to build them up.
He’s saying that instead of thinking of ourselves as number one as the most important person in our own little world we should think of ourselves as an important part of the body. That each of us has a place with Christ in the ministry and mission, the service and witness of the church.
As wonderful as it must have been for Paul to be forgiven his persecution of the church. It must have been even more amazing to him that he became perhaps the greatest evangelist and church planter in the church’s history. Not only that, but he was a key leader in transforming the followers of Christ from a Jewish male sect, to a faith that embraced men and women, menial slaves through to wealthy householders, and people from every race and culture. From fundamentalist inquisitor Paul was transformed into the greatest evangelist of a new faith which taught love and inclusion.
It should not a surprise us then that Paul here in Romans (and in 1 Corinthian’s and Ephesians) can affirm that every member of the church, no matter how humble or grand has a valuable place in the Church, in the body of Christ.
This was a wonderful discovery for me too. It was wonderful after all those years of bullying to feel that I was loved and included, BUT it was even more wonderful to know that also I had a part of the ministry and mission of Jesus and his church. I learned that I was a part of the body and the gifts and skills that I had could be used to serve God, the church and my neighbour.
To cut a long story short just as Paul was transformed from being a fundamentalist inquisitor into an evangelist of love. I was transformed from a timid, shy and insecure young man into a reasonably confident minister of the Gospel.
What was true for Paul is true for me, but it’s also true for each one of you as well. For each of you are a member, a part of the body of Christ.
Like Paul all of you are here because you believe God is a God of compassion who has been revealed to us in Jesus Christ. You believe that God has given himself for you. You believe that you are forgiven, loved, and free. You are receivers of the mercies of God, and so Paul says to you I appeal to you by the mercies of God, to present yourselves in the light of God’s mercies as a living sacrifice. Use your gifts and talent, no matter how insignificant you might feel them to be in service of God, your fellow Christians and your neighbours. For all of you, have a valuable part and place in the body of Christ.
- Readings
a. First Reading Amos 7: 7 - 8
b. Second Reading Matt. 23:23
c. Third Reading Deut.16: 18 -20
d. Gospel Luke 13: 10 - 17
- Sermon Go God’s love going way
The people of Israel were suffering in Egypt, forced to labour, building cities temples and tombs. They cry out against this injustice and God hears their cries and rescues them giving them a leader called Moses. God rescues them because God sees their suffering and because years ago God made a promise to the founder of their community, a man named Abraham and his wife Sarah, to make them a great people, a powerful country. So God sees the suffering of forced labour and remembers the promise and rescues them. They are not especially good people or especially bad people, but God is good and compassionate. God cares about injustice and people suffering, and God keeps promises.
So God says to them “I have rescued you because I saw your suffering and I keep my promises. I want you to respond to others in the same way. I want you to be honest, to run fair courts, to treat each other, neighbours, and foreigners just how I treated you. You were once slaves and strangers and hard done by. I want you to be compassionate, to stand up against injustice and keep your promises. Go my way. Use honest measures, create honest courts, treat the great and mighty and the small and powerless just the same.
Over 1, 000 years later a disabled woman, held captive by her body is in a synagogue, a Jewish meeting house, sort of the Jewish equivalent of a church. Jesus is also there, and he heals her, she is no longer disabled, no longer a prisoner, she is free. Jesus’ God come among us has seen this woman held captive and because he is God in human form he reflects God’s character of kindness and compassion and a desire for what is right and rescues her just like the people of Israel were rescued. When the church leader objects because it’s the Sabbath, the holy day of rest, Jesus stands up for justice, for what is right and says, “You hypocrite, you are being unfair, you wouldn’t treat an animal like this just because it is the day of rest. The good and right thing to do is to rescue this woman, no matter what day it is.”
Jesus not only rescued the woman, he rescues you and me. In Australia, in Rockhampton we may not be slaves forced by a king to build cities, but we are all sometimes selfish, and self promoting. Many drink too much, many eat too much, and like the church leader sometimes we fail to help those in need, because we think other things are more important. God saw that we would be slaves to a way of life that puts ourselves first, and that we and others would suffer because of it. So God sent Jesus, to live and to be the good life, to die our death, to be raised to new life and share that life with us, so we could be set free from our own selfishness, and the selfishness of others and do what is good and just.
Today we baptised Reuben. In baptism we say God loves and accepts Reuben even though he does not understand what is going on, even though he can’t do much to help people in need, even though he can’t give service or money to the church or charity. In baptism we say God accepts, claims and loves us too. Jesus lived for us, died for us and was raised to new life for us. God rescues us just as God rescued Israel. If this is true just as God said to Israel, Jesus says to us, “I have rescued you, so live lives that reflect God’s character and my character. Love your neighbours, love your enemies, stand up for the right thing, feed the hungry, clothe the naked, forgive one another as I have forgiven you. Set the prisoners free.” The people of Israel were loved and claimed rescued by God, Reuben has been loved and claimed and rescued by Jesus, You and I have been loved and claimed and rescued. So live lives that reflect that character of God, the character of Jesus. Go God’s love going way! Amen!
Today I want to speak as briefly as I can on a huge topic. What is the church? These six verses Acts 2:42-27 describe the church, as it was when it first began 2000 years ago and as it shall be through all eternity and as it is now. In one sentence the church is about teaching the Gospel, gathering in genuine community, breaking bread together and worship. From this, flows care and provision for those in need, signs and wonders, and growth. In short the church at its best is the embodiment of the Good Life, and this side of the new creation it is the closest thing to life in all its fullness. This is what Jesus came for and although I am sticking to the Acts reading this morning. The 23rd psalm and John 10 Like our Acts reading give us a picture of what the church is like. We are the sheep, the flock, a community with Jesus the Good shepherd leading us out to green pastures, leading us through dark valleys, generously providing for us in time of trouble, and in times of celebration, so that our cups run over. This is what the church should be and it is what is described at the end of Acts 2. If we skip forward a little to Acts 3 to the healing of the lame man at the Temple it is important to remember that all of this is the work of God. When the crowd gathers round Peter & John in wonder to see who had done this healing Peter says "…why do you wonder at this, or why do you stare at us, as though by our own power or piety we had made him walk?" (Acts 3:12, NRSV) And he goes on to say "…the faith that is through Jesus has given [this lame man] this perfect health in the presence of all of you." (Acts 3:16, NRSV) To swap back to the image of a shepherd for a moment, it is Jesus who gathers us as a flock, who leads us to fresh water and green pastures, and indeed it is Jesus who created the world with the Father and the Spirit including the pastures and the water. It is Jesus the Good shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep who keeps us together, keeps us alive and gives us fullness of life. In other words in Acts just as in John 10 and the 23rd psalm, the signs, the wonders, the growth, the genuine community, and even the acts of sharing and giving to those in need come from God. It is because of Jesus' faithful life including death, it is because he has been raised to new life and shares that life with us, and it is because of the pouring out of the Spirit that the church has come into being and done all the good that it has. (In fact it is our human striving that has often led to corruption abuse and much that is bad. When we seek to make a full life for ourselves instead of accepting it as a gift, it is then we may be tempted to use others for our pleasure, and seek to steal what is not ours.) I know for myself that my life would have been vastly different if it was not for the work of God in my life. I would not be in ministry. I would not have been a teacher. I would probably not have got married and had children. This is not to say God cannot use me or you or the church and our efforts, but in the end, it is all the work of God graciously including us in God's work. Part of my story is that God used my mum and dad, and many other Christians (church members) to bring me to where I am today. In response then to all that God has done and is doing for us in Jesus and in the pouring out of the Spirit, this is what the church does and is: First: It is that group of people who devote themselves to the Apostles' teaching. The Apostle's teaching is what we have in the New Testament. It is the Good News or Gospel concerning Jesus. It is Jesus' life and death, his teaching, his example, his new life, and his sharing with us of the relationship that he has with God the Father and the Holy Spirit. The Apostles saw that this Jesus was the one who the Old Testament pointed to. So, the Old Testament forms part of their teaching too. Therefore we should study the Bible, reflect on it by ourselves and with others, in sermons, Bible study and personal devotion. Second: The Church is the group of people who share in fellowship, or genuine community. Perhaps because of our sinfulness or because of changed circumstances, we can't be as radical as the early church and have "all things in common" and sell our possessions and distribute the proceeds to all according to need. But at a minimum, it means we should spend time in each other's company, weep with those who weep, celebrate with those who celebrate, support those who are weak in body, mind or faith and yes even give to those who have need as we are able. Even when we were in lock-down that meant phone calls, sharing of devotional notes, and emails, zooming, facetime and skyping, etc. and dropping something needed or encouraging at people's doors or in their letter boxes. Out of lock-down, now that we are living with COVID rather than trying to stop it, we can add, visiting people, sharing in meals and hospitality, being part of community groups and activities. We can add our fellowship and support activities such as CaMEO, fellowship, and FAN-C. And of course, the teaching of the Apostles is that genuine community is not just for fellow believes, but we should also love our neighbours as ourselves, for God loved the whole world so much that he gave his only Son. Third, the church is the group of people who devote themselves to prayer. We are the ones who wait upon the Lord. We are the ones who present our prayers and petitions our fears and hopes to God. As we do so God speaks to us. We grow closer to God and to each other, and we bring not only ourselves, we bring our families our neighbours and indeed all the world to God, and we join with Jesus in his prayer. Fourth the church is that group of people who break bread together. This phrase probably refers to communion and not just a shared meal. As it happens we are going to share in communion today. We don’t just share in it as this group of 30-60 plus the 20 plus online. For when 30-60 people gather in Campbell street as the South Rockhampton Uniting church, another 50 or more Uniting people gather to do the same thing in North Rocky and Mt Morgan, and thousands more for other church groups do the same, tens or hundreds of thousands in Australia and millions maybe even more than a billion across the globe. We celebrate our unity in Christ, that he is with us, and all he has done and is doing for us and in us. And today's passage tells us that where the church is, where there is breaking of bread, prayer, community and devotion to the Apostles' teaching, God will bring signs, wonders, generous sharing and growth in numbers and in faith.
Images by Deborah Hudson OpenClipart-Vectors Madison from Pixabay
Local Rockhampton artists are combining to tell the story of the first Easter through 15 artworks to be displayed at the South Rockhampton Uniting church in Campbell Street from the 4th to the 8th of April.
The artworks including paintings, collages and even a story book will be arranged in order, to tell the story of the first Easter from Thursday night through to Easter Sunday. There will be a booklet with artists reflections on each piece, a reading, and a prayer.
Admission is free and visitors can use the booklet to follow the story, reflect and pray or just wander through and admire the works.
“There are artists drawn from Baptist, Catholic, Lutheran & Uniting churches,” said Rev Andrew Gillies from the South Rockhampton Uniting Church.
“We last did this in 2019 and hoped it would be an annual event but COVID stopped all that from happening,” he said.
“We won’t have all the works until Palm Sunday,” said Rev Gillies “but as one example we have a fantastic painting by well-known local artist Elizabeth Cooper, of the garden where Jesus prayed just before he died. The garden is eerie and deserted because the prayer has finished, the disciples have fled, and Jesus has been arrested.”
“We also have a strikingcollage of the three crosses by Rosslyn McKendry with the crowd gathered in front,” he added.
For more information check out South Rockhampton Uniting Church’s Facebook page www.facebook.com/SouthRockyUC.
Christmas is about restored community - human and divine. 6pm-730 pm 17th December 2022 at South Rockhampton Uniting Church. 312 Campbell Street Join us, celebrating community and the first Christmas with contemporary Christmas songs and carols. Bring Christmas hats & t-shirst, glowsticks, battery candles, picnic rugs and folding chairs.
Featuring soloists, U3A Choir and more.
Supper to follow.
Wet weather venue in the church hall. Message us on Facebook m.me/SouthRockyUC or email minister@southrockyuc.org.au if you have questions about Carols the church or Christmas
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Heb 11:29-12:2
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Sermon Jesus Carries us across the line
- The Story of Derek Redman
See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V93-mOwkw3I
Derek Redman was a contender to win a medal in the 400m sprint at the Barcelona Olympics in 1992. He had easily made the semi-finals winning both his heats, but in that semi-final https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_JUKNfYNpc150 metres from the end, his hamstring tore. The Olympic creed is a quotation from the founder of the modern Olympics. It says “The important thing in the Olympic Games is not winning but taking part, just as in life, what counts is not the victory but the struggle.” In an act which embodies the Olympic creed, Redman after collapsing on the track, struggled to his feet and began to limp along the track toward the finish line. But Redman did not finish the race alone. Surrounding him in the stadium a great crowd cheered him on toward the finish line. As he limped along a man came down from the crowd, pushed officials and security people aside and came to Redman’s assistance. The man was Redman’s father. He said to his son “Son you don’t have to do this.” Redman replied “Dad, yes I do”. "Well, then," said his father, "we're going to finish this together."
His father supported Redman like a crutch and the two of them hobbled across the line as the crowd cheered them on and wept with them. He wasn’t a medal winner but he had kept his eyes on the finish and had run to the end.
[Source of this story and inspiration for this sermon was initially https://sermons4kids.com/run-the-race.htm but it has been supplemented by material found through Google searches.]
- Sermon
This story of Redman and his dad is a wonderful illustration of Who Jesus is, the Christian life, and also a great illustration of today’s Hebrew’s reading. Jesus is described as the Pioneer and perfecter of our faith. Other translations describe him as the one who makes our faith complete.
Derek Redmond the runner you just saw was running toward a goal. He of course wanted to win, but he also wanted to finish. As today’s reading put it he wanted to run the race with perseverance. Redmond breaks down continues by himself to hop, but it does not seem he can finish. Then his Fater joins him and he goes with him and indeed in a sense carries us accross the line.
This is a picture of what God has done for us in Jesus. God became one with us, came down from the stands in order that we might be carried across the line of life. When we could not go on God joined with us and carried us through life, sin and death and through into new life.
I believe we need God from beyond us. Some Theologians like Paul Tillich argue that the idea that God comes from beyond us is difficult for modern people to believe. Instead they argue that God is not beyond God is within, God is the foundation, or the core of being, of our existence. The Christian life is therefore about getting in touch with God within us and within others and creation. Seeing God at work in our relationships with others.
The person in history who shows this best is Jesus. Through his relationship with others Jesus showed us what it truly means not only to love God and our neighbour with the whole of our being but what it means to love our neighbour and even our enemies. He was so committed to this love of God and others that it led him to an early death nailed to a Roman Cross. Through his example and teaching we can know what it is to live the perfect life.
In some ways there is nothing controversial about this. Indeed I think it is part of what today’s reading from Hebrews is saying when it says. “lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus ... who ... endured the cross”.
When Redmond ran his race that was the kind of thing he was doing. He was running toward a goal he had been striving for the whole of his life. He had dedicated every part of his life to it. He was calling on the Olympic spirit, and remembering all those great Olympic athletes who had gone before him. Perhaps he had a great figure like Daley Thompson in mind as he ran. When he broke down his aim was still to finish.
As Christians of virtually every kind we believe that God is with and that the whole creation was made by God and even though the world works by natural processes it is sustained by him. Creation’s life and source comes from God. This presence of God within us and in creation is what we traditionally call the Holy Spirit. It is what Tillich called “the ground of our being.” In some ways this is a really persuasive argument - the idea that God could come from outside and interfere in the natural course of events does not fit well with a view of the world which says that everything must have a clearly identifiable cause and effect.
Now at this point I could launch into a philosophical argument about how it is I believe that God not only comes to us from within but from outside and that God and creation are quite different things but I’m not going to do that. Instead I’m going to talk about three problems and the experience of God.
Derek Redmond was a great athlete, able to run the race and perhaps even win. He had qualified for the race. He was in a centre lane. Before he broke down he was in a great position. The first problem is that you and I are not Derek Redmond we could not even make an Olympic heat let alone a final. More importantly you and I are not Jesus we fall far short of his example.
The second problem is that we and the world in which we live is limited. We can not always reach the goal. Sometimes natural disasters may stop us. Other people get our way sometimes with intent or sometimes by accident they trip us up. We all die and our deaths may well happen before we have reached our goal. Like Moses or Joseph or Miriam we do not reach the promised land. As part of the great crowd of witnesses they did not ereceive “what had been promised”. Or like Derek Redmond we just break down before the end and all our hard work seems to have come to nothing.
Thirdly we are sinners. We do not obey God’s commands, we can not always fix our eyes on Jesus. We get distracted and lave the race or cross the line and get disqualified. Who has ever loved God with all our heart with all our mind, with all our strength and with all our soul? Who has always loved their neighbour as themselves? Who has met the even higher standard of the Sermon n the mount or John’s gospel to always thurn the other cheek, love our enemies, pray for thise who persecute us, and love our fellow Christians as Christ loved and love us?
No sometimes we are struck by the sin that clings so closely, the grief we feel over some loss, our health causing us to break down, the betrayal of a friend or family member, some natural disaster, and we collapse on the track. If like Redmond we are strong and determined even though we may come last we may be able to rouse ourselves and limp to the finish, but often we can not finish and indeed if the aim is the Kingdom of God, the new creation, where God’s will, will be done and earth becomes as heaven, and heaven and earth combine, then I believe that none of us will ever finish.
How then can we go on? Surely we are lost. Unless there is help from beyond, from outside but also with us along side us we will never get to the promised end.
Just at that point when we have collapsed on the track or when we are limping toward a line we will never get to, help arrives. For Redmond it was his Father come down from the stand and onto the track to carry him over the line. For us in the race of life, in the Christian journey, I believe it is Jesus, for he is I believe not only the example toward which we run, he is as Hebrews 12 says the pioneer and most crucially the perfecter of our faith.
For most Christians and before that for the Jewish people this has been our experience. All of us, though some more than others have been in that dark place in the race of life that Redmond was in, in an Olympic semi-final and yet at the time or looking back, we have seen that God has carried us through. Perhaps it is the forgiveness of sin, perhaps the strength to overcome some addiction, perhaps it has been a terrible grief, the loss of career, a house, a child, a husband or wife, perhaps it has been a sickness or depression. Perhaps it has been facing your own oncoming death. Somehow the strength, or forgiveness or the healing or the promise or the peace and acceptance comes, slowly or quickly and not from ourselves, but from God, and we are carried over the line going on with and even finishing the race.
This has been the experience of that great cloud of witnesses, that somehow God who seems far away, in Jesus and by the Spirit comes near. God joins us on the track and carries us to the finish line. Without him we are lost but with him we go on, and claim the prize.
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:1–2, NRSV) Amen
Key Bible passages: Proverbs 8:1–4, 22-31, Romans 5:1–5, John 16:12–15
The experience of God (Trinity)
Today is Trinity Sunday. From our tradition and in our history the church has usually named God as Trinity. God is One but at the same time God is Three - Father, Son & Holy Spirit.
Today, I’m going to talk about how God is experienced and how in that experience, as God is revealed to us, we come to know God as three and as one.
This understanding of God as Trinity comes from the experience of God by the people of Israel, in the early church, and in our personal experience.
It comes to us in the Bible. The Bible records the experience, and the revelation of God, to the peole of Israel and the early church.
This experience is made formal in the Creeds of the church, Especially the Nicene Creed. Creeds are short summaries of the faith, created in wordy arguments but built upon the experience of the Christian community.
To put it another way our understanding & so our experience of God stems from
i. creation.
ii. from the life and work of Jesus, and
iii. from the personal experience of the first Christians and church members down through the ages.
h. God out there... (God the creator)
Many people are led to faith, begin their faith journey, or are strengthened in their faith by the awe they experience in creation. Whatever you believe about the age of the Universe, if you are a Christian you will believe in God as the Creator, the one who spoke the worlds into being.
Through the ages Christians, indeed all the major faiths refer to the divine origin of the worlds. In Eastern faiths, some indigenous Spiritualities and Greek philosophy, the universe, is the outworking of the divine. In Jewish, Christian & Islamic faiths, the Universe is the handiwork or the artwork of God. It is God’s Mona Lisa. Some Eastern faiths argue that the matter of the Universe is evil and that the aim of life is to connect or become part of the divine reality beneath it. Christianity, Judaism and Islam all teach that God made the Universe good and we can see at least a little of God’s goodness as well as God’s power and cleverness in creation.
To quote from Psalm 8 Psalm 8:1 (NIV)
1 LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory in the heavens.
As human beings we also experience another aspect of creation. No matter our faith or even lack of faith, all human beings have a sense of right and wrong. We may argue about the details but it seems to be universal that we should not murder (at least our own), or steal or lie and so on. We should love our neighbours, at least those who are near to us. This common morality and also what we call common sense could together be called wisdom.
Proverbs tells us that Wisdom was the very first creation of God. Proverbs 8:22–23 (NIV)
22 “The LORD brought me forth as the first of his works, before his deeds of old; 23 I was formed long ages ago, at the very beginning, when the world came to be.”
Almost all human beings have this sense of morality, a sense of what is right and how it should be applied. You may not always want to apply it, you may want to act selfishly but if you look into your hearts, your core, we know this basic wisdom.
Almost all human beings have also looked at the stars, or a sunset, or the tiny perfect hand of a newborn gripping their finger, they have been caught in a terrible storm and have been filled with and awe and wonder and sometimes even fear, at the power, creativity and artistry of God.
This picture of God is not whole, not how Christians understand God. Creation gives a mixed picture of God, it is full of beauty and majesty but when earthquake, fire and tsunami strike, and when you consider the vast empty barren-ness of space it can strike fear or even horror into you.
Creation says almost nothing about God being love. It does not reveal God as a loving parent, as the one Jesus called Father or Dad. In creation, everything dies. Even wisdom only speaks of justice, it doesn’t speak the wonderful foolishness of forgiveness, compassion and grace.
Moreover the God of creation may be close. But this God who called the worlds into being with a word, is beyond you, separated from you, it may feel like you can reach out and touch God like on a clear night it feels like you can touch the stars but in the end you are part of the creation, part of the art work and you cannot reach out of the canvass to touch the artist even if he or she is near by.
i. God with us : Jesus
The second way the Christians have experienced God is in Jesus. God who was alongside you in history. God the eternal son become a human being. The artist become a part of the artwork. In his healing, touching the leper, in his teaching, in his sharing meals with sinners and respectable people alike, in his miracles, in his calling and commissioning of the disciples and in his death and resurrection, Jesus has revealed God to be compassionate, forgiving, a friend, a brother, a loving parent you can refer to as your Dad. The one who sees even the sparrows fall, and cares so much more for you. It is in Jesus witnessed to in the pages of the Bible that you come to know the fullness of the character of God. Because of Jesus you know that you are not just parts of an artwork, tiny brushstrokes on a vast canvass, you are God’s adopted children.
As the reading from Romans 5 says “we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand; and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God. " (Romans 5:1–2, NRSV) And as Jesus says in the John reading "All that the Father has is mine." (John 16:15, NRSV) and he promises that he will pass that on to you or as Jesus says in John 14 “If you have seen me , you have seen the Father.” (v9) and in 10:30 “The Father and I are one.”
Now if this is true that Jesus is God among us in history there is a problem. Yes, Jesus has shown you what God beyond us is like. Jesus has shown you his dad, indeed he shares his Dad with you and because of his life and death and new life, you know you are welcome with God, but just two Sunday’s ago we celebrated the Ascension when we remembered that Jesus has gone to be with God the Father. So God is still out of reach.
j. God Within
Yet I bet this is not your personal experience of God. Most of you will not have heard God speak in a voice from heaven or a burning bush, but nearly all Christians have the sense at least sometimes God is with them or even in them. This is the Holy Spirit. This is the way you are connected to Jesus and his Dad. “When the Spirit comes” Jesus says “he will guide you into all truth... he will take what is mine and declare it to you.” That divine inner sense of peace, that conviction that you should speak up about something or check up on a family member or friend, that divine strength you have at time of loss, or need or illness, that perseverance you have through suffering, that sense of hope, all of these could be, and probably are, the presence of the Spirit.
I have many favourite Bible verses but Romans 5:5 has to be one of them. Romans 5:5 (NIV)“... God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”
k. Summary
So the reason for this idea of the Trinity is essentially to do with the way God is experienced. You experience God as beyond you, the artist of creation who you cannot reach out of the canvass to touch, even though this Artist is very near. You also know that God was with us in history; God became part of the artwork, one of the brush strokes, and so you know God, who reveals that the Artist is a loving parent who loves the creation dearly. And you know God near you and in you, the Spirit, who fills your hearts, your inner being with God’s love, bringing you peace and strength and wisdom, connecting you to Jesus and the Father. God is beyond you, was and is one of you in history, and God is in you and among you: Father Son & Holy Spirit.
Today as Christians this experience of God is still the same as you look out at creation, as you read the teaching and stories of Jesus, and as you close your eyes in prayer.
l. Practical expressions -
This church’s mission and vision is to be a practical expression of the love of God. How practical is the Trinity? How does it work out in your common life?
i. God Alongside - Food pantry
When you read about the Story of Jesus feeding the hungry and having compassion on the broken, the Spirit’s voice and love at work within you very often calls you to action. One of the ways you have answered that call is with the food pantry. On Sunday and Tuesday you have helped four different households giving away three lots of food plus soap and toilet paper.
ii. God within & alongside - Witness - comfort, hope, peace, forgiveness, acceptance
When you face suffering loss or illness or fear what could be more practical than the forgiveness and healing known in Jesus and the inner peace and strength, acceptance and love you experience through the Spirit. And what a story you have to tell each other, your family and your neighbours. “Despite COVID and inflation, and my illness and my loss” you can say to others “I have hope. I believe that God who was with us in Jesus healing and providing, is with me still. I have a sense of peace, and you can have it too.”
iii. God the Artist - beyond us
Next year the Worship and Evangelism committee is considering doing another visual arts Stations of the Cross. Echoing the creativity of the Creator, the Artist of the Universe and drawing attention to the artistry of the creation itself is a great practical way to bring people hope, joy, and wonder. As we ponder all of that let’s come to God with our free will offering and sing a great hymn about the experience of God.
A narrative sermon based on Genesis 32: 25-32 and Matthew 26: 36-46
My name is Jacob. I’m a twin. They say that even when I was in my mother’s womb I struggled with my brother. I came out holding onto his heal so they gave me the name grasper or grabber. The name sort of fits because for the first part of my life that’s just what I was like. I knew that the only way to get ahead in life was to make your own way and your own luck. If a situation presented itself then you should grab it with both hands and never let go. Keep your wits about you and if other people give you a tiny opening, push your way in and get what you can.
When my brother came home really hungry one day after hunting or whatever it is he does out in the fields I was cooking some stew. Red lentels, some herbs, and spices, I recall. He asked me for some – he said he was “starving to death” and so half joking I said, “First sell me your birthright”. I was basically saying - Give me your share of the family inheritance and give me the blessing or the Promise that my Grandfather Abraham was given by God. God was going to make our family big, powerful and rich. I didn’t really expect Esau to take me seriously about the stew, but he did. I’m starving to death! He said, what use is all that to me? So I saw my chance, “swear to me” I said that you will give me your birthright and I’ll give you a big bowl of stew. And he did! I couldn’t believe it.
Maybe about 10 years later my dad Isaac decided to make the passing on of the blessing and the inheritance formal. Esau never admitted to Dad that he’d sold his birthright to me, but mum knew about it. She also told me that there was a prophesy that I would get the blessing instead of Esau. The trouble was that Esau was dad’s favourite. So mum and I cooked up a plan to trick Dad. We look different but we are twins so we sound alike and by this time dad was practically blind. So I disguised myself as Esau on the day the blessing was to happen esau was out in the fields hunting for a feast for the blessing meal. Dad fell for it and the blessing was mine. Mum and I thought Esau would just take it, be a bit grumpy but I’d get the the animals, the land and the greatness that God had promised. But Esau wasn’t having it; he threatened to kill me, so with mum’s help I ran off to my Uncle Laban.
