Based on Isaiah 60:1-3, Psalm 72, Matthew 2:1-12

Isaiah 60:1-3 (C/W)

1Arise, shine; for your light has come,

and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.

² For darkness shall cover the earth,

and thick darkness the peoples;

but the Lord will arise upon you,

and his glory will appear over you.

³ Nations shall come to your light,

and kings to the brightness of your dawn.

Psalm 72

¹ Give the king your justice, O God,

and your righteousness to a king’s son.

² May he judge your people with righteousness,

and your poor with justice.

³ May the mountains yield prosperity for the people,

and the hills, in righteousness.

⁴ May he defend the cause of the poor of the people,

give deliverance to the needy, and crush the oppressor.

⁵ May he live while the sun endures,

and as long as the moon, throughout all generations.

⁶ May he be like rain that falls on the mown grass,

like showers that water the earth.

⁷ In his days may righteousness flourish

and peace abound, until the moon is no more.

Matthew 2:1-12

1In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem,²asking, ‘Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.’³When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him;⁴and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born.⁵They told him, ‘In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet:

⁶ “And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,

are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;

for from you shall come a ruler

who is to shepherd^* my people Israel.” ’

7 Then Herod secretly called for the wise men11 and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared.⁸Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, ‘Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.’⁹When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was.¹⁰When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy.¹¹On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure-chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.¹²And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.

I

Permit me to start with one more brief biblical text – the text that begins the “historical” reminiscences of our scriptures. In Genesis 12 the Bible moves beyond mythic stories of beginnings to legendary ones; something recognizable as history begins to be recorded:

Now the Lord said to Abram, ‘Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’

So Abram went, as the Lord had told him…

The story of God in human history begins here, and that beginning is recognized by Jews, Christians, and Moslems alike. God commands a man to leave his family and move from one land to another in order to create a nation that will bless all the families of the earth.

Ours is a historical faith, founded upon the conviction that God is revealed and known in the ways nations and peoples live within their own compounds and borders and with other nations and peoples. Any “inner” voices that speak to God’s people most often prompt political and social changes, even revolutions.

One step along the way of this history is the creation of kingship in ancient Israel. The God of history expects Israel’s king to do the kinds of things Psalm 72 suggests: to judge God’s people with righteousness and God’s poor with justice (the poor are the God’s as much as anyone else!), to preside over prosperity for all, to defend the cause of the poor, deliver the needy, and crush oppressors and oppression. God gives the king clear political mandates: “may righteousness flourish and peace abound, until the moon is no more.”

A wider step is taken when the “Wise Men” visit the baby Jesus and his family. They are “from the east,” beyond Israel, for this Jesus is to be “a light to the nations.” He will carry in his very body the promise given to Abraham that the nation he was about to create would bless all the families of the earth. This baby challenges the kingship and kingdom of Herod, and ultimately wins out, though at great cost.

The biblical story – and the same thread could be followed using many other texts – forces the attentive reader to ask, “Given all that talk of God and ‘the nations’ in history, how can anyone suggest Christianity has nothing to do with politics, that the church has nothing to do with the state?”

Yet that is what many say – many of us, perhaps. Many of us isolate our religious/spiritual lives from our political/material lives, as if they are from two different creators. We gut-react to political talk in the church, even non-partisan talk, with “keep the church out of politics,” or “church and state don’t mix.” Yet, there they are, through the Bible and through all of history to the present day, sometimes in cahoots, sometimes in conflict, most often simply confused.

We Presbyterians have a particularly dramatic history in this regard. Consider the three “Johns” of our past: John Calvin, who ran a theocracy in Geneva; John Knox, who turned Scotland into a reformed, not a Catholic or Anglican, state; and John Witherspoon, the only clergy person to sign the Declaration of Independence (imagine what his congregation said to him when he did that!), and who also resisted attempts to impose any religion, including his own, on the emerging United States. I wouldn’t like to face any of them with the claim “religion and politics don’t mix!”

II

I could go in many directions in this sermon…directions that would leave many of us confused ourselves. Let me try to keep the exceedingly complex and controversial topic of “Church and/or State” or “Religious and/or Politics” straight by suggesting a continuum of possible positions on the vexing question of the relationship between the two. My purpose is to ask you, as you listen, to think about where you stand on the continuum, and about where Fairmount Church stands, or should stand, on that continuum. Toward the end, I will tell you why I am going through all of this today.

Let’s consider five possible ways to express how church and state, religion and politics, relate to each other:

1)    “The church should have nothing to do with the state because religion and politics have nothing to do with each other.”

Such might be the position of pietist Christians, for whom faith is a completely inner affair that expresses itself in righteous personal living but has little or no impact on the surrounding culture. Christianity has little to offer the secular, social world, even in terms of ethics, and so has no reason to try to engage it. Such persons likely have a very “low” concept of the church itself, finding it at best convenient, but not necessary, to gather for worship and learning with other Christians. “Jesus and me” is all they seem to need to fulfill their religious obligations.

2)    “The church may encourage individual Christians to be involved politically, but without any expectation about how they should be involved or for what ends.”

This viewpoint might go so far as to say it’s a good thing to vote, maybe even to hold office, but offers no guidance or hints about how to vote, what to think about issues, what programs those who hold public office should advocate. It would want them to be honest, but otherwise leave them unencumbered from social or political expectations. Encouraging participation without direction goes hand-in-hand with a sort of “God and Country” mentality. God and Country are mutually supportive of each other (“God defends Country and Country honors God”), but neither challenges the actions or convictions of the other. To me it’s a sort of safe, feel-good way of relating church and state to one another.

3)    “The church should educate and motivate Christians to political involvement so they – as individuals – will work with others to achieve what the church believes is God’s will in the world.”

Church educational events and preacher’s sermons give guidance on the moral and ethical questions of the day, and prepare adherents of the church to get involved outside the church in affecting them. For example, hunger: the church may help educate folks about issues related to hunger with a view of getting them fired up to change laws that have to do with feeding the poor. It may even encourage them to join with others outside the church to effect change, but beyond some very basic hands-on work like preparing meals at North Church, important as that is, the church itself does not provide the vehicle for changing the way our political and social system makes food available to all.

4)    “The church should organize for political involvement so that political world will know where the church stands on issues facing that world and have to respond to it.”

This approach says the church itself, either by itself or in concert with other churches, organizes to lobby for and otherwise influence legislation. A church that does this, for example, may take a position or at least lend its name to those seeking changes in farm bills to make it easier for low-income people to access healthy or locally-grown foods. In doing this it may find itself at odds with entrenched and well-funded agricultural and business interests. Such advocacy on behalf of non-partisan but politically-loaded issues can draw a church closer together or tear it apart. But when it works it can change the world, as the Civil Rights movement did in the ’60’s, in large part because of the work of churches and synagogues.

5)    “The church should dominate the political world, seizing the reins of government so that the nation and world will conduct their business and individuals will live their lives the way the church understands God desires.”

This is the “theocracy” position that claims to be so sure it knows what God wants that the church claims the right to exercise complete control over the social and political affairs of the state. Think of radical Islamic regimes in places like Iran, or the extremely orthodox Jewish elements in Israel. Extreme factions in the religious right in our country sometimes sound as if complete domination is what they seek. This position combines the full power of religious conviction with the full power of the modern state, and allows little room for freedom or personal choice outside its control.

There is one more position I didn’t mention because it is easy to dismiss it out-of-hand. This is advocacy for particular candidates for public office. Few churches openly do that in this country, though some come pretty close, because a church can lose its tax-exempt status if it is caught.

My purpose is to invite you to think about where you stand on that continuum between complete separation of church and state, of religion and politics, on the one hand, and total melding of the two of them together into theocracy on the other. I suspect 90% of us are somewhere in between; at least that’s my experience with Presbyterians over the years.

And where should Fairmount Church be on the graph? Should Fairmount be bolder than it is in advocating positions on social and political issues? You have a pretty good reputation for involvement and even influence. Historically Fairmount welcomed African Americans and advocated for fair housing in the 1960’s, and you certainly have stood for the full inclusion of gays and lesbians in the church and in society as well. And you know what you do in regard to feeding folks at North Church and Bethany Church and offering shelter to homeless families through Family Promise. But can Fairmount build upon that today and take a more active and public role in influencing the laws and structures that stand in the way of many people’s full participation in the blessings of our land? What role will Fairmount play in moving the marker forward on God’s march through human history?

III

Here I come to the reason for this sermon this morning, and that reason will be fully laid before us next Sunday. Briefly, to celebrate Martin Luther King’s birthday next weekend, our services will try to do a little more than has been done in the past to introduce us all to Greater Cleveland Congregations.

We think this is a creative and appropriate way to celebrate Dr. King’s legacy because GCC concerns itself with the very kinds of things that he grew to understand were intimately related to his efforts for civil rights: hunger, jobs, education, and so on.

Greater Cleveland Congregations has been created to provide a vehicle for people of faith to come together to influence political policies and legislation. It depends, as do all organizations that hope to effect political and social change, upon warm bodies, numbers of warm bodies, enough numbers of warm bodies to say to the powers that be, “Here we are in significant numbers; you have to deal with us.”

