Sermons by Bishop Rob

Sermon 17th November 2024

Sermon by Bishop Rob Hardwick – Mark 13: 1-8

Have you ever tried to predict the future?    In 1943 Thomas Watson, chairman of IBM, said, “I think there is a world market for maybe five computers.” In 1949 Popular Mechanics magazine predicted: “Whereas a calculator on the ENIAC is equipped with 18,000 vacuum tubes and weighs 30 tons, computers in the future may have only 1,000 vacuum tubes and weigh only 1.5 tons.” Inventor, Lee DeForest acknowledged that “While, theoretically and technically, television may be feasible, commercially and financially it was an impossibility.” For sure, not many pollsters predicted the emphatic recent election of Donald Trump. It was certainly not close run.  And I’m sure few people even as late as last Sunday would have predicted the resignation of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

What does the future hold?  Predictions on a global or even a personal level are a lottery for sure. Is it death & destruction?  Is it mediocrity, more of the same? Or is it renewal or even revival? For the Temple in Jerusalem, it was to be destruction. “Do you see all these great buildings” Jesus said.  “Not one stone will be left on another.” To the Pharisees this was blasphemy. To the disciples, it was disbelief.  The Temple was the nation’s bedrock. Surely nothing could bring down those walls.

“What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!” the disciples had said. Little wonder, for even the smallest stones in the walls weighed 2 to 3 tons. Indeed, the largest existing stone, part of the remnant Wailing Wall, weighs hundreds of tons and is 12 meters in length and 3 meters high! (3metres longer than this church this church and as high). Stones so immense that no binding material was needed. Their stability was attained simply by their great weight. The walls towered over Jerusalem, over 400 feet in one area. And inside the walls encompassing the Temple Mount were 45 acres of bedrock mountain, shaved flat, and during Jesus’ day a quarter of a million people could fit comfortably within its confines.  No sports arena in the world today even comes close.

Understandably then, as the disciples sat down on the Mount of Olives opposite, Peter, James, John and Andrew, wanted to know more.  Jesus’ prediction seemed so implausible. ‘When, and what would be the sign that this was about to take place?’ In their voice was fear. Fear of the unknown. Fear of the collapse of all they had known, of all they held dear. And fear that their lives were about to change forever. Jesus had not made any predictions like this one. This was different. And forty years later the prediction indeed came true, the Temple was destroyed by Rome and never rebuilt.

From all of this we learn that the bedrock of our faith is not in Temples.  As much as we love this church building and our Cathedral, even if they disappeared tomorrow, the real church, you and me, would still be here.  Our faith is founded on a different bedrock.  A bedrock not made by human hands, nor by human decision or a husband’s will (Jn 1:13). Our faith is founded on the Lord Jesus Christ, and non-other.  And through His blood shed for us on the Cross of Calvary, shed on that same Temple Mountain, after 3 days, the 3 days he also predicted, a greater church began. A church of epic proportions: A church not just in Jerusalem or even the Holy Land: A worldwide church that none can measure, nor could any have imagined – a church built in every believers heart.

And though nations have, and continue to rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: And though earthquakes, floods and famines continue in various places: (13:8). And though brothers continue to betray brothers to death and parents their children, and children rise against parents and have them put to death: And though Christians continue to be hated by all because of Christ’s name (13:12-13).  The name above all names! We, like our forebears, are not to be alarmed but to beware that no one lead us astray (13:5). The message is clear.    Wars and tribulations are not to be used as an excuse to renege on our responsibilities as Christians.

In such times as these, “the best of times and the worst of times; (as Charles Dickens, wrote in “A Tale of Two Cities”) an age of wisdom and an age of foolishness: the epoch of belief and the epoch of incredulity; the season of Light and the season of Darkness; the spring of hope and the winter of despair.”  In such times as these, for which we were born    we are invited (1 Pt 2:4). To ‘come not to a temple of lifeless stone built my human hands but to come to him, the living stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and and precious in God’s sight,  And, like living stones, we are to be built up into a spiritual house, a holy priesthood.”  Built as (Eph 2: 20-21) says, “upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as our cornerstone”. To be a holy priesthood, to make offerings acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. (1 Pt 2: 4-5). And, as we are charged in Mk 13:10 “To proclaim the good news to all nations.”

In this past week of awful remembrance, and in recent reflections on leaders and leadership changes, I was drawn to a quote from a winsome and dogged wartime leader.  Winston Churchill (1874-1965) once said, “Never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never, in things great or small, large or petty, never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense.”.  He also offered this advice in the darkest days of World War II: “If you’re going through hell, keep going.”

King David experienced many a trial, war and tribulation.  His answer to keep going, in peace or in hell, was always to go to God in prayer. In Psalm 16:1 he wrote ‘Keep me safe, my God, for in you I take refuge’.  For he knew the ‘LORD, alone was his portion and his cup; and made his lot secure.

And in verses 8-10 we glimpse the secret to keeping going. David says, ‘I keep my eyes always on the LORD. With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.  Therefore, my heart is glad, and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure’.  Why, ‘because you’ David says, ‘will not abandon me to the realm of the dead, nor will you let your faithful one see decay. You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

David knew the absolute importance of turning to God; by turning to the LORD of life; by turning and keeping focus on HIM who is the one true light in the darkness; to the one who will never leave us, nor abandon us to the grave.

Friends, the world, and even the institutional church, especially in the northern hemisphere, may be in a scary place; in an unpredictable multi-junctional and dangerous crossroads.  Nevertheless, the message today is clear, as it has been through the ages, those who trust in Temples, in buildings or institutions of their own making, will see the destruction that is coming.  But for those who focus upon, and keep faithful to, the teachings of our Lord and Saviour, and trust not in their own strength, will see the Lord’s hand at work; perhaps in ways unparalleled in our history, as we take to heart the importance of sharing our faith and in offering our sacrifices acceptable to God.

Predictions made through fear or with limited imagination often fall short of reality. But one thing we do know, irrespective of what the future may hold, Christ will one day return. And we will stand not on the bedrock of a temple hewn by human hands, that’s here today and gone tomorrow.

We will take our stand with Christ; The Rock; our cornerstone, the head of his glorious Church.

And, as we heard in Daniel 12 today, ‘Everyone whose name is found written in the book will be delivered. And multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt. 

¹⁹ Therefore, brothers and sisters’, as we also read in Heb 10, ‘since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, ²⁰ by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body,

²² let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. ²³ Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.²⁴ And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, ²⁵ not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as we see the Day approaching.

So until that glorious day, do not worry about what may or may not happen; nor by wars or rumours of wars. We are called to be steadfast. To be faithful and to always be ready to share the hope we have within us, as we offer our sacrifices acceptable to God, in our love for God and our neighbour

 

Sermon All Saints 3^rd November, 2024

All Hallows Eve origins date back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced sow-in). A day that marked both the end of summer and the harvest, and the beginning of the dark, cold winter.  It was a time of year that was associated with human death, and it was a night both Celts and Romans believed that the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred, and the ghosts of the dead returned to roam the earth. On this night, the Celts wore costumes, typically of animal heads and skins, to mask, to hide, or to conceal who they really were.  In order to fool demons and other dark forces on that fateful night and fit in with the evil throng and not be harmed.

Today though, ‘dressing up’, masking who one truly is, is not just restricted to one night of the year. Many “dress up”, (a) their CV to get a job interview.  (b) Change their behaviour to fit in with their peers; And  (c) some even to go to church exchanging their weekday “sinner clothes”, for a Sunday “saint” costume.  ‘Dressing or masking’ to fool others or oneself of the fears, the demons, both within and without.  But who is being fooled really?  God certainly isn’t.  And this points to the importance, and the unique aspect of our Christian celebrations at this time of year.

All Hallows Eve through to All Souls Day, unlike Samhain are reminders to do the opposite.  To unmask, to strip away, to be real before the Lord of heaven and earth – the creator of all that is good and wholesome – and to unveil to see with Godly eyes what is real and true…  To own our mortality: To see clearly the evil dangers that lurk and prowl around us: To repent of the sinfulness inerrant in us; And to acknowledge our need for salvation.  A salvation found not in the underworld, or in a veiled hope, a head in the sand pretense that all might be okay, but in a truthful and transparent relationship with God, through Jesus Christ the one who has defeated death, our resurrected and ascended Lord.

In the OT reading, Isaiah prophesied that ‘God will destroy on this mountain (Calvary) the shroud that is cast over all peoples, the sheet that is spread over all nations’. And destroy even death itself, the ultimate shroud that covers us from view, and keeps us hidden in the depths, for even death Isaiah said,  ‘will be swallowed up forever and not just on an annual pagan festival to walk around zombie like upon the earth, doing unimaginable things to frighten the living, and tricking or treating others as we go our way.  No, death will be swallowed up, forever.  Isaiah continues, and on that day, ‘The Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces, and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth, the Lord has spoken. This is our God; we have waited for him, so that he might save us; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.’

In the gospel today we heard Jesus crying out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped in a cloth. It was an appearance some might associate with modern day Halloween, but instead or revelling in the death shrouds Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”  

All Hallows Eve to All Souls Day then, is a reminder time to come out and to be unbound.. An Exodus 5:1: ‘Let my people go free’ moment. To be unbound from the chains and funeral bonds of slavery to sin and death. And to be unmasked from the desire to fit in, or to fulfill the expectations of others, or to hide the self whom we think we are.