I had dad’s blessing but I’d lost mum and Esau, and my whole family. I believe last week you heard about the next part of the story. I had a vision of God who said I would be blessed. God would stay with me and things would turn out OK. Looking back it was an amazing and frightening experience. It gave me hope, but I didn’t really understand it. All my life I’d got things by making bargains or tricking people and also by hard work. I’d made a lot of my own luck. I thought God was offering me a deal, so I said to God and to myself. If you look after me I’ll worship you and give you 10% of everything. But I think God was offering it to me for free, as a gift, but I couldn’t believe that.
Anyway, I had a lot of adventures with my Uncle, I ended up with huge herds of goats and sheep & cattle, two wives, two sort of more wives , 11 sons and only one daughter. I was rich, I’d been blessd and I’d also really, really upset my uncle who sent me packing, so with all my riches I went home back to my brother and my dad and mum. But I was worried. I had heard Esau was doing well like me but he also had his own private mini army. I had servants and herders but no army.
So I thought I’d try to make another deal. I separated out hundreds of my best animals and sent them on ahead as a present for Esau. I sent the rest of the family ahead of me too. I decided to rest by myself for the night before meeting my fate. I had thought that if I had all that wealth and wives and children then I’d have made it, but now it seemed my brother would get me in the end. It had all come to nothing.
Then the strangest thing happened. This man appeared and began to wrestle with me. It was a surprise but I was up for the fight. I’d fought all my life. I knew he was strong far stronger than me but I used every trick I had. For hours we fought. I wasn’t winning but I wasn’t giving up either. We fought and we fought and dawn began to break, and the stranger showed his real power and hit me a blow so hard on the hip that it threw it out of joint. I was helpless, I had been defeated, but would not let go. I sensed he could probably have thrown me aside like a rag-doll, but instead he spoke. “Let me go for the day is breaking.” I could feel something huge, something powerful, so I said “No! I won’t let go, not until you bless me.” He asked my name - “Jacob” I said. His reply struck me like a bolt of lightning. “You shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with humans, and have prevailed.” (Genesis 32:28, NRSV) I had been wrestling with God. That’s what Israel means “wrestles with God”. I hadn’t really won. I was a bit cheeky then, despite the awe and the fear and I asked “What’s your name?” after all I’d given away my name. But of course he didn’t say. But he did bless me!
The stories of my Father and Grandfather said that God was so pure, so powerful, so mighty that if you saw God you would die. Instantly burn up in fire, be swallowed by the earth, whatever but I had not only seen God, face to face I’d wrestled with God. I called the place Peniel which in my language means “face of God”, for I had seen the face of God and lived.
I hadn’t really beaten God, God had beaten me. I had tried to earn God’s favour, earn the wealth, and earn the good life. I’d worked hard, I’d tricked, I’d cheated and sometimes I even tried to do the right thing. In the end although it seemed like it was up to me I had to accept that life and God’s blessing, God’s favour was a gift.
I wrestled with God and I survived, I prevailed but I did not win. I walked with a limp from then on. Anyway armed with God’s favour it gave me the courage and hope I needed to go and meet my brother.
All that happened over 3 000 years ago. The blessing God gave my family, the gift that we didn’t deserve has wound up becoming a flesh and blood human being in one of my great, great, great etc., etc. grandchildren. Jesus of Nazareth his name was. Even he struggled, even though he was God, he was also human; he struggled and wanted his own way, but unlike me he always went God’s way. I had some hard times, but he faced worse. He faced abandonment, denial, betrayal, torture and death.
My story ended up OK. Esau welcomed me and in the end my story though full of more adventures was a good one. Jesus died, but that wasn’t the end. He was blessed with new life. Because God’s love is eternal, Jesus was raised to new life and that life is available to you.
What his story and mine have in common is that God is with you. God is with you even if you’re a grasping cheat like me. I’ve learned the hard way that God doesn’t approve of any of that, but if God can stick with me, well God can stick with anyone. God can even stick with you. God is with you when relationships break down, like they did with me and dad and Esau, and God is with you when things seem darkest, when you have no-one and nothing, and when you have everything. Jesus’ story tells us that God is even with us through the darkest of all things, death. Everything else except faith, hope and love will pass away. The greatest is love and God’s love, just like God, is eternal. Anyway I’ll see you in the new creation and then you can tell me your story.
Focus Readings: Genesis 11:1-9; Acts 2:1-21; John 14:8-17
In Douglas Adam's Science Fiction series, the Hitch Hikers' Guide to the Galaxy there is a fish called the Babel fish which can be inserted into the ear and which translates whatever is being said in any language instantly to your own. He writes "by effectively removing all barriers to communication between different races and cultures, has caused more and bloodier wars than anything else in the history of creation."
- Douglas Adams, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy It's meant to be a funny line because often people argue that if only we really understood exactly what other people were saying, people of other cultures, languages, faiths, and so on then there would be world peace. I will be honest and say there are times when I don't say exactly what I think and there have been times when I have been very glad that people have misunderstood what I was saying because what I was actually trying to say was not good or perhaps just foolish.
The Babel fish by translating exactly what people are trying to say would mean that we would hear and understand the best of what our fellow human beings are saying but we would also hear the worst.
The Tower of Babel story is about how God gave us separate languages because we were trying to make a great name for ourselves. Instead of receiving and caring for creation as a gift from God we were seeking to do the very thing that Adam and Eve did in the Garden of Eden to be like God, to make ourselves great. This is what the Bible calls pride. Pride is not taking pride in the achievements of our work or craft or our children, spouse or family. Pride is believing that we are better than others. It is believing that we should have special privileges because of our knowledge, our wealth, our skill or our position. As Psalm 10:4 puts it "Psalm 10:4 (NLT)
4 The wicked are too proud to seek God.
They seem to think that God is dead.
That is what is happening with the tower of Babel. "Let us make a name for ourselves." God recognises their pride and that "this is only the beginning of what will do", and so scatters them. This division of people by race and language is a result of sin. It is not that any race or language is better or worse or that there are not magnificent things in every culture, but the underlying division between them is as a result of sin, just as the underlying division in the relationship between us and God is also the result of sin.
The story of Acts 2 of the first Pentecost Sunday is a reversal of the story of the tower of Babel. It is a story of people being gathered together from the corners of the world. It is a story of the division of language being broken down so that everyone hears the same message from the same people in their own language, the language of their heart. Those building the tower were scattered to the four corners of the earth and their languages were confused. Those who hear Peter and the disciples preach are gathered from the four corners of the earth and they hear together without confusion the message.
What makes this a real reversal of Babel is that what gathers those people together on this morning is not the wonderful works of human beings, the wonderful work of a great tower, or the wonderful work of creating a new organization, what brings them together are the wonderful works of God. "In our own languages we them speaking about God's deeds of power"! the crowd says. Moreover, what brings them together is not their pride, them making a name for themselves it is the Name of Jesus who brings them together. And so our Acts reading for today concludes "everyone who calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved."
Babel has been reversed the scattered have been gathered, the confused have heard of the wonderful works of God with one voice and with one tongue and they have been brought together not because of their own power or special achievement, but in the Name of the Lord, the name of Jesus.
And this message, this pouring out of the Spirit on that first Pentecost Sunday is not just for the 100 or so disciples, men and women gathered in the upper room, it isn't even just for that crowd gathered together 2000 years ago, it is for all people including us.
Acts 2:17-18 (NLT)
17 'In the last days,' God says,
'I will pour out my Spirit upon all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy.
Your young men will see visions,
and your old men will dream dreams.
18 In those days I will pour out my Spirit
even on my servants-men and women alike-
and they will prophesy.
All people have this gift of the Spirit, the power from on high, the Advocate , the Spirit of truth from the Father who takes us into the relationship between the Father and the Son. We have the Spirit, we have seen the Son and so we have seen the Father. We are not orphaned, we are not by ourselves, we are no longer alienated from God and each other. We are one great fellowship of love and this is true for us and ultimately it will be true for all Creation which groans for the Children of God to be revealed so that it may be freed from its bondage and "obtain the freedom of the glory of the Children of God." (As Romans 8 reminds us.)
This story in Acts 2 is the beginning of this new creation. It is the reversal not only of the divisions of the tower of Babel, it is the reversal of the broken relationships that began with Adam and Eve who in their pride rebelled against God. It is the reversal the division between of Cain and Abel and Sarah & Hagar, Jacob and Esau, Mary and Martha. To quote Colossians 3:11 This day, Pentecost, marks the beginning of the renewal of all things the in which "there is no longer Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and free; but Christ is all and in all!" (Col 3:11)
This is the very heart of our faith. Essentially we are in the unity and reconciliation business. We have been separated from God and each other, but Jesus through his, life, teaching, friendship, ministry, death and resurrection has reconciled us to God and to each other. In the last week I have been reading Reconnected: A Community Builder's Handbook by Andrew Leigh, Nick Terrell. As I type this I am only up to chapter three. The first two chapters are about how Australia and other Western countries are becoming less and less community minded and more and more individualistic. Involvement in all kinds of community, political, religious, and community life are declining, as is trust, and volunteering. On average people also have fewer close friends and much less contact with neighbours. As people in the unity and reconciliation business we should be concerned about this not just because it means the church is in danger of fragmenting but because the community is too. It is an attack on not only the church but on the world God loves.
As Chistians we believe that this is not the ultimate truth or destiny of the church or the world. We believe that in Jesus and through the pouring out of the Holy Spirit all people are reconciled to God and each other and all people are being reconciled to God and each other. This current fragmentation is not the final end. Our call is to live out that truth, to quite literally love our neighbours and make community connections through the church and in our family and community life.
We have the same Spirit and we are called to the same thing that Peter and the disciples of the upper room were called to do. We are called to proclaim the wonderful works of God. We are called to announce the Name of Jesus by which everyone can be saved. We are part of the same story of the reversal of the tower of Babel, the beginning of the unity of all people and all peoples by the Spirit. We are the fellowship of reconciliation, not only for ourselves but for all the world.
This is our purpose! This is what it means to be salt and light for the world. This is what it means to shine God's light from the hillside into our community. If we are faithful to the Spirit's call it may be that some will say we are crazy, that we are drunk, but others will be amazed and look beyond us to see the Lord.
At the 2019 Synod meeting the Norman and Mary Millar lecturer Professor Anne Tiernan from a purely secular point of view spoke about how the division and polarisation of our nation and the world could be reversed. I quote, "I want to suggest that creating a strong, healthier, more vibrant, inclusive and fair Queensland (and Australia) is a shared task," said Professor Tiernan. "I strongly believe that we-the Churches, universities and other civic and public purpose organisations-have the capacity and potential to do what modern politics cannot." End of quote.
I believe she is right! We could do that even in our own strength. But even more wonderfully we have the Spirit of the Living God, we have God's love poured into our hearts, we have the Advocate and Witness drawing us into the relationship between Jesus and the Father, the one who made all things and who is making all things new. If we recognise this and are faithful in our witness, how much more can God do with what we bring.
God will bring this new creation, with or without us, but it is God's desire that like Peter and the women and men of the upper room, like the woman at the Well and like Andrew who brought the Greeks to see Jesus and the boy to share his bread and fish for the multitude we should be a part of the story. The story which ends with the nations gathered from the East and the West from the North and the South, with God dwelling among us, where there will be no more morning and crying and every tear will be wiped away and we will be united in one great fellowship of love.
Focus reading John 17:20-26 Some of you may remember Tim Shaw from Demtel. If you don’t you may be familiar with the Shopping network. A presenter tells you about an amazing product you must have. Then she or he will say “but wait there’s more” and will offer another amazing product, then they might say “Not only that you also get...” and perhaps they add “and if you call right now we’ll also add”. At the finish they might ask “And how much would you expect to pay for this...” And then they will give the amazing bargain price.
Well I want to argue that the Gospel (The Christian story about how we can be forgiven, healed and reconciled to God, to each other and to the whole of creation) is the first Demtel add. It’s an amazing deal and there’s always more.
Much of John’s Gospel is written just like a Demtel or home shopping ad. Something about God is revealed. It is repeated, a little more is revealed, and then a little more again and so on until the full picture is revealed. So viewers on behalf of the God Network I’d like to offer you the Amazing Gospel Deal.
Firstly you get “The Gospel” - This is an extremely close relationship with God where you get to share in the inner relationship of the Trinity - the relationship between the Father Jesus & the Holy Spirit. Any friend of Jesus is part of this relationship and that’s not all you also get millions of bonus Brothers and sisters as part of that relationship too.
Jesus prays in verse 21 of John 17 that all of us, all who trust in him “may be one”. “As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us” He repeats this idea in verse 24 where he says “24 Father, I desire that those also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am...” Jesus requests that we are drawn into the very presence - house - of God.
But that’s not all... Not only... do you get the Gospel an amazing healing, life giving relationship with God the Father, Son & and and millions of bonus brothers and sisters through time and space. In this fantastic Gospel package you also get get to share glory or honour of God.
As Jesus says in verse 22-23 “22 The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, 23 I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one,”
How do we share in that Glory. In John’s Gospel - it’s the Cross. The sign that God had truly come amongst us as a human being/ one of us. It’s also the Christmas Message. The way that we see and share in the glory of God is in God becoming one of us, sharing God’s life with us. God is born as we are born as a human being of a human mum and just as all of us suffer to some degree or other, and just as all of us die God also dies. We share in this with Jesus and Jesus share this with us. EVEN better, we alsp share in Jesus’ new life, his victory, being raised to new life and returning to God the Father.
But wait not only does this Gospel package give us an amazing healing and renewing relationship, millions of bonus sisters and brothers and the glory and honour of God, but right now it affects our lives because it pours God’s love into our very being. Jesus shares the Fathers love with us. As Jesus says in verse 26 26 I made your name known to them, and I will make it known, so that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.
- But Wait there’s more: Not only do you Get this Gospel package giving you an amazing healing and renewing relationship, millions of bonus sisters and brothers and the glory and honour of God, which has its effect right now, but as part of the overall package you Get the amazing privilege of sharing in the Mission of Jesus to the world.
Jesus asks the Father to share his relationship with you als with those “Who will believ in [him] through [your] word.” (Verse 20)
Each of you who have this relationship with Jesus also have a call to ministry, a call to serve God as Jesus did. Jesus’ is saying that others will believe through your word, your service witness and worship. If you share in this relationship with Jesus you share in his mission and God will use even your fumbling and imperfect efforts to bring others into that relationship. For me as someone who especially as a bullied teenager believed I was worthless this is amazingly freeing God can use even me. God can use Peter and disciples who often do not understand, who run away when Jesus is arrested and even deny they know him.
Jesus says that this is a core reason for God the Father sharing his relationship with Jesus and the Spirit with us “so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” (IE Jesus) (Verse 21) If I take some of the repettition out of verses 22-23 it makes it clearer: “22 The glory that you have given me I have given them........so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”
Each of us has particular callings. We may be called to serve the church as a volunteer, or in full time ministry. We may be called to serve our family, to be the best mums and dads raising our children in love and faith. We may be called to serve the community through work or organisations or simply supporting our neighbours. We may be called to professions or crafts or artistic expression or trades, to serve others through the work of our minds and hands. Whatever our callings we share the common calling of sharing the glory, the honour, the love of God with others in all that we do and are so that the world may be one, joind together in this healing, renewing relationship of love.
So what do you get in this Amazing Gospel package? - you get to shar in the amazing healing and renewing relationship of the Trinity. Not only that you get millions of bonus sisters and brothers and the glory and honour of God, which has its effect right now. But wait there’s more, as part of the overall package you Get the amazing privilege of sharing in the Mission of Jesus to the world.
How much would you expect to pay? One million dollars? Your soul and the souls of your Children? One thousand Easy payments of $19.95? No! If you call righ now, it will cost you nothing! That’s right this once in Eternity offer is obsoletely free! It costs absolutely nothing... and absolutely everything, but that is another sermon.
I've not had time to record anything for the last few weeks but here is the text for my message for tomorrow:
The Last become First (Lion to Lamb)
[Title slide] In CS Lewis’ Voyage of the Dawn Treader there is a scene right at the end when a lamb is transformed to the great lion, Aslan who represents Christ in the stories.
The children in Lewis’ story Edmund, Lucy and Eustace have just got out of a boat and as they wade ashore they see a dazzling white lamb. It is cooking them a fish breakfast, just like Jesus cooked breakfast for the disciples in John 21.
Lamb and lion an extract from Voyage of the Dawn Treader Copyright © 1952 by C. S. Lewis Pte. Ltd. Location 2558 Kindle Edition
Then they noticed for the first time that there was a fire lit on the grass and fish roasting on it. They sat down and ate the fish, hungry now for the first time for many days. And it was the most delicious food they had ever tasted. “Please, Lamb,” said Lucy, “is this the way to Aslan’s country?” “Not for you,” said the Lamb. “For you the door into Aslan’s country is from your own world.” “What!” said Edmund. “Is there a way into Aslan’s country from our world too?” “There is a way into my country from all the worlds,” said the Lamb, but as he spoke, his snowy white flushed into tawny gold and his size changed and he was Aslan himself, towering above them and scattering light from his mane. “Oh, Aslan,” said Lucy. “Will you tell us how to get into your country from our world?” “I shall be telling you all the time,” said Aslan. “But I will not tell you how long or short the way will be; only that it lies across a river. But do not fear that, for I am the great Bridge Builder.
I revelation 5, Jesus is the lamb and the Lion just like Aslan. And in our world Aslan is Jesus. I am going to leave you hanging a bit with the imagery of the Lion because I want to explore today’s reading and the imagery of the Lamb.
[Slide 2]
If we think about the scene described in Revelation 5. We see a picture of the current heavenly worship. It is imagery trying to describe something it is impossible to use words to fully reveal. It is not meant to give you a photograph of the things described. Sometimes it is like an expressionist painting. Sometimes it is like and abstract or surrealist painting.
God is in the centre on the throne and is being worshipped. Sometimes the Lamb seems to be the one on the throne, sometimes he is the in the centre but next to the throne. The Lamb is the one who was slain. He clearly represents Jesus. Countless angels, and 24 elders stand before the throne and they worship the Lamb.
Also present here are four living creatures described earlier in the book and finally “...every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them...” (Revelation 5:13, NIV) also join in the worship singing,
“To the one seated on the throne and to the Lamb
be blessing and honor and glory and might
forever and ever!”
It sounds wonderful and a bit scary and very strange.
I think this imagery of the Lamb is one of the main images of how it is Jesus connects us to God or of how Jesus is like Aslan “the great bridge builder.” Where does this image comes from?
[Slide 3 Passover Lamb - Us with God]
Most of you will remember the story of the first Passover.
God hears the cries of the people of Israel in slavery in Egypt and comes down to rescue them. He calls Moses to lead the people and advocate for their freedom. When the King or Pharaoh of Egypt will not listen and release the slaves, God visits various plagues on the people of Egypt. Pharaoh is stubborn and God finally sends a plague which will lead to the death of every firstborn male, both animal and human in all the land.
On that final night through Moses God tells the people to prepare a meal and pack up ready to leave. A lamb is to be slaughtered for food. Some of its blood is to be placed on the door posts as a sign so that when the plague comes it will not affect those households who have blood on the door posts. [Refer to slide] The blood is a sign that the people of that house are with God. The story turns the plague into a character calling it “the messenger” or “the angel of death” and says that the messenger passes over those houses with the blood of the lamb on the doorposts. But Death visits those households without the sign. God kept the Jewish people safe and the blood was a sign that “we are with God...”. Not only were the Jewish people spared, God Delivered them from slavery and in time led them to a land they took as their own.
This deliverance from Egypt is the theological heart of the Old Testament. This event is of course called “The Passover” and is usually at the same time as Easter. Indeed the events of the first Easter happened during the Passover festival.
Passover is the most sacred time in the Jewish faith. It even makes an appearance in the 10 commandments, the great summary of the Law which begins “I am the lord your God who brought you out of Egypt....” (Ex 20:2, Dt 5:6).
Notice that the lamb does not die to pay for sin or to take the punishment for sin, but so the people of God could be identified with God and as God’s people. So what has this Got to do with Jesus?
[Slide 4 Jesus the lamb - God with us]
In the New Testament This idea of Jesus as a lamb is not just in the book of Revelation (where it occurs a few times). Most famously it is in John 1:29 in a scene where John the Baptist is with his disciples.
29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him and declared, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!
We can find it in other places like 1 Peter 1:18–20 (NRSV)
18 You know that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your ancestors, not with perishable things like silver or gold, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without defect or blemish.
This is a strange image. After all Jesus is the Messiah or The King... Jesus is the eternal word of God through whom the worlds were called into being. A great lion like Aslan would surely be a more appropriate image of Jesus than a slaughtered lamb?
But of course it is not so strange. It is a humble image, even an image of humiliation. In other Biblical images Jesus is described as a servant. In Matthew 20:28 and Mark 10:45 Jesus says about himself that he came “not to be served but to serve and give his life as a ransom for many.” In John’s gospel he takes a bowl and towel and does the work that only a servant or slave would do in washing the disciples’ feet.
This great King is at his birth laid not on fine linen in a palace but in an animal feed trough on hay. He is raised not as a prince but as carpenter. When a movement forms around him and he leads that movement to the capital he does not come with an army in a chariot or on a mighty horse but humbly riding on a donkey. And of course the cross is not a sign of earthly, let alone heavenly power, fame or glory but of humiliation.
In the original Passover Lamb the people identified with God, they placed the lamb’s blood on the door frame as a sign that “We are with the LORD and not with the Egyptians and their King and their gods.”
In Jesus the Lamb of God, God identified with us. God the second person of the Trinity, the eternal Word becoming truly human, he lived an authentic human life. Like us he was born, he grew, lived, made friends, ate and drank, and as we will all do one day, he even died. In Jesus the Lamb of God, God identifies with us. God says “I am with you”. God as a human being has become a humble servant, a teacher, a healer, a friend, a child in a family, a brother, probably a carpenter, has enjoyed the pleasures of life such as a meal with a glass of wine with a crowd of family and friends and has also known rejection, betrayal, denial, injustice, physical suffering, mental agony and death.
[slide 5 final Response of worship]
So what doe this mean for us?
Do you remember in that first image in the Revelation reading where the lamb is? Right before or maybe on the throne of God. When God looks out at humanity with all its glory and its shame God sees not only you and me with our imperfect worship, God sees someone else. The first person God sees is the Lamb. God sees a human being just like us. Jesus one of us, and also the eternal Son, the Word of God.
Two of my favourite verses in the Bible are Hebrews 4:15–16
“Jesus understands every weakness of ours, because he was tempted in every way that we are. But he did not sin! So whenever we are in need, we should come bravely before the throne of our merciful God. There we will be treated with undeserved kindness, and we will find help.” (Hebrews 4:15–16, CEV)
When we come in our need, broken-ness, sorrow, sin, yes and also our thankfulness and joy we never come alone. We come with Jesus the Lamb of God. We come with the eternal Son of God but we also come with a human being like us. And Jesus the Lamb of God says to God the Father almighty maker of heaven and earth, “Dad they are with me.”, “He is with me. She is with me.” No matter who you are, or what you have done or what has been done to you, you can be with God because Jesus, the Lamb of God, your servant, your friend, your brother, is God with you and for you.
And so what response is there but to join with every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, singing,
“To the one seated on the throne and to the Lamb
be blessing and honour and glory and might
forever and ever!” Amen
A Great story for Good Friday BUY (Aus) BUY (US)
Sarah the little girl who is very badly drawn decides to make a cake... but everything goes wrong!!! It's a disaster! Everything seems lost... Watch how this disaster gets turned into something wonderful! "In my view the best stick figure children's book with theological themes ever printed" (The author) Purchase on Amazon Australia, US and elsewhere... BUY (Aus) BUY (US) Kindle version available for immediate download. Paperback is print on demand. Use freely for Educational and church purposes. All other rights reserved. ** More detail *** Sarah "the little girl who is VERY badly drawn" tries to make a chocolate cake, but it all goes wrong. Watch to see how a terrible disaster can be turned into something wonderful. This charming picture book will delight Children and adults and hopefully help them to see that terrible disasters can be transformed into something wonderful.This story was inspired by the Good Friday story and was originally written as a children's address for church. It will not only appeal to Christians but also to any one who has ever faced what seems like a dead end or a failure. Even a Roman Cross a symbol of death, can become something wonderful!
If you would like to hear and watch the story of Holy Thursday and Good Friday presented through the reading of the Bible in a tradional Tenabrae or "Service of Shadows" then follow this Link: 2021 Service of Shadows South Rockhampton Uniting Church.
Focus reading: Luke 19:28-40
On Palm Sunday Jesus enters Jerusalem as the King. In Luke’s Gospel the crowd are there but it is all his followers who hail him as king. Jesus doesn’t stop them, even saying that the rocks would praise him if his followers were silent. He knew he was a king, but a king of peace and that he was riding to death and not to a glorious throne. The Pharisees want the crowd to be silent. They don’t want Jesus to stir up trouble. Who are you in the parade? Part of the excited crowd looking on, enjoying the spectacle? The disciples telling the world Jesus is the King, perhaps about to enter his glory, hoping for a quick victory? Or are you one of the Pharisees, friendly or unfriendly, believing that Jesus claim on Kingship will fail and cause nothing but trouble, maybe even violence and bloodshed? Desperate for the crowd to be quiet.
** Sermon Text ***
I want you to think about Jesus and what he was doing as he entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday and then I want you to think about who you are in this version - Luke’s version of the story. Are you like the crowd looking on? Are you like the disciples trowing your clothes on the ground and hailing Jesus as King? Are you like he pharisees concerned about the lack of discipline and the Roman reaction?
As the federal election approaches and we are presented with lots of different models of leadership and authority it is good to be gathered on palm Sunday as we see Jesus’ model of Kingship leadership and authority presented. Whatever their feelings about themselves politicians have to push themselves forward as the best choice, the greatest the one who will solve all your problems. In modern Australian society that usually means who will deliver the most economic benefits firstly for me and secondly for the country. Jesus offers a very different model of leadership.
His greatest signal on the day about what he might have been doing was to come riding in on a Donkey, the second clue is his response to the Pharisees and a third can be found in the context of this passage.
Way back in Chapter 9 Jesus is hailed as the King by Peter, then in the story of the transfiguration, God’s voice from heaven booms that Jesus is “my beloved son” and at the end of the chapter Jesus begins the journey, “sets his face” (Lk 9:51) towards Jerusalem. Just before he begins that final approach (in the passage in Luke just before today’s reading) he tells a story about a King who although delayed, is coming to claim royal power. He tells this story “because he was near Jerusalem, and because they supposed that the kingdom of God was to appear immediately.” (Lk 19:11 NRSV)
At this point Jesus could have chosen to do a couple of things. If he wanted to deny he was king he would simply keep walking into Jerusalem. If had been coming to claim immediate power he would have come in on a horse. Instead he chooses a Donkey. A Donkey is a sign of peace and a sign of kingship. There is a famous Old Testament passage about the King when he comes.
The message translation puts it like this:
Zechariah 9:9–10 (The Message)
9 “Shout and cheer, Daughter Zion! Raise the roof, Daughter Jerusalem!
Your king is coming! a good king who makes all things right,
a humble king riding a donkey, a mere colt of a donkey.
10 I’ve had it with war—no more chariots in Ephraim,
no more war horses in Jerusalem, no more swords and spears, bows and arrows.
He will offer peace to the nations, a peaceful rule worldwide,
from the four winds to the seven seas.
For the people of Jesus time this would have been an unmistakable sign. “He’s saying he’s the King he’s riding a Donkey just like the prophet said!”
Indeed, Jesus doesn’t deny it, for when the pharisees beg Jesus to quieten down his disciples, he refuses and claims that even the stones, the elements of creation would hail him as King if the disciples did not. But Jesus wasn’t going to be a King or a leader like Herod or Caesar, or Scott Morrison, or Anthony Albanese, Clive Palmer, Pauline Hanson, or even a great general like David. He was going to be a peace maker who makes all things right, who isn’t only for the Jewish people but for all the world, including the Romans, Including Herod, Caesar, Scott Morrison, Anthony Albanese, Clive Palmer, Pauline Hanson and for you and also for me. He is choosing the way of the cross, humiliation and obedience. You can follow where Jesus leads but you can never take his place. We cannot die on the cross and be raised again to bring forgiveness and new life. Like the others in this story you are looking on as the king goes by, or following on behind.
