Luke 10:1-11,16-17
After this the LORD appointed 70 others and sent them on ahead of Him in pairs to every town and place where he himself intended to go. 2He said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. 3Go on your way. See, I am sending you out like lambs into the midst of wolves. 4Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals, and greet no one on the road. 5Whatever house you enter, first say “Peace to this house!” 6And if any one is there who shares in peace, your peace shall will rest on that person, but if not, it will return to you. 7Remain in the same house, eating and drinking whatever they provide, for the laborer deserves to be paid. Do not move about from house to house. 8Whenever you enter a town and its people welcome you, eat what is set before you; 9cure the sick who are there, and say to them “The kingdom of God has come near to you”. 10But whenever you enter a town and they do not welcome you, go out into the streets and say 11”even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off in protest against you.” Yet know this: the kingdom of God has come near.
16Whoever listens to you listens to me, and whoever rejects you rejects me, and whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me. 17 The seventy returned with joy, saying “Lord, in your name even the demons submit to us!” 20 Nevertheless, do not rejoice at this, that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.
Perhaps some of you know the book, Marvin K Mooney, will you please go now- that I talked about with the children. In it, as you heard, Marvin K Mooney is to go—somewhere. We don’t quite know where- but the time for going is NOW-
In this section of the Gospel according to Luke , Jesus is sending some 70 people out—apparently for the, the time is now as well. These are 70, besides the 12 disciples. So the Jesus movement has grown. It’s sort of a mission trip writ large. The mission team went out earlier this morning, with 3 vans, and lots of people, and a huge list, and many, many months of planning and preparation. It was necessary, to do all that planning. With that many people, you need to make sure all the documents are in order, there is food enough, water enough, bathroom stops along the way, band aids, medicines, games for the car, Bibles, music- Kleenex, sunscreen, bugspray, Twizzlers, you name it, I’m sure it got brought along.
But when Jesus sends out the 70 (or 72, some versions say) they don’t have a packing list. They don’t have an itinerary. They don’t even have a map, or a gps, or a AAA trip-tik, or even a plan that we know of. Jesus seems to give them, in fact, a sort of anti-list- a list of what not to bring- no bags, no purse, no extra sandals. No money, no food, no juice boxes or water bottles. They are not to greet any one along the way. (meaning, they are not to hang out with friends, but are to get on their way, like Marvin K.) They are to make their way through Galilee, proclaiming “The kingdom of God has come near”
Would any of us travel like that? Suppose we started out- no extra gas, no cash, no credit card, no water or food, no toothbrush or spare socks….would we dare to do that? I sure wouldn’t. But that’s just what the disciples did-
In other places in the Gospels, we are told things like this. “Do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear…strive first for the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Same idea- no packing list. Just proclaiming “The kingdom of God has come near to you. Peace be to you. God’s grace is present among us”
And listen to the description- “I am sending you out as lambs among wolves…” Note that in that anti-list that Jesus gave the travelers, there are also no weapons for defense- not even a stick or a staff- Sounds great, huh? How many of you would sign up for that?
But that is just what you signed up for—every day of your life—or, rather, what your parents signed you up for—long ago, or not so long ago, in your baptism. In the waters of baptism, God claimed you as one of God’s own. And God called you- at that time, and every day since.
As part of my seminary education, I did an internship as a chaplain at Northside Hospital in Atlanta. I have never, ever, felt so unprepared for anything in my life—unless it was parenthood. And I have to say I was probably too dumb, 25 years ago, to realize what I was getting myself into. This time, I knew better- or at least I thought I did. I knew there would be death, and grief. I knew it would be hard to stand at someone’s bedside, to comfort the grieving families, to be the one who had to sit with the body, or help the husband work through a careplan to place his wife of 57 years in assisted living. I knew all that…I thought. But I gotta tell you, at times it felt like I was the lamb, and the whole system was the wolves- the death, the disease, the despair that has gotten into people, the system that conspires against people getting the medical help they really need, the poverty, the sin, the bad decisions and addictions that have landed people in the hospital--
And I tell you this not because I think my life is harder than any of yours-but because I know you all have times when you feel like the lamb…and the world looks like a circle of hungry wolves, about to pounce…maybe those wolves are illness, or unemployment, declining health and capabilities, or an estrangement in the family….maybe those wolves are the culture, grabbing at you to make choices and do things you don’t want to do-
But to go out, with no baggage or weapons, as a lamb before wolves- this is what Christ calls us to—Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who courageously stood up to Nazi Germany, wrote “When Christ calls a person, he bids that one come and die” Whoah…so its no wonder, then, that in this story it is not the calling of the 70, but the sending of the 70… I wonder about this story-
Did Jesus push them out the door? Did he give them a slap on the back, between the shoulder blades, to get the 70 going? Was he like the jump sergeant in the airplane to the airmen, yelling “Go, Go Go!” The story tells us Jesus sent them 70 ahead of Him. I have read this story many, many times, but that little bit jumped out at me- they were going,. .But Jesus was coming right behind them…
So when you are sent, you can rest in the assurance that Jesus is coming right behind you—wherever you are sent—to work, to school, to the gas station or the grocery store, to your ailing loved ones in the nursing home, to the mission fields of Pittsburgh, to the people down the street….
We also read that the 70 were to say “Peace” to everyone- to the ones who welcomed them, and to the ones who rejected them. They are not to make a judgment- that is God’s own doing. I have a friend, a fellow pastor, who says of people he meets in life “Love ‘em all- let God sort it out.” When we meet people, no matter how they treat us, we are to say “The kingdom of God has come near to you” That’s it—no threats, no frowny faces, no matter how they receive us and our news. Peace. We are to say to everyone, even the ones who reject us, “the kingdom of God has come near.” Earlier in the Gospel, Jesus was rejected- and the disciples want to call fire down upon the cities- but Jesus says the disciples are to say, even to them, “the kingdom of God has come near…”
And what do we read at the end of their journey? They returned – not with souvenirs, or an awesome tan, or calluses on their hands, but- with joy! Where do you have joy in your life? Where do other see joy in you? An old saying is that Joy means: putting Jesus first, Others next, yourself last—is that what these 70 did? Is that how they found their joy?
We don’t know if Marvin K Mooney experienced joy on his journey. What we do know is this: the time had come, so Marvin went. And, like the 70 Jesus sent, Marvin K Mooney had no packing list—no map, no extra sandals, no worrying about what to eat.
Later in the gospel of Luke, Jesus asks the disciples “When I sent you out without a purse, did you lack anything?” “No, not a thing,” the disciples answer. Sent out, not on a glamorous trip, not on a photo opportunity, news worthy mission trip, but as lambs before wolves. But look what these 70 carry- peace- and the great good news- “the kingdom of God has come near.” This is what the Christian life looks like. This is what we are all sent to do. May God strengthen us, and bless us in this journey. Amen
Psalm 46:1-7, 10-11
1God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
2Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change, though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea;
3though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble with its tumult. Selah
4There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High.
5God is in the midst of the city; it shall not be moved; God will help it when the morning dawns.
6The nations are in an uproar, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts.
