Sept. 1, 2013, 15th Sunday After Pentecost

Luke 14:1, 7-14

1 One Sabbath, when Jesus went to eat in the house of a prominent Pharisee, he was being carefully watched.    7 When he noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table, he told them this parable: 8 "When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. 9 If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, 'Give this man your seat.' Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. 10 But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, 'Friend, move up to a better place.' Then you will be honored in the presence of all your fellow guests. 11 For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."
    12 Then Jesus said to his host, "When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. 13 But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, 14 and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."

“Humility Is Our Key Word”

These words are about how it is in the Kingdom of God and how God would have us be.

With God there are no “greats”; no “ inner circles”; no “less or more important”; no social status.  No game playing, pretending to be humble so we can be great.

“Half of the harm that is done in this world, is due to people who want to feel important.  They don’t mean to do harm - but the harm does not interest them.  Or they do not see it, or they justify it because they are absorbed in the endless struggle to think well of themselves.”  T. S. Elliot _”The Cocktail Party”

We live by grace not by our accomplishments.   Humility is our key word.

Humility is a sigh of strength.  It is a fruit of healthy ego-strength; liking myself but not hung up on myself.  It comes out of the honest struggle with my weakness; and the gracious acceptance of forgiveness.  It comes when I forget myself and remember who I am - a sinner - and who my God is - a gracious, loving, forgiving God.  Humble people like themselves and don’t need the acclaim of others to do so.  They just go about being their forgiven selves.


“True humility doesn’t consist of thinking ill of yourself but on not thinking of yourself much differently from the way you’d be apt to think of anybody else.  It is the capacity for being no more & no less pleased when you play your own (bridge) hand well then when your opponents do.”  Buechner, “Wishful Thinking”, p. 40

Humility is loosing oneself in living and not keeping score.  It is letting the love of God consume us until nothing is more important then the privilege of being a servant.
It is getting lost in doing good.  And letting God keep score, if God want s to, which God probably doesn’t.


Nelson Mandela - “Invicitus”
“It is better to lead from behind and to put others in front, especially when you celebrate victory, when nice things occur.”



“Be All You Can Be - Yourself”

Jesus is doing more then changing social customs.  He is challenging the games we play; the sham which is ours because we don’t know how to be real with each other or with ourselves.

We find it hard to affirm our strengths and acknowledge openly our weaknesses.  Being humble is often a cover up for our feelings of pride.  Yet, the best thing we can do for ourselves, others and even God, is to be ourselves and accept ourselves as a child born in the image of God.

It is good to be human; we don’t have to play games to try hide our strengths or weaknesses.  We can be who we are, in the grace of God.  A forgiven sinner who is loved by a gracious God.  Jesus died to show us our value, our priceless value to God our Creator.  Our challenge is to be real with ourselves, others and God in the light of this awesome truth!

Aug. 25, 2013, 14th Sunday After Pentecost

Luke 13:10-17

  10 On a Sabbath Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, 11 and a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. 12 When Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said to her, "Woman, you are set free from your infirmity." 13 Then he put his hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and praised God.
    14 Indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, the synagogue ruler said to the people, "There are six days for work. So come and be healed on those days, not on the Sabbath."
    15 The Lord answered him, "You hypocrites! Doesn't each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or donkey from the stall and lead it out to give it water? 16 Then should not this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen long years, be set free on the Sabbath day from what bound her?"
    17 When he said this, all his opponents were humiliated, but the people were delighted with all the wonderful things he was doing.

Two haunting questions raised by this text:

“Do Christians (we) hide behind obscure biblical passages and ancient prejudices as a way of avoiding the call to be a healing presence in the world?”  Lisa W. Davison

Consider homosexuality as one example.  Do we hide behind the few verses of Scripture which seem to condemn homosexuality, so we don’t have to face the many verses of Scripture which call us to be “gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.” (Ps. 103:8) as Jesus was!  Thus being a healing presence in the world.


How do we keep the Sabbath today?

Weekly worship is still with us, yet few of us worship weekly.
Sunday is still a “special” day yet it is full of that which happens the rest of the week.

