June 27, 2010
Galatians 5:1-25; Luke 9:51-62
Paul has been talking about freedom now for the last three weeks. Actually it’s all one letter to the Galatians that we have been reading in parts. The common thread running through this letter has been the freedom that comes from believing in Jesus Christ. Paul’s words are important. “For freedom Christ has set us free.” (5) “…the only thing that counts is faith working through love.” (6) Paul says in Christ we are free – but free for what? He then says, “For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another.” (13) We have been freed to become slaves to God’s law and the direction of the Holy Spirit. “For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (14) “Live by the Spirit.” (16) And, “…be guided by the Spirit.” (25) We have been freed that God might live through us.
Someone once said, “Nothing advocates for our faith more than the lives that model it.” That makes sense; our lives do speak volumes. We should live out our faith, every day. But sometimes that is a very hard thing to do. Sometimes this whole religion thing is just too much. If our belief frees us, then free for what?
Jewish Rabbi David Wolpe, in his book Why Faith Matters, suggests that religion gives to society several important things, including: an interdependent community, a sense of social responsibility, a commitment to charity, believing in something larger than oneself, promoting healthy personal boundaries and submitting to a “higher power.”
“In essence,” he says, “This is how God’s self is demonstrated through God’s followers – in our participation in things like: community, social responsibility, charity, etc. The key in all this is “God demonstrating God’s self THROUGH God’s followers.” It really is about God and not about us.
Wolpe tells a story about something that happened early in his ministry that is true of so many clergy. He said he was called to the hospital bedside of an elderly woman to offer final prayers for the dying. Holding her comatose hand, he felt like a fraud – thinking who was he to shepherd a soul to the edge of the next world? But he prayed the familiar words anyway, letting their power carry him. Sharing this later with his wife, her response was, “You’re right. You are unworthy. Anyone would be unworthy doing such a thing. That’s okay, though. It’s not you doing it. It’s being done through you.”
Wolpe writes, “That was a pivotal moment for me. Suddenly it became clear to me that we bring light into this world not as a source but as a prism — it comes through us.” God’s Spirit moves through human beings, like you and I, to touch others in crucial moments. Wolpe concluded, “As soon as I stepped out of my own way, the prayer felt real. Its blessing did not depend on me.”
Novelist Edith Wharton put it this way: “There are two ways of spreading light, to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it” Christ is the candle. We are the mirrors.
Christ has set us free (v. 1), and ultimately he is the light of the world that we reflect. Changed by God — and led by the Spirit to be fruitful — we reflect Christ’s light in the same way that a mirror does candlelight. This is the most powerful argument for Christianity – the changed lives of its believers and their love of neighbors. We aren’t the source of light, but the prism. Not the candle, but the mirror.
Belonging to Christ (v. 24) as a slave belongs to a master is the means of our liberation in Christ (v. 1). “Freedom” is ultimately found not in our independence but in our loving relationship with God, through which the Spirit leads us to loving acts toward others.
“The depths of our spirituality does not depend upon changing the things we do, but in doing for God what we ordinarily do for ourselves.” —Brother Lawrence.
“Being a Christian is more than just an instantaneous conversion. It is a daily process whereby you grow to be more and more like Christ.” —Billy Graham.
“Few things are more infectious than a godly lifestyle. The people you rub shoulders with every day need that kind of challenge. Not prudish. Not preachy. Just honest to goodness, bone-deep, non-hypocritical integrity. “ —Charles Swindoll.
The Gospel lesson today gives us a good idea of what we are to mirror – it’s what we have been freed for, and what we are to be committed to.
Andrew Prior, Scotts Church – Adelaide, Australia helps us understand the commitment we are called to. If the phrase “Son of Man” is translated as “the human one,” it can be referring to all humans. Take the verse: Foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the human one has nowhere to lay their head. To be really human means to be committed to more than a place, more than a home, or a job, or a family. Even to more than a church. We are committed to MORE… to the Kingdom of God. We are committed to a way of living where God’s very self, sets the agenda and tone of life.” This is the light passing through us, the light reflected – the light of God’s Kingdom.
The Kingdom of God calls us to compassion. It means we will feed our family. We will honor our parents. We will support them in their old age. But the Kingdom of God goes further and asks more of us. But how do we do what we are asked without making excuses. How do we answer the call to God’s radical compassion so it might be reflected in us?