7The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah
10“Be still, and know that I am God! I am exalted among the nations, I am exalted in the earth.”
11The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah
Monday, July 26, 2010
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
I, Legion Sermon July 18, 2010
Psalm 42
1As a deer longs for flowing streams, so my soul longs for you, O God.
2My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and behold the face of God?
3My tears have been my food day and night, while people say to me continually, “Where is your God?”
4These things I remember, as I pour out my soul: how I went with the throng, and led them in procession to the house of God, with glad shouts and songs of thanksgiving, a multitude keeping festival.
5Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my help and my God.
Luke 8:26-39
26Then they arrived at the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. 27As he stepped out on land, a man of the city who had demons met him. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he did not live in a house but in the tombs. 28When he saw Jesus, he fell down before him and shouted at the top of his voice, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me”— 29for Jesus had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. (For many times it had seized him; he was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, but he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the wilds.) 30Jesus then asked him, “What is your name?” He said, “Legion”; for many demons had entered him. 31They begged him not to order them to go back into the abyss. 32Now there on the hillside a large herd of swine was feeding; and the demons begged Jesus to let them enter these. So he gave them permission. 33Then the demons came out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned. 34When the swineherds saw what had happened, they ran off and told it in the city and in the country. 35Then people came out to see what had happened, and when they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid. 36Those who had seen it told them how the one who had been possessed by demons had been healed. 37Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them; for they were seized with great fear. So he got into the boat and returned. 38The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him; but Jesus sent him away, saying, 39“Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.” So he went away, proclaiming throughout the city how much Jesus had done for him.
What’s in a name? A rose by any other name would smell as sweet. The writer of the Gospel of Luke is no Shakespeare, but he does tell quite a story, huh? A dramatic one, with demon possession, and pigs hurtling over a cliff, a healing and restoration- and also fear and suspicion and unbelief.
Just prior to this, Jesus and the disciples have been out on the lake of Galilee. A storm had come up, and Jesus had silenced the water and wind. The disciples were dumbfounded: they asked themselves “Who is this, that he commands even the winds and water, and they obey him?”
And then they all head over to the other side of the lake, the area known as the Decapolis- the 10 cities. This is Gentile territory. This is the only time in Luke that Jesus goes into Gentile territory. You know, the other guys, the unclean people, the “nations”. Now remember, the disciples have just asked the question “who is this” about Jesus.
But as soon as Jesus steps out of the boat, out onto that foreign shore, he is met by a man who knows who he is—or, at least, the demons possessing the man know- they call him Jesus, meaning “One who saves.” And they know who He is “Son of the Most High God”. In biblical times, and even now, to a certain extent, knowing someone’s name, and using it, was powerful- it meant you knew somebody, deeply—and it was also thought that if you knew someone’s name, you had power over them. This is part of what is going on in the commandment, “Thou shalt not use the Lord’s name in vain”- because using someone’s name, and especially Gods name, is serious, powerful business.
The man runs to Jesus, and bows down, and cries out in a great loud voice. We are told a very few details about this man- he has not worn clothes in years, he has been living among the tombs, he is possessed by demons. Jesus has stepped out of the boat, into the frying pan, it seems. The man is, in rabbinical law, about as unclean as one could get—not in his right mind, not wearing clothes, living among the dead—all taboos according to Levitical law—and a Gentile, an unclean foreigner to boot! What was Jesus even thinking, going to this side of the lake?
He was going there to heal—for we are told he commanded the demons to leave the man. And then Jesus asks the man’s name.
And this, I think, is one of the saddest things in this story. The man doesn’t answer his name, doesn’t even say “I am one possessed”, even “I used to be…”. When asked his name, what he answers is this: “Legion”. That is, a multitude.
What is so heartbreaking about this, is that the man is so bound by his ills, his demons, that he can’t even give his name. He has ceased being his self. It is as if Jesus had asked him “what’s wrong?” and the man had said “everything”. Or as if, one of us, meeting someone, would answer the question “who are you” with “I am cancer, or I am Multiple Sclerosis, or I am unemployed, or I am alcoholism.”
This is a story about identity. It is about who Jesus is. The demons know it, even if the disciples don’t get it. AND it is about the man’s identity—he has none—he is no one—he has stopped being himself. Jesus heals him, and saves him (because in Greek the two words are the same) and restores him to wholeness.
Ellen was a Christian, and an alcoholic. We like to think that the two are mutually exclusive. But that is not so. And Ellen began to live into sobriety. And she began going to AA meetings. And, as all AA meetings begin, hers began with the introductions. “Hi, My name is Ellen. I am an alcoholic.” And the group would respond “Hi, Ellen”. But as she grew in her sobriety, and in her faith journey, she began to see she was more than that. And so she began, timidly at first, to go to her meetings, and say “Hi. My name is Ellen, I am an alcoholic….and I am a child of God.”
In her journey towards health, Ellen knew that an alcoholic was not all that she was. She began to regain her true identity.
The man at the side of the lake, running out of the graveyard, is both saved and healed: he is restored to his right mind, he is clothed, and he is sitting at the feet of his Lord and Master, Jesus. He is not his possession, his demons, his illness. He has his rightful identity again. .He is a child of God.
But what is the reaction of his neighbors? There it is, in one small sentence: “they were afraid.” (v35) These were the people who had chained and bound him, tried to protect him, tried to take care of him. Surely, along the way, they had hoped for a cure for him, prayed for him to get better. But we also think, “better the devil you know than the devil you don’t”.
The text tells us the people are afraid—the swineherds who had seen the demons leave the man, had gone and told what they had seen. The neighbors, who have heard the report, go out by the lake, to see if what they had heard was true….and it was. The man is healed, he is saved, he is restored.
And they are afraid. So much so, that they want Jesus to leave. To get in his boat and get out of town. Pronto.
And we shouldn’t be surprised. This is how Jesus started his ministry- remember? When Jesus went to his hometown, Nazareth, and takes down the scroll, and reads and then teaches in the synagogue- his own home town people, want to throw him off a cliff.
Because change is scary. Change upsets the apple cart. We may not entirely like the way things are, but at least we’re used to it.
But the good news in Jesus Christ changes things—and it changes us. If you look in your bulletin, you will see some headings “We Hear The Word” and later, “We Respond to the Word”. Hearing the Word of God, we are called to respond—this life giving, this healing, this saving, is so amazing—what will we do?
The man in the story, healed, restored- knows what he wants to do- follow Jesus. He begs Jesus to be allowed to follow him. But Jesus gives him an even harder task.
So the man goes, proclaiming- preaching--. And the words here are very understated for a life healed and restored: just- “so he went.”
“So he went away, proclaiming how much Jesus had done for him”
Two weeks ago, we heard the text from Galatians: “For freedom Christ has set you free” and we talked about freedom FROM and Freedom FOR- the man in this story has been freed FROM his demons- what is he now FREE FOR?- what will he do with his freedom? There used to be a number of commercials on tv, asking the winners of the game “Now that you’ve won the Superbowl, what are you going to do? I’m going to Disneyworld! The winners would shout.
