Sermon, All About You, First Church Ipswich, January 18th

As always, my reading copy. forgive the typos, caps and the punctuation!

Psalm 139:1-6, 13-18

O God, you have searched me and known me.
  You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from far away.

You search out my path and my lying down,
  and are acquainted with all my ways.

Even before a word is on my tongue,
  O God, you know it completely.
You hem me in, behind and before,
  and lay your hand upon me.

Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
  it is so high that I cannot attain it.
For it was you who formed my inward parts;
  you knit me together in my mother's womb.

I praise you,
  for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works;
  that I know very well.

My frame was not hidden from you,
  when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.

Your eyes beheld my unformed substance.
In your book were written all the days
  that were formed for me, before they existed.

How weighty to me are your thoughts, O God!
  How vast is the sum of them!

I try to count them —
  they are more than the sand;
I come to the end —
  I am still with you.

PLEASE PRAY WITH ME. LORD MAY MY WORDS TOUCH HEARTS AND MINDS HERE TODAY AMEN.

THIS PAST OCTOBER, I DECIDED TO TAKE A WALK. A LONG WALK. MANY OF YOU HAVE HEARD OF THE CAMINO DE SANTIAGO, A PILGRIMAGE WALK TO SANTIAGO SPAIN TO THE PLACE WHERE THE BONES OF ST. JAMES ARE BURIED. THERE ARE MANY ROUTES YOU CAN TAKE TO GET THERE, BUT I DECIDED TO WALK FROM PORTO PORTUGAL UP ALONG THE COAST TO SPAIN 

I WAS SCARED.

 NOT OF THE WALK, 200 MILES OR SO, I HAD TRAINED FOR THAT. NOR THE WEATHER, WHICH WAS WILD AND VERY RAINY, NOR THE TERRAIN WHICH THE GUIDEBOOK CALLED GENTLE ROLLING HILLS AND TURNED OUT TO BE MORE LIKE MT. EVEREST. NOR DID THE LANGUAGE BARRIER BOTHER ME, I SPEAK SOME SPANISH AND LEARNED A HANDFUL OF PORTUGESE. NO, I  WAS SCARED OF MY WALKING COMPANION.

 I WAS WALKING ALONE.

 TO SOME OF YOU IT MAY SOUND ROMANTIC TO HAVE SOME ALONE TIME BUT FOR SOME OF US ALL THAT ALONE TIME IS A BIT DAUNTING. WHAT IF i SPENT ALL THIS TIME IN SELF EXAMINATION AND FAILED THE EXAM?

I SHARE MY EARLY TREPIDATION OF SO MUCH FOCUS ON MYSELF TODAY BECAUSE THIS PSALM IS ABOUT YOU. YOU. YES OF COURSE THE WHOLE BIBLE IS FOR YOU, WRITTEM FOR YOU AS AN INDIVIDUAL, BUT ITS LANGUAGE IS OFTEN COLLECTIVE ISN'T IT? IT TALKS ABOUT PEOPLE, TRIBES AND CHILDREN AND BRETHERN AND SISTERS. AND THE TERMS, EVEN IF THE MESSAGE IS FOR YOU. IS ABOUT US COLLECTIVELY.. BUT THIS PSALM, I LOVE THIS PSALM BECAUSE IT IS ABOUT YOU. IT IS WRITTEN IN THE FIRST PERSON AND IS A SONG OF PRAISE WHERE DAVID SPEAKS ON YOUR BEHALF TO GOD, AND LISTS ALL THAT GOD DOES FOR YOU AND HOW GRATEFUL YOU ARE ABOUT IT. AND IF I WERE TO PLACE YOU SIDE BY SIDE WITH DAVID, AND LET HIM ADDRESS GOD FOR YOU, YOU WOULD HEAR THESE WORDS DIFFERENTLY.

O God, you have searched me and known me.

  You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from far away.

You search out my path and my lying down,
  and are acquainted with all my ways.

THAT IS TERRIFYING!

 I KNOW WE POST EVERYTHING ON FACEBOOK, BUT HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT GOD KNOWING ALL YOUR BUSINESS? JUST LIKE FOR SOME OF US THE NOTION OF A LONG SOUL SEARCHING WALK COULD BE OFF PUTTING, THIS REMINDER THAT THE GOD WHO CREATED YOU DIDNT JUST GIVE YOU LIFE AND WALK AWAY, GOD IS ACTIVELY CONCERNED ABOUT YOU, ON A DAILY BASIS, GOOD STUFF AND BAD. AND PERHAPS, IF YOU ARE LIKE ME, ALL i AM THINKING ABOUT IS THE BAD. THE FAILURES, DAILY AND LARGE THAT I HAVE, THE COMMANDMENTS I BREAK, THE DARKEST SCARIEST ACTS AND THOUGHTS THAT I HAVE. AND THE IDEA OF GOD SHINING THIS GREAT SPOTLIGHT UPON US AND SEEING ALL OUR FLAWS IS DAUNTING. I AM REMINDED OF LORD OF THE RINGS, WHERE THE GIANT FIERY EYE OF SAURON SEARCHES THROUGH THE LAND FOR THE HEROES. IS THAT HOW WE FEEL ABOUT GOD SOMETIMES, THAT A BLAZING EYE IS SEARCHING US FOR OUR FLAWS?

WALKS CAN BE TOUGH WHEN YOU ARE ON YOUR OWN, BUT SOMEWHERE ON MY WALK IT BECAME APPARENT TO ME I WASN'T WALKING ALONE. AND THE WALKING COMPANION THAT I HAD CARED FOR ME, CHERISHED ME. WAS NOT SEARCIHNG ME FOR FLAWS, THOSE ARE REALLY EASY TO FIND. NO MY GOD WAS A HUGE FAN OF ME, AND WAS CHEERING ME ON WITH ALL THE STEPS I WAS TAKING.

SO WHAT IF, MUCH LIKE ME SEEING MY WALK IN A DIFFERENT LIGHT, WE SAW THIS PSALM A BIT DIFFERENTLY? WHAT IF THE GOD WE PERCEIVE IS NOT A BIG BROTHER NOSEY SORT OF GOD, BUT A GRANDMA SORT OF GOD? A GOOD GRANDMA, A MAYBERRY, RURAL PIE BAKING GRANDMA, i WILL PAUSE HERE TO LET YOU THINK ABOUT PIE FOR A MOMENT. MAY I GO ON? oK SO A GRANDMA WHO LOVES YOU WITHOUT CONDITION? WHO ISN'T INSPECTING YOU FOR FLAWS, BUT HOLDING YOUR HAND AND GENTLY NODDING WHEN YOU FAIL? WHO DOES NOT WHISPER TO YOU HOW BAD YOU ARE HOW IMPERFECT YOU ARE, BUT GENTLY SAYS, I LOVE YOU. YOU FELL, LET ME HELP YOU UP, LETS GO AGAIN.

NOW DONT MISUNDERSTAND ME. IF YOUR GRANDMA WAS LIKE MINE, YOU DO NOT GET AWAY WITH ANYTHING. GRANDMA TURNER COULD SPOT A LIAR 2 MILES OFF AND FACING AWAY FROM HER. BUT SHE WAS NOT RIGHTEOUS ABOUT IT, DIDN'T CONDEMN, BUT SOUGHT TO IMPROVE.

THEOLOGIAN NAMED JAMES LIMBURG IN WRITING COMMENTARY  ABOUT THE PSALMS HAD THIS TO SAY. "WE ARE NOT MASS PRODUCED, BUT CUSTOM MADE". ISNT THAT GREAT? AND THE IMAGE OF OUR MAKER JUST TRYING TO SMOOTH OUT THE FLAWS, NOT THROWING AWAY THE WORK, IS ONE WE NEED TO EMBRACE.

 LIMBURG ALSO TELLS THE STORY  ABOUT young Rabbi Zusya, who was quite discouraged about his failures and weaknesses. Said an older rabbi to him, 'When you get to heaven, God is not going to say to you, "Why weren't you Moses?" No, God will say, "Why weren't you Zusya?" So why don’t you stop trying to be Moses, and start being the Zusya God created you to be?'" (Psalms, Westminster Bible Companion).

