Sermon 561+April 5, 2009

Sunday of the Passion
Palm Sunday
675th Week as Priest
501st Week at St. Dunstan’s
136th Week at St. Matthew’s
Mark 11:1-11 (Liturgy of the Palms)
Isaiah 50:4-9a
Psalm 31:9-16
Philippians 2:5-11
Matthew 27:11-54

The Week of the Passion.

Grace to you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Beginning with Palm Sunday.

The short season of Holy Week begins today with the Celebration of Palm Sunday, the day of Christ’s triumphal entry into the City of Jerusalem, when he was hailed by the people as their king and Messiah. Holy Week moves quickly, however, to the betrayal of Jesus by one of his disciples. Then all of the rest of his followers desert Jesus, and he is left alone, facing the Sanhedrin on trumped up charges of heresy. Events spiral downward faster than we can fathom. He is brought before Pilate, beaten and condemned to death, crucified, and buried. By Good Friday, it seems all hope is lost. The Master is dead. The followers are scattered. The disciples are in hiding. Only the women are left to anoint the body and weep over the death of the Lord of the Dance.

Misunderstood and Mistaken.

Jesus has been misunderstood and mistaken by practically everyone he knows, everyone he meets, everyone who hears of him. He is not what they expected. He is not what they hoped for. He is not what they think they need.

Look at the evidence …

His disciples never understood the foreshadowing statements he made about his death on a cross, dying for sinners, or being raised on the third day. The establishment of the day—the scribes and Pharisees—never accepted his interpretation of the Law and the Prophets, and they disagreed with him so strongly, and feared him so completely, that they manufactured his arrest, trial, conviction, and execution. Even the crowds who had followed Jesus from place to place cried, “Hosanna to the Living Lord!” one day, and “Crucify him!” the next.

I’m not exactly sure what this says about human nature, but it can’t be good news. If the story is true, and I believe it is precisely that, then human beings are selfish, manipulative, greedy, violent, and not to be trusted.

What Must God Think of Us?

What must God think of us? He sent his Son, his only Son, to them in order that they would see and believe in him. That they would know the power of love and the victory of love over sin and death. Their response, almost to man, was rejection of the Son of God. Betrayal is rejection. So is abandonment. No question about those who beat him, and nailed him to a cross, who spat upon him and mocked him.

What must God think of us? I’m saying “us” because there is precious little difference between the disciples of Jesus and ourselves. And, it is terribly true that there is precious little difference between the enemies of Jesus and ourselves. Some folks would say that people are just no good at all. St. Paul himself says, “Wretched man that I am, who will save me from this body of death?” His only answer is Jesus. Our only answer is Jesus.

The Atonement.

We tend not to consider the very human ways in which Jesus responds to his treatment by soldiers, high priests, disciples, and crowds. He is not reacting in anger, hostility, violence, aggression—although all these and more are shown to him. He does not defend himself, nor does he answer his accusers. He knows what is happening, and yet he does not avoid the inevitable. He accepts it. He empties himself, as Paul told the Philippians, and he takes upon himself and into himself the sins of the world. The theological term for this is Atonement. The death of Jesus is an atoning sacrifice, a price paid for the debt of sin. But notice this: Jesus is not merely silent and meek. In the midst of this terrible chaos, Jesus is the one man who remembers who he is and what he represents. He is strong and calm and gentle, even when everyone around him is violent and completely out of control. Jesus is loving and kind, even when all others are hateful and cruel. Jesus is humble and selfless, although the soldiers and scribes and onlookers are arrogant and selfish.

What About You and Me?

Are you arrogant and selfish in your relationships with other people? Have you ever been violent or cruel to someone else? Have you hurt members of your own family by your words or your actions? I have, and I am ashamed that I have. When I react to another person in one of these ways—whether I think they deserve it or not—I am no better than St. Peter who denies him, or Pilate who convicts him, or the soldiers who beat him, or the people in the crowd who spit upon him. I’m just like them. We are just like them. God forgive us.

Well, maybe this Holy Week is the year that you and I will truly hear the words of Christ, and we will truly see the actions of Christ, and we will genuinely experience the love of Christ, a love that conquers sin and death, our sin and our death, a love that makes us his own. A love that changes us forever. Maybe this is the year of our new life in Christ. May it be so. Amen.

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Sermon 562+April 6, 2009

Holy Monday
675th Week as Priest
501st Week at St. Dunstan’s
136th Week at St. Matthew’s
Isaiah 42:1-9
John 12:1-11

The Compassion of Jesus.

Grace to you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Not the First Time.

It was not the first time that Jesus had been to Martha and Mary’s home in Bethany, and it was not the first time that Jesus had defended Mary against criticism. In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus was invited to eat with them when he came to Bethany. Martha did all the work, and Mary sat at the Master’s feet, listening to his stories and his teaching. Martha came to Jesus and complained, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” But Jesus defended her then, and he defends her now, when Judas Iscariot criticizes her for extravagance and selfishness. “Leave her alone,” says the Lord. Jesus understands completely what Mary is doing. She is giving him an extraordinary gift, a pound of costly perfume. But she doesn’t just lay the gift at his feet, she anoints his feet with the oil, and then wipes his feet with her hair. Nard, they say, has an intense fragrance, and the smell filled the entire house. Judas is right about one thing: Mary’s act is extravagant.

