"The Adam Bomb," Sermon for February 23rd, 2014 by Nicole Collins

2,000 plus years ago Jesus was preaching and teaching on the side of a mountain illumining what would be a whole new way of life, a whole New creation to consider...  In many ways, more than we could ever realize; Jesus’ Words were atomic! Meditating this whole past week on the entire Sermon on the Mount had me hearing the world news in the background completing what Missouri Synod Pastor, Craig Massey in his book about transition and transformation says in its title: “Adjust or Self Destruct.”

“The Old nature affects the intellect of man.  The influence of the Old Nature on the unregenerate mind is devastating.  The unsaved man is diametrically and diabolically set against God....”  He goes on to say: “In spite of modern, scientific man’s efforts, we find society failing to produce his greatest desires. Man wants peace but wages war.  Man wants economic security, but his manipulation of money creates chaos, etc.  Man without God has failed to solve any of these problems.  The fact is that the problems increase in spite of man’s efforts to curtail them.”

Today’s excerpt from Jesus’ continuing Sermon on the Mount reveals a radical New application to understanding obedience to living “in the world, without being of the world”: LOVE. Everything in today’s Gospel challenges us to hear these statements as what we are required as disciples to be accountable to, in order to become fully developed as the Greek says is “perfect.”

³⁸“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ ³⁹But I say to you, Do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also; ⁴⁰and if anyone wants to sue you and take your coat, give your cloak as well; ⁴¹and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the second mile. ⁴²Give to everyone who begs from you, and do not refuse anyone who wants to borrow from you. ⁴³“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ ⁴⁴But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, ⁴⁵so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous.

The problem is that we do not resist the evil doer being Satan himself! In fact we bring him on, we invite him into our lives and all our decisions when we operate from greed and indifference which are the two core sins at the root of all of human depravity. This is our destructive Old Nature allowed to reign in our “temples.”  St. Paul once again needs to continue in his campaign to align the Corinthians to not only the Holy Spirit but to the New Creation planted within them to be obedient to and operate from. “¹⁶Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? ¹⁷If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple. ¹⁸Do not deceive yourselves. If you think that you are wise in this age, you should become fools so that you may become wise. ¹⁹For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God.” 

This past month I have been revisiting studying anything and everything about sin and salvation as I am finishing an hour of Systematic Theology that my seminary is having me take in efforts to graduate this year.  What has been the most fascinating about it outside of plugging the Lutheran view over the Calvinist perspective is that for all we have defined and all that we have aspired... Were we there when they crucified Our Lord?  

What if instead of the dark and dreary news playing in the background alongside the Beatitudes and the entire Sermon on the Mount being preached by Jesus... We saw the nails being driven into his wrists and his body contorting to loudly share snippets of Psalm 22? Would our Old Nature just change the channel, put on our ipods to high and drown it away for another day?  It happened 2,000 years ago, have we buried it away into our cold deadened hearts?!

Well not all of us sit on the sidelines like Rodin’s Thinker in contemplation; we have community, we have Pastors, Priests, Nuns, Deaconesses, and basically the entirety of the Priesthood of all believers engaged in being the Body’s hands and feet in the world today... don’t we?  There is an unrelenting tone of the Law to the start of my message today because it is something we can’t avoid.  We can’t live into it on its own, for that brings upon us another form of death...  We need that beautiful HOPE, PROMISE and LOVE that only the Gospel of Christ Jesus can deliver!

But what is Hope, Promise and Love to the wisdom of the world’s culture today—irrelevant and perhaps foolish as we hear of escalating violence against Christians, politics becoming a perfected socialism, oppression and general “unhappiness?” Let’s revisit the Pandora’s Box of Satan’s revisionist work: Happiness.  What really does that or should it mean for the Disciple of Christ Jesus? Well it certainly isn’t what the Old Nature tempted, being led by Satan says it is.  It is living into the lifestyle of GRACE, not a five fingered Grace as our Calvinist brothers and sisters rationalize it to be but GRACE upon GRACE.  GRACE all caps, extra bold and preferably the size of the Hollywood letters circumsized onto our very hearts!

Living into the lifestyle of GRACE is unnatural and radical but it is the perfect reality of the fully developed New Creation—the New Adam and the New Eve.  A reality brought to us through great sacrifice and our unimaginable evil inflicted—the crucifixion of Jesus—the reality of the Cross.

