Sermon: Trinity Sunday RCL B - "Squirrel!"

The Podcast can be found here.

 

John 3:1-17

There was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. He came to Jesus by night and said to him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God." Jesus answered him, "Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above." Nicodemus said to him, "How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother's womb and be born?" Jesus answered, "Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be astonished that I said to you, 'You must be born from above.' The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit." Nicodemus said to him, "How can these things be?" Jesus answered him, "Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things?

"Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen; yet you do not receive our testimony. If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.

"Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him."

So I have a new favorite TV show.  As you will recall, for a while now it has been Zak, Nick and Aaron on Ghost Adventures – and I still like that one – but here recently I came across Duck Dynasty.  Have you seen this one?  It takes place in West Monroe which is about 50 miles from where I grew up in Louisiana.

I guess the Duck Dynasty began about twenty years ago when the dad, Phil, started making duck calls.  Apparently he was so good at it that he started up a business making duck calls and his two sons and brother got into it with him.  Today, these folks are millionaires – and they made it from duck calls of all things.  Now to look at these boys you would say that they related to the members of ZZ Topp… beards down to here, always wearing camouflage, and most of the time they have a shotgun in their hands trying to shoot something, whether it be birds, the beast of all beasts the dreaded beaver, deer or something.  I even watched as the two brothers, Willie and Jace, were chipping up golf balls and Uncle Si and Phil were shooting them out of the sky with a twelve gauge.  And if the shotguns don’t work they do occasionally bring out some of the homemade explosives.

What got me hooked though was the episode when they went squirrel hunting.  Now it is my understanding from my wife that no one in Montana would ever consider shooting, much less eating a squirrel – nothing but a tree climbing rodent, but when I was a kid in Louisiana I lived for fishing and squirrel hunting… and I did enjoy eating them as well.  My Granny could stew up a mess of squirrels with gravy better than anyone I knew.  Miss Kay, Phil’s wife likes to eat squirrel brains, but we never went that far.

Anyhow.. I guess watching this show stirred up some fond memories of going squirrel hunting with my granddaddy.. Squirrel season is always in the fall and it overlaps into deer season, but he knew I liked hunting squirrel so we did that as long as we could before switching over to deer... When we would go out he would always point me in the direction I could go, that way he would know about where I was… one day I recall being out when it was the overlap of the squirrel and deer season and my granddaddy told me to walk down a certain path, but to stay out of a particular area, because some fellas were deer hunting down there.  Because it was deer season though, we had to wear the orange hunting vests so as not to be mistaken for a deer and get shot by some trigger happy redneck.

Did I mention that I have not always been the intellectual giant that you now see standing before you.. its true.

I get about a mile or so up the path and haven’t seen anything and decided in my mentally impaired state that it has got to be the orange vest.  I know that I should have it close, but wearing it like that flashing all about has got to be scaring all the squirrels away, so I take it off and put it in my back pocket and continue down the path.  Now.. trying to pick out a grey squirrel in the woods is not as easy as you would think.. takes a bit of concentration.. so needless to say I wasn’t paying too much attention to where I was heading… oh.. and did I also mention that not only was I not wearing the orange vest, but somewhere along the way it had fallen out of my back pocket… did you also know that anything that moves in the woods during deer season that is not wearing an orange vest resembles a deer to a bunch of trigger happy rednecks?

So.. I was intently concentrating on finding one of my gray furry friends… what snapped me out of it was a rifle shot… what got my attention was a slug from a rifle burying itself in a tree about a foot away from where I was standing… at which point, rednecks were hollering, screaming and shooting all around me.  It sounded what I can only imagine a war zone would sound like.  It’s a dang good thing them rednecks were not as good a shot as Phil and Uncle Si from the Duck Dynasty, because those two are crack shots, but these three or four rednecks couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn if they were standing two feet in front of it…. And that’s an even better thing, because all I could do was stand there and stare at that gunshot hole in the tree while this went on.

A few minutes later I was still standing there.. the shooting had stopped and my granddaddy showed up…   he arrives with my orange hunting vest in his hand, “I think you lost something,” he said.  That was all.  “I think you lost something.”  Never another word about it to me or anyone else.  He had seen the hole in the tree and knew exactly what had happened and how stinking blessed I was to still be standing on this earth.  As I say, he never said anything else about it to me or anyone else… truth be told.. he didn’t have to.

Jesus said, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life…. Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him."