The Symbol of Intimate Love.

In the Song of Solomon, nard is the symbol of the intimate nature of the Bride’s love. The song begins like this:

O that you would kiss me with the kisses of your mouth!
For your love is better than wine,
your anointing oils are fragrant,
your name is oil poured out;
therefore the maidens love you.

Mary, perhaps like many women in the Gospels and throughout the history of the Church, loves Jesus as both Son of God and as Man of Nazareth. This idea may strike you as shocking, but it should not. Julian of Norwich and Catherine of Siena, Teresa of Avila and Mary Magdalene are only a few of the women we know who loved Jesus with great passion. And although Jesus cannot love her in this way in return, he loves her as true friend and as divine companion. He loves her as God loves her.But there is more. Jesus understands how fragile is Mary’s life and love. He does not want her to be embarrassed or made fun of. In fact, Jesus knows Mary better than she knows herself. He sees beyond the surface; he understands the full meaning of her extraordinary act of love. He knows the secrets of her heart.

The Mind of Christ.

Here we have just a glimpse of the mind of Christ. He who comes to us as God made man is truly the Compassionate One. He knows our hearts and minds. He is with us in both the ordinary and the extraordinary. Jesus loves us as friend. Without hesitation, without qualification, without anything that might separate us from him, Jesus loves us. Amen.

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Sermon 563+April 7, 2009

Holy Tuesday
675th Week as Priest
501st Week at St. Dunstan’s
136th Week at St. Matthew’s
Isaiah 49:-6
John 12:20-36

The Courage of Jesus.

Grace to you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

A Polished Arrow.

Isaiah described the Suffering Servant as a “polished arrow” hidden in God’s quiver until the fullness of time. His mouth “a sharp sword” hidden in the shadow of God’s hand until the right time. In seven centuries, in the hill country of Galilee, the time had arrived. He was the polished arrow, the sharp sword, and much more, infinitely more. He was Jesus of Nazareth—a prophet like those of old. He was the Christ, the anointed one, the long-awaited Messiah of his people Israel. He was the Son of God, or as he often called himself, “the Son of Man.” And he was even more: Jesus was Emmanuel, God-with-us, God-made-man. God made man. It is the theological concept of the Incarnation. God had been coming to his people, showing them his steadfast love, for countless centuries—in the Creation of the world, in the Call of Abram and Sarai, in the Covenant, and in the Law. These were manifestations of God, demonstrations of his love and power, but they were not God made man.

The Divinity of Jesus.

If we are to know Christ, we must consider both natures of the Son of God, human and divine. He is both in full measure—fully human and fully divine. In John’s Gospel, the divinity of Jesus is made clear from the very beginning. He and the Father are one. “Whoever serves me, the Father will honor,” says Jesus. “Serve the light, and believe in the light, and you will become children of light.”

The Humanity of Jesus.

But he who is the light to the nations, the light of the world, is also the Son of Man. Born of Mary, and therefore fully human. This is to our immeasurable benefit, because he shows us—in his life and in his death—how we are to live and die. On this Holy Tuesday, we see our Lord’s humanity, and specifically we are witnesses to his courage. Jesus knows that he must lose his life, and he knows that he will be “lifted up from the earth” on the cross of Crucifixion. It is the most shameful, agonizing, painful death of the day. It is a horrific combination of torture and execution, but it is necessary for Jesus to die in exactly this way.

Overcoming Fear.

But he is troubled, and he is afraid: “Now my soul is troubled.” Should I ask my Father to spare me, to “save me from this hour?” Real courage, you see, is taking right action even when you are afraid. Ask any soldier who has been on the battlefield. Ask any paramedic who has saved a life. Overcoming fear is a necessary part of courage. Jesus is truly the courageous one, and he will not be turned away from his mission. Jesus hears the voices of doubt, despair, and denial, yet he does not succumb to them. No, he overcomes them. He has courage when all around him doubt and run away.

Giving Us His Courage.

We cannot consider the courage of Jesus without considering the effect that this courage has on us all. He is the light that draws others to himself, and we are drawn to that light that dispels our darkness and fear. He shows us the way to live with courage, even though we are afraid, even though others doubt us. He encourages us and gives us hope that we will be able to face our own death with courage precisely because he is with us. So, in a real sense, the courage of Jesus can become our courage as well. And, as hard as life is sometimes, Lord knows we need it. Amen.

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Sermon 564+April 8, 2009

Holy Wednesday
675th Week as Priest
501st Week at St. Dunstan’s
136th Week at St. Matthew’s
Isaiah 50:4-9a
John 13:21-32

Jesus as Teacher.

Grace to you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

The Tongue of a Teacher.

