Sermon = Seeking Joy (Advent 3C)

3^rd Sunday in Advent (Year C)                                           December 12, 2021

Zephaniah 3:14-20, Philippians 4:4-7, Luke 3:7-18

Some years when we light the Advent wreath, we assign to each candle a theme, and they usually go in this order… Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love. This week, one of the words we hear in each reading is the word “Rejoice” which is a derivative of the English word we call “Joy.” On this third Sunday of Advent, we celebrate “Gaudete Sunday” – inspired by the Latin word “rejoice.” This Sunday, halfway through the Advent season, we are called to be joyful as we continue to wait for the incarnation of Jesus Christ. On Christmas Day, we celebrate the incarnation of God… who came to live among us, as one of us.

The readings for Advent this year highlight God’s promises as spoken through the Prophets. Zephaniah speaks God’s word of joy, promising us a hopeful future, and calling us to rejoice, not just with our voices, but with all our hearts. In the responsive reading, Isaiah reminds us of all the ways God has delivered us in the past, and how those promises remain valid and true today. Even when we can’t feel the fulness of the promise, God continues to deliver us. We are called to shout out loud and sing for joy. And in our epistle reading from Philippians, Paul tells us to “rejoice in the Lord always… again I say rejoice.” It’s a reminder that centering ourselves in the joy of the Lord is not the same as looking for happiness… those two things are not the same.

Happiness and joy often feel elusive, but I think for different reasons. As we enter our second straight year of COVID-restricted holiday celebrations, we are saddened by the unfulfilled plans and expectations that lay littered around feet. We pray for peace and work for it to come, but the world seems more conflicted than we can remember before and it feels like we are spinning our wheels.

Some events are out of our control, like weather that tears through communities and upends businesses, homes, and lives… our prayers go out to those harmed and killed in the tornados that ripped through the US this weekend, those whose lives are forever changed. And even when it feels like we should be about to do something about the other crises we see before us – poverty, gun violence, inequalities based on race and gender to name a few, we are often at a loss on how or where to begin. With all of the suffering, loss, and uncertainty in the world we live, what is there to rejoice?

The first step to rejoicing may be to understand the difference between joy and happiness. Often, we use those words interchangeably… joy tends to overlap with happiness and we think that they are the same. But is that true?

In short, happiness is often connected to the here and now. The feeling of happiness is linked to the release of endorphins, which give us a boost to combat fear, unhappiness, and unease in our day-to-day lives. Happiness is related to the people, places, and things that give our lives meaning, and is a strong emotional response to the things happening around us. But happiness is often fleeting. It can come and as go as our circumstances change. One day we can feel on top of the world… and the next day sad or angry or discouraged, often wiping away our very memory of the happiness.

Joy is different. It is not related to short-term experiences, but in faith terms, is a response to the long and ongoing nature of how we recognize and experience God’s love and faithfulness. It’s easy to praise God during the good times, but when we are afraid and discouraged, rejoicing in the Lord can feel difficult at best and impossible on some days. Each of these writers, Zephaniah, Isaiah, and Paul understood something that we need to remember… that God is faithful no matter what our circumstances are.

When we rejoice in the Lord, we are not giving thanks for things that are going our way. We are giving thanks that God is with us, no matter what. Joy, unlike happiness, lasts no matter what challenges we face. In fact, joy is most fully realized and understood amid our struggles and concerns. Our joy comes in knowing that God’s love can withstand all of the disappoints we experience – and that the new life that emerges is often better than the world we could imagine for ourselves.

While each of the Old Testament prophets wrote in different circumstances, they each looked forward to a day when the Lord’s coming would bring great joy. Even Zephaniah, who in Winnie the Pooh terms is considered the Eeyore of all the prophets, ended with a word of joy. He looks forward to a day which proclaims the Lord’s presence, for the joy of renewal and restoration, as they come home from exile. Even while Isaiah speaks of doom and gloom, he looks forward to the Lord’s coming as a time to shout with joy, “Surely God is my salvation.”

As Paul was writing to the church at Philippi, it is believed that he was under house arrest in Rome, not in prison per se, but unable to continue his travels to build new Christian communities and give encouragement to those already producing fruit. And still, Paul could say, “rejoice” at a time when most of us would at least consider giving up or giving in. I wonder if he had been asked what he had to be joyful about, he would have dismissed his confinement and discomfort as insignificant in comparison to the joy that was promised. In his confinement, he not only wrote of the promise of the Lord’s coming but also how close God felt to him, even then. And so, as much as anyone, Paul would be the first to claim the joy that God brings – Paul would be the first to say, “Rejoice,” carrying the joy of Advent with him wherever he went, even inside a Roman jail and ultimately to his death.

Let us remember that our Advent experience is not only about waiting, it is also about preparation. It is a time when we are to seek out – to look for – the coming of the Lord and to believe God’s promises for restoration, peace over violence, and perfect love that casts out fear (which is the #1 stealer of joy.)

