Posts
This week our texts challenge us to
think about those we would call the “bearers of bad news,” the prophets.
Jeremiah's voice certainly got him into trouble and eventually he would be
stoned. St Paul is pleading with his beloved Philippians to be aware of those
who are or become “enemies of the Cross of Christ.” His profound thoughts— “… their
end is destruction; their God is the belly and the glory is in their shame.”
This takes us to think about bearing the road of discipleship. When our minds
are set on earthly things, we don't keep focused with living into that other
famous Biblical quote or understanding of “being in the world, but not of it.”
We are bearing the road of
discipleship on that never-ending path through the meta valley. The gospel text
we have this morning shows the Pharisees being "nice or playing nice"
and giving a little word of warning for Jesus to be careful and watch out for
Herod. Jesus knows their hearts’ intentions and Jesus laments. He well knows
what is ahead for Him, the Cross. His lament speaks of the sorrow of being
rejected and not having people hear God's truth. Our Old Testament lesson has
something similar in the sense that Jeremiah definitely does not have good news
for the people of Judah and basically, they get ready to kill him. It is
interesting how Jeremiah makes a martyr's statement: "... but as for me,
here I am in your hands. Do with me as seems good and right to you."
Most often we do want to shut the
voices down of those who challenge us, afflicting our comfortable ways.
Recently there's been some horrible violence both in Israel as well as now in
New Zealand. If it isn't terror that breaks and divides the faith of one to
sojourn on, it is certainly being condemned for merely existing. The world
keeps turning and the world keeps changing but not necessarily the way God
wants it to turn at all. That is the uncomfortable affliction that I have to
bear upon those who may hear this the wrong way or choose to be indifferent to
it. Being indifferent to the valley that we must travel through in order to
find the mountaintop, is where we become prisoners in bondage to the will. For
the enemies of the cross maybe ourselves.
I don't know how many people will be
viewing my cyber space message this afternoon, for it is Good Ol’ Saint
Patrick's Day. A little history lesson for those who don't know really much
about him, he was actually a 5th century Roman whose family settled in Britain
and according to his own autobiography, ‘Confessio,’ he was captured by Irish
Pirates and taken as a slave to Ireland. He stayed there for six years and then
came back to Britain. He was able to find his way home; some people aren't that
lucky. This isn't just the rudimentary of preparing to travel someplace and
affording flying and affording buses or trains and whatnot… but sometimes God
is challenging us to never look back.
Saint Paul is challenging us to
never look back into our old nature life. When he says those, who are becoming
enemies of the cross— their end, that is destruction, is their willfulness and
their depravity. You can't live the Gospel as an old natured whore! What
do I mean by that? We take it for granted in not going there with thinking of
the sides of the self: one being the aspiring saint and the other one, of
course, being the wanton sinner. The human journey is bound to those
distinctions, the Christian however aspires beyond the self to live for God and
embrace the challenge to boldly run through the meta valley.
I've lately been doing some Lenten
prayer in the middle of the night that has been really wonderful for me to
reflect and discern how life is moving forward and where am I on that human
discipleship Journey. Outside of praising God over and over for his light and
that his light is what keeps me strong, I have been saying that “Brussel-sprouts”
word of repentance. I have been saying that I repent for feeling fear. I repent
for having anxiety. I repent for not trusting enough in You and that You have
this in Your hands(!). Mind you my cats are more than delighted that I’m doing
these prayers somewhere around 2 or 3 o’clock in the morning… They have been
working, I feel God’s comfort and guidance. Speaking of comfort and guidance,
I've been blessed to be doing a lot of marital counseling for a few couples.
One couple is facing a great crisis right now of evil things, outside of their
marriage. I told them during this challenge and process of reconciliation to
see themselves, their love for each other, is not perfect and is still
challenged.... but their love for each other is the armor that God has given
them to face this crisis together.
I don't really know anything at all
about the "Fighting Irish" and in regard to my own ancestry, I think
my big toe is either the Swedish or the Irish part of my ancestry. I am pretty
much 90% Italian. It's interesting that Saint Patrick was a missionary or
became a missionary after returning home and then having troubles with his
family accepting what happened and basically casting him out. He went back to
Ireland where that became a new environment for him. He was bringing Celtic
converts to Christianity. March 17th is actually considered the date of
his death and this day is supposed to be a day of 'solemnity' and 'a holy day
of obligation.' It is also supposed to be the official celebration of Ireland
itself. Solemnity according to the Roman liturgical calendar is a feast day
that is to be celebrating a mystery of Faith such as the Holy Trinity or an
event in Jesus life or Mary the Mother of Our Lord or another important figure.
‘A holy day of obligation,’ according to the Roman Church is to make sure
you're both going to services and that you're taking Sunday off! Well, all
churches have their legalism, as well as many today know Saint Patty's Day.... as
a time to get wasted and overindulge in “eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow
we die.”
I don't know how many people know
the the entire story or history of Saint Patrick, but that's not really why I
used his story is an example here. We take it for granted and don't think
enough about it honestly the magnificent witness of 2000 plus years of martyrs whose
very lives built the church. We take it for granted and don't think enough
about what God has blessed us with and what God challenges us to let go.
Sometimes those things are profoundly painful. It's not so much that interior
change that needs to happen seemingly right away, but it is fighting evil that you
may even hear whispering to you in the middle of the night that you have no
control over anything in your life and that things will be lost.
The time of Lent challenges us to
take seriously what spiritual warfare really is. There is an old church world
term, spiritual warfare. Is it something that is antiquated and perhaps of an enchanted
frame of thought? Well, if it is seen that way, it certainly shouldn't be. Evil
exist and its reality and consequences are all around us. What also exists
though, is that armor of God's love and the gift of God, His grace, to help us
persevere. Faith is a funny creature if you don't take care of it— sin, death
and evil find a way to chisel into it. Outside of working on ourselves
continually in that daily baptismal covenant we have with God to live into a
grace-filled life, many of us are out in the streets “fighting the good fight,
walking the talk,” & proclaiming the faith.