This Holy Week I have asked you to think about the qualities or characteristics that set Jesus of Nazareth apart as Emmanuel, God who is with us, God made man. We have considered the Compassion of Jesus, the Courage of Jesus, and the Creativity of Jesus. Now we consider Jesus as Teacher. The prophet Isaiah said that the Suffering Servant would have “the tongue of a teacher,” and that he would “sustain the weary with a word.” The tongue of a teacher is a metaphor for the skill that an accomplished teacher has for public speaking, for the presentation of an idea or concept. This teacher—and I’m sure you can think of a teacher or professor in your own education—has the power to persuade, to enlighten your understanding, and to open your mind and your heart. I think of the two disciples on the Road to Emmaus, who after walking with the Risen Lord, and eating with him, said to each other, “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the scriptures?” One who has the tongue of a teacher brings passion and enthusiasm to the teaching, and surely this was the case with Jesus of Nazareth.

The Use of Parables.

His favorite method of teaching was to tell a story. Most often, it would be a story taken from everyday life. Sheep herding, fishing, families, women gathering water or cooking a meal—they were all common subjects for the parables of Jesus. A good teacher knows that storytelling is a very effective way to impart knowledge and understanding, and to do more—to impart wisdom to his students. The parables that Jesus told always had a moral or lesson to be learned. They were memorable, and those who heard his parables could tell them again, and talk about them with their families and friends.

The Use of Metaphor.

Jesus also used metaphor as a way to communicate deep and lasting concepts. The kingdom of heaven was like a large net thrown into the sea, a pearl of great price, a loaf of bread, a treasure hidden in a field, a vineyard, or a wedding. He doesn’t define the kingdom of heaven; he says what it is like. This opens our imagination to possibilities never dreamed of. This makes us yearn to know the kingdom of heaven.

The Practice of Midrash.

Jesus of Nazareth also used an ancient practice of teaching called midrash. This is the rabbinic method of teaching, one used by Jewish rabbis for centuries before Christ and down to the present day. The rabbi reads a passage of Holy Scripture, and then asks his students, his disciples, how they interpret the passage. It shouldn’t surprise you that this approach yields as many interpretations and viewpoints as there are people gathered. Each of us sees something personal, intimate, and important about our own lives and circumstances in reading the Scriptures. This is midrash—reading the passage, considering the interpretations, and sifting through all that is said to find something of the kingdom of God—like a pearl of great price, or a treasure hidden in a field.

John’s Gospel is Teaching.

The Gospel of John is truly a teaching gospel. In the passage just before our lesson for today, Jesus said to his disciples, “You call me Teacher and Lord—and you are right, for that is what I am.” Then, in the three chapters following this one, Jesus gives his disciples his final teaching—repeating several times the most important lesson of all: Love one another as I have loved you. Jesus has the tongue of a teacher, and we are blessed to be his students, his disciples, and to learn from him lessons that are now two thousand years old—and yet as new for us as if they were said for the first time. Amen.

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Sermon 565+April 9, 2009

Maundy Thursday Noonday (Foot Washing)
675th Week as Priest
501st Week at St. Dunstan’s
136th Week at St. Matthew’s
1 Corinthians 11:23-26
John 13:1-15

The Humility of Jesus.

Grace to you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

The Qualities of Our Lord.

This Holy Week I have asked you to think about the qualities or characteristics that set apart Jesus of Nazareth as Emmanuel, God who is with us, God made man. We have considered the Compassion of Jesus, the Courage of Jesus, and the Creativity of Jesus. Yesterday, we saw Jesus as Teacher. Now, for Maundy Thursday in the passage from John’s Gospel where Jesus washes the feet of his disciples, we see the humility of Jesus.

The Custom of Foot Washing.

It was customary in those days for people to wash their feet when they came in from a journey, or at the close of the day. Typically in a wealthy household, a slave or servant would wash your feet—never your rabbi, or any respectable person. But Jesus insists that he must wash his disciples’ feet, and he does so in a way that is reminiscent of the ritual cleansing of Judaism and the Baptism of John. Jesus takes on the work of a slave, and he does so, as the hymn says, “in great humility.” This was not the first time that a person of high standing ever washed another’s feet, but it is very rare in Holy Scripture. In the First Book of Samuel, Abigail, the wisest of David’s wives, says, “Your servant is a slave to wash the feet of the servants of my lord.” She takes on the work of a slave, in order to show her devotion and love for King David.

He Washes the Disciples’ Feet.

Jesus begins the humble work of foot washing by removing his outer robe and tying a towel around his waist. It is an act of humility. Jesus washes the feet of each disciple, preparing them for the journey that they must make without him. The washing of their feet must have been taken from the Ritual Washing of the Hands, Rahatz, in the Passover Seder. In this work of a servant, Jesus shows us that pride and arrogance have no place in the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom, he is telling us, is not characterized by power, position, or authority—but by love, generosity, and humility. We are to learn from his great humility, and to imitate it in our own lives. We must put away power, position, and authority over others. We must reject pride and arrogance in others and in our selves. For it is in serving others, helping others, that we are closest to the Kingdom of God, and we are most Christ-like in our selves. Amen.

