Rev. Joanne Blair
January 28, 2018 Listen Print Version 1 Samuel 4:1-11; Mark 1:21-28 Our Scripture today picks up right where we left off last week. As you recall, Jesus has just called the first 4 disciples and told them to follow him. Well – Jesus isn’t wasting any time! We are in the very beginning of Jesus’ ministry and he’s starting out with a bang – teaching in the synagogue and giving us our first miracle story by exorcizing an unclean spirit. But what about this miracle story? We know nothing about the man other than he had an unclean spirit. Many believe the unclean spirit represented the scribal establishment. But we don’t really know who he was, or what became of him. Did he even thank Jesus? Did he recognize Jesus as more than just a healer, and become a follower and believer? We never know. And perhaps the reason we never know is because that is not the point of the passage. The focus here is the authority of Jesus. The authority of Jesus. When people came to the synagogue, the teachers would present what they taught as “according to Moses” or “Rabbi whoever said…” But Jesus taught on his own authority. This is a pivotal point that Mark wants us to understand. Jesus taught – and he taught on his own authority. And his teaching was different. This is a crucial conflict throughout the gospel – the challenge over authority between Jesus and the scribal establishment. As we’ve heard before - those with mental, emotional or physical impairments were kept on the fringes … excluded from normal, everyday life in typical society. They were not only kept from the Temple, they were kept from interacting with their own community. These laws of exclusion were intended to instill wholeness and purity – but they run contrary to everything Jesus teaches about the kingdom of God. A couple of weeks ago, Roger and I watched a movie called, “Music Within”, which was about the life of Richard Pimentel, whose advocacy was a major factor in the passage of the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act). Richard has a really rocky childhood and enlists in the Army, where he is sent to Vietnam. While there, a mortar attack kills his best friend and leaves Richard with severe tinnitus, which effectively deafens him. When he returns home, he enrolls in an Oregon college and befriends a brilliant man (Art) who has cerebral palsy and very limited use of his body, and whose speech is quite difficult to understand. One day they go for pancakes at 3:00am and the waitress calls Art “the ugliest, most disgusting thing I have ever seen”, and they are told to leave. Richard and Art refused, and they were arrested for being “unsightly.” This was a legal arrest under the “Ugly Law”, which made it illegal for “deformed” people to appear in public. (As a point of interest, the last “Ugly Law” in the U.S. was not repealed until 1974.) It’s not really all that long ago, is it? This is what Jesus is teaching us about. The teaching of the scribes involved holding to traditions that had been passed down for generations. I do not say this as a criticism of the scribal system or of first century Judaism. But the teachings of Jesus are different – and he teaches with the utmost authority. Jesus is teaching that that which is contrary to the love of God is on the way out, including the holds on religious life endorsed by the synagogue and the Temple. Jesus often quoted Scripture to illuminate his teaching. But he spoke with an authority all his own -- not in disapproval of, but also not based on just the quoting of Scriptures. We have no idea what words Jesus used in the synagogue for his teaching, but the exorcism story itself is a teaching. Jesus entered the synagogue to teach, and taught with words-- and with action … all with authority. In English, we often use the words power and authority interchangeably. But in Greek there is a distinct difference. In Greek, the word for power is “dunamis”, from which we get the word dynamite. It refers to the capacity to influence the will or conduct of others. Power, might, strength. As social theorist Max Weber says, it has a coercive element. The word for authority is “exousia”. It is non-coercive, and it means to have the right or privilege. It refers to position rather than power. And Jesus had divine authority. “Exousia” is the word used throughout today’s reading. Jesus had both power and authority. But it is through his authority as the Son of God that he reaches out. For Mark, Jesus’ miracles are blatantly connected to his teaching, and they tell us about the kingdom of God. And they challenge the organization of power. Miracles were a re-inclusion into society for those who were kept on the margins. They reestablished right relationship with God, and with one’s neighbors. That which we still desperately need today. We have come a long way from the days before the ADA, but not nearly far enough. The powers and the principalities, while often instituted with good intentions, sometimes work against that for which they were created. And what about those other areas to which we give authority? We allow even magazine ads and commercials to teach us that we don’t measure up to the often frivolous standards of society. We give them unmerited power and authority. Today’s reading calls us back to recognize the ways in which we are kept from right relationship with God, and with each other. The people were “amazed.” But Jesus wasn’t trying to amaze them, or us -- he was, and is, teaching. Where there is a teacher, there should also be a learner… and we must choose who our teachers are with discernment. Jesus is asking us to learn from him, and to implement those learnings in our daily lives. Jesus has authority-- not over us, but for us. And so that’s the challenge for this week: What is Jesus teaching me today? And how am I living out that lesson in my life? Rev. Dr. John Judson
January 21, 2018 Listen Print Version 1 Samuel 3:19-21; Mark 1:14-20 An online article put it this way. “Just 17 years old, the church was drawing an average weekly attendance of 12,329 to 15 locations. In fiscal year 2013 alone, Mars Hill baptized more than 1,000 people, planted 53 churches in India, and supported 20 church planters and evangelists in Ethiopia. It released 50 new worship songs, gave away more than 3,000 Bibles in the United States and Ethiopia, and took in nearly $25 million in tithes and offerings (Gospel Coalition, US Online May 30, 2017).” Then within a few months in 2014 it had totally and completely collapsed. Its founding pastor, after being confronted with his ongoing abuse of staff, misappropriation of money, much of which he used to buy copies of his own book so he could make the New York Times Best Sellers List, and his unwillingness to listen to his elders was asked him to take some time to consider his actions. Rather than doing that, he left and people fled. Some fled to other churches. Many fled Christianity itself. So how could this happen? The answer, from my perspective, is that we human beings have a deep desire to play follow-the-leader. From time immemorial, human beings have craved to follow a leader who claimed to possess ultimate truth and would lead them into the promised land. From Alexander the Great, whose soldiers fought to the end of the known world, to George Picket whose troops marched into withering fire from Union soldiers at Gettysburg, to people today who believe that their favorite politicians and television pundits are the only people who speak the truth, we seek the leader to follow. We want to believe that these people can save us. There are two problems with this desire. The