Fairmount joined GCC about a year ago, put significant money into it, and has offered a small but dedicated number of our members to it. But our personal involvement has not been what was hoped at the time, and as we come to a decision point about future funding, session needs to know where Fairmount’s heart is with regard to it.

Meantime, this week, think about what I’ve asked today: where should Fairmount Church be on that continuum of positions (and maybe you have a favorite variation of one of them that you prefer)? Interestingly, the question is a good one for us not just because of GCC, but also because of the time of transition we are in. It is also good as we prepare to welcome Jim Wallis to our church in a couple of months…a man who combines evangelical faith with political action in a way that can give fits to both the left and the right. Where do we stand? Where does Fairmount stand; where should we together stand on the continuum between no involvement or interest and domination?

IV

The “Great Ends of the Church” – you may be familiar with them. They come from a Presbyterian formulation of the purpose of the church of just over a century ago, in the early years of the 20th century, which was hoped to be “The Christian Century.” They start with evangelism and end with social righteousness and the kingdom of heaven. Let’s stand and say them together as an expression of how God may still be known in our secular, material, political world.

Amen.

Scripture: Genesis 1:1-5; Acts 19:1-7; Mark 1:4-11

Genesis 1:1-5

1:1In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, 2the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. 3Then God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light. 4And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. 5God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

Acts 19:1-7

19:1While Apollos was in Corinth, Paul passed through the inland regions and came to Ephesus, where he found some disciples. 2He said to them, ‘Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you became believers?’ They replied, ‘No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.’ 3Then [Paul] said, ‘Into what then were you baptized?’ They answered, ‘Into John’s baptism.’ 4Paul said, ‘John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, in Jesus.’ 5On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6When Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied— 7altogether there were about twelve of them.

Mark 1:4-11

1:4John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5And people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him, and were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. 6Now John was clothed with camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. 7He proclaimed, ‘The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. 8I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.’

9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10And just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him. 11And a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.

I

Did one of you give this to me? It’s a poem entitled, “In the Evening We Shall be Examined on Love,” by one Thomas Centolella. The title is attributed to late-16th-century mystic and counter-Reformation figure St. John of the Cross. It has the number “5” printed at the bottom as if it is page 5 of something. Its layout looks familiar. I feel as if I know where it came from, but I cannot quite put my finger on it.

I found it in my sermon preparation folder on December 28 after our return from England. I must have put it there before we left on the 19th. But where did it come from? I can’t remember a thing about it. So, did one of you give it to me?

On December 31 of any year it’s hard to remember, and it’s fearsome when you cannot. As I hang up a new calendar and gaze at January 1 and ask about all that happened the previous dozen months, I am pretty sure my memory was at least a little better a year ago. You probably know what I mean if you are somewhere beyond middle-aged. After 60 or so calendar replacements that mark the passage of one year to the next seem harder and harder to negotiate. Hopefully we can notice some of that without fearing either dementia or impending knee surgery, though they may both be out ahead of us one day.

Who knows what the New Year will bring when you are not even sure what the Old Year brought and why? A year ago I was serving a smallish church in Ashtabula; who’d have thought that as 2010 dawned? Now I’m in a largish church in Cleveland Heights, and I’d have been the last to think that at the beginning of 2011. I confess to remembering what I needed to know faster in that smallish church than in this largish one, including names and faces (which has never been easy for me, and is not getting easier). Blame it on the size difference alone if you want; I think it’s me. I need a workout in a brain gym! Good thing a long-suffering staff is patient to remind me and help me.

What about 2012 will surprise me twelve months hence? It’s impossible to know, not matter how clear our memory.

II

What can we count on as year turns to year? “God of our lives, through all the circling years, we trust in Thee”? Yes, but can we be more specific, more to the point? Can we trust in something more tangible than “God”? But dare we trust in less? And if we trust in God, does that not leave everything else up for grabs? After all, God is the great unknown whom only our arrogance makes us think we can predict or control.

We know this: life and death, living and dying intervene in the best laid of our plans. Yes, we had a wonderful time in England with our daughter, son-in-law, and two perfectly adorable granddaughters.We learned that American and English Christmases share a lot of common traditions but also rather decisively do not share many others. For example, “Happy Christmas, and would you like a mince pie?”

Our sojourn there was wonderful. But it was darkened by news of the death of a beloved family member back here in the States, and by concern about another close family member who welcomes the New Year with an appointment for angioplasty. Our “Happy Christmas” was shadowed by sorrow and concern.

We cannot escape the realities of this life, no matter how far away we fly, so God, how can we “trust in Thee” when surprises so easily ambush us? What exactly does it mean to trust One who ordered chaos with a command for light; to trust the One who unsettled the urbane Ephesian Christians with a Holy Spirit; to trust the One from whose bag of tricks suddenly appeared John the Baptist, intent upon preparing the way for an unlikely Savior, Messiah, Christ? Give us something predictable to trust, something we can grasp in our hands and mould into a shape we can see and touch and be sure of…give us that, you “God of our lives!”

III

Did you give me this poem? You haven’t told me. Where did it come from?

One thing I found out: it isn’t brand new. Wikipedia says Thomas Centolella is a contemporary American poet. Garrison Keillor read “In the Evening We Shall be Examined on Love” on Writer’s Almanac back in 1996. One of my scary things about aging is the reality of all the poems and music I won’t hear in time…

How can I know the New Year if I cannot remember the Old? Well, the poem holds a response that helps me, and may help you, too. We cannot know the future, much less control it…ever…and so we cannot be expected to pass an examination on tomorrow. But, “In the Evening We Shall be Examined on Love,” right? Is that an easier or a harder test? One thing for certain, when it comes to love, we are graded on the curve, and that curve bends in our favor. Listen with me:

In the evening, we shall be examined on LOVE.
And it won’t be multiple choice,
though some of us would prefer it that way.
Neither will be it be essay, which tempts us to run on
when we should be sticking to the point, if not together.
In the evening there will be implications
our fear will turn to complications. No cheating,
we’ll be told, and we’ll try to figure the cost of being true
to ourselves. In the evening, when the sky has turned
that certain blue, blue of exam books, blue of no more
daily evasions, we shall climb the hill as the light empties
and park our tired bodies on a bench above the city
and try to fill in the blanks. And we won’t be tested
like defendants on trial, cross-examined
till one of us breaks down, guilty as charged. No,
in the evening, after the day has refused to testify,
we shall be examined on Love, like students
who don’t recall signing up for the course
and now must take their orals, forced to speak for once
from the heart and not off the top of their heads.
And when the evening is over and it’s late,
the student body asleep, even the great teachers
retired for the night, we shall stay up
and run back over the questions, each in our own way:
what’s true, what’s false, what unknown quantity
will balance the equation, what it would mean many years from now
to look back and know
We did not fail.

“what’s true, what’s false, what unknown quantity will balance the equation”? An “unknown quantity” will let us know “we did not fail.” But what?

Why, love itself, love in our flesh, the love of God in God’s Beloved, Jesus Christ, who both examines us and saves us from failure. In the evening, when we are examined on love, the One who loves us completely will not let us fail. Amen.

Scripture Readings:
2 Samuel 7:1-13
Luke 1:26-33
Luke 1:46-55
Romans 16:25-27

Introduction to the Readings

• All four of today’s lectionary selections revolve around the NT claim that Jesus is “son of David,” Israel’s most successful and best remembered king.
1. Samuel 7 tells that when David determined that God should live in “a house of cedar” rather than in a tent in Jerusalem, God said, “no” through the prophet Nathan. Instead, God would make David and his family into “a house forever.”  David would father a family line that would never end, sustained by God’s steadfast, covenantal love.
2. Early church – authors of the gospels – saw Jesus as the fulfillment of Nathan’s promise to David.  In Luke 1, Mary, engaged to “Joseph, of the line of David,” hears the promise that “the Lord God will give [her son] the throne of his ancestor David.”
3.  Mary’s song that follows that announcement – known as “the Magnificat” – celebrates not only her selection as the mother of God-with-us, but also the power her son will wield to turn this world upside down.  He will do the justice that Israel’s kings did not often do.  We will sing a contemporary setting of Mary’s Magnificat instead of hearing it read to us.
4. Finally, the Romans passage – Paul’s last words in that great theological letter – praises God for the “revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages” – namely, that Jesus came to rule not Israel only, but all the Gentiles, people everywhere who live “the obedience of faith.”
• Today’s four passages offer a singular witness to Jesus, king of kings and lord of lords from before time into all time.

2 Samuel 7:1-13

1Now when the king was settled in his house, and the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies around him, ²the king said to the prophet Nathan, ‘See now, I am living in a house of cedar, but the ark of God stays in a tent.’ ³Nathan said to the king, ‘Go, do all that you have in mind; for the Lord is with you.’