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Sermon 566+April 9, 2009

Maundy Thursday
Evening (The Lord’s Supper)
675th Week as Priest
501st Week at St. Dunstan’s
136th Week at St. Matthew’s
Exodus 12:1-14a
1 Corinthians 11:23-26
Luke 22:14-30

The Sacrifice of Jesus.

Grace to you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

The Qualities of Our Lord.

This Holy Week I have asked you to think about the qualities or characteristics that set apart Jesus of Nazareth as “Emmanuel,” God who is with us, and as “Incarnation,” God who is made man. We have considered the Compassion of Jesus, the Courage of Jesus, and the Creativity of Jesus. Yesterday, we saw Jesus as Teacher. At noonday, we saw the humility of Jesus as he washed the feet of his disciples. Now, in the Institution of the Lord’s Supper—and in his Crucifixion to come—we see the Sacrifice of Jesus.

The Passover Seder.

Last night, in the celebration of the Passover Seder, the most important act of worship in Judaism, we found the origin of our own Holy Eucharist. In the place of the Covenant Box, we found the Altar and Holy Table of Communion. In the Matzoh Bread and Cup of Blessing from the Passover, we found the Bread and Wine of Eucharist, which becomes the Body and Blood of Christ. And in the chesed, or steadfast love, the lovingkindness of YHWH, the Jealous God of the Desert, we found the Sacrificial Love of Jesus Christ, and the Salvation of the World in his Atonement for the sins of all.

Jesus was celebrating the Passover Seder this night two thousand nine years ago, with his disciples in the Upper Room. But when he held up the Bread of Affliction, he told them that from now on this bread would be his Body, given for them. “Take, eat,” he said. “This is my Body.” And at the end of the Seder, when they take the fifth and final Cup of Blessing, he held it up and told them that from now on this wine would be his Blood, poured out for them. “Take and drink this, all of you,” he said. “For this is my blood of the New Covenant.”

The Fulfillment of the Covenant.

This was the fulfillment of the Eternal Covenant based on God’s promises to Abraham and Sarah, and remembered in the animal sacrifices of the Jewish priests in the Temple. But in Jesus, the sacrifice would be once and for all. There would be no need for the sacrifice of bulls and rams, pigeons and cereal, because Jesus himself became the Sacrifice of God. Reminiscent of the Aqedah, the near-sacrifice of Isaac by his father Abraham on the Holy Mountain, this Sacrifice of the New Covenant would be completed in the Crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth on the Cross at Golgotha. Abraham’s hand was stayed by an Angel of the Lord, and the boy Isaac was not killed by the knife. Instead, a ram was found caught in the brambles and was sacrificed in Isaac’s place. But in Christ, God the Father gives us his Son, his only Son, as a ransom for many, as a sacrifice for the sins of the whole world. He becomes the ram of the sacrifice, the Lamb of God. And his blood is poured out as a protection for God’s children against the Angel of Death.

There is a sonnet by Gerard Manley Hopkins that captures best this image of the Sacrifice of Jesus. It is called “The Windhover,” and it is dedicated to Christ our Lord. The windhover is a kestrel, a hawk, that the poet sees one morning, hovering on the crest of the wind high in the sky above him. As the hawk plummets to earth, Hopkins sees the sacrificial death of Jesus …

The Windhover
To Christ our Lord.

I caught this morning morning’s minion, kingdom of daylight’s dauphin,
dapple-drawn Falcon, in his riding
    Of the rolling level underneath him steady air, and striding
High there, how he rung upon the rein of a wimpling wing
In his ecstasy! Then off, off forth on swing,
    As a skate’s heel sweeps smooth on a bow-bend; the hurl and gliding
    Rebuffed the big wind. My heart in hiding
Stirred for a bird–the achieve of, the mastery of the thing!

Brute beauty and valor and act, oh, air, pride, plume, here
    BUCKLE! And the fire that breaks from thee then, a billion
Times told lovelier, more dangerous, O my chevalier!

    No wonder of it; sheer plod makes plow down sillion
Shine, and blue-bleak embers, ah my dear,
    Fall, gall themselves, and gash gold-vermillion.

An Essential Aspect of Our Better Nature.

This concept of Sacrifice is crucial to understanding our human nature. It is through sacrifice, and in sacrifice, that we are given honor and respect. The father sacrifices for his children. The mother bears the pain of childbirth and the agony of raising teenagers. The hero dies in war, sacrificing himself for the lives of his comrades. The nurse and doctor risk illness and death in caring for those afflicted with deadly diseases. Sacrifice, you see, is a noble and essential aspect of our better nature. It is truly Christ-like. And Sacrifice is best witnessed in the Lord’s Supper, the Holy Eucharist, and in Christ’s Crucifixion on the Cross. Amen.

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Sermon 568+April 11, 2009

Great Vigil of Easter
675th Week as Priest
501st Week at St. Dunstan’s
136th Week at St. Matthew’s
Exodus 14:10—15:1
Canticle 8+The Song of Moses
Ezekiel 36:24-28
Psalm 42:1-7+Quemadmodum
Zephaniah 3:12-20
Psalm 126+Inconvertendo
Romans 6:3-11
Matthew 28:1-10

The Fulfillment of Scripture.