You and I and the world around us have heard those verses so many times by now that some would almost classify them as a cliché.  The dictionary defines a cliché as an “overused expression: a phrase or word that has lost its original effectiveness or power from overuse.” … “Go so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.”… a cliché.  Speak those words in a crowded room and most everyone will either frown at you for bringing up that Jesus stuff, ignore you because they don’t believe it, or ask, “Where is God?” because if they can’t see it, they don’t believe it.

When those words, “For God so loved the world…” become a cliché to us.. then we can get to thinking that we’ve figured it out; we know how things are going to work.  We take off Jesus and shove him in our back pockets and eventually.. well.. eventually we lose him all together… and it’s when we do that that the devil will take a shot at us… and the trouble is.. he very rarely misses………

Too much liquor and too many pills is a sure fire way of inviting him to do just that.. and this past week I was a few minutes away from either attending or officiating at a funeral for another teenager who took that path.. who cast off Jesus and tried to walk this world by themselves. .. the devil took a shot and hit them square, if it hadn’t been for someone finding them when they did…….

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life…. Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him."  Don’t ever let that become a cliché for you or the world around you.  If they frown at you – bless them; if they ignore – say it louder; If they ask, “Where is God?” ….

.. well .. The adventures of Jace and Willie in Duck Dynasty got me to thinking about squirrel hunting with my granddaddy… and it wasn’t until years later, after he had died, that I realized that every time a shot was fired anywhere around where I was supposed to be, my granddaddy would always arrive just a few minutes later.    I think he let me believe that I was out in the wild on my own, but he was never really far away… The day I got shot at.. he was right there holding out to me what I had taken off and then lost… that which would keep me safe… which would save my life.

When they ask, “Where is God?”… .. you tell them that it may seem that they have wandered off into the world on their own, but that he is not far, he’s been with them all along– not condemning them – but keeping a close eye on them and loving them… He’s been praying that they might come to their senses and put back on what they have cast off… but you also tell them, that on the day they get shot at, he will be right there with them – still not condemning, not saying, “I told you so!”.. but only loving them… and holding out to them – which he never stops doing – holding out to them that which will keep them safe.. that which will save… he is holding out to them his Son – Jesus… That’s what you tell them.

Let us pray…

Glory be to the Father, Who by His almighty power and love created me, making me in the image and likeness of God.

Glory be to the Son, Who by His Precious Blood delivered me from hell, and opened for me the gates of heaven.

Glory be to the Holy Spirit, Who has sanctified me in the sacrament of Baptism, and continues to sanctify me by the graces I receive daily from His bounty.

Glory be to the Three adorable Persons of the Holy Trinity, now and forever.

Amen.

Sermon: Day of Pentecost - "Drinking Toilet Water"

The Podcast can be found here.

John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15

Jesus said to his disciples, "When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father, he will testify on my behalf. You also are to testify because you have been with me from the beginning.

"I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. But, now I am going to him who sent me; yet none of you asks me, `Where are you going?' But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your hearts. Nevertheless I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will prove the world wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: about sin, because they do not believe in me; about righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will see me no longer; about judgment, because the ruler of this world has been condemned.

"I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine. For this reason I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you."

A diplomat from a foreign country is visiting the US for the first time was being wined and dined by the State Department. The diplomat was not used to the salt in American foods (French fries, cheeses, salami, anchovies etc.) and was constantly sending his manservant to fetch him a glass of water.

Time and again, the servant would scamper off and return with a glass of water, but then came the time when he returned empty handed. "You son of an ugly camel, where is my water?" demanded the diplomat "A thousand pardons, O Illustrious One," stammered the wretched servant, "A man is sitting on the well."… Jesus said, “What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile them,” but in this particular case I might disagree with him.