A verse from the hymn ‘Will you come and follow me’ comes to mind, ‘Will you love the “you” you hide if I but call your name? Will you quell the fear inside and never be the same? Will you use the faith you’ve found to reshape the world around Through my sight and touch and sound in you and you in me? 

Today we celebrate “All Saints tide.” It is the time we make a concerted effort to recognize and celebrate yes, “For all the saints/who from their labours rest.”  but also the time we are bid, like the saints, to remove the masks, to unveil the true ‘self we love to hide’ and to be real before God and with each other. So will you love the “you” you hide if I but call your name? Will you quell the fear inside and never be the same? Will you use the faith you’ve found to reshape the world around Through my sight and touch and sound in you and you in me? 

Like the saints of old, we are people who sometimes get it wrong; people who are not proud of some of the things we have done.  In Hebrews 11, the great “communion of saints” chapter, you cannot find one member of the “communion of saints” that isn’t portrayed in the Bible, warts and all? In some ways, this great “by faith” chapter of “saints” resembles more a “Rogues’ Gallery” than a Hall of Saints.  So why do we pretend. Why do we wear outward vestures, masks that disguise our faults. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

If Halloween for some, is all about masking, thank God that All Saints Tide is all about unmasking, stripping away and revealing.   For true saints do not wear masks neither do they proudly peacock their achievements. They do not wear “broad phylacteries” or “long fringes.” They do not insist upon the recognition of their deeds, or want the best seats at the table or in the sanctuary.  Instead, Saints wear their hearts on their sleeves. Saints weary in well doing.  Saints wear crowns of suffering and long-suffering. Saints wear crowns of martyrdom and fight against sin, the world and the devil. And yes, saints mess up, and bleed and fail too.

For me the essence of sainthood is found in the difference between showmanship and authenticity.  When one does what is right, but one’s heart and mind are not fully in it, one is mastering showmanship.  When one chooses actions rooted in Christlike attitudes and motives:  Those who give without expectations: Those who love without reservation: Those who sacrifice without expectation. Those who live out their faith and bare their lives on their sleeves: one is living authenticity.

May we be authentic in our witness of Christ.  No pretending, simply offering who we are and the talents God has given us, to His glory. Not trying to copy someone else, or presume sainthood is something highfaluting. “Those who exalt themselves” Jesus said, “will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted”.   As such saints are not those who exceed the rest of us, or trick or treat us. Saints are those who love God and their neighbour, and manifest Jesus’ call to serve.  People who don’t play dress up, pretending they are something they are not.  But ‘WYSIWYG’ people – ‘What You See Is What You Get People.’ People who say “Here am I Lord, a sinner of your redeeming.  Send me!  Warts and all, and use me to your glory.

The psalmist today says.  24:3 “Who can ascend the hill of the Lord?  and who can stand in his holy place?”  4 “Those who have clean hands and a pure heart, who have not pledged themselves to falsehood, nor sworn by what is a fraud.  5 They shall receive a blessing from the Lord  and a just reward from the God of their salvation.”

And what is this reward?  In Revelation today we are told…. “See, the home of God is among mortals.  He will dwell with them as their God; they will be his people, and God himself will be with them; he will wipe every tear from their eyes.  Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.” And the one who was seated on the throne said, “See, I am making all things new. 

This is our hope.  Death is not the end. Ghostly annual, one night, walkabouts are not our lot nor our calling. For the Alpha and the Omega – the beginning and the end – the resurrection and the life, has conquered, and at the last trumpet blast he will call us to come out from the tombs we hide in, not to trick or treat, but to live with him forever, unbound forever, in that place, that new Jerusalem adorned for us, his bride.”

Sermon 20^th Oct 2024

The events portrayed in today’s gospel from Mark occur immediately after Jesus, for the third time, solemnly warns the disciples about what was going to happen to him – a vocation which has gripped Jesus since the voice at his baptism and finds its echo in Isaiah’s prophecy, our first reading today, about the anointed messianic figure, “YHWHs’ servant, who will suffer and die for the sins of Israel and the world.

Of all the people who ever lived, Jesus walked the road less traveled and now he was asking his disciples to take this road as well–a road they had no desire to take at all.   The road of humility, piety and service. Instead, the disciples argue and even posture for positions of honour in the future kingdom.  So tragic!

Credit here though, for the truthfulness of the gospel writer. You know, it is told that a court artist painted the portrait of Oliver Cromwell.  Cromwell, as you may know, was afflicted with warts on the face. Thinking to please him, the artist omitted the warts in the painting.

But when Cromwell saw it, he said, “Take it away! and paint me ‘warts and all’.  It is where we get that phrase from – and Marks’ aim here in the Gospel is to show us the disciples, warts and all. As such, it is clear that the Twelve were not yet a company of saints, they were ambitious and this account shows, as nothing else could, how little they understood what Jesus was saying to them. Like us sometimes.

For example, when Jesus says, “Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?”  Jesus is not talking about communion wine or baptism as we know it.  Jesus is using of a different imagery.  -Isaiah, when thinking of the disasters which had come upon the people of Israel, describes them as having drunk  at “the hand of the Lord, the cup of his wrath.” (Is 51: 17.).  The other phrase (bebaptismenos) means to be submerged. It is a word used of a shipwreck on an ocean floor.  A word the Psalmist often uses. Ps 42: 7 “All thy waves and thy billows have gone over me.”

Psalm 124: 4, ” Then the flood would have swept us away, the torrent would have gone over us.”   Nothing to do with baptism as we know it.  What Jesus was saying is, “Can you bear to go through the experience which I have to go through? Can you face the terrible  events to come, and be submerged in excruciating pain, hatred and death, as I am to be.

“We can” they said.  It was like Peter’s loud boastful claim, “Even if all desert you I will not’.

The standard of greatness is not a crown, or a position of honour, but the cross, and of servanthood.  It is indeed the path less travelled even today.

A popular tourist destination in England is Blenheim Palace, where Winston Churchill was born. You enter the palace through doors so large that a special lock is required to secure them. The key alone is 12 inches long.  It does something for your self-esteem just to walk through such a pretentious portal. But there are also normal-sized doors into Blenheim Palace. The doors the servants used and they lead up to the servants’ quarters.

Jesus, our God, who washes our feet, was asking his disciples to do something unimaginable. He was telling them to take not, the way of honour, power and might, but the way of piety, charity and servanthood.

As we head to a possible change in ministry here, one of the things that we must rid ourselves of is that the twelve disciples were perfect. We must get out of our heads those pictures of the Last Supper—you know the ones where all the disciples have halos and angelic faces.  The gospels inform us that, the disciples were, warts and all, just like us and yet God called them.  And if we are to move as a congregation towards total or collaborative ministry there cannot be any fighting among ourselves about whose in charge, or about prestige in a particular ministry being presumed more important.  Our concern is to be about piety, charity and servanthood.  A preparedness to don the garment of a common slave and wash the feet even of the proud and the sinful.

For Christian greatness is not determined by position, education, or title. Christian greatness is determined by the willingness to meet the need of the moment with a servant heart, and even to go to the cross for the sake of another.

What is sad, is that even at the Last Supper there was not a servant heart among them except ‘The Servant King’.  The disciples still were thinking of positions of honour and were certainly not willing to wash one another’s feet and interestingly neither did they wash their own.  Jesus’ disciples just didn’t get it. Do we?  Will we?

Max Lucado says of the Last Supper: 

“As they argue, the basin sits in the corner, untouched. 

The towel lies on the floor, unused. 

The servant’s clothing hangs on the wall, unworn. 

Each disciple sees these things. 

Each disciple knows their purpose. But no one moves,

Will we have the courage to move deeper into servant collaborative ministry?   No one moved at the Last Supper will we?.   

As they bickered, Jesus stands. This time he doesn’t speak. He removes his robe, takes the towel and the pitcher, pours water into the basin, kneels before them and begins to wash. It was the greatest sermon Jesus ever gave!

Here, we sit at the Lord’s table again this day. There is no pecking order here.  Soon, on retirement, I will simply be a priest with you and not for you.  Old perceptions of authority might be challenged, and some might want to take advantage of, or even presume a higher place for themselves.  But that is not to be the way here.  Jesus loves each and every one of us the same – completely.  There are to be no superstars or dignitaries in this place. No one ministry person is better than another.

The NT model is clear that we are all sinners saved by the grace of God. Our giftings and callings might be differ, but our purpose is the same–to share together in the building of God’s Kingdom.  To do that, Jesus gives us an example to follow.  He, the great high priest doesn’t just offer sacrifices.  He offers himself as the sacrifice.  He gives us himself unconditionally—”this is my body—this is my blood” and invites us to also take the towel, that we may share him, in love with others.

A group of 4 to 8-year-olds were once asked: “What does love mean?” One child summed it up, very much like Jesus: “When my grandmother got arthritis,” she said, “she couldn’t bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her, and even when his hands got arthritis too. That’s love.”

That is love! That’s the love we celebrate today. It is the love of one willing to use the servants’ entrance. The love of one willing to wash each other’s feet. The love of one willing to give one’s life for another.

So, today let us come to the table. Let us, by all means, share in the feast God provides. But above all, let us digest and make manifest the words of Jesus. ” I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you.”    Amen!

