Weekly Lessons and Sermon
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be always
acceptable in your sight, oh Lord our strength and our redeemer. Amen.
acceptable in your sight, oh Lord our strength and our redeemer. Amen.
May the Words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be always
acceptable in your sight, Oh Lord our strength and our redeemer. What a week it’s been! I don’t know about you: But it’s been a ROUGH week in our house. We began the week with the death of our beloved cat: And then roamed in our grief as all four of us recovered from different strains of Strep. Four separate doctors visits, and five different antibiotics later: Here we are. And it sort of fits with this fifth Sunday of Lent: Where next week we’ll begin the Holy Week Journey: And the recounting of Jesus’ last days. Ultimately: Those last days will bring us to the day of all days. The day of the Resurrection. We WILL shout for joy. But first: We will mourn in pain. Today’s readings set this up. In each one, we hear of pain. Sorrow. Weeping. And even some Anger. All of the emotions that are a part of grief. (I came back to these readings many many times this week as our family had conversations about death and grief.) But just like the Holy Week Journey that we begin next week, None of this is the end. Sorrow and Weeping are necessary parts of the grieving process. But that’s not the end. Death is never the end. Life wins. And God is strong enough to take all of it. Our Old Testament Reading from Ezekiel speaks of the famous valley of dry bones. And God tells us that dried up bones are not the end. Hope is never lost. Because God will breathe the spirit of life. God is sure to say, “I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live.” Dry bones don’t stand up to God. God can take it: God can turn dry bones into life. The Psalmist cries out in anguish. In a prayer of deep lament: We hear “Out of the depths have I called to you O Lord: Lord, hear my voice.” But the Lament is not the end. Because the psalmist has confidence in God, saying: “I wait for the Lord; My soul waits for him, In his word is my hope.” The pain of Lament isn’t the end. The Psalmist: Even in anguish is waiting for God-- Hoping in God’s word. And the anguish doesn’t stand up to God. God can take it: God can turn it into life. Paul writes to the Romans: “To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.” Paul is hoping for eternal glory with Christ-- Knowing that focusing on the things of this world-- The things of the flesh-- Leads only to pain and anguish. But again—the things of the flesh don’t stand up to God. God can take it: And turn the flesh into the dwelling place of God, Just as Paul says, “The Spirit of God dwells in you.” And finally: The Gospel reading. This famous story of the raising of Lazarus. We know how it will end. That death doesn’t stand up to God. God can take it: And turn death into life. But there’s more: Lazarus, the brother of Martha and Mary is deathly ill. These three are close friends of Jesus’ and the sisters send word to Him. But Jesus doesn’t come. He stays—two days longer in the place where he was. KNOWING the Lazarus needs him. Lazarus, and Mary and Martha whom he loved. And Lazarus dies. He’s been dead for four days when Jesus finally arrives. And Martha and Mary are angry. They’re not just grieving the loss of their brother. They’re pretty angry at Jesus. In Separate, private occasions, both women say to Jesus: “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” And who can blame them for feeling this way? How many times have we thought the same thing? “If only God would have answered my prayers.” “If only God HEARD me.” Like the Psalmist, Martha and Mary lament. But unlike the Psalmist—who is praying to God-- Martha and Mary get the opportunity to say it right to his face. And they take that opportunity. Saying: WHERE WERE YOU? IF ONLY YOU HAD BEEN HERE: HE WOULDN’T HAVE DIED IF YOU HAD BEEN HERE. IT’S YOUR FAULT. And you know what? Whether it’s true or not: Jesus takes it. God can take it. Our Anger. Our Anguish, Our pain. Our need to place blame. Even if we place it in the wrong place. None of it stands up to God. God can take it all: And God can turn it into life. I think that Martha and Mary are two of the bravest people in the Bible. Because they weren’t afraid to say what they were thinking. They weren’t overly sweet and adorable when looking Jesus directly in the eye. They didn’t try to put up a perfect act. They were honest. They lamented. They wailed with grief. And so did Jesus…. I find this part of the story to be one of the most moving lines in the New Testament. “Jesus began to weep.” Even though Jesus KNOWS that he is going to Raise Lazarus from the dead-- Jesus WEEPS. And weeping is more than crying. The actual definition of to weep is “Expressing DEEP Sorrow.” Deep Sorrow. Jesus weeps. This compassion-- This expression of Human emotions-- Shows us that God can take it. God can handle all our pain. Our anguish, our sorrow and our weeping. And not only take it: But take it on. God will take it on too. God becoming human: Jesus on the cross: TAKES ON our pain, anguish, sorrow and weeping in a real and tangible way. And turns it into life. God takes it. And takes it on. For us. With us. But it’s also never going to be the end. This little story ends with Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. But that’s not the end of the larger story. Because the part that we don’t hear is that Lazarus is going to die again. A human death. In which his loved ones once again cried out in anguish. Weeping for him. Weeping for themselves. But the real end of this larger story-- Is that God will again breathe the breath of life into Lazarus’ body. And it will be different than the raising that we read about today, Because it will be ETERNAL, resurrected life. And God will do the same for us. Because death is never the end. Only life—eternal life with the Spirit of God. And in the meantime-- In our own human anguish-- In our weeping-- Our mourning-- In all of it-- God can take it. We can tell the truth. Like Mary and Martha, We don’t need to hide from our anguish. We can tell it. We can pray it. We can shout it. And none of it stands up to God. Because in the end: Life with God always wins. God can take it all: And turn it into life. Amen.