You can take their place in the story. Are you a part of the crowd? In this version of the story (Luke’s version) the crowd are in the background. The Pharisees are standing in the crowd and others are there too all on the way to the Passover Festival. Through the middle of you comes a procession. A man on a Donkey. A great crowd of disciples is following on. Do you join in the parade and cheering Jesus as King? Do you join the disciples. Do you keep silent not cheering but following to see what will happen? Do you just dismiss him as another would be leader making a noise, a Neville Warburton, a Bill Shorton or a John Hewson who will soon disappear into the footnotes of history. Does the parade just go by?
Or are you part of “the great multitude of disciples” following Jesus with the 12 all the way from Galilee in the north of the country, or perhaps you have joined more recently. Along the way you have seen the sick healed, the demon possessed and mentally unwell have been brought to their right minds. You have heard Jesus speaking words to make your heart sing. Words about the poor and the broken and the imprisoned being restored. Words about the Kingdom of God being near and even among them. You have watched him eat with sinners and seen him touch and restore the leper. And now he rides a Donkey, just as the Prophet said. He must be the King, the dawning of the Kingdom of God you have already seen in the “deeds of power” together with this symbolic act must mean that the Kingdom of God is about to come in all its fulness. Jesus will sit on the throne and Caesar will be humbled. Do you hail him as king? Is their any doubt in your mind? Do you see a hint, any shadow of the cross? Will you be like virtually all the male disciples? Will you run away when he is arrested, or deny him at his trial? Will you betray him with a kiss?
Are you like the Pharisees. Perhaps you think Jesus is a fraud, perhaps there is a longing in your heart, a hope that Jesus might be the King, but you know the Romans, you know the temple officials. Someone claiming to be a King as Jesus was, better have a whole army behind him, be it an army of men or of angels. For without such an army they will be crushed. The best they will do is cause trouble. Stir up the Romans to draw their swords. All this cheering and shouting will end in tears and blood shed by the sword of those Gentiles, those unclean Roman overlords. The festival and perhaps even the Temple, if Jesus causes trouble there, will be defiled. You can not let this happen. As the crowd cheers for Jesus your heart sinks, the nation is at risk because of this foolishness. Are you a Pharisee longing to preserve what is and hoping for a return to a glorious past vision of David slaying Goliath, beating the Philistines and taking the throne to rule forever?
Who are you? Part of the Crowd deciding to follow ? Looking on with interest, or turning away from the one proclaimed as King? Are you the disciples, recognising Jesus as the promised King and yet not really understanding him?
Wherever you are is not necessarily wrong. The Pharisees were right in their fears for Jesus and the Jewish nation. In five days the power of Rome had nailed this King of the Jews to the Cross and less than a generation later the might of Rome destroyed the whole city of Jerusalem.
The disciples were right to hail Jesus as king, he was and is the king of king and the lord of lords and his kingdom shall have no end. Just 7 days after this parade, Caesar still sits on his throne, but the greatest enemy of all Death has been defeated, has lost its victory and its sting.
And it is Ok to be part of the crowd looking on. It’s where we all start. It’s where in any new or startling thing we will often find ourselves. The real question is will you keep looking on? Will you turn away? Or will you join in the parade, with the great crown of disciples and hail Jesus as the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Will your lives reflect that humble mission.
Will you preach his peace, his reconciliation with your vote, your friendships, in your families, workplaces, in this community and in the schools. On the golf courses and in the boardrooms will you proclaim that he is King? Will you live out our congregation’s vision and be an active expression of God’s love? Will you join in the parade?
Focus reading John 12:1-8 Apologies this is a 20 minute message and not 10.
I’ve grown up in a church and learnt my theology in a way which has always stressed God’s love to us rather than my love to God. And I’ve grown up in a culture, where men especially are uncomfortable about publically showing their love to others. A culture where even another person showing open and public affection can cause discomfort and embarrassment.
While putting God’s love to us, first, before our love to God is not wrong, for me and for many in the church, any “over the top” public sign of affection for God or others, especially if it is extravagant, or showy, or very personal is a problem, even an embarrassment. Today’s gospel reading tells us that such acts of extravagant love towards God are entirely appropriate.
Questions for discussion or reflection.
Read today’s Gospel reading. (John 12:1-8) What do you think of Mary’s gift to Jesus? Are you comfortable with it? Would you ever be able to do such a public thing for God? What would be a similar extravagant act of thanks in today’s world? Think about what God has done for you. What kind of response does it require?
*shortened version of the sermoin script****
This is a repeat from 2019 Focus passage: Luke 15:1–3, 11b–32
Whoever you are, whether we are the shameful sinner, the lost son, in the far away country caught in the drought, or the self righteous, judgmental sinner (older brother) refusing to come into the house, the message is the same. The Father comes out to us and invites us into the party and Jesus goes before us into the wilderness and experiences the pain, broken-ness and even death that we know. For us although dead, he has been made alive, just like the younger son.
Whoever you are, whether we are the shameful sinner, the lost son, in the far away country caught in the drought, or the self righteous, judgmental sinner (older brother) refusing to come into the house, the message is the same. The Father comes out to us and invites us into the party and Jesus goes before us into the wilderness and experiences the pain, broken-ness and even death that we know. For us although dead, he has been made alive, just like the younger son. So where-ever you are, lost and far away, or just outside refusing to come in, God has gone there to find you and is longing to bring you home. God's love always comes first. God always comes to us before we go to God. God always turns to us in love before we turn to God.
Turn to God now. Come inside. Join the party.
In this Sermon I take a slightly diffrent view to Tim Keller who sees the "true" elder brother as the Christ figure. I see the younger brother as the Christ figure. I like Keller's interpretation as well. See
*** Full Sermon text below *****
I want us to think about the story of the lost son in two ways. The first way is the traditional way. Traditionally we think of ourselves being like the young son or maybe the older son. We are the ones in the wrong who need to come home to the Father. It's a story about how God's love and grace comes first, for God's love comes before, our love and repentance. As a story it tells us what John tells us in 1 Jn 4:19 We love because he first loved us. (NIV) I want us to think about the story of the lost son in two ways. The first way is the traditional way. Traditionally we think of ourselves being like the young son or maybe the older son. We are the ones in the wrong who need to come home to the Father. It's a story about how God's love and grace comes first, for God's love comes before, our love and repentance. As a story it tells us what John tells us in 1 Jn 4:19 We love because he first loved us. (NIV) The second way of looking at this story of the Lost Son is a bit more daring - but I'll get to that in a few minutes. Most of us probably think of ourselves as the younger Son. That's what we do in most stories - we identify with one of the characters and usually the main character. Like the younger son - if we're really honest - we know that there are times we would rather serve ourselves and have our own way with our own money, than serve God or our neighbours, or even our families. But just like the young son, we also know the love of the Father. The term father can be confronting to some people. But when the Bible talks about God being Father it does not mean that God is a bigger version of our own fathers. My Dad, was always a good provider, and loved mum and all three of us boys. But like lots of fathers of his generation, he was emotionally distant from us, and often physically absent at work. All the nurturing was done by Mum. This is not the understanding I have of God the Father - a distant provider. We call God Father because that's what Jesus called him. And when we think of the character of God the Father, we should think of the relationship God the Father had with Jesus. We should think of the One who has counted all the hairs on our head. The One who even sees the sparrow fall, and cares for us much, much, much more than any sparrow. The One who is like the Father in this story of the Lost Son. The Pharisees and the teachers of the Law are having a go at Jesus. "This fella eats with "sinners" no good tax collectors, prostitutes." And eating with people in Jesus' time meant that they were your friends, people you were in a relationship with. In response to this Jesus tells three stories. The story of the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son. He's saying to the stuck-up religious people that they've got it all wrong. God loves sinners, God goes looking for them and brings them home, even when they are wasteful, even when they run away and rebel. God longs to bring them home and embrace them in arms of love. After all the money is gone, the drought has come and the gold diggers and fair weather friends have deserted him. The young son remembers the his dad's love . He realizes that he doesn't have to be here in muck of the pig sty feeding the pigs. He can return to his Father's house and even as a servant, he would be better off than in this strange, alien land. He repents of his actions literally. The word "repent" means to turn around, and in response to the memory of his Father's love he literally turns and begins to head home. He begins the journey, but before he ever gets there, his Dad runs out and gives him a hug. Before he can make his little speech. "I've done the wrong thing by you. I'm not worthy to be your son. Make me one of the hired hands..." Before he can even say this, before he can show he's going to behave the right way and do the hard work, he's embraced and accepted by the father and his love. God's love always comes first. It always takes priority. The young man returns to the Father because of the love he already knew, because his Father loved him first. Repentance, turning to God always comes after God's love. It's evangelical - it's in response to the good news. It's in response to God's great loving kindness. We repent and we are forgiven, not because we turn to God in love, but because God has tuned to us in love. Just like the young man and his Father, God is running to embrace us. That's the usual way of interpreting this story. We are the young brother or the older brother. We are the ones who in response to God the Father coming out to us and showing us love, go with him - back to the party. Like the first two stories, the lost coin and the lost sheep, God comes out to find us, we don't go looking for God. But in most parables, one of the characters is usually Jesus. As shocking as it is, in this case I think Jesus is the young man. He is the central character - Do you think I'm going too far? Am I drawing a long bow? Let's think about it. The reason Jesus tells this story is because the Scribes & Pharisees were having a go at him. "You eat with sinners. If you were really a Godly teacher, you'd have nothing to do with people like this." "Jesus" they might say "you might as well go off to some other country, and mix with non- Jewish people and feed the pigs." So Jesus tells this story of the lost son. Both Jesus and the young man leave their father. Both mix with unworthy types and break important rules. The young man spends time with pigs, loose women, and other sinners.Jesus also associates with sinners and tax collectors, and worse he publically executed, naked and exposed. For Jesus really becomes one of us and he throws his lot in with us sinners. He doesn't sin but he does leave his father's house and go to a hostile and broken, far away land of sin, decay and death. Jesus goes into exile in a strange land. Like the rebellious people of Israel he travels through the wilderness. Jesus is like Anna in the King and I he goes to a strange land and lives but also confronts its culture, mixes with the people and does the job he has to do. Or he's like the central character in Black Like Me a white journalist in the 1960s who disguises himself as a black American, and learns not just by looking on but by experience what segregation and racism really means. Like the son Jesus also returns from the land of sin and death and is raised to new life. The words of the Father about the young man "24 for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; 32b because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.'"These words could be said by God the Father about Jesus, who was also dead but is now alive. Jesus and the young man were dead but now they are alive. Because of this there must be rejoicing for the family is restored The young man is restored to his Father and Jesus is restored to his Father. For us and as one of us Jesus has gone into the far away land of sin and death and suffered what we suffer, but he has also done what we could not do. He has done the right thing while we have done the wrong thing. In the wilderness and drought land, he has not turned away from God. Instead he's returned to God, and he has taken us with him. Now all of this could be a bit scary or challenging. We don't want to think of ourselves as being like the lost son. We don't want to hear that we may have done the wrong thing and mixed with the wrong people. On the other hand we don't like to think of Jesus as someone who mixes with undesirable types either. When we feel this way about Jesus or ourselves we are thinking like the scribes and the Pharisees and the older son. We're like Noah the older brother in the Rainmaker "So full of what's right we can't see what's Good". We haven't gone off into the far away land, but we might as well have. We might as well have, because we're not prepared to go inside. We'd rather stay outside, and be resentful. But the message for us is the same as it is for the father and the younger Son. For the Father comes out to us too. He invites us and is willing to take us into the party too. So whoever we are, whether we are the shameful sinner, in the far away country caught in the drought, or the self righteous, judgmental sinner refusing to come into the house. The message is the same, the Father comes out to us and invites us into the party. Jesus goes before us into the wilderness and experiences the pain, broken-ness and even death that we know. For us though dead, he has been made alive, just like the younger son. So where-ever you are, lost and far away, or just outside refusing to come in. God has gone there to find you and longing to bring you home. God's love always comes first. God always comes to us before we go to God. God always turns to us in love before we turn to God.
Focus readings : Isaiah 55:1-9, Luke 13:1-9
Message summary
The picture of God in today's Gospel reading (Luke 13:6-9) could be a picture of a severe judge ready to cut down any tree that does not bear fruit and burn it in the fire. The parable is a call to repentance. To repent, literally means to turn around. Jesus is calling us all to turn from our selfish ways, and turn to God. The parable and the picuture of God it paints may not be as severe as we might first think.
First, even though we may not bear fruit, God is offering us the opportunity to repent. Second, the tree is not cut down, it is given fertilizer and another chance. Third, this is not the first time the owner has come and seen no fruit. Time and time again, year after year, the tree has been spared. God's love and mercy is enormous and so while we are living, it is never too late to accept God's offer of a new life, a life turned round, and turned to God.
Questions for discussion or reflection.
Has your life been a fruitful one? Are the fruit of the Spirit growing in you? (Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.)
What images of God do you relate to best the ones from Isaiah 55:1-9, or those from Luke 13:6-9?
Do you need to accept God's offer of a new life, and turn (or be turned) to God?
** SERMON TEXT ****
The conventional view of the New Testament is that it’s about God as love - Grace & kindness while the Old Testament about following rules, God as a severe Judge, & being Good.
Today’s readings seem to stand these understandings on their heads.
The Old Testament words we heard read were first heard in either exile or siege in a setting of hunger, hardship, and perhaps working hard for a foreign government in exile. It is a picture of abundance of God’s free provision- v1 Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. It’s not a call to repentance or words of judgement but words of invitation to experience God’s freely given love. It’s a picture both of a future time of abundance and of God’s provision now. “I have and I will provide everything” god is saying so “Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,and your labour for that which does not satisfy?” Verse 2
These words must have sounded the exiles like Daniel working for King Nebuchadnesser in Babylon. They were labouring for position, power, money, possessions, but none of these will fill the stomach. They also knew that God provided for them and protected them even when they were forcibly dragged off to a foreign land. They knew that all that is necessary for life, God provides.
I wonder if we have that confidence. It’s easy not to trust God and spend money for that which is not bread,
and labour for that which does not satisfy? Verse 2
What are we working for? - Brand names? (Shoes) Position. Gadgets. Luxury items. Financial security. These won’t fill us if we are hungry or shelter us when it is raining. At the moment those in Ukrane are almost certainly not concerned about designer shoes or prestige motor cars.
For us, for them, for the besieged and exiled in ancient Israel and Babylon that question from the Old Testament is very powerful. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labour for that which does not satisfy? Verse 2
It is especially powerful because God in this reading invites us to a great banquet freely given and this banquet is not just for us, this wonderful blessing will be spread to all nations. “See” the reading says:
“5 ...you shall call nations that you do not know,
and nations that do not know you shall run to you,”
So that’s the Old Testament reading for today. A promise of God’s abundant provision not just for us, but for the whole world. It tells us to come and freely receive, and asks why we labour for things we don’t need especially given God’s overwhelming generosity.
This wonderful picture of God’s abundant love, a banquet for all the nations is contrasted with Jesus in today’s Gospel reading.
You’re all sinners, Jesus says and you all need to repent. No one is better or worse than anyone else.
The same fate awaits us all if we don’t repent. All of us will die. Specific sin may not lead to specific judgement, but because we are all sinners we all face the Judgement. To quote Paul “The wages of Sin is death...” If we don’t repent we will be damned.
And repentance is not just saying “I’m sorry” and it isn’t even a change in behaviour - it’s a change in life; a change from a life dedicated to ourselves and getting for ourselves that which is not bread, to a life dedicated to God and others. A tall order, even impossible but it’s a change God has done everything to make possible.
The people of Israel, the disciples and you and me are all like the fig tree.
We have been placed in the Garden watered and cared for.
Everything has been done for us- nothing else is needed for us to bear fruit!
The people of Israel believed that they were the children of the promise to Abraham, that they were rescued from slavery in Egypt, and later when they are conquered and carried off to Babylon God returns from exile and restores them to their home.
As Christians we have an even greater gift. We have the gift of Jesus. God become one of us. God who died for us. God who was raised for us. God who revealed to us that he is like a loving Father and a loyal Son who shares a perfect relationship; who shares that relationship with us as a gift.
We have been nurtured and cared for like the Fig Tree and yet some of us have not borne fruit. We taken all that we have been given and chosen to spend it on that which does not satisfy so our life and growth are stunted.
So our Old Testament reading tells us that God has so abundantly blessed us that, that blessing like a light or a beacon will draw the whole world to us but the New Testament suggests we have wasted that blessing. We are like a well cared for fruit tree which does not bear fruit. Or we are like a light hidden in a basket.
You and I are all sinners, who time and time again fail to repent and there is a warning of judgement here! Next year we may be pulled out and burnt in the fire, BUT this year God has not abandoned us.
Think about the fig tree. The owner (God) has planted it. Year after year the owner provided for it, visited it and even after all those years of no fruit the owner had not destroyed it. He gives it at least one more year. Perhaps if we do not fruit next year he will give us another year. I don’t know. God is abundant in mercy and steadfast in love and also just. Will that mercy last forever? Will we put God to the test and keep wasting God’s generous care and provision?
This too, was the story of the people of Israel, they did face judgement, yet time and time again God rescued them, called them back and healed them.
This was the story of the first followers of Jesus. They misunderstood him fought about who was the greatest, abandoned, betrayed and denied, him when he faced death and trial. Yet Jesus did not abandon them. From the cross he cries out “forgive them”. In the end he re-commissions them.
I believe it is your story too, (I know it’s mine) there are times when you and I are selfish and waste the blessing. When we hide our light in the basket, instead of setting it on the hill.
God is the great and just judge who will set things right and rightly condemns your sin and mine. God is also Mercy and Love
It is in this wonderful context of God’s love, Grace and forgiveness that you and I, are called to repent - to a change of Life.
This is true in the OT and the NT. God promises a Banquet big enough for the whole world and is prepared to give the Fig Tree one more year even after many years of no fruit.
So in the wonderful light of God’s mercy and love, have you heard God’s call to the banquet, Christ’s call that you should live fruitful lives, his call to turn from a life dedicated to ourselves, to a life dedicated to God. Are you ready to stop spending your money on that which is not bread and labouring for that which does not satisfy? Are you ready to turn, and be turned to him? Are you ready to shine the light, and be a beacon of hope for your community.
Take a few moments of silence now to think about your lives, God’s love and mercy and God’s desire that your lives should be fruitful.
A sermon about living a heavenly reality drrawing on Luke 13:31-35 and especially Philippians 3:17-4:1
In Paul's church and Greek culture Paul was fighting an incredible battle. The churches that he planted were going off the rails. They were rejecting at least part of the message which Paul had told them and that meant they were behaving in ways that were destructive to the community and to themselves. The church was divided.
On the one hand a battle against his culture. Most Greek speaking people believed in only a shadowy afterlife. Real life was in this life. Life beyond death was a sort of dream. That meant that life was to be lived now. For many who were wealthy life was about eating, drinking, and sexual excess. It was about physical enjoyment here and now. For others it was about pleasure for the mind, philosophy, poetry, plays and debate. It was not that different to our culture. There was no real future so life was about what could be had in the present.
On the other hand in the Church especially among Jewish Christians Paul was facing a battle against (rules) a distorted understanding of the faith which said that to be Christian you had to become Jewish. Males had to be circumscised, certain foods like pork couldn’t be eaten and the festivals and other rules had to be followed. It was not that different to the distorted picture many have of Christians and Christianity. Many see you and I as people who want to set crazy rules for ourselves and impose them on others. No drinking, dancing, makeup, no sex and especially no fun.
These two extremes have at heart exactly the same wrong beliefs what is important is us and either our goodness or our self satisfaction. It’s what we do and have which gives us either pleasure or makes us acceptable to God.
Their God Paul says is their belly. They either lead a life of excess and destroy not only their bodies but also their inner being or they practice self denial, also destroying the body and with it their soul.
Their glory is their shame. The body (which fails in time), money, material things, or even the law and excessive rule keeping. No-one can truly always keep all the rules and love God with all they have and their neighbour as themselves. Their minds are set on earthly things and not on God’s freely given love, on loving God & on loving their neighbour.
That's what paul is having a go at -minds set on earthly things, so you would expect Paul to say - steer a middle course. Moderation in all things!
But Paul takes a radically different course. He says instead - That our home, our reality, the stuff which makes life real is the reality of heaven.
Paul says that we are citizens of heaven. He says that we wait for Jesus to come. That when he comes he will change our mortal bodies, these bodies that let us down into immortal bodies, bodies that will never let us down and that all things things will become subject to Jesus. Jesus’ shares his back from the dead, eternal life with us. In the end of as the book of Revelation says “the Kingom of this World”, will become “the Kingdom of this world”. Heaven and Earth will be joined together just as they are in Jesus.
This is all well and good of course but isn't it so heavenly minded that it is no earthly good? Isn't it just pie in the sky when we die? A great future hope but not too much use here and now?
One of my favourite movies is the Shawshank Redemption. A man is wrongly convicted of his wife’s murder and sentenced to life. He never gives up. He knows his truth is not the jail. His truth is that he is innocent. He is not what he appears to be.
That story is fictional but there is a true story just like it of Gladys Aylward. A tiny woman a missionary to China who had been rejected by the mission societies. She believed she was called by God and that the purpose and would not take nn for an answer. She made her own way to china. She worked with prisoners and other disadvantaged people in a particular province. One day the Governer told her to go break up a riot in the prison. As a prisoner ran toward her with an ax she thought to herself if I am called by and connected to God then God can meet this challenge. God’s power is far greater than a prison riot. Trusting in God’s strength she stared down the rioters and brought not only calm but reform to the prison system. Heaven and Earth came a little closer together.
Paul is saying the same about us. Our reality is that we are citizens of heaven. If that's true then that's how we should live. Living like that should have a real effect on our lives now!
Look at our lives Paul says, look at the lives of all of us who believe in Jesus and see what they are like. Through the Spirit they have the life of Jesus at work in them. They know they are citizen’s of heaven and that affects their behaviour.
Being a Christian is not about a bunch of rules, or about worldly things at all not even in moderation. It's about living a life of hope. Living a life which says the priorities of the Kingdom are what is most important.
This is a really practical thing. We live with the truth that Jesus will return. We live with the truth that God will make and has made us new. We live with an understanding that this world is not all there is, that there is a heaven and that one day heaven and earth will be combined. The way things are now are not what they could be or should be, or will be. The world could, should, and will be a better place. We should live with that understanding that truth burning in our hearts.
The invasion of Ukrane, and the COVID pandemic are concrete things we are currently having to respond to. How can we bring hope? What are the priorities of the Kingdom? One of the issues we face is that those who end up holding extremist views and even turning to violence end up in their own echo chambers. They end up isolated at the bottom of a deep dry well where they only hear the views of those who hold the same view. They have come to believe perhaps that Ukranians are all Nazis or that NATO is plotting to take over Eastern Europe and isolate Russia.
Perhaps they are disaffected people who have lost work or hope as a result of the pandemic. They come to believe the conspiracy theories about vaccinations and government and “big pharma” plts. They read the blogs, follow the Facebook pages, visit the web sites, follow the news services, and read the papers and magazines which confirm and reinforce their fears and prejudices.
Our task as well as prayer, as well as giving to help those hurt, is to shine a light down those wells. When someone in our circle, at work, in school, in our neighbourhood, on a facebook page starts pushing or repeating extremist views we need to gently say “no”. Gently ask “is that really true?” and we need to love them, ask about their families, ask about their needs. Show them kindness and engage with them as people made in the image of God, people for whom Christ died and was raised and help them to see that the same is true of those they have been learning to fear or hate. Show love, bring hope. Shine the light of God’s love into the deep wells dry wells of fear. Throw a rope down that they may climb up.
Amen.
Today's reading from 2 Cor is telling us about how we should read the Bible and about how we should hear the stories about Jesus. Paul is telling us that we should read the Bible not primarily as a moral code, or a rule book, but as a living book, inspired by the Spirit. A book which through the Spirit is alive. A book in which we meet God. We should look at it to see how God is revealed to us.
This is a significant rewrite if a sermon from 2019 to fit a different context.
Hear the original HERE Watch this rewrite HERE
I am a glass half empty person. I tend to expect the worst in almost everything. When I was a teenager about 14-15 constantly facing bullying this tuned into paranoia. If a school mate said to me “how are you?” or hello, I would respond with “what do you want!” In my early adult years and in my late teens that all changed. By temprament I was and still am a pessimist, a glass half empty person. But by faith, because of the trust I have in Jesus I am at the same time a “cup overflowing” person. As in the 23rd psalm because the Lord is my shepherd I believe I will come in time to a place of celebration where my cup is not just full to the brim but overflowing. In the meantime I have been well provided for. There have been many green patures in my life, and though there have been a few long dark valleys in I know that God has been with me, guiding me even through the valley of the shadow of death.
There is a lot to be hopeless about. We could all be forgiven for giving in to despair or being pessimists. There is of course COVID. The Omicron threat is slowly receding but there could be another varient and someone recently told me that it could be another 2-3 years before we are through it. There is the medium to long term threat of climate change. In the week I prepared this sermon I have assisted two people, one ungrateful who demanded more and one who was grateful and another who I could not help because they needed something that the church and I could not provide, four night’s accommodation. In all three cases I don’t know the truth of their stories. I don’t know if they got themselves into the mess or if they’ve fallen through the cracks. I do know they were in deep enough need to seek help from a church. There is so much need and broken-ness and it seems impossible to meet.
So how is it that I do not give in to despair although hopelessness and fear very often haunt me? How is it that I can keep going?
It is because with Paul I believe in the resurrection. I believe that Jesus was raised from the dead. I believe the tomb was empty and that even now Jesus is both with us by the Holy Spirit and also bodily in the presence of God the Father. He is the first fruit, the advanced sample, of the resurrection. He is the sign that God is indeed creating a new Heaven and a new Earth. A time is coming when just as the body of Jesus was recreated so too will heaven and earth be recreated, and joined together as one. As part of that, we too, will be recreated. The old creation will not be done away with. It will be remade. Just as the body of Jesus was recreated and so the tomb was found empty, the same will happen with all creation including ourselves.
At first this may sound very impractical, pie in the sky when you die, but I think there are two immensely practical outcomes of a belief in the resurrection. First, it says there is a future and so even when things seem bleak we can go on, we can put one foot in front of the other. All may seem lost but we look forward to new life when all things will be renewed and re-created.
It may be that the last tree has been chopped down, [or as in the children’s story the watermelon plant has died] but there is a green shoot that has popped up, a sign that there is a future, that everything has not been in vain. That shoot is the risen Jesus, the first fruit, of the new creation. So we have a future hope. And that hope enables us to go on. That in part is what Jesus is getting at when he says those who weep will laugh and those who hunger will be filled. When the cosmos is made new and all the dead are raised every tear will be wiped away. If that is so, there is hope!!!
I hate going to the dentist, I have had a number of teeth out and on two occasions have gone into shock, become faint and nearly passed out. Yet I faced up to it because I knew that my future will be better without those rotten teeth and so I faced up to the dentists and their plyers confident of a better future. Firstly I believe that when the new creation comes and I am raised from death I will have a mouth full of perfect teeth, but I know that even in this life I am better off without those rotten teeth. There will be no more discomfort. I will not become ill because the infection from an abscess starts to affect the rest of my body. I will have a fuller, richer life. As a foretaste of the future I even have a fine partial set of nickel cobolt dentures with which I can chew carrots, steak and apple. Not the final thing but a promise of what’s to come.
It is like that with the resurrection of Jesus too. If he has been rased then his risen life is at work in the world now. In at least some ways heaven and earth have already joint together and life is far better than it once was.
World wide far fewer women die in child birth and far fewer children die in infancy. Slavery in many parts of the world has been abolished. There is greater equality between women and men, people of different races and classes. Paul’s words from Galatians that there is neither Jew nor Gentile, Slave nor free, male nor female, is not true just in heaven with Jesus, it is becoming true here and now. The percentage of the world in abject poverty is actually declining. Polio has been eradicated world wide.
