Freedom - Justice - Love

The message I delivered to my congregation this past Sunday:

Gospel Message

Matthew 5:38-48

July 5, 2015

Our Gospel reading comes from Matthew the 5^th chapter.  Jesus is speaking to his disciples, “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, Do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also; and if anyone wants to sue you and take your coat, give your cloak as well; and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the second mile. Give to everyone who begs from you, and do not refuse anyone who wants to borrow from you.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

This is the gospel of our Lord.

Freedom - Justice - Love

Two hundred thirty-nine years ago our founding fathers signed the Declaration of Independence, and we declared ourselves a free and independent nation.  The document begins:  

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

Now a free and independent nation!

Freedom…free to do what?  Free to pray and serve the God of our choice, Free to walk into a church and kill nine innocent Christians, free to ban the sale of a symbol some find offensive, while others find historic, free to challenge civil authority, free to choose who you wish to do business with, free to marry a same gendered partner. 

Free to speak openly of the truths of the Gospel.  Ah yes, freedom, ain’t it grand!  I have to admit, I have really struggled in preparing this message for today.  It has been a struggle to hear Jesus’ words of forgiveness, tolerance and loving our enemy.  Especially in light of all that is going on in our world today.

Civil disobedience seems to have become the response to bring attention to the cause.  Hatred, fear, and entitlement seem to be the fuel which fans the flames of anger and violence.  We have become a nation intolerant, enraged and have completely missed the teachings of Jesus.  When we celebrate Independence Day, it should not be a celebration of independence from God. 

Somewhere along the way in the last two hundred thirty-nine years, we have lost our way.  We have forgotten God, and we have chosen a path of self-appreciating, self-reliance.  We have indeed forgotten God!  I am reminded of a story of two ornery young boys whose parents were having a terrible time getting their sons to behave.  They decided to ask their pastor to speak with the boys.  The pastor agreed and asked to speak with each boy individually.  So after church, he asked the youngest to come to his office.  Once there, he asked the boy, “Where is God?” repeating it several times the frightened boy sprang from the chair ran home, up the stairs and hid in his closet.  His younger brother, alarmed, went to his brother and asked what had happened.  The older brother responded, “I don’t know but God is missing and they think we had something to do with it.”

Well, the truth is, we may all have something to do with God being missing.  Jesus gives his disciples some confounding instruction in our gospel reading today.  He suggests to love their enemies, to not only take a punch, but to turn their face so they can punch them again!  Give away not only their shirt but their coat.  And then he tells them to give to anyone who asks.

Jesus is asking them, and us, to rise above the hated, the fear, the self-appreciation to be more than reactive, but to be responsive.  He is suggesting anyone can react with love to love, do good for those who do good for us.

He is calling us to rise above and show love to those who show hate, to give to those who only wish to take.  And not only give what they ask but give all we have.  Now that is a tall order!  The fact is, it is unnatural for us to respond in such a way.

Jesus’ words in our gospel text for today announce a new age, also. The status quo and the natural are not the standard operating procedures of his followers. Jesus invites his followers to live in his kingdom and to live graciously.

God has loved us unnaturally and acted toward us in a gracious manner.  Because God has acted this way toward us, the Lord invites us to act this way toward others. 

Because of the Cross of Christ—Jesus’ death and resurrection--God’s kingdom has come. We live in a world, now, because of the Cross of Christ, where unnatural love has become natural, and where graciousness in the norm. 

Jesus tells his followers to “be perfect.” Really, this is a poor translation of what Jesus was trying to convey. It is more accurate to say, “You are going to be perfect. When God’s kingdom comes in its fullness you will be molded completely into God’s image. So, live in the reality of what you will become.”

If we, the church—the body of Christ—are to prepare the world for Jesus’ return, then it is necessary for us to live, as we know, heaven is already on earth.

At first glance, these words appear to require Jesus’ followers to become wimps and doormats. Nothing could be further from the truth. Loving unnaturally unleashes great power—life transforming power.

By law a Roman soldier could hit anyone once. For a person to turn the other cheek and invite another blow, defied the power of the soldier and opened him up to the possibility of being reprimanded. 

We know the power of the unnatural in our lives. As an example, when we were attacked on 9/11 there were two reactions. Some people reacted in fear and would not fly for weeks, months, or even years. Others lived defiantly and refused to allow the terrorists to control their lives.