4 But that same night the word of the Lord came to Nathan: ⁵Go and tell my servant David: Thus says the Lord: Are you the one to build me a house to live in? ⁶I have not lived in a house since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt to this day, but I have been moving about in a tent and a tabernacle. ⁷Wherever I have moved about among all the people of Israel, did I ever speak a word with any of the tribal leaders of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, saying, ‘Why have you not built me a house of cedar?’ ⁸Now therefore thus you shall say to my servant David: Thus says the Lord of hosts: I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep to be prince over my people Israel; ⁹and I have been with you wherever you went, and have cut off all your enemies from before you; and I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. ¹⁰And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, so that they may live in their own place, and be disturbed no more; and evildoers shall afflict them no more, as formerly, ¹¹from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel; and I will give you rest from all your enemies. Moreover, the Lord declares to you that the Lord will make you a house. ¹²When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come forth from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. ¹³He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for ever.

+   +   +

Luke 1:26-33

26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, ²⁷to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸And he came to her and said, ‘Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.’ ²⁹But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. ³⁰The angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. ³¹And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. ³²He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. ³³He will reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.’

+   +   +

Luke 1:46-55 (Hymn #600)

⁴⁶And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord,
⁴⁷ and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
⁴⁸for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
⁴⁹for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name.
⁵⁰His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation.
⁵¹He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
⁵²He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly;
⁵³he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty.
⁵⁴He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy,
⁵⁵according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.’

+   +   +

Romans 16:25-27

25 Now to God who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages ²⁶but is now disclosed, and through the prophetic writings is made known to all the Gentiles, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith— ²⁷to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory for ever! Amen.

I

1. And the reason for all that Son of David/God with us for all people, even the despised “Gentiles”? The reason is Love; Love in our flesh and blood; Love incarnate.
1. Four Advent Sunday themes lead to this one: hope, peace, joy, love.
2. Each is important: each could be the main point on which all the others turn.
1. Have any one of them, you have all the others.
2. Lack any one of them, all the others suffer.
3. But in the Bible only one of them is equated with God: love.
1. James: “God is love.”
2. Love as God is the center of all centers.
3. If we have that love, we have hope and peace and joy as well.
4. Apart from that love, hope, peace and joy will likely always elude us.

II

A. “Love came down at Christmas…”

1. Christina Rosetti’s language is archaic and dated, because it depends upon a three-story conception of the universe: heaven above, hell below, earth in between: “Love came down at Christmas…”

B. Modern physics might be more helpful.

1. According to the late Judy Cannato, from whom I once tried to receive some spiritual direction and pretty much failed, but it wasn’t her fault, scientists tell us that “only one half of one per cent of the universe is tangible,” (in Living in Radical Amazement, Dec, 2008)
2. The rest is Dark Matter, Dark Energy, which Judy suggests is “a holy darkness that is fecund with possibility and promise.”  (ibid.)
3. Maybe we should say, “love emerged at Christmas” – what’s all around us anyway came out of that darkness to live in our tangible, sensible world, to live “enfleshed” with us, if you will.
4. Some even consider the darkness around that we cannot see with our eyes to be God, and suggest that modern science therefore opens a way to prove God’s existence, or that faith might impose its truths on science’s.
5.  Interesting, but it doesn’t account for…

C. “Love came down at Christmas!”

1. From somewhere outside of what we can see or only imagine or mathematically postulate, Love came to us because Love willed to come to us in the birth of a child.
2. So we can see, as we’ve never seen before, what Love really looks like and how Love really behaves,
3. In the flesh and blood of Jesus Christ.

D. Love is Christmas’s “given” – it is a gift which we cannot make, earn, or barter for ourselves, even with all of our considerable human skills and smarts.

1. It is all around us, but it is often invisible even to ourselves, even in ourselves, as we push and rush and defend and protect and isolate ourselves and condemn and lament and judge others by standards devoid of love.
2. We turn Love into romanticism or sex or cold-hearted legalism or “if it feels good, do it” or into excuses for not paying attention to those closest to us.
3. We make love more complicated than it is, and thus turn it into something it isn’t.

III

A. The love of God is so simple, so profound, so real and pervasive when we know we are loved by God and let Love guide us.

1. Several years ago David Redding, retired pastor of Liberty Presbyterian Church of Columbus, was subject of a column by Mike Harden in the Columbus Dispatch.
1. In addition to being a busy pastor and writer, he’d spent a lot of time away from home, so that home often felt like little more than “the other half of his plane ticket.”
2. Then Redding’s wife of 57 years died while he was away from home.
3. Perhaps as a witness to what he risked losing by being too busy to love his family, Redding had written a new book about how children love. in it he notes that Picasso once said that “it took him four years to learn to paint like Rafael but a lifetime to paint like a child.” Oh, to love like that!
4. Redding sums up his search for love: “These days, I’m not interested in what a Ph.D. has to say.  I want to know what a child thinks…most professed Christians could learn a thing or two about spirituality and unfettered love by watching children.” (Is that what that do for us in worship?)
5. Sounds like something Jesus said, doesn’t it? “Unless you become like little children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.”
2. Watch the child, this child, the holy child to learn what we must know about spirituality and unfettered love.

B. Pedro Arrupe, SJ, has written: “Nothing is more practical than finding God, that is, than falling in love in a quite absolute, final way.”  (on an undated card produced by the Sisters of Joseph, Baden, PA)

1. Quibble (with a Jesuit?) is that we don’t find God or love except as they are first given to us. But having quibbled that, Fr. Arrupe’s statement is powerful on this Sunday of Advent’s love:

Nothing is more practical than
finding God, that is,
than falling in love
in a quite absolute, final way.
What you are in love with,
what seizes your imagination,
will affect everything.
It will decide
what will get you out of bed in the morning,
what you will do with your evenings,
how you spend your weekends,
what you read,
who you know,
what breaks your heart,
and what amazes you with joy and gratitude.

Fall in Love,
Stay in Love,
and it will decide
EVERYTHING.”

C. Whether God’s Love came down or emerged at Christmas matters little, what matters is that God’s love overwhelms us, in Christ, at Christmas.  Fall in Love, Stay in Love…it will decide everything!  Amen.

November 28, 2011 | Meeting of Presbytery of the Western Reserve

On her final meeting as Moderator of the Presbytery

Scripture: Luke 10: 1-12

This Fall I led a discussion on a book entitled Shalom, Salaam, Peace by Allison Stokes. The book discussed the common threads in the Abrahamic faiths in an effort to produce greater understanding of the core values of the three religions and led us into discussion as to why Christianity might be a hindrance to establishing world peace. Particularly after the 10th anniversary of 9/11 and the realization that we were no closer to peace and a global understanding than we were a decade ago, this discussion group felt relevant. Our group had lively discussions and although we did not create world peace, I do believe that any time we educate ourselves about the other’s views, we do come a little closer to creating God’s vision for Peace on Earth. And I am always so humbled by how much I need to learn about the others! I think that this is a life-long study that we all must do if we believe that we all are God’s children. Growing up in the Midwest and living the majority of my life here in Ohio has made me aware how little I know about those who are not like me. I can go a day or two without hearing another language spoken, where in other parts of our country and the world, the rich diversity of language and cultures are a part of others’ daily life. I confess my unsophistication and also know that it is my job to learn about others as our planet gets smaller and the need for living together in harmony becomes more acute. The class opened up many concerns for me that I will be wrestling wit in my personal faith and educated me on small issues as well. For example, I don’t know why I saw the word Allah as the Muslim word for God. Allah is the Arabic word for God, not the name of the Muslim God. If an Arabic Christian were praying he or she would use the word Allah just as an English speaking Muslim would pray to God. WOW! There goes another stereo type of mine by the wayside! Chalk it up to the Buckeye Syndrome again!

But other things we discussed from the book are troubling such as the difficulty for the Muslim and Jew to understand our Trinitarian Doctrine as being Monotheistic when we are told to have no other gods but Yahweh. And since many Christians trip over explaining just how God can be in three persons, blessed trinity, it is little wonder our Jewish and Muslim brothers and sisters have trouble understanding it too.

And, maybe most important, is how does the Christian become a peacemaker when we believe one must accept Christ as Lord and Savior to be saved. Where does that put our understanding and acceptance of people of other faiths? How can we be peacemakers if we believe all must come to God by Christ? If we hold fast that ours in the only way, can Christians become the peacemakers we are called to be? Can Christians embrace, respect, and accept as God’s child the people who hold differing beliefs as to how to achieve a close relationship with God? Perhaps we need to work on our own peacemaking skills of acceptance of the other and respect of differences, before we claim the title of a religion founded on principals of peace.

I thought about this as I read the Scripture passage for this evening. I thought about this troubling question as I listened for God’s word as it is written in the Gospel of Luke 10:1-12.

After this the Lord appointed seventy others and sent them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he intended to go. He 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. Go on your way. See, I am sending you out like lambs into the midst of the wolves. Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals: and greet no one on the road. Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this house!’ And if anyone is there who shares in peace, your peace will rest on that person; but if not, it will return to you. Remain in that same house, eating and drinking whatever they provide, for the laborer deserves to be paid. Do not move about from house to house. Whenever you enter a town and its people welcome you; cure the sick who are there, and say to them, “The Kingdom of God has come near to you.’ But whenever you enter a town and they do not welcome you, go out into its streets and say, ‘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. I tell you, on that day it will be more tolerable for Sodom than for that town.”