My mum who had teeth just like mine had to have all of hers taken out when she was just 16. I have kept more than half of mine through the wonders of modern dentistry. Heaven and earth have come closer together in many ways more powerfully than in the past. In the 1919 Spanish Flu, our last great pandemic, around 12,000 people died or 10.2 In every 10,000. So far in the COVID Pandemic because of vaccines and other medical improvements just over 4000 people have died or about 1.4 people in every 10,000. More than 8 times less people have died from COVID per 10,000 than died from Spanish Flu. Heaven and earth are coming closer together.
In many, many cases the Christian church has played a leading role in improvements in the world, in bringing heaven and earth together. Why have we played this role? It is because we have a vision of the world in which the hungry are fed, those who weep are transformed into those who laugh, the Kingdom of God belongs to the poor and the dead are raised. This is a future thing, but it is not only a future thing. It is also a here and now thing. Notice Jesus says blessed **are** the poor for theirs **is** the kingdom of God. He does not say the poor **will be** blessed for theirs **will be** the kingdom of God. It is a here and now thing as well as a future thing.
One of the signs of this is seen in the start of the Gospel passage today. Be fore we hear Jesus say “blessed are” we hear that those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured and that he healed all the sick who were brought to him. In other words the poor received the Kingdom of God and in just under three chapters the hungry will be fed in the feeding of the 5, 000. The Resurrection of Jesus is the greatest sign of this blessing being at work now. He is as we have already heard the first fruit of the new creation.
If we think of our experience of life, and faith, and God at work, we know that this is true for us too. I have not heard all the stories in this church and I probably never will but I know there will be stories of healing, of light breaking into a darkened situation, of new beginnings in work, in marriages, in families. Stories of hope and strength in the midst of grief. I know that this has been your experience. If you are going though some darkness, or even if you are just like me and have a bit of a pessimistic turn of mind, let me remind you, Christ is risen! The Hungry will be, and are being fed, those who weep have had their weeping turn to laughing, and the Kingdom of God, even now, as well as in the future belongs to the poor.
So like me, put one foot in front of the other, do as Christians have done for 2, 000 years, live out the hope of the resurrection even in the darkest of times by engaging with the needs of our community. Share stories of the hope you have within you, do your bit to feed the hungry and bring laughter to those who weep. You won’t be able to do it all, but the risen Jesus is alive in you by the power of the Spirit and so the Kingdom of God is coming but it is also among us and in us right now. Amen.
Here is a list of Year C Sermons - Past episodes as of January 2022
The gaps are most of Lent, Easter 1-3 and Proper 20-23. Hopefully I will plug some of the Easter and Lent gaps this year.
Live with hope and confidence. Advent 1 C (2012) Look forward and not only back.`1 Advent 2 (2012) Dignity, no fear and Joy! Advent 3 C (2012) A text only rewrite of Advent 3 in the light of the Newton massacre. (Dec 15, 2012) The unfair gift of love. Advent 4 C (2012) Love changes everything - Christmas Day Sermon text. (22 Dec 2012)
Love Changes Everything - Christmas Eve-Day sermon(Podcast) The Christian's business is obedience. Christmas + 1 (2012)
Jesus Light of the world. Epiphany C 2013 Christian = Faith (Baptism of Jesus-Epiph +1C) (2013) The Wedding Banquet Epiphany + 2 C (2013) At Home with God Epiphany + 2 C (2019) Lovely Law Epiphany + 3 C 2019 Law better than Chocolate 2022 Epiphany + 3 C The greatest is love: Epiphany + 4 C 2019.wpd The Grace and the Call: Vessels filled with Glory. Epiphany + 5 C Hope, here and now! Epiphany + 6 C 2019 A significant Body. Epiphany + 7 C 2019 Tempted as we are... Lent 1 C 2019 Come inside and join the party Lent 4 C 19 The Lost Sons Heaven begins here - Easter 4 c 2019 Heaven in the trenches- -new Heaven and the new Earth. Easter 5 C 2016 ANZAC DAY How is God Present? Easter 6 C Sunday May 6 2013 Jail Break Easter 7 A (2013) Plugged in, Powerfull, Passionate Preachers - Pentecost Sunday. A (2013) In Christ Alone. Proper 4 C (2013) Proper 5 C Magic Restoration (2016) Life of the Party Proper 6 c (2016) Freed from possession by the Law for Gospel Proper 7c (2016) Sent on Mission, not Self Help. Proper 8 C (2013) Freed and Fueled Proper 8 C (2016) God is Crucial Proper 9 c 2016 (2016) Proper 10 C The parable of the hurt man. (2013) Sit at Jesus' Feet - Proper 11 C for Sunday 21 July 2013 God as Father, Forgiveness and the Lord's Prayer Proper 12 C for Sunday 28 July 2013 Good things and God things. Proper 13 for 4 August 2013 Heavenly minded and of great earthly use Proper 13 C (2016) Live lives of thanksgiving. Proper 14 C for Sun 11 August 2013 You don't run alone! Proper 15 for 18 August 2013 Carried across the line. Proper 15 C 2016 Heb 12:1-2 Worship is thanksgiving, joy, awe and deep respect! Proper 16 C for August 22 (2016) Sermon text : More than Just a meal Luke 15:1-10 Proper 19 C (2016) Podcast: More than Just a meal Luke 15:1-10 Proper 19 C (2016) Trust and Obey Proper 24 C 2016 Thankyou I’m not like you! Proper 25 C For Sunday 27 October 2013 Proper 25 C 2016 Dependant on God the Pharisee and the tax collector. All Are Welcome Proper 26 for Sunday 3 November 2013 Table Transformation Proper 26 C 16 For October 30 (2016) A Season of Grace. Proper 27 for Sunday the 10 th of November 2013 Heavenly Work Proper 28 C (2016) Total Commitment, sermon for Christ the King C 2013
Key Bible passages: Nehemiah 8:1–3, 5–6, 8–10; Psalm 19; Luke 4:14–21 Click here to read SUMMARY: It might sound odd, but the Law is better than chocolate! If we think of the Law in the Bible as dry rules then we have it wrong. It's stories, promises, and poetry as well as rules. Even some of the rules are pretty amazing. The storys are about hope. How God makes a world, a people, heals them and rescues them. This message explores the second part of Pslam 19, Part of Ezra 8 and draws on Jesus' words from Isaiah in Luke 4.
How can the psalm writer say that the law “refreshes the soul”, that the law “gives joy to the heart”, “more precious than pure gold” and that they are “sweeter than honey, than honey from the honeycomb”.
Have you heard some of these laws?
Listen to Leviticus 14:35 following:
“the following regulations about houses affected by spreading mildew. (These were to apply after the people of Israel entered the land of Canaan, which the LORD was going to give them as their possession.) If someone finds that the LORD has sent mildew on his house, then he must go and tell the priest about it. The priest shall order everything to be moved out of the house before he goes to examine the mildew; otherwise everything in the house will be declared unclean. Then he shall go to the house and examine the mildew. If there are greenish or reddish spots that appear to be eating into the wall, he shall leave the house and lock it up for seven days. On the seventh day he shall return and examine it again. If the mildew has spread, he shall order the stones on which the mildew is found to be removed and thrown into some unclean place outside the city. After that he must have all the interior walls scraped and the plaster dumped in an unclean place outside the city. Then other stones are to be used to replace the stones that were removed, and new plaster will be used to cover the walls. If the mildew breaks out again in the house after the stones have been removed and the house has been scraped and plastered, the priest shall go and look. If it has spread, the house is unclean. It must be torn down, and its stones, its wood, and all its plaster must be carried out of the city to an unclean place.” (Leviticus 14:34–45, GNB)
Now this is good hygiene advice. I have heard from more than one source that if a house has mold it can be a health hazzard, but have those words refreshed your soul? Have they given joy to your heart? Do you think to yourself “Wow this is more valuable than Gold!” Are you thinking “how sweet, it’s even better than chewing on honeycomb”?
The words of the psalm remind me of an episode of the Muppets where they want to listen to Danny Kaye the actor/comedian backstage, so while he sings to them Kermet sends onto the Stage Clive Cahuenga the singing civil servant, who then sings “the Municipal Vermin Abatement Code to the music of Mozart. He sings each piece he performs twice, because he has to do everything in duplicate.” If we think of law as dry rules about dry subjects, the psalm makes no sense, but this is not the way the people of Ancient Israel thought about the Law.
Firstly even the dry rules had some powerful ideas. There are many references to caring for the poor the widowed and the orphaned. There is the repeated command that foreigners or migrants who live in the land should be treated just like citizens. For instance Deuteronomy 10:17–19 says “...the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who is not partial and takes no bribe, who executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and who loves the strangers, providing them food and clothing. You shall also love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.” (Deuteronomy 10:17–19, NRSV)
But secondly and much more importantly when the Old Testament refers to the Law it is not only talking about the rules. Sometimes the word “law” just means “rules” as we would use the word Law. Jewish poetry repeats ideas rather than rhymes. So if you look at verses 7 to 9 of psalm 19, in the NIV for instance the word law is parallel to “Statutes”, “precepts”, “commands” “fear” and “decrees” . In the Contemporary English version it’s “teachings”, “instruction”, “commands”, “worship” and “decissions”.
The Law was not just rules, it was wisdom and instruction for the good and faithful life. It revealed what God is like and it showed what God’s people should be like and how they should love each other and even strangers who lived among them.
Moreover the Law was not only this instruction and this wisdom. The people of the Old Testament and of Jesus’ time and modern Jewish people call the whole first five books of the Bible “The Law”. There are lots of rules and instructions in the Law especially in the third book of the Bible, Leviticus and the fifth book Deuteronomy. There are quite a few rules and instructions the the second book of the Bible, Exodus, and the fourth book of the Bible Numbers, is mostly a catalogue of very tedious lists. Yet in these five books which Jewish people then and now called the Law there is so much more. There are stories, there is poetry and there are promises. Together they tell one great big story about how God made the whole universe including human beings, about how God made the world Good, how we human beings have rejected God, and how God still loves us has made promises and has a plan to bring us back. This promise begins with God caring for Adam and Eve when they left the garden, rescuing Noah through the flood, making a promise to Abraham to bless or make the whole world happy through him. It is a story of Abraham’s family being rescued from slavery in ancient Egypt and being taken to a promised land. In those stories, slaves are freed, promises are kept, and Abraham’s family becomes a great people. Songs of joy and victory are sung; tears are shed; lives transformed. Some of those stories are violent and difficult to hear and understand. Some of the rules and instructions sound very strange to us today, but they all lead in the one general direction. They lead to a restored relationship with God and with each other. They lead to victory and healing. They lead to a safe and secure home.
When the Psalm writer said that the Law was sweeter than Honey that’s what is being spoken about. It would be almost 3,000 years before Europeans brought Coco beans from South America and put them together with sugar to make chocolate. But if it had been around that’s what the Psalm writer might have compared the Law to “The Law is better than fine chocolate, even much fine chocolate.”
This is what the people in the story of Ezra and Nehimiah weep over. The story is that the Jewish people had been conquered by invaders from Babylon (modern Iraq) and their leaders had been taken away as exiles. Their city Jerusalem and the the Temple, the place where they worshiped God and the place they believed God was most present on earth had all been destroyed. The temple, their whole city and its walls had been burned and torn down. Around 70 years later the people of Babylon are defeated by the people of Persia (Modern day Iran). The Persians send the Jewish people back to Jerusalem and give them permission to rebuild the city and the Temple. First they rebuild the Temple and then they rebuild the wall around the city. Our story takes place just after the rebuilding of the Wall. It’s sort of like after the Earthquake in Christchurch. The basic infrastructure has been rebuilt and now houses are being rebuilt and the city resettled and coming back to life. All the people gather in worship and ask Ezra one of the priests and a teacher of the Law to read the Law to them. When they hear it read and explained they weep.
Perhaps when they hear the rules and instructions about how they are to live, how they are to love God and their neighbour and how they are to treat the poor the widowed and the orphaned as well as the stranger, perhaps they weep because they have failed to live up to the demands of the Law.
Perhaps though they weep because they hear the way that God kept the promise to Abraham, and the stories about how God rescued and cared for Abraham’s family including rescuing them from being slaves in Egypt and bringing them to the land of Israel. And when they heard those stories they heard their own story and realised that they were now part of the story too. For God had rescued them from slavery and from another land and brought them back to Israel. God was still keeping the promises. Perhaps they were tears of joy, perhaps they were tears of sadness. It is likely that they were both. The scene finishes with Ezra telling them not to weep. ..“Nehemiah said, “Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”” (Nehemiah 8:10, NIV)
Around 500 years later Jesus is sitting in a worship service in the town of Nazareth where he grew up. He reads part of the Bible. This part of the Bible talks about how the things promised in the Law and the stories of rescue from slavery, of people being healed and saved will one day come true. Jesus is a teacher who also has a reputation as a healer. The custom was different to ours. The preacher or teacher would read a part of the Bible and then he would sit down to teach or preach. So Jesus sits down and everyone looks to him, ready to hear what he has to say. “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” At the very least Jesus was saying that he is the one announcing freedom and justice and healing.
We can look back over the rest of his life and over the 2,000 years since and with a mixture of historical knowledge and faith know that this Jesus was not only announcing freedom, justice and healing, he is also the source, of freedom, justice and healing. His teaching, his healing, his miracles, his sharing meals with and being the guest of both sinners and religious people show that healing and freedom at work. Above all through his death and being raised to new life, defeating death, he brings the ultimate freedom.
I think we are most like the people in Ezra’s time. The Uniting Church our movement or denomination is far from ruined like the Temple and Jerusalem were, but we are living at a time where we are only a small band. A shadow of our former selves. When we add to that the pandemic, climate change and the breakdown in community connections represented by the decline in things like Rotary Clubs, P&Cs, CWAs, Unions, political parties and of course families and personal relationships it would be easy to despair.
If however we listen to the Law, hear its promises and its stories and the positive things it says about how we should live with God and with each other, then we can go forward with confidence. Abraham’s family did become great. The people of Israel in slavery in Egypt were released. The Temple and the city and its walls were rebuilt. Jesus was dead and buried but he rose again and because as a human like us, he received God’s Spirit God’s indwelling presence, the Spirit has been poured out on us too.
Like the people of Israel hearing the Law, we should weep. Weep because we have fallen short of the way we live with God and others, we have not loved God with all we are our neighbours as ourselves and we have not welcomed the stranger as we should. Like them we should also weep with joy. God does heal, God does bring freedom, God does bring justice, God keeps the promises. Even better like the family of Abraham, like Ezra and the people of Israel, above all like Jesus, God includes us in this story, in these promises.
The Law does “refresh the soul”, the law “gives joy to the heart”, it is “more precious than pure gold” and“sweeter than honey from the honeycomb”. It is better even than the best Chocolate.
So with our souls refreshed we are called to take our place in the story.
Podcasr Photo by Rūta Celma on Unsplash
Banner Photo Photo by Jessica Loaiza on Unsplash
Old Testament Job 42:1–6, 10–17
New Testament Hebrews 7:23–28
Gospel Mark 10:46–52
If God is God, then what is the use of prayer? God must know what we need before we even need it. Telling God about things is surely useless. I can imagine God looking down on me and saying. “There he is, “personsplaining” to me again. I already know all this, better than he does. In fact I know everything!” Surely God does not need our prayer, to be made aware of things or in order to do something. It is not as though our prayer will make God more powerful.
I believe that in the story of Job and our Gospel reading and also the Hebrews reading we see a number of the purposes of prayer revealed.
Job loses all his children all his wealth and then becomes terribly and painfully sick. While we get some sort of explanation, Job is never given a reason for this. He is a very good man, like all of us imperfect but if anyone deserved to have a good life based on their character and care of family and neighbours including those less well off it is Job. Job spends most of the book begging for God to give him a chance to defend himself and state his case. Job never curses God but he certainly gets angry and upset. In the end God speaks to him and still gives him no answer. God basically just says - how dare you question me. I am the one who made and sustains the universe. ““Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation?... [when]“the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?” (Job 38:4,7 NIV)
In today’s reading responding to God revealed in such a powerful way, Job humbly says “...Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know.” (Job 42:3, NIV)
But God does not punish or tell Job off for crying out, for questioning God’s justice, for being angry and upset. In fact God says to Job’s religious friends that Job has spoken the truth about God’s character.
This is the first purpose of prayer. God is someone to cry out to. God has pretty broad shoulders. Not just Job but David & Psalm writers and Moses, Ezekiel, Hagar, Hanah and a number of others cry out to God in anger, despair and frustration and none of them are condemned for it. When you cry out to God in faith even if it is mixed with doubt and full of pain or anger or fear, God will not condemn us.
Bartimaeus cries out loudly from the roadside. “Son of David have mercy on me.” It annoys and embarrasses the crowd. They tell Bartimaeus off. But Jesus is not embarrassed any more than he is embarrassed by the mums bringing their small children. And as an aside I don’t think you should ever be embarrassed by the Uniting Church’s practice of baptising Children, for Jesus welcomes all the children who are brought to him.
Even if you don't believe that God does, or any longer does the miraculous; who better to cry out to than God? This applies not just to those like Job or Bartimaeus who are suffering some terrible loss or illness, it applies to those who know they need mercy and forgiveness.
So the first purpose - someone to cry out to. God is someone we can offload to, spit the dummy to.
Second prayer reminds! Prayer declares to God and to you and to others God's Character and it also reminds you of others’ needs.
Job's confession speaks of how God is too wonderful for words. Much of Job is prayer, it speaks of God's justice, God's power, God is not domesticated or tame but God is good. God’s Character is revealed in prayer.
Bartimaeus’ plea for help reveals his need to others. It also reveals God's healing power and merciful character. “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me.”
Prayers of praise remind us of God’s power and love and provision and awesome character. Prayers of confession remind you that God is merciful and forgiving. Prayers of intercession, prayers for others and yourselves remind you that God heals and provides and as others pray if it is a public prayer, it makes you aware , reminds you of the needs of others. Thanksgiving reminds you of how God has provided, in creation, in daily life and most wonderfully of all in the life of Jesus and in the puring out ot the Holy Spirit.
First prayer gives you someone to cry out to. Second it reminds you of God’s character and others’ needs.
Third it draws you into relationship.
Public prayer, prayer with others in church or in Sunday School or a Bible study brings you into the lives of others and others into your lives. But in our Hebrew’s reading you also have this picture of being drawn into the divine relationship. You are brought by Jesus into the relationship which he shares with the Father and with the Holy Spirit. Jesus a human being like us but also God’s eternal Son brings us into the presence of God the Father. The Contemporary English version puts it like this: “He is forever able to save the people he leads to God, because he always lives to speak to God for them.” (Hebrews 7:25, CEV) Or as Romans 8:15-16 put it, his Spirit joins together with our apirit and we are able to Cry out to God “Abba (“Dad”), Father!” and so you know that you are brought onto a new relationship with God - You are God’s adpted children.
First prayer gives you someone to cry out to. Second it reminds you of God’s character and the needs of others. Third, it draws you into relationship with God and with the church community .
Fourth it gives you an opportunity to receive. Again in public prayer Bartimaeus’ need becomes known as does Jesus’ response and he his able to receive (help) an invitation through the crowd to meet Jesus. He receives word from Jesus - “Call him... What do you want me to do for you” Job also receives God’s word and through the witness of the Bible so do you. You hear the wonderful image of the beginning of creation, when the morning stars sang together and all the anges shouted for Joy. In answered prayer in the Boible and in your own prayer you receive the word of God. I believe you can also receive the miraculous. Job is healed and his fortune is restored. Bartimaeus receives his sight back. A little baby in the Tannum congrgation was prayed for and his bowel unblocked avoiding surgery in what doctors descibed as the worst blockage they’d ever seen cleared without surgery. In prayer you also receive forgiveness, the Holy Spirit and when you first come to faith you receive Jesus himself.
Prayer gives you someone to cry out to, it reminds us of God’s character and other’s need, it draws us into relationship with God and others, it gives us the opportunity to receive and fifth...
It gives you an opportunity to give. Often you are the answer to prayer. If we pray for lonely people perhaps God is asking you to be a friend. If you pray for the needy perhaps God is asking you to give. If you pray for the church or the community, perhaps God is asking you to lead or serve. People are so grateful to know that others pray. If only Job's friends had done what Job does for them and prayed for him instead of piling judgmental advice on him perhaps the book of Job would be shorter and less challenging. Sometimes you are the answer to prayer, sometimes God answers or provides and someime there is no answer you can see. You can not fix the problem or meet the need but you can take it and those who are in need to God. Ifyou can give nothing else you can still give prayer.
So what is prayer good for? What is its purpose? It gives you someone to cry out to, it reminds us of God’s character and other’s need, it draws us into relationship with God and others, it gives you the opportunity to receive and fifth it gives you an opportunity to give.
A text sermon based on Mark 10:35-45, especially Mark 10:43–44 (NRSV): whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all.
Also a celebration of Blue Care a service agency of my church which is one of the largest aged care providers in Australia.
Full text of the service including some prayers below.
Mount Morgan Uniting Church
Worship 9am
Come last to be great!
(Bluecare Sunday)
17 October 2021
Proper 24 b 21 Servant of allt.wpd
- Call to worship
Today we remember and celebrate the work of Blue Care and the many people who have been servants in God’s mission of compassionate care and love.
We give thanks for those who have sought to make a difference in the lives of people in their community and the wider world.
We too are invited to see and respond to the needs of others and join God’s mission of reconciling and renewing our world.
We gather to worship God who looks at all people with love, justice and compassion.
God welcomes and loves us so we might love and serve others.
We do this, not as strangers, but as a reconciled community.
We retell the story of Jesus that we may find our lives in His life
In grateful thanks for what God does for us, we are called to do what is just, to show mercy and kindness, and to journey in humility with God.
Open our eyes Lord, to see the needs of our community and the wider world, and give us the courage to share your abundant love.
Let us worship God.
- Praise singing - Local choice.
- Prayer of praise and confession
Generous God – giver of all good things, all we have comes from you. You are love. You are our provider.
We love you and express our love through worshipping you and serving our neighbour.
Silence
We give thanks for the many people who have gone before us as witnesses to your great love through serving those in need.
Forgive us when we miss the mark of your heart for our family, our friends, our neighbours, strangers and enemies.
Silence
We give thanks for present witnesses who continue to follow Jesus’ call to give compassionate care and loving service.
Forgive us for neglecting the poor, the marginalised and those who we define as different from “us”.
In Jesus’ Name
Amen
- Words of Pardon
In this is love, it is not that we have loved God bu that God loved us and gave his son as the means by which our sins might be forgive. If God has loved us this much, we should love one another. (1 Jn 4:10-11)
Hear then Christ’s word of grace to us: “Your sins are forgiven!”
Thanks be to God.
- Story
- Blue Care - Video
The Christian Gospel is about serving the disadvantaged
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The Servant King Jesus Story Book Bible
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Children’s Song AHB 178 Jesus’ hands were kind hands.
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Readings
- Job 38:1-7
- Hebrews 5:1-10
- Mark 10:35-45
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Sermon Come last to be great.
If you are my age or older we perhaps remember a time when churches were full and healthy. Every church had a reasonably large youth group and Sunday School. Up to 5,000 young people gathered each month for a youth rally in Brisbane. When church leaders spoke the politicians listened. The church was great; it had some power. Often we have a tendancy to look back and want to recapture the glory of the past. In today's Gospel reading the opposite is true. James and John were not remembering a time, they were looking forward to a time when Jesus would be the King. Like David he would defeat the enemies of Israel and lead the people in worship. Like Josiah he would reform the nation and bring in back to God. Like Solomon he would be rich and wise and all the nations of the world would come to pay respects, worship the LORD and seek advice. And James and John would be right there with Jesus.
In the past Institutions were one source of greatness. If you had an important role in a bank, or a large corporation, or a University, or the Church or the government then you were someone. That has all dissolved, we no longer trust banks or governments or churches.
In our time the idea of glory comes from a variety of sources. Wealth... Fame... Sport... Celebrity...
In Jesus’ time it was who you were connected to, especially being close to those in leadership. The closer you were to the king, the Emperor, the High priest the more important you were. To put it in modern terms in Rockhampton the person to be close to would be Tony Williams. In this congregation the person to be close to would be me the Minister, or maybe Margaret or Jean who are your church councillors.
When James and John ask Jesus if they can sit on his left and on his right they are probably thinking of themselves having seats or a place to stand right next to Jesus as king in the throne room. In a great banquet they are probably thinking of themselves having the place on honour on the left and right of the host or the guest of honour - Jesus.
I’m not sure what James and John thought of Jesus. Some modern scholars such as Marcus Borg argue that Jesus did not see himself as the Messiah. I do not agree. I think that it is hard to explain the Jesus phenomenon unless he did. Jesus consistently teaches about the Kingdom of God. His prayer is about the kingdom. More than that I think he probably viewed himself as the Son of God in that he believed he had such a close relationship with God that he could call him “Dad” and in a number of Gospel stories Jesus claims the authority of God. It’s difficult to imagine Jews in the first Century inventing that, it would be blasphemy. In fact it’s for his blasphemy that the Jewish leaders want him dead, while for the Romans it’s his claim to be King that leads to his death.
In any case James & John believe that in some sense Jesus will come into glorious power and they want a share of it. The thing is though that Jesus did not view himself as the kind of King or Messiah who was expected. He had no plans to overthrow the Romans and raise an army. He had no plans to bring the wrath of God down on the oppressors and the ungodly. Instead he taught inclusion of the least. Instead of a Kingdom which honoured power, princes, and priests he spoke of a Kingdom which was full of sinners, tax collectors, children, and the least in the community.
And so Jesus’ response is the very opposite to the kind of thing that James and John are hoping for. Jesus says that it is not about sitting at the right or the left hand side of glory. It is about service. Even though we live in a culture so influenced by Christianity that we honour service in it should still shock us as it would have shocked the disciples. When Jesus says “... whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all.” (Mark 10:43–44, NIV)
He is saying in modern terms that the greatest person in the community may be a parking inspector, or a street sweeper or a sewerage worker. He or she may be a sales assistant or a humble clerk. They might be a kitchen hand in the back of a Macdonalds. They may be a personal carer for Blue Care or a child care worker. They may be a dedicated volunteer in meals on wheels or at the hospital.
In this congregation the greatest person would not be me the minister or one of the Elders, or the organist, but would be one of our dedicated members who just gets about serving. I will not embarrass anyone but you can probably think of those in your midst who might fit the bill. These least ones, these servants are truly great people who live out their Christian faith in humble service.
This Sunday we celebrate the ministry of Blue Care. A ministry of service. Before the Christian era, services like Blue Care did not exist. Isolated frail aged people, runaway, abandoned and orphaned children were not cared for. Since the very beginnings of the Church we have served the least because Christ served us and that humble service has changed the world.
There is no greater example than Jesus himself. Jesus concludes the reading by saying. “For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.”” (Mark 10:45, NRSV)
At the heart of the traditional understanding of the Christian faith is the belief that God in Jesus Christ has become our servant. The King of eternity became our servant. He took our place. He lived our life. Indeed he died the most humble and demeaning death. He touched the lepers, he washed dirty feet. Through this service for us, he forged a new relationship between us and God the Father. God the Father is no longer some distant figure, but Jesus loving and providing “Abba” or “Dad” who like Jesus longs to gather us under his wings as a mother hen would gather and protect her brood.
In Romans 6 and in this passage the New Testament describes Jesus’ life of service given for us as Baptism. Indeed I believe it’s the most important Baptism in the whole Bible. In response to James & John’s request Jesus says "You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?"Mark 10:38 (NRSV) What he speaks of here is his death and resurrection. In Romans 6 Paul says “Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” (Romans 6:3–4, NIV)
In churches which baptize Adults and in the Orthodox church when they baptise new born babies the person being baptised goes right under the water. So for the Orthodox a tiny baby is taken and dunked right under the water, once in the name of the Father & the Son & the Holy Spirit. Jesus was buried in the ground and raised to new life, Jesus gave his life in service and a ransom for many. He shares that life with us and this is symbolised in Baptism. Jesus has shared everything with us, his whole life, and we are buried with him and raised to new life. We suffer with him, we humbly serve with him, he suffers with us and humbly serves us and we are also raised to new life with him as well.