Harvest Sermon 13 Oct 2024

I decided to change the Old Testament reading set for today as some passages from the Old Testament have and can be used to perpetuate hurt through the generations and especially to many in the Holy Land today.  They certainly beg the question as to how we understand and apply parts of the Old Testament, as Christians today.  For certain passages, like that in 1 Samuel 15, have even been quoted by Netanyahu to justify the genocide being perpetrated indiscriminately by the present state of Israel on Palestinians.  A so called ‘right to defend’ action, in response to the atrocities inflicted by Palestinian terrorists.   As many, many innocents of Muslim, Christian, Bahai, Sikh and non-faith people, are suffering greatly, under the camouflage or guise of so-called biblical authority.

For me, it is unconscionable to think that certain historic biblical events should be seen as prophetic in this way, and be used to justify atrocities today.  These actions are certainly not compatible with the teachings of Jesus.  “Blessed are the peacemakers” “Love your neighbour, love even your enemies”,  Jesus said.   Jesus came, not as a war mongering war Lord to perpetuate for ever, the animosity, the prejudices and the sins of the past.  He came in love to bring peace and reconciliation to the hurts and sins of all, and to show us a better way.

Such indiscriminate force that we have witnessed in the Ukraine, the Holy Land and many other places in the world today is never acceptable and is never justifiable. I have shared previously this year as to what the agreed UN rules of a just war are, and what the Church’s last-resort teaching is on it.  Genocide and the indiscriminate murder of innocents is a crime and there will be a reckoning.

The OT prophet Jeremiah, 5:22-31 makes it clear as to our responsibilities as God’s people, and speaks prophetically to all generations, especially “if they have ears to hear and eyes to see” to certain world leaders today; those bent on the wanton destruction of climate or property; the murder of innocents; and those who cause the failure of many a harvest.

“Those wicked”, Jeremiah continues, “those who lie in wait like men who snare birds and like those who set traps to catch people. Whose evil deeds have no limit; who do not seek justice. Who do not promote the case of the fatherless; and do not defend the just cause of the poor.  “Should I not punish them for this?” declares the Lord “Should I not avenge myself on such a nation? A horrible and shocking thing has happened in the land: The prophets prophesy lies, the priests rule by their own authority, and my people love it this way”.

Indeed “A horrible and shocking thing has happened in many lands of our world today and thousands have been killed and millions made refugees, displaced by terror, by war, by climate change, by crop failure and disease

World leaders need to note that ‘Vengeance is mine” saith the Lord. Not ours. And ‘God will repay’. Not us.  As such, unlike those historic biblical events being called upon to justify current actions, Jeremiah comes with a stark warning from the Lord, to all who act unjustly;    to all who do not love mercy; to all who do not walk humbly with their God.

World leaders; as well as ourselves who follow the Lord; have a clear responsibility both to the created order and to all God’s people especially the fatherless, the widow, the refugee, the poor, and even to our enemies.

As Christians we are to follow the teachings of Christ, to not worry in such times as these, but to pray, to intercede, to cry out to the Lord, and to be thankful in all things.   St Paul writes. ‘I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers,intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— ² for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness’.   

Are we praying?  Are we interceding. Are we crying out to the Lord for those especially in a poor and deeply worrying state.  Scripture is clear that there is one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, ⁶ who gave himself as a ransom for all people, Gentile, Samaritan and Jew, and even our enemies.

Christ Jesus lived and modelled a different way to that sometimes read in the Old Testament. It is a way of love, of healing, of forgiveness, grace and mercy. A kingdom life, not of this world.  As such we are called to follow him. To not worry about present day troubles but to seek first God’s righteousness.  To give thanks, yes, for this year’s harvest but also for the harvest of our souls. Our deliverance from the dominion of darkness and the evils of this world, for we have been brought into the kingdom of God’s son, where we are now to live, not in the dark past, of hurts, of bad attitudes, or continued prejudices, but in the new creation world of love, for God and for our neighbour. For we are loved. We are forgiven, death has no dominion over us and the gates of hell cannot prevail.  Yes, we have much to be thankful for.

Let me give you an example.  Jimmy Richardson was like the prodigal son, after a life of self pleasing, abuse, and hurt of himself and others, he found himself walking into church one Sunday.  And at that service began his journey back to His Father and experienced God’s loving embrace and the welcome of the church.  In subsequent weeks I sensed that Jimmy felt that he did not have long to live.  He would have loved one last visit to Scotland and was checking prices of flights, but he was worried. Then one Sunday, out of the blue, he asked if ‘Amazing Grace’ could be sung at his funeral. In the verses of that hymn he recognized there were many parallels with his own life.  Jimmy was tearful and then asked if he would be able; if he would be welcome; if he would be good enough to go to heaven.  I shared many of the Lord’s promises with him.  And in response he went to his knees, confessed his sins and his many regrets, and received the reassurance of God’s forgiveness.

Speaking & praying with Jimmy is something I shall always be thankful, for he opened his heart to the Lord  and was most receptive, not to pharisaic condemnation or justification for bad actions, but to our Lord’s touch of reassuring peace. That peace that the world cannot give; that peace that cannot be forced or coerced by threat or violence, but that peace which comes from above and allows one not to worry, or be afraid, or to let our hearts be troubled.   Jimmy put his life in order by being reconciled with God who had led him through many a storm to that place of eternal peace and to his eternal home, the fruit and harvest of his soul.

Do you have that blessed assurance and peace?  That the God of the sparrow and the flowers of the field; that the Lord of the harvest and of all creation, truly loves you and wants you to receive his amazing grace and be reconciled with him and with others and bear kingdom fruit in this life and the next?

As Christians we are not to call upon Scripture to perpetuate hurt or to justify evil intent. But to align ourselves with the ways of Christ.   So, even if this has not been the best year we have ever had; even if we have not harvested what we had hoped for; even if our neighbours are still irksome, we know that the gratitude of our harvest does not depend upon our external circumstance, but upon an internal, and eternal, Saviour.   As such we can, as the hymn bids,  ‘thank we all our God with heart and hands and voices’.

So, this harvest give thanks to God.  Pray for all world leaders that they be led in ways of justice and peace.  Pray and give thanks for all who work and toil to bring in the fruits of creation in their season. Pray especially for those who still live under the dominion of darkness, and war that the Lord will bring reconciliation and restore the years the locusts have eaten.  And pray that all enmity cease, and people come to honour one another, and promote the case of the fatherless and the widow; that they look after the poor and the alien. So that, as our psalm today says ‘Those who sow now with tears. will reap with songs of joy. Those who go out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with them.’ Yes, and pray as our collect prayer also bids, that God, in whom all things are possible, will give us the fruits of the earth in their season that we may use them to God’s glory so that none may hunger, none may thirst, even our enemies.

Sermon 6^th Oct 2024

Throughout the Anglican Communion various dioceses have a renewed emphasis to build upon the apostle Paul’s “body” metaphor in his first letter to the Corinthians 12:12-31 that we heard this morning. That the church is a body with many limbs and organs, each having a vital part to play in the healthy functioning of the whole.

Some Anglican dioceses are discerning a call upon the church to return to a practice, as it originally was in the Early Church, that all Christians are called to ministry, and lay or ordained are called equally. Such an understanding of this, the “priesthood of all believers” (1 Peter 2:9), has led to the development of new patterns of ministry around the Anglican Communion. However, the emphasis is always the same: God’s people sharing in ministry, together.

Total (every member – or collaborative) Ministry that we read about in Ephesians 4:11-17 is a “together” ministry – a creative ministry – for it opens new ways for each of us to creatively respond together to the Holy Spirit who guides us to become bridges of reconciliation, peace, joy, healing, love and hope for those God places in our path (Luke 10:1-9).   For it is in, and through, God’s people of all ages – not simply the adults, or the priest acting on behalf of the Church, that the Church can truly express the totality of Christ.

The prophet Jeremiah reminds us of God’s future, “For I know the plans I have for you, to give you a future with hope”  (Jeremiah 29:11).   God is in our midst, giving us “a future with hope”. God has been preparing us, and in so many ways we already show a collaborative ministry spirit here at St Ninian’s. I believe that a Jeremiah hope is now calling us to go deeper in our engagement in, and our understanding of, Total Ministry; Collaborative Ministry; Mutual Ministry; Baptismal Ministry; Every Member Ministry – whichever term we want to call it.  However, to do this we will need to change some perceptions and to encourage one another into the ministries to which God is calling us in the church and wider community.

This renewal movement began in the 1970s with the growing use of local ordination and parish team ministry. Pioneering dioceses, like my former diocese of Qu’Appelle, played an important role in this development.  By 1999 a Living Stones Partnership (1 Peter 2:5), of around 20 dioceses from the US and Canada gathered in Regina, Saskatchewan Canada (our former hometown) to support one another in total ministry development.  Participants also discussed a need for skilled ministry developers to support congregations in the journey to becoming ministering communities – some in clusters, some in mutual ministry or total ministry settings.

Health permitting and with congregational support, though soon to be retired, I feel called to this work.  It will require a change in my role, a role significantly different from that of the traditional ‘Priest in the Charge’. More a companion, teacher, mentor, enabler, encourager.  A member of the congregation with you, but with a particular focus to help call forth and build up the faithful in their ministry.

WHY THE NEED?  WHY HERE?  WHY NOW? 

Bishop Mark has been inviting the diocese to undertake a visioning process.  Recently he has asked each of us to share a story of what God is doing in our life; of where we have seen or felt God’s presence in the life of our church or community, and what we might perceive God is calling us to be and do.