OK – So what is happening here? Jesus has appointed seventy people to ministry. This ministry is not to sit in and be with other like thinkers of his synagogue. They are not to sit in beautiful sanctuaries like this one with Stained Glass Windows which block out the outside world. Jesus does not even want them to study scripture or minister to his needs. No Jesus sends them out in to the world. They are to go out into the world like lambs to the wolves without money, suitcases, of extra shoes. They are going out to be at the mercy of others’ generosity. And what are they sent out to do. Not keep to their strict dietary laws and rules about who they will associate with and who in unclean, but they are to go into strangers houses and send them greetings of peace. And these greetings include eating whatever is served to them, drinking whatever is poured, and accepting them on their level. The followers are not to move around to different houses until; they find one where people eat and drink like them. They are not to find the like- minded people who share the same views. No, they are to enter into people’s homes who welcome them and then they are to bless them, heal them, and tell them that God’s realm is near. Jesus asks us to meet with the person different than ourselves and to meet them on their level, to not force them to conform to us but that we become good guests and show respect and learn understanding.

So my next confession of this sermon after the one about not knowing that Allah was Arabic for God is a story about being a not to good host a few years ago. My first call after ordination was to serve as the Dean of the Chapel at Denison University. While there I was involved in a peacemaking group within the community of Granville and with the University students. A group of Buddhist Monks were walking across the country was a witness to peace and were going to spend the night in Granville. They were going to speak on the campus and leave the next morning as they moved to the east coast. I was renting a house from a professor on sabbatical so I had extra bedrooms to spare, so I invited the group to stay at my home, use my laundry facilities, and said I would make them a nice breakfast before they left in the morning. Now, I was not at all sure what Buddhist monks ate and we did not share a language so I thought I would serve a buffet and they could take what they liked. So, trying to be a good hostess, I made a huge breakfast with pancakes, eggs, bacon, sweet rolls, and muffins. The monks were very appreciative, kept on bowing to me and I would bow back, which of course meant that they had to bow again because they had to be the last ones to bow and they ate all the food. So I decided they must be very hungry, and since they had traveled all across the country and had a bit more to go, I should make them more breakfast. So, I whipped up more bacon, more eggs, more pancakes, more everything. And about the time they were finishing up this second breakfast, their translator from the sponsoring organization who was in charge of the monks arrived. When I told him how hungry the monks were he explained that out of respect, they were to eat all that was served to them. Then he asked what I had served them. And, of course in my ignorance, I told him how much the monks enjoyed the eggs, the bacon, and the sweet rolls. I believe he was horrified. And, so, I learned a lot that morning. Well let’s put it this way…. They might have eaten the bacon, the eggs, the pancakes and syrup, but it really was not in their diet. And well, my guess is that sometime shortly after they walked out of the Village of Granville, some real indigestion set in! Where I had not been a particularly good hostess, they had been exceptionally good guests. And they taught me a very important lesson on being a good host and being a good guest. The good host will learn about and respect their guest. And the good guest will forgive the host for their ignorance if they seem like they are trying.

The message in our scripture lesson is very relevant here. Christ saw the importance of being with people outside our faith traditions, outside our cultures, and outside the comfort of our known places. Christ saw the importance of us respecting and accepting the other, the person different than ourselves in order that those who are different than us might accept and learn about us. It seems that this might be the first step in peacemaking in our very scary world. If we don’t learn about each other and respect our differences, how are we going to create God’s peaceful kingdom. If we don’t accept the other we cannot expect them to accept us. Christian, Jew, Muslim, and Buddhist are all God’s children and a part of our family. In a post 9/11 world, in a world that is full of hatred and isolationist views, we have to learn to respect, to understand each other and to know each other.

Nice thought, yes? However my worry is that we are more a part of the problem preventing world peace than we are a part of the solution. We, who say we follow the Prince of Peace, have a lot of work to do. And we need to start at home. If we cannot live with the differences we feel between those who call themselves conservative and those who call themselves progressive within our own denomination, within our own Presbyterian family, how are we ever going bring about the peace for which this world cries out? If we cannot love and find mutuality within this Presbytery of the Western Reserve, how are we going to be a light to the world this holiday season?

Last week, we celebrated Thanksgiving and if your family is anything like mine, we joined with family members in sharing a meal and were thankful for each other and the love we shared as families… extended families, aunts and uncles, nieces and nephews, and children and parents. And if your family is anything like mine you are not all of the same mind on many issues. In my family we are Christian and Jew, republican and democrat, conservative and liberal. And we love each other and our differences are the mosaic of our family. We have a crazy aunt, a wild teenager, and a genius no one understands. We love each other and are interested in each other not because we are the same, but because we are from the same family.

And we here at the Presbytery of the Western Reserve are a family as well. This year as moderator, I have experienced the Presbytery as a family as we worshipped together, had a picnic together, grieved together, rejoiced together, we have gained members and lost others, argued our views on issues, voted on amendments and confessions, and lived the life of the church. We certainly did not agree on everything and well, some of us are like the crazy old aunt in my family, but we are a family. And as a family it is my hope that we appreciate our differences and know that they too are the mosaic of our church family. We are stronger together and stronger when we love and appreciate the other in our midst. So let’s start by sharing this meal tonight. As we the Presbytery of the Western Reserve commune at our Lord’s Table, let’s do so knowing that we are all not of one mind, we are not all on the same page as to the many changes that have taken part in our church this year. But just as we sat at table with our relatives this past week and loved them and claimed them in spite of our differences, we too love and claim each other. Once we realize our familial love, our familial respect, and our familial bond, we can begin to reach out and be peace makers in God’s good world!

Amen

+ + + + + 

Isaiah 64:1-4

O that you would tear open the heavens and come down, so that the mountains would quake at your presence—
² as when fire kindles brushwood and the fire causes water to boil— to make your name known to your adversaries, so that the nations might tremble at your presence!
³ When you did awesome deeds that we did not expect, you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence.
⁴ From ages past no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who works for those who wait for him.

1 Corinthians 1:3-9

3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
4 I give thanks to myGod always for you because of the grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus, ⁵for in every way you have been enriched in him, in speech and knowledge of every kind – ⁶just as the testimony of Christ has been strengthened among you – ⁷so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁸He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you may be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁹God is faithful; by him you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

+ + +

Wait: the word appears in both of those readings. From Isaiah we heard the promise that “[God] works for those who wait for [God].” From Paul’s pen we heard the affirmation that the Christians in Corinth were “not lacking in any spiritual gift as [they] wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Today’s gospel reading does not contain the word wait, but it is about “that day or hour” when Jesus will come again. Since no one knows exactly when that will be, we can only wait for it. But lest we think we are just to sit by and wait passively, Jesus offers some “content” to fill our waiting days; we are to “beware” and to “keep alert” and “awake,” and according to some manuscripts, to “pray” as we wait. Listen with me to Mark 13:32-37:

32 ‘But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. ³³Beware, keep alert [some add and pray]; for you do not know when the time will come. ³⁴It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his slaves in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch. ³⁵Therefore, keep awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or at dawn, ³⁶or else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly. ³⁷And what I say to you I say to all: Keep awake.’

 I

Wait…wait…wait… Can you stand it?

If you are a red-blooded American, probably not. We hate to wait.

And yet, waiting is what the season of Advent is all about. Yep, waiting.

Can we stand it?

Christine Chakoian, pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Lake Forest, Illinois, begins a brief article on today’s 1 Corinthians reading in a way I would claim as my own if I thought I could get away with it…

“The disconnect between church and secular calendars may never be greater than on the first Sunday of Advent. The irony is that both ostensibly share the same goal: preparing the world for Christmas.

“The commercial world is using every medium possible to hawk its urgent message. Our mailboxes, television and radio stations, e-mail in-boxes and web pages overflow with one unanimous appeal: buy gifts now. (Actually, I think the appeal is more like, “Buy things now.”) Buy the gifts that your friends or your loved ones need or want. Buy gifts because you are expected to do so and to prove you love your family, admire your boss, appreciate your colleagues, are sensitive to your in-laws, generous toward your employees, and respect your children’s teachers. Buy to show your patriotism…” (“Reflections on the Lectionary,” Christian Century, November 15, 2011; 21)

Chakoian concludes that it feels like a “lost cause” for the church to try to compete with that sheer volume of advertising. Our message of “beware, be alert, stay awake, pray, watch, and wait” is a hard sell in this environment. Why? Because the church is waiting for the “bang” that will signify the coming of the Kingdom of God, not the “bling” of another electronic gismo in our pockets.

Advent is not about pretending for a few weeks that Jesus has never been born so we can come here Christmas Eve and see him born again. The church knows Jesus has been born. We know the baby Jesus grew up, lived, served, taught, suffered, died, rose again to new life on the third day, and promised to come again to judge and claim this world as his own. There’s the rub – that “return” and that “kingdom to come”. The commercial world would rather forget all that; it wants us to focus on the warm and fuzzy immediacy of a smiling infant who never grows up to challenge or change a thing, not the future, not our values, and certainly not how we spend money.