WHAT IF THIS PSALM REMINDS US THAT WE ARE NOT DONE, THAT WE WILL ALWAYS BE A WORK IN PROGRESS.  IMAGINE WHAT WE MIGHT DO IF WE KEPT THAT THOUGHT IN OUR MIND, THAT WE HAVE A CONSTANT WALKING COMPANION THAT WANTS NOTHING MORE THAN FOR YOU TO BE THE BEST YOU YOU CAN BE. THE 14TH CENTURY POET HAFIZ SAYS

"I wish I could show you, when you are lonely or in darkness, the astonishing Light of your own Being."

CAN IT BE THAT THIS ALL KNOWING ALL SEEING GOD, SEES SOMETHING MORE IN ME THAN I SEE IN MYSELF? AND WHAT IF ALL HE WANTS IS FOR ME TO TRY TO BECOME THE PERSON THAT HE SEES? AND THIS WORLD AROUND US, WITH TERRORISM AND PREDUDICE AND VIOLENCE AND PAIN, WHAT IF IN ALL THAT GOD STANDS WAITING FOR ALL OF US TO SEE OUR BETTER, HIGHER, MORE CHRIST LIKE SELVES? WHAT IF WE SET ASIDE OUR SEARCH FOR ANSWERS, AND SIMPLY TRIED TO IMPROVE OURSELVES AND WHAT WE BRING TO THE IMMENSE TABLE OF HUMANITY?

YOU ARE NOT THE CHRIST, BUT YOU CAN BE YOU. BEING CHRIST LIKE. YOU ARE NOT DR. KING, BUT YOU CAN BE YOU BEING YOURSELF, AND BRINGING THOSE WONDERFUL QUALITIES HE HAD TO ACTION IN YOUR LIFE.

DR. KING SAID,  "When I speak of love I am not speaking of some sentimental and weak response. I am not speaking of that force which is just emotional bosh. I am speaking of that force which all of the great religions have seen as the supreme unifying principle of life. Love is somehow the key that unlocks the door which leads to ultimate reality." 

WHAT IF GODS LOVE FOR US ALLOWS GOD TO SEE THE ULTIMATE REALITY, US AS GREAT AS WE HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO BE. SURELY IF GOD LOVES US, PERHAPS WE CAN FIND THE STRENGTH TO LOVE OURSELVES A BIT TOO. TO LOVE OURSELVES ENOUGH TO STRIVE TO BE THE BEST WE CAN BE. 

OUR PSALM TODAY ENDS

How weighty to me are your thoughts, O God!
  How vast is the sum of them!

I try to count them —
  they are more than the sand;
I come to the end —
  I am still with you.

I AM STILL WITH YOU. NO MATTER MY THOUGHTS OR JOURNEY, I AM STILL ALWAYS WALKING WITH GOD. 

PERHAPS WE MIGHT CARRY THE WORDS OF CHRISTOPHER ROBIN, WHO REMINDS WINNIE THE POOH, "PROMISE ME YOU WILL ALWAYS REMEMBER, THAT YOU RE BRAVER THAN YOU BELIEVE, STRONGER THAN YOU SEEM, AND SMARTER THAN YOU THINK.

AMEN

Wrestlemania!

^{Below is a bible passage followed by my sermon on the passage, from First Church Ipswich, late July, 2011.}

²⁴And Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the breaking of the day. ²⁵When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he touched his hip socket, and Jacob’s hip was put out of joint as he wrestled with him. ²⁶Then he said, "Let me go, for the day has broken." But Jacob said, "I will not let you go unless you bless me." ²⁷And he said to him, "What is your name?" And he said, "Jacob." ²⁸Then he said, "Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel,^[a] for you have striven with God and with men, and have prevailed." ²⁹Then Jacob asked him, "Please tell me your name." But he said, "Why is it that you ask my name?" And there he blessed him. ³⁰So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel,^[b] saying, "For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life has been delivered." ³¹The sun rose upon him as he passed Penuel, limping because of his hip.

PLEASE PRAY WITH ME. LORD MAY MY WORDS OPEN HEARTS AND MINDS HERE TODAY. AMEN.

AS HE WAS GROWING UP, MY SON JAMES WAS SURE THAT PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING WAS REAL. HE TRULY BELIEVED THAT MEN COULD BE HIT WITH CHAIRS, DIVE FROM A HEIGHT ON OTHER MEN, BE THROWN OUT OF A RING, SLAMMED INTO POLES AND SHRUG IT OFF TO GO ON AND TAKE MORE ABUSE. WHEN HE WAS IN HIGH SCHOOL, HE BEGAN WRESTLING FOR THE SCHOOL TEAM, AND THAT I THINK CHANGED HIS MIND ONCE AND FOR ALL. AND THAT HAPPENS TO US OFTEN IN OUR LIVES DOESN’T IT? WE THINK WE KNOW AND UNDERSTAND WHAT STRUGGLES ARE, BUT WHEN WE ENCOUNTER AN ACTUAL ONE, IT MAKES WHAT WENT BEFORE SEEM LIKE A FAKE SHOW.

WE HAVE THIS STORY OF JACOB, WHO HAS BEEN A BAD BOY. HE HAS PLAYED TRICKS ON HIS BROTHER, SWINDLING HIM OUT OF AN INHERITANCE FOR A BOWL OF STEW. HE HAS IMPERSONATED HIS BROTHER TO GET A BLESSING FROM HIS OWN NEAR-BLIND FATHER. HE HAS HAD TO FLEE DUE TO HIS FAMILYS ANGER. NOW WE FIND HIM, OLDER AND WISER,  RETURNING HOME AFTER 20 LONG YEARS. HE IS ABOUT TO MEET HIS BROTHER, BUT RECIVES WORD THAT HIS BROTHER HAS 400 MEN ALONG WITH HIM. EVEN IF YOU COME FROM A BIG FAMILY LIKE MINE, YOU DON’T SHOW UP WITH 400 ARMED MEN FOR A FAMILY REUNION. SO JACOB IS IN FEAR OF HIS LIFE OVER THIS MEETING. HE SENDS HIS FAMILY OFF, AND HE IS ALONE WHEN HE PRAYS, AND OF COURSE WRESTLES.

BY THE WAY, TWO FUN BIBLE FACTS. THIS IS THE ONLY PLACE IN THE BIBLE THE WORD WRESTLE APPEARS. AND JACOB IS BESIDE THE JABBOK RIVER, AND JABBOK TRANSLATES TO, WRESTLE. YES HE IS ABOUT TO WRESTLE AT THE WRESTLE RIVER.

IT IS A SYMBOLIC AND VERY REAL BATTLE AND ONE THAT YOU AND I HAVE HAD MANY TIMES. LATE AT NIGHT STRUGGLING WITH GOD. TRYING IN MOMENTS OF PAIN AND FEAR TO FIGURE OUT WHAT GODS PURPOSE FOR US IS, WHAT WE ARE SUPPOSE TO DO OR LEARN FROM THE STRUGGLE WE ARE GOING THROUGH. IN THE CHRISTIAN TRADITION, WE OFTEN REFER TO HAVING ‘ A DARK NIGHT OF THE SOUL’. THAT CONCEPT OF YOUR SOUL HAVING A DARK, TOUGH NIGHT, GOES BACK TO ARISTOTLE, AND IS MENTIONED BY THOMAS AQUINAS. A 16^TH CENTURY SPANISH POET AND MYSTIC NAMED JOHN OF THE CROSS WROTE A POEM AND NARRATIVE ABOUT IT. HOW WE OFTEN HAVE TO HAVE GREAT STRUGGLES WITHIN US TO GAIN SPIRITUAL ENLIGHTENMENT AND GROWTH. IT IS NOT BY ACCIDENT THAT JACOB HAS A STRUGGLE IN THE DARK OF NIGHT. IT REFELECTS IN SOME WAYS THE EVENING OF QUESTIONING THE CHRIST GOES THROUGH BEFORE HE IS CRUCIFIED, WONDERING ABOUT THE PURPOSE AND PLAN OF HIS LIFE. AND DON’T WE ALL HAVE THE SAME DARK NIGHTS? WHY AM I HERE, WHAT AM I SUPPOSE TO DO, WHY DO I FACE SO MANY CHALLENGES?