Now that you’ve been saved, been healed by Jesus, what are you going to do?
What are you going to do- what are we going to do, as a saved, forgiven, healed people? As a church called to tell of all the greatness of God?
Perhaps the people in the Decapolis need, not Jesus, but the living testimony of the man who has been healed and restored. Perhaps they need to see, to live with, the man who had been formerly known as “Legion”. If the man were to leave, how easy it would be for his neighbors to revert to the status quo. With the man constantly among them, renewed in body, mind and spirit, restored to his true identity, they must reckon with God’s determined action for health and life. Perhaps Jesus is bequeathing to him—and to them—the authority and responsibility to effect communal change to those in the community who have felt and witnessed Jesus’ presence and power
In her book, Christianity for the Rest of Us, Diana Butler Bass has looked at mainline churches that are alive and healthy and thriving. One of the congregations she studied was the Church of the Redeemer, in New Haven, Connecticut. In the shadow of Yale Divinity School, the church was a model of Yankee restraint and understatement. But an amazing thing began to happen when people began to give their testimony. Now, to many of us, THAT sounds scary. But the pastor, Rev. Lillian Daniels, says this: “Our church’s practice is giving testimony, having people talk about their experience of God. We didn’t invent it. It was in the early church” and the Rev Daniels goes on to say “Words are like an earthquake.”
In the seventeenth century, New England Puritans elevated testimony to dramatic democratic expression. They required anyone seeking church membership—a coveted status in New England Society—to be able to testify publicly to the works of God in his or her life. In those days, however, the Puritans used testimony as a way of fitting people into the roles that had already been decided for them. Now, testimony is, as Rev Daniels puts it “who we are and who we are becoming.”
If you look at your bulletin, you will notice that there is one more heading “We Bear the Word into the World.” We are called to bear the word into the world, and into our own corner of the world. In Lodi, we have been studying the 6 Great Ends of the Church- the very first one is “The Proclamation of the Gospel for the salvation (the healing) of humankind.”
This is our response- we are called to tell “how much Jesus has done for us,” to talk about who and what Jesus is calling us to be, as people and as a faith community, to live a life that bears witness to God’s intention for healing and wholeness for all. Now, I want us all to look back at the text again—in v 37, Jesus gets into the boat and returns. Returns to his home. So what we are asked to do is no different than what Jesus himself did—went back home, and talked about the goodness of God.
Now, perhaps that sounds scary—and, I admit, going back to your family, and your hometown, and the people who knew you before, is scary- telling them of Gods great love is hard. But when we are changed by the Gospel, people can’t help but notice. When we are saved and healed, restored to wholeness, people will not always be happy—they might be afraid. But it is what we are called to do, in word, and deed. Amen.
1As a deer longs for flowing streams, so my soul longs for you, O God.
2My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and behold the face of God?
3My tears have been my food day and night, while people say to me continually, “Where is your God?”
4These things I remember, as I pour out my soul: how I went with the throng, and led them in procession to the house of God, with glad shouts and songs of thanksgiving, a multitude keeping festival.
5Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my help and my God.
Luke 8:26-39
26Then they arrived at the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. 27As he stepped out on land, a man of the city who had demons met him. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he did not live in a house but in the tombs. 28When he saw Jesus, he fell down before him and shouted at the top of his voice, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me”— 29for Jesus had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. (For many times it had seized him; he was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, but he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the wilds.) 30Jesus then asked him, “What is your name?” He said, “Legion”; for many demons had entered him. 31They begged him not to order them to go back into the abyss. 32Now there on the hillside a large herd of swine was feeding; and the demons begged Jesus to let them enter these. So he gave them permission. 33Then the demons came out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned. 34When the swineherds saw what had happened, they ran off and told it in the city and in the country. 35Then people came out to see what had happened, and when they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid. 36Those who had seen it told them how the one who had been possessed by demons had been healed. 37Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them; for they were seized with great fear. So he got into the boat and returned. 38The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him; but Jesus sent him away, saying, 39“Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.” So he went away, proclaiming throughout the city how much Jesus had done for him.
What’s in a name? A rose by any other name would smell as sweet. The writer of the Gospel of Luke is no Shakespeare, but he does tell quite a story, huh? A dramatic one, with demon possession, and pigs hurtling over a cliff, a healing and restoration- and also fear and suspicion and unbelief.
Just prior to this, Jesus and the disciples have been out on the lake of Galilee. A storm had come up, and Jesus had silenced the water and wind. The disciples were dumbfounded: they asked themselves “Who is this, that he commands even the winds and water, and they obey him?”
And then they all head over to the other side of the lake, the area known as the Decapolis- the 10 cities. This is Gentile territory. This is the only time in Luke that Jesus goes into Gentile territory. You know, the other guys, the unclean people, the “nations”. Now remember, the disciples have just asked the question “who is this” about Jesus.
But as soon as Jesus steps out of the boat, out onto that foreign shore, he is met by a man who knows who he is—or, at least, the demons possessing the man know- they call him Jesus, meaning “One who saves.” And they know who He is “Son of the Most High God”. In biblical times, and even now, to a certain extent, knowing someone’s name, and using it, was powerful- it meant you knew somebody, deeply—and it was also thought that if you knew someone’s name, you had power over them. This is part of what is going on in the commandment, “Thou shalt not use the Lord’s name in vain”- because using someone’s name, and especially Gods name, is serious, powerful business.
The man runs to Jesus, and bows down, and cries out in a great loud voice. We are told a very few details about this man- he has not worn clothes in years, he has been living among the tombs, he is possessed by demons. Jesus has stepped out of the boat, into the frying pan, it seems. The man is, in rabbinical law, about as unclean as one could get—not in his right mind, not wearing clothes, living among the dead—all taboos according to Levitical law—and a Gentile, an unclean foreigner to boot! What was Jesus even thinking, going to this side of the lake?
He was going there to heal—for we are told he commanded the demons to leave the man. And then Jesus asks the man’s name.
And this, I think, is one of the saddest things in this story. The man doesn’t answer his name, doesn’t even say “I am one possessed”, even “I used to be…”. When asked his name, what he answers is this: “Legion”. That is, a multitude.
What is so heartbreaking about this, is that the man is so bound by his ills, his demons, that he can’t even give his name. He has ceased being his self. It is as if Jesus had asked him “what’s wrong?” and the man had said “everything”. Or as if, one of us, meeting someone, would answer the question “who are you” with “I am cancer, or I am Multiple Sclerosis, or I am unemployed, or I am alcoholism.”
This is a story about identity. It is about who Jesus is. The demons know it, even if the disciples don’t get it. AND it is about the man’s identity—he has none—he is no one—he has stopped being himself. Jesus heals him, and saves him (because in Greek the two words are the same) and restores him to wholeness.
Ellen was a Christian, and an alcoholic. We like to think that the two are mutually exclusive. But that is not so. And Ellen began to live into sobriety. And she began going to AA meetings. And, as all AA meetings begin, hers began with the introductions. “Hi, My name is Ellen. I am an alcoholic.” And the group would respond “Hi, Ellen”. But as she grew in her sobriety, and in her faith journey, she began to see she was more than that. And so she began, timidly at first, to go to her meetings, and say “Hi. My name is Ellen, I am an alcoholic….and I am a child of God.”