The gospel reading today is about committing to the kingdom. It’s about setting our face towards something, and not looking back. It is about our seeking: 1) the kingdom of God before security, 2) the kingdom of God before family, and 3) the kingdom of God for the long haul, with no going back.
But there is something more. Today in Luke, when Jesus set his face to go to Jerusalem what happened first? Did he talk about foxes and the son of man? About the dead burying the dead? About putting your hand to the plough and not looking back? Did he talk about commitment or was it something else?
Before commitment, Jesus talked to his followers about compassion. Before calling them to commitment, he showed them how to be mercy-full to the ‘Samaritans’ who had rejected him. The kingdom of God does not punish people – and neither should we. Only after this truth does Jesus talk about commitment to a kingdom that will result in him losing his life. Only then does he call us to a kingdom without prejudice, where there can be no commitment without compassion.
This is what we have been freed for. To be a prism and mirror of Christ’s light and love.
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Sunday, June 20, 2010
“Christ’s Family”
June 20, 2010
Galatians 23: 23-29
Today we hear what Paul has to say to the Galatians, again. It is the third part of his letter to a church struggling to remain true to the gospel message. And by the tone of what Paul writes we can imagine what he is thinking, “These Galatians are so inconsistent.” Earlier he had reminded them he was the one who had first shared the message of Christ with them, and with others. Their “recognizing and worshiping God” resulted from what he had said. Then, as we read last week, Paul made sure they heard once again what was most important for their salvation. He wanted them never to forget that their real freedom from sin was a grace thing – a God thing, coming from a faith in Jesus Christ, rather than from their having to do certain things.
Now today we hear Paul say, “By God’s grace you have arrived. There is nothing more. Your faith is enough. And because of your faith you live in a close relationship with God, don’t you? Your life is a Kingdom life, isn’t it?” Paul goes on to say, “Your baptism has meant living a new life, ‘Christ’s life,’ hasn’t it?” And then, Paul moves right to ‘the closure,” when he says, “You are part of the family - Christ’s family.”
In 1968 Sly and the Family Stone had a hit song titled “Everyday People” which speaks, I think, to the gospel message Paul shared with the Galatians and others – as what it means to be Christ’s family. That song starts out:
Sometimes I'm right and I can be wrong
My own beliefs are in my song
The butcher, the banker, the drummer and then
Makes no difference what group I'm in
I am everyday people, yeah …everyday people.
Christ’s family is a family of everyday people; it includes everyone. The song speaks of our being a blue one… a green one… a fat one… a skinny one… and so on and so on… and a Scooby dooby doo one – (then the punch line): “we got to live together.” Like the words of the song, as individuals we can’t always accept the green one, or be like the skinny one, and so on and so on. And yet, as a family, we have to live together, knowing we are no better, but the same whatever we do… we are everyday people (who have got to live together as Christ’s family).
Paul says in Christ’s family there is no division, no distinction, and all are equal when it comes to the relationship we are to have with Jesus Christ. “That is,” Paul says, “we are all in a common relationship with Jesus Christ… and since you are Christ's family, then you are… heirs according to the covenant promises.”
Paul talked about a freedom – coming not by birth, or works, or by anything other than a faith in God’s great mercy and love for us – revealed in Jesus the Christ. This is what justifies all of us – Jew and Gentile, alike.
But what does our freedom – our justification – in Christ, mean? Earlier Paul said, “I died to the law, so that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me.” (Galatians 2: 19-20) It’s a ‘grace thing,” Paul says, “and that’s good.” Paul refers elsewhere in his letter to being made new and becoming a new person. God was now using the life Paul had thrown away.
Paul grew up believing he would be made right with God by doing what was right according to the laws of the Bible. But he discovered God was creating a whole new ballgame. To become ‘right with God,’ his focus now needed to be on something different. It wasn’t a matter of doing things right, but rather a matter of doing the right things – loving God and loving neighbor. This would be living life well. It might also be a family thing, something that our being part of Christ’s family, we would all have in common.