AND SO JACOB, ON A NIGHT BEFORE HE KNOWS HE MAY WELL DIE, OR LOSE ALL HE HAS GAINED, HAS A WRESTLING MATCH. GRAPPLING WITH A MAN ALL NIGHT LONG PHYSICALLY FIGHTING JUST AS WE OFTEN MENTALLY FIGHT AGAINST OUR OPPONENTS.

 GOD, FOR I BELIEVE IT IS GOD AND NOT JUST AN ANGEL WRESTLING JACOB, DOESN’T WIN. THE MATCH SEEMS TO BE A DRAW, TO THE POINT WHERE OPPONENT TELLS JACOB IT IS TIME TO LET HIM GO, END THE FIGHT. GOD ALSO  ASKS JACOB HIS NAME. JACOB TELLS HIM, JACOB. SIMPLE RIGHT? UNLESS WE RECALL THAT JACOB LIED ABOUT WHO HE WAS, PRETENDED TO BE HIS BROTHER ESAU, AND THAT BY ADMITTING HE IS JACOB, THE MAN WHO LIED AND CHEATED, HE IS DEMONSTRATING HE IS AT A NEW PLACE IN HIS LIFE, A PLACE DIFFERENT FROM THE TROUBLED BOY THAT STOOD AT THE BOTTOM OF THE LADDER TO TAKE GODS BLESSING. EVEN IN WRESTLING WITH GOD, HE IS SHOWING HIMSELF TO BE A CHANGED MAN.

AND IN THE WRESTLING MATCH GOD GIVES JACOB A LIMP, PUTS HIS HIP OUT OF JOINT. AND I HAVE OFTEN WONDERED WHY HE DOES THAT. I DON’T THINK GOD WAS LOSING, I THINK GOD PROBABLY COULD HAVE EASILY TOSSED JACOB ASIDE ANYTIME. BUT I THINK THE LIMP MIGHT BE A REMINDER OF THE STRUGGLE, JUST LIKE SO MANY OF US CARRY OUR INNER AND OUTER WOUNDS FROM OUR OWN WRESTLING MATCHES.

OK SO GOD COULD WIN ANYTIME, WHY THE ALL NIGHT STRUGGLE? I THINK BECAUSE GOD WELCOMES THE ENCOUNTER, WANTS JACOB TO FIGHT, TO GRIEVE TO TOSS UP HIS ANGER, DEPRESSION FRUSTRATION. BECAUSE IN SO MANY CASES IT IS ONLY THROUGH THE STRUGGLE THAT WE GROW, AND CHANGE.

SO HERE IS MY PERSONAL, RADICAL TAKE ON THIS PASSAGE IN GENESIS, WHERE JACOB HAS A WRESTLING MATCH WITH GOD. GOD WELCOMES OUR FIGHTS AGAINST HIM. GOD WOULD RATHER HAVE YOUR QUESTIONS, YOUR DOUBTS, YOUR YEARNINGS, YOUR HEART FELT HONEST STRUGGLES THAN ALL THE MOUTHED PRAYERS IN THE WORLD. GOD WANTS YOU TO WRESTLE HIM, TO ENCOUNTER HIM, TO HAVE A FULL BLOWN QUESTING FIGHT WITH HIM. AND LIKE JACOB, YOU TOO CAN RECEIVE A BLESSING FROM THE STRUGGLE, A BLESSING THAT YOU NEED.

I WENT  TO CANCUN LAST WEEK FOR UNUSUAL REASONS. MOST PEOPLE GO TO PARTY AND LAY IN THE SUN, AND I REALLY AM NOT FOND OF EITHER EVENT. I WENT BECAUSE IT IS A GREAT PLACE TO DAY TRIP TO RUINS. I AM A CONFESSED RUINS JUNKIE, ESPECIALLY MAYAN RUINS. I HAVE BEEN TO SEVERAL IN GUATEMALA, BUT HAD NEVER BEEN TO THE ONES IN MEXICO. I WAS ABLE TO SEE CHICHEN ITZA AND TULUM. AT THE RUINS OF TULUM, I LEARNED ABOUT A MAYAN GOD.THE GOD  GOES BY SEVERAL NAMES OVER THE YEARS, BUT IT IS BASICALLY CALLED THE DESCENDING GOD. THERE IS A CARVING OF THE GOD IN TULUM, A PICTURE OF A GOD , HEAD DOWN DESCENDING TO EARTH. IT CERTAINLY MADE ME THINK OF THE CHRIST, GOD MADE INTO MAn, A GOD COMING TO BE AMONG US IN OUR OWN TURF, BE AMONG US ENCOUNTER US. IT MADE ME THINK OF OTHER GOD ENCOUNTERS IN THE BIBLE, THE BURNING BUSH, THE WHEEL IN THE SKY, ANGELS THAT WRESTLE, A SON COME TO LAY DOWN HIS LIFE FOR US, A TONGUE OF FIRE. AND THOSE ARE THE BIG, BIBLICAL ENCOUNTERS. WE ENCOUNTER THE LORD EVERY DAY IN MANY DIFFERENT WAYS, IN CHALLENGES, IN BLESSINGS, IN PEOPLE. WHY? WHY DOES THE LORD DO THIS , COME TO US, MEET WITH US. HAVE YOU SEEN US? EVEN WE ARE NOT ALWAYS TOO CRAZY ABOUT EACH OTHER! WE ARE IN SO MANY WAYS LACKING,  WHY BOTHER APPROACHING US TIME AND AGAIN, MAKING US WRESTLE WITH TOUGH QUESTIONS BIGGER THAN OURSELVES?

WELL I THINK THE ANSWER IS THE ONE PARENTS OFTEN UTTER WHEN THERE CHILDREN ACT CRAZY. IT MUST BE LOVE. LOVE IS WHY YOU AND I AND JACOB HAVE THESE COSMIC WRESTLING MATCHES THAT DEMAND US TO STRUGGLE, AND SOMETIMES FAIL. IT IS OUT OF LOVE THAT WE ARE GIVEN THESE GIFTS, UNBIDDEN AND OFTEN UNWANTED, YET GIFTS NONETHELESS. GIFTS OUT OF LOVE.

SO WE HAVE JACOB, SINNER, WHO ENCOUNTERS GOD AT THE TOP OF THE FAMOUS LADDER AND IS TOLD HE WILL BE BLESSED AND HAVE A GREAT FAMILY. AND THEN HE ENCOUNTERS GOD AGAIN IN ANGEL FORM, AND WRESTLES AND AGAIN SEEKS A BLESSING.  THEY SAY THAT FAITH IS WHAT YOU DO BETWEEN THE LAST TIME YOU ENCOUNTERED GOD AND THE NEXT TIME. JACOB HAS HAD FAITH HAS TURNED HIS LIFE AROUND, HAS SUFFERED AND SURVIVED. AND NOW IS GIVEN A NEW NAME, ISRAEL, WHICH IS HEBREW FOR “ONE WHO HAS STRIVEN WITH GOD”.

LET THE STRUGGLES OF JACOB BE A COMFORT TO YOU IN YOUR OWN STRUGGLES. ASK, PUSH, ARGUE, CHALLENGE, BUT ENCOUNTER GOD, WRESTLE WITH HIM. FOR, WHEN THE DAWN COMES, A BLESSING AWAITS YOU.

Sermon from First Church

Below is my sermon from Sunday July 17th, 2011. It begins with the bible passage i am speaking on, my sermon is in caps. Sorry about the caps, it makes it easier to read from the pulpit.

Now Jacob went out from Beersheba and went toward Haran. ¹¹ So he came to a certain place and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. And he took one of the stones of that place and put it at his head, and he lay down in that place to sleep. ¹² Then he dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.
¹³ And behold, the LORD stood above it and said: “I am the LORD God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants. ¹⁴ Also your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread abroad to the west and the east, to the north and the south; and in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed. ¹⁵ Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you.”
¹⁶ Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it.” ¹⁷ And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!”