In her journey towards health, Ellen knew that an alcoholic was not all that she was. She began to regain her true identity.
The man at the side of the lake, running out of the graveyard, is both saved and healed: he is restored to his right mind, he is clothed, and he is sitting at the feet of his Lord and Master, Jesus. He is not his possession, his demons, his illness. He has his rightful identity again. .He is a child of God.
But what is the reaction of his neighbors? There it is, in one small sentence: “they were afraid.” (v35) These were the people who had chained and bound him, tried to protect him, tried to take care of him. Surely, along the way, they had hoped for a cure for him, prayed for him to get better. But we also think, “better the devil you know than the devil you don’t”.
The text tells us the people are afraid—the swineherds who had seen the demons leave the man, had gone and told what they had seen. The neighbors, who have heard the report, go out by the lake, to see if what they had heard was true….and it was. The man is healed, he is saved, he is restored.
And they are afraid. So much so, that they want Jesus to leave. To get in his boat and get out of town. Pronto.
And we shouldn’t be surprised. This is how Jesus started his ministry- remember? When Jesus went to his hometown, Nazareth, and takes down the scroll, and reads and then teaches in the synagogue- his own home town people, want to throw him off a cliff.
Because change is scary. Change upsets the apple cart. We may not entirely like the way things are, but at least we’re used to it.
But the good news in Jesus Christ changes things—and it changes us. If you look in your bulletin, you will see some headings “We Hear The Word” and later, “We Respond to the Word”. Hearing the Word of God, we are called to respond—this life giving, this healing, this saving, is so amazing—what will we do?
The man in the story, healed, restored- knows what he wants to do- follow Jesus. He begs Jesus to be allowed to follow him. But Jesus gives him an even harder task.
So the man goes, proclaiming- preaching--. And the words here are very understated for a life healed and restored: just- “so he went.”
“So he went away, proclaiming how much Jesus had done for him”
Two weeks ago, we heard the text from Galatians: “For freedom Christ has set you free” and we talked about freedom FROM and Freedom FOR- the man in this story has been freed FROM his demons- what is he now FREE FOR?- what will he do with his freedom? There used to be a number of commercials on tv, asking the winners of the game “Now that you’ve won the Superbowl, what are you going to do? I’m going to Disneyworld! The winners would shout.
Now that you’ve been saved, been healed by Jesus, what are you going to do?
What are you going to do- what are we going to do, as a saved, forgiven, healed people? As a church called to tell of all the greatness of God?
Perhaps the people in the Decapolis need, not Jesus, but the living testimony of the man who has been healed and restored. Perhaps they need to see, to live with, the man who had been formerly known as “Legion”. If the man were to leave, how easy it would be for his neighbors to revert to the status quo. With the man constantly among them, renewed in body, mind and spirit, restored to his true identity, they must reckon with God’s determined action for health and life. Perhaps Jesus is bequeathing to him—and to them—the authority and responsibility to effect communal change to those in the community who have felt and witnessed Jesus’ presence and power
In her book, Christianity for the Rest of Us, Diana Butler Bass has looked at mainline churches that are alive and healthy and thriving. One of the congregations she studied was the Church of the Redeemer, in New Haven, Connecticut. In the shadow of Yale Divinity School, the church was a model of Yankee restraint and understatement. But an amazing thing began to happen when people began to give their testimony. Now, to many of us, THAT sounds scary. But the pastor, Rev. Lillian Daniels, says this: “Our church’s practice is giving testimony, having people talk about their experience of God. We didn’t invent it. It was in the early church” and the Rev Daniels goes on to say “Words are like an earthquake.”
In the seventeenth century, New England Puritans elevated testimony to dramatic democratic expression. They required anyone seeking church membership—a coveted status in New England Society—to be able to testify publicly to the works of God in his or her life. In those days, however, the Puritans used testimony as a way of fitting people into the roles that had already been decided for them. Now, testimony is, as Rev Daniels puts it “who we are and who we are becoming.”
If you look at your bulletin, you will notice that there is one more heading “We Bear the Word into the World.” We are called to bear the word into the world, and into our own corner of the world. In Lodi, we have been studying the 6 Great Ends of the Church- the very first one is “The Proclamation of the Gospel for the salvation (the healing) of humankind.”
This is our response- we are called to tell “how much Jesus has done for us,” to talk about who and what Jesus is calling us to be, as people and as a faith community, to live a life that bears witness to God’s intention for healing and wholeness for all. Now, I want us all to look back at the text again—in v 37, Jesus gets into the boat and returns. Returns to his home. So what we are asked to do is no different than what Jesus himself did—went back home, and talked about the goodness of God.
Now, perhaps that sounds scary—and, I admit, going back to your family, and your hometown, and the people who knew you before, is scary- telling them of Gods great love is hard. But when we are changed by the Gospel, people can’t help but notice. When we are saved and healed, restored to wholeness, people will not always be happy—they might be afraid. But it is what we are called to do, in word, and deed. Amen.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Awesome Churches
"I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus" Paul writes to the church gathered in Corinth. Pastor Jim and I say the same thing about both Hector and Lodi. We have had some wonderful, grace filled worship these past few weeks. The Youth led worship at Lodi on the 13th- wrote a play linking the Old Testament prophet Elijah to the current day situation in the Gulf, led the prayers and confession, chose the hymns, in short, did a wonderful job leading us in worship. Same thing in Hector the following week- excellent choice of a skit about the banquet in the kingdom (umm, Queen-dom!) of God, leading worship- especially inviting other people (younger and older) to take part in the worship skit-which they did! Church is one of the few intergenerational places in our culture today- it was awesome, and so are all the youth in each church who helped make it so! This past week, we had songs from the Caribbean (Halle, Halle), a South American hymn, a Psalm sung to an Early American tune with words by Michael Morgan, a confession from South Africa, and a worship song with whirled vacuum cleaner tubes, water goblets, organ and voices- sung and arranged and offered as praise by many of our church- I give thanks to my God always for you!
Monday, May 10, 2010
Mother's Day
Yesterday was Mother's Day. It is a day laden with meaning, layered with baggage, a day causing grief and guilt and joy. It is also not a church day or celebration, rather it is a civil (and some would say morphed into a commercial enterprise in a typically Americamn way). Julia Ward Howe wrote a Mother's Day Proclamation in 1870, responding to the carnage and devastation of the civil war. Here is part of it:
From the bosom of a devastated Earth a voice goes up with
Our own. It says: "Disarm! Disarm!
The sword of murder is not the balance of justice."
Not exactly FTD and Hallmark, is it? But it is also based on a view that women were more civilized, and had a civilising effect on society as a whole, and on men in general.
The prophet Isiaih refers to God as like a nursing mother: "Can a woman forget her nursing child, or show no compassion for teh child of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you." (Isaiah 49:15. Paul describes himself as a woman in labor in Galatians 4:19. "My little children, for whom I am again in the pain of childbirth until Christ is formed in you...."