And that brings us to John the Baptist. He was sent to prepare the way for Jesus… sent into difficult and complicated times, maybe like the ones we are experiencing today. His message was simple and very, very hard to achieve. Repent – turn your lives around – and come back to God. This doesn’t just mean apologizing for our mistakes or beating ourselves up for the things we get wrong. Repentance is the first step toward transformation. Repentance requires change.

At first glance, there doesn’t seem to be much joy in John’s message – he calls the people who follow him into the desert a brood of vipers – poisonous snakes who are dangerous to the world and everyone around them. It’s quite surprising that they didn’t head back home immediately. But no, they kept following and listened. And here is where the joy comes in. He teaches them these things:

Living a life of faith in God isn’t just about changing ourselves on the inside. We must bear fruit – there needs to be evidence of our trust and faith in God that others can see. He reminds them that this new expression of faith doesn’t rely on our ancestry, our traditions, or our histories. No, this faith is about preparing ourselves for the One who is to come.

John’s instructions were simple and went against our nature to preserve ourselves over others. He didn’t ask them to start by changing the world, but to change themselves. He didn’t ask them to abandon their old lives to follow him in the desert, or to lead an uprising or a revolution. He asks them to share what they have with those who have needs. He asks tax collectors, notoriously known for their cheating ways, to be honest and fair, and for soldiers to avoid abusing their authority.

“Go home,” John told them. Go home to your families, your neighbors, your vocations, your friends. Go home and live your lives as deeply and as generously as you can right now. Do what the Lord requires of you and do it now. Be generous now – Be merciful now – Do justice now. Easy message – hard to follow through…

On this Sunday, we are called to seek out joy. This can come in a variety of ways. Are we moving toward repentance, not seeing it as a “one and done,” but something we are continually examining? As we wait, are we looking for ways to put our faith into action?

And while that exercise in faith doesn’t feel like it would be joyful, it turns out that the very act of watching and waiting and examining our relationships with God can inspire great joy. When we remember where we have come from, and are reminded of God present with us on our journeys, we can hold these things in balance with one another… that while we are not worthy of God’s saving grace, the best “good news” is that nothing in our lives is beyond redemption. We rejoice and find joy in knowing the God is good, all the time, even in the midst of our struggles, pain, and disappointments.

Is this easy? No… it takes intentional preparation. It means amending our lives and turning towards God. Advent is calling us to do those things and encourages us with a promise, rather than a threat... Jesus is coming and he is bringing abundant and new life to everyone.

On this Gaudete Sunday, as we wait and prepare, we are also called to rejoice. Not only is this the message of the angels to the shepherds, but is still the message we need today – “Fear not, for I bring you good tidings of great joy...” The coming of the Messiah is the Good News message we need. We opened our service today with one of the most joyful carols of the Christmas season. Today’s readings remind us that it’s never too soon to hear these words: “Joy to the world! The Lord has come.” And for this we give thanks!

Peace, Deb

(c) Deb Luther Teagan, December 2021

Resourced from Sermons That Work - The Episcopal Church www.episcopalchurch.org 

Sermon - Anticipation as Preparation (Advent 2C)

 Advent 2C                                                                                     December 5, 2021
Malachi 3:1-4, Luke 1:67-79, Luke 3:1-6                          Panzer Liturgical Service

Prelude to the Sermon: From the beginning of my preparation for this sermon, I could hear the music from Handel’s “Messiah” floating around in my brain. But what most people don’t realize is that the libretto – the words that go with the music - was not written by Georg Frederick Handel, but instead compiled by Charles Jennens to prove a theological point – that Jesus was the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy.[i]

Anticipation as Preparation…

On May 25, 1977, I stood in line for two hours with my friends to buy a ticket at our local movie theater. I was graduating from high school in ten days, and preparing to leave on a European tour with my high school band and orchestra the day after graduation. The buzz on the street was that this movie was not to be missed, and so we did it. We stood in the hot sun and waited. Our relief was noticeable as we were able to get seats for the next show and not have to wait three hours more. We settled in with our big drinks and our popcorn and our junior mints and waited for the lights to dim.

Darkness surrounded us, and a starry field emerged. And words started scrolling by… “A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…Episode 4: A New Hope…” And so it began. And amazingly, over forty years later, people anxiously await the next chapter in the story steeped in the struggle between good and evil… Mandalorian Season 3, we’re waiting for you! What would happen if we anticipated the coming of Christ in the same way?

As I read through the lessons for this week, I was struck at the similarity of how the Star Wars stories are introduced with how we learn about Jesus. George Lucas sets the scene by placing the story in a particular time and place, clearly different from the world in which we live, but not different at all. The biblical story does the same. Today, we have three readings that set the story of Jesus in a historical and theological context.

