NINTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST

July 29, 2007

KEEPING THE FOCUS

Colossians 2:6-19

      6As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to live your lives in him, 7rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.  Paul or perhaps another author of Colossians is always so insightful. The early Christians in Colossae started out filled with zeal and orthodoxy. But soon they were being led astray. They meant to do well and grow in the faith, but as the saying goes, “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” Their trials and mistakes should not be lost on us. It’s so easy to veer off course. So what are some of those good intentions that can lead us astray? .

      The first is tradition. 16Therefore do not let anyone condemn you in …observing festivals, new moons, or sabbaths.  These were part of the traditional observances of Judaism. Our early Christians were being criticized for not be as kosher as they might be. But the author reminds them that they are in a new place thanks to the work of Christ. We in the 21st century church should remember this as well. For in our congregation, as so many others, the seduction of tradition remains strong. I think of tradition as a spiritual comfort food. If we keep on doing what we always have done, no challenge is required. Generally keeping to traditional practice avoids conflict. Unfortunately, this practice avoids growth as well. I am of an age where I increasingly value the blessings of tradition. But I also realize that we must constantly reexamine the traditional teachings and practices of the church and make changes when it appears that these traditions are no longer working. If we can manage it, by the end of the year we may try a single service using Setting 7 of our new worship resource, Evangelical Lutheran Worship, the Latino setting. And yes, part of that service will be in Spanish. This represents a dramatic break with our Anglo tradition, but affirms the growing Latino presence in our congregation. Who would have thought we would be in this place 30 years ago?

      Another good intention is legalism. This is popular because this appeals to the latent lawyer in each of us. And let’s face it, from the time we were kids we were always good at arguing our case. Another appeal of this sort of legalism is that that it usually reduces things to black and white. There is a certain power in this simplicity. This is why conservative congregations and denominations are growing with such rapidity. Our writer faced this legalistic attitude and cautioned against it warning, 16Therefore do not let anyone condemn you in matters of food and drink..These are only a shadow of what is to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.

      Another good intention is exotic teachings. These teachings have the advantage of being sexy and enjoying wide popularity. To use myself as an example, I am about half way through Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Talk about exotic teachings. After all, muggles are no fun. The author knew the dangers of such teachings as well. 8See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the universe, and not according to Christ.  J.K. Rowling was not the first person to come up with an intriguing alternate worldview.

         But we are called to keep the focus. And what, or more accurately, who is the focus? He is this Christ. To be sure, this is challenging. There are so many ways in which we can be led astray. But God understands the temptations we face. This is why He sends us the Holy Spirit to guide and direct us. And so, we must cling to our Lord. This is vital. For me, this lesson has been reinforced through the time we spend with our granddaughter, Grace Mary. Now one thing you must understand about Grace is, that at tender age of 16 months she has earned her nickname of the social butterfly. I wonder where she gets that. She loves people of all sizes and shapes and is perfectly comfortable to toddling up to them until she gets into a little trouble. She falls or runs out of milk in her sippy cup. But in these situations she knows exactly what to do and that is to make a beeline back to Mom. I think our writer had a similar dynamic in mind. We can explore a variety of areas, but we need to know where to return when we run into trouble, be it spiritual danger or confusion. And the One to whom we run is He who is our Father and our Mother, even Christ Jesus our Lord. In His arms, all becomes well. Amen.

ELEVENTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST

August 12, 2007

THE FATHER’S GOOD PLEASURE

Luke 12:32-40

      A number of years ago, the Pastor or a very affluent congregation cast a very challenging proposition before his congregation. In a time when most people paid for their goods and services in cash, he challenged them to take out their wallets and put the entire cash contents in the offering plate. It proved to be the largest offering received in the history of the congregation and is still remembered decades later. We name the final reading in our liturgy the Gospel, literally, “the Good News”. But at first glance, the news today does not seem so good. 33Sell your possessions, and give alms.  I suspect that for many of us this seems to be very bad news. Who among us will consider, even for a moment, literally doing what our Lord commands. Oh, we can try and be sophisticated and claim that this is not what Jesus meant. We can argue that He was actually telling us that we should not be overly dependent on our possessions. And that is true. But I am afraid this does not do justice to what our Lord intended. So if we are to be honest, we must confess that by the standards of these few words, we all fail in our faith. Not a very promising start is it? On the other hand, we begin each liturgy by confessing our sins, so perhaps we must begin by confessing our sin of greed for none of us will leave here and dissolve all of our assets. Forgive us O Lord.

      But in classic Lutheran theology, the law drives us to the Gospel. And where is the Gospel in this passage? I would argue that it comes at the very beginning of our Reading. 32“Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. I must confess to having a strong personal attachment to this promise. You see this was the verse that Henri Nouwen, one of the great Spiritual Directors of the 20th century chose as his sermon text when he was the commencement preacher at my graduation from Princeton Theological Seminary. I can still recall Nouwen reminding us that while we would face many challenges in our callings as ordained ministers, we should find strength in this promise because ultimately God intends to save us and give us the kingdom. As Dave Matthews is fond of saying about God’s grace. “You can run but can you hide?” Based on this promise the answer is no. To paraphrase a popular if dated song, “Sooner or later God is goin’a get you.”