Clearly the decline in church attendance of most denominations in the UK, and the sharp decline in those declaring a faith, let alone that of being Christian in Scotland, is an alarming trend.  So is the un-affordability of full or part time stipendiary priests or deacons.  Most evident in the Highlands and Islands.  It has been an emerging trend for decades, but the Church has been slow to change and has struggled to adapt.

The sixth bishop of West Virginia +John Smith, author of “Cluster Ministry: A Faithful Response to Change” advocated well this need for the Church to heed the call to change.  He noted that: ‘For nearly a thousand years, the Church has become increasingly “clericalized”.  The ordained have been paid to do the mission and ministry of the church.  In the challenge of the present sociological change, a “new church” for the coming century will need to be much more lay focused. And called to new directions of mission, new forms of ministry and a recovery of the biblical, baptismal ministry of every member of the Church.  A call to the Covenant Community which is at the heart of biblical faith.  The story of Moses and the Burning Bush is, first of all, a invitation to live in covenant with God and with one another.  It is highly relational.  It involves discipline and commitment.   It requires risk and being vulnerable, and open to the future with hope and trust.  

It is this centrality of community which we find in the Gospel of Kingdom Living to which the people of God are called and then sent to share. Burden sharing, mutual support for mission, sharing of resources – both materialistic and of human gifts, skills and energy, spiritual gifts and the corporate seeking of the common good are all characteristics of genuine community. This sense of shared ministry is beneficial both to the faith development of folk within the congregation and to the congregations’ mission’. 

Option 2(b) then is a shift, both theologically and practically, from survival or maintenance to that of mission, which lies at the heart of Jesus’ teaching. In essence, for us to truly be, a Pilgrim people.

Bishop Mark recognizes the faith and commitment of this congregation and would gladly encourage a pioneering approach here at St Ninian’s.  A ministry concept and practice that could be a catalyst for future ministry development across the diocese.  He acknowledges that the Ecclesiastical Province of Scotland does not as a whole, yet see a need, or even support, local ordination or other innovative and pioneering ministries.  I would differ, the writing is on the wall for those with the faith to see it. The desperate need in the Highlands and the Isles is such that in my opinion new (or should I say the recovery of old) patterns of ministry will need to become accepted practice, as it has in many parts of the Anglican Communion.

Roland Allen, an English missionary to China at the turn of the last Century, experienced first-hand the militant rejection by Chinese people of foreign influences, including the Anglican mission which Allen served.  He learned from this experience, that unless full responsibility for a mission is handed over to indigenous Christians within the shortest period of time, the Church never fully takes root and grows.  Returning to Scripture, Allen studied the missionary methods of St. Paul which promoted what he called “the spontaneous expansion of the Church”, and he advocated those same methods for his own time. He urged missionaries to teach all converts their full responsibility as members of the church. The leaders who emerge naturally in the life of a community are appropriately the leaders of that community. The Holy Spirit working on their natural abilities and then “on the job training” is sufficient for their formation.

We now stand in the first quarter of another century.  Many observe that for us today, the missionary frontier of the Church is not foreign lands, as much as our own front doorsteps. What, then, are we to learn from Roland Allen and other prophets of our time?  Option 2(a) and (2b) are important options to consider.  May we hear what the Spirit is saying to the church today.

 Please know that whether the option is 2a or 2b, +Rob will be happy to serve with us as a member of the congregation here.  Remember Option 2a clearly will be more or less doing things as we always have but a reduced involvement from +Rob.  Option 2(b) however, will involve more from +Rob in retirement but also more from all of us. For Total or Every Member Ministry is about seeking God’s vocation for each of us – what our “ministry” is – in our relationships and encounters in the workplace, community, schools, shops, homes and church.   It’s been said that ministry is not a choice – rather a privilege, a responsibility and a right of every Christian.   It’s not just the response to an urge to do good works, but our response to a divine call. As such, it is a way of life.   It may be simply to “bloom where we are planted”: to be where we already are – to do what we already do – to serve as we already serve, but with a new intentionality.  It might also be that God is calling us to a new form of ministry in the church, or world.’

Sermon 22^nd September, 2024

Just think for a moment of some of the great people that you have known.  What makes them great?  Many have their own criteria to measure greatness. Some might say it is the measure of their intellect or beauty. Some might say it is courage, or spirit. Others perhaps, an acting or sporting ability, or one’s contribution to humanity, or perhaps those who work for peace, or those who fight for justice.  And perhaps we can think of great people in all of these categories

One day Jesus was walking with his disciples, and as they walk the disciple were talking among themselves.  The topic was who was the greatest among them. Exactly what they said we don’t know.

When they arrived at their destination, Jesus asked them what had they been talking about. At which the disciples are strangely quiet. They are embarrassed. It was at this point that Jesus told them what it is that makes for true greatness in the eyes of God.

God certainly doesn’t see us as everyone else sees us. People around us may see us as successful, unattractive, popular, old, young, whatever. But God sees our hearts.  God sees us as we really are. Perhaps we think we have fooled God, like those we’ve led to believe that we’re less frightened, more confident, more successful, or happier than we really are. Or perhaps we are deeply grateful that God sees through all the shallow, negative judgments which people have said about us through the years.

However, when it comes to greatness,  “If you would be great,” Jesus said, “be a servant.”  Greatness is found in service, in respect, in humility, in caring. It doesn’t matter if you are a janitor of a large company or its CEO.  Our central purpose as a follower of Christ is to serve. In the ordination service of a bishop it says a bishop is to be the servant of the servants of God.  Even Jesus himself said, ‘I came not to be served but to serve’.

One man who had an enormous impact on his company was the founder and former CEO of Wendy’s fast-food restaurants, Dave Thomas. Dave was adopted as a child.   He never finished high school. In his book, ‘Well Done: The Common Guy’s Guide To Everyday Success’, Dave said he got his MBA long before Grade 12.  He says he has a photograph of himself in his MBA graduation outfit–a work apron. And he claims to be the only founder among America’s big companies whose picture in the corporate annual report shows him wielding a mop and a plastic bucket. That wasn’t a gag. He calls it leading by example. At Wendy’s, he says, MBA doesn’t mean Master of Business Administration. It means Mop Bucket Attitude. It means a commitment to service, to muck in, to pull your weight.

That’s what Jesus wants from his disciples — a Mop Bucket Attitude — and I am so thankful for all of you here who share and exemplify that attitude in so many ways. We are to serve, not to be served.  To many people today are out for what they can get – wanting to be served and not to serve. They expect honour and privilege because of their position.  But the sad and ironic thing is that people who are waited on hand and foot are amongst the unhappiest people of all.

Jesus taught that heaven will hold some surprises. Honour and glory will be granted for behavior that was so natural, so undistinguished, and so noncompetitive.  Take the simple illustration that Jesus gives of receiving a child. “Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name, Jesus said, welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me.”.. A little child.

A group of European theologians once visited Mother Teresa in Calcutta. She said to them, “You try to do what I am doing, then you will be able to enjoy what I am doing.” She took them to one of her childcare centers and picked up a child who was playing in the mud and gave the child a kiss. She waited for her guests to do the same. None of them did.

Mother Teresa was an outstanding example of one who served the helpless, regardless of their age or circumstance. As such, she typified the humble servant attitude that Jesus talked about, being willing to reach out and help the smallest or lowliest of people so that we might show them the love of Christ.

It was the simple doffing of a cap to his mother by a white Anglican priest that so startled a young 6 year old, Desmond Tutu.  A simple act of courtesy and respect paid to his mother in a street in South Africa that led Desmond to embark on his journey to faith and future mentoring by a then Father Trevor Huddlestone.

In James 3 today we read that it is by our good life; our works done with gentleness; with a spirit that is willing to yield; being full of mercy; and bearing good fruits without partiality or hypocrisy; that our lives will give glory to God and there, will praise be, and true wisdom found.

Such simple acts will be greatly rewarded. Many of God’s children will be surprised to find that their faithful simple service has brought them top honours. For the servant will be honoured; and the last shall be first.

We are called to serve, not to be served. To serve God and others, and particularly the so called least and the lowest. May you continue to be blest in your ‘MBA” service and may God be honoured in all you think, say and do, in his name.

Sermon St Ninian’s Day 15^th September, 2024

Last week I shared with you the importance of the Syrophoenician woman’s encounter with Jesus in Mark 7, marking as it did, the pivotal moment when the paradigm shift in Jesus’ mission and ministry began.  A mission not just to the children of Israel but to all nations – Jew and Gentile.  It was an encounter immediately followed by the healing of the deaf and, speech restricted, man from the Gentile, Decapolis, region of Galilee.  And, if our lectionary had allowed, we would read in Mark 8 today of even more mission encounters with Gentiles. Further building upon and emphasizing the expansion of Jesus’s mission to the whole world.

People of Jesus’ day should not have been surprised at this, Old Testament prophets had frequently foretold it, the Magi in Luke had acknowledged this, and God’s opening words to Jeremiah 1:9-10 heralds it.  God’s plan of salvation then, was never solely to the 12 tribes of Israel, but to all nations.   Indeed, in Psalm 67 today we read, “that your way may be known upon earth, your saving power among all nations. Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you. Let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you judge the peoples with equity and guide the nations upon earth. let all the ends of the earth revere him.”