Disclaimer: I am not denying the joy and satisfaction I get, and I hope we all get, out of finding and purchasing and giving gifts to people we love. It is the profoundest pleasure to be able to share blessings with those who mean everything to us. Much of what we all do in this season is appropriate and fun and good, for Christ’s sake!

But when our doing of it becomes obsessive, when it demands more of us than we can give without risking our own soul’s health, then the season becomes an instrument of that very sin and death from which the new-born Savior came to deliver us. When we hear ourselves adding the two little words “too much” to our pre-holiday activities – as in I ate too much, I drank too much, I spent too much, I did too much – then we know how far overboard we’ve jumped. Worse, when we conclude there is nothing we can do to change our “too much” behavior, we admit we are weak before the very powers Jesus came to defeat, and that without him, we remain locked in their grip.

II

Wait…wait…wait… Can you stand it?

Isaiah comforts us about this wait: “the Lord works for those who wait for [God]”. The Corinthian Christians are assured they possess every spiritual gift as they await the revealing of Jesus.

That’s the point: Advent’s waiting is a spiritual exercise. It is a test of our spiritual health; it is a means to improve that health as well. Like all good exercise, it both proves how far we can go, and strengthens us to go farther.

We – the church – wait during these four weeks for the completion of the work the Christ child was born to initiate. We wait actively, because we trust that what Jesus began in his life, death and resurrection will one day be fully realized, and we want to be ready for it. We wait in the full sense of the Hebrew word “wait”: we long for, we hope for, we expect … what? Nothing less than the dawn of the new age, of the just kingdom and the gracious rule of God over all creation. The end of death’s hold on humankind, a hold expressed in the injustice, violence, warfare, hatred, poverty, and sorrow that grip our life together.

When that quality of waiting and hoping and longing controls our lives, the light of God’s mercy and grace shines bright upon our values and our choices. That light tests those values and those choices by the measure of what Christ has done in us and is still doing in the world. We consciously decide where our values, driven by our faith, lead us to spend and lead us to give. We are not helpless victims of slick ad campaigns. We know we are children of God through the child-become-man Jesus Christ, so we spend, give and live as members of God’s human family. Everything is measured by the measure of Christ. He works for those who wait for him.

Ironically, Fairmount Church invites us into the fray, and can threaten to add to the must-do-before-Christmas list, can seem to squeeze whatever precious little time to wait we may think we have. If you turn to the last couple of pages of today’s bulletin you see what I mean. They are all good things, good activities, good causes, good for you and me and for the community. I hope you will find time for them: this Wednesday’s Advent by Candlelight service; if appropriate, next Sunday’s “blue” service at 8:30; health kits and the glove, sock and hat tree; Christmas pageant, Heifer Gift Market, the Guild’s Cookie Co-op, Boomers Christmas party, special musical presentations, and the Christmas Joy Offering and Family Promise week (not in here today). Every one of those is worthy of your participation in the next four weeks.

But…if we pile any or all of these on top of everything else we have to do, when will we wait? How will we wait? We will likely compromise the spiritual power of this Advent season, the power to ready us to welcome Christ’s final victory over the forces of death and evil in our lives and world. We may prepare for Christmas but miss the Christ.

III

So, strangely, I suggest one more “thing”, but it’s a one more than can make all the others different and productive: Fairmount’s Advent Devotional booklet. It can guide and focus your daily “waiting time” this Advent season, and so give meaning to the rest of your time.

I urge you to take it with you this morning, and to use it by yourself or with others to force yourself to create time for quiet, for reflection, for prayer. It may help alert you to signs of Christ you would otherwise miss. It may cause you to choose more carefully those activities that can both test and strengthen your faithfulness to Christ. It may move you to act to ease the pain and suffering of others, not only at Christmas but year-round. It may push you to pray for yourself, for your family and friends, and for the world with a conviction you’ve never prayed before. You might even conclude that during this Advent you prayed too much. Would that be a bad thing?

These meditations and prayers are the gifts of your fellow Fairmounters, offering their convictions to us all in a way that can change us all. They are prime examples of our mutual spiritual ministry to one another. Thank them by taking their work home today. Then, take the time, make the time, extract the time from your schedule to use it. And wait…wait…wait… You will be astonished at how listening to it will help you get it all done just when you think you’ve run out of time.And to know you’ve done what is really important to Christ, to you and to all whom he calls you to love.

IV

One of Bob Moncrief’s many gifts to Fairmount is his ability to choose anthems that “fit” what’s going on in worship. I cannot let the words of the anthem we heard before the readings pass without praying them on behalf of Fairmount Church, for all of us together. Let us pray:

“Lord, before this fleeting season is upon Fairmount Church, let us remember to walk slowly. Lord, bless our hearts with Love and with quiet. Give our hearts a leaning to hear carols. Grace our [church] family with contentment, and the peace that comes only from You. Lord, help us to do less this busy season; go less; stay closer to [this] home; kneel more. May our hearts be your heart. May we simply, peacefully, celebrate you, Lord.” Amen.

I wonder if 50 years from now, historians will look back and point to 2011 as the year the world thumbed their nose at Monarchs, Presidents, dictators and at policies that are oppressive. This really has not been a good year for Heads-of-State around the world.

Eleven months ago the first rumblings of the Arab Spring began to come to light in Tunisia, but then, in January, the events in Egypt captured the main stage and the world’s attention.

Those protests led to the resignation of President Mubarack and to the beginning of a different kind of society in Egypt, but they were the fan to the flames of unrest in at least 15 other countries in the Middle East, most notably Syria and Libya, whose leader, as you know, was killed in an all-out civil war.

In the midst of all that global turmoil the British made monarchies look good with the royal wedding, but given the state of world affairs and grim economic news that over the top extravagance highlighted the widening gap between the super wealthy and those on the margins and in the end could not hold our attention forever. The Arab Spring continues to this day and has inspired other forms of protest the world over, including right here in the United States.

The Occupy movement could, until recently, be found on Wall Street and in many other cities around the country. It builds upon some of the same simmering problems that plagued those countries in the Arab world.

But unlike those protesting in the Arab Spring, who are trying to change oppressive governments, the Occupy “Wall Streeters” are taking aim at economic policies they feel are benefiting a few at the expense of so many others.

While I might not agree with all of their strategies and would appreciate it if they were more eloquent, and possibly more knowledgeable, in how they express their opinions, I do appreciate how they are, for the most part, trying to call attention to practices and policies that are less than friendly to the very least of these. I appreciate how they are advocating for justice in the world.

The prophet Ezekiel had a similar task. He was called by God to challenge the power and privilege of the Davidic kings who had been abusing their status and position for generations. He was a young priest in Jerusalem right before the wars began that would result in the Hebrew’s exile and the goal of his ministry was to help the Hebrew people and their leadership understand that the came about because of the flawed and selfish kings of Jerusalem.

In fact, the first 9 verses of the 34th chapter make his opinions pretty clear. He says,

“Thus says the Lord God: Ah, you shepherds of Israel (which was a title used to describe the work of the king) who have been feeding yourselves! Should not shepherds feed the sheep? 3You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fatlings; but you do not feed the sheep. 4You have not strengthened the weak, you have not healed the sick, you have not bound up the injured, you have not brought back the strayed, you have not sought the lost, but with force and harshness you have ruled them.”

Then describing the exile he goes on to say that the sheep have been lost, have become prey and have been scattered to the worst fields.

But then, as we see in today’s passage, Ezekiel turns toward the future and becomes distinctly positive and hopeful. His message, “There’s a NEW Shepherd in town.”

And this Shepherd is VERY aware of the struggle the sheep have endured; this is a shepherd who will:

• Seek out the lost,
• bring back the strayed,
• bind up the injured,
• strengthen the weak and
• feed the hungry.

This Shepherd will forsake the “fat and strong.” Now God does not particularly have an issue with a person’s body size. The point of that phrase alludes to those who have enjoyed the luxuries of life while others struggled.

God will no longer tolerate the injustice that the former shepherds carried out against the sheep and instead promises a new shepherd who will come to work out God’s justice in the world. And that new Shepherd, that son of David, did come in the person of Jesus Christ who was born in a manager and died on a cross. And in between those defining bookends of his life, this new shepherd, this messiah-king, sought out the lost, fed the hungry, healed the sick, and befriended the sinners. And he promises to come back to us as a “shepherd who separates sheep from goats.”

But there is our trap. We hear talk of sheep and goats being separated and we get stuck wondering if we are a sheep or a goat and we miss the real invitation of the text.

Ezekiel and Jesus both are asking us if we will place our trust in the usual things people have elevated to godlike status: temporal power, wealth, celebrity and fame and in so doing pattern our lives on those values which lead to separation and anxiety,

Or will we recognize Christ as our King, our shepherd, and then live accordingly. Will we search out Christ’s presence by working for justice with and for those who are marginalized and disempowered and in so doing enjoy the compassion reign of Christ in our lives here and now?

Today we celebrate Christ the King Sunday. To call Christ our King, our President, our Head of State, our Shepherd is to say publically that our ultimate authority does not reside in Washington, or on Wall Street, but in the person of Jesus Christ who lived his life on the margins and who invited us to follow; who expects us to care for the least of these.