We very much live in a consumer society.  We are constantly being given opportunities to consume all sorts of things.  Some are actually good for us.. others turn out to be toilet water.  When something proves to be not so good for us, then we will find a substitute… smoking is not so good for you, so we now have gum, patches, pills and battery operated cigarettes to give the necessary fix.  Sugar… there is now the sweet-n-low (which I think is actually bad for us), so we came up with Splenda, Equal, Stevia and I’m sure a few more.  Heck, we’ve even got good at replacing people – all you need is a computer and an internet connection and you can jump into fantasy land extraordinaire… And through enlightenment, taken to its extreme.. we have even found numerous replacements for God.  There is the god of science, self, technology, money, sex, reason and so on.. we forget “The Lord our God, the Lord is one.”.. We consume.. we drink in all that our society has to offer.. while forgetting that there is only One who can truly quench our thirst…. Jesus says, “whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

You’ve all probably heard of – if not read – the Chronicles of Narnia by now… wonderful story by C.S. Lewis… In the fourth book, The Silver Chair, we hear of the adventures of Eustace and Jill, both young children… You’ll recall that these books are an analogy for our life with God, and in them God is represented by the Lion Aslan.  Eustace and Jill become separated.. and although she has seen the lion she does not know Him and so is terrified… as she wanders through the magical land of Narnia she becomes tired, hungry and very thirsty… at one point in the story we are told…

The birds had ceased singing and there was perfect silence except for one small, persistent sound, which seemed to come from a good distance away. She listened carefully, and felt almost sure it was the sound of running water.

Jill got up and looked round her very carefully. There was no sign of the lion; but there were so many trees about that it might easily be quite close without her seeing it. . . . But her thirst was very bad now, and she plucked up her courage to go and look for that running water. . . .

The wood was so still that it was not difficult to decide where the sound was coming from. It grew clearer every moment and, sooner than she expected, she came to an open glade and saw the stream, bright as glass, running across the turf a stone’s throw away from her. But although the sight of water made her feel ten times thirstier than before, she didn’t rush forward to drink. She stood as still as if she had been turned to stone, with her mouth wide open. And she had a very good reason: Just on this side of the stream lay the Lion. . . .

How long this lasted, she could not be sure; it seemed like hours. And the thirst became so bad that she almost felt she would not mind being eaten by the lion if only she could be sure of getting a mouthful of water first.

“If you’re thirsty, you may drink.” . . .

For a second she stared here and there, wondering who had spoken. Then the voice said again, “If you are thirsty, come and drink.” . . .

It was deeper, wilder, and stronger; a sort of heavy, golden voice. . . .

“Are you thirsty?” said the Lion.

“I’m dying of thirst,” said Jill.

“Then drink,” said the Lion.

“May I — could I — would you mind going away while I do?” said Jill.

The Lion answered this only by a look and a very low growl. . . . The delicious rippling noise of the stream was driving her nearly frantic. . . .

“Do you eat girls?” she asked fearfully.

“I have swallowed up girls and boys, women and men, kings and emperors, cities and realms,” said the Lion. It didn’t say this as if it were boasting, nor as if it were sorry, nor as if it were angry. It just said it.

“I daren’t come and drink,” said Jill.

“Then you will die of thirst,” said the Lion.

“Oh dear!” said Jill, coming another step nearer. “I suppose I must go and look for another stream then.”

“There is no other stream,” said the Lion.

There is no other stream… there is only once source of the life giving water.. and it is given only through the Lion of Judah… through Jesus…. And that water is the Spirit of God… “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink.  Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.”.. scripture goes on to say… “By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive.”

As we read today from the Acts of the Apostles… “When the day of Pentecost had come, the disciples were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit.”

Like Jill who wanted to go and find another stream to drink from.. we too can look to the gods of science, self, technology, money, sex, reason… but from none of them will we find the true Spirit of God from which to drink because these are not of Christ.. As John writes, “This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.”... What Paul has written is true.. “There is one body and one Spirit… one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free —and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.”… If it is not of God, if it does not proclaim Jesus as Lord, if it is not this life giving water.. then… then it is nothing more than antichrist.. it is nothing more than toilet water.

As St. Josemaria Escriva asks, “Why stoop to drink from the puddles of worldly consolation if you can satisfy your thirst with waters that spring up into life everlasting?”

Today is the day of Pentecost.. It is the birthday of the Church.. It is the giving of the Spirit of God.. It is the day the fire fell.. It is the day that the thirst of God’s people was quenched… drink… drink deeply.

Let us pray… Come, Spirit of God, with God the Father’s love, by Christ’s body and blood; in the new birth of Your own breath.  Come to cover our littleness and consume our sins, to direct all our desires and doings; come with counsel for our perplexities, with light from Your everlasting scriptures; come to reveal the deep things of God, and what He has prepared for those that love Him; come with Your prayer into ours.  Amen.

Lew & Eleanor: 66 Years

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RIP: Eleanor Hollister

The obituary for Eleanor can be found here.