I do not want ever to underestimate the work and sacrifice of mothers (and fathers). But I also do not want to, and do not want the church to, inflict pain on those who for whatever reasons are not parents, or for whom relationships with mothers are strained, hurtful, or absent. I do hope that we can see God as a model for parenting, and open up the images to include not just biological mothers, or even women who act as mothers to us, but all people (regardles of gender and circumstance) who show nurture and love to us.
From the bosom of a devastated Earth a voice goes up with
Our own. It says: "Disarm! Disarm!
The sword of murder is not the balance of justice."
Not exactly FTD and Hallmark, is it? But it is also based on a view that women were more civilized, and had a civilising effect on society as a whole, and on men in general.
The prophet Isiaih refers to God as like a nursing mother: "Can a woman forget her nursing child, or show no compassion for teh child of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you." (Isaiah 49:15. Paul describes himself as a woman in labor in Galatians 4:19. "My little children, for whom I am again in the pain of childbirth until Christ is formed in you...."
I do not want ever to underestimate the work and sacrifice of mothers (and fathers). But I also do not want to, and do not want the church to, inflict pain on those who for whatever reasons are not parents, or for whom relationships with mothers are strained, hurtful, or absent. I do hope that we can see God as a model for parenting, and open up the images to include not just biological mothers, or even women who act as mothers to us, but all people (regardles of gender and circumstance) who show nurture and love to us.
Sunday, April 25, 2010
4th Sunday of Easter
Sermon 4th Sunday of Easter April 25, 2010 Nancy Meehan Yao
Acts 9:36-43
36Now in Joppa there was a disciple whose name was Tabitha, which in Greek is Dorcas. She was devoted to good works and acts of charity. 37At that time she became ill and died. When they had washed her, they laid her in a room upstairs. 38Since Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples, who heard that Peter was there, sent two men to him with the request, “Please come to us without delay.” 39So Peter got up and went with them; and when he arrived, they took him to the room upstairs. All the widows stood beside him, weeping and showing tunics and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was with them. 40Peter put all of them outside, and then he knelt down and prayed. He turned to the body and said, “Tabitha, get up.” Then she opened her eyes, and seeing Peter, she sat up. 41He gave her his hand and helped her up. Then calling the saints and widows, he showed her to be alive. 42This became known throughout Joppa, and many believed in the Lord.
I love this story. I love it because Dorcas is described using the feminine form of the word for “disciple”. And to the people who say that women did not have leadership roles in the early church, who say that women should not preach or teach, I say “have you met Dorcas?”
I love this story because it reminds me of my grandmother, who was widowed at a young age, and worked in the shirt factories in Troy, bent over a sewing machine all day, and then came home and sewed for her 11 grandchildren. She made my prom dress—I still have some of that fabric, made into a quilt. So I know what it is when someone sews for you out of love.
I love this story because it is so well crafted- only 6 verses, and yet the whole story is told.
I love this story because it reminds us of so many other stories- it reminds us of Elijah and the son of the widow of Nain, how that boy was restored to life, and it reminds us of the story of Elisha, in 2 Kings, bringing back the son of the Shunammite woman. It reminds us of Jesus, and the story of Jairus’ daughter. Remember, Jairus’ daughter had died, and Jesus went in to her, saying to Jairus’ “do not doubt, only believe” - and then Jesus took the girls’ hand, and said Talitha, cumi- that is, little girl, get up- and she did. It reminds us of Lazarus, restored to life, coming out of the tomb after three days. And it reminds us especially of Jesus, and his resurrection. In fact, the same word is used of Dorcas as is Jesus- that she was “raised up” .
I love this story because it gives me hope—
Anne Lamott writes about being a recovering addict and alcoholic in San Francisco. Newly in recovery, she was too skittery to be around people- and yet she heard these voices—these gorgeous, beautiful voices, from the windows of a church near where she lived—a Presbyterian church, I might add. And she was so shaky, so near to death, that she could not bring herself to go in. She would stand outside and listen, at first. And then, gradually, she eased in to the back, to sit on a folding chair- but only for the music- and she would leave before she had to talk to anybody else- the back row is good for a quick get away like that. But, eventually, she began to stay. And when, as a recovering alcoholic, she announced that she was pregnant, that she was about to be an unwed mother, the community surrounded her with love. These women, many of them widows and unwed mothers,. Many of them who knew about sorrow, with children in jail, or children who were alcoholics and addicts themselves, embraced her with love. And then, like Dorcas, “they devoted themselves to charity and good works.” These women who had so little would hug her- and slip some money into her pockets. Stealthily- without saying anything. One woman, who couldn’t afford any more, would save up her change, and put it in plastic baggies, and tie it tight with a twist tie, and give it to Anne. Anne writes that even after she began to be doing better, to begin making money with her writing, to be longer and longer in recovery, they would still slip her change in little twist tie baggies. Because it was what they could do. It was hope for Anne, and the baby, bound up in little packages.
But here’s what I struggle with. Dorcas, restored to life, will eventually die. And I know that there are people here today who have loved ones who have died, or who are ill. What do we do with this story? How are we to understand it- are we to think that miracles happened only in the old days, and the age of miracles has closed?
This story is written, in part, to show that even though Jesus has ascended, even though Jesus is no longer on earth, that miracles still happen. This story is about the power of God for restoration and life.
Earlier this morning, we read Psalm 23 all together. This Psalm is used often at funeral services. In fact, when families don’t know what to choose, don’t know any other scripture; this is the one they pick. “Yeah tho I walk thru the valley of the shadow of death” its says “I will fear no evil”. I will not fear evil for thou art with me, in the words of the Kings James version. I will not fear evil because Jesus has won a decisive victory over sin and death. Death does not have the last word.
The church stands at the intersection of memory and hope. We remember the stories- the stories of Dorcas, and Lazarus, and Jesus. And we tell those stories. When we baptized little Kyle Malecki two weeks ago, we said “you do not know these stories yet. But we will tell them to you until they are your own”. I take that pledge very seriously.
Last week we talked about vocation, as what God calls you to do. For Dorcas, God called her to show the love of God by caring for others, by sewing clothes for the widows. For the widow at Anne Lamott’s church, God’s love was shown in helping an unwed mother, and in singing and telling those stories. For us, the church, part of our vocation is to tell these stories- to ourselves, and to the next generations. To tell the stories of Dorcas, who devoted herself to charity, and the Good Shepherd, who leads us through the valley of the shadow of death. To speak of our memories, of where we have seen God at work, bringing life, and to speak of our hope, in Jesus Christ.
We remember those we love, and those we have lost, we remember the story of Dorcas, but we also remember Christ- who overcame sin and death for us. We remember the 23rd Psalm- and we look forward in hope to the one who leads us in the paths of righteousness, the one who is The Good News himself.
The story of Dorcas is a sign to us. A sign of hope. A sign that in Christ, death does not have the final word. We do walk thru the valley of the shadow of death, but we do not have fear. Because Christ has died, and rose, and brings new life. Alleluia- Amen.