In the first lesson, the prophet Malachi foretells the coming of a messenger.  The Messiah doesn’t just appear out of nowhere. Someone comes on the scene and asks the world, “Are you ready?” The refiner’s fire he mentions is used to purify gold and silver, making it more beautiful and more valuable.  In this difficult and dangerous process, the question goes from “Are you ready for him to come?” to “Are you ready for what comes next?” The prophet tells us this message will change us. It will require something from us… something that will be pleasing to God.

The reading from Luke 1 is a prophecy from Zechariah and pairs with the reading from Luke 3. We don’t hear a lot about this Zechariah – he is the father of John, a priest serving in the Temple, old and childless with his wife Elizabeth. When told by the angel Gabriel that his wife would bear a son who would be a great prophet, he did not believe the promise. And so his voice was taken away until the angel’s promise was fulfilled. In time, Elizabeth did become pregnant. Still, Zechariah was silent.

A wonderful account follows in Luke 1 of the visit between Elizabeth and her cousin Mary, who is also with child. We remember Elizabeth reassuring Mary that her angel’s promise would be fulfilled… even Elizabeth’s unborn child leaped in her womb when Mary arrived. We remember the wonderful words of the Magnificat, Mary’s song of praise as she carried the unborn Messiah (and we will hear it again next week in worship), but few of us know the hymn of Zechariah that follows the birth of John.

When three months later Elizabeth gives birth to a son, she is told to name him John, which was unusual as it was not a family name. But in affirming this name by writing on a tablet, Zechariah’s voice was immediately restored, and he proclaimed, “Bless the Lord God of Israel because he has come to help and has delivered his people…”

Zechariah’s proclamation is interesting because when we read it, we think he must have gotten his verb tenses mixed up. He announces that God has delivered his people.  This implies that the people are already saved - even though John is just a baby and Jesus isn’t born yet. Through this proclamation, we are reminded that our salvation is not an isolated or new thing. We are brought into the relationship God had with his people in the past – the promises made to Abraham and all of his descendants become our promises, too.  As John and Jesus come into the world, God is continuing the work of salvation, just as was promised.

We’ve talked about this before, but here’s a reminder: Many Jews believed that the Messiah would come and change the political order, but instead God’s promise transcended the political state of that day and these days, too. Even after Jesus’ death and resurrection, Jerusalem and Judah were still occupied by Rome. But those who believed in Jesus as the promised Messiah were ultimately delivered from Rome’s power over them. This is part of the resurrection story. The power of Rome, which is centered on the threat of the cross as a way to keep people controlled, is not enough to keep Jesus from exerting his God-given power. In the end, resurrection will always win. God’s promises will always prevail.[ii]

What Zechariah proclaims about John is simple. He will be a prophet who prepares the way for someone even greater, and in doing so, will tell people about the power of forgiveness, and the great compassion of God. We often think of the message of the prophets being words of gloom and doom…. “Clean up your act, or else.” But Zechariah’s words remind us that ultimately, the prophetic word is a call home to the loving arms of God.

The gospel lesson sets the ministry of John, and also Jesus, in a specific historical context. They are real people, set into a documented history. We can read about it, see the archeological evidence and walk among the ruins and rebuilt streets and buildings, immersing ourselves in that story. Each of the rulers listed at the beginning of this chapter was a historical figure who ruled in a particular time that can be verified by public record. They were people with great power, each of whom had power and influence over many. Some were Romans – others were Jews, but God did not choose them to initiate the big change that was coming.

The wild man John seems the most unlikely candidate to start the revolution, living out his mission in the most unlikely place. Like the Old Testament prophets before him, he does his work, not in a vacuum, but stirring up trouble at the very center of the political world around him. And as insignificant – and maybe a little crazy – as John seems, his prophecies about who Jesus is and what he will do will shake the very foundation of the world. Nothing will ever be the same.

So, what does John say? First, John speaks of repentance. Now the word repent doesn’t just mean saying that we are sorry. It means completely turning around, requiring a total change in the way we think and the way we live… in the way we think about who God is and what God requires of us.

Second, John proclaims a message of hope. John the Baptist was announcing the coming of the Messiah, and he was calling for repentance. The crisis he was speaking to was not an outward, national crisis, but rather the inward, personal need for the people of his day to prepare for the coming of the Lord.[iii] 

Just as Isaiah spoke a word of hope to those who were in physical exile, John speaks hope to those who are longing for a different way of life – for salvation – and tells us to prepare the way for him coming. This is not just about preparing ourselves, but also preparing the world around us, making it possible for the salvation of God to be made real for everyone and everything.[iv]

I’m sure this has happened to you. You plug in the name of the town where you want to travel and, in the list, your GPS tells you it’s 50 miles away. But when you choose the place, and the route is calculated, the distance gets bigger, sometimes almost twice as far you believed it to be. In the South, we call that first calculation “as the crow flies.” And the second – well, that’s just “going by the road.”