Our Luther says in his sermon around today’s Gospel that: “The Christian way is altogether different.  For we have been transferred to another and a higher existence, a divine and eternal kingdom, where the things that belong to this world are unnecessary and where in Christ everyone is a Lord for themselves over both the devil and the world...  The Gospel teaches us about the right relation of the heart to God... Then you will see that Christ is talking about a spiritual existence and life... He is telling them to live and behave before God and in the world with their heart dependent upon God.”

If I am reading Luther correctly here, he is saying what lies at the heart of the Gospel in regards to our response: Spiritual Formation—Transformation first THEN Reformation!  The other day on one of a myriad of Lutheran FB groups I belong to; I posed a question for conversation about Spiritual Formation within parish ministry—its implementation and focus.  Outside of receiving very few responses, one friend said that our reality as Pastoral leaders is purely about reformation and doctrine.

Think about that for a moment—if our reality as the hands and feet of the Body in the world is merely doctrinal reformation... how can we adjust and grow into the Gospel reality of the beatitudes?  The Beatitudes yet alone all of Jesus’ teachings are to take root, begin and be deeply developed with the heart.  It was almost like misunderstanding St. Paul’s message about caring for the temple to mean make sure you have a trustee committee and a good sexton to take care of your new church!

The Gospel of LOVE is a transforming and abstract one that begins in that abstract scary place—the heart. Were you there when they crucified Our Lord? Whose they? Well yes of course, the Romans and the Sanhedrin... but couldn’t it also include what we have done and left undone?  I have been working on my first capstone ministry project this past month around developing a specific worship as discipleship paradigm series around Reflection, Confession, Repentance and Renewal.  The old 1950’s Lutheran Service Book and Hymnal’s public confession which has the minister at one point say:

“On the other hand, by the same authority, I declare unto the impenitent and unbelieving, that so long as they continue in their impenitence, God hath not forgiven their sins, and will assuredly visit their iniquities upon them, if they turn not from their evil ways, and come to true repentance and faith in Christ, ere the day of Grace be ended.”

Yikes! This obviously was dropped by the time of the LBW but what key things does it say in connection to our role in living into the very personal message from Jesus to transform?  The battle between the Old Nature and the New is one fought in reconciling ourselves to God—accountability and obedience are the unspoken response our lives lived in the light of GRACE are to bear.  Our call to discipleship comes with a caveat—being and becoming a freely responsible servant to the Gospel and realizing the HOPE, PROMISE, & LOVE takes an inward, internal, spiritual adjustment—transformation before enacting Reformation.

Let Us Pray,

Heavenly Father,

May you help to guide us to become fully-developed,

Perfected to be obedient to your will and purposes for all of creation.

May you nurture our paths of discipleship to realize the true happiness and joy the Beatitudes bear

Continue to inspire and motivate us to adjust lest we destroy the reality of GRACE

Which is a life led by your Gospel of HOPE, PROMISE & LOVE.

AMEN

February 23^rd, 2014; 7^th Sunday after Epiphany; Year A; SOLA Lectionary                               Nicole Collins

Psalm 119:33-40; Leviticus 19:1-2,9-18; 1 Corinthians 3:10-23; Matthew 5:38-48

"Blessed to BE a Blessing! A S.O.A.P. Series on the Beatitudes of Jesus

This has been a blessing to focus on the Beatitudes of Jesus.  They truly are the beautiful attitudes of the New Creation--what we have been planted with and what we can nurture and grow--to be Blessed to BE a Blessing!

God Bless Your week~

Nicole Collins

A S.O.A.P. Series on the Beatitudes By Nicole Collins

Scripture || Observation|| Application|| Prayer

For Today Saturday February 1^st, 2014

Matthew 5:1-12

5When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. ²Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

³“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.⁴“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. ⁵“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. ⁶“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. ⁷“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. ⁸“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. ⁹“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. ¹⁰“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ¹¹“Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. ¹²Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Today’s Verse: ³“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Scripture

Observation: Blessedness is holding all your trust in God with a deep humility which reveals the lifestyle of GRACE—the Kingdom of God.

Application: Humility is a beautiful kind of poverty that helps you to deepen your relationship to God and Love towards neighbor.

Prayer:  Heavenly Father, may our hearts grow and transform to know the blessedness of being humble.

May our lives strive in humility to know deeply your love and share deeply our love for you and our neighbor.

May we live into the lifestyle of GRACE always trusting in you, following your guiding light.

May we never not be grateful for all you have given us!