Reflect on these words from Gary E. Pelukso-Verdend, a United Methodist pastor at Phillips Theological Seminary inTulsa, OK.

“Keeping Sabbath is also a weekly reminder of God’s household economics in which economic justice is a foundational virtue of any society and in which the value of liberation for the bound takes precedence over normal prohibitions.  In today's 24/7/365 globalized and commercialized economy, keeping Sabbath thus understood will involve striving that rises to the level of agony.  We Christians have little external support for Sabbath stewardship.  It is not easy to be a good steward of time, money, energy, and attention in a world that never sleeps or rests, in which faith in the global economy sometimes crosses over into idolatry.”

Aug. 18, 2013, 13th Sunday After Pentecost

Luke 12:49-56

49"I have come to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! 50 But I have a baptism to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is completed! 51 Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division. 52 From now on there will be five in one family divided against each other, three against two and two against three. 53 They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law."
54 He said to the crowd: "When you see a cloud rising in the west, immediately you say, 'It's going to rain,' and it does. 55 And when the south wind blows, you say, 'It's going to be hot,' and it is. 56 Hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky. How is it that you don't know how to interpret this present time?

“Is not My Word Like Fire?

There are things we do not want to hear.  Even in God’s Word!  The Prophet Jeremiah (and other prophets) got in trouble because they said what God wanted them to say, not what the people wanted to hear.

God’s word is not only a word of peace; it is also a word of challenge which brings unrest.

It is not just to comfort the afflicted; it is also to afflict the comfortable!

It does create division among people between those who hear and those who don’t want to hear.  This is true because God’s Word is fire and it creates a dangerous spirit - the spirit of love!  The kind of love which brings God’s kingdom to this world in ways which make it a different yet better place for all.

“Fire On Earth”

A difficult text.  Jesus is the Prince of Peace, not of division.

When what we hold sacred is challenged,no matter what it is,
 division is going to result.

Jesus challenged a lot of sacred cows in his day - and there was division!
Yet Jesus did not let this keep him from the sacredness of life. He did what he had to do to show God’s love and mercy to all and let no religious tradition stop him.
What we forget is that God’s Word is like fire and like a hammer which seeks to create in us a dangerous spirit - the spirit of love - and calls us to a radical way of living - as those who forget not the name of God no matter what price has to be paid.

To live as God’s chosen people does not mean we can have our cake and eat it too!
That we can presume on God’s generosity and take it for granted;
keep our faith and our love private;
  live off the fat of God’s love with little thought for others;
judge and condemn those who are different;
  gloat over what we have and condemn those who have not.

To live as God’s chosen people is to live as radicals who dare believe in love as the most powerful and most important power in all of life.
Nothing, not even our most honored and sacred relations must keep us from living as those who are servants of love; disciples of a God of love.

The words spoken by a young boy in the south during the racial struggle of the 1960’s  touch the heart of Jesus words to us today.

“I don’t know why I said no to segregation.
I’m just another white Southerner,
and I wasn’t brought up to love integration.
But I was brought up to love Jesus Christ,
and when I saw the police of this city
use dogs on people,
I asked myself what Jesus Christ would have
thought and He would have done
- and that’s all I know about how I CAME TO BE HERE,
 ON THE FIRING LINE.”

Telhard de Chardin captures Jesus words in prophetic words still seeking fulfillment.

“Someday, after we have mastered the winds, the waves, the tides, and gravity, we will harness for God the energies of love:  and then for the second time in the history of the world man will have discovered fire!"
                                                   

Aug. 11, 2013, 12th Sunday After Pentecost

Luke 12:32-40

32"Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.  35 "Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, 36 like men waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. 37 It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. 38 It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night. 39 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. 40 You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him."

“Our Treasurer and Our Hearts”

What we live for is what we become.  I will end up - my heart will end up - where I put my energy and hope.  We become possessed by what we set out to possess.
i.e. addictions of all sorts.

We need to remember that life is a gift not a possession; and so is the Kingdom of God.
To lose life is to find it; to be possessed by the gift of the Kingdom is to become a servant in the work of the Kingdom.