When John talked about crooked places being made straight and rough places being made smooth, he was not talking about cutting down on the amount of distance we travel in the world, or the quality of the roads. He wanted people to examine their lives and confess the places where their rough places needed smoothing out, where their crookedness needed straightening. Repentance was the first step and baptism were the signs of their commitment to new life. But the change did not end there.

Throughout his ministry, he called people with encouragement, to not run away from their problems, or avoid God’s judgment, or flee from the wrath to come. In the midst of it all, he asked people to change their lives and, in doing so, change their world. His call was for us to bear fruit worthy of the gift of forgiveness. 

So today, I ask this: What does it mean in your life for the crooked to be made straight and the rough places made smooth? 2021 has seemed like the year of the crisis. Fires and floods, hurricanes and drought, snow and cold, wars and terrorism, masks and vaccines, shutdowns and lockdowns slowing us all down. Plans are being reworked again and again. This is not the Advent season that we wanted. But it is the one we have.

When the crowds asked John how they were to make the crooked straight and the rough smooth, he said, “If you have two coats share one with a person who has none; do likewise with your food.” He told the tax collectors not to collect any more than they were authorized. He told the soldiers not to harass or cheat anyone, and to be satisfied with their pay. In other words, he called upon people to straighten out their lives by caring for the lost and the least among them. And this is a word for us, too.[v]

In 2015, when Germany was just at the beginning of the Great Migration, Muslim refugees traveled great distances to find safety and a place where they could make new lives. And as Saint Nikolas Day (December 6^th) approached, communities with longstanding traditions started wondering if they needed to change what they had always done. In the village where I live, St Nikolas greets the children in the forest and hands out presents. Music is played and carols are sung.

In preparation for the feast day, men in towns and villages all over Germany are trained to interact with children, dressing up to tell them St Nikolas’ story and about his ministry from long ago. Good, sensitive people wondered if presenting themselves to Muslim refugee children would be offensive, and what if anything, they should do to tailor their conversations in that context. Eventually, it was decided that because St Nicholas is the patron saint of all children, that they would go where they were welcomed. One St Nicholas portrayer related his experience that spending time with a group of Muslim girls was one of the best experiences he had ever had.[vi]

There is no magic solution for the problems of the world. God is working in every one of these crises, but he’s working through us. We are his hands and feet, carrying the burden of others and helping them pick up the pieces and rebuild. We are his voice proclaiming not just a message of ethereal hope that wafts like a ribbon of smoke through hurting people’s lives, but hope as acts of love and courage that meets people where they are and brings them with us to wholeness – the place where God wants all of us to live.

I don’t know what that looks like for you. I don’t even know what it looks like for me right now. But I do feel John’s message stirring me from my fear and doubt and complacency and asking me to do something…. He has set the stage – now it’s time for us to act!  Prepare the way of the Lord!

Peace, Deb

(c) Deb Luther Teagan, December 2021

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[i] Robert Harris, Handel’s Messiah: Six Surprising Facts, http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/handel-s-messiah-6-surprising-facts-1.3351122 

[ii] Robb McCoy and Eric Fislter, Pulpit Fiction,  http://www.pulpitfiction.us/show-notes/144-advent-2c-dec-6-2015.

[iii] Dawn Chesser, Preaching Helps, December 6, 2015, www.UMCdiscipleship.org

[iv] McCoy and Fistler

[v] Dawn Chesser

[vi] “Traditions and the New Refugees,” https://www.deutschland.de/en/news/tradition-and-the-new-refugees

Sermon - The Day is Coming – are we ready? (Advent 1C)

1^st Sunday in Advent, Year C                                             November 28, 2021

Luke 21:25-36, Jeremiah 33:14-16                           Panzer Liturgical Service

As a society, we are terrible at waiting. We want what we want, and we want it NOW! I would be willing to guess that many of us spend a tremendous amount of time, energy, and even money to avoid waiting. And in general, that’s not a bad thing. GPS helps us to avoid traffic problems and sends us to the most efficient route. Maybe you weren’t here for the day when the Garrison put online appointments up for important tasks like vehicle registration and ID Card renewal… many cheers were sent up for not having to spend hours waiting in line. But recent events have also shown that there are often more people wanting appointments NOW versus the available numbers. When the recent online appointments went up for COVID-19 booster shots, all of the appointments for December were snatched up in a matter of hours, and now many of us are looking for other ways to avoid the wait for more protection. And why do we want this so badly? Not just so that we don’t get sick, but we are tired of sitting at home, waiting for life to return to normal. We hope that maybe this will help reduce our time of waiting.

And how many of us were sitting on go, waiting until after Thanksgiving to start our Christmas celebrations. We are sucked up in the whirlwind of holiday preparations with our Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales, free shipping, and in the past, we have spent great time and effort to visit Christmas markets and celebrations galore… and have the gluhwein mugs to show for it. And while none of these things in and of themselves are bad, the question remains, are we focusing our energy in the right places?