A mother lived in a gang and drug infested part of town. Other people in the neighborhood hid behind locked doors and allowed the gangs free reign. This young mother acted unnaturally. She baked cookies and went out and engaged the drug dealers in conversation. It’s impossible to do a drug deal while a mother is present and talking with you. The mother also organized people in her neighborhood to surround crack houses and gang hangouts. Their presence and attention eventually drove the gangs and drugs out of their neighborhood.

Jesus’ words can become a reality in our lives. Rather than carry grudges, we forgive. Forgiveness not only opens the possibility of healing of that relationship, it also relieves us of a heavy burden. Praying for our enemies can be life transforming—for us and for them. It does no good telling ourselves over and over again how much we hate certain people. It is much more positive to pray for them.

There is still hope for us, God promises it, it is in our freedom we can find this hope.  The freedom to boldly proclaim Jesus Christ.  Not only in our words, but in our actions.  Freedom to stand for justice and be examples of the Gospel.  Free to not stand aside and allow hatred and prejudice take over.  Free to stand up against those things which threaten our way of life and our relationship with God. 

In God we are given power to embrace those in need, power to love, power to be free in the salvation won for us on the Cross.  Let God’s eternal freedom ring.  Amen

The Voice is Calling You

This is the message I delivered to our congregation today:

Gospel Message

The Voice is Calling You

April 26, 2015

John 10: 11-18

Please pray with me, May the words of my mouth and the meditation of our hearts together be pleasing to you, oh God.

“Build it and they will come.” the voice whispered…and the voice repeated, “Build it and they will come.”  The voice was heard by Ray Kinsella, played by Kevin Costner, Ray is a struggling Iowa Farmer who continuously hears this refrain, in the film Field of Dreams.  The voice and its meaning are a mystery.

Field of Dreams is a great movie.  In it we see Ray perplexed by the voice and the refrain, “Build it and they will come.”  The questions he has exposes him to many questions, build what, build it where, and why, and who is telling him to build it?

The film is set in Dyersville, Iowa, just 25 miles from where I was born.

I feel a special connection, you see, my dad played high school baseball against Dyersville High.  In the movie, when asked if this is Heaven, Ray replies, “No it’s Iowa.”  Which, understand, in my mind Iowa is as close as you can come to heaven on earth.

Ray, who has always had a passion for baseball, learns this unknown voice is telling him to build a baseball field in the middle of his corn field.  We learn early on that Ray had been estranged from his now deceased father.  We learn also, there was some brokenness between them, and too, his father was a baseball player struggling to make it to the big leagues.

The idea of building a baseball diamond in the middle of good productive Iowa farmland comes much to the dismay of his brother-in-law and all those who know him, who worries about Ray’s failing farm and how he is going to meet his financial obligations if he builds this he will further hurt his ability to avoid bankruptcy and losing the land.

I understand Ray’s passion, next to bicycling and annoying Susie, I too love watching baseball.  I am an avid Chicago Cubs fan.  Yeah, I know, it’s been a hundred years since they have won the World Series. Believe me you have to love the game to endure a lifetime of losing.

In the movie, Ray aided in his search for answers by the retired baseball writer Terence Mann, played by James Earl Jones (oh, now there is a voice) together they go in search for answers, led on by this voice and this mysterious refrain. 

Despite resistance from nearly everyone, the field is built, the lights come on and many of the greatest players of all time appear from out of the cornfield.

Among them is Ray’s father, from whom he had been estranged.

When we think of this movie, we think of it as a baseball movie, when in fact it is a story of a broken relationship restored between a son and his long estranged father.  It wasn’t ‘they’ who would come, but ‘him, Ray’s dad. 

It was an opportunity for them to restore a broken relationship.  To bring healing, we see it in a simple game of catch.

Throughout Lent we heard stories of brokenness and restoration.  In this time of Easter we hear of the great restoration.  Christ died on the Cross to restore us in our relationship with God

In today’s readings we hear of God’s continuing relationship with us.

Described as the Shepherd, God comes to us through Christ as our protector and our keeper. He is our familiar voice.

In the well-known 23^rd Psalm, David writes in v. 4; ...for you are with me, your rod and your staff, they comfort me.  The rod and staff are not instruments of punishment.  Rather like the shepherd they are to keep us from trouble and are to keep us safe. No one has been comforted by being beaten by a stick.  An experienced shepherd uses the rod and staff to guide the sheep and keep them safe.  Crook of the staff is used simply to bring the sheep back into the fold.