first is that all these people are flawed human beings who can never deliver on what they promise. They second is that you and I, those of us here this morning, are not to be playing follow-the-leader, but follow-the-Lord. We are not to follow the messenger, but the one whose message we proclaim. I realize that this is easier said than done. Whether we want to believe it or not, the whole Alpha-male, or Alpha-female thing, still causes us to want to follow-the-leader. So how do we do it? How do we go from playing follow-the-leader, to following-the-Lord? Fortunately, the opening verses in this first chapter, offer us some assistance. First, to quote Jesus, “The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God has come near; repent and believe the Good News.” In these words, we are reminded, that the kingdom has come near in Jesus. Which means that it has not come near in the Herods, the Romans, or any other revolutionary leader. Only in Jesus. Because of that reality, we are to change our minds and behaviors to believe that this is so. This is the repent part. Repent literally means to change one’s mind. It means to change our minds that there is some leader, past, present or future, who can bring about the salvation of human kind. We are to change our minds that the leaders we follow are infallible and worthy of the kind of adoration that only belongs to Jesus of Nazareth. We are to change our minds such that Jesus is the one whom we follow. We begin then by ceasing to play follow-the-leader and consciously beginning to follow-the-Lord. Second, we are to follow. We are to see Jesus, not only as the one who is to lead us, but we are to be those who follow in his footsteps. The most powerful image of this kind of following I have seen in a long time comes from the movie, The Free State of Jones. The movie is based on the true story of Newton Knight, who deserted from the Confederate Army and then led a rebellion against the Confederacy in Jones County, Mississippi. In the movie, he is running from men who have been instructed to hunt him down and hang him. Wounded, he is led into the swamps by a slave who takes pity on him. And then another slave named Rachael appears, to lead him deeper in so that he would be safe. As she does so, she has to lead across what appear to be deep waters. Essentially she says, “You have to place your feet exactly where I put mine. There is only one path in and if you step off it, you will fall in and be lost.” Place your feet where I place mine. This is what we are called to do in following Jesus. We are to place our feet of forgiveness where he places his. We are to place our feet of compassion where he places his. We are to place our feet of acceptance where he places his. This is what following Jesus looks like; placing our feet where he placed his. Finally, we are to follow-the-Lord together. When Jesus begins calling disciples, he does not call them to simply be individuals in relationship with him. Instead he calls them into community. He calls them to be the new, alternative Kingdom of God. And not only are they to be the alternative Kingdom of God, they are to invite others to be part of this alternative kingdom as well. You and I are called to do and be the same. We are called to follow together; to follow together so that when one of us falters the others are here to pick us up. We are to follow together so that when one of us moves out into the swamp of following some other leader, we can gently bring that person back. We are to travel together because we need each other. We are also to be that alternative kingdom. We are to be that community of love, peace, patience, forgiveness and compassion. We are to follow together. In a few minutes, we will be ordaining and installing our newest class of elders and deacons. Their task is not to rule over us. Their task is to help us follow the Lord. Their task is to discern what Jesus would have us to do and to be. This morning I would encourage you, as they are asked the questions for ordination and installation, to listen for the centrality of Jesus in their calling. For in those questions you can see that they are called to be intentional followers of Jesus. My challenge then to you this morning is this, to ask yourselves, “How am I more and more following the Lord, rather than following the leader?” Rev. Dr. John Judson
January 14, 2018 Listen Print Version 1 Samuel 3:1-18; Mark 1:4-11 It was one of those mornings. Our daughter Katie was a sophomore in high school and I was her transportation to high school. We lived a little too far for her to walk and a little too close to get bus service. So, every morning I would drag her out of bed (she is not a morning person) and watch as she moved at snail speed getting ready to leave. We finally made it into the car and off we went. She was almost dozing in her seat. I was thinking about my sermon. We turned right, then left, then another right. I pulled into the parking lot and said, “Katie, we’re here. You need to get going. She fully opened her eyes and as only a teenage daughter can say it, “Dad, this is the church, not my school.” And she was absolutely right. My inner driving instinct had taken us not to her school but to my work. It was one of those powerful reminders to me that we human beings are as much creatures of habit as much we are thinking people. I realize that what we want to believe about ourselves is that we have free choice. That we are thinking creatures who always make the best, and most rational decisions. That we are fully capable of choosing the good, the thing that God would have us do, every time. Unfortunately, studies have shown that we seldom do just that. We don’t because we are programed. We are programmed by our cultures; by our families of origin; by our genetic makeup. Scripture understands this, when Ezekiel says, “Like mother, like daughter.” And “The sins of the fathers will be handed down to the third and fourth generation.” This programming comes with both positive and negative aspects. The positive is that much of this programming can align us with Jesus’ alternative kingdom of love, compassion, forgiveness and reconciliation. The negative aspect of this programming is that it passes on prejudices, fears, actions and beliefs that deter our living fully into our role as citizens of Christ’s kingdom. The question then becomes, how do we change our programming? How do we become those people God designed us to be? There are many ways we could look at this question, but the first is listening to and for God. First, we are to listen to and for God, openly. This is Eli’s story. My guess is that few of us really know much about Eli. He is one of those minor Biblical characters who we normally move right on by because we are more focused on Samuel, first as a boy then as a man. But this morning, Eli, who was the great high priest of God in Shiloh, decides that he will be completely open to whatever Samuel has to tell him. The setting for the story is that Samuel’s mother, Hanna, could not conceive. She prays to God and tells God that if she does conceive, she will dedicate her child to God. Hanna gets pregnant, and Samuel is born. When he is weaned, she takes him to Eli, to serve in the Temple of God. Eli loves and trains Samuel. But one night God comes to Samuel and not to Eli with a message. Eli knows that this is not good news for him and his family. Yet in the morning, he tells Samuel to speak exactly what he has heard from God. To hold nothing back. As Samuel spells out what will happen, Eli does not claim that it is fake news, but