Yes, the encounter of Jesus with the Syrophoenician woman marked the moment when the misseo dei, God’s prophesied mission, came into being. And further evidence of this missional shift can be seen in Mark 8 – For in the same Gentile area of the deaf man – we read of the feeding of the 4,000. That ‘after 3 days’ “Jesus called his disciples and said to them, “How many loaves do you have?” They said, “Seven.” Then Jesus took the seven loaves, (not crumbs from the masters table this time). And after giving thanks he broke them and gave them to his disciples to distribute; They had also a few small fish; and after blessing them, he ordered that these too should be distributed’.  ‘They ate and were filled; and they took up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets full.

Strange, don’t you think, that there be 2 feedings of the multitudes, the feeding of the 5,000 and then 4,000?  The disciples were also puzzled. Later Jesus asked his disciples “Do you still not perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened?    Do you have eyes, and fail to see? Do you have ears, and fail to hear? Do you not remember? When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you collect?” They said to him, “Twelve.” “And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you collect?” And they said to him, “Seven.” Then he said to them, “Do you not yet understand?” 

At the feeding of the 5000, the 12 baskets left over signified the bread of life’s (more than enough) provision for the 12 tribes of Israel.  The 7 baskets of leftovers after the feeding of the 4000 was a sign of the bread of life’s (more than enough) provision for the gentiles.  How?  Well in Dt 7:1, in the time of Moses, we read that there were 7 gentile nations already in the promised land.  The baskets of left overs were signs then, to Jew and to Gentile, of the future promised land provision for all nations, after three days.

And, if even more evidence was needed, at the mid-point of Mark’s Gospel, Mark 8:27, whilst in Caeserea Philippi, at the border of present day Israel and Lebanon, in the very place where the Gentile god’s and idols of the land were placed in the crooks and crannies and rock ledges at the source of the river Jordon, in answer to Jesus asking ”but you who do you say that I am?”  Simon Peter proclaims that Jesus is the Messiah, the son of the living God.  And it is there, in that place of wooden, marble and stone lifeless Gentile god’s and idols, that Jesus the son of the living God talks for the first time of going to Jerusalem and to the Cross, through which salvation and forgiveness of sins will be poured out, not just for the Jews but for all peoples.  Quite amazing – don’t you just love Bible Study!!.

Which leads us to the gospel reading today.  Of The ascension – where on a mountain in Galilee (Gentile territory) “Jesus came and said to the disciples, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I (the living God) am with you always, to the end of the age.”  Yes, God’s message of salvation, as the prophets and psalmists foretold, was always for all people.

It is a costly message though, and through the ages the prophets, evangelists and saints were killed and their message resisted, dismissed or misinterpreted, in a preferred, political or forceful, domination of all nations, sin filled world of ours.

The same was true of Jesus, they wanted him to be a great warrior king but he came as our Saviour, to forgive and to give his life as a ransom, in love for all, holding his arms out on the Cross to Jew and Gentile, that all who believe in him be freed from sin and evil ways – that we might live a better way, God’s way of love, and not the selfish ‘want it our way’  with ‘people like us’ world of today.

Thanks be to God and many who have gone before us, God’s message of salvation has gone to ALL peoples, without favouritism or preference, and not just to a chosen race. Evidenced in the Thessalonian reading today, and exemplified in our patronal Saint Ninian whom we remember today.  Who, though a shadowy figure in our history, is acknowledged as Scotland’s first saint, whom in 397AD began his mission to all peoples here.  A man who, like the Syrophoenician woman, had the courage to climb over barriers, Hadrian’s Wall being one of them, in order to follow a call of God to come to this great nation and to the clans that inhabited this place  And though there is some doubt about the areas that Ninian visited, there is little doubt that Ninian carried out his mission in Scotland, and that his missionary work prepared the foundation for the later efforts of Columba, Fillion, Kentigern and many others.

So may we follow the Syrophoenician Woman and St Ninian’s great courage to surmount the barriers of today, to stimulate the change needed, to bring about the fulfilment of the gospel of God’s salvation and love for all peoples without prejudice or favouritism here, and even today.

Sermon: 8^th September 2024

As a background to today’s readings,  two weeks ago, in John 6:58, we heard Jesus say he ‘is the bread of life and that allwho eat this bread will abide in him and will live for ever…’ 

Last week we had the verses immediately before today’s gospel (Mark 7:1-23), about the Pharisees accusing the disciples of not washing their hands. To which Jesus highlighted their hypocrisy and said that they, the Pharisees, bend the rules for their own purposes, ‘holding to human traditions and when it suits them, abandon  the commandment of God’ (note: not commandments – but the primary commandment to love God and to love one another.

And today, we read of Jesus being challenged to flesh out, or to put into practice what he has been preaching and not be, as we read in James 2:1-7 today, ‘hearers who forget but doers who act showing no favouritism or partiality’.  Indeed, the Psalm today reminds us, that regardless of race, gender or creed…’God, the Maker of heaven and earth, the seas, and everything in them—⁷ upholds the cause of the oppressed,  gives food to the hungry.    sets prisoners free, ⁸ gives sight to the blind,   lifts up those who are bowed down,    loves the righteous. ⁹ watches over the foreigner     sustains the fatherless and the widow,     and frustrates the ways of the wicked.¹⁰   And in today’s Gospel we also discover that showing no partiality is not just confined to family, to friends, one’s faith community, or preferred group; even when it is not convenient, or when we have other so called ‘important to us’ tasks to do….

Isaiah’s prophecy makes it clear that salvation is for all people: ‘To everyone, with a fearful heart, God will come and save, and the eyes of the blind, the ears of the deaf, the tongue of the speechless and the lame will be healed’.  All of fearful heart shall be saved and even the parched desert wildernesses will be restored

So how does this all further connect with today’s gospel text?  You know, it can be all too easy to just read the Bible, glossing over what we read or hear, and not pausing to ponder or to question the significance, even of a word, or of a passage, in the context of the whole story of God’s salvation.

Today’s gospel reading is one such passage. One that we would do well to reflect upon.  Were these just another sample of miracle stories in a normal day in the life of our Saviour? Or was something else going on here, something different, something significant?  Indeed, in our everyday lives are we open to the God moments and challenges?  Do we even recognize them? Let alone pause to give thanks for them and act upon them?

I would argue that the Syrophoenician woman; a woman from present day Lebanon; and the friends of a deaf man from the Decapolis – a region of 10 gentile towns around Galilee, part of present-day West Bank, and their encounter with Jesus are so significant.  In particular, the woman exemplifies what Jesus had said last week in Mark 7:15, that “there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile.” For this woman, a so-called ‘unclean gentile’, one who consumed ritually impure food offered to idols, issues forth from within her soul, words that show her faith, her wisdom and goodness.  And it is here that we also see Jesus’ faith in action. For as James says ¹⁴ What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? 

So let us delve a little deeper. The gentile woman breaks all protocols, she enters the house of the Lord alone, and begs Jesus to heal her daughter of demon possession. First she is rebuffed, “Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the little dogs,” It is a seemingly uncharacteristic comment that certainly could speak to both the historical, and even current day, prejudices so horrendously evident in the awful atrocities inflicted in Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, Israel, the Ukraine, the recent riots in the UK, and in many other conflicted areas of the world today.

Surprisingly, the woman counters Jesus with her wise observation, “Sir, even the little dogs eat the crumbs from the master’s table.” At which Jesus ‘the bread of life’, responds positively. Her daughter is healed, and in Matthew’s account, we read that Jesus commended her saying, ‘Woman great is your faith’ 

Notwithstanding, amazing though this grace bestowed is, this passage in Mark, followed immediately by the healing of the deaf man from the Decapolis region, and the feeding of the 4,000 there, mark a truly significant and pivotal moment in Jesus mission.  For until now the food from the master’s table, Jesus’ ministry, had been reserved only for the children of Israel.  But this Gospel account marks the juncture, the very moment, at which the expansion of Jesus’s mission begins, not just to the chosen few, but to the whole world, barriers were lowered, and a new era begins, as Old Testament prophecies unite with New Testament happenings, and the plan of God’s salvation is loosed.  For now, because of this woman courage and faith, as Isaiah’s prophesied, ‘all who are of fearful heart – can now be strong, and not to fear, for God will come to save you.. Even the gentiles, even you and me.

No, these were not just ‘other miracles’ of Jesus, reluctant or otherwise.  For according to Mark, this discourse; in the house of the Lord; in Jesus presence; at the table at which bread was, in thanksgiving, blessed, broken and shared, is the actual moment, for us Gentiles, when the bread of life, was freely given, not in crumbs from the masters tale, but fully, without condition.  And was received as eucharistic, with thanksgiving, by a gentile woman who came to the Lord’s table humbly on her knees, without merit, or deservedly, simply knowing her need of God, and, as such, was the first Gentile to be in communion with the bread of life, to abide in him and to live for ever…’.

Yes thanks be to God for her great faith but also, thanks be to God that the human Jesus was alive to this ‘Holy Spirit’ moment, and respond in the way he did..  For not only was the woman’s daughter healed, but later the gentile man’s ears are opened to hear the word of the Lord, as ours are, and his tongue, like ours,  is freed to speak out God’s praise.  Yes Jesus came to save us all.

The woman and the deaf man’s friends may not have belonged to the synagogue; they may not have known the Torah, and they, like the disciples sometimes, did not follow the religious purity laws… They simply had a need & they knew Jesus could help, they came to Jesus & that was enough.  And their faith is still faith today.  It is the faith to go to God for help and at the same time admit that we have no claim upon God; nothing to merit his mercy; and are in no position to make demands.  Simply that ‘just as we are’  we humbly come to God and ask in faith.