We worship a God of compassion and of love and we see that in the Good Shepherd.  We see it in a father who takes care of us.  Just prior to our Gospel, we are told in vs. 4, when he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice.  You see sheep recognize the voice of their shepherd. 

Christ is the good shepherd, he is our shepherd, he is our familiar voice, calling us to him.  We find comfort and protection in the fold of the flock.  In v. 12 of our Gospel Jesus says, “The hired hand, who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away—and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. ¹³The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care for the sheep.”

In our society today we find many who are given responsibility to care for others, who end up only caring for themselves, like the hired hands in the parable. Jesus goes on to say in our Gospel v. 16, “I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.”

Christ is saying here that we need to be aware of those who profess religion or the church and not Christ.  We read daily of false leaders, fear mongers’, race baiters and the like.  Proclaiming their own gospel of self-interest.   Putting personal agendas ahead of the needs of those they are to lead.  We hear scripture speak to this in our Second Lesson today, from 1 John 3:17, how does God’s love abide in anyone who has the world’s goods and sees a brother or sister in need and yet refuses help?

I am reminded of the congressman from my home district in Illinois who recently resigned his seat as a because of financial impropriety.  Here was a man, a young man, the age of 33, who had it all and gave it up to fulfill his self-interests.  We also hear in the streets in Missouri and Baltimore from those who are enraged by shootings, who are spurred on in the anger by political and spiritual leaders who insist on race baiting, these leaders have chosen to proclaim their cause ahead of proclaiming the Gospel.  They choose to point to all that is wrong instead of working to find peaceful constructive resolutions.

But we know God has a vested interest in us through Jesus, sent to be our shepherd, who paid for us with his life.  The true Shepherds are tough, yet gentle.  They protect their flock from danger, yet offer compassionate tender care when needed.

I am reminded of a song by country singer Holly Dunn, entitled Daddy’s Hands.  The refrain goes: 

Daddy's hands were soft and kind when I was cryin´.

Daddy´s hands, were hard as steel when I´d done wrong.

Daddy´s hands, weren´t always gentle

But I´ve come to understand.

There was always love.....In Daddy´s hands.

            These lyrics speak well to the kind of compassion we can expect from God.  Listen He is calling…He is asking us to build the kingdom.  He is asking us to show compassion.  To reach out to those in need and serve them.  He is asking us to share the Good News of a brokenness restored.

We have a great illustration of this in today’s First Reading, Acts 4: 8-12  in it Peter responds to the Jewish leaders about authority, he responds, ‘Rulers of the people and elders, if we are questioned today because of a good deed done to someone who was sick and are asked how this man has been healed, let it be known to all of you, and to all the people of Israel, that this man is standing before you in good health by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead. This Jesus is “the stone that was rejected by you, the builders; it has become the cornerstone.” There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among mortals by which we must be saved.’

Peter gives us the words and the encouragement to stand for the one true God, and the one true Savior.  When we listen to the one true voice, the voice of God, and stand on Christ as our cornerstone, we are on firm foundation to share the Good News of Restoration. 

Jesus calls us also to invite others to participate in His work.  In the work of the kingdom, to bring others to know Jesus, to know their brokenness is also restored, to hear and accept the Good News as news for them.

Are you ready to answer the call from God, he is asking you to help “build the kingdom and they will come!”

Amen

Brokenness Restored in an Empty Tomb

I had the privilege of leading worship and presenting the message at our Worship service on Palm Sunday.  What follows is that message:

Gospel Message

Palm Sunday

March 29, 2015

Mark 11:1-11

Please pray with me, May the words of my mouth and the meditation of our hearts together be pleasing to you oh God.  Amen

            Today’s Gospel reading ends with the words, “Then He entered Jerusalem and went into the Temple.”

Bike riding has become not only a form or exercise for me, but also a great way to clear my head and put my thoughts in order.  We all know Dave Nelson is the cycling master, I can only aspire to one day ride at his level.  However, as I was riding on Friday I began to think about this week’s Gospel. When I ride I begin to think about what the Gospel means to me and how God wants me to share that meaning with you.

I began thinking about this week ahead, Jesus had entered the Temple, and this week of Passion was now in full swing.  Jesus' purpose on Earth was coming to it’s climax.  It was truly a week of Passion…a week of Brokenness, we all know the Passion Story.