PLEASE PRAY WITH ME. LORD MAY MY WORDS OPEN HEARTS AND MINDS HERE TODAY. AMEN

I WAS OUT OF MY MIND. I WAS STANDING IN A SMALL COURTYARD OUTSIDE THE AMERICAN REPERTORY THEATER IN CAMBRIDGE, AND I AM NOT EXAGGERATING WHEN I SAY I WAS ON THE VERGE OF TEARS. I HAD BEEN CALLED IN ON A SATURDAY, TO AUDITION TO FILL IN FOR AN ACTOR IN A SHOW. THE SHOW WAS CALLED JOHNNY BASEBALL, A GREAT MUSICAL ABOUT THE RED SOX. BUT IT WAS ALSO ABOUT LOVE AND PREDJUDICE AND HOPE. IT WAS AN AMAZING MUSICAL, AND HAD BEEN EXTENDED, AND BECAUSE OF THAT EXTENSION AN ACTOR COULD NOT DO THE SHOW ONE NIGHT. SO I AUDITIONED TO FILL IN FOR HIM. I GOT THE JOB, THEY CAST ME ON A SATURDAY, THE FOLLOWING DAY I DROVE THE YOUTH GROUP TO STATEN ISLAND, TURNED AROUND AND WAS BACK HERE ON MONDAY. I HAD REHEARSALS MONDAY TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY AND WENT ON THURSDAY NIGHT. I PLAYED 4 DIFFERENT CHARACTERS, WAS IN 7 SONGS, AND IT WAS A LOT OF WORK. I FELT AT ONE POINT LIKE IT WAS IMPOSSIBLE FOR ME TO DO IT.

IN THE MUSICAL, ONE CHARACTER THAT SHOWS UP IS WILLIE MAYS. I AM NOT ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE WHO LOVE BASEBALL TO THE POINT OF SPEWING OFF STATISTICS, BUT EVEN I KNEW OF WILLIE MAYS, THE SAY HEY KID. IN THE MUSICAL, AND IN LIFE, HE TRIED OUT AND WAS REJECTED BY THE RED SOX. HE WAS TAKEN ON BY THE NEW YORK GIANTS. HIS FIRST 26 TIMES AT BAT, HE GOT ONE HIT. HIS FUTURE WAS PRETTY UNCERTAIN. HE WAS SITTING IN THE LOCKER ROOM, CRYING, WHEN THE GIANTS MANAGER, LEO DUROCHER, FOUND HIM AND ASKED HIM WHAT WAS WRONG. WILLIE SAID, I CAN’T HIT UP THERE, I BELONG IN THE MINOR LEAGUES. DEROUCHER LOOKED AT HIM AND SAID, AS LONG AS I AM MANAGER, YOU ARE MY CENTER FIELDER.

WILLIE MAYS WENT ON TO HIT 660 HOME RUNS, THIRD ON THE ALL TIME RUNS LIST, AND STEAL OVER 300 BASES.

AND AS I STOOD THERE IN CAMBRIDGE IN TERROR, ONE OF THE OTHER ACTORS IN THE SHOW CAME UP TO ME AND SAID, ‘HEY YOU’RE GOING TO BE GREAT”. THOSE WORDS GROUNDED ME. GAVE ME HOPE, AND LET ME REFOCUS AND DO MY WORK. AND DID I GO ON, YOU BET I DID, AND IT WAS GREAT. IN JUST THREE DAYS OF REHEARSAL, I SOMEHOW MANAGED TO DO IT ALL JUSTICE, IT WAS ONE OF THE BEST NIGHTS OF MY LIFE.

NOW WE GET TO JACOB.

I LOVE THIS BIBLE PASSAGE. MOST OF US PASS OVER IT, OR AT LEAST PARTS OF IT AND WE FOCUS ON THE IDEA OF JACOBS LADDER. WE THINK OF THE SONG, OR PERHAPS OF THE CHILDREN S TOY, OR IF WE ARE REALLY IN A STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS WE HAVE STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN PLAYING IN OUR MINDS.  AND THE IMAGE OF JACOB USING A STONE FOR HIS PILLOW…IS THIS WHERE THE HARD ROCK HOTEL STARTED? TOO MUCH? BUT LIKE SO MANY PASSAGES IN THE BIBLE WE SOMETIMES MISS THE OPPORTUNITY TO DIG A LITTLE DEEPER, AND FIND A LITTLE MORE.

WE NEED TO FIRST THINK OF WHERE JACOB WAS IN HIS LIFE. HE IS IN A PLACE WILLIE MAYS AND I HAVE BEEN IN, AND I SUSPECT YOU HAVE BEEN AS WELL. A DARK PLACE, A PLACE OF NO HOPE. HE HAD CHEATED HIS OWN BROTHER OUT OF HIS BIRTHRIGHT, HAD FOOLED HIS FATHER, DECEIVED AN OLD BLIND MAN TO GAIN HIS BLESSING. NOW HE WAS OFF IN SEARCH OF A WIFE, AND AS HE LAID HIS HEAD DOWN ON A ROCK IN A ROUGH AREA TO SLEEP. I CAN ONLY IMAGINE HOW HOPELESS JACOB FELT. HE HAD PLOTTED WITH HIS MOTHER, ANGERED HIS FATHER, BETRAYED AND ALIENATED HIS BROTHER TO THE POINT HE COULDN’T EVEN FACE HIM.

THEN COMES THE LADDER. A LADDER THAT SHOWS ANGELS GOING BACK AND FORTH, AND AT THE TOP, GOD HIMSELF. GOD HIMSELF WHO TELLS JACOB HE WILL BE OWN THE VERY LAND HE IS SLEEPING ON, AND WILL HAVE A NATION OF DESCENDANTS. ALL THAT CAME TRUE BY THE WAY. BUT GOD ALSO SAYS SOME OF THE BEST WORDS IN THE BIBLE. HE TELLS JACOB HE IS WITH HIM, AND WILL BE WITH HIM WHEREVER HE GOES. AND HE SAYS THE VERY SAME THING TO US. JESUS TELLS US, LO, I AM WITH YOU ALWAYS.

WHAT GREAT COMFORT, WHAT SOLACE WE CAN ALL TAKE FROM KNOWING WE ARE NEVER UNCARED FOR, NEVER JUST LAYING WITH OUR HEAD ON A ROCK IN A BARREN PLACE. WE HAVE OUR GREAT COMFORTER NEAR US. AND I LOVE THAT GOD DID NOT CHASTISE OR JUDGE JACOB FOR THE ILLS HE HAD DONE WITH HIS LIFE BUT FOCUSES ON THE GOOD HE CAN DO GOING INTO THE FUTURE. FOR JACOB, THIS WAS A TURNING POINT IN HIS LIFE. AND IN A KEY MOMENT, HE NO LONGER REFERS TO GOD AS HIS FATHERS GOD, BUT SAYS THAT THE LORD WILL BE HIS GOD.

BUT WAIT, THERE IS MORE. I LOVE THE IMAGE OF ANGELS GOING UP AND DOWN THE LADDER, BACK AND FORTH TO EARTH. I AM A FIRM BELIEVER THAT WE HAVE ANGELS AROUND US ALL THE TIME, AND I FURTHER BELIEVE EACH OF US HAS THE ABILITY TO BE AN ANGEL IN A PERSONS LIFE. LEO DESROCHER WAS IN WILLIE MAYS LIFE, MY FELLOW ACTOR AT THE THEATER WAS IN MINE. AND MANY OF US HAVE SEEN THESE ANGELS EVERY DAY. THEY HELP US, COMFORT US, AND MOST OF ALL, DON’T JUDGE US BY THE BAD WE HAVE DONE, BUT FOCUS ON THE GOOD WE CAN DO.