For faith, as we read in James 2:19 is not about, simply believing. “Even the demons believe, and tremble”.   Faith is a movement to God or in the direction God is calling us to go, noting and acting upon the ‘Godly moments’, that present themselves along The Way.

In our readings today, this faith was clearly put into action, both the prophesied and the fulfilling of God’s plan of salvation.  And Jesus, and all the faithful since, have shown us the way.  So, may we be a people of ‘The Word’ who allow the word of God to go deep into our hearts and be manifest in our lives: A people of faith who never abandon ‘The’ commandment of God, to love God and our neighbour’: A people that show no partiality: A people that are alive to, and act upon, the God moments: And a people of love who are not afraid to cross any barrier to bring about God’s healing and peace, bringing, in word and deed, God’s love for all people.

Sermon June 2^nd, 2024

An overweight businessman decided it was time to shed some excess pounds. He took his new diet seriously, even changing his driving route to avoid his favorite bakery. But one morning he showed up at work with a huge coffee cake.  Everyone in the office scolded him, but his smile remained. “This is a special coffee cake,” he explained. “I accidentally drove by the bakery this morning and there in the window was a host of goodies. I felt it was no accident, so I prayed, ‘Lord, if you want me to have one of those delicious coffee cakes, let there be a parking spot right in front of the shop.’ And sure enough, after the eighth time around the block, there it was!”

The Deuteronomy reading today reminds us of God’s call for a Sabbath (a Moed [Hebrew] – a feast) to be kept.  ‘Observe the Sabbath and keep it holy as the Lord your God commanded you.’

The Psalm today also reminds us of the need to also keep holy the ‘Moed’s’, the ‘Sabbath like’ feasts, the annual religious festivals.  They are important reminders to rest, to pause and to reflect on how God has acted in the past; reminders of God’s faithfulness in times of need; and reminders that it is God alone whom we are to worship.

It is a fact picked up on in the Corinthians reading as Paul reminds the people that we do not proclaim ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord.  A treasured knowledge that we are to keep like treasure in the clay pots of our lives.  We do err, we do make mistakes, we are breakable, things do happen to us, and so we have to take care of this treasure of faith and life that we have been given, or else we suffer.

So how is your Sabbath and Moed festival keeping?  Are you taking care of the treasure within you?    Do you take time to re-charge your physical, spiritual, emotional and psychological batteries?  Do you keep holy days? Or do you holiday from the Lord, for that which is ridden with holes, that that leaves you devoid, irritable, angry or afraid.

Sabbath rest is God’s gift in creation.  The soil needs it, and we, the Adam, we of the soil, the Adamah [Hebrew],especially need it.  The seasons of the year remind us of it. The sun and moon dictate it, and yet humankind increasingly ignores it, and pays for it.

The Sabbath is divinely given for a reason, yet we think we are divine and can do what we like.  “You can’t tell me what to do” is a modern-day refrain in today’s ‘it’s all about me’ world.  And the world is paying the price.  Forests and mineral deposits are raped of resources.  Greed and gluttony control motives.  Narcissistic pleasures are consumed at the expense of the many.  Our hospitals and care agencies cannot cope.  Crime is on the rise. Millions die in war or famine and our climate suffers.  Our world; our climate; we, desperately need a Sabbath.

St Paul says in Corinthians that the extraordinary power of God that is at work in us does not come from us, but from God.  God is our power source and only God can recharge our batteries, and the batteries of this beautiful planet, if we Sabbath unto the Lord, the Lord of the Sabbath.  “Be still” God calls out to us. “Be still and know I am God”.  “Do not be afraid for I am with you, my rod and my staff will comfort you”.  “My yoke is easy and my burden is light”, Jesus said.  “Peace be still!”  and yet we fill the quiet with meaningless noise and busyness, rather than absorb the still small voice of God in the peace of his presence, in those transcendent and Divine Reality moments which are greater than ourselves.

In my last year at theological college, I went through an arid time.  You would think that in a place where you are studying God’s word and immersed in prayer that you would be close to God.  Unbeknown to me though, 3 deaths in my family, in quick succession – Grandfather, father and brother-in-law – had left their mark. What I had done in the years following their deaths was to immerse myself with distraction, with busyness, with anything that would desensitize the pain, but in doing so it had only served to temporarily anesthetize the real hurt.  Just 16 weeks away from being ordained I could not pray and could not function spiritually.  It was as Julian of Norwich describes a ‘dark night of the soul’.   My spiritual director recognized the symptoms and led me to ponder the root of the problem, and talked through the consequences of not dealing with the issues, and not casting our burdens on the Lord. She encouraged me to go on a prayer retreat.  There the retreat leader led me on a journey, through to the last stage of grief – that of hope and to the Sabbath rest I needed.

The retreat was a profound experience, and ever since I try to find time to ponder and to appreciate the transforming God moments, small or large, that happen every day.  For our God is with us as much in the desert experiences of our lives as he is on the fertile plains and mountain tops.

Our God is for us, not against us, but in our temptations to follow other gods, or through our myopia, our rigidity, our fear or our willful stubbornness, we often refuse to allow God to touch us with the vital restorative power he has to give, going through life with our heads bowed low unable to see anything but the grey pavement, the trudging of our feet, or our cell phones – when each moment God is wanting to sit with us, spend time with us, just waiting with a gift to share with us that will enable us to make sense of the past, savor the present, and receive hope for the future.

Sabbath rest is to be kept, not legalistically, but in the spirit of the command that it was given. In the Gospel we read the story of the man with a withered hand being healed by Jesus on the Sabbath; and the story of the disciples so hungry and in need of food, picking grains of corn and eating them on the Sabbath.  Both seemed contrary to Deuteronomy reading. But these were not examples of giving in to temptation.  This was not like the man praying for a parking spot and after 8 times around the block he finds one so that he could buy the coffee cake he did not need.

The Sabbath law in the OT is divinely given and is to be heeded, and Jesus came, not to abolish the law but to fulfil it.  Jesus reminds the Pharisees that the Sabbath was made for humankind and not humankind for the Sabbath and that the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath and that it is lawful to do good, to heal, to restore on the Sabbath.”

As such, Jesus is the ultimate Moed. He is the Blessing of Abraham’s seed. He is the fulfilment of every Old Testament feast. He is our Tabernacle in the wilderness of life and He is our all-sufficient rest from sin.

True Sabbath rest is not legalistic or illusive. Rest is instituted in a Person—The Lord of the Sabbath. “Learn of Me.”Jesus said, “You will find rest for your soul.” So New Testament rest is in keeping a holy relationship and, like all relationships, needs quality time, for the relationship to be refreshing and fruitful.

It is my hope, that as the coming years unfold, we will discover a renewed impetus to Sabbath as individuals, as a church, and as a world. Recognizing that from the beginnings of creation, the treasures of faith and fragile nature of life, are entrusted to our pots of clay, to us, for good reason. They are to be stewarded well from our times of Sabbath with God to God’s glory, for the benefit of all creation, for all humankind and for ourselves. So Sabbath well my friends.

 

TRINITY  SUNDAY  –  YEAR  B  –  26^TH May, 2024

 The father of a wealthy family took his son on a trip to the country with the purpose of showing him how poor, people can be. They spent a day and a night on the farm of a very poor family.   On their way back home, father and son got into a conversation about all they had experienced while at the farm.
“What did you think of our trip to the farm,”

“It was very good, Dad!”
“Did you see how poor, people can be?”

“Yeah!
“So what did you learn?”
“Well, I saw that, while we have a dog at home, they have four dogs,” the son replied. “We have a pool that reaches to the middle of the garden, while they have a creek that has no end. We have electric lamps in the garden, and they have a sky full of stars. Our patio goes all the way to the wall around our property. They have the whole horizon.” 

When the little boy was finished, his father was speechless.

“Thanks, Dad, for showing me, how poor we really are!”

Nicodemus could not realize his poverty of soul until Jesus showed him how poor he really was.  Nicodemus was a pillar of society, a highly respected religious leader, a great teacher and rich, but when he met Jesus, he knew he was lacking in so many ways. ‘Nicodemus’, Jesus said, ‘you must be born again’.

Jesus, like the little boy, saw what Nicodemus and the father did not.  To the extent that Jesus stressed three times to Nicodemus in John chapter 3, the importance of being “born again” 

Anyone who has repented of their former ways, those who have seen the poverty of their situation, have died to self and have decided to follow Jesus, have been born again, and there is no turning back, for as the chorus goes ‘I am a new creation, no more in condemnation – there in the grace of God I stand’.

Becoming a Christian is not like taking out a membership at a club to give us certain privileges – a membership which we can cancel or postpone at will.  Becoming a Christian does not depend on external signs either – St Paul reminds us that Abraham’s faith preceded his circumcision. Nor does it depend on good works, for we can’t earn our way into heaven.  Our faith is not a contract either, but a gift – freely given, freely received to children born anew, into a relationship of love with God. —heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ.

Blind Bartimaeus was born again, not when he received his sight, but when he left his cloak behind and decided to trust Jesus, to follow him and not depend on handouts.

Zacchaus was not born again when he came down from the tree but when he repented and responded to Jesus and decided to live out his newfound faith in his life and his business, paying back, and more, to any he had defrauded.

The fishermen were not born again when they listened to Jesus but when they dropped their nets and decided to follow Him and fish for people.  And in doing so all these received grace upon grace.

But, there were others who did not.  In the Bible, the rich ruler though knowing his poverty of soul; knowing there was something missing in his life; could not make the transition.  His reliance on money was too great. He chose to rely on his possessions rather than the opportunity to rely on Him from whom all good things come.

