Sermon: Easter 2C

"The door was locked for fear of the Jews," John says in today’s gospel.

Maybe. But I’m sure there was more to it than that. But John couldn’t just come out and say it.

Yes, Jesus' disciples were probably afraid that their fellow Jews might have wanted to see them on the business end of a cross. But that's probably not the only reason the door was locked. They might have been afraid of something - or someone - else. And they wanted to keep that person as far away as possible from them.

The announcement of Jesus' resurrection might not have been good news for the disciples. They knew what they had done. They knew that they scattered like scared rats when Jesus was arrested. Peter knew that he denied knowing Jesus while Jesus was being questioned and tortured by the police.

They knew that, while Jesus was hanging in torment waiting for death to take him, the only comforting eyes he saw were the women - and John.

Everyone else had disappeared when things started getting real.

They probably knew that their abandonment was just as painful to Jesus as the nails in his hands and feet. John says that the door was locked for fear of the Jews. But I wonder if the door was locked because there was one specific Jewish rabbi they were trying to keep out out.

They had heard that Jesus was back. And now they were in trouble.

Was Jesus angry? What was he going to say when he caught up with his disciples? What was he going to say to those who betrayed and abandoned him - the disciples who were all talk and zero action?

To those who, by their behaviour, showed Jesus that they didn't really believe a single word that he said, what would he say?

What would YOU say?

"Where were you when I...(whole thing here)

Melito of Sardis: Easter Sermon

April 1 is Melito's Feast Day. Here is his Easter sermon for Easter Monday.

And so he was lifted up upon a tree and an inscription was attached indicating who was being killed.

Who was it?

It is a grievous thing to tell, but a most fearful thing to refrain from telling.

But listen, as you tremble before him on whose account the earth trembled!

He who hung the earth in place is hanged.
He who fixed the heavens in place is fixed in place.
He who made all things fast is made fast on a tree.

The Sovereign is insulted.
God is murdered.
The King of Israel is destroyed by an Israelite hand.

But he arose from the dead and mounted up to the heights of heaven.
When the Lord had clothed himself with humanity,
and had suffered for the sake of the sufferer,
and had been bound for the sake of the imprisoned,
and had been judged for the sake of the condemned,
and buried for the sake of the one who was buried,
he rose up from the dead,
and cried aloud with this voice:

Who is it who contends with me? Let him stand in opposition to me.
I set the condemned free;
I gave the dead life;
I raised up the one who had been entombed.
Who is my opponent?

I, he says, am the Christ.
I am the one who destroyed death,
and triumphed over the enemy,
and trampled Hell under foot,
and bound the strong one,
and carried off mortals to the heights of heaven,
I, he says, am the Christ.

Therefore, come, all families of the earth,
you who have been befouled with sins, receive forgiveness for your sins.
I am your forgiveness,
I am the passover of your salvation,
I am the lamb which was sacrificed for you,
I am your ransom,
I am your light,
I am your saviour,
I am your resurrection,
I am your king,
I am leading you up to the heights of heaven,
I will show you the eternal Father,
I will raise you up by my right hand.

This is the One who made the heavens and the earth,
and formed humankind in the beginning,
The One proclaimed by the Law and the Prophets,
The One enfleshed in a virgin,
The One hanged on a tree,
The One buried in the earth,
The One raised from the dead and who went up into the heights of heaven,
The One sitting at the right hand of the Father,
The One having all authority to judge and save,
Through Whom the Father made the things which exist from the beginning of time.

This One is "the Alpha and the Omega,"
This One is "the beginning and the end"
The beginning indescribable and the end incomprehensible.

This One is the Christ.
This One is the King.
This One is Jesus.
This One is the Leader.
This One is the Lord.

This One is the One who rose from the dead.
This One is the One sitting on the right hand of the Father.
He bears the Father and is borne by the Father.

"To him be the glory and the power forever. Amen."
   

Easter Sermon

"...For among them, Christ IS risen indeed.

In this story, and in the lives of the disciples...

...we hear that Easter is NOT just about a dead man opening his eyes.

...we hear that Easter is NOT just about our sins being forgiven. 

...we hear that Easter is NOT just about the miracle of victory in the midst of defeat.

We hear that Easter is about God's undying commitment to LIFE.


Easter is about how God making life THRIVE in the world. 
Easter is about how God is making EVERYTHING new.


Easter is about a God building a world...

A world....

...where setbacks are turned into comebacks.

...where the fearful find faith
.
...where the hurting find healing
...where the addicted find freedom
...where the broken find wholeness

...where the weak find strength

...where the sinful find forgiveness

Wherever evil is defeated, there is Easter! It is there that Christ is Risen!