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Sometimes I wonder if Jesus is thinking: What is the matter with you? To us: and to his disciples at the time, I can imagine him saying: Why do you never seem to understand what I say? You have ears: Why do you not hear me? Or are you blind? Can you not see what I am doing? You have eyes: Why can't you see? Our Bible lessons for today speak directly to us. It is as if they were written with us in mind. They all make at least some reference to problems of deafness and blindness-- to the problem that plagues us. Maybe you’re thinking: HUH? These lessons don’t have anything to do with me. I’m not blind. I’m not deaf. I don’t need that kind of healing. And that may be true—physically. But these lessons about blindness and deafness have everything to do with us. Because humans are often, in one way or another deaf and blind-- particularly when it comes to God. So in what way does blindness (and deafness) have to do with us? Part of it has to do with how we read the Bible. Sometimes, when we hear these stories we are tempted to think: "Oh, all that is interesting, and it is wonderful to think that God could do this for people long ago; but it does not have much to do with me" To overcome our deafness and blindness, we have to be prepared to find ourselves in those stories. To see ourselves in those stories. To hear God talking to us. We come to learn a little bit about who we are by identifying ourselves with the people in the Bible. So how do we identify with the blind man in today’s Gospel? The blind man is brought to Jesus on the Sabbath day, And Jesus heals him by putting some clay on his eyes. Clay mixed with Jesus’ very own spit, by the way! But my favorite part of this story is the gratitude that this man has for Jesus. This gratitude brings true faith-- True faith that teaches us something about ourselves. Like the blind man, we have all been touched by the Good News of Christ. In a way, this Good News of Christ heals us from our own blindness. This is what Paul is talking about in today’s Epistle reading when he says: “Once you were darkness, but now in the Lord you are light. Live as children of the light.” (It reminds me of the song “Walk in the light, beautiful light: come where the dewdrops of mercy shine bright. Shine all around us by day and by night, Jesus the light of the world.”) We are not in darkness; we are not spiritually blind anymore. That is: If we remember and truly and deeply know that all we have is given to us by God. Given graciously, lovingly, in great mercy. Not Blind Not walking in darkness. But living in the true light of Christ. And like the Blind man’s gratitude, We witness to our own gratitude in Christ and witness to our faith by our attendance here-- Worshipping the living God who continually opens our eyes and ears. But there’s more: After being grilled by the Pharisees, After telling the Pharisees about what a great guy Jesus is, The blind man runs back to Jesus. And Jesus asks him, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” The Son of Man, meaning: The messiah, the savior of the world. The blind man-- (who’s no longer blind, but we’ll call him that because we don’t know his name) The blind man: Looks at Jesus, after being healed by him and says: “And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him.” Jesus answered: “You have seen him, and it is he who speaks to you.” It’s crazy! Here is the answer, right in front of him. The blind man has experienced Jesus’ great power. He can see, his eyes are working fine, But he’s still blind to who Jesus really is. And sometimes, so are we. Week after week we come here. To hear the good news of Jesus Christ. To worship the living God. But does it make a difference in our lives? Time and time again, we have heard the good news of Jesus-- Urging us to live by faith. How many times have we been urged not to be anxious about the future? Yet we keep worrying about tomorrow. How many times, have we heard about Jesus’ healing power. How many times, have we heard about God’s love? That God loves us just the way we are. That we don’t have to earn God’s love. Yet no matter how many times we hear it, we need to hear it again and again. Because sometimes we’re deaf. Because it’s hard to get it to sink in. Sure, we “know” that God loves us. But too often, we don’t take the next step. We don’t live our lives in the complete confidence that we are loveable. Instead we worry about what other people might think about us. But it’s okay. Because again and again the good news of God’s love for us is told to us. It comes to us in God’s Word. In the Bible. It comes to us in the Sacrament of the Eucharist when we use our sense of taste. Yet sometimes, we have not really seen, heard, and tasted. Jesus talks about this at the end of the Gospel story. Some Pharisees were overhearing Jesus’ dialogue with the blind man. And Jesus said to them: “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains. We say that we can see, but in actual fact we do not notice all that God has given us. We really must be blind. And we need to admit that we are often deaf and blind. But Listen deaf and blind people! THIS IS GOOD NEWS. Because God isn’t done. God is still eager. God is still Working. God is still here. Present right here. And God is eager. So let’s open our eyes, And open our ears, (and walk in the light, beautiful light, come where the dew drops of mercy shine bright.) And see and hear God. Amen. While we were not able to gather today in person due to the snow, Rev. Portia was able to record reading the Gospel and her sermon for us! May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be always