I dare say that many Christians don’t understand what the season of Advent is all about. I think of it as a prequel… the story that comes before. It sets the stage for the momentous event of Jesus’ coming, ironically told in the voice of Jesus just before his arrest, trial, and execution. “Surely the days are coming…” he said. “Take care… be prepared… stay alert…” Never have those words felt more needed than in these days when the world seems to be turned upside down.

I know we’ve talked about this before, but at the beginning of Advent – the beginning of the new church year – we have an important opportunity to remember something important about time. In early Greek biblical manuscripts, there are two words for “time.”  Each day we count down to Christmas, each door we open on our Advent calendar is measured in Chronos… clock time: we count down the seconds, minutes, hours, days, and weeks until the day. But what if we were counting down in Kairos… God’s time? What if we experienced this season as preparation for the coming of his kingdom? How do we think about God in this eternal time of Emanuel… the time of God with us…? How do we expand our thinking and our living in this way?[i]

The season of Advent allows us to prepare for the amazing news of Jesus Christ. It offers us time to place the birth of the infant savior into a historical and cultural context and to be reminded that the coming of Jesus is not just a past event, but one which we look forward to in the future.

That’s why today’s gospel reading is not from the birth narratives of Matthew and Luke – we will get to those soon enough. Today’s lesson comes from the end of Jesus’ ministry, Luke’s version of Mark’s Little Apocalypse, which we just heard two weeks ago. Luke speaks with Jesus’ voice to a community struggling with persecution from the Roman authorities. This is a message of hope… do not fall for the solutions the world is giving you - keep being hopeful, stand firm in trials, and know that the pain of life will not defeat us. Jesus says, “Take care that your hearts are not dulled…” He is saying that this isn’t the time to give in to the temptation or distraction or fear.

We see the news and we are tempted to throw in the towel. It’s not just that the news is negative. It’s disheartening. It makes us wonder if there is anything at all that can turn the world around. When we look at the headlines, we see stories of people in conflict over religious and national identity, with questions about migration and racial and gender equity at the forefront. We wonder if there is anything we can do to make it better… are our current efforts in vain? In this season of Hope, we wonder if there is anything to be hopeful for.

The reading from Jeremiah tells us YES, there is reason to be hopeful. The biblical story shows us that God is faithful, even when those in the world around us are not. Even when we don’t understand how the journey of God’s people has often played out, we must trust in the everlasting promise that God has repeatedly made… hope is not lost. God will restore the world.

Have you ever participated in a trust fall? You know, the one where people gather around you, promising to catch you when you fall… have you allowed yourself to tip back into the waiting hands below? If you have, I hope it went well. I’ve instructed others in such activities over the years and even participated once myself, surviving with only a small head bonk from the process. The two poor youth who were catching my shoulders were so apologetic, saying, “It was just so much harder than I expected it to be… that’s a lot of responsibility!”

I learned a lot from the process about what it means to trust others to catch you when you fall. And I also learned about what it means to have that trust placed in your hands. After my experience, I taught that exercise differently. I didn’t focus on trust from one perspective. Yes, it takes trust to be the one falling, but there is also great responsibility entrusted to the ones helping, to make sure the person makes it safely to the ground. In the same way, being a member of the Kingdom of God is also about being trustworthy, and actively present with people who need God’s love the most.

In the gospel, Jesus tells us to stay alert. And these days I don’t think that’s just about making sure our spirituality is in order. I think we are also called to look for the places where the good news is needed. We can’t wait until we have a good handle on our own faith journeys… serving others is one of the best ways to work out our faith questions and concerns. When I look at my faith journey, I see that stepping out on faith to participate as a lay volunteer in youth missions over 35 years ago sent my life in a different direction – one that I did not ask for, and sometimes did not want. But being with people so different and yet so alike, I realized that God would use me if I was only willing to take the first step forward. And because of that, I stand before you today… in this place, doing this thing.

The Christian life is not about speculation or observation. It is not about living outside the fray and watching it all unfold before us. It is about behavior and relationships, living with faith that God is with us, even when we aren’t sure where we’re going and what it will all look like in the end. Jeremiah reminds us that Emmanuel is coming – God is with us. We sang this morning, “O come, O come, Emmanuel…” We know that Jesus is that Emmanuel. He is the hope amid despair, the light during darkness… this is the enduring message of the gospel.

So in this season of Advent, remember that hope is all about waiting. Hope is active patience, working while we wait, reaching out even despite our fear, and expecting that God will show up. And to remember that to wait faithfully is one of the hardest and most important things that we can do.[ii]

I hope that each of you is incorporating some kind of Advent practice into your life. Maybe it’s an advent calendar, or lighting an advent wreath at home, or reading an advent devotion each day, or planting amaryllis or paperwhites. But in addition to those things, I ask you to consider digging a little deeper and looking at how God is calling you to take the next step.