We hear the beginning in today’s Gospel.  Jesus makes his triumphant entrance into Jerusalem.  We hear shouts of Hosanna as his followers anticipate the pronouncement of a new King.  As this week progresses we will see and experience the very high of Palm Sunday move to the very low of Good Friday back to the very high of Easter Morning.

In preparation of Easter, we have heard through Lent of brokenness restored.  We heard of broken hearts, broken vessels, broken trust, broken bread, broken promises, and broken justice.  We heard of the brokenness restored in covenants made to Noah, Abraham, Moses, John the Baptist in a Holy Meal, and in Christ’s Crucifixion.

 This week we experience the ultimate brokenness. In this week of Passion we see the breaking of Jesus.  We experience an angry Jesus as he clears the temple of merchants and tax collectors. 

We are told of a final meal where Jesus lays out what’s coming.  It is here he reveals, much to their surprise, he will be betrayed and denied by his disciples.

We find Jesus alone in the garden where he is abandoned by his Disciples (Peter, James and John).  We hear His cries to God, feeling abandoned not only by his disciple, but by God.  Then finally we hear his concession to God’s will.

The betrayal by Judas, which he foretold, is carried out.  There is a confrontation, which Jesus quickly ends as he is arrested and taken away.

He is taken to a reluctant a reluctant Pilate.  Pilate expresses his lack of interest in becoming involved, after all he feels it should be Herod’s responsibility to deal with this Jewish problem. 

Jesus is sent to a cowardly Herod, afraid to do anything which might interfere with his Kingship, he returns him to Pilate.

We see a still reluctant Pilate, believing he has committed no crime, the people convince him that Jesus is trouble for Caesar, and Pilate must deal with the matter.

Jesus is put on trial and ultimately condemned to death.  He is awarded a crown of thorns, paraded out before the people and sentenced to the worst kind of death—Crucifixion on the cross.

In this week of Passion I would like to suggest you take some time to ponder the pain of the crucifixion.

·        The humiliation of such a cruel death

·        The prick of the thorns in Jesus head

·        The penetration of the nails in his feet and hands

·        The piercing of the sword in his side

Only then can you realize the great sacrifice, which Jesus endured for you and for me and for all of mankind.  Realize the pain he endured was yours and mine, not his.  He took on our brokenness. 

In his final moments on the cross he cried out, My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?  and He Jesus dies.

Is this the end of the story!

The assigned Gospel for today was the Passion narrative, the 14^th and 15^th chapters of Mark.  Spend some time this week reading and contemplating the words you read.  Put yourself there, at the cross, witnessing His death.  Think of how this was all done for YOU!

Come back here Friday evening to hear the passion story, to experience the pain of Jesus, to deepen your understanding of Jesus’ sacrifice for you and for me.

Leave your Brokenness at the foot of the cross.  Whether you are broken in relationships, in work situations, in spirit.  Jesus has taken on all of it and has once again made you whole. 

Come to service Friday so that you may prepare yourself for the amazing story of the empty tomb.

The truly Good News is the Cross is not the end of the story!  If the story had ended with Jesus death, there would be no story.  The real story exists in an empty tomb, not a broken cross!

Jesus left all of our brokenness on the cross, in the empty tomb he restored us to God. We are not people of the cross. We are people of the empty tomb! We are Easter People!

As Easter People we live in the resurrection, as people restored to God, our brokenness made whole.  We live life as those who have been restored to God.

As Easter people we take on some special responsibilities.  We are called to share the good news of the Empty Tomb, to bring Christ to the world.  We are to share the promises of a resurrected Jesus.  We must commit ourselves toInvite others to share in our brokenness restored.

Next Sunday we will come together again, as restored followers in the new covenant, a new life as broken made whole, to rejoice in the Good News of the resurrection.

The tomb was empty, Jesus has Risen, to restore our brokenness. 

In the resurrection we are Easter People!

Amen

Broken Justice Restored

The message I gave for our Weekly Lenten Service:

Gospel Message

Lenten Service 6

March 25, 2015

Please pray with me, may the words of my mouth and the meditation of our hearts together be pleasing to you, oh God.  Amen

These days we can hardly turn on the evening news or open the morning paper without reading of some injustice somewhere in the world.  Whether it is a young black man shot by police, a school child being bullied, or our favorite basketball team losing in the NCAA tournament on the opponent’s home court, the world is seemingly full of injustice.