Wherever selfishness rises into generosity, there is Easter. It is there that Christ is Risen!


Wherever enemies become friends, there is Easter! It is there that Christ is Risen!

Wherever hungry bellies are filled, 
wherever tears are wiped dry, 
wherever the grieving find comfort, there is Easter!
It is there that Christ is Risen!

Wherever justice destroys oppression, 
wherever the lowly are lifted up and proud are de-throned, 
there is Easter!  It is there that Christ is Risen!

Wherever life bursts from death, there is Easter! It is there that Christ is Risen!


And today, Easter descends upon...(whole thing here)"

Sermon: Epiphany C

But I always wonder what happened when the wise men finally arrived home. What did they say about what and whom they found? How did this encounter change them? Or did it? Was this just one more spiritual quest? One more notch on the belt, one more experience they could say they had? One more spiritual tradition they could add to their collection?

When they arrived home did they stop searching for God because they found God in the baby in Bethlehem? Did they go off on another journey looking for the divine some where else? And did they find God in that journeying?

Of course, I have no idea. And maybe I’m looking too deeply into the story, trying to find clues to better understand their motivation where there are none to be found.

But I like to think that...(whole thing here)

Sermon: Christmas 1C

...what if you were Mary or Joseph? What would you have done when you finally caught up with Jesus and found him lecturing the finest religious minds of your generation about the intricacies of the Almighty?

While I’m sure that Mary and Joseph were used to strange things happening since this boy came into their lives. I also think they wondered what their jobs as parents were.

How do they guide a child into adulthood who has God’s wisdom living inside of him? How do they prepare him for a future that is so different from anyone else’s and nothing like they’d ever seen?

The story says that “When his parents saw him they were astonished; and his mother said to him, “Child, why have you treated us like this? Look, your father and I have been searching for you in great anxiety.” Jesus said to them, “Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?”

I’m sure that their frustration was aimed both at this runaway kid and at their own feelings of inadequacy as parents. And while they were relieved to have him back, they probably looked at what was happening at the Temple and quietly asked each other, “What do we do now? Where do we go from here?”

And what kind of glib answer was that that Jesus gave his frantic parents? “Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?”

How would you have answered that question? It’s not as clear an answer as it first appears.

Yes, he was...(whole thing here)

Reformation (again)

(NB: First line was stolen from a sermon by David Schnasa Jacobsen. Also, this was preached at a special Reformation Service of the Parkland County Area Lutheran Churches)

So, who was it? Who was it that told you that you weren’t good enough?

Those voices ring in everyone’s ears. No one is immune to them.

It begins early.

Maybe it was your brother who said that girls couldn’t play hockey.

Maybe it was a classmate who called you “dumb” because you couldn’t master your multiplication tables.

Maybe it was your parents who examined your straight “A” report card and asked why you didn’t get an A+.

Maybe it was a boss who said that folks like you were a dime a dozen and therefore weren’t worth a raise.

Maybe it was your spouse who called you “stupid” in order to feel superior.

Maybe it was a fire-breathing preacher who waved a condemning finger in your face for every little sin.

Maybe it was your God who threatened you with eternal hell-fire for having simple human weakness.

So who was it? Who was it that told you that you weren’t good enough?

The father of our...(whole thing here)

Sermon: Reformation Sunday

(NB: You can listen to the sermon by clicking here)

If someone asked you what a Lutheran was, how would you respond?

I ask that question to most of the congregations for whom I’ve been a pastor, they looked as blankly then as you do this morning.

For most of us, that’s a tough question to answer. Lutheranism has such a rich and diverse tradition. But it’s also very specific. How do you sum up a whole faith history in a few words?

Those of us initiated in the deeper workings of the Lutheran theological tradition would throw around weighty words such as “justification” and “sanctification” before lapsing into Latin spewing phrases such “sola fide” “sola gratia” “sola scriptura;” high sounding words to explain what is really a tremendously personal faith. “Why,” ask Lutherans, “would you use a 50 cent word when a $100 word will do just as well?

Others, more narratively minded, will tell the story of Martin Luther, from whom we derive our name “Lutheran.”

You’d mention his beginnings as a law student, before being caught in a thunderstorm, and thinking he’s going to die, he cut a deal with St. Anne that if she helps him survive the storm, he’ll devote his life to God and become a monk.

She did. And he...(whole thing here [link fixed: kgp)

Sermon: Pentecost 18B

(NB: You listen to the sermon by clicking here)

It’s the kind of headline that boils your blood. Perhaps you saw it. “Parents Get Probation for the Negligent Homicide Death of the Their Son.”

According to the Huffington Post.

“An Oregon couple whose teenaged son died from a burst appendix because they don't believe in modern medicine accepted a plea deal to avoid jail.