You who live and reign, forever and ever—

AMEN

A S.O.A.P. Series on the Beatitudes By Nicole Collins

Scripture || Observation|| Application|| Prayer

For Today Sunday February 2^nd, 2014

Matthew 5:1-12

5When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. ²Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

³“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.⁴“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. ⁵“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. ⁶“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. ⁷“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. ⁸“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. ⁹“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. ¹⁰“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ¹¹“Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. ¹²Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Today’s Verse: ⁴“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 

Scripture

Observation: Blessed are those who can show great compassion to their neighbor; they will be spiritually strengthened and will know a new kind of inner beauty.

Application: When we selflessly and intentionally bear our cross, cost of discipleship; we are being Christ to our neighbor.

Prayer:  Gracious and Most Compassionate God, Your Son modeled the Way for us to grow and go as your disciples.  Part of the discipline of discipleship is opening the heart to fully give.  The fruit our hearts can bear toward the neighbor are from reflecting and incorporating the Beautiful attitude of the Beatitudes.  These gifts are love, compassion, mercy through a bended ear, through a shoulder to cry upon.  May all we do Lord as your Faith-filled servants example compassion as it is your Holy Will for us to do—

AMEN.

A S.O.A.P. Series on the Beatitudes By Nicole Collins

Scripture || Observation|| Application|| Prayer

For Today Sunday February 3^rd, 2014

Matthew 5:1-12

5When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. ²Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

³“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.⁴“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. ⁵“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. ⁶“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. ⁷“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. ⁸“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. ⁹“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. ¹⁰“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ¹¹“Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. ¹²Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Today’s Verse: ⁶“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. 

Scripture

Observation: What kind of righteousness are we truly standing up for today? Can we really claim to be “righteous,” in the face of where we are these days?

Application: Works righteousness is never the answer—internal spiritual transformative righteousness is.  When we are motivated and intentionally geared towards change for the better…  It has to start with us first!

Prayer:  Heavenly Father, Your servant Martin Luther spoke to our need to spiritually grow into being freely responsible servants of your Son—Jesus Christ.  Help to focus our efforts internally first, as a starting point.  A starting point to enable us to be aligned to your will—to be obedient and humble in the tasks our hearts are faithfully brought to bear. The cost of our discipleship is centered in our willingness to grow and go to spread your Gospel! May we be grateful servants in all we do and say as your disciples.

In your most Precious and Holy Name we pray—

AMEN

A S.O.A.P. Series on the Beatitudes By Nicole Collins

Scripture || Observation|| Application|| Prayer

For Today Tuesday February 4^th, 2014

Matthew 5:1-12

5When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. ²Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

³“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.⁴“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. ⁵“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. ⁶“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. ⁷“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. ⁸“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. ⁹“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. ¹⁰“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ¹¹“Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. ¹²Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Today’s Verse: ⁷“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. 

Scripture

Observation: Mercy is the opposite from indifference.  Being merciful is opening the heart to be considerate and understanding to others.  It is not judgmental more than truly compassionate concern.

Application: With indifference comes intolerance and division which tears down the Gospel of Jesus. Works righteous “bandaids” does not hear truthfully the pain of the neighbor more than glorify the doer.  The pain of the neighbor is clouded with anger-fueled agenda and politics.  Mercy is the extension of the compassionate open, humble & Godly heart—it requires obedience and great faith… Use it—don’t abuse it!

Prayer:  Gracious God, the plumb line you have set for our hearts is to extend our capacity for compassion to be merciful. May our lives be strengthened by the power of your GRACE to humble away our judgmentalism. When Jesus defeated sin, death and the devil with the Cross—we were to know and grow.  We are to know and grow that our cost of discipleship is obedience and faithfulness to spiritually shaping our hearts to enact compassion—love—mercy to our neighbor in Your Most Precious Name!  Now and Forever—

AMEN

A S.O.A.P. Series on the Beatitudes By Nicole Collins

Scripture || Observation|| Application|| Prayer

For Today Sunday February 9^th, 2014

Matthew 5:1-12

5When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. ²Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

³“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.⁴“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. ⁵“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. ⁶“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. ⁷“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. ⁸“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. ⁹“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. ¹⁰“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ¹¹“Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. ¹²Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Today’s Verse: ⁸“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. 

Scripture

Observation: Create in me a clean heart O God. Having a heart intentionally focused upon the will of God through humility and obedience.