Acts 9:36-43
36Now in Joppa there was a disciple whose name was Tabitha, which in Greek is Dorcas. She was devoted to good works and acts of charity. 37At that time she became ill and died. When they had washed her, they laid her in a room upstairs. 38Since Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples, who heard that Peter was there, sent two men to him with the request, “Please come to us without delay.” 39So Peter got up and went with them; and when he arrived, they took him to the room upstairs. All the widows stood beside him, weeping and showing tunics and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was with them. 40Peter put all of them outside, and then he knelt down and prayed. He turned to the body and said, “Tabitha, get up.” Then she opened her eyes, and seeing Peter, she sat up. 41He gave her his hand and helped her up. Then calling the saints and widows, he showed her to be alive. 42This became known throughout Joppa, and many believed in the Lord.
I love this story. I love it because Dorcas is described using the feminine form of the word for “disciple”. And to the people who say that women did not have leadership roles in the early church, who say that women should not preach or teach, I say “have you met Dorcas?”
I love this story because it reminds me of my grandmother, who was widowed at a young age, and worked in the shirt factories in Troy, bent over a sewing machine all day, and then came home and sewed for her 11 grandchildren. She made my prom dress—I still have some of that fabric, made into a quilt. So I know what it is when someone sews for you out of love.
I love this story because it is so well crafted- only 6 verses, and yet the whole story is told.
I love this story because it reminds us of so many other stories- it reminds us of Elijah and the son of the widow of Nain, how that boy was restored to life, and it reminds us of the story of Elisha, in 2 Kings, bringing back the son of the Shunammite woman. It reminds us of Jesus, and the story of Jairus’ daughter. Remember, Jairus’ daughter had died, and Jesus went in to her, saying to Jairus’ “do not doubt, only believe” - and then Jesus took the girls’ hand, and said Talitha, cumi- that is, little girl, get up- and she did. It reminds us of Lazarus, restored to life, coming out of the tomb after three days. And it reminds us especially of Jesus, and his resurrection. In fact, the same word is used of Dorcas as is Jesus- that she was “raised up” .
I love this story because it gives me hope—
Anne Lamott writes about being a recovering addict and alcoholic in San Francisco. Newly in recovery, she was too skittery to be around people- and yet she heard these voices—these gorgeous, beautiful voices, from the windows of a church near where she lived—a Presbyterian church, I might add. And she was so shaky, so near to death, that she could not bring herself to go in. She would stand outside and listen, at first. And then, gradually, she eased in to the back, to sit on a folding chair- but only for the music- and she would leave before she had to talk to anybody else- the back row is good for a quick get away like that. But, eventually, she began to stay. And when, as a recovering alcoholic, she announced that she was pregnant, that she was about to be an unwed mother, the community surrounded her with love. These women, many of them widows and unwed mothers,. Many of them who knew about sorrow, with children in jail, or children who were alcoholics and addicts themselves, embraced her with love. And then, like Dorcas, “they devoted themselves to charity and good works.” These women who had so little would hug her- and slip some money into her pockets. Stealthily- without saying anything. One woman, who couldn’t afford any more, would save up her change, and put it in plastic baggies, and tie it tight with a twist tie, and give it to Anne. Anne writes that even after she began to be doing better, to begin making money with her writing, to be longer and longer in recovery, they would still slip her change in little twist tie baggies. Because it was what they could do. It was hope for Anne, and the baby, bound up in little packages.
But here’s what I struggle with. Dorcas, restored to life, will eventually die. And I know that there are people here today who have loved ones who have died, or who are ill. What do we do with this story? How are we to understand it- are we to think that miracles happened only in the old days, and the age of miracles has closed?
This story is written, in part, to show that even though Jesus has ascended, even though Jesus is no longer on earth, that miracles still happen. This story is about the power of God for restoration and life.
Earlier this morning, we read Psalm 23 all together. This Psalm is used often at funeral services. In fact, when families don’t know what to choose, don’t know any other scripture; this is the one they pick. “Yeah tho I walk thru the valley of the shadow of death” its says “I will fear no evil”. I will not fear evil for thou art with me, in the words of the Kings James version. I will not fear evil because Jesus has won a decisive victory over sin and death. Death does not have the last word.
The church stands at the intersection of memory and hope. We remember the stories- the stories of Dorcas, and Lazarus, and Jesus. And we tell those stories. When we baptized little Kyle Malecki two weeks ago, we said “you do not know these stories yet. But we will tell them to you until they are your own”. I take that pledge very seriously.
Last week we talked about vocation, as what God calls you to do. For Dorcas, God called her to show the love of God by caring for others, by sewing clothes for the widows. For the widow at Anne Lamott’s church, God’s love was shown in helping an unwed mother, and in singing and telling those stories. For us, the church, part of our vocation is to tell these stories- to ourselves, and to the next generations. To tell the stories of Dorcas, who devoted herself to charity, and the Good Shepherd, who leads us through the valley of the shadow of death. To speak of our memories, of where we have seen God at work, bringing life, and to speak of our hope, in Jesus Christ.
We remember those we love, and those we have lost, we remember the story of Dorcas, but we also remember Christ- who overcame sin and death for us. We remember the 23rd Psalm- and we look forward in hope to the one who leads us in the paths of righteousness, the one who is The Good News himself.
The story of Dorcas is a sign to us. A sign of hope. A sign that in Christ, death does not have the final word. We do walk thru the valley of the shadow of death, but we do not have fear. Because Christ has died, and rose, and brings new life. Alleluia- Amen.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Earth Day
"The Earth is the Lord's, and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein" says Psalm 24. Today is the 40th observance of Earth Day. Is the world, the ecology, in a better place than it was 40 years ago? Have we at least been able to slow down the spiral of pollution and degradation? God created the world good. Humans are to be caretakers of the creation. The Study Confession of the PCUSA teaches us this:
Question 22. What do you understand by God's providence?
That God not only preserves the world, but also continually attends to it, ruling and sustaining it with wise and benevolent care. God is concerned for every creature: "The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food in due season. You open your hand, you satisfy the desire of every living thing" (Ps. 145:15).
We are to be caretakers with God of God's creation. We, as humans, are to nurture it and sustain it, in the way that God sustains and nurtures us.
Often people think there is a divide between ecology and the church. The PCUSA has long affirmed caring for creation as a mandate from God.
Information may be found at: http://www.presbyearthcare.org/
Question 22. What do you understand by God's providence?
That God not only preserves the world, but also continually attends to it, ruling and sustaining it with wise and benevolent care. God is concerned for every creature: "The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food in due season. You open your hand, you satisfy the desire of every living thing" (Ps. 145:15).
We are to be caretakers with God of God's creation. We, as humans, are to nurture it and sustain it, in the way that God sustains and nurtures us.
Often people think there is a divide between ecology and the church. The PCUSA has long affirmed caring for creation as a mandate from God.
Information may be found at: http://www.presbyearthcare.org/
Sunday, April 18, 2010
3rd Sunday of Easter
3rd Sunday of Easter April 19 2010 Nancy Meehan Yao
Revelation 5:11-14 p
11Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels surrounding the throne and the living creatures and the elders; they numbered myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, 12singing with full voice, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slaughtered to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!” 13Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, singing, “To the one seated on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!” 14And the four living creatures said, “Amen!” And the elders fell down and worshiped.