“Last December, Austin Sprout became sick with flu-like symptoms. Instead of taking the 16 year old to a doctor, his mother and stepfather chose to pray for his recovery.

“In exchange to pleading guilty on Tuesday to negligent homicide, ‘faith healers’ Russel and Brandi Bellew will be on probation for five years...”

While we rightly look aghast at such abusive parenting, they might turn around and ask us if we believe the promises of scripture, or do we not? After all, they believed that they were following the bible’s guidance.

And the passage that they were following happens to be our second reading for this morning in the Letter of James:

“...are any among you suffering? They should pray. Are any cheerful? They should sing songs of praise. 14Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord. 15The prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise them up; and anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven. 16Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective.”

Sounds good doesn’t it? And it is a passage we take seriously because we pray for the sick and the suffering every time we gather. And when I visit people in the hospital, it’s not uncommon for me to take a little jar of olive oil with me so I can anoint the poor soul in the bed. It’s an ancient ritual that began with the people of Israel and adopted by the early church. Olive oil was seen as the lifeblood of society, and therefore a symbol of God’s blessing, and the promise that God will provide all our needs.

But, of course, the fact that I am praying in the hospital - the very heart of modern medicine - puts me at odds with those who would deny the value of doctors and nurses in peoples’ healing.

You’re probably wondering why I’m bringing this up. After all, we’re not a church that denies the power of modern medicine in favour of prayer. I think I’m safe in saying that all of you take your family members to the hospital should they break a bone, come down with a nasty fever, or burst their appendix. At least I HOPE that would be the case...

But I bring this up because...(whole thing here)

Is Your Body a Temple of the Holy Spirit?

 (NB: preached at evening worship at the Northern Conference Convention, Alberta Synod, ELCIC)

“All things are lawful for me, but not all things are beneficial. All things are lawful for me,” but I will not be dominated by anything. “Food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for food,” and God will destroy both one and the other. The body is meant not for fornication but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. And God raised the Lord and will also raise us by his power. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you were bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your body.” (1 Corinthians 6: 9-15a, 19-20)

That word just kind of jumps out of you, doesn’t it? You know which one I’m talking about. It starts with an “f.” That “f” word evokes images of forbidden sensuality and carnal escapades that we only dream about in our most savage and primal imaginations.

It’s right smack dab in verse 13, staring at us. And the “f” word I’m talking about, of course, is “food.”

Why? What did you think I meant?

I suppose the “other” “f-word” will make my point just as easily, if not as colourfully. Because as I’ve been reflecting on our theme of “stewardship” I feel that we often neglect to include our most valuable resource - our bodies - as something we need to “steward”. How we treat our bodies can be just as important to our stewardship mandate as how we sustain the land, clean the oceans, capture carbon, manage our finances, or guide our churches.

As you can see I’m not exactly a poster boy for healthy eating. If anything I’m a cautionary tale of how poor nutritional habits and a sedentary lifestyle can wreak havoc on one’s life.

I’m a stress eater. And let’s just say that the last few years have been VERY stressful. And my habits thus far have not helped me in dealing with the stresses of the last half decade. If anything my late-night encounters with the drive thru and Monday Night Football cans of beer have made my stress levels worsen. And by extension, the quality of my life.

And it’s not as if I hadn’t been warned. Information on diet and exercise, the stuff of a healthy lifestyle, isn’t exactly scarce. In fact it’s always in your face, waving a condemning finger, giving you the stink eye each time your arm reaches for that third cookie or second burger.

I knew that 30 minutes on the elliptical is just as effective at battling anxiety and depression as Prozac. I knew that getting 5-10 servings of fruits and veggies a day is just as useful at elevating my mood and giving me energy as any high octane caffeine explosion I can get at Starbucks. I knew that the two of them together would help me put my life back on track better than most counselors or life coaches.

But I chose other, easier, options. And it wasn’t until I had a recent health scare that I realized what I was doing, not only to my body, but to my life. And to those around me.

I began to realize why Paul asks us to honour our bodies. I realized that what I was doing to my body and to myself, was keeping me from living in the faithfulness that God wants from me.

It’s like Paul looked me up and down, grabbed me by the shoulders, shook me, and blared,

 “Are you kidding me??? Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God, and that you are not your own??? For you were bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your body.”

When I read that it was like Paul smacked me across the back of the head. And I knew something had to change. Status quo was not an option.

So, I’ve started making small changes in my diet and exercise routine. I’m eating lots more veggies and am starting to work with a personal trainer. And right away I’ve noticed my energy levels increase, my mood brighten, and my thinking become clearer.