Funeral Service at 1:00 p.m. at St. Mark's in Anaconda.

2012 Miguel Rice Poker Run

Sermon: Easter VII RCL B - "All Things New"

The Podcast can be found here.

This sermon has two endings.  The first is for the church in Butte as this was the day of our first Annual Meeting as The Episcopal Church of St. Mary and St. John.  The second ending can be found below.  The podcast has the second ending.

John 17:6-19

Looking up to heaven, Jesus prayed, "I have made your name known to those whom you gave me from the world. They were yours, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything you have given me is from you; for the words that you gave to me I have given to them, and they have received them and know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. I am asking on their behalf; I am not asking on behalf of the world, but on behalf of those whom you gave me, because they are yours. All mine are yours, and yours are mine; and I have been glorified in them. And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one. While I was with them, I protected them in your name that you have given me. I guarded them, and not one of them was lost except the one destined to be lost, so that the scripture might be fulfilled. But now I am coming to you, and I speak these things in the world so that they may have my joy made complete in themselves. I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I ask you to protect them from the evil one. They do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you have sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify myself, so that they also may be sanctified in truth."

A parish got a new priest. During his first service, when a certain prayer was said, half the congregation stood up and half remained sitting. The half that was seated started yelling at those standing to sit down, and the ones standing yelled at the ones sitting to stand up… The new priest did not know what to do. His congregation suggested to consult a 98-year-old man, who was the oldest inhabitant of the village. The priest hoped the elderly man would be able to tell him what the actual tradition was, so he went to the old people's home with a representative of each fraction of the  congregation…. The one whose followers stood during the prayer said to the old man, "Is the tradition to stand during this prayer?"… The old man answered, "No, that is not the tradition." … The one whose followers sat said gladly, "Then the tradition is to sit during this prayer!" … The old man answered, "No, that is not the tradition." … Then the priest said to the old man, "But the congregation fight all the time, yelling at each other about whether they should sit or stand..."… The old man interrupted, exclaiming, "That is the tradition!"

We have all sorts of traditions in our church… from the color of the various church seasons to the silent prayers of the priest during the Mass.  Some traditions have been assigned significance that wasn’t there in the first place… for example, there is now the proper order in which to light the candles on the altar, but we have candles on the altar not for some great theological reason, but because someone once said, “it sure would be nice to be able to see what we are doing up here.”… 

Now some of our traditions do have more meaning.  Take for example “The Peace”… The original intent of the Peace was because someone once said, “Oh, I see so and so is here... it sure would be a nice for me to catch up and make a lunch date with them prior to them sneaking out the back door after communion.”… No.. not exactly… We extend the peace during the service as an outward sign of our common life and fidelity, not for a seventh inning stretch.

Another of those traditions deals with our responses following the reading of the various lessons appointed for the day… We have the wonderful lectors that prepare each Sunday to read those lessons.. and following that reading they say, “The Word of the Lord”… but have you ever noticed that some say, “THIS is the Word of the Lord” as opposed to “The Word of the Lord?”…. It is only the priesty types that notice these things, but those two statements are actually quite different.

To say, “This is the Word of the Lord” is to limit what is read to the text.. the actual printed words…. Taken to the extreme it would be worshiping the text.. the bible – we don’t do that.  It is sacred scripture, but we do not worship it, that would just be another form of idolatry.  The proper way to end the reading is to say, “The Word of the Lord”… In this case “The Word” is not the printed text.. The Word is God… “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”… When we say, “The Word of the Lord,” we are saying, “This is the action of God.. this is the very presence of God and how he has moved.. How he has acted in the world.”… It takes it to an entirely different level – We don’t read the scripture to hear the words… we read the scripture to hear how THE Word – how God has moved, so that we might better understand His nature.

Here is another way to think of it… during the Eucharistic prayer we speak the words of Jesus, “Do this in remembrance of me.”... we think of a remembrance as a memorial... but the original word in the Greek is anamnesis... which is not speaking of a memorial... it is speaking about making present... Do this.. in the consecrating and receiving of the bread and the wine.. the body and blood... do this and make me present.. make me real.. here with you today… 

Often when we hear the readings of Holy Scripture.. we think of them as events in the past.. as history.. we forget what Paul says, that “the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword”… The Word of the Lord is alive and active… What God spoke then, He speaks today… What Jesus spoke then, Jesus speaks today… and with regard to Jesus’ prayer that we heard in our Gospel reading – what Jesus prayed then, He prays today.