says, “It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him.” Even in the face of bad news, Eli is open to hear what God is saying. You and I are to listen openly. What does this look like? It looks very much like Samuel and Eli. It looks like us being willing to listen for God telling us things that we do not want to hear; things that challenge our programmed prejudices and notions of how the world is going to be. Things that challenge the cultural feedback loops through which we operate. Things that cause us to say, maybe I have been wrong all along. Things that are new and thought provoking. Things that maybe only God would say to us, because we might not have a Samuel around to be the bearer of bad news. To be clear, God often speaks to us far more like God did to Eli, through others, than God speaks to us directly as God did with Samuel. I don’t want to pretend thatlistening openly is an easy thing to do, because it is not. It is in fact a very difficult thing to do. Yet it is critical if we are serious about being citizens of Christ’s alternative kingdom. Second, we are to listen to and for God, discerningly. This is the Jesus’ story. The Gospel of Mark does not give us any birth or childhood narratives of Jesus’ early life. Even so, what I think we can discern from the other Gospels is that Jesus is about 30 years old or so when he arrives at the Jordon, where John is baptizing. What this means is that for the first thirty years of his life he lived a rather conventional Jewish life. He was the good son. He was the good eldest brother. He was the good Jew, attending synagogue on a regular basis as he learned the Word of God. In addition, what we learn is that he was constantly listening for God’s direction for his life. He spent time in prayer and discernment. I would argue, that it was this listening to and for God through discernment that caused him to leave his normal Jewish life and not only be baptized by John, but upon hearing God’s voice, set out on his mission as an apocalyptic preacher intent on establishing God’s alternative kingdom. You and I are to listen with discernment. What this means is that we are to hold up everything we hear and ask questions such as: Is this true? Is this in alignment with what Jesus taught? Is this in alignment with how Jesus lived? Is this how a citizen of Jesus’ alternative kingdom would think and act? Or, is what I am hearing simply a reflection of my programming? Is what I am hearing appealing because it appeals to my programming, my prejudices and my particular upbringing? Listening with discernment, is more difficult, than listening openly. It is more difficult because it forces us to look deep inside ourselves. It forces us to challenge the programming that we have internalized over the years; programming that might be liberal or conservative or libertarian or I-don’t-really-care-atarian. Listening openly and discerningly is what led Abraham and Sarah to leave their families and journey for God. It is what led Moses to give up the comfortable life of a shepherd and set God’s people free. It is what led the Apostle Paul to cease jailing Christians and become the church’s leading evangelist. It is what caused Martin Luther King to set aside the comfortable life of a pastor and speak out not only for the rights of people of color, but for the rights of the poor and oppressed. It is what caused him to challenge the programming of people both north and south. It is what caused him to give his life for the cause of Jesus’ alternative kingdom. You and I are called to do the same. We are called to listen openly and discerningly such that we can hear more and more clearly what God is telling us to do and to be. My challenge to you then on this Sunday before MLK Day, is to ask yourselves this question. How am I listening both openly and discerningly for God’s word to me, such that my life might more and more reflect my place as one of God’s people; as a citizen in Christ’s alternative kingdom? Rev. Dr. John Judson
January 7, 2018 Listen Print Version 1 Samuel 2:22-26; Matthew 2:1-6 “It’s obvious”, he said. “It’s obvious why this program doesn’t work. See this semicolon here? It ought to be a colon. Change that and the program should run.” This conversation took place when I was a freshman in college. I had enjoyed my first computer science class and was on to my second one where we were learning a couple of languages. I had carefully typed out all of my punch cards, taken them to the computer center, turned them in and then waited over night for the program to be run. When I got the results, and it hadn’t run, I was crestfallen. Taking the printout back to my room I diligently scanned every line, looking for a mistake and nothing. Fortunately, my older brother made his one and only trip to see me in college. He was a computer whiz and so I asked him to take a look. With a simply, quick scan, he found the error, and told me what to correct….again mind you, telling me that it was obvious. As I stared at my obvious mistake the only thing obvious to me was that I was not meant to be a computer science major. Have you ever been there? Have you ever been there when someone says, “it’s obvious” to something you can’t see or understand? If you have then not only would you fit in with me, but you would fit in with everyone in our story this morning, because it is all about things being obvious to one person and not to anyone else. Let’s begin. First there were the Wisemen. What was obvious to them was that the heavens were telling them, as astrologers, that a new king was to be born in Jerusalem. We know this was not obvious to anyone else because when they get to Jerusalem, their news puts everyone in a panic. Second, there was King Herod and the people of Jerusalem. What was obvious to them was that if there was a new king of the Jews being born, and it wasn’t Herod’s kid, then things were about to turn ugly. The Wisemen didn’t see this risk at all, which is why they almost fell for Herod’s plea that when they found the child, they should return and tell him where the baby was. Finally, there were the religious authorities. What was obvious to them was where this baby was to be born. You could almost hear them going, “Duh, everyone knows where the messiah is to be born. He is to be born in Bethlehem of Judea. In the city of David. Didn’t you guys go to Sabbath school?” What is fascinating about this story and about the way that Matthew tells it, is that each of these characters could see something obvious that the others couldn’t see and yet, even when they put all their obvious insights together, they missed what ought to be obvious to us, that this coming king, to be born in Bethlehem, was not what any of them expected. He was to be an alternative kind of king who ruled over an alternative kind of kingdom. What I mean by this is that Jesus was born to be a king who came not to seek power but to live as a servant. Jesus was born to be a king who came not to condemn but to forgive. Jesus was born to be a king who came not to seek vengeance but to bring about reconciliation. Jesus was born to be a king who came not to seek submission to himself but faithfulness to God. Jesus was born to be a king who came not to take life, but to save it. He was born to be a king whose kingdom reflected all of these alternative ways of being in community; of being God’s people. His kingdom was to be unlike any other that had ever existed because it reflected the love of God that was poured forth into the world in his birth. This insight, that Jesus came to be an alternative king in an alternative kingdom is what is supposed to be obvious