      But while we are already saved, we still have responsibilities. We still should continue to prepare. To quote our Lord, Make purses for yourselves that do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. 34For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Since we are saved by the power of the Spirit we strive to grow in faith even if that faith is flawed.

   I believe one of the great challenges for Christians in our affluent society is that of perspective. What ultimately counts in our lives? There are many things that monetary wealth can achieve for us. It can buy us creature comforts, like the air conditioning we are currently enjoying. It can buy us diversions, like the vacations most of us take on a regular basis. If we have a modicum of intelligence it can and has bought us a fair amount of education. But there are many things wealth cannot purchase. It may offer companions, but not true friends. It can offer amusement but no real joy. It can buy busyness, but not meaning. And certainly, while it may buy us a few more months or years, it cannot provide us with the eternal life of God’s Kingdom. So we must ask ourselves, where is our treasure, our true goal of life? 34For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 

   Thus we are called to sort out our priorities, our life’s treasurers. Today we install the staff of our Vacation Bible School. Here is an example of those priorities at work. Is any of our staff perfect? To quote the spiritual, “No not one.” And yet here are people who are willing to share of their time and talent to further the Kingdom. In a few minutes we will be receiving our offering. In our modern society, it is extremely difficult the share the Gospel without monetary resources. Now are any of us going to sell all that we have? I doubt it. But we will attempt to put some of our financial treasure directly into God’s work because we know that our Lord is correct saying, 4For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also

      Several weeks ago, I came upon a quote by St. Augustine that seems like a good summary of my thoughts today. “God without us will not; and we without God cannot.” Together may the kingdom be brought into greater a fruition. Amen.

Pentecost 10; Eccl. 1:2, 12-14; 2:18-23; Col. 3:1-11; Luke 12:13-21; August 5-6, 2007

Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, our Lord and Savior Jesus the Christ, and the Holy Spirit our Sustainer.

      A couple of weeks ago, as you may be aware, Tony and I embarked on a new chapter of our life together: Unemployment. Of course, losing most of one’s income and wondering when—if ever—unemployment insurance will kick in presents certain new facts of life we had, until that point, not really considered. The air conditioning thermostat gets pushed up. Dinner out once or twice a week becomes a thing of the past. Every purchase requires a second thought to determine if it’s really needed or just wanted and can we live without it. We try to be as conservative with our driving as possible. And rarely does the credit card come out any more. If we haven’t got cash, forget it.

      I’ve never thought of myself as overly Scrooge-like—selfish to the core and greedy beyond description. But in our new situation, I’m amazed at the invasive way greed has crept into our lives—and continues to creep. We are far from desperate these days and yet, even with the small cutbacks we’ve made, I’m surprised at how much I don’t need and how much time I have spent devoted to shopping and acquiring.

      As I said, so far we’re managing fine so I can’t say I know what it’s like to be in need. And I don’t want to appear to minimize the long-term unemployed and the working poor who struggle daily to meet the basic necessities. What I’m learning is how much of what I thought is basic necessity really isn’t. It’s “want,” not “need.” In other words, I find I am filled with greed. Not Scrooge-like greed but that insidious greed disguising itself as need, becoming so much a part of life we can’t distinguish “need” from “greed.”

      Our scriptures for today speak to this very human condition. In Ecclesiastes the writer, called “Teacher”—who is thought to be wise, old King Solomon—points out that all the scurrying about to be successful, to acquire everything from wisdom to the biggest possession is like chasing the wind. For when all is said and done, we all die and take none of it with us. Rather, the fruits of our hard work are left to others to enjoy.

      King Solomon may sound like a pessimist—glass half empty kind of guy—the pooper at the party. But really, King Solomon is merely pointing to the truth which humanity very deftly ignores or sidesteps. All is vanity. So what are we to do?

      The letter to the people in the church at Colossae directs the Christians’ attention above, to Christ seated on the right hand of God. Not only are we to look up, but we are to raise up our personal standards of behavior. By putting our priority on reflecting the love of Christ through our treatment and care of others, we serve our community as we are called by Christ to do.

      True, we still have to labor and toil to support ourselves and the community, but our focus is taken off the need to achieve and rightly placed on the need to serve.

      Jesus, as usual, chimes in with the most profound commentary of all. While not explaining the other scriptures read today (since Colossians wasn’t even written yet), nevertheless, Jesus points out why the rat race to achieve is futile; why the need to seek the way of Christ is so important. 

      Jesus’ parable tells about a farmer with an unexpected and unbelievable surplus. The farmer is ecstatic—he won’t have to work again! Where, we wonder, does the farmer stop to look around at his community? Where does he decide to share his abundant blessings with everyone else? Where does he acknowledge that this wealth is not of his own doing? No where. Not once does the farmer think one inch beyond his nose.