And what did he pray… “Holy Father, protect them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one.”… protect them – keep them safe from the wickedness of the world and from the evil one – so that they may be one… so that they may be united…. Some 2,000 years ago Jesus prayed that we might be united, but we don’t look at the world around us and respond sarcastically, “That sure didn’t work out!”… He prayed it 2,000 years ago… but he continues to pray it today…. Jesus’ prayer for unity was not a thing of the past that we have somehow managed to bungle up... it is his prayer for today... Which points to the fact that with God, there is always a second chance.. and a third.. and a forth… “Hey Jesus.. How many times must I forgive my brother?  Seven times.”… “No.. seventy times seven times.”

Our God is a God of second chances.. and today… today, He prays that we will be united.. and He is giving us a second chance… to be the kind of church He has called us to be…. The great thing about second chances with God is that they aren’t about picking up the pieces, bandaging the wounds, regrouping or any of that… Second chances with God are about making all things new…. It means a setting aside of the past.. and a hope for the future... it is God acting, not just back then, but today.. it is reality... God IS speaking... Christ IS present... Here…. There is only one catch, you have to decide to take that chance.

How does that work in reality... [This is a very personal story that I have chosen not to post... If you want to hear it, you'll just have to show up :) ]

There are many decisions that can be put off, the Scarlet O’Hara approach.. “I’ll think about that tomorrow”... but There are many days and circumstances that lead to those decision points... when you can no longer avoid or dodge an issue... you must stand, draw the line - not in the sand - but with blood, sweat and tears... [omitted].. things could have gone either way... the past could be the past... the future could be our hope... but that day.. that present.. was where we had to be

For our church.. that day has arrived.. and it is today.  The Lord Our God says, “Behold, I make all things new.”... and today we are being made new... We are a new church... The Episcopal Church of St. Mary and St. John... We have no past.  We have today and we have our hope for the future... How will we live out that future?  I’ve got an answer for that … and I think it is a good one… [stained glass window]... we know for certain there were two people at the foot of Jesus’ cross and they are depicted in that window... Mary the Mother of God... and John His Beloved Disciple.. That is us... that is our future... to be together at the foot of the Cross of Christ.

Whenever you walk into this building that is the first thing I want you to look at…   Whenever you talk to someone about this congregation that is the first thing I want you to tell them about… that is who we are.  What is the cross …

The cross is the hope of Christians

the cross is the resurrection of the dead

 the cross is the way of the lost

 the cross is the savior of the lost

 the cross is the staff of the lame

 the cross is the guide of the blind

 the cross is the strength of the weak

 the cross is the doctor of the sick

 the cross is the aim of the priests

 the cross is the hope of the hopeless

 the cross is the freedom of the slaves

 the cross is the power of the kings

 the cross is the water of the seeds

 the cross is the consolation of the bondsmen

The cross is the source of those who seek life

We thank you, Father, for the cross and for allowing us to live in its holy and eternal presence.  Amen.

Cluster Ending...

Is there an area in your life that you might need a second chance?... In your relationship with God?... In a relationship with a spouse or family member?... with a friend or in a job?... There are many decisions that can be put off, the Scarlet O’Hara approach.. “I’ll think about that tomorrow”... but There are many days and circumstances that lead to those decision points... when you can no longer avoid or dodge an issue... you must stand, draw the line - not in the sand - but with blood, sweat and tears... What if you decided that today was that day… This is the day that I make my stand for unity… I may be rejected.. I may be scorned.. I may get punched in the mouth… but today I will stand.

The Lord Our God says, “Behold, I make all things new.”... and today might just be the day that He will make something new in your life.. if.. if you are willing to take that chance.

A sculptor had ruined a huge piece of beautiful Carrara marble. It was left in the courtyard of the cathedral in Florence, Italy, for almost a hundred years. Artisans thought it was beyond repair. But in 1505, a young sculptor by the name of Michelangelo was asked if he thought anything could be done with "The Giant." He measured the block and carefully noted the imperfections caused by the bungling workman of an earlier day. To his mind came the image of the young shepherd boy David. So he carefully made a sketch of that biblical character as he envisioned him. For 3 years he worked steadily, his chisel skillfully shaping the marble. Finally, when one of his students was allowed to view the towering figure, 18 feet high and weighing 9 tons, he exclaimed, "Master, it lacks only one thing, and that is speech!"