It is a grace thing that ‘justifies’ Paul – and frees all of us – making us worthy to live eternally with God, all so that, “Christ can live in us.” Paul says, “Your baptism in Christ was not just washing you up for a fresh start. It also involved dressing you in an adult faith wardrobe—Christ's life.” (Galatians 3:26-27)
Paul discovered that works didn’t get the job done. Being good wasn’t enough. Faith in Jesus Christ is what frees us and makes us right with God. And that is when Christ ‘lives’ … truly lives in us. Having been changed, we can now put our complete trust in Christ. Transformed, as Paul says, no longer living a life of this world, we are filled with the power and presence of God’s self. What’s important to us and how we go about living our lives are changed. Love and self-giving characterize our lives. And living now by Jesus’ faith: we reach out to the poor, we welcome the needy, we show hospitality to the stranger, and we respond to the troubled in our communities.
Paul says we have arrived. Justified by the cross of Christ and welcomed into Christ’s family, it is time Christ lives in everything we do and every day be seen as our Father’s day. May we truly love and give ourselves for others as our Lord has for us.
Galatians 23: 23-29
Today we hear what Paul has to say to the Galatians, again. It is the third part of his letter to a church struggling to remain true to the gospel message. And by the tone of what Paul writes we can imagine what he is thinking, “These Galatians are so inconsistent.” Earlier he had reminded them he was the one who had first shared the message of Christ with them, and with others. Their “recognizing and worshiping God” resulted from what he had said. Then, as we read last week, Paul made sure they heard once again what was most important for their salvation. He wanted them never to forget that their real freedom from sin was a grace thing – a God thing, coming from a faith in Jesus Christ, rather than from their having to do certain things.
Now today we hear Paul say, “By God’s grace you have arrived. There is nothing more. Your faith is enough. And because of your faith you live in a close relationship with God, don’t you? Your life is a Kingdom life, isn’t it?” Paul goes on to say, “Your baptism has meant living a new life, ‘Christ’s life,’ hasn’t it?” And then, Paul moves right to ‘the closure,” when he says, “You are part of the family - Christ’s family.”
In 1968 Sly and the Family Stone had a hit song titled “Everyday People” which speaks, I think, to the gospel message Paul shared with the Galatians and others – as what it means to be Christ’s family. That song starts out:
Sometimes I'm right and I can be wrong
My own beliefs are in my song
The butcher, the banker, the drummer and then
Makes no difference what group I'm in
I am everyday people, yeah …everyday people.
Christ’s family is a family of everyday people; it includes everyone. The song speaks of our being a blue one… a green one… a fat one… a skinny one… and so on and so on… and a Scooby dooby doo one – (then the punch line): “we got to live together.” Like the words of the song, as individuals we can’t always accept the green one, or be like the skinny one, and so on and so on. And yet, as a family, we have to live together, knowing we are no better, but the same whatever we do… we are everyday people (who have got to live together as Christ’s family).
Paul says in Christ’s family there is no division, no distinction, and all are equal when it comes to the relationship we are to have with Jesus Christ. “That is,” Paul says, “we are all in a common relationship with Jesus Christ… and since you are Christ's family, then you are… heirs according to the covenant promises.”
Paul talked about a freedom – coming not by birth, or works, or by anything other than a faith in God’s great mercy and love for us – revealed in Jesus the Christ. This is what justifies all of us – Jew and Gentile, alike.
But what does our freedom – our justification – in Christ, mean? Earlier Paul said, “I died to the law, so that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me.” (Galatians 2: 19-20) It’s a ‘grace thing,” Paul says, “and that’s good.” Paul refers elsewhere in his letter to being made new and becoming a new person. God was now using the life Paul had thrown away.
Paul grew up believing he would be made right with God by doing what was right according to the laws of the Bible. But he discovered God was creating a whole new ballgame. To become ‘right with God,’ his focus now needed to be on something different. It wasn’t a matter of doing things right, but rather a matter of doing the right things – loving God and loving neighbor. This would be living life well. It might also be a family thing, something that our being part of Christ’s family, we would all have in common.