LET US REMEMBER A FEW KEY POINTS,THAT GOD IS ALWAYS BESIDE US, OFFERING US COMFORT. THAT WE CAN FIND ANGELS AROUND US ALWAYS, AND BEST OF ALL, EACH OF US HAS THE ABILITY TO BE AN ANGEL. AND BY ACTING AS AN ANGEL GIVING GRACE, MORE GRACE COMES TO US. IF WE TAKE A MINUTE TO PONDER WHAT ANGELS HAVE COME TO US IN OUR LIVES, IT MAY STRIKE YOU HOW UNLIKELY THEY ARE. WHEN I FIRST CAME TO THIS CHURCH, IF ANYONE HAD TOLD ME THAT A CHURCH ELDER WITH A SOUTHERN DRAWL WOULD BE MY ANGEL AND CHAMPION, I WOULD HAVE THOUGHT THEM CRAZY. BUT A HIGHLIGHT FOR ME AFTER EACH OF MY SERMONS WAS BRUCE BRYANT GIVING ME A THUMBS UP, AND ALWAYS SAYING THE SAME THING. “DYNAMITE MY FRIEND.”  NOW IF I EVER TOLD BRUCE HE WAS AN ANGEL TO ME, HE WOULD HAVE DRIVEN ME TO THE NEAREST EYE DOCTOR. BUT I SHARE THAT PERSPECTIVE WITH YOU SO THAT BRUCE CAN TEACH YOU A LESSON. NONE OF US THINK OF OURSELVES AS ANGELS, BUT JUST BY DOING THE SIMPLE HUMAN AND HUMANE THINGS TO PEOPLE IN OUR LIVES, WE BECOME ANGELS.

THERE IS A WONDERFUL POEM BY  A WOMAN NAMED SHEILA NELSON-MCJILTON* ENTITLED, WHO SLEEPS ON HOLY STONES, A MEDITATION ON GENESIS 28, 10-17. IT IS A GORGEOUS REFLECTION ON THIS IDEA THAT EVEN AT AN UNEXPECTED AND LOW MOMENT IN OUR LIFE, WE CAN SUDDENLY FIND OURSELVES BLESSED AND CHERISHED. I WOULD LIKE TO READ YOU THE END OF THIS POEM IN CONCLUSION OF MY SERMON TODAY.

I left home, soul that raged with wild emptiness

And in this desert wilderness,

Angels carve holy names for sleep.

They dance a path between me and You, O Lord God.

You have found me, broken and empty,

On holy stones that ascend to the very gates of heaven

And you have not cursed me.

In a desert midnight, I know

The smell of blessed fields

Grain

I will tell of You, 0 Lord God,

To laughing children who bless my tent,

To strong children who become tribes as countless as dust

I will tell them of desert midnights filled with blazing stars

Of fierce angels who carve holy stones

And dance with glittering swords among clouds,

Of hymns sung by joyous stars over Bethel

And over Bethlehem.

SHEILA NELSON-MCJILTON*

AMEN

The Holy Grail

A sermon delivered February 20th, First Church, Ipswich

LAST SUNDAY, WE HAD A VERY HARD BIBLE PASSAGE WHERE WE  WERE DEALING WITH. MURDER, DIVORCE, ADULTERY, CONFLICT. WE FOCUSED ON THE IDEA OF INTERFERENCE, THE WAY THAT ANGER AT YOUR BROTHER OR SISTER COULD INTERFERE WITH YOUR COMMUNICATION WITH GOD. THIS WEEK WE FACE ONE OF THE TOUGHEST PASSAGES IN THE BIBLE, FORGIVENESS AND EVEN LOVE OF OUR ENEMIES. IS IT ANY WONDER REBECCA TOOK THESE TWO WEEKS OFF?

                                             

I HAVE MANY ODD HOBBIES AND INTERESTS, BUT ONE I WANT TO TOUCH ON TODAY IS  THAT I LOVE TO READ AND STUDY LORE ABOUT THE HOLY GRAIL. STORIES ABOUT THE GRAIL ABOUND AND WE SEE BOTH CLASSICAL AND MODERN EXAMPLES OF THOSE STORIES. FIRST, THE GRAIL IS GENERALLY BELIEVED TO BE THE CUP THAT JESUS USED DURING THE LAST SUPPER AS HE TOLD HIS FOLLOWERS TO DRINK, FOR THIS IS MY BLOOD. SOME SOURCES OF THE STORY ADD THAT THE SAME CUP WAS USED TO CATCH THE SACRED BLOOD OF CHRIST WHEN A ROMAN SPEAR PIERCED HIS SIDE WHEN HE WAS ON THE CROSS. JOSEPH OF ARIMETHEA, A FRIEND OF JESUS, IS SAID TO HAVE GATHERED HIS BLOOD IN THE CUP. THE ACTUAL NAME IN LEGENDS OF THE HOLY GRAIL IS SANGREAL, SACRED BLOOD, SO THAT LINKS CHRISTS BLOOD ONCE AGAIN TO THIS CUP.

JOSEPH OF ARIMETHEA TAKES OR SENDS THE GRAIL TO ENGLAND IN MANY STORIES, AND IT APPEARS IN THE LEGENDS OF KING ARTHUR, AS THE KNIGHTS OF THE ROUND TABLE SET OUT ON GREAT PERSONAL QUESTS TO FIND THE GRAIL. MANY OF THE KNIGHTS MEET WITH TRAGEDY, AND ONLY ONE, GALAHAD  EVER ACTUALLY OBTAINS THE GRAIL. WHEN HE OBTAINS IT BY THE WAY, HE IS LIFTED INTO HEAVEN. DURING THE CRUSADES, GRAIL LORE AND LEGEND WAS RAMPANT, WITH PEOPLE QUESTING AFTER THIS CUP OF CHRIST, WHICH WAS SUPPOSE TO HAVE GREAT POWERS. IT IS OFTEN LINKED TO THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR, WHO PROTECTED TRAVELERS IN JERUSALEM, AND HAD TREMENDOUS RICHES, SUPPOSEDLY DUE TO THE GRAIL. THEY WERE EVENTUALLY VANQUISHED BY THE CATHOLIC CHURCH, AND THE GRAIL WAS NOT FOUND IN THEIR POSSESSION. VARIOUS PEOPLE RECOUNT THE JOURNEYS OF THE GRAIL TO DIFFERENT LOCATIONS. PEOPLE SEARCHED FOR IT IN JERUSALEM, IN FRANCE, IN ENGLAND. THERE ARE EVEN SOME TALES OF IT COMING TO THE AMERICAS. BUT ALL SEARCHES HAVE HAD NO SUCCESS.

WE KNOW THAT ADOLPH HITLER TRIED TO FIND THE GRAIL TO USE ITS POWER. AND MORE RECENTLY, WE HAVE BEEN ENTERTAINED BY INDIANA JONES AND HIS CRUSADE FOR THE GRAIL,A NEW TRILOGY BY BERNARD CORNWELL THAT TAKES PLACE AROUND THE BATTLE OF AGINCOURT,AND DAN BROWNS VERY POPULAR BOOK THE DAVINCI CODE, WHICH TELLS US THE GRAIL WAS ACTUALLY MARY MAGDALENE HERSELF CONTINUING THE BLOODLINE OF THE CHRIST. AND I WOULD BE REMISS IF I DIDN'T REMIND ALL OF YOU WHO ARE MONTY PYTHON FANS THAT THE GRAIL IS HELD BY THE FRENCH, BUT IF YOU TRY AND GET IT THEY WILL INSULT YOU FROM THE RAMPARTS OF THEIR CASTLE.

SO THERE IS A STRONG HISTORY OF PEOPLE QUESTING AFTER THIS RELIGIOUS SYMBOL, YET IN MOST OF THE LEGENDS AND LORE THE PURSUERS OF THIS OBJECT FAIL THE KNIGHTS OF ARTHUR, TEMPLARS, EXPLORERS THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE ALL SOUGHT THE GRAIL WITH NO LUCK.BUT THE ENDLESS FASCINATION WITH IT, HAS CAUSED THE WORDS, HOLY GRAIL, TO LEAK INTO OUR COMMON CULTURE. WE NOW USE IT TO TO MEAN THE BEST, THE MOST PERFECT OF A THING. THE MEATLOAF AT CHRISTOPHERS TABLE IS THE HOLY GRAIL OF MEATLOAF. ZUMIS TUXEDO MOCHA IS THE HOLY GRAIL OF DRINKS. ME FINDING THE PARKING SPOT IN FRONT OF MY STUDIO ON MARKET STREET FREE IS THE HOLY GRAIL OF PARKING SPACES. THE EXEMPLAR, THE BEST THERE IS.