What about you?  Have you taken the step of faith; have you called upon the Lord whilst he is near – died to self and been born anew with Christ.  There’s no time like the present if you haven’t .

In John3:16-17 we read that God so loved the world (God so loved you and me), that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.  

Our physical birth is something we have no part in deciding, but we do have a choice whether to be born again.  We can say yes, or we can say no. And I have found that this decision often comes at times when we, like Nicodemus, recognize that there is something missing.   Those times when we recognize the poverty of our life.  Times when we are aware that life is not fulfilling, that surely there must be more to it than this?  This was certainly true for me. At the age of 26 I was well aware of the poverty of my soul, and since then, the repenting of my former ways, and making the decision to follow Jesus at my confirmation and experiencing the outpouring of his love through the Holy Spirit has been liberating.

And yet, too often and too many, people hold back, like Nicodemus.  But why would we want to fear falling into the arms of God, who is Love with a capital L.  To the Love that casts out all fear?

Just think for a moment, if Nicodemus had given his life to the Lord then and there, like my Dad did, he would not havehad to secretly go to Jesus on a number of occasions during the night – Nicodemus contented himself with scraps from the table, the crumbs of what was left, and in doing so he missed, for many a year, the fullness a true and open relationship with Jesus can bring.   Oh for sure, if he had made the decision to follow Jesus he would have been ridiculed – No doubt he would have even been thrown out of the Sanhedrin – lost his party and political privileges, but equally, he would have been liberated and set free from the oppressive laws and customs that he was having to follow

Jesus wants us to break free, to be liberated, to be one with him and not fear what anyone else thinks.  He loves us for who we are on the inside not the false conforming image we often present to the world. As such, he doesn’t want us to be satisfied with the scraps, he wants us to know His abundance.  Like after the feeding of 5000 men and the women and children, there were still 12 baskets full of food left over.  Jesus said I have come so that you may have life, life in all its fullness.

He loves you and desires that ‘inside of you’ to break free, to unlock that void deep within, so that you can finally be the person you want to be, that person that you can be, that person you have been created to be, in Christ

Don’t hold your arms wide across the birth canal of new life for fear of what a full relationship with God might bring!  For unless we have been born again, like Isaiah in our first reading, we may never see the Kingdom of God.  But,   the choice is ours.

Let me put it this way, this past week a general election has been called, and in 39 days all the citizens of the United Kingdom will be asked to cast their vote.  Many will, and many won’t.  Our vote or non-vote, will have consequences for on July 4^th a new parliament for the next 5 years will be formed in Westminster.

But today, we are reminded that there is another vote that we are invited to cast.  A vote open to all the citizens of the world.  A vote that will determine the governance, not just of the UK but for the Kingdom of God. And not just for 5 years but for eternity. Jesus has set forth his manifesto and we will all be called to account.  Called to account not just for a cross we mark on a piece of paper that we deposit in a box and then walk away, but for the Cross on which Christ gave his life for us.  A cross we are all asked to pick up and bear for Christ and carry into this world.  Indeed, those who have been baptized are already marked with the cross on our foreheads.  A sign that God in Christ has voted for us and invites us, not to just be members of a party, but as God’s children, heirs of the kingdom to the eternal banquet party that awaits us.

So if you haven’t already done so, take the Lord’s hand and be open to His invitation to be the man or woman that God has called you to be.  Receive His gracious gift, be born again for this is the message of this Trinity Sunday and of every day. Be liberated so that in Christ you may liberate others.

 

 

Sermon Pentecost Sunday 19^th May 2024

A Sunday School teacher was describing how Lot’s wife looked back and turned into a pillar of salt, then little Jason interrupted and said, “My Mummy looked back once, while she was driving, and she turned into a telephone box!”

Clearly some things are of God and somethings are not.

A man took his Rottweiler to the vet.  My dog’s cross-eyed, is there anything you can do for him? ” “Well,” said the vet, “let’s have a look at him” He picked up the dog, examined his eyes, then checked his teeth. Finally, he said “I’m going to have to put him down.” “What? Because he’s cross-eyed? ” “No, because he’s really heavy”.

Sometimes fear blinds us from the obvious.
The Greek verb to grow ‘auxano’ is found 22 times in the NT. In the Synoptic Gospels, it is a plant-like growth of the Kingdom through the seed of God’s word buried in us.

In Paul’s writings ‘auxano’ is used of the growth of the Church, despite human division as in 1 Cor.  A growth in numbers, in maturity and in communal life.

In Acts ‘auxano’ is the word for the missionary activity of the Church. Despite much opposition the word of God spreads and the number of disciples increases (Acts 6:7).  In fact, in Acts 8, it was through the persecution of the Church in Jerusalem that the Church eventually went viral across the known world.

It is God’s will that we grow, but note, quite often that growth comes through times of adversity.  For example, the Spirit descended on Jesus like a dove at his baptism.  Jesus then spent 40 days in prayer and fasting in the wilderness being tempted in every way by the devil, before we read of his return to Nazareth and the announcement in the Synagogue, that “today in your hearing the Scripture (Isaiah 61) has been fulfilled” ¹⁸  At which the folks from Nazareth tried to stone him.

It is not an easy journey for the Christian or for the Church.  It was not a bed of roses for Jesus either.  The principalities and powers of this world do not like the challenge of the Gospel, nor the presence of spirit filled Christians set on reclaiming the world for Christ and His kingdom. We are certainly experiencing such enemy activity here in the Glen, in a number of ways.

But we should not fear the worst, like that man with his Rottweiler, rather when the Spirit falls upon us, like it did that first Pentecost, at such times we need to pray.

Those early disciples continued praying fervently in the Upper Room for further opportunities to witness to Christ even though they had just been whipped, jailed, and told to be silent by the authorities.  Jesus promised the Holy Spirit.  There is no “if” in the gospel text, Jesus said when the Spirit comes he will lead you.    (3 examples were shared my police days Orgreave Colliery – a police colleague and the assistance of a taxi driver – examples of Godly assistance at moments when such help was truly needed)

Contrary to what some may suppose, Jesus was not announcing the “first time” appearance of a previously unheard-of phenomena here. Centuries before, the Spirit had “possessed” Gideon (Judges 6:34) and helped his people through difficult times.  In a similar way, the Spirit “came mightily upon Saul (1 Samuel 11:6).” Before that, the Spirit of God was obviously at work in the life of Joseph (Genesis 41:38).  Before that, the Spirit “moved upon the face of the waters” at creation (Genesis 1:2). Isaiah had prophesied under the inspiration of the Spirit (Isaiah 61:1).  And in Ezekiel 37 we read of the Holy Spirit being breathed into those dry bones, breathing new life even into that which was dead.   Consequently, when Jesus addressed the disciples about the Holy Spirit which “was to come,” he was not preparing them for some new supernatural presence. He was impressing upon them that the continuing work of the Spirit would assume a more prominent role in God’s redemptive activity.  And this time the Holy Spirit will be in all believers, young and old, men and women.  Not a matter of “if,” but a matter of “when.” And Jesus breathed on the disciples and said “Receive the Holy Spirit”.

And so, from those early apostles, through the desert fathers, and even to the faithful of the present day, though people have been ridiculed, tortured, persecuted, or martyred for their faith, the Church has continued to grow, especially where there is opposition or adversity.  And prayer is key. It was whilst Peter was in prayer that he saw the vision of what he was to do – a vision of taking the gospel to a Gentile household in Ceaserea. Then there was Philip. Whilst in prayer told to go along a certain road and there met an Ethiopian struggling over the suffering servant passage of Isaiah 53.

Prayer should undergird all that we do daily as a church  And before all else, we are to seek the Lord and his ways, not ours.  With God it is not business as usual.  We are to be spirit led vessels for his usage.  For when, not if, For when, the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth:”  Jesus said.

The Holy Spirit is not only a revealer of truth though, but also an advocate and a guiding presence, but quite often we only see evidence of this on reflection.  For how many so called “coincidences” in our life are eventually understood to be considerably beyond the level of “chance” when we reflect back on them?   Something which had caused an impossible situation to take a turn for the better, just when our own finely laid calculations were at the point of collapse. Or something unexpected happened and a new direction, a different perspective, another alternative emerged from the fog. Some call it intuition. Some call it inspired genius. Some call it coincidence.  I have come to recognize it as the guidance of the Holy Spirit. (An example was given here of our original call to go to Canada).

The purpose of our discipleship is to allow God’s living Word to get through to us, and grab us, by the power of the Holy Spirit, and make us different, so that we, with God, make a difference in this world. – Knowing what the Bible says is necessary, but we need the power of the Holy Spirit God’s guide us into Godly action. St Paul wrote in 1 Thess 1:4-5  ⁴ For we know, brothers and sisters loved by God, that he has chosen you, ⁵ because our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction. 

May we always be a people of God’s love, rooted in the Scriptures and prayer; regular in worship; open to the Holy Spirit, outreaching in compassion and ready to share our faith despite the indifference, or the opposition we may face.

So people of St Ninian’s

Go into the world to serve God with gladness;

be of good courage; hold fast to that which is good;

render to know one evil for evil;

strengthen the fainthearted; support the weak;

help the afflicted; honour all people;

love and serve God,

rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Be courageous.