Application: How do we strive for a clean heart dedicated to God without resorting to judgmentalism, hierarchy and works righteousness?  It is tough but is an ongoing process of daily remembering your Baptism—reflection, confession, repentance and renewal.  Turning the heart towards God and surrendering it to him is living into the challenge and commitment of a lifestyle of GRACE.

Prayer:  Heavenly Father, May our hearts be made clean daily remembering the water and the Word.  Help us to be obedient disciples anchored in prayer and led by your Holy Spirit.  Teach us to reflect daily upon all that we do and say—that it is grounded in love for your and neighbor.  Humble our hearts to daily confess our transgressions to you with a repentant heart yearning to be molded to your will.  May our lives grow in the light of your GRACE which transforms us to truly be your hands and feet in the world.  In your most Holy and Precious Name we pray—

AMEN

A S.O.A.P. Series on the Beatitudes By Nicole Collins

Scripture || Observation|| Application|| Prayer

For Today Monday February 10^th, 2014

Matthew 5:1-12

5When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. ²Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

³“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.⁴“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. ⁵“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. ⁶“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. ⁷“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. ⁸“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. ⁹“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. ¹⁰“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ¹¹“Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. ¹²Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Today’s Verse: ⁹“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

Scripture

Observation: Blessed are those who operate from God’s agenda for peace—devoid of the self, focused in compassion upon the other.

Application: We are in the midst of a culture claiming to be instigators of peace and social justice…  But more often than not there is intolerance, “political-correctness,” judgmentalism and outright hatred swept under the language of negotiating peace.  We must transform to God’s precepts of being a people of peace.  Tribalism, bi-partisanism and socialism is not the answer to an everlasting solidarity, a shalom connecting or should I say, reuniting God to His people.

Prayer:  Gracious and Loving God, Help our hearts to operate from your precepts of peace and harmony in the universe.  Open our hardened and indifferent hearts to become true ambassadors of shalom over and above our desires, agendas and judgment.  May your ever-flowing font of GRACE refine us to transform the world with the peace your Gospel champions.  May we always be grateful for how your light inspires and guides us!

AMEN

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A S.O.A.P. Series on the Beatitudes By Nicole Collins

Scripture || Observation|| Application|| Prayer

For Today Tuesday February 11^th, 2014

Matthew 5:1-12

5When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. ²Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

³“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.⁴“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. ⁵“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. ⁶“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. ⁷“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. ⁸“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. ⁹“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. ¹⁰“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ¹¹“Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. ¹²Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Today’s Verse: ¹⁰“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 

Scripture

Observation: Blessed are those who are being persecuted for the sake of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Even if persecution may come from the hands of other Christians! The true Gospel shines through those who are preaching, teaching and evangelizing self-sacrificially for God’s Will and purposes.

Application: In an era of Christians persecuting other Christians alongside atheists and other communities hostile to the True Gospel of Jesus…  When we are spiritually operating from an intentional, obedience to the authority and evangelization of the Word; we can realize the righteousness of God in the world.  We can turn our cheek away from our oppressors and allow God’s Word and Will shine—BE a bright light of transformation, GRACE and ultimate unity.

Prayer:  Heavenly Father, Help us to remain vigilant for the sake of Your TRUTH and GRACE.  May our witness in this world reflect your Kingdom and break the Oppressors yoke upon our efforts.  May Your Holy Gospel delivered by our hands and feet and voices eventually come to unite all peoples to your vision and purpose for our being. Help to continue to strengthen the foundation of transforming GRACE in our hearts to fight the Good fight of faith as long as we have breath.

AMEN

A S.O.A.P. Series on the Beatitudes By Nicole Collins

Scripture || Observation|| Application|| Prayer

For Today Friday February 14^th, 2014

Matthew 5:1-12

5When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. ²Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

³“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.⁴“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. ⁵“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. ⁶“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. ⁷“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. ⁸“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. ⁹“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. ¹⁰“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ¹¹“Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. ¹²Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Today’s Verse Scripture: ¹¹“Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.” 

Observation: Blessed are you when you speak the TRUTH and say it with GRACE in the face of evil and those turned to evil.  Being an intentional witness for Christ Jesus is our vocation—calling as His disciples.

Application: We are in an era as mentioned before, of not only secular persecution but of Christians persecuting other Christians.  In the face of this sad reality we MUST be faithful to preach it and teach it for Jesus sake—the FULL, authoritative Word of God.  There is no “political correctness” when it comes to God’s Word… we must stop catering to our personal needs/ ego and preach it, teach it like it truly is!  Christ Jesus Gospel is the Gospel of love with one great imperative: love God and neighbor through your transformed, spiritually attuned selves.