John 21:1-18 p
21After these things Jesus showed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias; and he showed himself in this way. 2Gathered there together were Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples. 3Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We will go with you.” They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. 4Just after daybreak, Jesus stood on the beach; but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. 5Jesus said to them, “Children, you have no fish, have you?” They answered him, “No.” 6He said to them, “Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in because there were so many fish. 7That disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on some clothes, for he was naked, and jumped into the sea. 8But the other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from the land, only about a hundred yards off. 9When they had gone ashore, they saw a charcoal fire there, with fish on it, and bread. 10Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.” 11So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, a hundred fifty-three of them; and though there were so many, the net was not torn. 12Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” Now none of the disciples dared to ask him, “Who are you?” because they knew it was the Lord. 13Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. 14This was now the third time that Jesus appeared to the disciples after he was raised from the dead.
15When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my lambs.” 16A second time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Tend my sheep.” 17He said to him the third time, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” And he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep. Very truly, I tell you, when you were younger, you used to fasten your own belt and to go wherever you wished. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go.” (He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God.) After this he said to him, “Follow me.”
What do you do, when your whole world has been turned upside down? What do you do, when all that you thought that you knew, all that you trusted in, has turned out to be different than you had planned? What do you do when you are so wracked by guilt and grief and confusion that you can barely breathe, much less raise your head?
Well, if you are Peter, you go fishing. Now this is not a leisurely day out on the lake in a boat. No, this is Peter, leaving Jerusalem, going back to the only thing he knows. He goes back to Galilee, his home. Because, as Robert Frost puts it, “Home is the place, where, when you go there, they have to take you in.”
Peter goes home and goes back to the only work he knows- fishing. Jesus has appeared to the disciples 3 times by now—first, to Mary, in the garden. Peter was there, saw the empty tomb, and went back to stay with the other disciples that morning. And then, in that locked room, Jesus appeared to the disciples two more times- saying “Peace. Shalom”.
But my guess is that Peter was not feeling peace. Remember, he denied Jesus three times—just a few hours after saying he would never deny him. And while Peter knows of the resurrection, has seen Jesus in that locked room, knows of the Good News, perhaps Peter doesn’t quite believe it is for him. Because Peter denied knowing Jesus not once, but three times. Peter was passionate in his love for Jesus, but denied him…..
And here he is, fishing—with no success. He has gone home, gone back to the family fishing business, and he is a failure at this as well- fished all night, sweaty and tired, and to pour salt on the wound, some yahoo on the beach yells out to him, in a way that leaves no doubt as to what the answer is: “Children, you have no fish, have you?”
But that voice turns out to be Jesus. And Peter, ever impetuous, ever dashing off in excitement, puts his clothes back on, jumps in the water, and swims towards the beach, where Jesus is.
Now, Peter has seen the empty tomb, has seen Jesus in that locked room- but we have no recorded conversation between him and Jesus since Peter denied him. So Peter, while eager to see Jesus, is also probably wracked with guilt and grief and fear…..because Jesus has risen, is there, with them…..what will Jesus say to Peter? What will Peter say to Jesus? What could he possibly say?
But, at first, it seems Jesus doesn’t say anything. Oh, he tells them to throw their net out on the other side of the boat, and he tells the fishermen to bring in some of the catch, and he feeds them. No questions asked, no discussions, no finger pointing or blame. Like the father in the story of the Prodigal Son, there isn’t even time for any apologies or explanations. Breakfast is ready! Come and eat!
And after breakfast, the time Peter has longed for, and has dreaded, is here. Jesus and Peter talk. Again, Peter doesn’t get a chance to say his well rehearsed apology and confession speech. Jesus, instead, gives him his orders, his work.
Feed my lambs, Peter. Tend my sheep- take care of them. Feed my sheep. Just a few short weeks ago, Jesus had knelt down, in that upper room, to wash the disciples feet. “I am among you as one who serves.” Here, Jesus has just fed and served the disciples. And Peter is to follow his example.
But in the midst of giving him his work orders, Jesus asks Simon Peter awkward but necessary questions.
Simon, do you love me? Three times, Jesus asks him this—to the point that Peter is hurt- Yes, Lord, you know I love you.
Now, the three times Jesus asks this question, to the point that Peter’s feelings are hurt, is seen as significant. Remember Peter denied Jesus three times. And in the first century society, saying something 3 times made it so—a man could divorce his wife or sell property by saying out loud, in public, something 3 times—
So Jesus has reversed Peter’s denial of him. And woven in are the things that Peter will now start doing. After every question and answer, are Jesus’ instructions. Peter is now to live a new life—“feed my lambs”.
In fancy theological terms, this is called “justification and vocation.” That is, Peter is now made right—forgiven, cleansed, made whole again. In his own way, he is restored to life. He can live again, breathe again, hold up his head again. And so what is he going to do next? Not go to Disneyworld,--that would be Vacation-- but live a life following Jesus. That will be his VOcation.
The word vocation comes from the Latin “vocare” meaning called out—and we talk about it that way, saying someone has a calling—and we also say, usually, that vocation is the work that you do.
But I want us to think of it less of work, a profession, and more of a way of being. Vocation is the way that people often talk about their profession, but it is also the way the church has always talked about people who follow Jesus. In the monastic tradition, monks and nuns all have work to do. They might be farmers, or wine makers, or dog trainers, like the Monks of New Skete, or scholars and writers. But when the chapel bell rings, they stop what ever work they are doing, put down the rake, put down the pen, and go off to worship and prayer. Because, they feel, that that is their true vocation. To follow Jesus and to worship him.
Worthy is the Lamb we heard from the Revelation text this morning. Worthy is the Lamb to receive blessing and honor. All creation, every creature in heaven and on earth joins in this singing. And so do we- it is our vocation, too.
But that vocation, that call, shapes our whole life. So that we also are called to feed others, to tend lambs, to feed sheep.
Peter might have stayed in Galilee, fishing, and feeding people with his fish. He had been told, after all, by Jesus, “to feed my sheep.” And there was no end to hunger and poverty in Galilee. But Peter went on to Jerusalem, and was the founder of the church there. The early church lived in community, worshipping together, sharing what they had, taking care of the poor, healing the sick, and growing in number day by day.
“Follow me” Jesus says to Peter. Follow me, Jesus says to us. And this is the way it truly is- we, who have been forgiven, we who have been claimed by God and forgiven by God in Jesus Christ, we who have been washed in the water and fed at the Table, we are called by God, and we are called out by God. This is the way it truly is- we respond with our whole lives to the grace that first came to us. Vocation always follows justification- we respond to God, who first claimed us. Gratitude is the response to grace. That is our true vocation—to follow Jesus, to follow in the ways of Jesus, the Lamb who was slaughtered for us, to follow Jesus, the ruler of creation, who shows up on the beach to cook his friends breakfast, and says to us: Follow me.