Behind some of our biggest messes is a masterpiece that God desires to create…

Let us pray… Our Father, may everything I do begin with Your Inspiration, continue with Your Help, and reach perfection under Your Guidance.  With Your loving care guide me in my daily actions. Help me to persevere with love and sincerity.  Teach me to judge wisely the things of earth and to love the things of Heaven. Keep me in Your presence and never let me be separated from You. Your Spirit made me Your child, confident to call You Father. Make Your Love the foundation of my life. Teach me to long for Heaven. May its promise and hope guide my way on earth until I reach eternal life with You.  Amen.

May 2012 Newsletter

Sermon: Easter VI RCL B - "Friends of Jesus"

The podcast can be found here.

 

John 15:9-17

Jesus said to his disciples, "As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.

"This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name. I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another."

I came across the list reportedly to be the most expensive things in the world.  There was a cigar for $1,150 and a bottle of champagne for $35,000.  The most expensive hotel room is $65,000 per night and is in Geneva.  For you golf fans.. an 18^th century putter fetched $181,000 at auction.. . there was a $460,000 bottle of Scotch (I wonder if I could get a coupon for that?)… The Dodge Tomahawk V10 Superbike motorcycle is only $700,000… You can buy a pair of speakers for your stereo for a mere $2 Million… and there was this PrestigeHD television covered in 28 kilograms of 18-carat rose gold, 72 diamonds with Alligator skin trim work for only $2.3 Million…. And finally the most expensive painting went for $140 Million bucks (and can I just say that if we were to spill about ten colors of paint on the floor, lay down a canvas and set my two dogs loose in the room we too could have a similar work of art)… 

If you are looking for that last minute Mother’s Day gift I suggest you check out a few of these items… I don’t know who these people are that can afford this kind of stuff, but if any of them want to tithe 10% to this church.. we’re going to let them… my goodness.

Whoever these folks are.. I wonder if they even bother looking at the price tag before buying something?  I might spend a bit more on coffee than I should (Robyn says that I’m a coffee snob), but other than that I watch pretty close to see what things cost and how I can save and that is really not a bad way to begin to manage your money… first ask, “Do I really need it?” because let’s face it, no one needs an alligator skin trimmed TV… Then ask, “What does it cost?”.. and finally, “Can I afford it?”

I think it is safe to say that we all do pretty good in this department.. but this idea of what something cost is not limited to tangible items… we often weigh many of our decisions on what something will cost.  What will it cost to change jobs?.. to not exercise?.. even in self-esteem… What will it cost to not have the coolest jeans or to not drive a new car… marketing companies really play on this one, because they want you to be afraid of the consequences of not having something… If you don’t use this particular brand of deodorant, there is a very good chance you will end up smelling like road kill, but if you do, all these very attractive women will throw themselves at you. (That’s never worked for me)

Even with friendships… We want to know what it will cost to be friends with a certain person... We would like to think that we don’t measure the cost of our friendships, but to a greater or lesser degree we do.  How much time is involved... Are they needy or independent... Are they going to get in the way of what I want to do... What will my other friends think?  It is not necessarily a monetary expense.. but there is a cost involved and we add it up to see if it is actually worth it... we place a value on each individual person and then judge whether or not we can afford.. or are willing to pay the perceived cost.

We know that our salvation – that amazing grace from God – is free.. it can’t be bought, but the cost of that salvation was very expensive, not for us, but for Jesus.  He paid with His life.

In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus speaks to those who follow Him about what it will cost to do so.. and he warns them that before embarking on that life of discipleship, they should first count that cost… He says, “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it?  For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’… He says the same thing is true with a king planning to go to war… the king must first determine if he can afford the battle, can he win.. if not the king will send a delegation to find terms of peace… Jesus then says, “those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.”

The Apostle Paul understood this.. He writes,  “whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.  What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ.”

The salvation that comes from God is free… but following Jesus is not cheap.  It will cost you dearly.. for to follow Jesus is to be crucified with him and buried into his death, so that we may also participate in his resurrection… However, it is our fear of this expense.. this cost that can keep us from truly following… 

Consider the rich young man who came up to Jesus… What must I do,” he asked, “to receive eternal life?”  Jesus says, “keep the commandments.”  “I have.”  Then Jesus says, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”… and we are told that the young man was sad.. he had many possessions… and he was afraid, because the price of following Jesus was too high. 