to us, and yet I am afraid there have been and still are too many times when it is not. I say this because the church, the followers of Jesus, the people of God have not always acted as if they were part of an alternative kingdom. They and we, at times, have acted as if we are still part of Herod’s political economy. I say this because the church, as soon as it got a taste of power under Constantine, in the early 300’s, began to persecute those with whom it disagreed. It organized itself as a powerbase that ultimately led to pogroms against Jews, to the slaughter of other Christians, Jews and Muslims during the crusades, to the forcible conversion of entire races in the New world, to slavery, to the burning of witches in New England and to the oppression of LGBTQ persons in our day and time. It was as if every time that the people of God found a way to grab hold of power, they used it just as Herod would have, rather than as Jesus would have. They forgot that they were to be an alternative community who followed an alternative king. Today we begin a new sermon series entitled, Being God’s People. Over the next five weeks we will look at five critical components of what it means to be a citizen of the alternative kingdom ruled by an alternative king. We are doing this because we still live in Herod’s world in which it is not always obvious what it means to live as God’s people. For this week, however I want to leave you with this challenge, to ask yourself, how does my life reflect that of the alternative King I have chosen to follow? How does my life reflect that alternative king of love, forgiveness, compassion and reconciliation? Rev. Joanne Blair
December 31, 2017 Luke 2:22-40 Today’s scripture closes the loop on Luke’s birth narrative of Jesus. Last Sunday we came to the manger, and today we are in the Temple for the presentation of Jesus, and the purification of Mary. There is a unique encounter with Simeon and Anna, and then when all is said and done, Joseph and Mary and Jesus head for home. We don’t hear about Jesus again until he is 12. So, what’s the big deal? This story could easily just be a wrap-up to the birth story – a transition piece to let us know how they got home - yet it leaves us with the question, “What Now?” But before we get to that, we should delve a little deeper into why this story made it into scripture, and why it matters to us today. First, it matters because it demonstrates Mary and Joseph’s continued dedication to their faith. Luke wants there to be no doubt that Mary and Joseph were faithful Jews and did their part in fulfilling the requirements of Jewish law. Judaism revolved around following the law and its rituals. And praising God in all of life is essential to Judaism. The rites of circumcision and naming marked the child’s acceptance into the covenant community, and gave the child an identity. And for Mary, who was considered “ceremonially unclean after childbirth”, the ritual of purification would again allow her to enter the Temple. After a prescribed time, she would offer a lamb, or, in her case, “a pair of turtledoves or 2 young pigeons” … reminding us that Jesus was born into a very financially humble family. Simeon’s blessing relates Jesus’ birth to the promise in scripture for the salvation of Israel. But it also foresees the inclusion of Gentiles into this promise. Just as we were shown the inclusion of all in the visit of the magi last week, so Luke again tells us that no one is excluded from this open invitation. And that invitation still holds today. When you think about it, it is rather amazing that Simeon recognized Jesus as the Messiah when he saw this child. After all, sometimes they all begin to look alike. I recall only too well (over 20 years ago) when our daughter was swimming in a meet, and we rooted and cheered for the wrong swimmer because we didn’t recognize our own child! To be fair, our daughter didn’t usually swim as proficiently as she did that day, and with their matching suits and caps … well, “they all looked alike.” Having come to the Temple for decades and decades to see the Messiah, how was it that Simeon was able to distinguish this one child from the hundreds or thousands he would have seen? The Holy Spirit rested on him. And adding to his certainty, the prophet Anna also recognized the very special nature of this child. Not only does today’s reading affirm the special nature of Jesus, it also brings attention to the work of the Holy Spirit and the inclusion of women … something Luke does not want us to forget or overlook. The universal nature of the Gospel is absolute for Luke … just as it is for us today. Today’s reading also foreshadows things to come … and it surely was not all “sunshine and roses.” But amidst it all, we are reminded again that God’s promises will prevail. God keeps God’s promises. So, what is the “big finish” to today’s reading? There is none. Mary and Joseph and Jesus head for home. We know “the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him.” After the amazing proclamation in the Temple, once again declaring that this baby is the Messiah, they all go back to their everyday, humble life where they struggle to make ends meet. A humble life where Jesus learns the skill of a carpenter, and how to be a good Jew. There were good times, and bad times, but mostly just ordinary times. And after decades and decades of waiting to see the Lord’s Messiah, Simeon may now be released in peace … but what has really changed? Nothing … and yet everything. God has kept God’s promise, and God continues to keep God’s promises. We just don’t know when or how. Let us never confuse promises with bribes. There is absolutely nothing in Scripture which promises that things will go our way, if we but follow Jesus. That is what’s known as the “Prosperity Gospel” and it has nothing to do with scripture or the promises of God. In truth, following God’s lead often takes us down a rougher road than the one we were on before. Simeon, Anna, Joseph, and certainly Mary can all testify to that. God allows us to be tried, tested, terrified, and even hurt. This is part and parcel of walking by faith. If we followed God simply to ensure easier lives, we would be selfish believers … looking out for our own best interest. What today’s Scripture reminds us is that following God is often not easy. And, as Simeon, we must have patience. Let us all seek the faith and obedience of Mary and Joseph, and the patience of Simeon. An astounding occurrence, such as the birth of the Christ-child, or his being revealed as the Messiah to Simeon, does not mean that everything is fine. But it sure is better. We have an assurance that God is here, that the Holy Spirit is active … and that we can trust God to fulfill all of God’s promises. We, like Simeon, must wait with patience. And as I mentioned some weeks ago, we can “actively wait” … following God’s lead until all is revealed and reconciled. We have a part in these promises. So … what now? In another week, we’ll return to what the church calls “Ordinary Time.” After extraordinary happenings, Mary and Joseph returned home with their child to their most humble and ordinary life. And they continued to be faithful to God and trust in God’s goodness. So we, after this season of hope and celebration, return to our ordinary lives … and we shall live our “ordinary days” filled with hope and celebration and praise of a God who loves us and guides us ... if we but follow. Tonight, we celebrate the end of the year 2017. Some of us are ready to say goodbye to this year and look forward to opening a new calendar, filled with fresh hopes and promises and resolutions. But the promises of God are not new … they are ongoing. And whether you consider 2017 to have been a “good year or a bad year”, it is the only 2017 you will ever have. The same is true for each day, for each minute. So often we make grandiose resolutions for the New Year, and once we’ve broken them, we turn them aside. We don’t need to wait for a New Year to realign ourselves with God. We don’t need to wait at all. This, right now, is the only time you will have this minute. And so, the challenge this week is to continually ask ourselves: “What now? What am I doing right now to follow God’s lead and make me a better disciple of Christ?” Rev. Joanne Blair