Over the next four weeks, I hope you’ll think about how you or your family or we as a community can live in expectation of his coming. We know that Jesus came before, and we have his promise that he will come again, we just don’t know when it will be. It could be an hour from now, next month, next year, or long after we are gone from this world. But what we do know is that God wants us to spend the time we have making sure that we are ready for his coming – that we have lived in such a way that others want to know and follow him, too.

In that process, we can ask ourselves these questions:

     1.    Am I willing to examine my life, celebrating the good and repenting and turning away from the things that are not life-giving?
2.    Am I living in the ways that Jesus has asked me to live? Am I taking the lessons that Jesus taught and applying them regularly in my life?
3.    Am I participating in the healing of the world?
4.    Am I offering the hope, peace, joy, and love that Jesus was born into this world to share? and lastly,
5.    Do I live as if I believe in the promise of everlasting life?[iii]

Today’s Psalm 25 is about trust. It is a reminder that God keeps God’s promises, just not always in our timing and not always in the ways that we expect or prefer. But even more importantly, let us remember that God chose us to be the fulfillment of his promises - We are his hands and feet and voice in the world, and with them, Advent calls us to live that promise. “The day is coming,” says the Lord. Are we ready?

Amen.

Peace, Deb

(c) Deb Luther Teagan, November 2021

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[i] David F. Sellery, This Week’s Focus, “As Time Goes By,” November 27, 2015, http://us6.campaign-archive1.com/?u=dbffd2070718c7bb6a1b9b7e0&id=987d4ee8f9&e=880e8ae56e.

[ii] Robb McCoy & Eric Fistler, Pulpit Fiction podcast, http://www.pulpitfiction.us/show-notes/143-advent-1c-nov-29-2015

[iii] Dawn Chesser, Preaching Helps for the First Sunday in Advent, November 23, 2015. http://www.umcdiscipleship.org/worship/lectionary-calendar/first-sunday-of-advent-year-c

Sermon - Who is Our King? Christ the King Sunday (B)

Christ the King Sunday – 26th Sunday after Pentecost – Year B November 21, 2021

2 Samuel 23:1-7, Revelation 1:4b-8, John 18:33- 37 Panzer Liturgical Service

Many people say politics and religion should never cross paths… well, this feast day is not for them. On this day, more than any other, politics is put on the table by the scriptures we read and the things we claim about Jesus. But this is not the kind of politics that we encounter in our reading of newspapers and watching TV. The questions we address in today’s sermon are not the questions of left or right, conservative, liberal, or progressive. Our scriptures today ask us something much more fundamental… if we believe in the Kingship of Jesus – if we claim him to be our Lord, what does it mean for him to be in charge?

The feast of Christ the King, or as it is also known, the feast of the Reign of Christ, is the last feast day to enter the Christian calendar. In1922,  Pope Pius XIth began writing about this subject. In the aftermath of World War 1, the pope noted that while there was a cessation of fighting between former enemies, there was still no true peace. He worried about the rise of class divisions and unchecked nationalism, as in Russia and Germany, where nationalist passions were high and trouble was brewing. He worried that a new war was only a few years away.

He understood that Christians could help keep the peace in only one way: Peace could only be found under the kingship of Christ as “prince of peace”. As Christians, he said, we are called to accept Jesus’ rule in our lives as we live out his teachings and fill our hearts with his love. With Jesus as our King, we are called to live with his love and example filling our hearts.  

From 1925 to 1969, this feast was celebrated on the Sunday before All Saint’s Day. In 1970, its Roman Rite observance was moved to the final Sunday of Ordinary Time. We celebrate today because many Protestant denominations began observing this feast day as a result of the consultations between Roman Catholics and Protestants during the 2nd Vatican Council held from 1962 to 1965. 

As we gather today, this is the question we consider: who is in charge? Is it Jesus or have we committed ourselves to the powers of the world?  

We are divided on this… is faith private or public? Some consider that faith is personal and separate from our public lives. Others believe that faith and everyday life cannot be separated, and seek to share or even impose their theological beliefs in the political process, often on all sides of the question. 

The lessons from the Old Testament and from the book of Revelation speak of the accountability of the rulers of the governments of the world to God. But what happens when people don’t want to be accountable? Or don’t care what God thinks? Look at the world today - it’s maddening and confusing and scary and sad… Many in positions of authority see their personal beliefs in line with their understanding of how God wants them to live. And those beliefs and actions are often in conflict with the beliefs of others who are likewise convinced. In our Thursday night book group, we talked about the tendency we have to read the scripture (and other books and media) in ways that confirm what we already believe to be true. If we are not careful, we will build a whole faith journey on the premise that God wants us to be comfortable and in control.