Grace to you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

He is Risen!

Christ is risen.
The Lord is risen indeed.

He is the fulfillment of the Holy Scriptures, and all the Law and the Prophets, and this evening is filled with the glory of the Lord’s resurrection. From the time of Moses, the People of God were promised that the Lord would save them by his mighty hand—and they were delivered from the power of Pharaoh by the parting of the Red Sea.
From the days of the prophet Ezekiel, the Lord said that he would sprinkle clean water upon them, and give them a new heart and a new spirit—and they were baptized by John at the River Jordan, and given a new law—to love God with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength; and to love their neighbors as themselves.

Since the time of Zephaniah the Prophet, God promised to restore their fortunes and to renew them in his love—and in Jesus of Nazareth he brought them the Messiah, the Christ—a sure and certain hope—and the promise of eternal life in him.

When Isaiah sang of the Suffering Servant—hundreds of years before the coming of Christ—they received a foreshadowing of the God’s Chosen One who would be a man of compassion and courage, with the tongue of a teacher and a spirit of humility—and Emmanuel (that is, God who is with us) came to us in the fullness of time. And he was all that Isaiah prophesied: a light to the nations and the glory of his people Israel.

Comparing the Four Gospels.

Of the four Gospels of our New Testament, the Gospel of Matthew is most emphatically concerned with the fulfillment of Holy Scripture. Matthew’s primary intent is to show that Jesus of Nazareth is the one “full, perfect, and sufficient sacrifice, oblation, and satisfaction, for the sins of the whole world.” All four of the Gospel accounts tell of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. Indeed, their stories are strikingly similar in detail and circumstance:

Early on Sunday morning, just before dawn or at first light, the women come to the tomb in order to prepare the body of Jesus for burial. The stone is rolled back—by an earthquake, or an angel, or by the Risen Lord himself. Jesus is not there; the tomb is empty in all four Gospels—except for an angel or two, who say (what angels always say first), “Do not be afraid.” Then they add, “He is not here, for he has been raised—as he said.”

Jesus had told them that he would be put to death, and that in three days he would be raised from the dead—and yet, in each account, the disciples are dumbfounded, terrified, and filled with doubt and disbelief.

Mark’s story, the oldest of the Gospels, ends with the women running to tell the disciples.

Matthew tells of a sudden encounter with the Risen Lord by the women as they are leaving. “Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

In Luke’s Gospel, Peter comes to the tomb and finds it empty, just as the women have said. “And he went home,” says Luke, “amazed at what had happened.”

In John’s account, Peter is joined by John Mark, the disciple whom Jesus loved, and many say it is John the Gospel writer himself. The men leave, but Mary Magdalene stays behind, weeping. Then she sees the Risen Jesus and at first believes him to be the gardener. She arrives home and announces, “I have seen the Lord!”

Yes, there are slight variations—but if we all told an important story to someone else we would not tell it in the same way. No occurrence in all of Holy Scripture—Old or New—is recounted with such clarity and precision as the Resurrection of Jesus. The women who were his first witnesses were an unlikely choice—but that simply adds credibility to all four Gospel stories. From that point forward, all of the disciples will see the Risen Christ, and they will testify to these accounts with their words, their deeds, and their lives. And not only that, but the believers in Jesus will endure persecution and execution in the early centuries of the Church rather than deny the truth of Christ raised from the dead.

We come to a fullness of time moment in the Resurrection. Truly the Scriptures are fulfilled. The truth of all the Law and the Prophets is revealed. And the world will never be the same again.

Alleluia! Christ is risen.
The Lord is risen indeed. Alleluia! Amen.

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Sermon 571+April 26, 2009

Third Sunday of Easter
St. Dunstan’s Day
678th Week as Priest
504th Week at St. Dunstan’s
139th Week at St. Matthew’s
Wisdom 3:1-9
Psalm 1+Beatus vir qui non abiit
Philippians 4:4-9
Luke 6:17-23

The Compass.

Grace to you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

He is Risen!

Alleluia! Christ is risen.
The Lord is risen indeed. Alleluia!

Yes, this is the Feast of St. Dunstan’s, but it is also the Third Sunday of Easter, part of the Great Fifty Days in which we celebrate the resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

A Gifted Generation.

Among other reasons for our being here—the Breaking of Bread, the Prayers, the Apostles’ teaching and Fellowship, we are also gathered tonight to honor our Faculty Advisors and Staff Members, but most of all to recognize our Students who have been Officers for this Year of the Word, and those Students who are graduating and leaving Auburn for the next stage of their life’s journey. These young people are part of a gifted generation of Americans; in many ways they remind me of the generation of World War Two. They are young men and women of character, who possess self-confidence without arrogance, and a sense of direction and purpose without selfishness.