In our Gospel reading today Jesus said, “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father.”… Jesus calls his disciples friends… and therefore.. you.. are also friends of Jesus.

Now, while we were studying the Ragamuffin Gospel .. it made me think of a some questions… Some of you have already heard them, but let’s look at them again.. because they are questions about this relationship we have with our friend.. with Jesus….

If you weren’t afraid... how much would you give?... If you weren’t afraid that there wouldn’t be enough for you... that it wouldn’t run out... if you weren’t terrified by the proverbial rainy day, how much would you give for your Friend?...

If you weren’t afraid... how much would you care?... If you weren’t afraid of losing someone or something?... of being ridiculed or laughed at... if you weren’t afraid of shedding a tear, how much would you care for your Friend and those He cares for?...

Finally... If you weren’t afraid... how much would you love?... We’ve all had our hearts broken at least once... but if you weren’t afraid of it happening again, how much would you love?.. If you weren’t afraid of revealing your true self.. your greatest joys, hurts, weaknesses... If you weren’t afraid of death... If you weren’t afraid of being that true friend of Jesus... how much would you love?...

In the midst of a terrible battle, two soldiers who were friends became separated. As the fighting raged on all sides, one of the two soldiers suddenly saw his friend lying on the ground, badly wounded and with no protection from the bullets and the bombs… The soldier turned to his lieutenant and begged for permission to go to his friend, to try to rescue him, to try to carry him out of the firefight and to safety. The lieutenant forbade him. “I order you not to go. You would stand no chance of coming back alive.”

A moment later, while the lieutenant was turned in another direction, the soldier took off. He ran into the clearing, knelt by his friend, picked him up and began to run. Part way back, a spray of bullets hit him. But stumbling, he made it back to safety with his friend…. The lieutenant came over. He was furious and grief-stricken at the same time. He said to the soldier, “What a waste. Look at your friend. He’s dead. You brought back a dead body. And look at you. Look at your wounds. What a waste.”… The soldier looked up at the lieutenant. He smiled a sweet, sweet smile. And he said, Lieutenant, it wasn’t a waste. When I got out there, my friend was alive. He looked up at me. And he said to me, “I knew you’d come.”

If you weren’t afraid of the cost... what would you risk for your friend?... for Jesus?

Let us pray... O Dearly beloved Word of God, teach us to be generous, to serve You as You deserve, to give without counting the cost, to fight without fretting at our wounds, to labor without seeking rest, to spend ourselves without looking for any reward other than that of knowing that we do Your holy will. Amen.

Sermon: Easter V RCL B - "My Dementor"

The podcast can be found here.

John 15:1-8

Jesus said, "I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower. He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit. You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples."

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was with God in the beginning.  Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.  In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind…. In Him was life.

There was a time when Lucy came up to Charlie Brown… and.. with a look of concern on her face she says, "Sometimes, I feel we are not communicating: You, Charlie Brown, are a foul ball in the line drive of life. You’re often in the shadow of your own goal post, you’re a miscue. You‘re 3 putts on the 18th green. You are a 7-10 split in the 10th frame. You have dropped a rod and reel in the lake of life. You’re a missed free throw. You’re a shacked 9-iron, a called 3rd strike, a bug on the windshield of life! Do you understand? Have I made myself clear?"…  In Him.. In Jesus is life, but have you ever notice that the world – and loving concerned “friends” – have this way of sucking that life right out of you.

For you fans of Harry Potter.. it’s a bit like having your own personal Dementor hanging around.  Remus Lupin… a werewolf and one of Harry’s teachers describes a Dementor like this, "Dementors are among the foulest creatures that walk this earth. They infest the darkest, filthiest places, they glory in decay and despair, they drain peace, hope, and happiness out of the air around them... Get too near a Dementor and every good feeling, every happy memory will be sucked out of you. If it can, the Dementor will feed on you long enough to reduce you to something like itself...soulless and evil. You will be left with nothing but the worst experiences of your life."

Sometimes it is the Lucys of the world that are the Dementors.. other times it can be a job / boss.. They even show up in the forms of late night phone calls.. or knocks at the door.  I even had a Dementor or two  show up in the form of a girlfriend, but that’s a different sermon.  However, what I’ve discovered is that my worst Dementor lives with me all the time – No, it’s not Robyn – it lives in here.. inside me.