OK SO WHY AM I BABBLING ON ABOUT THE HOLY GRAIL WHEN YOU ARE HEAR TO LISTEN TO A SERMON ABOUT FORGIVING YOUR ENEMIES? WELL STAY WITH ME, I WILL TIE IT ALL UP, I PROMISE.

THIS PASSAGE IS WHAT MAKES US CHRISTIANS. ALMOST EVERY NATION IN THE WORLD HAS THE FIRST SECTION, THE OLD TESTAMENT SECTION, AN EYE FOR AN EYE A TOOTH FOR A TOOTH. OUR OWN LEGAL SYSTEM IS FOUNDED ON THIS PRINCIPLE, THAT IF I AM IN SOME WAY INJURED, I HAVE A RIGHT TO BE MADE WHOLE TO SEE JUSTICE DONE. WE INTRINSICALLY GET THIS IDEA, YOU PUSH ME, I GET TO PUSH YOU BACK. THAT IS THE EASY PART. JESUS HIMSELF TELLS US " If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?  And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others?" Do not even pagans do that?  JESUS, THAT RADICAL, CRAZY NEW AGE TEACHER,  SAYS DON'T GET PAYBACK, DON'T GET EVEN. ON THE CONTRARY, WE NEED TO FORGIVE, AND LOVE THOSE WHO WRONG US, OUR ENEMIES. IF SOMEONE WANTS US TO GO ONE MILE, GO TWO. LOVE YOUR ENEMIES EVEN WHEN THEY INJURE YOU, SO YOU MAY BE CHILDREN OF GOD. AND THAT IS THE STICKING POINT ISN'T IT?

YOU SEE, I FAIL AT THIS. I CONSIDER MYSELF A FOLLOWER OF THE CHRIST, AND TRY TO LIVE A GOOD LIFE, AND I TELL YOU HERE EYEBALL TO EYEBALL, I FAIL, FAIL, FAIL AT THIS TEST. AND MAKE NO MISTAKE THIS IS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT MAKES US A CHRISTIAN, TO FORGIVE THOSE THAT WRONG US. AND I DO TRY, STRUGGLE, SUCCEED A BIT AND FAIL AGAIN. OF ALL THE CHALLENGES THE CHRIST GIVES US, OF ALL THE THINGS HE SETS AS A GOAL AND GUIDELINE, THIS IS THE HARDEST FOR ME. AND IF I LOOK BACK OVER MY LIFE, WHILE MY FRIENDS CERTAINLY OUTNUMBER MY ENEMIES, WHILE I HAVE FORGIVEN AND LET ANGER GO, I STILL OFTEN FAIL AT THIS TEST. SO IF I FAIL TIME AND AGAIN, WHY DO I BOTHER TRYING? AND NOW MY FRIENDS, I REVEAL TO YOU THE SECRET OF THE GRAIL

YOU SEE FOR THE MILLIONS THAT HAVE PURSUED THE GRAIL, IT IS NOT ABOUT FINDING AND POSSESSING IT. IT IS ABOUT THE QUEST. THE HARD THANKLESS JOURNEY TO SEARCH FOR THE HOLY GRAIL. THAT QUEST IS WHAT BUILDS UP CHARACTER AND POWER, INNER POWER, IN THOSE ON THE QUEST. AND THAT IS PARALLEL TO WHAT WE ARE FACED WITH WHEN WE FORGIVE OUR ENEMIES. NO ONE, NOT ONE OF US IS PERFECT AT IT, NOT AS THE CHRIST IS PERFECT. BUT THAT DOES NOT MEAN WE GIVE UP. WE TRY. BECAUSE TRYING BUILDS CHARACTER, AND MAKES US STRONGER AND STRONGER EACH TIME WE TRY. HEY NOW, NO FAIR THINKING 'I WILL TRY NEXT TIME" OR CHRIST DIDN'T MEAN THIS ENEMY OR THIS SITUATION" TRUST ME HE DID. HE WANTS YOU TO TRY TO QUEST TO STRIVE TO BE LIKE HE WAS TO TRY AND BE PERFECT IN THIS GOAL.

ONE OF MY FAVORITE SONGS IS THE IMPOSSIBLE DREAM, FROM MAN OF LAMANCHA. NO, I WILL NOT SING IT, REBECCA BROWN SINGS IN HER SERMONS BETTER THAN I EVER COULD. BUT I REMIND YOU OF SOME OF THE GREAT LYRICS. IT BEGINS WITH, " TO DREAM THE IMPOSSIBLE DREAM, TO FIGHT THE UNBEATABLE FOE". AND NEAR THE END OF THE SONG, "THE WORLD WILL BE BETTER FOR THIS, THAT ONE MAN, SCORNED AND COVERED WITH SCARS STILL STROVE WITH HIS LAST OUNCE OF COURAGE, TO REACH THE UNREACHABLE STAR". EACH OF US KNOWS A MAN SCORNED AND COVERED WITH SCARS WHO SACRIFICED EVERYTHING HE HAD TO MAKE THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE. PERHAPS IT IS AN IMPOSSIBLE DREAM, YET IT IS ONE THAT WE MUST NOT GIVE UP ON.OH AND I SHOULD MENTION THAT THOUGH WE ALL CALL THAT SONG THE IMPOSSIBLE DREAM, IT'S ACTUAL TITLE IS, THE QUEST.

IN THE MOVIE INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE, THERE IS A QUOTE. "THE SEARCH FOR THE GRAIL IS THE SEARCH FOR THE DIVINE IN ALL OF US".ISN'T THAT WHAT WE ALL SEEK? THE PERFECTION OF CHRIST, THE ABANDONMENT OF BEING HUMAN, AND THE DESIRE TO BE DIVINE. I HAVE FAILED, YOU HAVE FAILED. BUT THE QUEST IS STILL THERE, FRESH AND NEW EACH AND EVERY MOMENT. AS CRUSADERS OF OLD THAT YEARN FOR THE HOLY GRAIL, THE SANGREAL, THE SACRED BLOOD, DON'T WE ALSO TRY TO GRASP THAT THING THAT IS ALWAYS JUST BEYOND OUR REACH?

NONE OF US WILL BECOME THE CHRIST. BUT EACH AND EVERY ONE OF US CAN WORK TO GET CLOSER AND CLOSER TO THAT EXAMPLE. AND A KEY WAY OF ADVANCING AS A FOLLOWER OF CHRIST IS TO FOLLOW THIS EDICT. TO LOVE, OUR ENEMY'S. NOT TOLERATE, LOVE. AND IN THAT PURSUIT, COULD WE FIND THE DIVINE BLOOD, THE SACRED VESSEL, IN EACH OF US?

Interference

 A SERMON FROM FIRST CHURCH IPSWICH, MA, DEALING WITH MATTHEW 5: 21-37.

WOW TODAY'S PASSAGE WAS A LONG AND ARDUOUS ONE. SPECIAL KUDOS TO DONNA MARIE FOR DOING SUCH A GREAT JOB OF IT.

WHAT A DEEP BIBLE PASSAGE WE HAVE TO CONSIDER TODAY. DEEP AND TOUGH COVERING

 TOPICS FROM OATHS AND MURDER TO DIVORCE AND ADULTERY. NOT AN EASY PASSAGE TO CONSIDER, ONE THEOLOGIAN HAS STATED THAT THERE IS MATERIAL IN THIS PASSAGE FOR 4 THREE HOURS LONG SERMONS. I HOPE YOUR COMFORTABLE AND BROUGHT A SNACK.