How will you demonstrate this call to the margins in your life? How will we respond as a congregation?

Based on: 1 Thessalonians 5:9-11 & Matthew 25:14-30

Texts

The 25th chapter of the gospel of Matthew is Matthew’s grand conclusion and summing up of Jesus’ teaching ministry. It consists of three narratives, of which today’s reading is the second. Each answers a pressing question facing the early church.

The first narrative is the parable of the wise and foolish virgins, and answers the question, “How shall disciples await the return of the Lord?” with “They will stay awake and keep giving light in the dark world.” The third story is the Vision (it’s not a parable!) of the Last Judgment, and it answers the question, “By what standards will the nations that do not know the name of Jesus be judged?” with “By their behavior toward the poor and the needy.”

The middle story is a parable, like the first. It is often called the “Parable of the Talents,” but I like to think of it as the “Parable of the Talented.” It answers the question, “Do differences in the gifts given to the members of the church matter?” with “No, what matters is what each member does with what she or he has been given.” To me it is the most unsettling of the three. Get unsettled with me as we hear Matthew 25:14-30:

14‘For (the kingdom of heaven) is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them; 15to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away.

16The one who had received the five talents went off at once and traded with them, and made five more talents. 17In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents. 18But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.

19After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. 20Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, “Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.” 21His master said to him, “Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.” 22And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, “Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.” 23His master said to him, “Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.”

24Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, “Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed; 25so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.” 26But his master replied, “You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter? 27Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest. 28So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents. 29For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. 30As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Unsettled? I hope so. But allow three verses from 1 Thessalonians to calm you down again. Listen with me to 1 Thessalonians 5:9-11:

9For God has destined us not for wrath but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep we may live with him. 11Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, as indeed you are doing.

I

A talent is a lot of money…more than fifteen years’ worth of a laborer’s wages. So five talents is a heck of a lot of money, if not for wealthy people, then certainly for the working class hand-to-mouth folks who were Jesus’ best students.

The parable of the master who entrusted so much cash to mere slaves is so over-the-top that we cannot avoid suspecting it’s not about money at all, but about everything in life that we are and that we have been given. It is about the good news of Jesus Christ entrusted into our hands.

A brochure about Fairmount Church that was produced during Hank Andersen’s tenure as Pastor opens with a quote from then Associate Pastor David McMillan (That an Associate should get the opening word is a bit astounding, but recalls the oft-forgotten “parity” of Presbyterian clergy.):

I don’t know who…will want what we have been given to pass on; will want the miracles and the stories, the hard prophetic words and the gentle poetry. But…we really have no choice. We are [to pass on what we’ve been given] not because we love others, but because certain things seem to us unique and priceless and they “push us out into the world in their service.”

We have been given things that “push out into the world in their service.” Unless we are like that third slave-the one who buried his one talent, who kept the good news to himself.

II

Quite honestly, there’s a lot not to like about “The Parable of the Talents.” My first couple of drafts of this sermon started with more pages about what I don’t like about it than you need to hear. In sum: I don’t like the way it gives more to the most able and less to the least able and leaves their fate up to things over which they have no control; I don’t like how they each do their own thing without awareness of or any responsibility to one another as if discipleship is a competitive sport; I wonder who those “bankers” are to whom they were supposed to entrust what the master had given them (were they assumed to be honest, to have their depositors’ best interests at heart…and were they regulated?); and I think this master is, when all is said and done, every bit as “harsh” as the third slave fears – good to those who do well, but unforgiving toward those who do not measure up, a sort of Steve Jobs by all accounts.

At the same time this man is incredibly successful. He is very good at what he does, in the kinds of people he hires (or enslaves, I guess), in his ability to get the best from the best. (Steve Jobs again?) The slaves to whom he gives five and two talents do well by him, and when he returns and they present to him ten and four talents he gives them more responsibility yet and invites them into his closest, happiest presence. It is as if he who had first entrusted them with his treasure now entrusts them with himself.

And this parable is not about money; it is too big for mere cash. No, it is about life, about whether we live and invest life as a trust from God to us, as a gift of God both in who we are – our richly varied abilities – and in what we have been given, even if we deceive ourselves by thinking our hard work alone has earned it for us.

I hear this parable as a hard slap on our complacent souls. Its intent is to wake us up to the expectations of the faith we have received and the abilities we have been given. It forces us to remember that Christians do not do what we do for others because we think we love them; our love alone is too fickle and short-sighted and self-justifying to sustain any efforts. No, we do what we do because we know we have been entrusted with the unique and priceless “thing” of the good news of God’s love and justice in Jesus Christ. That is what pushes us out into the world of bankers and marketplaces in both evangelism and service, telling that good news and doing it, too.

III

The Parable of the Talented calls us all – from today’s newest members to our longest-legacy members as well as those who follow Jesus but are not official members – to account for our lives and our livings. It calls Fairmount Church, as the body of Christ in this place, to account for its existence. What do you and I produce in our master’s name day after day? What does Fairmount Church produce?

Strangely, there’s both risk and reward in being productive. Yes, there is the risk of being given more to do as our skills and knowledge increase, not to mention the risk of failure. But there is also the reward of experiencing the deep peace and contentment of knowing that in both life and in death we belong to Christ.

But what is in this parable for those among us who have been sitting on our abilities and our gifts, or investing them only or predominantly for ourselves and our well-being? Do we who have excused ourselves as being “untalented” still have a chance to turn ourselves and our living around?

We do if we are still breathing, as I trust we all are…

And it’s not just our breathing that gives us hope. There are also the good news words of 1 Thessalonians 5:9-11. I leave them with you as the final word on the apparently “harsh” master of the Parable of the Talented. It is a word entrusted to the church in all times and places, and spoken to us all where we live and work and play and serve:

God has destined us not for wrath but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep we may live with him. Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, as indeed you are doing.

That’s good news for each of us, a unique and priceless treasure worthy of our full investment. Amen.

“Choose This Day”

Today we gather in worship to give thanks to God for Fairmount’s 95 years of ministry on this corner in Cleveland Heights. On November 5th, 1916, 45 members were in attendance as the first service of worship was held here at Fairmount Presbyterian Church. That congregation worshipped in a little white building. The family of faith quickly grew, building the many different parts of this church to accommodate all who felt called to gather here around the communion table. And when those around the table began to look a little bit different we embraced the gifts of diversity, which have helped us grow into a more just and faithful church.

The music of this congregation has soared, lifting us with along with it closer to God; inspiring our continued passion and commitment to the Living Christ in our midst. Through the years the ministry of this congregation has provided for Christian Education to nurture the faith of children and adults; We have engaged members in mission work in the city building Habitat houses, feeding the hungry, advocating for justice for those who are oppressed and downtrodden and by providing resources for those who are in need. Our mission continues to reach around the world, helping to build a hospital in the Dominican Republic that continues to serve the very least of these.

Through the years this congregation has enjoyed the spiritual leadership of eight Senior Pastors and countless other ordained clergy and educators who were called to help nurture the faith and life of the community here. But the efforts and passions of the pastors and educators who have come and gone were not responsible for the amazing ministry of this congregation. With the power of the Holy Spirit all of you, the members of this family of faith have, through the years, embodied God’s call and vision for this community. This congregation has thrived and remained faithful despite multiple fires, a flood, and other challenges that threatened to unsettle and disorient our commitment to live as disciples of Jesus Christ. And now, here we sit in another time of transition, as we celebrate our church’s 95th birthday. Here we sit, on the cusp of something new after having come so far.

We are not so different from the ancient Hebrew people in the book of Joshua. We both are relatives of those who have made a long journey of faith and we both find ourselves in the middle of a new beginning. Ok, the ancient Hebrews’ ancestors had a different kind of journey. Theirs was a more literal journey. They were called by God to leave all they knew, found their way down into Egypt where they were enslaved. They were freed by Moses and fled through the Red Sea only to wander in the wilderness for forty years. But now they are in a new land with all kinds of new opportunities before them and Joshua pauses here to ask them to reconsider their commitment, to ask them to make some difficult choices.

Let us listen for God’s Word to us this day from the Book of Joshua 24:1-3a, 11-25

The Word of the Lord Thanks be to God

The Promised Land is finally theirs. With the recent victories at Jericho and Gibeon the Hebrew people were finally able to settle down in the land of Canaan, the land promised to their ancestors, Abraham and Sarah. They were finally in a place where they could celebrate and live into the bright future that was before them. But Joshua does not let them get too settled. He calls all the tribes of Israel to Shechem for their form of a congregational meeting.

Once everyone is gathered, and a quorum has been called, Joshua calls the meeting to order by reminding the people of who they are. Speaking for God, Joshua retraces the steps of their history: “Long ago your ancestors lived beyond the Euphrates; and then I took Abraham and Sarah and led them through the land of Canaan and I made their offspring many; You went down to Egypt, but I sent Moses and then I led you out of Egypt. The Egyptians came after you, but I led you to safety through the desert and blessed you again and again. I brought you to this land and gave it to you even though it was not yours.” (Joshua 2-13)

Joshua retells their story; calling everyone’s attention to the many ways that God’s initiative shaped their lives. He retells their story to help make it clear that this is their continuing story. This shared history molds their identity as the people of God and encourages a posture of thanksgiving for God’s gifts and presence. And as their shared story is being retold the Hebrew people are able to run their hands through the rich and fertile soil of their promised land; they finally know and understand that everything in their story has led them to this moment, when they stop being pilgrims and become landowners, a people of privilege.