I’m fairly certain we all have those dark days when nothing seems to be right with the world, but we wake up the following morning to discover that the sun has in fact risen and things are going to be OK.  For others, there is that depression that seems to hang on for days and weeks at a time that is often brought on by some traumatic experience or just a chemical imbalance and we have to learn to manage that as well.. but the Dementor that gets the best of me is the one that shows up when I am cut off from God.  And I’m cut off not because of something God has done, but because of what I have NOT done… and what I have not done.. is to abide in Him.  I have been cut off from Him not by someone else’s doings, not by the worlds, but by my own.  As the confession from St. Augustine’s Prayer Book reads, “by my fault, by my own fault, by my own most grievous fault.”… I’ve done this to myself.

And at times like this I am with Paul who writes… I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me.  For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me.

St. Josemaria Escriva writes, “It is hard to read in the holy Gospel that question of Pilate’s: ‘Whom do you wish that I release to you, Barabbas or Jesus, who is called the Christ?’  But it is more painful to hear the answer: ‘Barabbas!’… And it is more terrible still when I realize that very often—when I have wandered away—I, too, have said, ‘Barabbas!” And I’ve added, ‘Christ?... Crucify him!’”

It is true.. No amount of darkness can extinguish the light of a single candle, but the further we wander into the darkness.. away from that light.. the harder it is to see, until it is at such a great distance that we can no longer discern it from its surroundings.  The less we abide in Christ, the more we desire the things of the world - the more we call for the freedom of Barabbas.. and so desperately want to put Christ away, if for no other reason but to ease the torment of our souls.. because you see, once you have tasted the goodness of God, your soul can never be satisfied with anything else.. and as you wander further and further away, your soul desires to return, but your flesh has its own mind, so your soul and your flesh are tearing at one another.  The soul desires to return to God, so the flesh would rather destroy Jesus than be as tormented as it is.

In Him is life.. In Jesus is life, but when we fail to abide in Him, we no longer have access to that life.  When we fail to have access to that life.. then the choices we make through our own most grievous fault drain us of the life we had.  Thomas a Kempis writes, For a little reward men make a long journey; for eternal life many will scarce lift a foot once from the ground. Mean reward is sought after; for a single piece of money sometimes there is shameful striving; for a thing which is vain and for a trifling promise, men shrink not from toiling day and night.”.. but that is not true for you… You are a child of God.. You are one who walks in the light… you are one who abides in Him.

Some of you are probably familiar with My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers… Would you like to know why I through him across the room on more than one occasion?  It was because I felt he always did what I just did.  Tell me to do something like, “Abide in Christ,” but not tell me how.. not tell me what that means – Well, so that you won’t throw me across the room here’s how… from 1 John 2, “We know that we have come to know him [… to abide in him…] if we keep his commands.  Whoever says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in that person.  But if anyone obeys his word, love for God is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in him:  Whoever claims to abide in him must live as Jesus did…. How do you abide in Christ: Simple… you live as Jesus did.

Thank you Fr. John for that very helpful piece of advice… I’ll run right out and start living as Jesus did right after I throw YOU across the room.  If I could live as Jesus lived, then I wouldn’t have this problem in the first place!  You just said it a minute ago – or ten minutes ago because this is a really long sermon - Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me… What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death?  Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!

Alleluia, Christ is Risen… Beloved, we are an Easter people.  We don’t live in the shadow of death.  We live in the glorious light of the resurrection.  It is not the light of a single candle shining in the darkness that we follow… It is the light of the very Son of God – the Risen Lord.  The One who abides in you is greater than the one who abides in this world.   You can live as Jesus lived, because Jesus lives in you…. Abide in Jesus as He abides in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in Jesus. I am the vine, you are the branches. … Abide in me as I abide in you.

Let us Pray… O Lord, our God, You called Your people to be Your Church. As they gather together in Your Name, may they love, honour, and follow Your Son to eternal life in the Kingdom He promised.  Let their worship always be sincere, and help them to find Your saving Love in the Church and its Sacraments.  Fill with the Spirit of Christ those whom You call to live in the midst of the world and its concern.  Help them by their work on earth to build up Your eternal Kingdom.  May they be effective witnesses to the Truth of the Gospel and make Your Church a living presence in the midst of the world.  Increase the gifts You have given Your Church that Your faithful people may continue to grow in holiness and in imitation of Your Beloved Son. Amen.