AS AN ACTOR I AM OFTEN FACED WITH THE CHALLENGE OF MEMORIZING A LOT OF MATERIAL. IN A PLAY I HAVE ABOUT WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE CALLED SHAKESPEARE'S GHOST I DELIVER 18 DIFFERENT SHAKESPEARE SPEECHES FROM MEMORY. PEOPLE OFTEN WONDER HOW IT’S POSSIBLE TO TUCK SO MUCH INFORMATION INTO AN AGING BRAIN LIKE MINE. I ALWAYS TELL PEOPLE THE ADAGE I USE TO DO MEMORY WORK. HOW DO YOU EAT AN ELEPHANT? ONE BITE AT A TIME. SO HOW SHALL YOU AND I ATTACK THIS MASSIVE PASSAGE? ONE SMALL THOUGHT AT A TIME.

WITH THAT IN MIND I WOULD LIKE TO DISCUSS WITH YOU TODAY ONE THEME WE HEAR IN THIS VERSE. AND THAT THEME IS INTERFERENCE. HAVING JUST HAD A SUPERBOWL THOSE OF YOU THAT ARE SPORTS MINDED KNOW THAT INTERFERENCE IS WHEN A PLAYER INTERFERES WITH THE PROCESS OF THE GAME IN A WAY THAT THE RULES DON’T ALLOW. SO YOU CAN KNOCK A BALL OUT OF THE AIR BEFORE A RECEIVER CATCHES IT, BUT YOU CAN’T PULL DOWN HIS PANTS TO TRIP HIM.

AND IF YOU ARE OF MY VINTAGE YOU MAY RECALL MAKING A CRYSTAL RADIO AS A KID.  A CRYSTAL RADIO IS CALLED A PASSIVE RADIO, IT HAS NO BATTERY TO RUN IT, YOU JUST WRAP WIRE AND THE WIRE PICKS UP RADIO SIGNALS THAT ARE PASSING BY.IF YOU RECALL, YOU HAD TO HAVE AN EARPHONE TO LISTEN TO A CRYSTAL RADIO, BECAUSE THE UNITS WERE PRETTY WEAK.AND ONE OF THE CHALLENGES WAS FINDING A STRONG ENOUGH RADIO STATION TO LISTEN TO. YOU WOULD OFTEN GET STATIC, AND THAT STATIC WAS OFTEN ONE STATION COMING IN AND INTERFERING WITH THE SIGNAL OF ANOTHER STATION. THIS BY THE WAY IS CALLED THE PROBLEM OF SELECTIVITY, BECAUSE IT IS HARD  WHEN USING A CRYSTAL RADIO TO TUNE IT TO ONE PARTICULAR STATION, YOU OFTEN ARE LISTENING TO MANY STATIONS AT ONCE. AGAIN INTERFERENCE.

AND NOW I SUGGEST THERE IS ANOTHER SORT OF INTERFERENCE, ONE THAT JESUS HIMSELF WARNS US AGAINST IN THIS BIBLE PASSAGE. JESUS REMINDS US OF AN ANCIENT SIMPLE LAW, THOU SHALL NOT MURDER. BUT THEN HE EXPANDS IT, AND SAYS THAT WHEN YOU HOLD ANGER OR CONFLICT IN YOUR HEART AGAINST A BROTHER OR A SISTER, YOU MUST MEND IT RIGHT AWAY. IN FACT HE STATES THAT IF YOU ARE MAKING AN OFFERING TO GOD BUT HAVE AN ISSUE WITH SOMEONE, THAT YOU SHOULD GO FIX THAT ISSUE FIRST BEFORE YOU MAKE YOUR GIFT TO GOD. AND IN SAYING THAT JESUS IS HELPING US LEARN ABOUT INTERFERENCE. HE IS TELLING US, YET AGAIN, A GREAT TRUTH TO HELP US. HE IS LETTING US KNOW THAT WHEN WE HAVE ANGER OR CONFLICT IN OUR HEART AGAINST SOMEONE, THAT INTERFERES WITH THE ACT OF COMMUNICATING WITH GOD. AND THAT IF WE COULD RELEASE OR SOLVE THAT PROBLEM, OUR PRAYER, OUR COMMUNICATION WITH GOD, WOULD VASTLY IMPROVE.

THIS IS NOT AN EASY TASK. WE ALL CARRY SOME GRUDGES SOME ANGER, SOME SELF RIGHTEOUS FEELING THAT SOMEONE HAS DONE US WRONG. AND THE CURE OR RELEASE OF THAT IS A GIANT TASK. ESPECIALLY WHEN WE FEEL WE ARE A VICTIM OF SOMEONE ELSE’S ACTION. BUT HERE WE HAVE THE CHRIST CLEARLY TELLING US THAT THOSE FEELINGS STAND BETWEEN US AND GOD.SO WE ARE CALLED TO BE VIGILANT, AND TRY TO KEEP PEACE IN OUR SOUL TO KEEP OUR PATH OF COMMUNICATION FREE.

THERE IS ONE PARTICULAR TYPE OF INTERFERENCE I WANT TO MENTION TODAY. IT IS ONE THAT I HAVE BEEN AN EXPERT IN, AND STILL STRUGGLE WITH. IT IS A SNEAKY KIND OF SIN, ONE THAT IS OFTEN OFF OUR PERSONAL RADAR AS WE CONSIDER SIN. WE GENERALLY THINK OF CONFLICT WITH OTHER PEOPLE, FIGHTS, HARSH WORDS, SOMEONE TREATING US BADLY, OR US TREATING SOMEONE ELSE BADLY. WHILE THAT’S CERTAINLY A PART OF THE INTERFERENCE JESUS IS REFERRING TO, THERE IS ANOTHER KIND.

YOU SEE, I AM GREAT AT CONFESSION. REALLY, I HAVE IN THE PAST BEEN AN EXPERT. NOW DON'T MISUNDERSTAND ME, CONFESSION IS GOOD FOR YOU. YOU COME INTO THE PRESENCE OF GOD, CONFESS YOUR SINS, AND ASK FOR FORGIVENESS. THAT’S AWESOME, BUT NOT WHAT I AM AN EXPERT IN, SADLY. NO I AM AN EXPERT IN CONFESSING NOT MY OWN SINS, BUT OTHER PEOPLES SINS.OH YES, I AM VERY GOOD AT THIS, AND PERHAPS A FEW OF YOU ARE TOO. CONFESSING IN OUR MINDS WHEN WE SEE EVIL AROUND US. JUDGING A PERSONS CLOTHING, TASTE, STYLE, SEEING ALL THE WRONGDOINGS OF OTHERS AND BEING ABLE TO SMUGLY KNOW JUST HOW WRONG WHAT THEY ARE DOING IS.CLEARLY MANY OF US HAVE BEEN APPOINTED BY GOD TO LOOK UPON OTHERS AND FIND EACH AND EVERY FAULT THAT THEY HAVE.

BUT THIS EXPERTISE, OF CONFESSING THE SINS OF OTHERS, IS IN ITSELF JUST AS BAD AS ANY OF THE SINS WE SIT IN JUDGEMENT OF. AS WE CONSIDER THE IDEA OF INTERFERENCE, THAT WHICH IS BETWEEN US AND GOD, SURELY SOME OF THE HEAVIEST INTERFERENCE COMES TO US FROM NOT OUR OWN CLEAR FRICTION WITH OTHERS, BUT OUR SUBTLE JUDGEMENT OF THOSE AROUND US.

ALL THESE YEARS LATER, AS I FIND MYSELF STRUGGLING WITH  NOT BEING AS JUDGEMENTAL AS I HAVE BEEN, I RECALL THOSE WORDS OF MY DAD.THEY HELP REMIND ME THAT I AM WRONG IN JUDGING OTHERS, AND SURELY HELP ME TONE DOWN THE INTERFERENCE.