December 24, 2017 Listen Print Version Luke 2:1-20 A couple of weeks ago, I was chatting with a friend of mine from Poland, and asked her the “probably most asked question” at this time of year … “Are you ready for Christmas?” She happened to grow up under Communist rule, and we have the most interesting conversations! Anyway, her reply to my question got me thinking. She answered that while she hadn’t totally finished her shopping, her house had been scrubbed top to bottom … windows, blinds and walls washed, carpets shampooed, furniture vacuumed and polished … and so on. Naturally I assumed she was having lots of company, and I shared with her that a lot of people these days do “surface-cleaning” before the guests come, and do the “deep-cleaning” after they leave. She replied that she wasn’t having company this year … that she was going to her sister’s house. The reason for the deep-cleaning is a long-embedded tradition to make sure your home is clean to welcome the Baby Jesus. This really struck a chord with me, and I’ve been pondering it ever since. It got me to thinking: Is my home clean to welcome Jesus? Now I know for sure that my house isn’t … but what about my home? My inner dwelling? If we were only talking about physical surroundings, then I guess none of us have anything to worry about. After all, let’s really think about the birth narrative for a minute. It was not a pretty picture! And though we are not here this morning to celebrate Jesus’ birth (come back tonight at 5, 8, or 11:00!), we all know the story. But so often as our emotions get ahold of us, we “pretty-up” the story and too seldom do we really consider the harsh realities of the situation. The stable had to have had quite an odor, (let’s be honest, it would have stunk!), and I can’t imagine the bands of cloth used to wrap the baby were very clean, and … Jesus was placed in a feed trough… which would have been covered with animal spittle and leftover feed. It’s important to pay attention to this story because what is so spectacular about it … is that it is so ordinary. We often have a tendency to think that living modest, unassuming lives in small unknown places insulates a person from the extraordinary. Well, Luke’s story certainly discredits that theory! Mary … an ordinary, unknown woman from an unknown place was chosen by God for a singularly distinctive role that would reorder her entire life … and that of the whole world. Mary accepted God’s call on her life, but surely, she must have felt overwhelmed, unprepared, and perhaps unworthy. Surely, she must have questioned (or at the very least not fully known) the struggle she was to endure. But God chose her, and she “opened the doors of her home” and welcomed God into it. In the book of Luke, after Jesus is born, the first ones to see the baby Jesus were the shepherds living in the fields. The creches we lovingly set out each year display a tender scene of those gathered around the baby Jesus, and there is always a shepherd or two with some sheep huddled near to the manger. They’re beautiful, and creche’s are something many of us cherish. But the reality of the scene that night was anything but beautiful! Most shepherds were boys among the ages of 8-14, with two or three grown men to supervise them. These ordinary boys and men were held in low esteem and not considered to be a part of “polite society.” In fact, they were considered tainted. Walking around in sheep dung, smelling of wet and dirty animals, it was impossible for them to ever be considered clean … hence, they were never allowed to enter synagogues or the Temple. And to a Jew at that time, religious life revolved around the Temple. Shepherds were deemed unclean, both physically and ritually. For certain, shepherds would not be considered trustworthy messengers of news as great as the birth of the Savior of the world. Yet it was to them that the angels appeared. These dirty, smelly, “nobodies” (mostly not much younger than Mary) were who the angels summoned to go see the Christ-child and tell of his birth. And they said yes. They were called, and they responded to that call. Just as Mary did. They “opened their doors”, and trusted in God. And what about us? Do we trust God? Do we respond to God’s call? For while we may not have an angel appear to give us a message, God does call each and every one of us. It is only through Scripture that we know of Mary and Joseph and the shepherds centuries later … they were just ordinary people … chosen for extraordinary things. And to be honest, we are all ordinary. Few, if any, of us will be remembered in the centuries to come. In fact, few of us will ever be known outside of our work and personal life circles. But that doesn’t mean that we ordinary people are not called by God. And it doesn’t mean that we are not called to great things. We, ordinary people, are called to receive and live out the love of God … and there is no greater thing we can be called to than that. Today’s scripture tells us that we do not know ahead when or how God will call us … but God does call… each of us. Some of us are called to be loud and public. Many of us are called to live quiet lives of faithfulness. But we are all called. And it is up to us to say yes. Think you’re ordinary? Well, “God has big plans for you” … living as a disciple of Jesus Christ, and making God’s love manifest in the world. And no matter how clean our personal home may be, we can all “open our doors” and invite God in. And if we keep our doors open, God will help with the cleaning and show us where we are called. But like Mary and the shepherds, it is up to us to welcome God in, and say “yes.” So, when tonight comes and we celebrate the birth of Jesus, look closely at your creche. If God used these unlikely, ordinary people … then won’t God use us too? And let us ask ourselves… “Though my home may not be clean, are my doors open to welcome God in, and hear God’s call? And am I saying “yes” to that call? Rev. Dr. John Judson