Prayer:  Loving and Most Gracious God, may we not turn our faces away from adversity.  May we always be empowered by the GRACE you have freely given us to be accountable Servants to your Holy Will and Word!  May we lead all of our witness to your fantastic love and Grace as bold, fearless disciples. May our hearts realize how you empower us to fight the good fight of faith against evil.  In your Most Precious Name we pray—

AMEN

A S.O.A.P. Series on the Beatitudes By Nicole Collins

Scripture || Observation|| Application|| Prayer

For Today Saturday February 15^th, 2014

Matthew 5:1-12

5When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. ²Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

³“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.⁴“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. ⁵“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. ⁶“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. ⁷“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. ⁸“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. ⁹“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. ¹⁰“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ¹¹“Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. ¹²Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Today’s Verse Scripture: ¹²Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Observation: Being vigilant, keeping encouraged and knowing that God is your strength helps us to be faithful, bold witnesses to the Gospel.  The cost of discipleship is standing firm against tyranny and oppression without fear but empowerment.

Application: Martin Luther stood before his accusers boldly stating: “Here, I Stand, I can do no other…” defending not only his faith but God’s Word in the face of oppression and tyranny. We still need to be bold, empowered witnesses against heresy, “political-correctness,” and intellectual idolatry for the sake of the Gospel.  In all that we do and say as Jesus disciples we must not back down but be empowered joyfully in our perseverance!

Prayer:  Dear Lord of GRACE, may our hearts be emboldened to stand firm and be vigilant witnesses, proclaimers of the Good News.  Help us to fight tyranny and oppression through peace, love and tenacity.  May our lives spiritually know deeply the joy of your Gospel and that we must do anything and everything to preserve it for the future sake of the World!

AMEN

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"TRUE Evolution," Sermon for Sunday February 16th, 2014 by Nicole Collins

I love watching various education series on cable around the Bible or historic Biblical figures and the other night there was an interesting show on the Military cable network around “Mysteries of the Bible.”  This episode in particular was about the Book of Revelation and its author, St. John of Patmos.  After sketching the murky history of John’s travels and eventual exile, the team of theologians, anthropologists, archaeologists, psychologists and so on basically spent the rest of the episode deducing and concluding that his “prophecies” were more or less just coded warnings against Rome and the emperor Caligula and that he merely was providing psychological comfort to a persecuted sect of Christians. 

All of this is logical, intellectually-derived thought, carefully reasoned and researched… BUT, what about the spiritual-intellectual thought application here?  Why wouldn’t he be talking beyond a simple human reasoning of warning early Christians about the evils of Rome?  So there is No future HOPE?  So there is NO Divine INSPIRATION? So are we to take as well that there is no thought process from the heart—the spiritual at all?

Today’s Gospel has Jesus teaching a new path of thinking about law and obedience being discerned and executed through the Spirit.  The Spirit’s intellect operates through the evolution of the heart.  This evolution of the heart is the chrysalis of the New Creation—the New Adam, the New Eve hence the disciplined disciple dedicated to God’s Will through their own transformative volition.  One of the great fingers of Old Testament Law, Deuteronomy points to where Jesus begins his radical gauntlet of Spiritual reform: “ ⁶Moreover, the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, so that you will love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, in order that you may live.”

The thought of life and death in the Old Testament was quite literal—obey the law or die, plain and simple.  The New Testament difference with Jesus’ view of the Law is that it starts through a willingly transformed, obedient and cross-bearing heart.  The cost of discipleship is taking up our Cross and following Jesus in thought, Word and deed as the New Creation—spiritually evolved over worldly evolution.  Are we too proud or too afraid to spiritually evolve?

R.C. Sproul sketches the concept of human dignity: “The idea of dignity is rooted in the Old Testament concept of glory.  In the created realm, all things reflect some degree of this glory.  The stars have a certain glory, as do the moon and the sun. Ultimately glory derives from an attribute of God Himself. It is because God has assigned worth to man and woman that human dignity is established.  Man’s glory is derived, DEPENDENT upon God’s glory for his own.”  I thought about this in regards to that fine line we instinctually cross when coming to discern and operate from life’s rules.  How often do we choose to operate from our own seemingly evolved reasoning over and above that of God’s?  Is it simply an issue of pride and the ego? Or is it stemming from fear—the fear of letting God be God and the fear of something we can’t control?