 

Sermon Easter 7.  12^th May, 2024

The famous Renaissance scholar, Erasmus, once told a story illustrating the importance of taking up the torch of Christ’s ministry.  In the story, Jesus had returned to heaven, and the angels gathered around Him to learn what had happened on earth.  Jesus told them of the miracles, His teachings, His death on the cross, and His resurrection.  When He finished, the Archangel Michael asked, “So, what happens now?”

Jesus answered, “I have left behind eleven faithful disciples and a handful of men and women who have faithfully followed me.  With the Holy Spirit they will declare my message and build my church.”

“But,” Michael asked, “What if they fail?  What is Your other plan?”

And Jesus answered, “I have no other plan!”…

I have often wondered what would have become of the church if the disciples whom he loved had not answered their call, or the saints through every generation since, hadn’t.  The importance of our call and of our commitment to love God and each other cannot be taken lightly or underestimated. Sometimes though, unlike Justus and Matthias, for a variety of reasons, we can doubt that call, or fail to step up, or even test a call, when a particular call comes to us.

Danish philosopher, Soren Kierkegard, once told a story about an Emperor, who was touring his domain and receiving the accolades of his people. In one village market square, his carriage was surrounded by cheering villagers and peasants. And to the amazement of his neighbours, one brash young farmer stepped out of the crowd and approached the emperor’s carriage.  “Grant me a special blessing, Sire,” he pleaded.

The villagers were even more amazed at the Emperor’s reply: “Of course,” he said. “Get into my carriage. Come with me. Live in my palace. Eat at my table. Marry my daughter, be my son-in-law.”
The young man was delighted. Then he thought about it….. No more Saturday nights at the pub with his friends. No more comfortable peasant clothes.  He’d have to take a bath – maybe even once a month. He’d have to clean his fingernails. He’d have to learn the manners of the court.

Eventually the young farmer shook his head and lowered his eyes. “No, Sire,” he said. “I would be too uncomfortable. It would be too hard to live up to. It would take too much of me…  If you want to do something for me, give me a plot of land, a farm, and a house of my own. But to live in your palace, eat at your table, be your son-in-law – this is too much.” So he declined it.

He wanted the emperor’s blessing; but he wanted it on his own terms. He wanted to be blessed in doing what he wanted to do – not what the emperor wanted him to do.   He wanted to be blessed right where he was, not moved out of his comfortable ways. He wanted the blessing, but not the responsibility that went with it.  At times we can be like that peasant. And yet, St Paul says, “We are the children of God; if children, then heirs – heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ.” (Rn 8:16-17).

St Peter, 1 Peter 2:9, said, “You are a royal priesthood, God’s own people, that you may declare the wonderful works of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”

And in his 2^nd letter, said, “God has granted to us his precious and very great promises, that through these we may become partakers of the divine nature.” (2 Peter 1:3-4)

Blessings, indeed! And as Christians we are to lay claim to them, and live into them….  There is no one else.  Now, don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing wrong with talking to God about better beans or bigger cabbages in whatever gardens we happen to till. And there’s nothing wrong with talking to God about a pay raise or a healthier body, or a happy home life.  But if that’s all we want, if that’s the only blessing we seek – “Bless me in my rut, make it comfortable, and by all means make it profitable, but don’t push me out of it, or ask me to do things that are inconvenient.” – then we had better read our Bibles again.

Christ came in love and gave out of love His all on the Cross, and he calls us to that same life and ministry for love.  In response, ours is the responsibility of being faithful children of God. And ours is the commitment that comes with being members of his royal family.  The peasant said, “No, Sire,” and declined it.  What do you say?

Thanks be to God for those first apostles, the other men and women, and the countless others through the centuries who have helped build the kingdom of God.  And thanks be to God for you who serve so faithfully here in so many ways. But may I ask, as with Justus and Matthias, is God calling you to step into a new ministry?  If God is, don’t be held back by false humility, thinking there are far better people than you, remember God has already decided on that question, that is why he is calling you!

Don’t be held back by poor self-worth either (thinking you couldn’t possibly do that? That you are not good enough, not intelligent enough, not young enough) Neither be held back by playing it small.  These are the devil’s constant temptations – to tempt us to diminish, to doubt, to distrust the call of God for us.

Justus and Matthias were open to the election to be the apostle to replace Judas. And thanks be to God, this Tuesday some have been nominated and offer themselves for the election of a bishop for our neighbours, the diocese of Argyle and the Isles. Though I don’t think they will be drawing lots. But may I ask, what about you?  Is God calling you to a particular ministry or to go deeper in the one you have? If yes, take heart, and remember that for all whom God calls, God equips – way more than we could ever ask or imagine.  But don’t let your ministry call be left in the sands of ‘if only’, or ‘had hoped’.  God’s call is ever diminished by time but only by our lack of trust or desire.  Maybe you, like Esther in the OT, have been born for such a time as this!

As God’s children, I pray we will always be ready to answer the call of God and take up the baton being entrusted to us in this generation, and always be thankful for those who are willing to serve, in so many varied and much appreciated ways, lay or ordained. And so, may the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit fall upon us afresh, and in full measure, as together we assist in the building of God’s kingdom on earth as it is in heaven.  Amen

 

Easter 6 – Sunday 5^th May 2024

Most of the choices we make in life are not between what is trivial and what is important, but between what is important and what is more important. And this morning’s Gospel reading shows what is most important. “A new commandment I give to you”: Jesus said, “that you should love one another, even as I have loved you, you should love one another. By this all will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

First and foremost, God desires of us that we love one another. We may tithe. We may teach. We may sing or serve. We may cut the grass or make the coffee. We may visit on behalf of St Ninian’s, preach the Gospel, clean the kitchen, or serve on vestry. All things of vital importance to a congregation for which we are thankful. But if we do not do them in response to our love for God, and if we do not love one another, we miss what God desires most of us.

Love in action – is what we are talking about this morning. Love which finds expression in kindness, courtesy, tolerance, respect, and acceptance of those around us. And Jesus calls us to love one another and to bring that love to light in the way that we treat those around us, like he did.

Now it’s easy to love people in general, to affirm that love is a good thing and something we all need. But it’s another thing to put that love into action, to make love concrete in our attitudes and actions toward others. Someone once said, “We are judged by our actions, not our intentions. We may have a heart of gold, but then, so does a hard-boiled egg.”  We are called to love one another and to set aside preconceived notions of who is and who is not acceptable to God. –  We would do well to note that the ground at the foot of the Cross is level. We are all sinners. And it is God’s love that unites us, and it is in God’s love that we are called to abide in and share.

Our lives must be characterized by love in action. Jesus says, “As I have loved you, love one another.” 

This week I came across some self examining questions adapted from Gerard W. Hughes book, God in All Things [London: Hodder & Stoughton, 2003],

“*Would you like to be remembered as a generous person who was open and friendly to any human being whom you encountered, regardless of race, religious belief, political leanings or social class?

*Would you like to be remembered as a compassionate and caring person?

*Would you like to be remembered as a person of transparent integrity and whose words and actions were always in harmony?

*Would you like to be remembered as someone who always gave encouragement, hope and life, wherever you happened to be? 

*Would you like to be remembered as a person who never bore grudges and was always ready to forgive, someone who was entirely free from any hint of self-importance or arrogance?

*Would you like to be remembered as a person who always delighted in sharing whatever you had and was never condescending?

*Would you like to be remembered as someone who knew what it was to hunger and thirst after righteousness, a person who worked on behalf of the oppressed and the marginalized?

*Would you like it to be said of you that ‘love possessed, inspired, and permeated every thought and every action?’”

If your answer is ‘yes’ to all of these questions or even to most of them then your inner desires are in harmony with the will of God.  In harmony with the one who says, (Jn 15:9-10) “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love.  If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love.”  And in this light, the Apostle John (1 John 5:3) says “God’s commandments are not burdensome”.

And abiding love is first to be our primary action. The word “abide” is used 10 times in the first 10 verses of John 15.  In fact, of the 118 times the word abide appears in the Bible John uses it 40 times in his Gospel and 28 times in his letters.  Looking at the Greek roots of the word, we discover that to abide, is to “dwell,” “remain,” “be present,” “be held and kept.” and to rest.

Abiding is not about our efforts; instead, it is about ‘letting go’ in those arms where we are embraced by peace and infused in Christ’s love. In that place and presence where we can truly be still and rest.

Such abiding in Christ’s love, leads us then to the how of our primary witness, as a Church in the world today. For Jesus made that clear when he said, “By this shall all know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

Our Christian discipleship, is not a matter of willpower or a legalistic duty. It is not just choosing to love others either. It doesn’t happen that way.  Sharing God’s love, living God’s love, loving one another happens, when we abide in God’s love, when we allow God’s love to surround us, to infuse us, to shape us, and to mold us, in Jesus’ image.  “As I have loved”, Jesus said, “love one another.”

In a world all too often filled with people concerned about themselves first, characterized with an impersonal “what’s in it for me” attitude, we are called to witness to something far more important – A love born and nourished by God’s love. A love that gives of itself for others; a love that cares about others; a love that makes lives significant in our giving to others.

Jesus said that his followers will be identified by their love. Not by their clothes, not by their bumper stickers, not by what part of town they live in, but by their love.

So, take time to truly abide in God’s love this week, and then make sure you make the right choices; for the right reasons; and with the right motives; remembering always, that ‘As Jesus has loved us, we are to love one another.’  To love all for whom Christ died.  For by this, as the Apostle John says, (1 John 5:2)  all “will know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments.”  Amen.