acceptable in your sight, Oh Lord our strength and our redeemer. God said to Abram: “I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.” The same is true for you. You have been blessed. But there’s more to it than that. You have been blessed, So that you can be a blessing to others. But what does it mean to be blessed? What does it mean to be a blessing to others? First, let’s start with what it does NOT mean. Being “Blessed” does not mean to be merely “Happy.” Although happiness might sometimes be a part of it. And There’s nothing cute or trite about a blessing-- Although our society often uses the language of blessing in a way that seems trite. (Like the Southern aphorism “Oh bless your heart.” To be blessed is much more than that. And to be a blessing is a great responsibility. The first and foremost definition of a blessing is, “approval that allows or helps you to do something.” The fact that you have been blessed to be a blessing to others IS the very definition of a blessing. A Blessing allows you to help others to do something. To BE something. Blessings are not static. Blessings are not complacent. Blessings are not simple. Blessings are not about the past. Blessings—being blessed, and being a blessing to others is about constant transformation. It’s about New life-- Rebirth-- Continuously—over and over again-- Always striving. Blessings are about continually growing and changing. And it’s sometimes about getting out of our comfort zones. Exploring something new. Becoming something new. Today’s reading from Genesis points to this. Many consider Abraham the “Father of Faith.” And Abraham was deeply blessed. And he became a blessing to many others. But Abraham had a great, great responsibility. Abraham was blessed: only because he was willing-- Willing to be transformed and changed-- Willing to be the blessing to others-- Willing to help others DO SOMETHING. God said to Abram: “Go from your country and your kindred and your fathers house to the land that I will show you.” God asked him to leave everything he knew. Everything he loved. In order to be a blessing. And Abram was transformed. In fact, he was so transformed, that his very identity changed-- His very name changed—from Abram to Abraham. He was renewed, And reborn-- And his willingness to be reborn and changed carried from generation to generation-- To all of his descendants And today’s Gospel reading talks about this willingness to be changed. To be transformed and reborn. But it’s harder for Nicodemus. He struggles. He operates from the past, From his preconceptions, And because of that, he has difficulty fully hearing and embracing Jesus’ words. Nicodemus: a pharisee: Comes to Jesus in the night. Jesus tells him that “no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and spirit.” (Jesus says some other stuff too.) And after all of it: Nicodemus has a hard time understanding it, And he replies to Jesus saying: “How can these things be?” Now: To be fair to Nicodemus-- Jesus isn’t always the easiest to understand. Because Jesus says weird stuff. Complicated stuff-- And frequently speaks in riddles. But that’s not where Nicodemus has his trouble. Nicodemus has trouble understanding Jesus because he can’t let go of what he knows. He can’t understand this business about “being born again from above.” Or being born by “water and spirit.” And in some ways, Nicodemus is right: We know that you can’t re-enter your mother’s womb and be physically born again. But that’s not what Jesus is talking about. Jesus isn’t talking about literal re-birth. Jesus is talking about God’s great mystery. When Jesus says, “The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the spirit.” Nicodemus misses the point. The point being: that New birth is not literal. It’s like the wind. A mystery beyond human knowledge and control. But Nicodemus can’t let go of his knowledge and control. He can’t let go of the past. And so he can’t fully hear Jesus. And he can’t except Jesus’ invitation to new life and transformation Like Abraham did. Jesus REPETEADLY offers new images-- Inviting Nicodemus to be transformed, To be changed-- To let go of the past that he knows-- And enter into a new future—a new identity. To be reborn. But I don’t want to demonize Nicodemus either. He might miss the point-- He might be unable to hear Jesus because of his preconceptions. But Nicodemus DOES seek Jesus out. Nicodemus Goes to meet Jesus-- Which is certainly worth something. He’s off to a good start. And so are we. Because we show up here. To worship the living God-- To meet Jesus. And every Sunday-- The service ends with a blessing. A blessing that sends us out to be a blessing to others. To help others DO something. And it’s with great responsibility that we take that blessing on. Like Abraham: to be willing-- To be transformed and changed-- To be willing-- To be reborn-- To be willing-- To let go of the past. To let go of what we know. And to be willing: To be open to something new-- To be open to someone new-- And to be a responsible blessing to all we meet. Amen. |
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February 2025
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