It is a grace thing that ‘justifies’ Paul – and frees all of us – making us worthy to live eternally with God, all so that, “Christ can live in us.” Paul says, “Your baptism in Christ was not just washing you up for a fresh start. It also involved dressing you in an adult faith wardrobe—Christ's life.” (Galatians 3:26-27)
Paul discovered that works didn’t get the job done. Being good wasn’t enough. Faith in Jesus Christ is what frees us and makes us right with God. And that is when Christ ‘lives’ … truly lives in us. Having been changed, we can now put our complete trust in Christ. Transformed, as Paul says, no longer living a life of this world, we are filled with the power and presence of God’s self. What’s important to us and how we go about living our lives are changed. Love and self-giving characterize our lives. And living now by Jesus’ faith: we reach out to the poor, we welcome the needy, we show hospitality to the stranger, and we respond to the troubled in our communities.
Paul says we have arrived. Justified by the cross of Christ and welcomed into Christ’s family, it is time Christ lives in everything we do and every day be seen as our Father’s day. May we truly love and give ourselves for others as our Lord has for us.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
“Most Important”
June 13, 2010
Galatians 2: 15-21; Luke 7: 36-8:3
In his letter, Paul reminds the Galatians what is most important: that one’s salvation – one’s real deliverance and freedom – comes from a faith in Jesus Christ.
We are fortunate to live where we do, in a country where we enjoy our freedom and benefit from the many rights that accompany our citizenship. When you think of the millions throughout the world who have never known such freedom, we are lucky beyond all measure. Some might even say blessed, because we have done absolutely nothing to deserve it other than being born here. It’s this country’s constitution and laws, written by its founding fathers and legislators over the years and defended by brave men and women ‘in uniform’ (and out), that have given us that freedom. Tomorrow, on Flag Day, the ‘stars and stripes’ will serve to remind us of that freedom.
Paul though talks about a different kind of freedom – coming not by birth, or works, or by anything other than a faith in God’s great mercy and love for us – revealed in Jesus the Christ. This is what justifies us all – Jew and Gentile, alike.
But what does our justification – our freedom – in Christ, mean? Paul said, “I died to the law, so that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me.” (Galatians 2: 19-20) It’s a ‘grace thing,” Paul says, “and that’s good.” Paul refers elsewhere in his letter to being made new and becoming a new person. Using today’s words, we can hear Paul say he was being “repurposed.” God was now using the life Paul had thrown away. But Paul isn’t alone in throwing things away.
It is estimated Americans throw away twenty-one billion pounds of clothing each year. Fortunately, it does not all end up in the dump. About 10% of it winds up in resale shops such as Goodwill and Stuff Etc. and what once was called second-hand clothing is now called “vintage.” And sales are booming.
And vintage clothing isn’t all that is being ‘repurposed.’ Used tires are shredded to become playground cover and athletic tracks. And even a favorite snack has been repurposed. During the potato chip-making process, bits of the potato once discarded because of their size are turned into dehydrated potato flakes, which are formed into dough, rolled and cut into the chips, then baked, packaged and sold in a Pringles can.
God has been repurposing for years. Paul grew up believing that he would be — made right with God — by doing what was right according to the laws of the Bible. But Paul discovered God was creating a whole new ballgame. To become ‘right with God,’ he needed to focus on something entirely different. It wasn’t a matter of doing things right, but rather a matter of doing the right things. For us, it’s no longer a matter of living a good and successful life, but of living life successfully and well. So often our jobs, our stuff, and our lifestyles get in the way of our relationship with God – and that is sinful.
It isn’t just the bad things that can cause problems, getting between God and us – it can be the good things as well. Sometimes because they are so good they become counterfeit gods, around which our lives revolve. And God takes second place. That is when we have it all wrong and need to be freed.
It is a grace thing that ‘justifies’ Paul – and frees all of us – making us worthy to live eternally with God, all so that, “Christ can live in us.” In Luke 7:50, Jesus tells the woman, ‘Your faith has saved you; go in peace.’ Keep in mind though that the story doesn’t end there, it doesn’t end with the woman being saved and freed from the things that has separated her from God. Luke writes that afterwards, Jesus’ followers, men and women alike – and no doubt this woman as well – “went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God.” They “went on.”
They were ‘repurposed’ and made new for a reason – to “go on through” town and country “proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God.” And so have we. Paul discovered that works didn’t get the job done. Being good wasn’t enough.