The Students who are graduating and leaving Auburn this Spring will need this sense of themselves for the journey ahead, because we are in difficult economic times, and just getting a job can be a real challenge. They will need that character and self-confidence, and they will need to discover within themselves a strong sense of direction and purpose.

Last weekend, two former students, members of this Gifted Generation were married at St. Dunstan’s. Theirs will be a journey made together, a way of joy and some sadness, prosperity and perhaps some adversity. But I believe they have a clear sense of the direction they want to go together. They understand that marriage is truly the “Most Important of Relationships,” and at times, the “Most Difficult of Relationships.”

The Compass as Symbol.

Episcopalians also understand the importance of symbols—outward and visible signs of grace. The groom presented each of his members of the wedding party with a remarkable gift: a brass compass. But it was more than a gift, much more than a gift. It was a symbol. The compass is a symbol of the direction that each of us receives along the way from many people including our parents, our friends, and our teachers. Each of us knows full well that we have made the journey thus far with help and encouragement and support from others.

The Compass as Metaphor.

The compass is also a metaphor for the principles that guide us in life—principles like honesty, hard work, loyalty, and the commitment we share with our family and friends. We have been shaped and molded since childhood by others, and we will continue to develop until we reach the full stature of Christ—whenever that might happen. You may already have strong core beliefs about your life, and work, and relationships, but the truth is that we are all works in progress. We all have a lot left to learn.

The Compass as Calling.

The compass is a sign of each person’s unique purpose and direction, and I believe strongly that the discovery of this calling in life is a part of everyone’s journey. Your calling in life should be your vocation (the work or career that you have chosen or found or has fallen in your life) and your avocation (your interests apart from work, your hobbies, your particular gifts and skills, perhaps even your consuming passion). By the way, if you are miserable in your major at Auburn, or in your chosen vocation, let me tell you what I tell all college students: Get out of it. Do something else. Do something you really love.

I was forty years old before I discovered what I wanted to be when I grew up. I had done a lot of different jobs, and done them pretty well, in fact. It was only when I lost my job in an acquisition that I finally decided it was time to pay attention to my true calling.

The American poet Robert Frost wrote this:

My object in living is to unite
My avocation and my vocation
As my two eyes make one in sight.
Only where love and need are one,
And the work is play for mortal stakes,
Is the deed ever really done
For Heaven and the future’s sakes.

The Compass as Guide.

The compass provides us something else: it tells us about the decisions that we have made along the way, and sometimes the compass lets us know that we have taken a wrong path, or we have wandered away, ignoring our own compass. The compass becomes our method of finding our way back home. Or, in the case of the Prodigal Son, of coming to our senses. If you have the courage to make decisions, you’re going to make some mistakes. But let your internal compass be the guide in your relationships—as a son or daughter, a husband or wife, a father or mother, a student, and a citizen of the world. Sometimes that means taking a different way from most folks. Robert Frost spoke of The Road Less Traveled, and of the necessity at times of choosing the more difficult path:

Two roads diverged in a wood
And I took the one less traveled by
And that has made all the difference.

The Compass as the Way.

Finally, the compass is a wonderful metaphor for the Christian journey, the life of faith. Jesus of Nazareth told us that he was “the way, the truth, and the life.” Certainly, in its best representation, the Church is a community of fellowship and love, a group of people who are truly your “companions in the way.” I believe that the Students of St. Dunstan’s really get this. We know that we will always be better, stronger, and more effective together than we would ever be apart. We know the value of community, and of cooperation, and we believe in the way of love—of sharing, forgiving, learning, being patient and kind and gentle and generous with each other. And that, my friends, has made all the difference. Amen.

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Sermon 573+May 31, 2009

Feast of Pentecost
683rd Week as Priest
509th Week at St. Dunstan’s
144th Week at St. Matthew’s
Acts 2:1-21
Psalm 104:25-35,37
Romans 8:22-27
John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15

The Coming of the Holy Spirit.

Grace to you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

The Known World.

The known world at the time of the Apostles was a much smaller place than it is today. Remember that in the first century AD, the world was flat, and it consisted largely of the lands immediately surrounding the Mediterranean Sea, so named because it was the Sea in the Middle (medi) of the Earth (terra).

Thus, when the disciples were gathered in Jerusalem on that Day of Pentecost, they were in the company of devout Jews from “every nation under heaven,” about twenty countries that surrounded the Sea in the Middle of the Flat Earth. Beyond the known world was the edge of the world, beyond the four corners of the earth, and a ship sailing too far would simply fall off the edge of the world into chaos.

So you can see that in the first century AD, the missionary journeys of Paul and Silas and Timothy and Barnabas and John Mark were extraordinary and dangerous indeed. Few but the Romans, Greeks, and Phoenicians had traveled to the four corners of the earth, and Britain to the West, and India to the East, were not only at the end of the world, they were also at the edges of knowledge.

The Age of Discovery.

This first century AD was truly an Age of Discovery, and the principal explorers were the Apostles and followers of Jesus of Nazareth.Just seven weeks ago, he had been arrested, condemned, and crucified as a common criminal. His crime, they said, was blasphemy, for he claimed to be the King of the Jews, the Messiah, the long-awaited one who would deliver his people from the rule of Rome.