In this new circumstance Joshua calls the Hebrew people together to remind them that they have a choice to make. “Choose this day whom you will serve.” Surrounded by the extravagant abundance of this promised land, will the Hebrews continue to place their trust and faith in Yahweh, who has always provided, or will they embrace a different way of life with different values. Of course the crowds affirm their commitment to Yahweh, but Joshua does not let them off that easy. When the crowds quickly pledge their fidelity to God Joshua presses them two times because he is sure Yahweh does not want casual, verbal pledges but rather a life commitment that will affect each person’s daily living. Joshua recognizes that this pledge, this claim requires much from each person and from the community.

Walter Brueggemann says, “Joshua fully recognizes that other choices are available, other gods (little g) and other ways of life. And a decision must be made! Israel, and the church, must decide again and again about identity, about defining passions and loyalties .” And, of course, he is right. Whether we realize it or not we do make choices; as communities and as individuals we make choices about what we will worship and serve and then we embody those choices in how we live. Some of these choices are intentional and some are unintentional, but all of our choices have an impact.

A few years ago Kenda Creasy Dean published a book called “Almost Christian.” This book discusses the religious life of teenagers and used a recent national survey of the religious attitudes and habits of youth as a launching point to discuss the religious habits and practices of the American church. In this book she says: “The problem does not seem to be that churches are teaching young people badly, but that we are doing an exceedingly good job of teaching youth what we really believe: namely, that Christianity is not a big deal, that God requires little, and the church is a helpful social institution filled with nice people focused primarily on “folks like us” – which, of course begs the question of whether we are really the church at all. What if the blasé religiosity of most American teenagers, (and I would argue American Culture) is not the result of poor communication but the result of excellent communication of a watered-down gospel so devoid of God’s self-giving love in Jesus Christ, so immune to the sending love of the Holy Spirit that it might not be Christianity at all? What if the church models a way of life that asks, not passionate surrender, but ho-hum assent? What if we are peaching moral affirmation, a feel-better faith, and a hands-off God instead of the decisively involved, impossibly loving, radically sending God of Abraham and Mary, who desired us enough to enter creation in Jesus Christ and whose Spirit is active in the church and in the world today? ”

What if…. Hard words that beg for a response?

It is providential that this text is before us as we celebrate our community’s 95th birthday and as we prepare to dedicate our stewardship offerings this morning. Like these ancient Hebrews, we too stand on the cusp of a new world in which everything is different and anything is possible.

• We now life in a post-modern world where access to information and digital opportunities are boundless;
• Our context for ministry is so different from the time when the church was founded –
• o Cleveland is a different city with different gifts and challenges; Cleveland Heights is a different suburb;
• o The congregation itself is changing, growing younger, and as we live in a time of transition there is a sense of curiosity about where we are headed and who we will become.

In the newness of this moment in our communal life Joshua’s challenging questions invites us to decide, to decide whom we will serve.

Will we embrace a blasé religiosity that believes God doesn’t require much of us; will we be merely a helpful social institution filled with nice people or will we embrace the decisively involved, impossibly loving, radically sending God of Abraham and Mary who desires our commitment so that through us, God’s blessings may become everyone’s blessings.

Choose this day for the choice is yours, the choice is ours!

Amen and Amen.

The Texts

Today’s sermon began life as “The Re-formation of Scripture,” and ended up as “The Re-formation of Sainthood.” The two topics are intertwined on this day that we celebrate the Protestant Reformation of the 16th and following centuries, and on which we also remember the saints who have preceded us. But I realized I had to do one topic or the other, and the other won out.

The lessons inspired my original intentions, so they may seem to have little to do with “saints and sainthood.” But those saints are in there; you just have to listen very carefully!

1 Thessalonians 2:9-13

9 You remember our labor and toil, brothers and sisters; we worked night and day, so that we might not burden any of you while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God. 10You are witnesses, and God also, how pure, upright, and blameless our conduct was towards you believers. 11As you know, we dealt with each one of you like a father with his children, 12urging and encouraging you and pleading that you should lead a life worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory (to sainthood, you see).

13 We also constantly give thanks to God for this, that when you received the word of God that you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word but as what it really is, God’s word, which is also at work in you believers.

Matthew 23:1-12

23Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, 2‘The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat; 3therefore, do whatever they teach you and follow it; but do not do as they do, for they do not practice what they teach. 4They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on the shoulders of others; but they themselves are unwilling to lift a finger to move them. 5They do all their deeds to be seen by others; for they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long. 6They love to have the place of honor at banquets and the best seats in the synagogues, 7and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and to have people call them rabbi. 8But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all students. 9And call no one your father on earth, for you have one Father—the one in heaven. 10Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Messiah. 11The greatest among you will be your servant. 12All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted (saints again, right?).

I

Who are “the saints”? – and the right answer is NOT the NFL’s New Orleans franchise. Remember where you are!

Again…who are “the saints”?

The Protestant Reformation returned the church’s understanding of sainthood to something closer to the understanding held by the early church than was being put forth by the late-medieval Roman Catholic Church. This return to earlier conceptions was driven in large part by the reformers’ commitment to scripture rather than to tradition as primary bearer of God’s revelation. Thus, “The Re-formation of Scripture” led to “The Re-Formation of Sainthood,” and a lot of other “re-formations” as well.

The move was from understanding saints as an officially identified, canonized and sanctioned few to understanding saints as all the people/children of God – as the holy masses residing in God’s realm both in this life and in the life to come. Saints were not those proven to have done miracles on this earth and so apparently able to do miracles from heaven and therefore prayed to in times of crisis. Saints were now ordinary disciples who lived extraordinary lives, even if not miraculous ones.

“All Saints’ Day” is not a day to catch any “saints” missed in the official lists. It is a day to recall all the children/people of God, both living in the here and now, and living eternally in God’s presence.

II

Who are the saints?

The saints are not just “good” people if by “good” we mean “they did no wrong.” Sainthood is not a negative moral category, belonging to those who get through life with a clean slate by never doing anything (or much) that’s bad. That’s because simply doing nothing bad is not as important to sainthood as is doing some things good. Sainthood is not about those who closet themselves away from the world and contribute nothing to it. (At least I don’t think it is; more on that later.)

Saints are those whose living shines a holy light into the world around them, such as is depicted in traditional religious art’s haloes. They give forth an aura that points beyond themselves to the Christ they are following. When others see them, they want to follow Christ, too.

Saints are those whose living makes a positive difference to others. Saints need not be physically, emotionally, spiritually or even morally perfect, or even above average. Few are. They can be severely disabled, handicapped even, in one or more ways – but nonetheless there is something about them that says they live not just for themselves, but for others. There’s a love inside them that shine through the cracks in their life’s armor to brighten the world.

III

Who are the saints?

Just us in the church? Or just believers in Jesus Christ? Can anyone not in the church, who does not profess Jesus in words, be a saint? Can we who are in the church and who know how to say “the right” words about Jesus take it for granted that we are numbered among the saints?

We Presbyterians know how to fight about those kinds of questions, in part because of our tradition of “predestination,” or “election.” We hold that we are God’s because Christ has chosen us to be God’s; “you did not choose me, but I chose you,” and the like. Nothing we say or do can force God to “elect” or to “un-elect” us. And we cannot know for sure who is in and who is out.

A decade ago our fight about salvation was fierce and growing long. Our Presbyterian Office of Theology and Worship produced a short pamphlet called, Hope in the Lord Jesus Christ. It’s a wonderfully concise account of such issues. It includes one marvelous paragraph that I think answers the “who’s in and who’s out” question as clearly and graciously as I can imagine. It even qualifies my earlier statement that “Sainthood is not for those who closet themselves away from the world and contribute nothing to it.” The paragraph suggests I may be wrong about; I cannot be too sure…listen:

Jesus Christ is the only Savior and Lord, and all people everywhere are called to place their faith, hope, and love in him. No one is saved by virtue of inherent goodness or admirable living, for “by grace you have been saved though faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God” [Ephesians 2:8]. No one is saved apart from God’s gracious redemption in Jesus Christ. Yet we do not presume to limit the sovereign freedom of “God our Savior, who desires everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” [I Timothy 2:4]. Thus, we neither restrict the grace of God to those who profess explicit faith in Christ nor assume that all people are saved regardless of faith. Grace, love, and communion belong to God, and are not ours to determine. [Presbyterian Church (USA), 2002]

Thanks be to God!

Say it with me: Thanks be to God!

IV

Who are the saints?