Gospel feels like a double whammy.

It contains grace pure and clear - God is pleased to give us the Kingdom.
It contains a warning - we can miss the kingdom by living for the wrong reasons.

To live by faith is to live in openness to God as the faithful promise maker and promise keeper.  It is to live in readiness for the unpredictable arrival of God’s grace; it is to journey through life seeing more then can be seen and certain of that which cannot be seen.


“The Gift Of The Kingdom”

God wants to give us a great gift - a tremendous, valuable, priceless gift.
We are not sure we want it.

God wants to give us His Kingdom!
We are afraid to accept it for the gift cannot be kept to ourselves - we in tern must give it.

God’s Kingdom is a free gift, but God is never thrown at us for free; it costs us our lives given in thankful service for so great a gift, freely given.

For God’s Kingdom, freely given, joyfully received, becomes not a possession we have but a possession which has us!

We become possessed by the gift and all of life becomes a means of giving the gift.

Aug. 4, 2013, 11th Sunday After Pentecost

Luke 12:13-21

13 Someone in the crowd said to him, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me."
    14 Jesus replied, "Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?" 15 Then he said to them, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions."
    16 And he told them this parable: "The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. 17 He thought to himself, 'What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.'
    18 "Then he said, 'This is what I'll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19  And I'll say to myself, "You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry." '
    20 "But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?'
    21 "This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God."


 “Rich From God’s Point Of View”

Possessions do enhance our freedom to enjoy life.  Yet how dangerous they are when they take possession of us.  The rich man was a fool because he failed to keep a clear space between himself and his possessions.  As well as between himself and others.
He tried to live by bread alone; pile up riches but be void of meaningful relationships which enrich life.

“Ah, there is only one problem, only one in all the world.  How can we restore to man a spiritual significance, a spiritual discontent;  let something descend upon them like the dew of a Gregorian chant...don’t you see, we cannot live any longer on refrigerators, politics, balance-sheets, and crossword puzzles.  We simply cannot.”   Author unknown


“Pronoun Problems”

The two men use the possessive pronoun freely, but never the pronoun which points to a relationship - ‘ours’.

You can, to a large degree,  determine a person’s theology by the pronouns used.  Pronouns give direction to life.  They point to what is important in one’s life.  Mine...yours...ours...Thine.

What a difference it makes when we are able to look at our possessions and say “Thine”.
Then our possessions fall into their rightful place in life.  Then they are not ours in a selfish way, but ours to use in a redemptive way.

We were created for more then just abundance.  We were created to know and be known by God.  Our spiritual needs cannot be satisfied with material goods - no matter how hard we try.

Jewish proverb:  “When you have everything, something is missing.”

We were created to be rich toward God which means to accept life as a gift and give the gift!  Life is a gift.  Life is found and experienced in giving the gift.

July 28, 2013 10th Sunday After Pentecost

Luke 11:1-13

One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples."
    He said to them, "When you pray, say:
   " 'Father,[a]
   hallowed be your name,
   your kingdom come.[b]
    Give us each day our daily bread.
    Forgive us our sins,
      for we also forgive everyone who sins against us.[c]
   And lead us not into temptation.[d]' "
    Then he said to them, "Suppose one of you has a friend, and he goes to him at midnight and says, 'Friend, lend me three loaves of bread, because a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have nothing to set before him.'
    7 "Then the one inside answers, 'Don't bother me. The door is already locked, and my children are with me in bed. I can't get up and give you anything.' 8I tell you, though he will not get up and give him the bread because he is his friend, yet because of the man's boldness[e] he will get up and give him as much as he needs.
    9 "So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
    11 "Which of you fathers, if your son asks for[f] a fish, will give him a snake instead? 12 Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"

 “The Mystery of Prayer”

The mystery of prayer is that it always works, sometimes better than we dare believe.
Prayer is always heard and answered; sometimes in ways different than our asking.

Prayer takes a lot of nerve.  Like banging on a neighbors door at midnight to ask for something to eat.  Jesus is telling us to bug Him, pester Him, bother Him with our needs for he is a friend who will not leave us standing alone in the dark.  He will give what we need because we are not ashamed to keep on asking!