Mysteriously, suddenly, this Jesus whom they killed was raised from death and appeared many times in the Great Fifty Days to his friends and followers. He ate with them, and walked and talked with them, and he opened the Scriptures to them, showing that he was truly the fulfillment of all the Law and the Prophets, the Torah and the Psalms—that he was indeed the Son of the Most High, and that he and the Father were one.

At the fortieth day, he explained that he had to leave, but that he would send the Comforter, the Advocate, the Holy Spirit. And he ascended into heaven, right before their eyes. Still, they were dumbfounded and unable to understand the full extent of his message. But they did as he said; they waited in Jerusalem for the Day of Pentecost and the coming of the Spirit.

The Fullness of Time.

It was another of those remarkable “fullness of time” moments when they gathered together in the house, and there was suddenly a mighty wind, and tongues of fire rested on each of the Apostles. Then they began to speak, not in glossolalia,  the secret language of tongues, but in the native languages of all the known world. They were not speaking nonsense, and they were by no means drunk with new wine. (After all, explained Peter, it was only nine o’clock in the morning!) No, they were telling of the mighty works of God.

The Gifts of the Spirit.

And that day, the known world was forever changed. The disciples, now called the Apostles, were forever changed. No longer fearful, cowardly, and ignorant, they were now filled with the Holy Spirit, and they received the sevenfold gifts of the Spirit promised of old in the Book of the Prophet Isaiah. At that moment, they were given wisdom, understanding, knowledge, counsel, strength, faith, and holy fear. At that “fullness of time” moment, they discovered their direction, and purpose, and calling in Christ.

These were changed men, and each one was a new creation in Christ. Behold, the old has passed away, the new had come—and all this was a gift from God. It was the same God who had always been the strength and the comfort of his People—from the very Creation when the Spirit moved across the face of the waters as a mighty wind; to the Call of Abram and Sarai to make the journey of a lifetime—to the making of an eternal Covenant with his People as they made their way to the Promised Land; to the giving of the Law at Sinai, which was more than rule and statute, but was the Spirit of righteousness. It was the same God that day of Pentecost, who fulfilled the promises of Scripture in the sacrifice of his only Son.

And now his people stood in the presence of the Holy Spirit of God and were transformed by that power and those tongues of fire, what the Church Fathers would come to call the “energies of God.” Their lives would now show forth a new spirit, and their message of the good news of Jesus Christ and the arrival of the Kingdom of God would spread like fire to the four corners of the earth.

The Fruits of the Spirit.

Their lives were changed forever by the coming of the Holy Spirit. Now they would show forth the fruits of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, goodness, and self-control. Nothing could stop them now. Theirs was an Age of Discovery, a Year of Discovery, and they had discovered their direction and purpose and calling in Christ. Each one of them—Simon Peter, James and John, Paul, Thomas—and the rest would become selfless and courageous in the days and weeks and years ahead. No longer would they hide for fear of anyone. They would preach and proclaim Jesus as Lord and themselves as his servants, and almost every one of them was martyred for the faith.

This Fragile Earth, Our Island Home.

The world as we know it is a much larger and more complex reality than in their day. This fragile earth, our island home, is one planet in a small solar system among millions. We have explored vast reaches of space and walked on our own moon. We hold the power to destroy ourselves, but we cannot save ourselves. The human race is healthier, stronger, and better educated than it has ever been—and yet people throughout the third world are plagued by disease, starvation, and oppression. We live in the wealthiest, strongest nation on earth, and yet we are beset by terrorism, war, and natural disasters.

The simple truth is that people are as hungry for the Good News of Jesus Christ as we have ever been. We need direction and purpose and a calling to a new life in Christ. We, as a people, are rich in things, but poor in spirit. And there are millions more out there in the great wide world who know nothing of the love of Jesus, or the abundant life in Christ.

We are Called to New Life In the Holy Spirit.

We live once again at the fullness of time. Like the Apostles of 35 AD, we are being called to new life in the Spirit, a life that is characterized by love and forgiveness and reconciliation—and we are called to live this life in such a way that we bring others to the knowledge and love of the Lord.

May Almighty God, who enlightened the minds of the disciples by pouring upon them the Holy Spirit, make us rich with his blessing, that we may abound more and more in that Spirit for ever. Amen.

May God, who sent the Holy Spirit as a flame of fire that rested upon the heads of the disciples, burn out all evil from our hearts, and make them shine with the pure light of his presence. Amen.

May God, who by the Holy Spirit caused those of many tongues to proclaim Jesus as Lord, strengthen our faith and send us out to bear witness to him in word and deed. Amen.

May the Spirit of truth lead us into all truth, giving us grace to confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, and to proclaim the wonderful works of God; and the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be among us, and remain with us always. Amen. 

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Sermon 574+June 21, 2009

Third Sunday after Pentecost
Father’s Day

686th Week as Priest
512th Week at St. Dunstan’s
147th Week at St. Matthew’s

1 Samuel 17:1a-49
Psalm 133+Ecce quam bonum!
2 Corinthians 6:1-13
Mark 4:35-41

The Father of the Scriptures.