But that’s not what the biblical story reflects. Here, God is in control, and while his people are given the freedom of choice, there are consequences for choosing self over the path that God prefers. The Old Testament is the story of people who met and followed God when they were in trouble but were willing to give up that path when they felt comfortable enough to make it on their own. And over and over, the people paid the price. 

The role of the prophet was to speak in the voice of God. From Moses all the way to Malachi, prophets stood up and told the people, “God wants to be your king… you don’t need anyone else.” And when the people insisted on having a political structure similar to the ones of their enemies and conquerors, God allowed for that, but these kings were only at their best when they were faithful in their own relationships with God. 

Some kings had long, successful reigns… some never even got off the ground. Ultimately, the Kingdom of Israel was defeated, devastated, and scattered to the winds. And even when they were allowed to return to the land that God had promised, it was not the same. 

The people returned from exile in Babylon to a Jerusalem under the control of the Persians, who actually afforded them many opportunities to return the city to its former glory. But the Jews were not in charge. And eventually, their fate was left in the hands of those who did not treat them as well - the Greeks, and then the Romans. 

And in our gospel lesson from John, we see Pilate’s questioning of Jesus. Clearly, they are operating on two different plains of reality. Pilate is wondering if Jesus is his rival… should he be worried about the seditious nature of the claims being made about him? But Jesus' answers make no sense if you’re talking about an earthly king like David. And that’s what many people were expecting… a king to rescue the people from the rule of dictators, and who would return the land to the people, and rule with power and might.

Well, Jesus is not that kind of king. Yes, Rome is worried that Jesus will take them out, but that was not Jesus’ only problem. Once the Jews realized Jesus was not going to fulfill any of their heroic expectations – that sealed his fate – he would have to go. And they would let the Romans do their dirty work for them.

It feels weird to read the story of Jesus’ trial before Pilate just as we are preparing to begin a new church year with the season of Advent. But this encounter between Jesus and Pilate is important because questions are raised. One of the things we realize is that Pilate thinks he has power, but he doesn’t… yes, he can send Jesus to his death – and he does – but three days later it’s all undone. Jesus is now unleashed – he will become a much bigger influence than he ever was before. And a new revolution begins.  

Given all of that, it looks like the question isn’t whether Jesus Christ is King or not… instead, the questions for us are, “What kind of king is he?” and “What do we do now?” 

We look at the state of the world around us and we wonder, “How did the world get so messed up?”  The issues facing us seem almost insurmountable and many are beginning to lose hope that love will win in the end. Some days I wonder that if Jesus is in charge, what kind of power does he have? 

The powers that the world exhibits – governmental, political, and societal – seem to be winning these days. And while we desperately want the Golden Rule and the Greatest Commandment to be our guiding principles, it feels like we are always one step behind and getting trampled on along the way.

We forget that the King we worship understands all our fears and confusion. And while he was a victim of the coercive and violent government of the day, he still demanded that his disciples – his followers – respond in love and caring goodness. It was that witness that turned the world around – and it does it still today. 

Jesus gave us a good example. He didn’t show up often to the seats of power of his day to keep the status quo. He turned over the money-changers tables in a fit of anger at how they had subverted the worship practices God required, and in our gospel lesson it feels like Pilate is asking him to admit it was a mistake, or maybe beg for his life. 

In reality, Jesus hadn’t done anything to spike their ire. He didn’t try to influence people in power – he spent his time with people who were not only insignificant but despised and untrusted. Jesus wasn’t interested in ruling any of the people that Pilate thought were important. Jesus didn’t lead with the sword… he led from the cross and asks us to follow him there. Jesus didn’t come to be the ruler of a kingdom with a troubled past. He came to rule a counter-kingdom and was willing to turn the world upside down to make his point. 

If Jesus is the Lord and King of each of us, then we are also called to be members of this counter-kingdom. Yes, we hold the passport of our national identities, and it is examined as we go from one country into another. Return to the US or go through a passport control interview and you will be asked questions about your journey… Where have you been? Why are you traveling? Where will you be staying? Is there anyone who can vouch for you?

As Christians, we hold a passport to God’s kingdom, too. In our baptisms, we are granted citizenship in the Church of Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God. And in this Kingdom, we are not just judged by where we come from or who our parents are. We are also judged by how well our lives conform to the purposes and plans of our Creator and King, initiated and sustained by the love of Jesus Christ.

Our claim of Christ as King doesn’t make us peasants groveling at the feet of a ruler to gain his favor. Our claim is something much more – it is a declaration that we belong to Christ, and his words hold authority for us. Claiming Christ as King says that Christ’s truth (to forgive, to love, and to share) is our truth, too. 

As we reflect today on what it means for Christ to be King, we must ask, what kind of reign will Jesus have? Will we give up on him and give in to the seductive power of the world? Or will we stay the course, knowing that our true power comes from the love that Jesus has for us and how we live that love out in everything we do in the world, every single day?