What a Friend we have in Jesus!  We can take anything and everything to him in prayer!
He will choose what is right for us and answer accordingly.  Not always what we ask for; but always more than we asked for!

Pray with shameless persistence and then watch out!    “Ask and seek - take trouble to pray, love to pray, feel often during the day the need to pray -  and your heart will grow big enough to receive (God) and keep him as your own.”
A Guide to Prayer, p. 233

Prayer of an Unknown soldier from the Civil War:

“I asked God for strength that I might achieve,
I was made weak, that I might learn humility to obey.
I asked for health, that I might do great things,
I was given infirmity, that I might do better  things.
I asked for riches, that I might be happy;’
I was given poverty, that I might be wise.
I asked for power, that I might have the praise of men;
I was given weakness, that I might feel the need of God.
I asked for all things that I might enjoy life;
I was given life, that I might enjoy all things.

I got nothing I asked for - but everything I hoped for;
Almost despite myself, my unspoken prayers were answered.

I am among all men, most richly blessed!
.
“Pray With Shameless Boldness”

Importunity is to pray with a shameless boldness.

Prayer is more then something we do to get our way with God.  Prayer is something we do to discover God’s way with us, and discover how true it is that God’s grace is sufficient for all our needs.

Mother Teresa:; “Prayer enlarges the heart until it is capable of containing God’s gift of himself.  Ask and seek, and your heart will grow big enough to receive God and keep God as your own.”

Harry Emerson Fosdick, “ Importunity in prayer is not needed to coax God, but to deepen our eager readiness for the good we seek.”

Prayer is one of the most important spiritual disciplines by which we open ourselves to the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

Henri Nouwen: “
“It is impressive to see how prayer opens one’s eyes...prayer makes (us) contemplative and attentive.  In place of manipulating, the (person) who prays stands receptive before the world (and before God).  He no longer grabs but caresses, (she ) no longer bites, but kisses, (they ) no longer examine but admire.”  Prayers for Servants, p. 234

Prayer is a joy, not a duty’ a privilege, not an obligation; it is talking to PAPA - who loves us and will give us more than we ask for.

July 21, 2013 9th Sunday After Pentecost

Luke 10:38-42

   38 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. 40 But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!"
    41 "Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but only one thing is needed.[a] Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her."


“As strange and distasteful to some as it may seem, the place of women is not first and foremost the kitchen or serving room, but the same place it is for men, sitting at the feet of Jesus and listening to his word.”
Karl Allen Kuhn,  New Proclamation, Year C 2010  p. 147

“Don’t Just Do Something - Listen!”

It is easy to pick on Martha and praise Mary.  The problem with Martha was not all her good work, but that she was too busy to experience the moment and savor the specialness of what was happening.  She was distracted.

This is how we miss God present in our lives - by being too busy.

“We...need to practice the ‘art of no agenda’ - to live in such a way that we begin to respond to the rhythms of life around us rather than control or initiate all of them.  We must, in prayer, seek to be open to and content with whatever the days brings.  We must allow ourselves to be ‘interrupted’ for God visits in interruptions.”
Other Side, July-Aug ‘92,p.11

Take time to listen for the still small voice of God.  Be quiet and sit at the feet of Jesus; take time to do nothing.

 ”The question that must guide all organizing activity in a parish (and in a family) is not how to keep people busy, but how to keep them from being so busy that they can no longer hear the voice of God who speaks in silence.”  Henri Nouwen, The Way Of The Heart, p. 47

 Martha was busy doing something;  Mary was busy listening to Jesus.
It is easy to get caught up in being busy and not have time to listen.

“It is impossible to overemphasize the immense need humans have to be really listened to, to be taken seriously, to be understood.”  Paul Tournier

Children need to be listened to; husbands and wives need to be listened too (by each other); we need to know that God listens to us.

One thing is needful:  to listen and be listened too.  For it is in so doing that we discover the mystery of another person and the meaning of our lives together with each other and with God.  Don’t just do something.  Listen...listen...listen!