To summarise Jesus is saying to James & John to the other 10 disciples that being great means serving others even if that means rejection and the cross. The good news is that it also means new life.
The writer of the letter to the Hebrews puts it like this:
“In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered; and having been made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation...” (Hebrews 5:7–9, NRSV)
Salvation is ultimately a gift and even those of us who have some position in this world, who are not the least, who are leaders as well as servants, can be part of the Kingdom of God, but in that Kingdom when it comes in its fullness, it will be the least who are the greatest.
Thank-you, everyone of you who quietly serves and looks to the needs of others no matter how humble you may feel your contribution is. You are truly great!
- Offering & Hymn TiS 256 The Servant King
- Announcements
- Prayers for others and ourselves
- Hymn/Song How deep the Father’s love for us.
- Communion
- Hymn/Song AHB 93 God is Love, let heaven adore Him.
- Close
If you want to be great in the Kingdom of God
learn to be the servant of all.
Go then in the name of Christ to love and serve the Lord
and all the neighbours God gives you,
and as you go, know that
the undeserved gift of the Lord Jesus Christ,
the love of God [the Father]
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit,
is with you all. Amen.
- Blessing Song (Local Choice)
A five part study on the theme of salvation inspired by Charles Wesley's hymn And Can it Be
Study 3: Emptied himself of all but love
Click HERE for links to full study booklet, audio & video.
Opening Prayer
Almighty God, our Father,
as we reflect upon the words of Scripture,
we pray that you will grant us the gift of the Holy Spirit,
so that we may learn the truth that is written there,
and be able to live by that truth day by day,
for Jesus’ sake. Amen.
Verse 3
He left his father’s throne above,
(so free, so infinite his grace!)
emptied himself of all but love,
and bled for Adam’s helpless race.
‘Tis mercy all, immense and free;
for, O my God, it found out me.
He left his father’s throne above
Just as startling as the idea that the immortal Son of God would die by crucifixion is the idea that the eternal Word of God would become a human being. It seems that everything God does surprises us!
The following verses from John Chapter 1 are a statement of the Church’s faith (NRSV):
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being through him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.
The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.
And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.
Alan Richardson, an eminent New Testament scholar, tells us that the Greek word ‘logos’, which is translated ‘word’, means ‘rational utterance’, and it can be either a single word or a message. It is a communication from one rational being to another.1
When we human beings talk to one another we communicate much more than information. We can usually tell what a person is like from what they say and how they say it.
Richardson also tells us that the fundamental meaning of the Greek word ‘doxa’, which is translated ‘glory’, is ‘the visible brightness of the divine presence’.2
All our translations spell ‘word’ with a capital letter, ‘Word’. This is because we are not talking about ordinary communication between people; rather, we are talking about God’s Word, God’s communication. God’s Word will show us God’s character – what God is like. And when God speaks, things happen, so God’s Word is God in action.
In paragraph 3 of our reading it is said that ‘the Word became flesh and dwelt among us’. New Testament scholars tell us that the word that is translated ‘dwelt’ literally means ‘tabernacled’, so it could almost be translated as ‘he pitched his tent among us’ – a very homely picture! John does not describe the birth of Jesus; he assumes we already know about that. What he wants us to understand is what was really happening when Jesus was born.
In what way does ‘the Word became flesh and dwelt among us’ expand and deepen your understanding of the birth of Jesus?
If Jesus is God’s way of communicating himself to us, what does that tell us about God’s nature and character?
Where in the life of Jesus do you perceive ‘the visible brightness of God’s presence’?
There is another reason why God’s Word came to live among us: he came for our redemption. God’s purpose was and is to offer us a radical change in our relationship with him: we are to become his children.
Since we are God’s creatures, and not God’s children by any obvious right, how do we become his children?
What effect does the knowledge that God has made us his children have on the way we live?
The writer of John’s gospel is not the only New Testament writer to express the idea of ‘He left his Father’s throne above’. St Paul, writing to the Philippians, says (Chapter 2, verses 5 – 8, NRSV):
Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,
who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
as something to be exploited,
but emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to the point of death –
even death in a cross.
Since these studies are based upon a hymn it is worth mentioning that the scholars think Paul is here quoting a hymn that was sung in early Christian congregations. (Some also add that they think ‘even death on a cross’ was added by Paul – putting his own spoke in, as it were!) Of course we have no idea of the melody, but that scarcely matters when the words confront us with another startling idea: that Christ ‘emptied himself’ by being born as a human being.
Of what exactly do you think Christ ‘emptied himself’?
How confronting is it for you that ‘taking the form of a slave’ and ‘being found in human form’ are evidently the same thing? What limitations did Christ place upon himself by becoming one of us?
Jesus’ birth was just the first step in God’s plan for our redemption: the second was Jesus’ death on the cross.
To accomplish God’s plan, what inner attitudes did Jesus need?
‘Emptied himself of all but love’ – how does that sit as a description of the cross?
The central point of Charles Wesley’s experience: that Christ died for him
We are now at the central point of Charles Wesley’s experience; the very personal realisation that when Christ
‘emptied himself of all but love
and bled for Adam’s helpless race’
he had done it for him.
Read Mark 15: 16 – 39 in the same spirit as Charles Wesley: Jesus suffered this ‘for me’.
We read Mark’s account of the death of Jesus with awe and gratitude. In a story whose every word stirs our emotions, perhaps the most moving moment is Jesus’ cry, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’
At the end of the six hours of tortured pain on the cross, Jesus, who knew the Hebrew Scriptures intimately, speaks the opening words of Psalm 22. So he may simply have been giving words to a human feeling of despair – that God was not helping him to endure his terrible suffering.
Some scholars have suggested that there is another even deeper layer to this ‘Cry of Dereliction’ – that at that moment Jesus, who had always enjoyed such a close relationship with God that he was able to call him Abba [Father or Daddy] suddenly felt the weight of humanity’s sin upon him, and discovered that it estranged him from God. In other words, he was experiencing the alienation from his Father which we human beings know very well because it is the result of our sinfulness.
It is impossible for us to know exactly why Jesus felt such pain that he thought God had abandoned him. However, if he did feel the burden of our sins, that fits in with what we discovered in Study 1: that we, together with all other human beings who have ever lived, were responsible for crucifying him.
Our readings have shown us that in his coming to live among us, and in his dying upon the cross for us, Christ truly ‘emptied himself of all but love’. That is grace, the love God gives us that we don’t deserve – and it is truth in the deepest sense of the word, because it expresses God’s heart and mind. Wesley experienced the mercy of God as immense, and free to him though immensely costly to Christ. Even more wonderfully: he did not find the mercy of God – it found him.
What is it like for you to be found by the mercy of God made real and visible in the death of Christ upon the cross?
Closing Prayer
My song is love unknown,
My Saviour’s love to me,
love to the loveless shown
that they might lovely be.
Oh who am I
that for my sake
my Lord should take
frail flesh, and die?
He came from his blest throne
salvation to bestow:
but all made strange, and none
the longed-for Christ would know.
But oh my friend!
My friend indeed
who at my need
his life did spend.
Here might I stay and sing,
no story so divine;
never was love, dear King,
never was grief like thine.
This is my friend
in whose sweet praise
I all my days
could gladly spend.
TiS 341, verses 1, 2 and 7
Samuel Crossman 1624 – 84 alt.
- Alan Richardson, The Gospel according to Saint John, (SCM Press Ltd, London, 1959), page 38
- page 44
Study 2: This Strange Design
for series links and files click HERE
Opening Prayer
Almighty God, our Father,
as we reflect upon the words of Scripture,
we pray that you will grant us the gift of the Holy Spirit,
so that we may learn the truth that is written there,
and be able to live by that truth day by day,
for Jesus’ sake. Amen.
Verse 2
‘Tis mystery all! The Immortal dies:
who can explore this strange design?
In vain the first-born seraph tries
to sound the depths of love divine.
‘Tis mercy all! Let earth adore,
let angel minds inquire no more.
God’s strange design
The staggering fact upon which the Christian faith is based is that Christ, the Word of God who became a human being, died upon a Roman cross. On the face of it it is totally inappropriate – and surely impossible – for God to die. No human being could possibly have imagined such a thing.
In the famous scene at Caesarea Philippi (Matthew 16: 13 – 20) where Jesus confronted his disciples with the question, ‘Who do you say I am?’ Peter was inspired to reply, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God’, and Jesus affirmed him, saying, ‘Simon, son of Jonah, you are favoured indeed! You did not learn that from any human being; it was revealed to you by my heavenly Father.’ (REB) However he then ‘gave his disciples strict orders not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah’.
But in the very next paragraph we read (verses 21 – 23):
From that time Jesus began to make it clear to his disciples that he had to go to Jerusalem, and endure great suffering at the hands of the elders, chief priests and scribes; to be put to death, and to be raised again on the third day. At this Peter took hold of him and began to rebuke him: ‘Heaven forbid!’ he said. ‘No, Lord, this shall never happen to you.’ Then Jesus turned and said to Peter, ‘Out of my sight, Satan; you are a stumbling block to me. You think as people think, not as God thinks.’
Why do you think Jesus gave Peter such an abrupt answer?
Imagine yourself in Peter’s situation. What are your feelings? Can you reconcile yourself to what Jesus has just said? If so, how?
God’s actions show us how God thinks
Read 1 Corinthians 1: 18 – 25
In this passage St Paul is describing two different responses that people make to life:
- looking for signs that will help us understand our human condition and give us direction in life [’signs’]
- making a serious effort with our minds to understand our human condition, with the idea that if we have a true understanding that will give our lives the best direction
[‘wisdom’]
From his experience of first century communities, Paul characterised (a) as ‘Jews demand signs’ and (b) as ‘Greeks desire wisdom’. Whether or not this is true of the different racial groups is really just a side issue for us today. However, we do need to note that when Paul said in Galatians 3: 13, ‘It is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree’’‘, he was quoting directly from Deuteronomy 21: 23. For Jewish people the death of Jesus on a cross would have been a negative sign.
Looking at Jesus’ death upon the cross from a purely human point of view:
in what way is it a stumbling block to believing in Christ?
how foolish does it seem as a way of reconciling us to God?
However, we, like the Corinthians, are those ‘who are being saved’, and we are trying to think the way God thinks, so for us:
how does the cross express God’s wisdom?
If, like the ‘Jews’, we are looking for a sign, of what is the cross really a sign?
We can trust God’s way of thinking and acting
If we had read and thought about all the words of Second Isaiah, the prophet of the Exile who spoke God’s words of forgiveness and hope to his people, perhaps we might not have been so startled by the idea that God would give his own life for us?
Read Isaiah 55: 6 – 11
This passage reminds us that God is so different from us, his human creatures, so far above us and so holy, that we should not expect to automatically know how he thinks or how he will act.
At the same time it assures us that God’s word always accomplishes his purpose.
What was God’s purpose in dying for us? How has it been achieved?
Even after we have thought about it, it still remains extraordinary that God should give his own life
It is so extraordinary that even angels cannot understand it. While seraphs and angels are not strictly speaking exactly the same, Charles Wesley is using the words synonymously to make the point that even heavenly beings cannot comprehend the depth of God’s love for humanity. And if heavenly beings cannot do it, how much less can we? So when we human beings contemplate the cross of Jesus, all we can do is adore.
We conclude by praying for the grace to be able to think and act in God’s ways, not ours.
Closing Prayer
God be in my head, and in my understanding;
God be in my eyes and in my looking;
God be in my mouth and in my speaking;
God be in my heart and in my thinking;
God be at my end and at my departing.
TiS 549
Richard Pynson’s Horae B.V.M. 1514
Introduction
St Paul’s letter to the Christians of Galatia is a closely reasoned argument and it is probably not fair to him to pick out just one verse. However it is characteristic of Paul’s style of writing that every so often he expresses some aspect of the Christian faith so vividly that his words imprint themselves on our minds. One such verse is Galatians 2: 20:
‘I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me; and the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me.’
Martin Luther’s lectures on Galatians were published in 1535. About this verse he wrote, ‘Mark well the little words, “for me”. The whole weight of Christ’s saving work was on this “for me”, and the way each of us responds to it.’
Charles Wesley, a faithful servant of Christ deeply versed in the Scriptures, received ordination as a priest of the Church of England in 1735. On Pentecost Sunday, 21 May 1738, he lay seriously ill in bed. Some friends read to him the comments of Luther on that verse from Galatians. Wesley felt a deep awakening of the presence of Christ in him and soon wrote the hymn, ‘And can it be . . . ‘. 1
This hymn of Charles Wesley’s is a favourite, not just because of its rousing tune, but because it gives words to the living personal relationship with Christ that Christians experience.
‘And can it be . . .’ is the inspiration for these studies. Wesley’s knowledge of the Scriptures was comprehensive, and each verse breathes the spirit of words of Scripture. As we work through these studies the aim is for each one of us to share Wesley’s ‘deep awakening of the presence of Christ’.
We live in a time which has seen large numbers of new Christian songs written and sung. Many worshippers relate more positively to the contemporary musical idiom than they do to the music of hymns. Many others find that a blend of contemporary and traditional enables them to worship in a way that is modern and immediate and which also shows how relevant the great truths of the gospel are to the life they are called to live day by day.
Hymns are simply Christian poems that have been set to music, and many of them are prayers. Sometimes it is helpful just to read their words and to appreciate them as poetry and devotion. For that reason the concluding prayers for each study are selections from hymns.
The studies have been written to be used either by groups or by individuals. The aim of the process is to support anyone who undertakes the studies to engage directly with the words of Scripture. The questions are designed to help this happen – but if you have other or better questions, try to answer them also.
Opening and closing prayers have been provided for each study, but please think of them as a minimum. Groups may have their own regular practice of shared prayer, and individuals also will have their regular prayers to add in.
At some points you are asked to read a Scripture passage from your own Bible, and at others the passage is printed in the study. I have used a variety of different translations for these.
It has been said that ‘And can it be’ is a superb creed setting out the process of salvation. I pray that it will be so for you as you work through these studies, each of which explores one verse of the hymn.
Dorothy Demack
Rockhampton
February 2021
- Quoted from Freedom is for Freeing, A Study Book on Paul’s Letter to the Galatians, by Philip Potter and Bärbel Wartenberg-Potter (Mission Education and Cultivation Program Department for the Women’s Division, General Board of Global Ministries, The United Methodist Church, 475 Riverside Drive, New York, 1990), page 29
Study 1: For me, who caused his pain
(Who caused Jesus to be crucified?)
Opening Prayer
Almighty God, our Father,
as we reflect upon the words of Scripture,
we pray that you will grant us the gift of the Holy Spirit,
so that we may learn the truth that is written there,
and be able to live by that truth day by day,
for Jesus’ sake. Amen.
Verse 1
And can it be that I should gain
an interest in the Saviour’s blood?
Died he for me, who caused his pain –
for me, who him to death pursued?
Amazing love! how can it be
that thou, my God, shouldst die for me?
Please read the Introduction if you have not already done so!
We begin with a little background information.
Jesus began his ministry in Galilee, and it was enthusiastically received by large crowds of people. When news of his successful ministry reached Jerusalem it attracted the attention of at least three groups of people: the scribes, the Pharisees and the chief priests.
The scribes were experts in the Law that had been given to the Jewish people through Moses. The Revised English Bible reflects this by calling them ‘Doctors of the Law’, and the Good News Bible calls them ‘teachers of the Law’. Good teachers tend to be in love with their subject, and the scribes were certainly in love with the Law. Because it was precious to them they studied it carefully.
The Pharisees were devout people who believed that keeping the Law was the way to be in a right relationship with God. So they looked carefully at every commandment. When they found one that was expressed in general terms they worked out in detail how it should be kept, and insisted that the ordinary people should obey their rules.
At the period when Jesus lived there were two ways in which people could take part in corporate worship. The first of these took place in the local synagogues and consisted of readings from the Scriptures, prayers, and an exposition of the particular passages of Scripture that had been read. It is the model upon which our Christian worship is based. The second could happen only in the Temple at Jerusalem. The central acts of Temple worship were offerings of various sorts, many of which were sacrifices of animals. Temple worship also included music and singing. The Temple was the centre for annual festivals such as the Passover and Pentecost, and every faithful Jew wanted to be in Jerusalem for these if they could possibly make the journey.
The Temple precinct was overlooked by the Antonia Fort, manned by a garrison of Roman soldiers who were always on the alert for any sign of insurrection and quick to stamp out any sign of trouble. The chief priests, who had overall responsibility for the Temple worship, were careful to ensure that nothing happened to bring the wrath of Rome down upon Jerusalem, especially at the festival times when the city was crowded with worshippers.
In fairness we should assume that all three groups were genuine in their dedication to God and the proper practice of their religion.
Who caused Jesus to be crucified?
Was it the scribes and Pharisees?
The following passages tell us about times when scribes or Pharisees observed the way Jesus carried out his ministry.
As you read them, put yourself in the position of a scribe or Pharisee. How do you react to what you see and hear?
Luke 5: 17 – 26
Matthew 15: 1- 9
Was it the chief priests?
Read Mark 11: 15 – 18
How would you explain the vehemence of the scribes’ and chief priests’ reaction?
Read Mark 14: 55 – 64
The holiness of God was foundational in the Jewish religion. God’s holiness was so revered that it was forbidden even to pronounce his name, ‘Yahweh’ [I am].
How reasonable or unreasonable was it of the Jewish Council to find Jesus guilty of blasphemy and therefore deserving of death?
The chief priests feature again in our next reading, together with others.
Read Mark 15: 1 – 15
The chief priests’ focus is still the same: that Jesus should die. What else will they achieve if Pilate convicts him?
Was it Pontius Pilate, the Governor of Judaea?
Was it the ordinary people?
The Pax Romana, or Roman Peace, was maintained throughout the Empire by governors appointed by Rome. They were responsible for ensuring that the power of Rome was maintained. No challenge to Rome’s power could be countenanced.
Look at this reading from Pilate’s point of view. He has the authority to set Jesus free or to order that he be crucified. What factors is he considering before making his decision? Which seems to him to carry the most weight?
The inscription placed upon Jesus’ cross was ‘The King of the Jews’, so Pilate’s final decision was to have Jesus crucified on a charge of sedition.
We who live in a free country have no experience of what it would be like to live under an oppressive regime. The Roman Empire provided security, but it came at the price of brutal oppression. Keep in mind the deep longing of the Jewish people to be free, and their tacit support of any leader who might achieve freedom for them.
Even so, how would you explain the people’s readiness to call for Jesus to be crucified?
Was it people who were faithful in the practice of their religion?
Jesus was crucified during the Passover Festival. Another great Jewish festival, the Day of Pentecost, occurred fifty days later, and again the city of Jerusalem was crowded with pilgrims, many from the Jewish countryside and many from far-flung parts of the Roman Empire.
The words of the sermon that Luke reports Peter as preaching on that momentous day express the message preached by the earliest church. Our focus in this study is on what is said in these selected verses: Acts 2: 22-24, 32 – 33, 36 (Revised English Bible translation)
‘Men of Israel, hear me: I am speaking of Jesus of Nazareth, singled out by God and made known to you through miracles, portents and signs, which God worked among you through him, as you well know. By the deliberate will and plan of God he was given into your power, and you killed him, using heathen men to crucify him. But God raised him to life again, setting him free from the pangs of death, because it could not be that death should keep him in its grip. . . . Now Jesus has been raised by God, and of this we are all witnesses. Exalted at God’s right hand he received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit, and all that you now see and hear flows from him. . . . Let all Israel then accept as certain that God has made this same Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.’
When they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the other apostles, ‘Friends, what are we to do?’
While there is a small possibility that some of the Pentecost Day crowd had also been among the crowd which shouted for Jesus to be crucified, this would certainly not be true of the majority – and yet they were ‘cut to the heart’ when Peter said that they had crucified God’s Messiah.
Why do you think they responded as they did?
If that question seems too difficult to answer, how helpful do you find any of the following?
- a sense that the Jewish community as a whole was at fault?
- a sense that they should have been able to perceive that God was acting through Jesus?
- a sense that if they had been in the positions of the scribes, Pharisees and chief priests, they might have acted in the same way?
- a sense that they were just as sinful as those who were directly responsible for crucifying Jesus?
Was it every person who has ever lived?
As the members of the early church meditated upon the death of Jesus, it found one of the Songs of God’s Suffering Servant that seemed a perfect fit. We read part of that Song, Isaiah 53: 1(b) – 6 (Good News Bible translation):
Who would have believed what we now report?
Who could have seen the Lord’s hand in this?
It was the will of the Lord that his servant
should grow like a plant taking root in dry ground.
He had no dignity or beauty
to make us take notice of him.
There was nothing attractive about him,
nothing that would draw us to him.
We despised him and rejected him;
he endured suffering and pain.
No one would even look at him –
we ignored him as if he were nothing.
But he endured the suffering that should have been ours,
the pain that we should have borne.
All the while we thought that his suffering
was punishment sent by God.
But because of our sins he was wounded,
beaten because of the evil we did.
We are healed by the punishment he suffered,
made whole by the blows he received.
All of us were like sheep that were lost,
each of us going his own way.
But the Lord made the punishment fall on him,
the punishment all of us deserved.
This poem places the responsibility for the death of Jesus squarely upon us and upon our sinfulness. Like Peter’s audience on the Day of Pentecost, we are just as sinful as those who were directly responsible for crucifying Jesus.
Chapters 40 to 55 of Isaiah are all about God’s forgiveness of his people and his restoration of them to a right relationship with himself. But this is not an easy process: it is costly. In the figure of the Suffering Servant we see the cost. Sin and wrongdoing have bad consequences. Those bad consequences ought to fall upon the people who have committed the sins – but instead they fall upon the suffering servant. His voluntary acceptance of that suffering was and is the means by which God reconciles sinners to himself.
Share your responses to the Suffering Servant poem and to the comments upon it.
Closing Prayer
Who was the guilty? Who brought this upon thee?
Alas, my treason, Jesus, hath undone thee;
‘twas I, Lord Jesus, I it was denied thee:
I crucified thee.
For me, kind Jesus, was thy incarnation,
thy mortal sorrow, and thy life’s oblation,
thy death of anguish and thy bitter passion,
for my salvation.
Therefore, kind Jesus, since I cannot pay thee,
I do adore thee, and will ever pray thee,
think on thy pity and thy love unswerving,
not my deserving.
Verses 2, 4 and 5 of AHB 254, ‘Herzliebster Jesu, was hast du verbrochen’
Johann Heerman 1585 – 1647
translated by Robert Seymour Bridges 1844 – 1930
A five part study on the theme of salvation inspired by Charles Wesley's hymn And Can it Be
Find below links to a full copy of the study and podcasts.
STUDY BOOKLET
Study 1 and Introduction - Audio Video
Study 2 Audio Video
Study 3 Audio Video
Focus reading Ephesians 1:3-14
The 28th of June marked three years since my mum died. Mum was a person of strong and active faith. Even though Dad was a minister, it was from Mum that I learned to pray, read the Bible, sing songs of faith, and take part in gathered worship. From both Mum and Dad I learned about what it meant to live out the Christian faith in my daily life. Mum was very concerned about the faith development of Children. She taught Sunday School nearly all her adult life. At the Aspley Uniting Church for about 20 years she did the Children’s address in worship most Sundays and she also ran kids craft and kids clubs at Camphill, North Ipswich and Aspley. In her lifetime she would have had an influence on the faith development of thousands of Children.
Her story is not unique. Perhaps you have a similar story of your parents. Perhaps you have a story about a church member of family friend. Maybe they weren’t involved in Children’s ministry; maybe they lived out their faith in the workplace, in the quality of their work, in the way they supported fellow workers, or in the way they worked for a community or even political cause. Perhaps in one of those settings like my Mum they helped you to grow in faith. Perhaps they helped you to live your Christian life more fully in work and community settings. What is it that motivates the Christian life?
In today’s reading from Ephesians 1:3-14 you hear from Paul that Christians have been given new life. You have “received every spiritual blessing” (v3). You are ‘chosen’, ‘holy’ and ‘blameless’ (v4). You together with all things in heaven and on earth will be brought into unity “under Christ”. (v9-10) You are receiving and will receive an inheritance, the same eternal life which Jesus has, a place alongside him in the new creation and the sign of this is the Holy Spirit, God’s gifts, love and power at work in your hearts and lives. (V13-14)
You have a new life and you also have a new community. You are adopted Children of God. (V5) As above, the gift of being gathered together with all creation also means that you are gathered together with all people, with all who trust in Jesus. (See later in Ephesians where you hear that Jesus has broken down the barriers between people, so that we are one new humanity. (2:15-22) And from today’s passage I have not even mentioned forgiveness, and redemption (that is, being set free). (v7)
All of this is a free and undeserved gift, “glorious grace”, (v7-8) which you have received in Jesus.
This all sounds, grand, exciting and wonderful, but what does it mean for your day to day life and what does it have to do with my mum, or with the important Christian figures in your life? Is all this heavenly talk of any earthly use?
I believe it very much is of great earthly and heavenly use. Paul tells us that because of all this “glorious grace” you should be and live “for the praise of his glory.” (V12) Your lives should be mirrors of the life of Jesus, telling the good news that all can be God’s children, healing the sick, comforting the sad and grieving, feeding the hungry, befriending sinners, sharing meals as guest and host with all who would have us, crying out against injustice and so much more.
In every Christian life it will take a different shape. For my Mum it meant a special concern for the faith and educational development of Children. In another life it might mean being the best tradesman, or professional possible. In another life it might mean a deep concern for and commitment to the environment, or mental health, or the homeless. In another life it might mean being a peacemaker and reconciler in communities, families or even nations. In another life it might mean expressing yourself in art, singing, writing and creativity, which reflects the hope and glory of God. You may not be a perfect mirror of that “glorious grace”, but your calling is none the less to live “for the praise of his glory.” (V12)
The Good news is that while you do play your part, all of this is still God’s doing, you are mirrors of the love of God, your light reflects the greater light of Jesus. Even better, one day when heaven and earth are combined in Christ, “when the times reach their fulfilment” (v10) then you will be transformed into perfect mirrors. You have an eternal future with God.
What does it mean in your life here and now? You have a purpose, a calling to live for God’s glory. Perhaps like my mum you have a particular calling or area of service. Perhaps you are called to live a life of general service, doing your best to reflect Jesus’ love and tell the story of God’s love in your day to day tasks and relationships. One thing is certain you are called to proclaim Christ’s glory now and into eternity.
Sin and Blessing, War and the ANZACs
106 years ago today men landed on the beaches of Gallipoli and began laying down their lives for the sake of others. At a time like this it is tempting to glorify war. There was nothing glorious about World War The way we squander resources even human life in wars, is one compelling reason I believe in original sin. However I also strongly believe we are made in the image of God. Even when we are at our worst we can still do the most wonderful things. We can give our lives for the life of others. We give thanks for and honour that today. We also reflect God’s image when our heart breaks over lost life, suffering and destruction.
In servicemen and women laying down their lives for others we see the image of God & we honour and remember this. God is like a shepherd who cares so much for his sheep that he or she is prepared to lay their life down. God is the one called Abba by Jesus. The word which means “Dad” or “Daddy” rather than the more formal “Father” which we tend to use. This Dad’s heart breaks when he sees our sin, our suffering and our death.
The reason we honour the ANZACs and all those who have followed is certainly not because war is glorious. It is true that in World War 1 and particularly on the shores of Galipolli a significant part of Australia’s identity was forged. But think of the cost? What is worse is the nature of that particular war. War is not glorious. It is always wrong. You would think that humanity would have learned by now. We do not celebrate or honour the Glory of war. Indeed in my view war is proof enough that there is something seriously wrong with the human race. (Original sin)
What we honour instead is I believe what the Bible regards as the image of God. From John 10 we hear that God is like a shepherd who will lay down his life for his sheep. Although we are profoundly sinners we are also made in the image of God. That image may be broken and tarnished but it is still there and because of it even in the horror of war it shines out. Perhaps in war it shines out all the more and is more easily seen. In the australian ideal of “mateship” a true mate is someone who will sacrifice, Give of themselves for the sake of others. The writer of John’s Gospel believed Jesus was the pre-existent word of God. In some sense God. So when Jesus speaks of himself being the Good shepherd, who lays down his life for the sheep, the Gospel writer believes this is the character of not only the man Jesus but of God.