Revelation 5:11-14 p
11Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels surrounding the throne and the living creatures and the elders; they numbered myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, 12singing with full voice, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slaughtered to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!” 13Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, singing, “To the one seated on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!” 14And the four living creatures said, “Amen!” And the elders fell down and worshiped.
John 21:1-18 p
21After these things Jesus showed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias; and he showed himself in this way. 2Gathered there together were Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples. 3Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We will go with you.” They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. 4Just after daybreak, Jesus stood on the beach; but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. 5Jesus said to them, “Children, you have no fish, have you?” They answered him, “No.” 6He said to them, “Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in because there were so many fish. 7That disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on some clothes, for he was naked, and jumped into the sea. 8But the other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from the land, only about a hundred yards off. 9When they had gone ashore, they saw a charcoal fire there, with fish on it, and bread. 10Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.” 11So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, a hundred fifty-three of them; and though there were so many, the net was not torn. 12Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” Now none of the disciples dared to ask him, “Who are you?” because they knew it was the Lord. 13Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. 14This was now the third time that Jesus appeared to the disciples after he was raised from the dead.
15When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my lambs.” 16A second time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Tend my sheep.” 17He said to him the third time, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” And he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep. Very truly, I tell you, when you were younger, you used to fasten your own belt and to go wherever you wished. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go.” (He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God.) After this he said to him, “Follow me.”
What do you do, when your whole world has been turned upside down? What do you do, when all that you thought that you knew, all that you trusted in, has turned out to be different than you had planned? What do you do when you are so wracked by guilt and grief and confusion that you can barely breathe, much less raise your head?
Well, if you are Peter, you go fishing. Now this is not a leisurely day out on the lake in a boat. No, this is Peter, leaving Jerusalem, going back to the only thing he knows. He goes back to Galilee, his home. Because, as Robert Frost puts it, “Home is the place, where, when you go there, they have to take you in.”
Peter goes home and goes back to the only work he knows- fishing. Jesus has appeared to the disciples 3 times by now—first, to Mary, in the garden. Peter was there, saw the empty tomb, and went back to stay with the other disciples that morning. And then, in that locked room, Jesus appeared to the disciples two more times- saying “Peace. Shalom”.
But my guess is that Peter was not feeling peace. Remember, he denied Jesus three times—just a few hours after saying he would never deny him. And while Peter knows of the resurrection, has seen Jesus in that locked room, knows of the Good News, perhaps Peter doesn’t quite believe it is for him. Because Peter denied knowing Jesus not once, but three times. Peter was passionate in his love for Jesus, but denied him…..
And here he is, fishing—with no success. He has gone home, gone back to the family fishing business, and he is a failure at this as well- fished all night, sweaty and tired, and to pour salt on the wound, some yahoo on the beach yells out to him, in a way that leaves no doubt as to what the answer is: “Children, you have no fish, have you?”
But that voice turns out to be Jesus. And Peter, ever impetuous, ever dashing off in excitement, puts his clothes back on, jumps in the water, and swims towards the beach, where Jesus is.
Now, Peter has seen the empty tomb, has seen Jesus in that locked room- but we have no recorded conversation between him and Jesus since Peter denied him. So Peter, while eager to see Jesus, is also probably wracked with guilt and grief and fear…..because Jesus has risen, is there, with them…..what will Jesus say to Peter? What will Peter say to Jesus? What could he possibly say?
But, at first, it seems Jesus doesn’t say anything. Oh, he tells them to throw their net out on the other side of the boat, and he tells the fishermen to bring in some of the catch, and he feeds them. No questions asked, no discussions, no finger pointing or blame. Like the father in the story of the Prodigal Son, there isn’t even time for any apologies or explanations. Breakfast is ready! Come and eat!
And after breakfast, the time Peter has longed for, and has dreaded, is here. Jesus and Peter talk. Again, Peter doesn’t get a chance to say his well rehearsed apology and confession speech. Jesus, instead, gives him his orders, his work.
Feed my lambs, Peter. Tend my sheep- take care of them. Feed my sheep. Just a few short weeks ago, Jesus had knelt down, in that upper room, to wash the disciples feet. “I am among you as one who serves.” Here, Jesus has just fed and served the disciples. And Peter is to follow his example.
But in the midst of giving him his work orders, Jesus asks Simon Peter awkward but necessary questions.
Simon, do you love me? Three times, Jesus asks him this—to the point that Peter is hurt- Yes, Lord, you know I love you.
Now, the three times Jesus asks this question, to the point that Peter’s feelings are hurt, is seen as significant. Remember Peter denied Jesus three times. And in the first century society, saying something 3 times made it so—a man could divorce his wife or sell property by saying out loud, in public, something 3 times—
So Jesus has reversed Peter’s denial of him. And woven in are the things that Peter will now start doing. After every question and answer, are Jesus’ instructions. Peter is now to live a new life—“feed my lambs”.
In fancy theological terms, this is called “justification and vocation.” That is, Peter is now made right—forgiven, cleansed, made whole again. In his own way, he is restored to life. He can live again, breathe again, hold up his head again. And so what is he going to do next? Not go to Disneyworld,--that would be Vacation-- but live a life following Jesus. That will be his VOcation.
The word vocation comes from the Latin “vocare” meaning called out—and we talk about it that way, saying someone has a calling—and we also say, usually, that vocation is the work that you do.
But I want us to think of it less of work, a profession, and more of a way of being. Vocation is the way that people often talk about their profession, but it is also the way the church has always talked about people who follow Jesus. In the monastic tradition, monks and nuns all have work to do. They might be farmers, or wine makers, or dog trainers, like the Monks of New Skete, or scholars and writers. But when the chapel bell rings, they stop what ever work they are doing, put down the rake, put down the pen, and go off to worship and prayer. Because, they feel, that that is their true vocation. To follow Jesus and to worship him.
Worthy is the Lamb we heard from the Revelation text this morning. Worthy is the Lamb to receive blessing and honor. All creation, every creature in heaven and on earth joins in this singing. And so do we- it is our vocation, too.
But that vocation, that call, shapes our whole life. So that we also are called to feed others, to tend lambs, to feed sheep.
Peter might have stayed in Galilee, fishing, and feeding people with his fish. He had been told, after all, by Jesus, “to feed my sheep.” And there was no end to hunger and poverty in Galilee. But Peter went on to Jerusalem, and was the founder of the church there. The early church lived in community, worshipping together, sharing what they had, taking care of the poor, healing the sick, and growing in number day by day.
“Follow me” Jesus says to Peter. Follow me, Jesus says to us. And this is the way it truly is- we, who have been forgiven, we who have been claimed by God and forgiven by God in Jesus Christ, we who have been washed in the water and fed at the Table, we are called by God, and we are called out by God. This is the way it truly is- we respond with our whole lives to the grace that first came to us. Vocation always follows justification- we respond to God, who first claimed us. Gratitude is the response to grace. That is our true vocation—to follow Jesus, to follow in the ways of Jesus, the Lamb who was slaughtered for us, to follow Jesus, the ruler of creation, who shows up on the beach to cook his friends breakfast, and says to us: Follow me.
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