Faith in Jesus Christ is what frees us and makes us right with God. It is then Christ ‘lives’ in us. Having been changed, we can put our complete trust in Christ. Transformed, as Paul says, no longer living a life of this world, we are filled with the power and presence of Jesus himself. What’s important to us and how we go about living our lives are repurposed. Love and self-giving characterize our lives. And living now by Jesus’ faith: we reach out to the poor, we welcome the needy, we show hospitality to the stranger, and we counsel the troubled in our communities.
Repurposed by the cross of Christ, may we truly love and give ourselves for others as our Lord has done.
Galatians 2: 15-21; Luke 7: 36-8:3
In his letter, Paul reminds the Galatians what is most important: that one’s salvation – one’s real deliverance and freedom – comes from a faith in Jesus Christ.
We are fortunate to live where we do, in a country where we enjoy our freedom and benefit from the many rights that accompany our citizenship. When you think of the millions throughout the world who have never known such freedom, we are lucky beyond all measure. Some might even say blessed, because we have done absolutely nothing to deserve it other than being born here. It’s this country’s constitution and laws, written by its founding fathers and legislators over the years and defended by brave men and women ‘in uniform’ (and out), that have given us that freedom. Tomorrow, on Flag Day, the ‘stars and stripes’ will serve to remind us of that freedom.
Paul though talks about a different kind of freedom – coming not by birth, or works, or by anything other than a faith in God’s great mercy and love for us – revealed in Jesus the Christ. This is what justifies us all – Jew and Gentile, alike.
But what does our justification – our freedom – in Christ, mean? Paul said, “I died to the law, so that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me.” (Galatians 2: 19-20) It’s a ‘grace thing,” Paul says, “and that’s good.” Paul refers elsewhere in his letter to being made new and becoming a new person. Using today’s words, we can hear Paul say he was being “repurposed.” God was now using the life Paul had thrown away. But Paul isn’t alone in throwing things away.
It is estimated Americans throw away twenty-one billion pounds of clothing each year. Fortunately, it does not all end up in the dump. About 10% of it winds up in resale shops such as Goodwill and Stuff Etc. and what once was called second-hand clothing is now called “vintage.” And sales are booming.
And vintage clothing isn’t all that is being ‘repurposed.’ Used tires are shredded to become playground cover and athletic tracks. And even a favorite snack has been repurposed. During the potato chip-making process, bits of the potato once discarded because of their size are turned into dehydrated potato flakes, which are formed into dough, rolled and cut into the chips, then baked, packaged and sold in a Pringles can.
God has been repurposing for years. Paul grew up believing that he would be — made right with God — by doing what was right according to the laws of the Bible. But Paul discovered God was creating a whole new ballgame. To become ‘right with God,’ he needed to focus on something entirely different. It wasn’t a matter of doing things right, but rather a matter of doing the right things. For us, it’s no longer a matter of living a good and successful life, but of living life successfully and well. So often our jobs, our stuff, and our lifestyles get in the way of our relationship with God – and that is sinful.
It isn’t just the bad things that can cause problems, getting between God and us – it can be the good things as well. Sometimes because they are so good they become counterfeit gods, around which our lives revolve. And God takes second place. That is when we have it all wrong and need to be freed.
It is a grace thing that ‘justifies’ Paul – and frees all of us – making us worthy to live eternally with God, all so that, “Christ can live in us.” In Luke 7:50, Jesus tells the woman, ‘Your faith has saved you; go in peace.’ Keep in mind though that the story doesn’t end there, it doesn’t end with the woman being saved and freed from the things that has separated her from God. Luke writes that afterwards, Jesus’ followers, men and women alike – and no doubt this woman as well – “went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God.” They “went on.”
They were ‘repurposed’ and made new for a reason – to “go on through” town and country “proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God.” And so have we. Paul discovered that works didn’t get the job done. Being good wasn’t enough.
Faith in Jesus Christ is what frees us and makes us right with God. It is then Christ ‘lives’ in us. Having been changed, we can put our complete trust in Christ. Transformed, as Paul says, no longer living a life of this world, we are filled with the power and presence of Jesus himself. What’s important to us and how we go about living our lives are repurposed. Love and self-giving characterize our lives. And living now by Jesus’ faith: we reach out to the poor, we welcome the needy, we show hospitality to the stranger, and we counsel the troubled in our communities.
Repurposed by the cross of Christ, may we truly love and give ourselves for others as our Lord has done.
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