In all wars World War 1 there was significant hand to hand combat. Mates laying their lives down for mates was an everyday occurrence. We see this in many stories but perhaps nowhere more than in the story of Simpson and his donkey. Simpson of course loses his own life, in saving the lives of others bringing the wounded and ill from the battle field and the trenches. This is what God did in Jesus, risking his life that we might live. If Jesus had taught in Australia after the Great War or if Jesus had been speaking to a group of Australians at that time, he might have described himself, as the Good stretcher bearer, or the mate who draws the enemy fire that others might live.
But there is a further and a deeper reason that we honour the fallen which reflects the image of God. It is the image of God as a parent, a Father/Dad who’s hear breaks over our suffering and death. Because this image runs all through all the Gospels I think sometimes we miss the significance of it. It’s there in today’s Gospel and reading and in the reading from the first Letter of John. God is the Loving Father, who sends his Son, who willingly of his own accord chooses to lay down his life for his brothers and sisters, for the children of every nation, the sheep of every fold. It is clear that God is a loving Father who will do and give anything to bring his children home and let them know that they are loved.
In John’s letter Jesus is referred to as the Son ,and we are referred to as brothers and sisters. One of the repeated ideas of this letter is that if God is a Father who loves us so dearly, then we should love one another. We ought to lay down our lives for one another, the writer says. We should believe in the name of Jesus and love one another, our brothers and sisters.
When I think about all the very young men who died at Gallipoli and later in France & Belgium I reflect that if I had got married in my early 20s then most of those young men who died could easily have been my sons. To look at it another way, today Jack read our Bible rthink of Henry, Adam and Chris. If this had been 106 years ago they may be dying, injured or pinned down ond the shores of Gallipoli. If God is our loving Father who regards every person as his beloved child, as Jesus revealed God to be, then these young men who died, and all who have died young because of the horrors of war are our brothers, our sisters, our sons, our daughters, our husbands, our wives, our Dads and our Mums.
We honour them and remember them primarily, not because they fought bravely though most did, or because they are an important part of the story of our nation, though they are, we honour them because we would not want our children, or our brothers to suffer the horrors of war. This is the image of God in us, that we know because of Jesus that we are the children of God, that we too have been given a loving parent’s heart. If this is true then such lives must be honoured and remembered as a parent remembers a child whose life was cut short and the tragedy of war must never be forgotten. Lest we forget.
Focus reading: Luke 24:36-48
The title for today’s sermon is a double play on words. When something is incredible it is amazing or stupendous. It can also be difficult if not impossible to believe. That a tomb should be empty and a dead man appear to his friends is incredible in both senses. Those of us who believe in the possibility of the miraculous have no problem with this but for those who don’t the resurrection is very difficult. This though is what all four Gospels including the reading from Luke today witness to. (The second play on words.) A witness is someone who has seen something, but a witness is also someone who tells something especially about their faith. Without those first witnesses believing in the resurrection it’s pretty certain that there would be no Christian faith today. We are not witnesses to the risen Jesus or to the empty tomb but we are witnesses to the work of God in our lives. Jesus calls us to witness too.
What have you witnessed (experienced) of God? In what ways would that be valuable to others? If it is valuable, how will you witness (tell) this to them?
This is a sermon preached in 2018 but recorded for podcast in 2021
An Apology and an Apologetic. Easter Day 2012 Forgiven and free of guilt. Sermon for Easter 2 B Easter 2012 Christ is with us - 4 ways to know his presence. Easter 3 B Total Commitment - Jesus the Good Shepherd Sermon for Easter 4 B 29-04-2012 God is Love! Easter 5 B for 5 may 2012 Jesus other prayer, God, the universe and everything Easter 7 The power of God to transform and witness. Pentecost Sunday B 2012 God as relationship - Trinity Sunday for June 3 2012 Sermon Text - God as relationship - Trinity Sunday for June 3 2012
Covenant Service 2021
Uniting Church in Australia – Parish of Rockhampton South
Next Sunday (7/1/21) at South Rockhampton (Campbell St) and on Sunday the 21st at Mount Morgan we will be celebrating the Covenant Service. (Join us in person or online . Website. Church live streaming.)
I would like you to prayerfully prepare for the service.
The service is about two things – Firstly - God’s commitment to us. “In the service the Church joyfully celebrates God's gracious offer to Israel that "I will be their God and they shall be my people".[1]
Secondly it is about our response to God’s commitment. This commitment or agreement God makes with us to be our God is a commitment which God makes and will never go back on. The depth of God’s commitment is seen in Jesus. In Jesus God became one of us. God lived among us and even died for us. He taught us about God’s character. Jesus showed us God’s character by his actions. (Actions such as healing, feeding the hungry, forgiving others, and spending time and sharing meals with those on the edge of society as well as those in the centre. After Jesus died God raised him from the dead that we might know God’s love is stronger even than death.
Like a husband or wife God in Jesus has committed himself to us body and soul even unto death. (Unlike a husband or wife God’s commitment continues even after death.) What should be our response to this commitment God has made to us?
We give our lives in return and not because we want God to love us but because God already does.
One way to express that commitment is in a covenant service. There are other ways but in Methodist and Uniting Churches this is a more than 250 year old tradition of the Covenant Service where we formally re-commit ourselves to God. A key part of that is the Covenant Prayer adapted by John Wesley in 1755.
I would ask you to read the words of this prayer and reflect on them over the days between now and the service.
See below for a simple preparation process to follow.
Yours in Jesus
Rev Andrew
Preparation for the Covenant Service
First, remind yourself of God’s commitment to us by reading through a few key verses of Scripture such as those below:
God’s Promise to Abraham and to us: “I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”” (Genesis 12:2–3, NRSV)
““For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. “Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” (John 3:16–17, NRSV)
“This is what love is: it is not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the means by which our sins are forgiven. Dear friends, if this is how God loved us, then we should love one another.” (1 John 4:10–11, GNB)
Then read out loud or silently reflect on the Covenant Prayer as your response to God’s commitment to us.
I am no longer my own, but yours.
Put me to what you will,
rank me with whom you will;
put me to doing, put me to suffering;
let me be employed for you or laid aside for you;
exalted for you or brought low for you;
let me be full, let me be empty;
let me have all things, let me have nothing;
I freely and wholeheartedly yield all things
to your pleasure and disposal.
And now, glorious and blessed God,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
you are mine and I am yours,
to the glory and praise of your name.
Amen.
[1] https://www.methodist.org.uk/about-us/the-methodist-church/what-is-distinctive-about-methodism/a-covenant-with-god/the-covenant-service/
Focus reading: Matthew 25:1-13 Direct Audio Download
The parable of the ten wise and foolish bridesmaids is one of those passages of the Bible which is sometimes a bit difficult to get a hold of or understand.
Oil is the key to understanding what this parable is all about. In this sermon I’m going to argue that the Oil is the Holy Spirit and that the Spirit is the way that Christ is made present to us. I think the children’s song "Give me Oil in my lamp" is pretty much right.
The other place in Matthew that speaks of wise and foolish people is the story in chapter 7 of the wise man who built his house upon the rock, and the foolish man who built his house on the sand. The Rock is Jesus and his teaching, the sand is something/ anything else.
We are called to keep our lamps burning, not using our own resources but using the resources that God freely gives to us, as a gift. Our lives should be lives which ask God to fill us with Christ as he comes to us through the work of the Spirit.
Our daily prayer to God should I believe be that of the children’s song. “God fill me with the Spirit that I might live a life powered by and centred on Christ and his love. A life which will witness to his love in word and action” Or to put it more simply “Give me oil in my lamp, keep me burning!”
Questions for thought or Discussion
What is your response to the idea that the oil in this parable is actually the Spirit or a relationship with Christ through the Spirit? Why won't the wise bridesmaids share their oil? If the oil is our relationship with Christ, what do you think of the foolish bridesmaids idea of heading off to buy some? What might have happened if they had stayed around? Who are you more like the foolish or wise bridesmaids?
Focus reading: Psalm 107:1-9
This psalm is essentially a call on the people of Israel to bear witness to all the wonderful things that God has done for them. This should be the pattern of our lives. In our worship, words and deeds we are called to announce this - announce the wonderful things that God has done and is doing and will do. One particular way we can do this is in prayer and this psalm provides a good model. When we prayer we like the psalmist we can:-
i. understand our lostness, our broken-ness and our need. (v 4-5)
ii. cry out to God - ask for help. (v 6a)
iii. remember and believe that God answers prayers. (v 6-7)
iv. thank God for all he has done. (v 8-9)
Now in these difficult times, prayer and the reminder of what God has done for us (especially in Jesus) has never been more important.
Questions for thought or discussion.
What in your view are the are purposes for prayer? Where do you place most of the emphasis in your prayer? (Eg Asking for stuff, thanksgiving, listening, etc.) What motivates you to pray? What do you think about the idea that prayer is proclamation?
Focus reading: 1 Thessalonians 1:1–10
This Sunday 18 October 2020 I will be preaching on the Gospel reading. Click here to join the live stream 9 am (18/10/20) Or watch it later.
Think of your own faith story. There are surely people who have encouraged you in your faith because they have lived out the good news of God’s love in such a powerful way that it has encouraged you and others to go on in you faith or even to begin your faith journey. While it is ultimately God’s work to bring slavstion, God has worke through these people to bring it. Paul, Timothy and the people of the church in the ancient Greek city of Thessalonika were people like this. For me, my parents, a Sunday school teacher named Len and folk from St David’s Holland Park Uniting Church were people who God used to transform me. From a shy bullied teen I became a teacher and then a confident preacher. Today the whole Christian world has heard about the faith of the church in Thesolonika.
Questions for thought and discussion.
What is your story of transformation? What people has God used to change you and awaken faith in you? How has God used you in transforming the lives of others? Where and how is God calling you to share your faith and story?
None of us who are Christians worships a golden calf like the people of Israel in the wilderness. We are far more subtle. An idol is anything we put at the centre of our lives instead of God. Sometimes I think we worship the church or its buildings instead of its Lord. Sometimes we worship our money or our possessions. Sometimes we worship ourselves, even in church. We make worship about our needs and our love instead of being about God’s love and greatness. (Inward looking worship not only forgets God it also forgets our neighbours, who God loves and calls us to love!)
When the people of Israel worshipped an idol, God did not destroy them but continued to lead them and call them back. He used them to fulfill his promises ultimately in Jesus who in human terms was a Jewish person. When we fail to put God and God’s call to love our neighbour at the centre of our lives the same judgement and mercy that fell on the people of Israel falls on us.
Questions for thought and discussion.
In our culture what are the God substitutes we find ourselves attracted to? What about church; what finds itself at the centre of church life in place of God? How have you experienced the mercy and forgiveness of God? What idols in your life sometimes push God aside?
Focus reading: Philippians 3:4b-14
Paul’s main argument in today’s reading is that there is nothing we can do to earn God’s love or favour. Churches like the Uniting Church baptize babies like Parker and Jaxon to proclaim the belief that there is nothing we can do to earn God's love because God already loves us and claims us. It is also why churches like the Uniting church allow Children to receive communion, because we believe that God includes everyone in God's love.
A tiny baby can not give anything, yet they are just as loved and accepted as Paul, or me. And no matter how much you can give, or how little, the same is true of every one of you, young or old, strong or weak, sinner or saint. You are loved and accepted by God. As adults of course we have to decide if we want to accept that gift of love, and what we will do with it if we do, but that is another sermon, for another day.
Questions for thought or discussion:
What do you think of the idea that being declare as right or good in God’s eyes comes from faith in Christ and not from living a good life? In what ways is this understanding that nothing we do or are makes us right with God a strong (or weak) argument for infant baptism? What do you read as Paul’s motivation for pushing on toward the goal?
Image (c) Rotorhead
Focus Passage Phillipians 2:1-13
Today I want us to look at the passage from Philippians. Ever since Early July the readings we have been following from Paul’s Letters from Romans and now from Philippians have essentially been dealing with the same problem. How do we live as Christians? How do we live out our faith? Today’s reading is also dealing with this same question. What is the basis of our ethical action? What is our motivation?
I want to argue that the answer to that question is not the one that we at first may think of when we read this passage. The end Paul is getting to is to remind us that it is God who is at work. It’s not us who are at work, but God. God is the one who gives us value, who transforms us. And amazingly, here in this passage Paul, as I said, takes the radical step of saying, that even for Jesus, this is true. It is God the Father who gives Jesus his value. It is the Father who exalts him above all other names. If this is true for Jesus, God’s eternal Son, how much more true must it be for us? Our motivation for Christian living is that we are loved children of God.
(sorry a bit longer than 10 miutes toay I will try to edit it down a little and re issue it if I have time)
Questions for thought or discussion
In what ways is it true that we often turn this passage upside down? How do you see what Paul is saying here?(For instance is this passage about being good in order to win God’s favour, or is it about how God is at work in us and so we try to be Christlike as our thanksgiving for God’s love?) What should be our motivation for Christian living?
For over 170 years, you, the people of Ipswich Central Mission and now Ipswich City Uniting church have faithfully lived out your faith in the Ipswich area. You have not always got it right but you kept going day after day, year after year. In the mean time other churches some with leaders which came from this church have grown while this church has not prospered in recent times as it did in times past. It may seem unfair.
The future of this congregation is not certain. What is certain is that God became one of us when Jesus was born. He taught and healed and was the guest of sinners and saints just like you. He even died. The Word of God who created the Universe with the Spirit and the Father died for you. He was raised for you and now he prays at God’s right hand for You. This is true for you and for all the Christians churches in Ipswich and around the world. It is true for every human being who comes to faith even if it is very late in life. It is a true for a convicted criminal even a murderer who converts late in life and for a faithful person who like many of you has lived out their faith from their childhood and youth. We may not know the future of this congregation, but we know the future of the church and of the universe and of every Christian. You have eternal life and the whole creation will be made new.
There is a future. In this life and the next the best is yet to come. That should be enough. You have God’s undeserved love and you have the responsibility to share that love with all. If you read Matthew 20:1-16 I think that maybe you and I are the first labourers in the vineyard. Like them we should look at what we have, (God’s love) and not at what others have. Even the last place in heaven and the new creation is greater than all the riches of the world. You are loved. There is a future. The best is yet to come because of the love of God which none of us deserve.
- Heaven and Earth Meet in the life of a Christian
At the heart of the traditional expression of Christianity and I think even some more liberal and progressive forms of Christianity which have been around since the 1800s is the belief that in some way heaven and Earth meet in the life of the Christian and in the church.
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- God as the Dad of Jesus
I begin by saying even though it's not in today's readings perhaps one of the most powerful expressions of this is the Christian practice of calling God "Father". Jesus in his teaching including the Lord's prayer calls God Father or to be more precise "Dad"... Instead or perhaps as well as God being a stern Judge and a mighty King holding court, God is revealed as a good and perfect Father, who we can relate to as our Dad, in the same kind of warm and personal way that Jesus speaks of him.
Those of us who are Dads and those of us who are Children know that we mere mortal Dads are far from perfect. Indeed we know stories, perhaps some here even have personal experience of Dads who are terrible, hopeless or are absent. Our divine Dad is however one who cares for all creation, even the sparrow, he knows every hair on our head. He rejoices and runs to meet his wayward child. He provides for us even more wonderfully than the birds of the air and the lilies of the field. His is merciful, compassionate, forgiving and makes all things new.
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- Not “Super Dad” - Jesus’ Dad
Now I believe that we are not meant to imagine God as being a super version of our own Dads. We know God as our Dad because Jesus knew him as Dad. Jesus shares that relationship with us.
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- Imagine if all Dads...
However I think we should try to imagine what it would be like if all Christians and on this Father's day all Fathers as being like God the Father. Imagine if all human fathers shared the same relationship that Jesus shares with his father. Imagine if all human Fathers cared for creation, knew every hair on our heads. If they rejoiced and ran to meet their wayward children. If all human dads were merciful, compassionate, forgiving and restored and mended the broken. What would the world be like if all human dads were like that? This is the picture of the Kingdom Come, of Heaven and Earth meeting. It is a picture of the Kingdom of this earth become the Kingdom of our God.
- 3 images of Heaven meeting Earth
Our readings today do not use the image of Fatherhood but they do give us three different images of that same idea, of Heaven meeting Earth, of restoration and renewal and what that means in living our Christian life. In living as citizens in God's Kingdom and as part of the New Creation.
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- Jesus among us now... (Matt 18:15-20)
Firstly and most mystically we have Jesus' statement in the Gospel that wherever two or three gather he is in the midst.
Often this passage is invoked if the congregation is a bit small.... About reconciliation, restored relationships... As Christians as part of the new creation we should strive first to restore. If someone is off the rails we seek to bring them back to restore the relationship. This should always be the spirit amongst us. If someone sins against you... Our aim should always be reconciliation. In a quite un-mystical sense we act in the spirit of Jesus when we act this way. I of course believe that through the Holy Spirit Jesus is with us when we act together in this way. Heaven literally meets Earth if Jesus is indeed the Son of God.
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- God the Rescuer (Exodus 12:1-14)
The Old Testament reading is the great indeed central Old Testament story of salvation. God defeats a cruel oppressor in a quite ghastly way. I will not try to deal with the death of the first born here. More importantly, as we heard last week this story begins with God hearing the Hebrews' cry and coming to visit the Hebrews in their slavery, and then setting them free. Heaven meets earth. The slaves are released and go free to the promised land. Along the way Heaven travels with them and meets them in the burning bush, pillars of cloud and fire, on the mountain top in the giving of the Law, in the Holy of Holies, in the tent of meeting and eventually in the Temple on Mount Zion in Jerusalem.
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- Christians living out love (Romans 13:8-14)
Finally we are confronted with Paul's strong challenge to us to love from Romans 13. Part of this, verses 8-10 is a straightforward appeal to the Jewish Law. (Though for Jews and the Old Testament of course the Law is one of those places where Heaven meets Earth). If we love our neighbours the 10 commandments, indeed the whole law is fulfilled. It's common sense. In a way heaven meets earth here because if only we all obeyed the Law, if only we all loved our neighbours we would indeed have heaven on Earth. But Paul goes on to give a different motivation. We should strive to love because "salvation is nearer than when we became believers." (v 11) Paul is saying that the Kingdom of God in all its fullness, the time when Heaven and Earth not only meet but become one new creation is coming closer each day. If that is so, if this new thing is coming then we should get on board. It's a weak analogy but think of the coming of television and how everyone crowded around the shop windows to see this great marvel. Or think of the first royal visit in 1956 when nearly all Australians still believed in kings and queens. Everyone wanted to be a part of it. Well Paul believed that the time of the final meeting of Heaven and Earth was very near. At the heart of his belief was a conviction that when Jesus was raised from the dead this meeting of Heaven and Earth began in Jesus and was at work in Christians lives. More than this he believed that a final meeting of Heaven and Earth would happen itwhere what was true for the risen Jesus would be true for every believer. We who believe in this he argues need to get on board, need to put on Christ. What does this final salvation, this putting on of Christ, this final meeting of heaven and earth look like? It looks like love and reconciliation.
- CONCLUSION: Heaven on Earth = Us made like Jesus’ Dad
To return to our original image it looks like a world where human Fathers reflect and strive to be like the Father, the Dad of Jesus. A world where slaves are freed, where every child is loved and provided for. Today we honour all dads imperfect though they are for the great job most of them have done. We also pray for them that they may more fully reflect their heavenly Father who is perfect. And we look for the day when Heaven and Earth not only meet but become one.
Focus reading: Romans 12:1-8
The central message of this reading is that we should give our love and service, live our Christian lives as a free gift, a gift that is free from the priorities of this world, that as Christians we are not to be squeezed into the world's mould. To live the Christian life, to live for Jesus, means accepting God's love as a free gift and giving our love and service as a free gift in return. We should love God not so God will then love us, we should love God because God already does love us. Think of someone who does not need to work for a living because they are already wealthy, but yet they work hard because they love their work or because they love other people and want to help them. As Christians we have all the love and riches we will ever need from God. We are called to love and serve God and our neighbour not to get stuff or popularity or even God's approval, but because God loves us already, and give us more than enough to share with others.
Questions for thought or discussion.
If we love God and help others to get God's approval who are we really serving? What things have you done for people just to say thank you?
Step out out of the boat and live the life Jesus calls you to. That's my encouragement to you. That's Jesus' invitation to you. But to take that huge step you need to trust Jesus. To trust Jesus you need to get to know him.
Follow this link to read the story of Jesus Life (Luke's Gospel.)
Follow this link to watch various video clips that give great background information and to explore some of the questions you might have about Jesus.
Follow this link for a simple explanation of the Christian faith and becoming a Christian.
This is a podcast from 2017 which hooks up the readings for this Sunday 9th of August 2020. If you want to find out more about meeting Jesus and stepping out of the boat, follow this link. (Active from 9th of August 9.30 am 2020)
Focus reading: Matthew 14:22–33
At my induction I said that I believe that it’s not us who go to God, it’s God who comes to us. In today’s story from Scripture that’s the whole shape of what happens. We need help from outside. We can not make it by ourselves. All of us, not just Peter and the disciples are of “little faith”. It’s only because Jesus came to the disciples and called them that they were able to follow.
In the assignment of life Jesus is calling you to plunge in. Jesus is calling you to have a go at following him on the adventure of ministry, mission & service. He’s calling you to the adventure of loving your neighbour. Step out of the boat, sure at least a few times you might go under, but he is always there to lift you up.
Questions for thought or discussion
What is the the nature of faith? To what extent is faith about us? To what extent is faith a gift from God?
What boats have you steped out of in your life? Where is God commanding you to go?
This podcast is an oldy but a goody based on Matthew 14:13-21. Go to our Youtube Channel for Sunday's service. (2 Aug 2020) https://youtu.be/S6Q89i2G3fQ I want you to put yourselves in the place of each of the characters in the story of the feeding of the 5000.
Who are you more like?
Are you like the crowd is there some emptiness, some need which has to be filled? (It could be a need for food, healing, hope, meaning or even material things.)
Are you more like the disciples? Is Jesus calling you to fill the emptiness of the world with hope or food or healing? Is Jesus calling you to some ministry which seems too big for you? Beyond your reach?
Or are you more like the young child? You have something to give, but it seems pointless. How could my small donation fill the stomaches of the hungry? How can my small gift or ability or idea bring help to others? (John 6:9)
Today's story reminds us that as impossible as it might seem God (in Jesus) can and will use your small resources, abilities and efforts to fill the emptiness of ourselves and others. (Not only fill it but there will be left overs as well!)
Focus Reading Matthew 13:31-33,13:44-52
“God’s Kingdom is wherever God is King...It’s wherever God is in charge. It’s where he fills your heart up with his Forever Happiness and you stop running away from him and you love him.” (Jesus Storybook Bible p 250) The story varies a little, but in central Queensland about 300 km west of Mackay there were some properties being established. Perhaps it was a shepherd, or perhaps one of the builders working on the farm buildings, but someone found some gold. All the stock workers and all the builders left the properties and joined a gold rush, and people came from the south and the coast. The gold was not plentiful but it was there and much of it still is. Soon a town grew, banks and churches, pubs and schools and stores were established. The farms and properties did get established and eventually coal was found nearby. Today around 4000 live in the town and district of Clermont. It is a small but thriving rural and mining town. A great little community, full of life. At first the finding of Gold by one worker seemed a small, exciting but potentially selfish thing, but in the end the excitement brought others and created a whole new community. The Kingdom of God is like this, a treasure is found, a mustard seed is planted, a baby born in a feed trough, excitement builds and the whole world is changed into God’s community of love.
How has your world changed since discovering the treasure?
A rambling sermon about hope.
Focus readings: Matthew 13:24–30, 36–43; Romans 8:12-25
..the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the children of God
(Rom 8:19 NRSV)
As Christians we live in hope and this hope is not a passive hope. It's a hope that says with Desmond Tu-tu and Martin Luther King, and Mother Theresa and, and William Wilberforce and John Flynn, and Oscar Romero and so many other heros of the faith that we can stand up to evil and suffering and injustice, because this is not the way things should be, and even more wonderfully, because maybe even in this life, and definitely in the next suffering and evil will be defeated.
It's a hope which says to us that we can go on. A hope that says whatever our grief or suffering, or the evil and terror we face, it will be defeated. We will receive wholeness and healing. Even in this life we will receive that healing, though only partly. In the next life we will receive it in all its fullness. In hope we wait, with patience and eager expectation with the whole creation, for that day when we will be healed and whole.
No virus, no global warming, no recession, no illness or grief can stop this hope. With this hope and with joy we can move forward. There is an often quoted story of a boy on a beach where thousands and thousands of starfish have been washed up. The tide is going out and all the starfish will all die. The boy is throwing the starfish back one by one. A man stops him and says his task is hopeless - he can't make any difference. The boy listens. Picks up another starfish and throws it into the sea. He looks at the man and says "I made a difference to that one."
That's what the Christian life is like. Even for a non Christian the starfish story is inspiring. Making a difference for one even in an overwhelming situation is worthwhile. For you as a Christian, there is a much greater hope. Saving the starfish, helping a friend, washing your hands, sharing your faith, speaking up for what is good and right, smiling, helping another on their faith journey, can not only be used by God to make a real difference now, they will make an eternal difference when the whole of creation is made new.
Questions for thought or discussion.
How much suffering should there be in the Christian life? What should your response to suffering be? What do you think of the idea that hope can carry us through suffering or evil? What times can you think of when your Christian hope has carried you through? How does your Christian hope help others?
28 June 2020 ICUC ONLINE SERVICE
I’ve no idea what Charles is preaching on this Sunday so this is a personal reflection on the passage he has chosen Ephesians 6:10-20. It is a passage about Spiritual warfare and how you can defend yourselves from the enemy with the armour of God. I think we are always in a spiritual battle with our own sinfulness, with broken systems which seem to take on a life of their own, and with powers like the devil. It is important to remember that ultimately God is in control and in Jesus has already won the war.
My one experience of “powers like the devil” was when I was called into a room where a young woman was distressed, ghost white, stuck speaking in what seemed to be tongues but in between the tongues was cursing God and saying horrible things in English. This is not my thing!!! I had been studying the book of Romans at college and perhaps the greatest passage about the Spirit of God and the Love of God in the Bible is Romans chapter 8. It includes these words “all who are led by the Spirit are the Children of God.” (Romans 8:14) Faced with this distressed young woman I got out my Bible and I read Romans 8 out loud from beginning to end. She stopped calling out and speaking in tongues and returned to herself. The colour returned to her face and she even smiled. We prayed together.
We receive the word of God in the Bible and its promises can help us move forward and defend ourselves when we are oppressed by sin, (our own and others), and when we are confronted by other forces beyond ourselves. One of the greatest assurances we have in the Bible is that we are saved. Whenever our hearts or the devil says you are worthless or unworthy you can respond with “there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus”. (Romans 8:1) So take up the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God and the helmet of salvation and God in you will win the fight.
God, thankyou that for me there is no condemnation for by your presence with me in the Spirit I know that I am surrounded and filled with the power and love of Jesus. In times of temptation, trial, and accusation, help me bring this to mind and bring me to safety. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
Image created in PowerPoint using an image derived from a Bing search of Creative Commons images.
“and whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple—truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward.”” (Matthew 10:42, NRSV)
Matthew 10:40-42 is a strange and powerful passage! It essentially says that any Christian who goes anywhere consciously in the name of Christ also brings Christ to those who are there. When you are received and offered hospitality the people who give that hospitality are not just giving it to you they are giving it to God. This isn’t just about evangelists or prophets or priests. It is about every “little one” who goes in the name of Christ. Think of it. At the supermarket, in hospital as a visitor, patient or health professional, in your family, your place of work, the clubs and organisations you are part of, in all these settings God goes with you, even the least of you. What power, what privilege and what responsibility!