Eating healthily and exercising is becoming, for me, almost as important a spiritual discipline as prayer. It’s becoming clear to me that, as I shed unhealthy pounds, I grow more fully into who God wants me to be.

“...do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you were bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your body.”

I didn’t know that before. But I know that now. I know that good news isn’t just spiritual, it’s also physical. Being good stewards of all that we have draws us closer to God’s understanding of the world and our place in it.

It all starts with ourselves, and the Spirit who takes up residence inside of us, making our bodies Holy; the very dwelling place of God. The temple out of which God changes everything.

Amen.

Sermon: Pentecost 17B

Right Click here to download the mp3 audio.

“Don’t worry about the young people, pastor,” he told me, “After they have kids they’ll return to church to have their children baptized. They always do. It’s the cycle of life.”

That’s the common wisdom. And I hear that a lot.

While that may be true this morning as we welcome Chase into our family of faith through the sacrament of holy baptism, it is becoming less and less the case overall. And that presents us with a challenge as we look ahead into our future and try to discern God’s vision for us as a church.

I’ve been a pastor for 13 years and over that time I have seen the declining numbers accelerate. And while there are blips of growth here and there, the overall trend is downward. We fear for our future. And we look around and we wonder where all the young people have gone. We ask why they don’t come to church like people once did.

And so we dig in our heels, get angry and resentful about an insecure future. We blame the media for what we think is bias against people of faith. We blame the government for an increasingly secular culture. I’ve even heard some pastors blame immigrants for bringing their “foreign religion” to our so-called “Christian country.”

So we ask, why is this happening? Why are we in this place? How did we get here?

Even in our darkest moments, we look at our own children and other members of our families, and see how they’ve abandoned church, and we ask, “What did we do wrong? What could I have done better in the past so that my family would still attend church today?”

Here’s the answer to those questions...(whole thing here)

Sermon: Pentecost 16B

“Who do you say that I am?” Jesus asks his disciples. And Peter, the one who can never keep his mouth shut, speaks without realizing what he’s saying.

“You are the Messiah,” Peter bursts without thinking, wondering why Jesus would ask a pretty basic question.

But I think Jesus was trying to take their temperature. He probably heard the gossip about who people thought he was, and he wanted to shut down any misinformation before it got out of hand.

“Who do people say that I am? What are they saying about me? What’s in the papers, what are the bloggers blogging about? Who is tweeting about me and what are they tweeting? What’s happening on Facebook? I’m curious. Because I haven’t been totally direct with people, and I want what’s going on out there.”

It’s interesting that Jesus thinks his disciples have their ears to the ground. After all, they haven’t really left his sight since they began their preaching tour. They may have been milling about in the crowds, eavesdropping on peoples’ conversations, getting a sense of who people think this wandering preacher is, and why they think that.

But people only have their own experience to draw from. Some say that Jesus is “Elijah” because they see Jesus’ ministry of speaking God’s Word. Others say Moses because they see him as a great leader. Some say “one of the prophets” because his preaching has cut through their hearts like a surgeon’s scalpel. But no two people agree as to who they think Jesus is.

There’s no consensus until Jesus asks his followers.

“Okay, that’s who THEY, OUT THERE say that I am. But who do YOU say that I am? What do YOU tell people about me?”

It’s a pretty direct question, isn’t it? Is Jesus testing them? Or is even more curious about his friends’ answers then those on the street.

“You’re the Messiah,” Peter says impulsively. Probably impressed with himself.

Did Peter answer Jesus correctly? Yes. But did he know what the correct answer was? No...(whole thing here)

Sermon: Pentecost 11B

Jesus said that he was the bread of life; that whoever eats of his flesh and drinks of his blood will abide in them and they in him. I sure hope that’s true. Because even when we receive God’s mercy and grace through the sacrament of Holy Baptism, we still find ourselves on a path we probably don’t intend.

And you probably have seen the same thing. You might have seen a son or daughter get caught up in a life that brings nothing than pain and misery; rather than the life of joy and abundance that you dreamed for them.

Or maybe it’s YOU. And you find yourself in church wondering if all this God stuff is real.  You wonder in the midst of failed relationships, unfulfilled dreams, a job that does not help you reach the potential God has for, the loneliness of an empty house, where Jesus is in your life.

You wonder quietly if the grief in your life, the pain of loved ones being taken away too early, the injustice of a life’s potential being swallowed by the grave, makes Jesus’ promises seem either too good to be true, or just an idle fantasy we tell ourselves to make the hard times just a little bit easier.

And those are fair questions to ask. If those promises are true than where is the abundant living that Jesus promises? Where is the eternal life that Jesus says begins NOW?

You wonder if the bread of life has gone stale...(whole thing here)