“Walking the talk” is that great
Christian drum skin of being encouraged for the journey. It makes you think
what we are bringing to our young people. How much do we allow them to grow? Yet
alone, how much do they take in of what we have to share? A part of this comes
from spending what precious time I had this week working on a giant paper
for my doctoral studies on how to “catechize your Sunday School students.”
Also, this past week, I had the blessing of some potential light work ahead
being approved for some substitute teaching in the school district here in
Clark County. I know God is challenging me in one sense, for I have not taught
formerly in grade schools or high schools, I have taught primarily in colleges
and I have led workshops and intergenerational events in churches. It is still
a mission field however, none the less. I may not be proclaiming God's Word, of
course in a public school… but I would hope to engage young minds to be
encouraged and hope-filled for a future that perhaps will be brighter than it
is now.
Keeping the light bright within
yourself and mending our ways and our doings, hearing the voice of God… that's
a lot of work for us to do. We have to keep in mind that our citizenship is in
heaven and that we are in the world for only a small time. Christ, His Grace
gives us life and fires that light. It is a light that never goes out unless,
what are the enemies of the Cross, snuff it out. Again, why even bother
sharing even this message? If we don't stand firm in the Lord and stand up for
what is God's truth, who will? Lent is a time of “spiritual surgery.” It's not
necessarily a time of: “Well, I'm just going to say things to make you feel bad
about yourself and what you've done, no.” These are just things to think about
and chew upon in your heart of hearts: who are you through Christ, in Christ,
and out in the world? Your faith is what will help you persevere this journey.
Who you are through Christ, in
Christ, and out in the world? St Patrick definitely had some legends built
around him that are pretty interesting. This says something about people being
called and people acting on discipling others, being a voice of the Gospel whether
“comforting or afflicting.” One of his legends claim that he was teaching or
evangelizing talking about the Holy Trinity where he used the Shamrock to
display what he thought could best visually teach the Celtic people what the
Trinity is. Whatever resources you have, use them that's what this tells me.
Another such legend of his is not just only the same, as story of the snakes
being driven from Ireland, but that literally his walking stick has been
claimed to have turned into a tree.
That particular legend, I find
profound in the sense of how we understand and have many different biblical
connections to the tree of life, the stump of Jesse, the staff of Moses and so
on and so forth. There's always something that we need to hold onto it seems. It
helps us in what we need to have done and go do in the world. I'm thinking of
that scene in ‘The Lord of the Rings’ series ‘The Two Towers.’ The scene I’m
thinking of is when Gandalf the Grey fights the Balrog, a demonic creature and
basically in essence resurrects into Gandalf the White. When he is awakened,
his staff is completely changed and almost, in essence perfectly symmetrical.
As we know from the myths in the film, his staff the wizard staff, was their
place of power. It was the thing that they needed to cling to in order to fight
the good fight.
The Pharisees didn't have a
connection of faith to what they were doing beyond just being enforcers or
facilitators of the law. I recently had heard that the moment we consider
ourselves just facilitating the faith then we have lost that light to shine out
to encourage and inspire others. It may be a harsh observation, but I did think
it was interesting. If you don't have that fire in your heart or that “joy, joy,
joy, down deep in your heart” … bearing that road becomes pretty damn hard.
They were a society that admired the law. The Pharisees admired and had faith
in the doctrine of law and to them Jesus was “pushing the envelope” with his
new law of love, peace, compassion, mercy and accountability. Let's just say
that Jesus was definitely afflicting, the way too comfortable. He was doing
that with a lot of people. Herod for one was feeling threatened and it was
merely political.
Jesus laments, He knows that you
cannot hear Him. He laments for those who will not see past their comfort zone.
And Jesus laments for those who cannot or will not turn their hearts truly to
God. Turning the hearts truly to God is a lifetime's journey but it can't be to
the law alone and human things. It's trusting beyond our own capacity to trust
and that is a part of the problem. As I mentioned with my Lenten devotion
prayers in the middle of the night I have to keep reflecting and saying this to
God that I am sorry, I do repent for not having enough trust in things, and how
they're going yet alone enough faith in myself at times to not be shaken by so
much sojourning in this valley.
Progress today is not what you think
it means. What progress means in an otherworldly sense, is being, becoming a
freely responsible servant of the Gospel. It is living that talk and walking
till your feet hurt through an endless wilderness, but the love of God and His
strength is light that keeps you going on. Jesus journey to the Cross is just
around the corner here. We need to keep thinking about that meta valley not
just the one Jesus Journeys through but the one that we are in. Are you well
equipped? Everyone is called. Everyone has gifts. The radical truth of the
Gospel is that it must be shared and that it is for all. Don't sugarcoat that
in your heart live it and do it!
Let us pray
Loving and Gracious Lord Jesus,
Help us to keep the spirit of Your
good news brightly lit in our hearts.
May we not let other spirits shake
that from us
Help us to learn to be strong and
put on the armor of Your Word to love our neighbor and to love You.
Thank you, Lord, for everything you
give us
May we always praise You in our
hearts as well as repent on things we know we need to still do.
We lift this prayer to You for You
are our Mighty guide. Amen
March 17th,
2019; 2nd Sunday in Lent; Year C; SOLA Lectionary
Sermon by: Reverend
Nicole A.M. Collins
Psalm 4; Jeremiah
26:8-15; Philippians 3:17-4:1 & Luke 13:31-35
The below is to this sermon's delivery at the Grace Hub at 12:30pm
No comments:
Post a Comment