How do you react to the idea that God goes with you to every person you interact with? If this is true what does this mean for your behaviour?
What could you do in non church relationships or groups or places you are part of?
God, thank you for the awesome privilege and responsibility of you being with us wherever we go. Help us be mindful of this gift and take full advantage of it. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
This week the Uniting Church will be 43 years old. So for today I am reprinting a short talk I gave at the 40th anniversary in Toowoomba. The overriding idea is that the church exists to proclaim the word of salvation to all people. This was the vision which sparked the uniting church off. I don't know if we have the right formula for unity but we have the right vision, for it is Jesus' prayer that for the sake of the world we all be one. ““I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” (John 17:20–21, NRSV) Uniting church 40th anniversary address
Given at the anniversary party 17-6-2017
at Middle Ridge Uniting Church 264 Stenner St, Centenary Heights QLD 4350.
40 years ago in 1977 the majority of three Christian denominations came together. We did not come together on the basis of the lowest common denominator or by trying to stitch together a patchwork quilt of Congregationalism, Methodism, and Presbyterianism. While we honoured that heritage, we tried to do a new thing, stating the ancient Biblical faith in new ways. Our basis of coming together was the one Lord Jesus Christ upon whom both our faith and our unity are built. The purpose and goal of our union is to set forth the word of salvation for all people and to serve the world for which Christ died.
Our purpose was not to bring together three struggling churches. When the Basis of Union was developed, when the negotiations happened and when the votes were taken in the 60s and early 70s all the churches in Australia were still growing. Our desire was to be obedient to Christ, reflecting the Unity we already share with all God’s people because we share in the intimate relationship between Jesus and the One he calls Father. We wanted to be one just as Jesus and the Father are One in order that the world might know Him.
It might know he was sent, raised and crucified, so that the whole world, indeed all creation and all people might be made new. Jesus’ first words of ministry “The Kingdom of God has drawn near, repent and believe the Good News”, his call to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us, to go out and heal, feed the hungry, proclaim the Kingdom, be peacemakers, visit the imprisoned, quench the thirsty, and be light and salt for the world, this call is still our call today.
In the power and communion of the Spirit our “call is to serve that end: to be a fellowship of reconciliation, a body within which the diverse gifts of its members are used for the building up of the whole, an instrument through which Christ may work and bear witness to himself.”
Whether in the future the Uniting Church swells to be as mighty in worship and witness as it is in service through Uniting Care, in Blue Care, the Hospitals, Community Care, our local Meals on Wheels and so on, or whether we continue the trend of these last 40 years, our call remains the same. Our call is not to be successful or victorious or powerful, for all the power and the glory, success and failure are in the hands of God.
Our call is not even to be faithful. It is instead to set forth that word of salvation for all people. It is to celebrate not our faithfulness, but the faithfulness of God in Jesus alive in us by the Spirit. To set it forth in our churches, fellowships and Bible studies as we gather, sing, pray, study and listen. Our call is to set forth the word of salvation by sharing the hope within us in our homes, sporting, social and service clubs, workplaces, shopping centres, schools and in loving our neighbours to the ends of the earth.
Sometimes we have done it well. Sometimes we have loved the institution or our place in it more than we have loved our Lord or the world Christ died for but our call is still to set forth that word. That has been our forty year journey. That journey is not over, God’s call has not diminished. That is what we celebrate today. We celebrate forty years of salt and light. We celebrate the faithfulness of God and we celebrate the Good News that God calls us still to set forth and be sharers in this word of salvation. Thanks be to God. Amen and Amen.
“As you go, proclaim the good news, ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’” (Matthew 10:7, NRSV)
“The Kingdom of Heaven/God has come near,” would have been a radical thing for Jesus and the Disciples to say. When the disciples entered a village and said “the Kingdom of God has come near”. It would have been heard as something like “the revolution has come!” “We’re going to overthrow the Romans”. The Jewish people were looking forward to a new King like David who would make Israel great and independent again.
We miss the impact because “The Kingdom of God/Heaven” has become church talk or jargon. We also know that Jesus’ version of the Kingdom was not about political parties or armies but was about healing, new life, wholeness and above all on compassion. The world was a broken place and full of broken people.
To meet this need, Jesus healed and taught but he also did something else. He created the church to be a vehicle of his compassion and healing. He made us to be shepherds for the sheep and workers for the harvest. He empowered and commissioned us to heal and he sent us out to proclaim the Good news and bring his healing. Those first disciples may have been thinking in terms of power and armies when Jesus first told them about the Kingdom, but they discovered that Jesus was the power of compassion and healing. It must have been incredibly exciting!
We are in a world that needs direction and healing and Jesus still commissions and empowers us to be workers in the harvest, to bring compassion and healing and wholeness. This is a revolution. The Kingdom of Heaven has come near.
God when we look at our world, fill us with the same compassion which Jesus has, and fill us with the same excitement the disciples must have had. Filled with that excitement, cause us to go and proclaim the Kingdom, with the healing and compassionate power and authority which Jesus has given us. In His Name we pray. Amen.
Image derived from Logos “Visual Copy” – “Logos Free” or “made by” Andrew Gillies. May be subject to Copyright:- 2014 Faithlife / Logos Bible Software () May not be used for commercial purposes.
Focus readings: 2 Corinthians 13:11-13, Matthew 28:16-20
The Trinity is a difficult concept to understand. How can God be one and three at the same time. While the Trinity did not become "official" until about 300 years after Jesus, today’s readings show us that this way of understanding God had already begun among the early Christians. For them this idea of One God being in three parts was more than just an idea it was an experience.
One of our members tells the story of his daughter coming home with her boyfriend and telling her Dad that he is homeless. The family took him in. He completed school, he had a new family they married and have been together for more than 20 years. This young man's life was transformed by being included in this family relationship. This was the early church’s experience of God. It was like being drawn into a transforming family. Tax collectors, prostitutes, slaves, women, men, Roman soldiers, Pharisees like Paul, Fishermen, rich people, poor people, clever people, those who were a bit slow on the uptake, all of them, experienced God in this way. They were drawn into a transforming relationship of Love.
This is what the Trinity is, this is what God is like. God is not some abstract concept. God is relationship and love. God is Jesus coming among us as a gift, and bringing us to meet the Father who turns out to be not a tyrant but a loving Parent, who bathes us in the love of the Spirit and so we are one family or one body Brothers and sisters of Jesus Children of God, joined together as one.
Questions for thought or discussion.
Have you ever been invited into a friendship, group or family and felt welcomed? What do you think of the notion that this is what God is like? Have you been a part of a relationship which has transformed you or another person? What was it about that relationship which caused change?
“And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” (Matthew 28:18, NRSV)
Trinity Part 5
“The church took a Jewish boy and made him God.” I remember hearing these words from David Marr, the witty Australian broadcaster and journalist. He has a flair for biting satire, and I love his style, even though I do not always love his substance. In this case he is wrong.
It was the first followers of Jesus who recognised him as God, and it was Jesus himself in his teaching, especially the sermon on the Mount, in his healings and exorcisms, and in his “I am” statements in John’s gospel who claimed the authority of God. Paul recognises this authority in many of his letters and in more than half a dozen places in the stories about Jesus, people worship him, both before and after the resurrection. I believe Jesus is human and is God. Even if I was wrong it was the first century church including Jesus’ first followers who recognised him as their “Lord” and worshipped him.
It is difficult to understand how Jesus could be fully God and fully human just as it is difficult to understand how God could be truly One but also Three, but as I’ve said over the last few days this was the experience of the first believers including those who met Jesus face to face. It has also been the experience of believers since and we find lots of evidence for it in the Bible.
Jesus uses his Godly authority to tell his followers to make disciples, and at least part of this was to introduce them and connect them to God in teaching and baptism as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. If we follow Jesus’ example and method, then we are to bring God’s healing, speak of God’s forgiveness and of forgiving each other, be the guest of sinners, and speak out against hypocrisy. We are to share our relationship with Jesus, as he shared his relationship with God the Father.
God of mercy and grace we thank you that you came among us in Jesus and are with us still by your Spirit, help us to faithfully share the relationship we have with you, so that others may come to know your healing, forgiveness, friendship, new life and authority. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
“Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted.” (Matthew 28:16–17, NRSV)
Trinity Part 4
“The opposite of faith is not doubt, but certainty. Certainty is missing the point entirely. Faith includes noticing the mess, the emptiness and discomfort, and letting it be there until some light returns.” Says the more or less conventional Christian writer Anne Lamott in her book “Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith.”
Even the some of the 11 disciples with the risen Jesus standing before them doubted. I have only had deep doubt a few times in my life, but I have little doubts often. I think that would be your experience too.
Our faith, our trust in God, as Christians is pegged out by the Bible. When President Trump stood in front of the church for a photo with a Bible, those Christians who like him, were pleased because he was affirming the Christian faith in a very public way using the book which “instructs us for salvation through faith in Jesus Christ.” (2 Tim 3:15) It really upset those who don’t like Mr Trump (including me) because we feel that his life and actions do not really reflect a genuine trust in the Jesus of the Bible.
The Bible is crucial and so is experience. If our experience is not consistent with the Bible, the Bible wins, but without the experience of faith, of meeting God, of having a sense of God’s presence – we have no faith. It is often where experience and the Bible clash that doubt arises and we struggle with both. My experience has always been that what Anne Lamott says is right, eventually “some light returns.” Elijah in despair and fear, meeting God in the “still small voice” is a Biblical example of this. (1 Kings 19:1-13)
I think we experience God in three main ways. Through meeting Jesus who is the Word and who speaks the words of God to us from the Bible. I think we also meet God as a kind of Sense of the Holy or the other, or the beyond, and we experience God within. Now this is not a full or proper doctrine of the Trinity, but Jesus is God who speaks to us through the word, the one who just like a printed Bible was someone we could touch and see; God as one of us. God the Father is most like that sense of God beyond and Holy, and the Spirit is the sense of God within. Like doubt I reckon you have had these types of meeting with God, and when doubt comes it is in those meetings and the struggle that sometimes goes with them that light returns.
God, when our hearts are darkened with doubt and fear, give us a sense of your presence, so that light may return. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
Image derived from Logos “Visual Copy” – “Logos Free” or “made by” Andrew Gillies. May be subject to Copyright:- 2014 Faithlife / Logos Bible Software () May not be used for commercial purposes.
Matthew 28:19–20 (NRSV): Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Sometimes this passage is used to argue about baptism, or as a reminder that we are to be evangelists. In a moment I will point out that it is a first century AD use of the Trinity, but the controlling idea is that we make disciples.
When I went to Uni, the Christian group I was part of used to talk about how we needed to “win, build, send”. Win people for Jesus, build up their faith and send them out to win and build others. I think though that the order should be build, win, build and keep on building and send. We are disciple makers and being a disciple is a lifelong process which never ends. We can always grow and encourage others in their growth.
Part of that is worship, part of that is Spiritual practices like prayer (my weak point). Part of it is baptism. Part of it is witness, Part of it is serving the needs of others Part of it is teaching. (A strength of mine.)
So a teaching point here is that Baptism is to be done in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. This shows that the experience of God as three in one goes right back to the first century. It’s not an invention of theologians or church officials. It was the experience of the early church. They met and worshipped God the Father in Jesus (Matthew 28:17). Even when Jesus was gone from sight they had a sense through the a Spirit Jesus was with them always. (Matt 28:20)
As we make disciples, building each other up and inviting others to meet Jesus, this is who we will introduce them too an teach them about God the Father who we met in history and know through the Bible and the Spirit who is within us and among us, now and always.
God, help us to grow in knowledge and love of you, Father, Son and Spirit so we may help others grow closer to you in life, love and faith. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
For an image see: https://biblia.com/verseoftheday/lightbox/EN_Matthew_28_19_Alt Shared from Logos Bible Software https://www.logos.com
“So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.” (Genesis 1:27, NRSV)
What does it mean to be made in the image of God? Is it about emotions, or morals, compassion, a sense of justice, creativity, or does God look like us? To confuse matters further we could enter into the gender debate. Is God a male? Is God both, or neither male and/or female?
I don’t really want to enter into that debate at all except to say that I think that both men and women are created in the Image of God. I think that detail is important because it implies relationship. I don’t want to enter into the same gender marriage debate here either. The important thing is that God made two different people in God’s image. God made a community. In the story of the first man in Genesis 2 this is expanded. At first God just makes the man by himself, but this is unsatisfactory because the man is lonely. God must make another for the man. We are made for relationship!
Since we are made in the image of God I believe this is true of God as well. At least part of the image of God is that God is relational. How else could we say “God is love”? This is one of the reasons I am so attracted to the doctrine of the Trinity. God is eternally relational. Before the universe existed, God was already love, because God was Father, Son and Holy spirit. God is, and was, and always will be one united community of love.
When we are one united community of love, that is when we most reflect the image of God within us. One way to look at the teaching, practice, life and death and new life of Jesus, is to see it as the way God draws us into God’s one relationship of love. Jesus became one with us even unto death, so that through the Spirt we might become one with him and the Father. This relational nature is a very significant part of what it means to be made in the image of God.
God our Dad, we can only call you Father or Dad, because that’s what Jesus calls you, and because the Spirit, your eternal companion, and Jesus’ eternal companion has been poured into our being, our core, our heart. We are so grateful, filled with a love, for which there are no words, for this gift of relationship with you. In Jesus’ Name. Amen
For an image for this scripture see:
https://biblia.com/verseoftheday/lightbox/EN_Genesis_1_27 Shared from Logos Bible Software https://www.logos.com
“The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters. Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.” (Genesis 1:2–3, NASB95)
God speaks the Word, the Spirit hovers over “the deep” and the cosmos begins. Looking back, right from the beginning of the Bible, Christians have seen God as three and one. This week we will hear this in the writing of Paul, and in Matthew 28. The first Christians saw it even in the Creation story of Genesis 1. John Chapter 1 picks this up associating Jesus with the words God speaks, and “God” with the Father, and later in the chapter goes on to speak of the Spirit descending on Jesus (1:32).
All this sounds a bit academic, but they show God, not off in heaven but intimately involved in creation. The Spirit moves over us. Jesus the “Word became flesh and lived among us”. As the Word is spoken God (the Father) sees creation as ‘good’ and on the seventh day when all is complete, it is “very good”. This way we experience and understand God as Father, Son and Spirit has profound implications for how we understand creation. God is not only separated from it, in heaven, God is among it and us as the Spirit who moves over and through all creation. God is also part of creation in the Word made flesh. God loves creation or the Cosmos* as John 3:16 calls it and although it is not perfect, God still sees it as very Good, and will one day will set it free from “its bondage to decay” and will “make all things new”.
If this is how God looks at and interacts with us and creation, then how should we look at and interact with creation, ourselves, and each other?
God, we thank you that at one and the same time, you see us from beyond with love, that you move among us in your Spirit and you are one of us in Jesus, help us to see and love ourselves, one-another and all creation as you see them and love them and live our lives in that light. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
The Greek word for "world" in John 3:16 is Kosmos*.
Image derived from Logos “Visual Copy” – “Logos Free” or “made by” Andrew Gillies. May be subject to Copyright:- 2014 Faithlife / Logos Bible Software () May not be used for commercial purposes.
“Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each.” (Acts 2:5–6, NRSV)
Over the last week we have been thinking about the things the Spirit does. This reflection is about how the Spirit causes us to witness.
Today we celebrate Pentecost with the other Uniting Churches of Ipswich. The 120 or so men and women who received the Spirit that day were led to speak about the wonderful works of God – “God’s deeds of power.” This witness led to many people coming to faith that day. The city of Jerusalem was shaken that day. The message spread across cultures and languages. 2,000 years later the largest social and religious movement in the world is the Christian church. A City and then a world was shaken. Over the past few years the Uniting Churches at Ipswich have been looking at how we can work together better. It may be a lack of numbers or funds which have triggered this, but our purpose is to shake the city of Ipswich with a witness to the Wonderful works of God. It’s not about surviving, or closing church buildings. It’s about being like those first disciples and standing up as one to witness what God has done.
Most important we witness to what God has done in Jesus. We witness to his wisdom and teaching, his healings and wonders, his friendship with sinners, his compelling call, his death for us, his risen life and his sharing of the Father’s love. We witness to the historic spread and witness of the church. The end of death sports. The beginning of charity. The abolition of slavery. The beginning of free education. We witness to the service given in Australia, Blue Nursing, Lifeline, the Flying Doctor, the Bush Padres, hospitals and other community service. We witness to the part the Ipswich Mission played in that. In these recent days we witness to the hope and strength, and community that Jesus has given us through the Spirit as we face Corona Virus.
This is what we are called to do together – to shake the City of Ipswich with the witness of the Spirit. As JR Pearcy prayed in his hymn more than 40 years ago: Widen our love, good Spirit, to embrace in Your strong care, all those of every race: like wind and fire, with life among us move till we are known as Christ’s, and Christians prove. In Jesus’ Name. Amen
Image derived from Logos “Visual Copy” – “Logos Free” or “made by” Andrew Gillies. May be subject to Copyright:- 2014 Faithlife / Logos Bible Software () May not be used for commercial purposes.
PENTECOST SERMON
THEME: THE POWERFUL PRESENCE OF
THE HOLY SPIRIT
Preached for Ipswich City Uniting Churches online worship.
YouTube version can be found HERE
Good morning Church! What a great privilege it is to be sharing God’s word with you at this time of our Pentecost Celebration.
The story of Pentecost actually begins with the baptism of Jesus:
In Mark 1:9-12 we read:
9 At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11 And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.” 12 At once the Spirit sent him out into the wilderness.
The Holy Spirit came upon Jesus at the time of his baptism, empowering him and equipping him. Jesus was empowered to withstand the temptation that he endured over the next forty days and forty nights.
The Holy Spirit enabled Jesus to teach with authority. The Holy Spirit enabled Jesus to heal and restore life. The Holy Spirit enabled Jesus to minister God’s grace with deep compassion and to pass on the gift of the Holy Spirit to his disciples.
From John 20:21-22
21 Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” 22 And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit”.
Now Luke records it just a little differently in Acts 1:8 where Jesus is speaking to his disciples:
8 “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
The Holy Spirit has a key role in the events of Pentecost and in the 21st century church, even at a personal level in our own lives. Personally, the Holy Spirit grows in us the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
When I speak about the fruit of the Spirit I often like to make the comparison between a Christmas tree and an orange tree. A Christmas tree may be decorated with all sorts of ornaments, but it’s actually lifeless. It may look pretty, but it has no life in, nor of, itself. The ornaments are merely hanging by an ornamental thread.
However, with an orange tree the fruit are innately a part of the tree. They are connected and have life and fullness and grow because of the sap that’s flowing into them from the tree itself.
The fruitfulness that Jesus is speaking about is from his indwelling in our lives. The fruit that the Holy Spirit brings is much more organic than a Christmas tree. Our lives are like an orange tree and the Holy Spirit is like the sap that flows through the tree filling us with that good fruit. Our lives being like the tree and the fruit that we bear being the very nature of Jesus Christ.
The Holy Spirit empowers and equips us with Spiritual gifts. The divine ability to minister in ways beyond our normal human capacity.
This was evident on the day of Pentecost as the believers were enabled to speak in strange tongues that they had not learnt to speak. And yet the people in the crowd, from various parts of the world.
From Acts 2:5-12 we read:
5 Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. 6 When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. 7 Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? We hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” 12 Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?”
It is Peter who then bears witness to the Gospel of Jesus Christ beginning with the prophets from the book of Joel.
From Acts 2:14-16
14 Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: “Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. 15 These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! 16 No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel.
He explains the Gospel of Jesus Christ, so that those gathered there may understand something of the significance of what is happening:
the outpouring of God’s spirit upon those who believe in Jesus Christ.
The gifts of the Spirit are for the purpose of building up the church, nurturing one another in faith and Christian discipleship, reaching out to the world to declare God’s love and grace for all people. When we each utilise the gifts with which God has equipped us we are the fully functioning body of Christ with all its various parts, each part having a specific purpose to play.
I want to suggest that the body of Christ across Ipswich consists of all of the Christian churches. We are not in competition with each other, we are in partnership. It is on a day such as today that we remember and celebrate the unity of the Spirit that we share in Christ.
Even more especially than that, as the four Uniting Churches, those of us who are sharing together in this service, have a special sense of unity and understanding of what it means to be the body of Christ. Together we are recognising the gifting of one another and the complimentary nature of those gifts for us to serve the wider community of Ipswich in which we live.
As the four churches in the inner metropolitan region of the city of Ipswich we are on a journey of discovering what the Spirit of God is calling us to be. Last year we made the decision to share this journey with one another.
We are now in a new season of discernment to discover what God is calling the Uniting Church to be in the city of Ipswich. It is a challenging time in which we must rely on the leading of the Holy Spirit. It is a vulnerable time for all of us because it means that we must let go of those aspects of congregational life that are holding us back from the shared future that God is calling us into.
We may often talk about ‘my ministry’. My ministry is this, or my ministry is that, and it’s probably a helpful reminder for us that, while we may have that sense of ownership and belonging by calling it mine, we recognise first and foremost that it is Christ’s ministry in which we are privileged to participate.
I have a friend living in Toowoomba and his three year old son was adamant that he was going to help his dad sweep the path from the front door to the front gate. Those of you who know Toowoomba well would know of the red soil. The path was covered with the red dirt.
Now despite the father knowing that it would be much quicker and easier for him to sweep the path on his own he enabled his son to join in. Holding the handle near the bottom of the broom the child was pushing and pulling the broom, often in the opposite direction to that of his father. But together they got that path swept. That’s something of the image of God inviting us to share with him in his ministry to this world. That, in spite of us and because of us, God invites us to share in the proclamation of the Gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ, to our world.
We might say that this is ‘my church’, or that is ‘your church’, but in reality we know that we are a part of Christ’s church. It’s particularly important for us as ministers to recognise that it’s not my church or your church, but Christ’s church, and being ministers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ we are being called together to lead you, as God’s people, in this time of discernment.
So what are the things that may hold us back from fulfilling that which God is calling us to? Is it our hanging onto buildings and properties? Is it our concern over finances? Is it our ownership of significant ministries that we don’t want to let go of? Is it our pride, or perhaps our lack of trust in one another? Is it our fear of the unknown?
Over the last summer we experienced some incredibly bad bushfires right across our nation. So we’re only too familiar with the devastating power of bushfires, fire that is out of control.
It’s helpful to make that contrast, that when we speak of the fire of God’s spirit, it is not a fire that destroys and damages, or takes away life. It is a fire that inspires, it sparks a sense of inspiration and hope, it renews God’s purposes and it is for the good of God’s church.
We know that our current model of being church is not sustainable in the long term. It’s also helpful for us to be reminded of the way in which we seek to discover who we are as God’s people and to move forward.
It is not an autocracy in which one minister, or another, would dictate what’s going to happen. You may be surprised to know that it’s not a democracy either, in which we all want to have our say and protect our vested interests.
As the church of Jesus Christ we participate in a theocracy. A theocracy is God’s governance and our part is to discern together what God’s will is for us.
So I invite you to join with me in this continuing journey of discernment and discovery. That we may know what is God’s will for us as the Uniting Church across this city. I wonder, in twelve month’s time, what we will be celebrating that has taken place between now and then.
Some of us may already be feeling the flame of the Holy Spirit blazing brightly in our church community. Some of us may describe our sense of being church as being like smouldering coals.
I want to remind us that the only difference between a smouldering ember and a raging fire is the breath of wind that blows to reignite those embers into a flame. That the breath of God would blow through us as his church at this time, and bring to life a renewed sense of vision and purpose for which God is calling us
I pray that the wind of the Spirit may fan into flame all the potential that we hold, that we may bring honour and glory to God and bear witness to the grace of Jesus Christ throughout our community and beyond.
In that hope, let us sing together a song entitled Pentecost Prayer.
In the name of Christ. Amen.
“Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” (John 20:21–22, NRSV)
The Spirit brings peace. So far this week we’ve thought about how the Spirit creates and renews (Monday), the Spirit Unites (Tuesday), the Spirit Inspires (Wednesday), the Spirit speaks the language of our heart (Thursday), the Spirit gives gifts (Friday) and today the Spirit brings Peace.
In John 14 Jesus says that the Spirit will come so that the Disciples will remember him and his word, and so they will not be left alone, as orphans. By the Spirit Jesus will still be with them. In John 20:21-22 the presence of the Risen Jesus with the disciples brings peace and joy. He breaths the Spirit upon them. This is the way we experience the presence of Jesus, through the Spirit, God’s love poured into our hearts. (Romans 5:5).
Many, many times in my ministry I have heard people tell of the peace of God coming to them in times of trouble or grief, this is the work of the Spirit bringing the peace of Jesus.
God we thank you for the peace you have brought in many times of trouble, and the peace you bring us now. We ask for the Spirit to continue to bring the peace of Jesus to us and all those who need it. In the name of that same Jesus we pray. Amen.
Image derived from Logos “Visual Copy” – “Logos Free” or “made by” Andrew Gillies. May be subject to Copyright:- 2014 Faithlife / Logos Bible Software () May not be used for commercial purposes.
“There are different ways to serve the same Lord, and we can each do different things. Yet the same God works in all of us and helps us in everything we do.” (1 Corinthians 12:5–6, CEV)
The Holy Spirit gives gifts to build up the body. So far this week we’ve thought about how the Spirit creates and renews (Monday), the Spirit Unites (Tuesday), the Spirit Inspires (Wednesday), and the Spirit speaks the language of our heart (Thursday). Today we hear that the Spirit gives gifts.
It is my birthday tomorrow and I am looking forward to the gifts I will get. If I get something I really like, I might be tempted to show it off, and play with it. If I get a gift I really need, I will be happier in the long run but more importantly so will those around me. My family, the church, and even the community will benefit because my needs are met and I will be better able to serve others.
The gifts listed in 1 Corinthians 12:8-10 are specific Spiritual gifts like speaking in tongues and we could get hung up on that and what it all means. More important is the broader principle of the passage. “… God works in all of us and helps us in everything we do.” (1 Corinthians 12:6, CEV) The way God helps us is specific to us and the role God is calling us to play as part of the church, (the body or the people of God).
What is it that you are good at, that God could use for the Church’s life? What is it that the Spirit has worked in you, or given you, which you can use for helping people inside and outside the church grow in the love of God?
Whatever it is, that is what you should be doing, you should be using the gift, always remembering that what God provides, is for the building up of the church in love and size and not for you alone.
Lord help me to see your gift in me and open a way for me to use it for the building of your church, and the healing of the world. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
Image derived from Logos “Visual Copy” – “Logos Free” or “made by” Andrew Gillies. May be subject to Copyright:- 2014 Faithlife / Logos Bible Software () May not be used for commercial purposes.
This is a re-post of a sermon preached in 2018 and recorded in 2019.
When the Spirit is poured out in the Acts reading, the disciples begin to speak in other languages. The Jewish people gathered from all around the world for the Festival, probably spoke common Greek and they all would have known a little Hebrew, but their day to day language would have been the one from their local area. They would have spoken this in their homes. When they thought about and spoke to those they loved that would be their language. The miracle of the Spirit on that first Pentecost and even today is that God through the Spirit speaks the language of the heart. When the Spirit was first poured out until this very day we hear and have revealed to us the wonderful works of God in our heart language!
Imagine for a moment that you are a fifth generation Australian, but you live and work in China, you speak fluent Chinese, but at home with your family you speak English with an Australian accent. You attend a local Chinese church. All of a sudden one Sunday after church you hear a preacher on a street corner and he’s not Chinese, He’s speaking about Jesus and God’s love in English with a clear Australian accent. What would it mean to hear your faith expressed in the language of your heart, the language of your birth.
God is with us and speaks to us in a way which grips us and transforms us. Gripped by that love, like Peter and the disciples we too should share the wonderful works of God in the power of the Spirit.
Lord, we are so grateful that you speak the language of the heart and give us the words we need for ourselves and for others in times of need and times of celebration. In Jesus Name. Amen.
Image derived from Logos “Visual Copy” – “Logos Free” or “made by” Andrew Gillies. May be subject to Copyright:- 2014 Faithlife / Logos Bible Software () May not be used for commercial purposes.