December 17, 2017 (8:30 am) Listen Print View Isaiah 61:1-6; Luke 1:46-55 It appeared to be hopeless. They were surrounded with no way out. The temperatures were well below freezing, the snow was flying and the Germans had Ben and his comrades surrounded at Bastogne almost exactly seventy years ago this week. For those of you who don’t know the story, in December of 1944, at almost exactly seventy-four years ago next week, the German army counterattacked the advancing Allied armies in the what we call the Battle of the Bulge. As the Germans rapidly advanced, they cut off a great number of soldiers from the 182nd Airborne, including Ben, a member of my former congregation, who would be severely wounded in the battle. Many of the men retreated to the city of Bastogne where they were, as I said, surrounded. I’m not sure how his participation in the battle came up in conversation and so I asked him about it. He described just how hopeless it seemed and yet, he said, no one gave up hope. I asked him how that was possible. He thought for a moment and then said, “We had hope because we knew that we were not forgotten and that help was on its way.” That conversation has been swirling through my brain as I thought about how Mary could have had the hope necessary to burst into her song that we call the Magnificat. In that song, she proclaims that God has shown the strength of God’s arms. That God has brought the high low, and lifted the low to a place of honor. The rich have been sent away empty and the empty have been filled. This is a song of hope, which would not seem to fit considering that Mary was in a hopeless situation. Her situation was hopeless because domination by Rome was not a possibility but a reality. And the Romans did not simply want to occupy, but like the Borg of Star Trek fame, they wanted to assimilate the people into the Roman way of life. They told the people that resistance was futile. So how was it that Mary found the hope to keep her going? The hope to proclaim a victory that had not occurred? I would argue that this hope came from the fact that she learned that she and God’s people had not been forgotten and that help was on the way. To understand Mary’s hope, we should return to the angelic visitation that she had experienced prior to her song. What this visitation said was, God has not forgotten you. On the surface, this visitation might not seem like much in terms of the Biblical story. In scripture, angels seem pop up all over the place. But even for Mary, this was a big deal because an angelic visit was not simply an extraordinary thing, but it was a sign, a signal that God was back in the game. That God may have been away for a while but now God was in the house. That God was listening to the cries of God’s people, even as God had heard the cry of God’s people in Egypt. To have an angel arrive, regardless of the message, meant that God’s silence was being broken and that God was about do something amazing. This takes us then to the second part of the angelic visit. The angel let Mary know that help was on the way, and that help would be coming from her unborn son. The angel said, “And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” This was the message for which she had been waiting. This was the message that said she could be filled with hope. This was the message that allowed her to burst forth into her song where she could proclaim, “He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy.” God had not forgotten God’s people and help was on the way God had always promised it would be. This message is why Advent matters. Advent matters because there are moments when we want to give up hope. When we want to say, chuck it all. Nothing will ever change. Why bother. We think and say these things in part because we feel ourselves surrounded and cut off, without a way out. It is into those moments that Advent comes; that Mary’s Magnificat comes. They come as a reminder that we have not been forgotten. God may appear to be silent, but God is not gone. And God will send us help; help in the form of friends, forgiveness, restoration, eternal life and a host of other ways. For God is the one who fulfills God’s promises according to the promises made to Abraham, long, long ago. My challenge to you then is this, to ask yourselves, How am I allowing Advent to give me hope, that I might continue to live as a child of God, in even the most difficult moments of life? Rev. Dr. John Judson
December 10, 2017 Listen Print Version Isaiah 40:1-11, Mark 1:1-8 What were they supposed to be looking for? What were they supposed to see? The people listening to these words from the prophet were beaten down, exiled, oppressed and far from home. Everything they had known had been destroyed. They were lost and without hope. Into that moment came this prophet saying a bunch of strange, and frankly, absurd things. The Jewish people have served their term of exile. Someone is supposed to go out and make a highway for God, tearing down mountains and filling in valleys. The people are supposed to see the glory of God; and not only the glory of God, but the power of God like a mighty arm. Finally, God will care for them like a shepherd cares for his sheep. All of this was a bit over the top considering the people were captives in a foreign land. So, what was it that they were actually supposed to be looking for? What was it that they were supposed to actually see? What were they supposed to be looking for? What were they supposed to actually see? The people listening to these words form this strange guy named John were beaten down, in internal exile, and far from the spiritual home that they had once known. Everything they had known, trusted and believed in was slowly vanishing. They were becoming lost and without hope. Then along comes this guy in his Daniel Boone wannabe costume, eating bugs and saying things like, “One who is more powerful than I am is coming. I am not worthy to even serve him. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit. So, everybody come to the river and get baptized.” All of this was a bit over the top. All of this was extremely vague. What then were they actually supposed to be looking for? What was they were supposed to see? What are we supposed to be looking for? What are we supposed to see this Advent season? This week’s Advent theme is, “Looking for God.” So, what are we supposed to be looking for? Unlike those who first received these messages, we are not beaten down, oppressed, lost and without hope. This is not to say that our lives are perfect, far from it. Many of us this morning are struggling with cancer, the effects of aging and disease, issues with parents, children, friends, relationships. Many of us are struggling with job issues and addictions, politics and finances. Yet, even with all of that we are a free people, living in a time of abundance unheard of in the history of humanity. We not only have enough, but we also have enough to share, which you all have done in so many ways throughout the year. What is it then, that we are supposed to be looking for? What is it that we are supposed to see? What are we all supposed to be looking for? What are we all supposed to see? The answer is simple and yet extremely complex. What we are looking for is another chance to become the people of God. Let me explain. The people who first heard the prophet and went out to be baptized by John were in the situations they were in because they had forgotten how to be the people of God. The people who were listening to the prophet had forgotten how to treat the poor and oppressed. They had enslaved their own people. Greed had overtaken them. And their pride was so great that when the Babylonians showed one moment of weakness, the leaders decided that God was on their side and would protect them from their own bad choices. And even when Jeremiah the prophet told them not to rebel, but they did and they lost everything. The people coming out to see John the Baptist were under the thumb of the Romans because their leaders had forgotten that God called them to be humble; to be servant shepherds. And so instead of working together to lead the people of God, they had fought and wared among themselves to the point that each side in their dispute went to the Romans for help. But the only help they got was when Rome helped itself to their nation and all freedom was lost. And with the coming of the Romans, more and more people forgot what it was to be the people of God and simply went with the flow of the Empire. What the prophet and John were asking the people