This is the day set apart each year to honor our fathers, living and dead. And yet, we already have a commandment that we are to honor our fathers (and mothers) on a continual, if not daily, basis. It’s not that I think Father’s Day is a bad idea (I don’t); rather, I think it’s too bad that we need a holiday to remind us to honor our dads.

A Father’s Day sermon can be a rather dangerous enterprise, especially considering the number of people we know who don’t have a healthy example of fathering in their own lives. Divorce, alcoholism, abuse, abandonment, neglect, and family dysfunction are contributing factors in problem parenting today. Deadbeat dads don’t help matters, and the hurting children of troubled marriages don’t soon forget the pain they have lived with for years.

However, there is an image or icon of father that we can all look to with confidence: God the Father in the stories of the Hebrew Scriptures. This is a Father who is not completely unknown to us. He is the Father who shows steadfast love for his children. He leads them out of trouble, and he guides them with a sure hand. He protects them against the power of their enemies. This is the Father of the Psalms, who takes us out of the pit that they have secretly set for us, the Father who is our rock, our crag and stronghold, a castle to keep us safe.

I must admit that even our image of God the Father is not without its challenges. This Father can become angry, jealous, punishing, and even arbitrary at times. He is YHWH, the Jealous God of the Desert, and his people want desperately to please him, and we might spend our entire lives trying to do just that.

But it is a measure of our fallen nature that we, the children of our Father, can also behave grievously. We can be stubborn, rebellious, difficult, deceitful, cowardly, conniving, and even self-destructive.

We need our Father’s guidance and protection, but even more we need his steadfast love (or in Hebrew, his hesed), and we need his forgiveness. For it is in this way that the Father returns us to right relationship with him, and we are brought back into his house.

Now, that is the God and Father we know in the Old Testament, the God of the Old Covenant, and I will be the first to admit that we still need that Father’s influence, correction, and moral compass.

Allow me to make a connection with my own father. When I was a child, my father could be stern, angry, distant, and even at times arbitrary in his “tough love” for six boys who were, at times, stubborn, difficult, and rebellious. He was like the Old Testament YHWH, and we were his wayward Israel. But we did know that he loved us, and that he yearned for right relationship with us. Perhaps much the same could be said for your own childhood, and your own father.

Well, that’s enough of the old way and the old dispensation. In the Christian Testament, the Gospel stories, I believe that we come to know God the Father in a new way. We see much more of the personality of the Father through the eyes and the words of Jesus. And, accordingly, Father as image and icon takes on new meaning in our experience of God the Son in the stories of the Gospel, in the life and death of Jesus Christ.

 Many times, the disciples of Jesus ask him, “Show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.” This is precisely what Jesus does. He shows us his Father … through his eyes, his words, his stories, his miracles and wonders.

 I believe that it is in Jesus, the Son of God, that we come to know fully what it means to honor the Father. The life of Jesus is truly a life of obedience and a way of understanding. The actions of Jesus are always intended to restore, to reconcile, and to heal. Many times, Jesus tells us that he and the Father are one.

 It is in God the Son that we witness the full measure of the Father’s love—and here I’m talking about the Father’s love for us, for all of us—that he would give up the precious life of his only Son in order to save us. It is, after all is said and done, the ultimate sacrifice that a Father can make. There is no greater sacrifice, and there is no greater love.

 So it is that through the New Testament Scriptures, we come to know God the Father in a new way. He is the God of compassion, of sacrifice, and of reconciling love. The image and icon of God the Father has become an altogether new thing for us. The Father’s love destroys death and sin, drives out anger and division, restores us to fullness of life. There is nothing arbitrary or jealous in this Father’s love: He yearns for us, dies for us, rises for us—and he raises us with him.

 The father of my childhood became a new father as his sons became men. His anger left him, and never returned. His aloofness became an extraordinary gentleness and loving kindness. He was no longer impatient, preoccupied, and unpredictable—or perhaps we simply no longer perceived him that way.

 I don’t think I really ever knew my father until I was a grown man and the father of children myself. I’m just glad that I came to know him before he died. I’m grateful that I was able to pray with him, to have a conversation with him, and to tell him what he meant to me and my brothers. Perhaps your experience of knowing your own father in later years was somehow similar to mine. I hope so.

 Now we live in the Age of the Holy Spirit, and it is our Father’s good pleasure to continue to teach us, to give us his good comfort, to lead and guide us in his ways.

 As Psalm 133 says, our Father invites us to “live together in unity” as sisters and brothers of a large family. He urges us to “work together with him,” recognizing that together in Christ we possess everything, and now is the “acceptable time” to be alive in the Holy Spirit—overcoming adversity, conquering despair with hope, and growing together in “knowledge, patience, kindness, genuine love, truthful speech, and the power of God.”

 This is the acceptable time. This is the day of the Lord. Let us rejoice and be glad in it. Happy Father’s Day! Amen.

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