**Sermon text***
At the start of acts Jesus says to the Disciples that he is returning to the Father and that when he goes he will send a helper the power from on high who will enable the disciples to be witnesses to Jesus from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth. A little later we hear that 120 believers including some women are gathered together. We know that some disciples like Matthew and Joseph of Arimethea were wealthy men, there were fishermen, at least one revolutionary Simon the Zealot, and many others from many walks of life. I want to be a tiny bit controversial here. I believe that miracles can happen, that God can intervene in ways that do not seem to be naturally possible. So when I have heard today’s story from Acts 2 I have generally taken for granted that what is recorded there happened more or less as it is portrayed. There are other people however who look at the things that Luke writes about in Acts and in Luke’s Gospel and comes to the conclusion that the story in Acts reflects the real experience of God gripping and transforming people’s lives but that it is not necessarily meant to be one specific event, but a telling of what God’s Spirit did in the lives of the believers. In other words some Bible scholars would argue that the events on the day of Pentecost did not happen exactly as they are described but instead they are like a parable which tells us what the Holy Spirit, God and the church are like. Luke in his Gospel and in the book of Acts tells the story about Jesus and how his message and salvation began in Bethlehem and ended up spreading through most of the Roman Empire. In today’s reading Jewish people from all over the Roman Empire have gathered for Pentecost. Pentecost is a harvest festival and it was one of three festivals which asked Jewish believers to travel to the temple. In the story we heard Jews had gathered for this festival and they had come not only from Israel they had come from all over the known world. Hear the words from our reading. Acts 2:9–11 (CEV) 9 Some of us are from Parthia, Media, and Elam. Others are from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia, 10 Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, parts of Libya near Cyrene, Rome, 11 Crete, and Arabia. Some of us were born Jews, and others of us have chosen to be Jews. Yet we all hear them using our own languages to tell the wonderful things God has done. It is likely that people from these backgrounds would have gathered for the festival. The Jewish people had been scattered far and wide for hundreds of years, and so they spoke many languages and among them devout believers would try during their life time to travel to Jerusalem for the major festivals like Pentecost. In the story we heard from Acts these people witness a miracle. The disciples who between them probably only spoke a few languages suddenly able to tell this new and strange message about God’s salvation being revealed in the life death and resurrection of Jesus in their own language, in the language they spoke at home. Imagine for a moment that you are a fifth generation Australian, but you live and work in China, you speak fluent Chinese, but at home with your family you speak English with an Australian accent. You attend a local Chinese church. All of a sudden one Sunday after church you hear a preacher on a street corner and he’s not Chinese, He’s speaking about Jesus and God’s love in English with a clear Australian accent. What would it mean to hear your faith expressed in the language of your heart, the language of your birth. Those who argue that the story of the first Pentecost was not a literal event are saying that there was no miracle of people speaking languages they did not know. They are also saying that it may not be true that 3 000 were converted on one day. They are saying that Luke is telling this story to tell us that the message about Jesus crosses boundaries and speaks to people’s hearts, to the core of their being. They are saying that the message about Jesus even crosses cultural barriers, and that God speaks to the heart of people who are very different to ourselves. Now for those of us who believe that miracles can happen, this story could well be quite literally true, BUT that message that the Love of God revealed in Jesus speaks in the language of our hearts that God speaks to our core being is I believe the core message of this Bible story, because within 20-30 years of the first Easter and the firs Pentecost the story of Jesus had begun a movement which had spread throughout more than half of the Roman Empire and today it is the largest religion with well over a billion people across the globe naming themselves as Christian. Whether 3000 people heard that message in their own tongue that day and were instantly converted, or not, well over 3, 000 people in that year or so of the church’s life did hear that message and they were converted and the church is now represented on every continent on earth. You see God is present to people and God speaks the language of our heart. To illustrate this I want to tell a personal story. In the winter of 2004 in Clermont, I remember being at a very low ebb. Indeed on this day I was in tears. My Father had recently died and my girl friend had even more recently dumped me. I was sitting in my office in tears and I went to the front door and found there a parcel. In that parcel there was a number of things. There was a warm woolly hat. There were a couple of paintings by the children of a friend of mine. There was a note or card to say that my friends and their children were praying and thinking of me and there were some melting moments. As touching as the note, and the pictures and the hat were it was the short bread buiscuits that really go to me. I love shortbread and what also touched me was the timing. My friends knew that my father had died. I don’t know whether they knew that I had recently been dumped by my girlfriend, or that I like shortbread but they certainly couldn’t have known that, that morning I was in tears, and even if they had they could not have arranged for Australia Post to deliver the parcel on the right day and for me to find it at just the right time. There was nothing magical about it and yet it was a miracle. God spoke to my heart, to my core and said I am with you. That day I had high school RE and I took my present and like Peter and the Disciples I told the story of the deed of God’s power and love that had just happened in my life. When Luke speaks of the coming of the Spirit, this is a big part of what he is describing. God is with us and speaks to us in a way which grips us and transforms us, speaks to us in our language, in our terms. Moreover for Luke the Spirit calls and empowers not just men but also women, of all classes and backgrounds to be witnesses to this Good News of forgiveness, love and salvation in Jesus. For God can and will speak through tax collector, and fishermen, revolutionaries and women of ill repute, through the educated and wise and through the untutored and the simple and God can and has and will speak through you, to hearts of others to their inner being. The day of Pentecost when through the Spirit God spoke to the hearts of men and women in their own language and transformed their lives is not just a thing of the past. It is a thing of the present and the future too. We are witnesses to these things.
Acts 2:18 (NRSV): 18 Even upon my slaves, both men and women, in those days I will pour out my Spirit; and they shall prophesy.
Inspiration. You heard that the Holy Spirit brings Unity (Tuesday), new life and renewal (Monday) and today we hear that the Spirit brings Inspiration. Peter quotes the Prophet Joel to explain how it is that Galileans (Jews from the remote North) could be speaking so powerfully in such a way that people of many different languages and cultures could understand them. The disciples gathered in those days included men and women of different backgrounds. All of them were filled with the Spirit. All of them began to speak in other languages by the power of the Spirit. All of them spoke of “God’s deeds of power.”
Peter picks up on this neatly quoting Joel who says, “Even upon my slaves, both men and women, in those days I will pour out my Spirit; and they shall prophesy.” (Acts 2:18, NRSV) We often used think of prophesy as being telling the future, but really it is just proclaiming the word of God, speaking the word that God has given. It may be a call to repent. It may be a word of comfort or encouragement. It may be a strange and powerful vision. On this day it was the proclaiming of “God’s deeds of power” which included the deeds, the death and the resurrection of Jesus and the promise of salvation. This word is always for the time, and sometimes (as with Isaiah, Hannah, Mary or Paul) it is also timeless.
This Spirit has been poured out not just on people in Biblical times but on all believers. At times we all have a message from God which needs to be proclaimed. What is the word that God is giving you to share in this time? Perhaps it is a word of comfort or hope? Perhaps a word of challenge?
Lord in my time of prayer help me listen for your word through the Spirit’s witness and give me courage to share and test that word with others. In Jesus Name. Amen
Image derived from Logos “Visual Copy” – “Logos Free” or “made by” Andrew Gillies. May be subject to Copyright: - 2014 Faithlife / Logos Bible Software () May not be used for commercial purposes.
“All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.” (Acts 2:4, NRSV)
The world is divided. We are divided by distance, culture, politics, language, wealth, and sin. Sin is ultimately a desire to put ourselves, or something other than God in charge. It results in greed, selfishness, fear, and pride, and it causes us to be divided. In the Old Testament one consequence of sin is seen in the tower of Babel. Out of pride* the people try to build a tower up to God, so God divides them into different language groups. The world becomes divided.
At the Jewish festival of Pentecost Jewish believers from all around the Roman Empire have gathered to celebrate the harvest and the gift of the Law to Moses. This should be a time of great unity, but it was also a time of great division. These Jewish people were divided by race and language and they were also divided into other groups. Some of these groups were Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, and Zealots. These groups were even further divided and sometimes violence broke out between them.
When the Spirit fills the disciples these divisions are reversed. Everyone hears in the language of their heart. Yesterday we reflected that the Spirit creates and restores or re-creates. Today we hear that the Spirit brings unity. This is something the world sorely needs. We notice it more at a time like this, but the pain and suffering caused by division is always with us.
Healing God, pour out your Spirit on all creation once more, that sinful division might end, near and far. Help us to faithfully witness to your reconciling power, deeds and love. In Jesus Name. Amen.
*Pride in the Bible means believing that you are more important than the other, whether the other is God, or a person of another culture, belief, class, group or family.
“When you send forth your spirit, they are created; and you renew the face of the ground.” (Psalm 104:30, NRSV)
In the book of Genesis (The first book of the Bible) the Spirit (or breath) of God broods over the waters as creation begins. Later Adam (the first human) does not have life until God breathes into him. In the valley of dry bones in the vision of the prophet Ezekiel – the dead do not live until the breath or wind comes from the four corners of the Earth. In the upper room in Jon 19 the discples receive the Spirit when Jesus breaths on them. Finally, on the Day of Pentecost the Spirit comes with tongues of fire but also with a mighty wind.
The Spirit is the presence, power and love of God who is with us and in us. As psalm 104 makes clear, one thing the Spirit does is creates new things and makes old things new. “… when you take away their breath, they die and return to their dust. When you send forth your spirit, they are created; and you renew the face of the ground.” (Psalm 104:29–30, NRSV) Creation is formed, Adam lived, the dead bones take on flesh and blood and rise, and the disciples are given power to witness, and to work the work of God when the Spirit is breathed into them.
If you have felt renewal in faith, or experienced a new beginning, or seen a Church community come alive, grow or heal, then that is the work of the Spirit.
Lord pour your Spirit into our hearts, our homes, our churches, our nations and our world that all things may be renewed; fill us and all creation with love and power. Cause us to be your powerful Spirit filled witnesses. In Jesus Name. Amen.
Image derived from Logos “Visual Copy” – “Logos Free” or “made by” Andrew Gillies. May be subject to Copyright:- 2014 Faithlife / Logos Bible Software () May not be used for commercial purposes.
Focus text: 1 Peter 1:3-9
The prosperity, the peace, the security and the wealth that most of us have is a gift that we have done little or anything to deserve. We may build on, or squander that gift, but we have done nothing to deserve it. It is an unfair and wonderful gift to us. We may argue the toss about whether war really brings peace or protects freedoms, but the first ANZACs and those service men and women who have followed believed that this is what their service was for.(Volunteers and conscripts alike.) For this they fought, for this faced terror, for this they were injured and for this they even died. This was an unfair gift for us. On this second Sunday of Easter these unfair gifts can be used to illustrate another and greater unfair gift. We have been given “a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead”. 2, 000 years before we were born we were given the gift of Jesus which is forgiveness, reconciliation and new life. This is also an unfair and even more wonderful gift.
Questions for thought and discussion. What unfair gifts have you received in your lifetime? How should we best honour the gift given to us by our service men and women? How should we respond to the gift of the person, death and resurrection of Jesus?
I made a mistake with the timing of ANZAC Day thinking this Saturday was the 25th of April 2020 and not the 19th of April.
*Rough Sermon Text*
The wonderfully unfair gift of God’s love I have probably told the story before about my year 11 English class in my first year of teaching. The sylabus required that we study so many poems.... Midnight Oil The forgotten years ... I transcribed the lyrics and one of the students told me that I had made a mistake I had transcribed a line “seasons of war and grace...” At 4.28 on the 25th of April 1914.... national identity.... peace.... for over 30 years from Vietnam... This is a gift we have done nothing to deserve. As things in our world once again seem to be becoming darker, both the seasons of war and grace should not be forgotten years... So what has this got to do with the first Easter and with any of our readings? Well, just yesterday (ANZAC Day 2020) we honoured the unfair gift of lives given... As Christians we are here to honour something and someone far greater. In th words of first Peter “By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who are being protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” (1 Peter 1:3–5, NRSV) “for you are receiving the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”
Have you ever considered that before you were born or your parents were born. Jesus was born for you ...taught... ...healed... ...mixed with sinners... ...died... ...was raised... We are forgiven.... We have new life....
“By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading” This is an unfair gift...
93 years before Midnight Oil wrote the forgotten years Rudyard Kipling wrote his hymn Recessional or “God of our Fathers, known of old...”, you might like to look it up - See below.
When Kipling wrote this famous hymn he wrote it not in memory of troops lost in battle, but to remind us that our foundation is God, in God’s great mercy or grace. When we take all the achievements of victory in war, of wealth, of peace, of prosperity, of empire or nation, for granted, then we are in trouble. Worse when we believe that all the blessings we have are of our own making, then we are in even deeper trouble. When we boast and trust in our pomp, our power, in “reeking tube” (the power of the gun, and cannon) or “the iron shard”, (The shot, the missile and the gun), when we believe that in these things our greatness lies, then we are in terrible trouble. Our blessings are an unfair gift they are the mercy of God.
It is in the risen power of God in Jesus by the Spirit that we trust. We should never forget how fortunate we are. As the third verse puts it. When the battle is over and the armies have departed, “still stands the ancient sacrifice, a humble and a contrite heart.” A recognition that all of this blessing and any victory that we might receive is not due to our power or goodness but is due to the living mercy the Grace and providence of God, the risen power the new life of Christ, the events of Easter, are far greater than any war, even when we are on thee side of victory. It is the truth that God was truly with us in Jesus, and through the Spirit is with us yet, providing for us, preserving us and giving us new life in this life and in the next. As Christians when we pray “O lord of hosts be with us yet,” we do not pray in vein. But just as we must not forget the years of war and grace and the gift they are to us we must not forget the life the healing the teaching, the death and the resurrection power of Jesus.
What Kipling puts in negative terms,1 Peter puts in very positive terms: “By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading” .
We benefit from many unfair gifts, many graces. The gifts of all who have gone before us. All those who built the vision and the fabric and the tradition of Ipswich City Uniting Church, and so we honour them today. All those who risked and even gave their life in battle to preserve our nation, and so we honour them today. And above all God who made us and gave us the whole creation and through the giving of his very self in Jesus gives us new life. All of this we have done nothing to deserve. We simply receive and give thanks and honour. We must never forget these unfair gifts.
And so as Kipling urges, not to please God but in response to all our living God has done and continues to do as a grace as a free and unfair gift, in response to this gift we bring the ancient sacrifice, a contrite and a humble heart.... We seek to follow Jesus where he leads, loving and caring for all the needy neighbours he gives us, and we follow too in the footsteps of all those faithful examples who have gone before us, service men and women, pioneers of the faith, evangelists, those who seek justice and have compassion on the needy. Instead of boasting or glorying in our blessing, our victories or our achievements in the light of all these good people, and above all in the light of God’s wonderful unfair gift to us in Jesus’ risen life, a life which we share, we come with in Kipling’s words “the ancient sacrifice, An humble and a contrite heart. Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet, Lest we forget-lest we forget!”
- Hymn & Offering Recessional (tune AHB 74 Melita - Eternal Father...) God of our fathers, known of old, Lord of our far-flung battle-line, Beneath whose awful Hand we hold Dominion over palm and pine- Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet, Lest we forget-lest we forget!
The tumult and the shouting dies; The Captains and the Kings depart: Still stands Thine ancient sacrifice, An humble and a contrite heart. Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet, Lest we forget-lest we forget!
Far-called, our navies melt away; On dune and headland sinks the fire: Lo, all our pomp of yesterday Is one with Nineveh and Tyre! Judge of the Nations, spare us yet, Lest we forget-lest we forget!
If, drunk with sight of power, we loose Wild tongues that have not Thee in awe, Such boastings as the Gentiles use, Or lesser breeds without the Law- Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet, Lest we forget-lest we forget!
For heathen heart that puts her trust In reeking tube and iron shard, All valiant dust that builds on dust, And guarding, calls not Thee to guard, For frantic boast and foolish word- Thy mercy on Thy People, Lord!
Rev Peter Taubner explores the Easter Story as History, Mystery and Victory.
This Sermon was recorded for Easter Sunday online worship during the lock down due to the COVID19 virus Pandemic in Ipswich Australia.
For a video version of this sermon go HERE.
Full text of Sermon
Message – Uniting Churches of Ipswich
Easter Day Service – April 12th
Rev Peter Taubner
Preamble
Good morning. Welcome, as you have heard, to this Uniting Churches of Ipswich presentation of an Easter Day Service. I’m a little disappointed. Not that it’s Easter Day – I’m elated. But I know where I might have been, a couple of days ago, and earlier this morning. Those people listening and watching this morning, who are connected with the Rosewood congregations that I also serve, may have an inkling of what we have all missed out on this morning.
But, that’s not to take away from what others in the room with me, may have shared in their own buildings, and particularly in this majestic place.
Message
I want to to you about HISTORY, MYSTERY + VICTORY, and as we heard from Matthew 28: 1 – 10, read to us by Andrew - that first morning, that Easter dawning, was a very special time.
On Palm Sunday, Jesus entered Jerusalem on a green carpet.
On Good Friday that carpet turns to red with his shed blood, and then
On Easter Day, it’s like there is a new beginning and new growth and hope begins.
I’ve brought along a special cross which I often use in the congregations I share with, and I will place on the altar today. It was designed by a Christian woodworker on the Sunshine Coast. He calls it ‘Comfort and Joy’. Let me explain to you it’s purpose - Palm Sunday – arms outstretched, head raised up – joyful and celebrating.
Good Friday – arms ready to encircle us, head lowered – sad but comforting + loving.
Easter Day – turned around again – celebrations of wonder, joy and hope.
Like me, perhaps you have missed watching some sport of late, due to the shut-down of many events related to the Corona Virus. Let me refresh your memories of one of the most ironic of all sporting commentator’s ‘catchphrases’ because it is also a catch-cry for the whole of the Easter story, which is interwoven and joined together to make it a stronger story and a more powerful story. Perhaps the most powerful story ever told.
The catchphrase comes to the fore when Jesus ‘snatches victory from the jaws of defeat’. In one sense, the resurrection of Jesus Christ is a fact to be accepted by faith. To say that a person died and was buried is simply to acknowledge the experience of most of humanity. But to say that one who died rose bodily from the grave, is to announce a miracle demanding faith.
The resurrection of Jesus Christ is therefore history, for it happened; it is a mystery, for it cannot be fully explained; and it was a victory, for He conquered sin + death. THE RESURRECTION IS HISTORY - No one really doubts the fact of Christ’s death. Since the time of Adam, death has been an appointment for all people except two Old Testament characters, Enoch and Elijah. Jesus also had an appointment with death, and He kept it.
Only a week before, he had entered Jerusalem riding a donkey, and even though the crowds welcomed him with praise and celebration, he knew that he was riding to his death. Then came that day when the sun hid its face at noon, the earth shook, and the veil of the Temple was torn in two. Everyone who witnessed the crucifixion said, “He is dead!” How do we know He was dead? Well, in John’s Gospel 19:33-36 we are told that the soldiers came to Jesus to break his legs so he would die before the end of the day, but He was already dead when they came to him. The resurrection of Christ is as factual as His death. Those who question it do so in the face of irrefutable evidence. Evidence exists of the empty tomb; the repeated appearances to as few as one and as many as more than five hundred; and the dramatic change that took place in His disciples. The authorities of the first century could not refute the historicity of the resurrection by disproving the claims of the apostles, and neither could the skeptics of any century since then.
In the early part of the 20th century, a group of lawyers met in England to discuss the biblical accounts of Jesus’ resurrection. They wanted to see if sufficient information was available to make a case that would hold up in an English court of law. When their study was completed, they published the results of their investigation. They concluded that Christ’s resurrection was one of the most well-established facts of history!
And, of course, if we look at the list of central figures from all the major world religions, we find these truths:
Confucius’ tomb - occupied; Buddha’s tomb - occupied; Mohammed’s tomb - occupied; Jesus’ tomb - empty! The resurrection of Jesus Christ is a reality.
THE RESURRECTION IS A MYSTERY. The disciples couldn’t understand the resurrection. They heard Jesus foretell of it but when it actually took place they were bewildered.
The resurrection of Christ is still a mystery. We have the Bible, which reports the event, but we are unable to fully understand it. The return of life to that broken and brutalized body is a mystery. The manner of His exit from the tomb is also a mystery. It is most likely that the stone was rolled away from the entrance of the tomb so that people could see that it was empty, not to actually let Jesus out. The Lord rose bodily from the sealed tomb, but who can explain that? Furthermore, the nature of His post-resurrection body is also a mystery. The Lord’s body was physical, for people could both see and touch it; yet the Lord was not limited by physical barriers. Who can explain that?
The mystery of the resurrection must be accepted by faith. To do so is not unreasonable, for God has given evidence that Jesus did rise from the grave. Since the fact of His resurrection is firmly established, people of faith can accept the seemingly inexplicable aspects of the event.
THE RESURRECTION IS A VICTORY. The resurrection meant victory for Christ. Jesus died as a criminal. He was arrested, tried, and executed as a criminal. The fact that He was innocent doesn’t alter these facts. Thus, His resurrection was an event of personal vindication. It proves that the Lord is who He said He is. But more than that, by His resurrection the Lord became a conqueror. He became the sort of Messiah and Saviour figure that he was expected to become. In the resurrection He became the victor over sin and death.
The resurrection of Christ also means victory for Christians. One day all the believers will also die. What then? Because of Christ’s resurrection, death is no longer an enemy which ultimately wins, and the grave is no longer humanity’s final destination. Because of the resurrection of Christ, we also have hope in death and victory over the grave. Apart from the Resurrection of Jesus, and Lazarus who Jesus also raised, no one has ever returned from death to tell us what’s on the other side. After His crucifixion, eleven terrified men sat in a locked room afraid they too would be killed. From their perspective, when Jesus died so did their dreams for the future. The hope of His Resurrection wasn’t something they seemed to take very seriously. Yet in a short time, their lives would be transformed as Mary Magdalene and some other women came running with the startling news that the Lord’s tomb was empty.
The Resurrection is -
A piece of history – in fact, all of it is a part of HIS-story, and the Resurrection was perhaps the most pivotal moment in all of history.
A thing of mystery – we can only understand the events of the Resurrection through faith, but that is enough.
A sign of victory – one that allows us hope for the future, and an acknowledgement of our salvation for eternity.
So again, let us share the Easter response – Hallelujah. Christ is Risen! He is Risen indeed!
No – I don’t think I could hear all of you. Hallelujah. Christ is Risen! He is Risen indeed!
I’m going to join this time. Yes, that was a little better – lets’ give it one more go - Hallelujah. Christ is Risen! He is Risen indeed! Amen.
Focus reading: Collossians 3:1-4 Matt 28:1-10 (This is a re-podcast from 2011, later today I will podcast a sermon specific to this Easter Sunday from Rev Peter Taubner.)
Nick Vujicic, was born in 1982 in Brisbane, Australia. Without any medical explanation or warning, Nick came into the world with neither arms nor legs. Throughout his childhood, Nick dealt not only with the typical challenges of school and adolescence such as bullying and self-esteem issues; but also struggled with depression and loneliness. He constantly questioned why he was different than all the other kids surrounding him; why he was the one born without arms and legs. He wondered what the purpose behind his life was, or if he even had a purpose. According to Nick, the victory over his struggles throughout his journey, as well as the strength and passion he has for life can be credited to his faith in God. His family, friends and the many people he has encountered along the way have also encouraged him. Today Nick encourages people through motivational speaking and sharing his testimony about how God changed his life and gave him a future and a hope. (Adapted from http://www.lifewithoutlimbs.org/about-nick)
My life is very different to that of Nick’s but the same power of God that transformed Nick’s life has also transformed mine as it did the first disciples. It’s the same power of God which raised Jesus from the dead on Easter Sunday. Today we think about that transforming Easter power and ask - "What is God calling you to?"
Questions for thought or discussion.
What challenges have you faced in your life? How has God helped to to overcome them? In what ways do you believe God is calling you to live your life? Is God calling you to anything new?
Based on John 19:1-22 For a video version go HERE
Who is your King?
Pilate asks the crowd “Shall I crucify your King?” and the chief priests reply “We have no King but the emperor.” For Jewish people God alone was king and even kings like David had their authority from God. For the chief priests to say their only King is the Emperor was almost a denial of faith.
They were in a difficult place. They wanted the Roman governor Pilate to condemn Jesus as a threat to the Romans. So they argue that Jesus had claimed to be King, to have authority which could cause trouble for Rome. And trouble for Rome that was trouble for the Emperor. Pilate was one of only two governors in the whole mighty Roman Empire appointed directly by the Emperor. To insult the Roman governor was to insult the Emperor. The way to force Pilate to execute Jesus as a rebel was to convince him that to do anything else would be an such an insuly. If the chief priests has said “God is our King and not this man!” that could have been interpreted as an insult to the Emperor also.
In the end I suspect that neither the Emperor nor God was their only King. Fear was also their King. They were afraid that if Jesus’ following grew, and he became a real threat to the Romans, then the Romans would come and crush the Jewish people. Less than 40 years later that’s exactly what happened. There was a rebellion. Jerusalem and the temple were destroyed. Tradition and the Law was also their King. For centuries through war and exile and occupation, the Law and tradition of the Jewish faith had preserved the people against overwhelming odds. Jesus threatened the traditions and even the Law. Without them could they survive? Finally if the Law and tradition and sacrifice was done away with by Jesus and his movemen,t then the power and position of the Chief priests would also go. Perhaps power and position was also their.
For Pilate the Emperor was the only King in a formal sense, but he too bowed the knee to fear and to his desire to hold on to power and position. Where are the disciples? They have been scattered. Nearly all of them fled in fear, and even Peter, the rock, after following at first has lied and run away when challenged. Fear has also become their King.
Who is our King? Who is the ruler of our life? Is it fear or greed? Some of us out of fear or greed stockpiled toilet paper, or rice, or other things. Is it popularity or celebrity? For some of us the most important thing is the number of followers or likes or clicks on Facebook, Instagram or some other platform. Is our King independence? Some of us would rather die than ask for help from God or a neighbour.
Our King should be God, it should be Jesus the Son of God, the second person of the Trinity. We should fear him as a sailing boat’s crew fears a wild sea. We should love him as a child loves her mother, and her sister, her brother and her friend. We should obey him as he obeyed the Father. But sometimes or all of the time we fail. We fail like the crowd, like the chief priests, like Pilate and and the disciples we make other things our King.
That is why Jesus, the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords became one of us and shared our life and death. That is why he suffered the crown of thorns, the beating, the mocking, the trial and the cross. In these things we recognize and receive the love and forgiveness of God. And in these things we recognize him as King.
Who is your King?
Focus readings: Matt 21:1-11, Phillipians 2:5-11 DIRECT DOWNOLAD
The original of this sermon included two video Clips from Bluefishtv (now Rightnow media). The sermon makes pretty good sense without the clips but if you click on the titles it will take you to an official YouTube version of the videos: Abraham Lincoln: Perseverance to live by faith. and Famous Failures.
Therre is an Updated (2020) Youtube Video Playlist of this sermon.
Some of the greatest figures in history have known incredible failure before they have known success. I am no great figure but I was turned down to study ministry and teaching. In today's sermon you will hear of some actually great people who had even more spectacular failures.
In human terms Jesus was also a failure. He died publically shamed and disgraced. His movement had fallen apart. He had no money and although he was supposed to be a King he had no Army. Most if not all of his friends had deserted him. Even on Palm Sunday when a great crowd welcomed him, he did not look that great. He rode not on a horse but on a donkey and his honour guard were not warriors but fishermen and tax collectors. Yet today the world's largest religion owns his name. His life has had a greater impact and has been a greater success than any other. None of us is Jesus, but as well as thinking about who Jesus is, today's message encourages you to acknowledge that God can use any person despite their failings, to do good and even wonderful things.
Questions for thought or discussion.
What other people do you know of, have had failures I their lives and have ended up doing good or wonderful things? What did you think of the examples in the video clips? Is there some failure you would be willing to share with others that you overcame to get to where you are? (If so share it.) What do you think the story of Jesus has to say about success, failure and what God is like?