You, me, us individually and us together, the church, this church, when we live as if we are saints. Grateful to God, saints do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with God. Saints forgive, and saints accept forgiveness. Saints worship, saints pray, saints sing, saints speak of and for Christ. Saints offer Christ as the way, truth and life for all people, inviting others to follow him with them, but never judging, lest they be judged. Saints practice patience, seek understanding, speak truth to power, love God, self, neighbors, and yes even their enemies and those who persecute them, even if just by being annoying. Saints are generous toward the needs of the church and the needs of those beyond the church as well. Saints are good citizens, practicing a patriotism that submits to a Christ who died for all people, for all nations, out of love. Saints do everything they do as if they are saints – because for all they know, they are – patiently trusting this life and whatever life is yet to come to the faithful Savior, Jesus Christ.

V

Who are the saints?

Today, they are those who fully know the blessings and the joys of eternity with Christ – who are in his complete care (no death, no pain, no crying, and so on); who have closed the book on their earthly chapters and who now live the chapter that has no final page in God’s presence. I don’t claim to know all the details of saints’ existence beyond this world…who they are with and in what form, what paves their cities’ streets, and so on… all I know is that they are blessed and joyous beyond my imagination. Which is really all I need to know until it is time for me to know the whole story.

VI

Who are the saints?

They are “all those saints who from their labors rest.”

And they are also…well, just look around you…right now…you can actually see some saints…can’t you?

Amen.

Lectionary: 1 Thessalonians 2:1-8 and Matthew 22: 34-40

1Thessalonians 2:1-8

You yourselves know, brothers and sisters, that our coming to you was not in vain, but though we had already suffered and been shamefully treated at Philippi, as you know, we had courage in our God to declare to you the gospel of God in spite of great opposition. For our appeal does not spring from deceit or impure motives or trickery, but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the message of the gospel, even so we speak, not to please mortals but to please God who tests our hearts. As you know and as God is our witness we never came with words of flattery or with a pretext for greed; nor did we seek praise from others, though we might have made demands as apostles of Christ. But we were gentle among you, like a nurse tenderly caring for her own children. So deeply do we care for you that we are determined to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you have become very dear to us.

Matthew 22:34-40

When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, and one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. “Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?” he said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and first commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”

Something that ministers don’t like to talk about very much is that the month of October is a very sad month. I don’t know if it is the natural order of life that as the leaves fall off trees and the summer flowers wilt, dry out, and die, and the wind begins to bring a chilly feel, but what we experience within the church family is a greater amount of deaths. People die in October. It is a very sad month.

And this year has not been any different. We will have more members of our congregation die this month than any other month of the year. And it affects us. We who minister to one another in this family we call Fairmount Church, feel the impact of every death. And we, the Fairmount community feel the pain of our fellow members in their losses and their grief. We reach out to them by sending cards, by taking casseroles, and by offering a hug and support at coffee hour after church. We are a caring group. I thought about that as I wrote an email to six of our Deacons who ministered over the years to an individual who died this week. As I wrote them, thanking them for their ministry and the way they represented Christ’s hands and God’s love to their homebound member, I knew that they would experience loss and grief for a friend they had gotten to know and who had become dear to them. And I thought about that as I studied the epistle lesson from 1 Thessalonians which is a lectionary reading for today. Hear now Paul’s first epistle to the Thessalonians 2: 1-8. (read epistle lesson)

What is happening here? Paul starts out in this defensive mode. He begins by denying assertions that the apostles are guilty of deceit, of trickery, of flattery, and of greed. It seems as though Paul and his apostles has been insulted and mistreated by the Philippians and Paul wanted to clear his name with the Thessalonians in case they had heard any of this. He appears to be making a case for his leadership and role in these verses and wants the Thessalonians to know that his motives and his ministry are pure.

Paul denies that his motivation stems from self-interest or self-aggrandizement. He knows he has been called by God to his ministry of telling others of God’s good news and that his work is pleasing to God. Since God has entrusted this ministry to him, he is prepared to endure the scorn of others to tell the truth. We cannot begin to know what prompted this defensive mode in his beginning statements, but it is the next few verses which really struck me as a message for us today. In them, Paul discusses what the role of an apostle is like.

First, he believed that an apostle is not JUST Jesus’s 12, but that an apostle is a person commissioned by God for the particular task of proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ. And although we could say that this task is daunting, that none of us could possibly be apostles, we all know that the Good News Jesus taught us is all about God’s love. Jesus did not come with a message that we could not understand or that we would have a hard time explaining to others. It is all about loving God and loving each other. In fact the Gospel lesson for today is Jesus answering the Pharisees’ question of which is God’s greatest commandment. Jesus’s answer which is found in Matthew, Mark and Luke is so simple. Listen now for the word of God as it is written in Matthew 22:34-40: (read text)

So that is Jesus’s good news. It is that simple statement that God loves us and only requires that we love God back and each other as ourselves. And, if we are apostles, we are supposed to tell others about this love and are supposed to act on this love. And this isn’t news to us. We don’t come to church out of fear of a God of fire, damnation, and brimstone. We don’t come to church out of a sense of guilt or shame. We come because we know we are loved by God for no reason of our own and that we are welcomed into this loving community called Fairmount. We come because we want to share that love with others and we want to take it out into the world. And Paul would think that we are God’s apostles.

Which makes the last part of the passage in Thessalonians so important. It is where Paul describes the love apostles feel for others. Paul, describes apostles as being like a nurse tenderly caring for her own children. Wet nurses were very common in the Grecco-Roman world. They were not just for the wealthy, but a common role for common people too. Nurses in the society were cherished for the affection they showed to children. A wet –nurse would evoke an image of loving concern. So, when Paul describes the love apostles have for others as being like that of a nurse caring for her own children, imagine the intensity of the love he is trying to describe. Paul is saying that the apostle’s regard the Thessalonians so dear that they share with them their very selves. And according with Paul’s mission of forming, shaping, and nurturing communities, Paul wants us to know that they reached out to others as if they were their own children.

Beverly Gaventa, professor of New Testament at Princeton Theological Seminary points out in her exegesis on this text how remarkable it is that Paul applies this image of the wet nurse to him self and his co-workers. That is because Paul is not known for being in touch with his female side. So his choice of imagery is important. He wants the reader to understand the intensity of the love he feels for his communities of faith. He loves them with the force that a nursing mother loves her child.

Which is why we pray for one another when we come to church. It is why we make announcements about births of children, why we celebrate passages in people’s lives such as graduations, marriages, and in the case of one of our candidates for the ministry, why we are all, the ENTIRE congregation, invited to celebrate Logan Skelly’s ordination to the ministry of the word and sacrament in three weeks. We list anniversaries and big birthdays in our church newsletter. And our love for others extends outside the walls of our church. And this is why we became partners with North Presbyterian Church and keep them on our prayer list every Sunday. That is why we are involved in our other mission programs which share love, compassion, and concern for others. Other aspects of your life might have part of the community aspect I am discussing, but at a church, we admit to being a family. What ever your age, what ever your occupation, what ever political party and family income; you are loved here. You are one of us. You are God’s child and we love you as we love ourselves. And we care about each member of our church from our youngest member to our oldest throughout their lives, from cradle to grave. Each person here and those who are not able to be here are SO VERY DEAR TO US!

This afternoon and on Wednesday evening we will hold New Member or Inquirer Classes for people considering joining our church. They will be invited to join on November 14th. My hope is that they know when they join that they are loved. My other hope is that in joining the church they will enter into this Fairmount family and find a way that they can live out Christ’s commandment to love God and others.

This morning we are going to dedicate the beautiful Prayer Shawls on the table. These very tactile representations of God’s presence and the care and concern we have for the recipient have been given out to HUNDREDS of people in the past few years. They have been given to children at their baptism, to people recovering from illness and surgeries, to those who grieve and those who celebrate. We have even given them to our members who move away from Cleveland and our congregation to be visible signs of our connection to each other. The people who have knitted and crocheted the prayer shawls know that their ministry is important and shows how dear the recipient is to us. And in the same way does the member working in the nursery caring for the youngest of our church family knows they are expressing God’s love , as does the office volunteer helping the church run smoothly, and the youth on a mission trip working in a batey in the Dominican Republic.

It is October…. We have had a lot of deaths of members and members have lost extended family members. There is a great sense of loss and grief. Just this past week, two members have died, and two church families have lost relatives dear to them. Their sadness and grief is ours as well. Dorothee Soelle, in her book “Against the Wind: Memoir of a Radical Christian” describes this connection in her personal experience with her mother dieing. She said as her mother died she sang to her and had “a feeling of being connected to her. It did not seem as if I were doing something for her, but as if we were walking toward something greater than we are. An old theological conviction of mine was strengthened during those nights at her deathbed, namely that without mutuality, without giving and taking on both sides, there can be no love. God cannot “give” us anything if we do not become the bearers and givers of God’s love.” Just as Paul described the love we share with one another as a nursing mother’s love for her child, we love and care for our members in their pain and grief. Their grief is our grief. Their pain is ours as well. And out of our concern and love, we pray for them and we hold them. And in that care and love, God is present, as God is in our love. So, dear Fairmounters, you are so very dear to us. You are so very dear to us in every time of your life. And you are so very, very dear to God. Amen.