Poor St. Paul in today’s conversation with his wayward Corinthians had to really hold himself back from being angry and hurt at how the Corinthians looked to Apollos’ 1^st century health-wealth preaching over and above that of his.  He could have chosen to defend himself, his pride and his great knowledge and really said a bunch of nasty things back about Apollos but he didn’t…  He chose to operate from the heart to be spiritually keeping God’s mission in perspective: “⁵What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you came to believe, as the Lord assigned to each. ⁶I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. ⁷So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. ⁸The one who plants and the one who waters have a common purpose, and each will receive wages according to the labor of each. ⁹For we are God’s servants, working together; you are God’s field, God’s building.”

“But God gives the growth,” this is what we still overlook today for we have only given credence in our lives to only one kind of evolution—the material, fleshy, worldly reality of the self. There are no wages of the labor of the fruits of the spirit to discern if we operate from what we intellectually feel is logical, instinctive and “right.” The wages of the spirit is the life of the disciple willingly lived in light of GRACE and for the glory of God.  When Jesus recounts the commandments in today’s Gospel he is trying to shake loose those merely “going through the motions” of living an obedient life dedicated to God.  He is speaking to our great disconnect hoping for us to evolve into being spiritually obedient to God’s law of love—lived fruits of the Spirit.

And if we recall from St. Paul’s letter to the Galatians, these are the works of the flesh versus the fruits of the Spirit: “¹⁹Now the works of the flesh are obvious: fornication, impurity, licentiousness,²⁰idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, ²¹envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, as I warned you before: those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. ²²By contrast the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness,²³gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things.²⁴And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. ²⁵If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit. ”

And in today’s Gospel, Jesus says: ²¹“You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, ‘You shall not murder’; and ‘whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.’ ²²But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, ‘You fool,’ you will be liable to the hell of fire.” We have all had moments of great anger… We almost daily hear on the news moments of road rage or see in the headlines political lambasting and angry commentaries trampling judgment upon others…  It’s human nature, but do we use this as our legal loophole?  We can probably make excuses for everything and anything we do, say or commit!  There’s plenty of injustice out there, right?

Exercising our piety, on the outside, is one thing but living it on the inside, is the greater difference.  It is the same thing as saying one thing at the time that felt great to release but then only later greatly regretting what you said, for it was focused and operating from the self.  There is agency and urgency needed in our lives as disciples today but it needs to be reconciled to both the worldly AND the spiritual!  For all that we do and continue to do is only partially evolved especially in regards to God’s Will and purposes for our lives.

Letting God be God doesn’t mean that God will be doing everything for you.  This is easy to say since it feeds our base desire to avoid discipline, to avoid being accountable beyond ourselves… to be “SELFLESS.” How can we go there?  We are as St. Paul says—“fleshy,” how can we be other worldly—it’s impossible!  NO, all things are possible especially when we become aware, and spiritually align our hearts willingly to God.

Catholic Monk Thomas Moore illuminates how we struggle and go through the motions of responding, living spiritually our call to discipleship: “The point where spirit and soul meet is a thin one, and it takes little to cross the line into pure spirit, where suffering may be treated at a distance. People move easily from making sense of suffering to rationalizing it or, even worse, seeking it as a way toward virtue.” 

Works righteousness is to be avoided truly but we still do it in some form or another.  Legalism, judgmentalism, hierarchy and dictatorship are to be avoided but we still do it in some form or another…  It is easy to fall back upon the fact that we are both saint and sinner BUT we can’t use this to avoid the work of leading cross-bearing lives!  Especially when we claim to be disciples of Christ!

Being and becoming is the HOPE of our future lives together as disciples of Jesus.  It isn’t all magically done by God!  We all have been planted with the seed of the New Creature within us… we may or may not have allowed God or His Word to water it enough to be reaped.  Our own precepts are the fruits of rebellion plain and simple, especially when we choose to avoid the Spirit.  As I have said and truly believe as a struggling disciple of Jesus, myself; a graceless wilderness is the reality of hell—its landscape, the windswept trees and its dried fruit are the barren works of our rationale.

AMEN

February 16^th, 2014; 6^th Sunday after Epiphany; Lectionary 6; Year A; SOLA Lectionary  Nicole Collins

Psalm 119:1-8; Deuteronomy 30:15-20; 1 Corinthians 3:1-9 & Matthew 5:21-37