We live in a broken world, everyone seems to have the own definition of justice.  Usually it doesn’t matter on which side of the fence they stand, they feel their cause, their actions, and their ideals are just.  Broken more deeply by a society intent on using their cries of injustice to whip their followers into a frenzy of dangerous, illegal and sometimes deadly behavior. 

I want to share with you two of the greatest love stories ever told.

·        The one, at Camelot; the other, at Calvary.

·        Two of the noblest kings ever to live. The one, King Arthur; the other, King of the Jews.

·        The one is adorned with a jeweled crown; the other, with a crown of thorns. 

The comparisons and contrasts between Camelot and Calvary are many, but one scene from Camelot illustrates a great theological dilemma that only the cross could resolve.

Prior to His appointment with destiny on the brow of that fateful hill, Jesus agonized in the Garden of Gethsemane: We hear in Luke 22:42  "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done".

Understand, on an emotional level, that this is the pleading of a son to his father. If your child came to you in such agony, wouldn’t you do everything within your power to grant their request? 

But this Father, this time, didn’t respond as expected. And that’s the theological rub. He denied the request of His Son, His only Son, His beloved Son. In Gethsemane, that Son was asking:   "Is there no other way?"
The Son is betrayed, arrested, deserted, denied, beaten, tried, mocked, and finally crucified. Implicitly, the Father answers:   "No, there is no other way."
But why? Why was there no other way?

We find the answer to that question in a scene from Camelot, where the adulterous relationship between Queen Guenevere and Arthur’s most trusted knight, Sir Lancelot, has divided the Round Table. When the scheming Mordred catches them in a clandestine encounter, Lancelot escapes. Guenevere is not so fortunate. She faces a trial. The jury finds her guilty and sentences her to the flame.

As the day of execution nears, people come from miles around with one question in their minds: Would the king let her die?

Mordred gleefully captures the complexity of Arthur’s predicament:
Arthur! What a magnificent dilemma!

Let her die, your life is over;
Let her live, your life’s a fraud.
Which will it be, Arthur?
Do you kill the queen or kill the law?
Tragically but resolutely, Arthur decides: "Treason has been committed! The jury has ruled! Let justice be done!"

High from the castle window stands Arthur, as Guenevere enters the courtyard. She walks to her unlit stake, where the executioner stands with waiting torch. Arthur turns away, emotion brimming in his eyes.

A herald mounts the tower where Arthur has withdrawn: "The queen is at the stake, Your Majesty. Shall I signal the torch?"
But the king cannot answer.
Arthur’s love for Guenevere spills from his broken heart: "I can’t! I can’t! I can’t let her die!"
Seeing Arthur crumble, Mordred relishes the moment: "Well, you’re human after all, aren’t you, Arthur? Human and helpless."
Tragically, Arthur realizes the truth of Mordred’s remark. Being only human, he is indeed helpless.

Without even waiting for His Guenevere to look up in repentance, the King stepped down from His throne, took off His crown, laid aside His royal robes, and descended His castle’s polished steps into humanity’s blemished streets.

But where this story ends, the greatest story ever told just begins.

Another Execution Scene…Another time... Another place…Another king.

The setting: A world lies estranged from the God who loves it. Like Genevere, an unfaithful humanity stands guilty and in bondage, awaiting judgment’s torch.
Could God turn His head from the righteous demands of the law and simply excuse the world’s sin? If not, then could He turn His head from the world He loved? Would this king burn his Guenevere?
Like the wicked Mordred, Satan must have looked on in delight:
God! What a magnificent dilemma!
Let Christ die, your life is over;
Let Christ live, your life’s a fraud;
which will it be, God?
Do you kill your world or do you kill the law?
These words from Paul’s letter to the Philippians are thought by some scholars to be the lyrics of an ancient hymn, singing about the King of kings.   Reading now from the second chapter, verses 5-8

Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death-even death on a cross!

Here Paul encourages us to think with our minds as Jesus thought with his.  Note here Jesus was not only in the form of a human, though fully God, he was truly human.  By doing so he took on human suffering, though without sin and humbled his human self on the cross.  Jesus was the ultimate scapegoat. 

That scene in Camelot was an epiphany of understanding. Suddenly, it all made sense. We know now why He had to die, only God was capable of the love necessary to give the full measure, to be completely broken, so we may become whole, there was no other way…

Arthur’s love got in the way of justice, God’s love is the way to justice.

A justice we do not deserve but which comes to us freely from our loving Father for when love and justice collide, only the cross offers a happy ending. 

Broken Justice Restored

Amen