      The farmer lives, thinks, breathes in clear violation of the instruction in the Colossians letter. He has not raised his standards of behavior nor has he placed his focus on the need to serve rather than the need to achieve. This is all fairly obvious in Jesus’ story. But then, Jesus continues the tale.

      God says to the farmer, “You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you.” Sounds like: All that work just to die and get to enjoy none of the rewards. How often does that happen? We, too often, hear about the ones who worked hard all their lives, looking forward to their golden years, only to drop dead weeks after retiring. It’s a very possible scenario, made the more pitiful when the deceased focused only on him- or herself and those golden years without taking the time to enjoy and share God’s blessings along the way.

      What Jesus was pointing out was the effect such misplaced priorities and drive has on a person. By being focused on achieving, acquiring, winning, we become slaves to those things, those achievements, that greed. We no longer are free to care about others, to enjoy the life and blessings God gives us. Rather, our life is demanded by the stuff needing maintenance, upkeep, attention. We have no time, patience, or energy to care about anyone or anything else. Greed—Scrooge-like or insidious—Greed sucks the very life out of us.

      There’s a cutesy saying, “The one with the most toys, wins.” That’s wrong. Actually, the one with the most toys dies like the rest of us. In the meantime, how shall we spend our lives: “Vanity of vanities; All is vanity”? Or “Seek the things that are above, where Christ is”?

      All is not vanity when Christ is the center and goal. Amen.

8/26/07

Pentecost 13; Luke 13:10-17; August 26-27, 2007

Grace and peace to you from God our Creator, our Lord and Savior Jesus the Christ, and the Holy Spirit our Sustainer.

      It was the spring of ’81 when the flotsam and jetsam of a dead marriage arrived in the moving van to be placed in a storage unit in Flushing, Queens. It was all I had to show for six hard, miserable years. Everything had to be carefully arranged to fit into that tiny unit. Feeling strong and needing to work out the grief, I single-handedly moved everything, including lifting a loveseat on top of a couch. The physical labor felt great.

      Two days later, I leaned over to turn on a lamp and my back went into spasm, freezing me in a bent-over position. That was the beginning of an ongoing experience of back pain lasting until last year.

      I feel like I have an idea what the woman in the synagogue went through. She seemed resigned to her condition and pain, trying to get through each day as best she could—without the benefit of Aleve or Celebrex. Her identity was wrapped up in her affliction: to this day she remains nameless, known only as the “woman with a spirit that had crippled her for eighteen years.”

      On that fateful Sabbath day she showed up at the synagogue—not seeking healing—but to keep the Law; to worship; perhaps to learn. She had no expectation of a sudden healing.

      And so it was—as it is always—that Jesus called her. Jesus called, and she responded. Jesus laid his hands on her, and she was healed. Just like that.

      But that did not sit well with the synagogue leaders. How dare Jesus break the Law of Sabbath to work? We arrive at the heart of the debate. Which is more important? To heal (that is, work) on the Sabbath, thereby breaking the laws regarding its holiness? Or healing on the Sabbath, thereby demonstrating God’s love and compassion which the Law is meant to stimulate?

      It was a big-time debate when newcomer Jesus took on the age-old interpretation of the way to righteousness with God. “You’d untie your animals on the Sabbath so they could get water,” Jesus said. “Why wouldn’t you untie this woman from Satan’s bonds on the Sabbath so she could get her life back?” The debate raged on—all the way to the cross and beyond.

      Here’s the thing: Why not just wait for the next day? After all, God worked for six days, then rested. The woman endured 18 years. What’s one more day if it means keeping the Law? An interesting comment I read struck a deep chord with me. The commentator wrote: “Eighteen years can feel like an eternity when you’re suffering. And waiting one more day, when you’re suffering, can feel like an eternity, too.”

      From paper cuts to skin abrasions, broken bones to unmedicated labor contrac-tions, debilitating or chronic or terminal illness, not to mention pain felt deep in the heart, the mind, the soul. Pain so great it captures our full attention. So constant it distracts from everything else. The only variable is how long it lasts. What’s one more day? An eternity when you’re suffering.

      Attending to another’s hurts cannot wait another day, another hour. For each minute can be its own hellish eternity.

      We have our answer to the debate. Proper, righteous, joyful worship—praise of God—cannot take place unless and until the hurts of others are attended to. True, the rain of pain is so great, it cannot be eradicated between Sabbath services. So we use this time to come in out of the rain, get recharged through Word and Sacrament, and head back out into the storm. We cannot wait, for those in pain cannot wait another minute more.

      This past January, this congregation sent ten workers to New Orleans to try to put a small dent in the pain from Hurricane Katrina. Our help to rebuild lives was an incredible experience. Upon returning I felt good that we had done our bit for Disaster Response.

      Seven months have passed. New Orleans is still in terrible need. Work is slow and crime is way up. The people there live in near-total despair. And flooding in the heartland of America has presented new pain, new needs.

      Waiting one more day, when you’re suffering, can feel like and eternity.

      Jesus didn’t wait for the suffering one to go to him. He called her, healed her, gave her back her life. As his faithful followers, what will we do as each minute lasting an eternity ticks by?

      Amen.