to look for was another chance, another opportunity to be the people of God. This is what you and I are to be looking for as well; another opportunity to be the people of God. Though we are not in the same place as those who first heard and lived these stories, my guess is that most of us can look at our lives, whether it was this week, or some time in our past, and acknowledge that our thoughts, words and actions were not representative of what it means to be part of the people of God. Perhaps it could be as simple as misplaced anger, gossiping about someone at work, choosing not to help someone that we could have helped or ignoring the needs of someone close to us. Or it could be as complicated as abusive language or actions, or perhaps a refusal to share what we have been given. We can also look at this in terms of our community. We can see where the church has not always been as welcoming as it ought. Where it focused only on its own needs and not the needs of others. Where it failed to speak for the poor, the weak, the abused and the marginalized. It is in these moments, in this moment that we are called to look for another chance. We are asked to see that God is coming toward us offering an opportunity to try again. Another chance is what they were supposed to be looking for because that is what God does; and what God did for them. In one of the great comebacks of all time, the nation that had devastated the people of God was itself devastated by the Persians, who not only let God’s people go home, but sent with them funds to begin rebuilding their nation, Temples and lives. God gave God’s people another chance just as the prophet said God would. God gave the people living under Roman rule another chance as well. God sent God’s only son into the world to establish an alternative kingdom; a kingdom based not in power, but in servanthood; not in hate but in love. In that kingdom, many rediscovered what being God’s people looked like and eventually they would help to transform the world. God gave them another chance. And this is what God does for us as well. That same Christ who lived, died and was raised offers us another chance; through forgiveness of sins we are offered another chance to forgive and be forgiven; to serve rather than be served; to build up and not tear down; to help and not to walk on by. Each day, a new chance comes to us, to live and act as God’s people. This morning then let us look for that other chance that God offers us to live as God’s people. My challenge to you this morning then is this, to ask yourselves, how am I taking advantage of the “another chance” that God is giving me to live as one of God’s own people? Rev. Dr. John Judson
December 3, 2017 Listen Print Version Isaiah 64:1-9, Mark 13:24-37 He wasn’t there. The hour had arrived and the professor was not in the classroom. It was my first semester of college and I wasn’t sure what to do. I was on time. My classmates were on time. But the professor wasn’t. Soon there was this buzz going around the room. It was a discussion about how long we had to wait for the professor to show up before we could leave. This discussion included the fact that you had to wait longer for a full professor than an assistant professor…and the length of time you have to wait for each. Finally, we reached a collective decision that we would wait until 20 minutes passed class time and then we were out of there. And so, when the professor had still not arrived at twenty past, we were all scattered to the winds. How long do you have to wait? My guess this is a question we have asked ourselves far too many times in our lives. How long do we have to wait before we give up and go on our way? If you have ever been there then you have a sense of how the people around Jesus were feeling. They wanted to know how long they were going to have to wait for God to act to establish God’s amazing and life-giving kingdom. They had been waiting for about one-hundred years. They had been waiting since the Roman Empire had pushed out the Jewish leaders and had taken control of the nation. Even though there were local Jewish leaders in place, everyone knew that they were merely the surrogates of the Romans, doing whatever Rome wanted. And what Rome commanded was more money, more wheat and more adherence to Roman culture and civilization. These demands were tearing at the heart of not only the nation but of the faith of the people. So how long were they going to have to wait for God to act? Why did they think that God would ever act? The answer can be found in both of our passages this morning. For more than seven hundred years the people of Israel knew that they were chosen by God; that as long as they were faithful, God would protect them. God would liberate them. And by the time of Jesus, this belief had morphed into what we call Apocalyptic visions of God’s arrival and liberation. Jesus states that, “But in those days, after that suffering, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in clouds’ with great power and glory. Then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.” The implication here is that not only will God act and act decisively, but that God will act sooner rather than later. So, the question with which the people wrestled was how long should they have to wait before they gave up and simply quit believing? Or before they took matters into their own hands and rebelled against Rome. How long should they wait? How long should we wait? In a world that now seems once again at the brink of nuclear war. That seems to be moving backwards rather than forwards in terms of freedom. In a world in which more than half of the people on the face of the earth live on less than one dollar a day. In this world, how long should we wait on God before we either give up or decide we must bring about the Kingdom ourselves? The answer is, as long as it takes. We are to wait as long as it takes for God to complete the work that God has begun in Jesus of Nazareth. If that is so, then the question before us is how long ought we to wait. At Advent by Candlelight, Rev. Joanne talked about this sense of actively and not passively waiting. This idea of actively waiting goes to the heart of this story. It does so because at the end of Jesus’ apocalyptic vision he tells the story of the land owner, who, on going away puts his servants in charge of the property. Each was given a task to do to maintain what the owner had left in their trust. Jesus then reminds his listeners that not only were the servants to be faithful in their task, but they were to be faithful in those tasks regardless of how long it took for the master to return. They were to actively wait as long as it took. You and I are those servants. We have been tasked with the work of keeping up creation until Christ returns, even if it is another two-thousand years. We are tasked with actively waiting. . What I want to do now is to take a couple of minutes before we end to expand on the idea of active waiting. The image I want to use is that of waiting from the inside out. Our active waiting begins with our own inner spiritual development. Through prayer and spiritual disciplines, we are to deepen our relationship with God in Christ. We are to seek God’s will for us. We are to ask “What does God desire of us and who does God desire us to be.” Next, we are to take those insights and put them to work among our neighbors. We are to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, visit those in prison and in general, actively love and serve those near to us; those we encounter every day. Finally, we are to wait by working in the wider world for justice. Justice is one of the most frequently used Biblical words. It means working in the larger community, nation and world to right the wrongs and address the injustices that exist. It means working with others to bring about a world that looks a little more today than yesterday, like the Kingdom of God. After two-thousand years it would be easy to give up and simply go our own way. On this morning however, I want to challenge you not to, but to ask yourselves this question. How am I actively waiting from the inside out, as a faithful servant of the one who has asked me to care for his creation? Rev.Joanne Blair