SO WHAT PRACTICAL LESSON CAN WE TAKE FROM TODAY'S PASSAGE AND THIS IDEA THE CHRIST SHARES WITH US OF INTERFERENCE? SIMPLY, I WOULD LIKE YOU TO CONSIDER ADDING A SMALL IDEA TO YOUR PRAYER TIME. NOW I AM ASSUMING YOU PRAY, AND I HOPE YOU DO, OR ELSE YOU HAVEN'T BEEN LISTENING TO OUR SERMONS VERY MUCH. BUT AS A NEW PART OF YOUR PRAYER, I WOULD LIKE YOU TO JUST TAKE A MOMENT, AS YOU ENTER THE PRESENCE OF GOD, AND THINK ABOUT WHAT IS IN YOUR HEART. IS THERE ANY ANGER, ANIMOSITY, CONFLICT, OR CONFESSIONS OF OTHER SINS? THEN TRY TO LET THOSE FEELING GO, OR LET THEM BECOME THE FOCUS OF YOUR PRAY, ASK THAT THESE THINGS BE REMOVED FROM YOU, PRAY FOR A WAY TO RESOLVE THIS STATIC THAT IS IN YOUR HEART.

BUT REMEMBER THE CRYSTAL RADIO? HOW I SAID THE BIGGEST ISSUE WAS SELECTIVITY? THAT IT WAS HARD TO LISTEN TO A CRYSTAL RADIO BECAUSE YOU WOULD BE BOMBARDED WITH SO MANY STATIONS AT ONCE? WELL THAT IS OUR CHALLENGE AS WELL, TO TUNE OUR THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS TO THE RIGHT MESSAGE. AND WE HELP OURSELVES IF WE TAKE THE TIME TO REMOVE THE INTERFERENCE, AND TUNE OURSELVES TO THE MESSAGE WE REALLY WANT TO HEAR.

JESUS TELLS US TO NOT GIVE OUR GIFTS TO GOD UNTIL THAT INTERFERENCE IS GONE. HE TELLS US THIS NOT FOR GODS SAKE BUT RATHER FOR OUR OWN. IT IS NOT BY ACCIDENT THAT JESUS REMINDS US OF THE EDICT AGAINST MURDER AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS PASSAGE.  PERHAPS THE CONNECTION IS THAT WE ARE COMMITTING SPIRITUAL MURDER, MURDER OF OUR OWN SOUL WHEN WE FOSTER HATE AND ANGER IN OUR HEART. THINK OF THE RELIEF AND PEACE YOU MIGHT OBTAIN BY TURNING DOWN THE STATIC THAT GETS IN YOUR WAY OF CONVERSING WITH GOD. WHAT AMAZING CONVERSATIONS WILL YOU HAVE?

Sermon with a Twist

PERSISTANCE AND PERSPECTIVE

Sermon at First Church Ipswich, October 17th

Luke 18

The Parable of the Persistent Widow

 ¹Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. ²He said: "In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared about men. ³And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, 'Grant me justice against my adversary.'

 ⁴"For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, 'Even though I don't fear God or care about men, ⁵yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won't eventually wear me out with her coming!' "

 ⁶And the Lord said, "Listen to what the unjust judge says. ⁷And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? ⁸I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?"



 I love evangelical preachers. No, not all of them, not late night TV ones, or ones that exclude chunks of humanity when they preach. But I love a good, over the top, fire and brimstone preacher. A few years ago we took the Youth Group on a mission trip to NYC. On Sunday we attended a church service at Riverside Church, a Federated church, a combination of Methodist and Congregational churches. The minster was a great black preacher. He started out his sermon, in almost a tent revival fashion. He said, “Today, I am in deep trouble. When I say what I have to say to you, people will be angry at me, they will be stirred up. Some may not forgive me. But I have to say what’s in my heart.”
Did the congregation listen? Oh my yes, to every word. I tell you this because I am a bit like that minister today. I am going to take a bible passage and put a new twist on it, and some may say that I am way out of bounds doing it. I may be in trouble after I am done, my preaching rights could be revoked, Reverend Rebecca may be inundated with angry phone calls and emails, but I hope you will all forgive me and take this sermon in the light of grace that I mean it in.
Listening? Ok today’s passage is a lousy story. Lousy as a story is what I mean. I mean a good storyteller holds the climax, the payoff till the end. I mean I never skip to the end of a mystery novel or movie, I want the whole experience. Yes, even when the 7^th Harry Potter book came out, I read it through to find out what happened.Yet here we have Luke giving away the whole story in the introduction.
Luke starts by saying that Jesus told a parable to his disciples so that they would know they should pray and never give up. Then he relates the parable to us, about the Judge, who neither feared God nor cared for men, and the widow that drives him crazy. Lame! Really, shouldn’t we hear the parable, and then have the lesson at the end? I mean we do get the message at the end, how if the widow can get justice through persistence from a hard edged judge, then how much easier is it for us to get what we want from a God who loves and adores us. And that really is the message, that persistent prayer is important.
And today all over the world at Congregational churches, ministers are standing in the pulpit  talking about that message. That if we are like the widow, and sincerely and continually petition God,  we will be heard. Now, as you know, God answers all prayers, but sometimes the answer is no. But it is the dialog with God, the praying to God, that matters. So often when faced with troubles greater than ourselves we feel like we have no power. But if we view prayer as an action, as something we can do that will have a result, then we may not feel powerless. We may feel like we can and do take action.
So the Parable of the Widow and the judge teaches us persistence, faith and prayer and gives us a promise of God’s justice. And ministers all over are today relating that theme and it is a great one.
Are you listening? Because right now I am taking a left turn and leaving other ministers and other congregations and want to travel with you someplace totally different. And I need to stress that most preachers are today going with the theme of persistant prayer , and I am pretty sure almost no one is going to go where I am going. Now, if you know me, that should not surprise you, I view many things in life differently.
Now, to be clear,  I love the idea of ceaseless praying,  persistent praying. A great  minister once said “Unless you have stood knocking at the door for days and days till your knuckles bleed, you don’t know what persistent prayer is.” I love that. But, I want to look at the story with fresh eyes. The judge represents God, right? But he is a judge who doesn’t listen to God nor care about men. I know Jesus uses that to show us that a loving God will more readily listen, but it bothers me a little to think of the Judge representing God. If you and I are truthful, a judge who ignores God and his fellow man sounds more like….Us. You and I. I freely confess there are times I ignore God, and have been far from Christian to people around me. So is it a stretch to think of the Judge as not God, but us. Us who often ignore God and treat each other badly, isn’t that easier to accept? So stay with me as I develop this theme


What if we take a new slant on this story. What if it is not just about praying ceaselessly? What if we rearrange the characters and God is the Widow, and you are the judge? What if God is pursing, pursuing, pursuing us to be right and just. What if all God wants is for us to give in.  Can’t we also, you and I look at this passage about prayer, and see God asking us to pray? Could he not be annoying us with those thoughts we all get, I should pray more, I should pray, I should go to church, I should do more, I should give more. Could not we see The Widow as God demanding more from us? When we see bad things happening in the world around us, when are hearts break as we see people bullied to death because they are different, is it possible that the sickening in our hearts is the call to do something? I am radically suggesting we can look at the parable in a different way, and use it as a lesson that encompasses the theme of the Congregational church, that God is Still speaking, speaking to each of us like the widow did, following us around demanding justice, justice for those who need it.  And I can then link in the wonderful message of praying as one of many active responses to the demands of the widow.
About 400 years ago there was a poet and clergyman name John Donne, who gave us gorgeous love poetry, and gave us religious poetry as well. Here is the first stanza of a poem by John Donne, which makes me think of the image of our God persistently asking us to be better than we are.. BATTER my heart, three person'd God; for, you
As yet but knocke, breathe, shine, and seeke to mend;
That I may rise, and stand, o'erthrow mee, and bend
Your force, to breake, blowe, burn and make me new…

What would happen if we give in? Give in to that widow that constantly seems to be yammering at us demanding of us, pleading night and day with us. What wonders might we see in our lives if we could simply allow ourselves to surrender as the Judge does in the parable? What if our persistent praying is not just a shopping list of what we need, but fervently asking God to speak to us, to tell us what God desires us to do, to give an audience to the Divine that speaks to us all? That voice that pursues us every day.

Are you listening?