November 26, 2017 Print Version Exodus 25:1-9; Matthew 25:31-46 Many of us remember the days before cell phones and GPS, and yes, even before computers. Back then, we used maps that were actually made of paper, and spread them out and charted our course when going from one place to another. Really, I was pretty good (highlighter in hand) with marking the expressways and exits for the main part of the trip, and off I would go. But I usually got baffled the closer I got to my destination. Once off the expressways, I would consistently get all turned around while navigating the details of that last leg of the trip. I would often have to stop and ask someone how to get to where I was going, and invariably I would be totally confused once I tried to put their directions into action. Was that the 3rd road on the left after the tire sign? Or was the tire sign on the left? Or if I reached the tire sign had I gone too far? And what tire sign? I don’t even see one! And so I would stop and ask someone else, who would tell me that I was going in the wrong direction, and I would leave more confused and frustrated, and lost, than ever. Remembering that now, it makes that current-day familiar and irritating voice that says, “recalculating” sound like a love song. And what a victory when that same voice finally says, “You have reached your destination!” In today’s reading from Exodus, the Hebrews are still wandering and in need of trusting that God is, in fact, still with them and guiding them. The instructions for the “portable temple” assure the people that God is mobile, and more importantly, willing to be present right in the very midst of them. Verse 3 that Kelly/Swid read for us today gives a list of items needed, but I want to draw our attention to the first words of the verse: “This is the offering that you shall receive from them…” The key word is “offering”-- the materials to be used are to be freely offered. There is no intimidation or requirement placed on the people. These offerings are to be given by people who genuinely want to be in communion with God. Which is exactly what Jesus is talking about in today’s reading from Matthew. As the image of Jesus shifts from shepherd to king, we are reminded that no power can match the power of the reigning Lord. Today, in fact, is known as “Christ the King, or Reign of Christ” Sunday. And as our Lord speaks of separating the sheep and the goats, the thought of a judgement makes us fearful… yet the answer seems obvious: we will feed the hungry, give a drink to the thirsty, welcome the stranger, clothe the naked, care for the sick, and visit those in prison. Check. Got it covered. We are sheep! But it’s not as simple as that. It seldom is. Oh, doing these things does matter. It matters very much! But if we stop there we have missed the nugget of the story. Both the sheep and the goats express surprise, and question… when had they seen the Lord? The difference between the sheep and the goats is intention. The sheep served others because there was a need that they could help fulfill. They were unaware of the Lord’s presence and had no expectation of earning “brownie points.” In fact, they had no expectation of any reward. They acted out of caring love, freely given. The goats’ question leads us to believe that if they had known the king was among those in need, they surely would have stepped in and helped. The goats were not godless or unethical, they bore no malice- but they are deemed unrighteous because they are motivated by self-interest. Had they thought the Son of Man was in the midst, they would have been happy to serve, and thus gain eternal reward. To be honest, I think most of us fall somewhere in the middle between sheep and goats. I believe I do. On one hand, I consider myself a compassionate person, and to have a genuine concern for those who are hurting, or have suffered an injustice. I truly hope I am. On the other hand, I can be a bit self-centered. I like to joke and say that “it’s all about me” … but maybe I’m not always joking. I knew of someone who called those of us that fall in the middle between goats and sheep, “geeps.” Should we “geeps” live in fear, that we will be lumped in with the goats? No, for this passage is not meant to incite fear. So often this scripture is portrayed as frightening and condemning, but the text is actually meant to bring us to right thinking and right action for the right reasons. It serves to inspire and empower us. It really is good news! It calls on each one of us to share those gifts which we have and be a part of God’s mission. It guides us to remember that which we are called to do and be:
We all have something to offer. And we are called to offer our gifts to go beyond the mere acts of feeding, clothing, sheltering, and visiting those in need. As Jesus showed us, charity is not a substitute for kinship. We are called into relationship, even when that relationship is improbable. And Christ promises to be there, and guide us. Just as God promised the Hebrews to “dwell among you” throughout their wandering and beyond, so God promises to be always with us. Jesus not only came to save… but to love, nurture, inspire, model and guide us. He still does. God loves us no matter what. But it is only when we accept that love and let it transform us that we can begin to understand it. Again, it is only when we accept that love and let it transform us that we can begin to understand it. Today marks the end of a liturgical year. We have been on a journey the past 12 months as we have traveled through the Christian church year. We have followed the steps of Jesus as he was born, walked the hillsides, healed, taught, was crucified, and rose again. We have celebrated the coming of the Holy Spirit, and reflected on what it means to be disciples of Christ. Today is the last Sunday of that journey for this liturgical year. Next Sunday we enter Advent, and as we once again begin that journey to remind ourselves who we are, and whose we are. Todays’ reading from Exodus speaks of a God who promises to be with the people and guide them. Today’s reading from Matthew promises the same thing. And it speaks of a future kingdom in which God will reign in Christ. But it is not a “final judgement” that we should be focusing on. The Kingdom of God is a present reality in our lives, and God invites each and every one of us to be a part of it. The choice to accept or reject it rests with us. Throughout it all, we have a guide. We don’t need a paper map or a technological GPS. We have the best guide of all. Jesus. And all we have to do is trust and follow that guide. The guide may not take us on the most expeditious route, or the one with the prettiest scenery, but we will end up in a glorious destination. And our guide will never lead us astray. And so the challenge for today is to ask ourselves: Where in my life do I need to “recalculate”, to ensure that I am following The One True Guide? |
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