Winning in Jesus’ world doesn’t look like winning to everyone else. Jesus’ encounter with Pilate reminds us of this. But still, when life feels out of control all we want to know is, “Who’s in charge?” Jesus’ calmness in this conversation reminds us not to get caught up in the fear that our work will be in vain, and that chaos and helpless hopefulness are our fate.  

Instead, this is exactly when we are called to proclaim the reign of Jesus Christ – Savior, Judge, Redeemer, Alpha and Omega, beginning and end, and also King – king of creation and our King – the one of promises us everlasting life. 

Thanks be to God!

Peace, Deb

(c) November 2021, Deb Luther Teagan

Let us pray: 

Lord, on this Sunday, when we celebrate your reign as sovereign over all, show us signs of your rule among us, confirm us in our citizenship in your kingdom, and remind us in ways deep and undeniable of who sits on the throne, who is in charge. Amen.

Resources:

Wikipedia article, Christ the King Sunday

Will Willimon, Pulpit Resource, Nov 21, 2021

Robb Mccoy and Erik Fistler, Pulpit Fiction, Nov 21, 2021. www.pulpitfiction.us

Sermon - Learning from the Saints (All Saint's Sunday B)

 All Saint’s Sunday – Year B                                                         November 7, 2021
Isaiah 25:6-9; Revelation 21:1-6a; John 11:32-44             Panzer Liturgical Congregation

Here’s something you might not know about me… I love a good funeral. And I’m am saddened by a bad one. “What makes a funeral good and what makes one bad?” My thoughts on this are a blending of my personal experience and the opportunity to do some extra study on the topic in seminary. But once I had attended a beautiful, uplifting funeral – a service of death and resurrection, I knew that I had learned something special about how we should celebrate people’s lives when they die.

I went to my first funeral when I was 14. Knowing what I do now, it was entirely too late. My grandparents were both from large families and other funerals had taken place, but my parents chose to shield me from these services. When I asked why, they replied, “We don’t want you to be sad.” So, when I was 14 my grandfather died from a heart attack the last week of the school year. We were close, and I didn’t know how to process that grief. I didn’t know what to expect at the funeral home or in church. I don’t remember experiencing much joy in our family’s gathering. His death was a cloud that hung over the family for a long time… it was a storm in my grandmother’s life until her death many years later. Things were said that couldn’t be taken back. And looking back, it changed the way we related to one another for a long time.

When I was in seminary, the long-time choir director at Duke Chapel, Ben Smith, died after a fairly long illness. His death was not unexpected, so we had a lot of time to prepare. He was intimately involved in the planning of the service – choosing the hymns and scriptures and giving the Dean of the Chapel a list of acceptable stories to share. The Chapel had a choir anthem written in his honor – a musical setting of Psalm 27 by John Rutter – which we practiced from manuscripts that came straight from the composer.

Finally, this was what a funeral was supposed to be like. We sang hymns of praise – we read scriptures about resurrection and life – people told funny stories – one of the seminary professors read a poem about a goat. At the end of the celebration, we recessed in full voice with grand organ accompaniment… “For All the Saints” and ended with a choral setting of “The Lord Bless You and Keep You.” It was Church. And I would never think of funerals the same way again.

All Saints Day isn’t a funeral for any one person, but it does allow us to celebrate the lives of the saints in our lives. They may be people we have lost in the last year, but they can also be the people who have been our role models and inspiration for our lives of faith.

All Saints celebrations remind us that we are not the first people to follow Jesus… not the first to hear and heed the call…not the first to walk the path of the cross. Those faithful ones who came before can teach us a lot if we dare to listen and learn. Our journeys are not just defined by the way that Jesus lived, but also by the ways that people have lived between then and now. All Saints reminds me that when I don’t know which way to turn, there is often a saint, well-known, unknown, or somewhere in between, who can help to show me the way. Our freedom to be disciples of Jesus Christ is inspired and guided by those who have come before.[i]

In today’s gospel lesson, Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead. He goes to the place where corpses were laid to rest, commands them to open the tomb, and bids Lazarus to come out. On other Sundays when this is the appointed text, we focus a lot on Jesus, what delayed his travel, and Lazarus’ sisters, Mary and Martha, and their reaction to Jesus not showing up to prevent their brother’s death. But today, we focus on this audacious act of faith… asking people to open a tomb where a body has been laid for three days. And expecting the man to come out as if nothing had happened.

Lazarus’ raising is a foreshadowing of what will happen to Jesus soon… 3 days dead, then alive again for many to see. This passage reminds us that in Jesus, death does not get the last word. We hear this from the prophet Isaiah also. Exile to Babylon feels like death, but the prophet says, it will not all end there. God will bring us home, wipe away our tears and save us from the certainty of death.

We don’t often read from the book of Revelation in the RCL, but when we do, it is with purpose. John wrote to a community undergoing a time of persecution. Life the prophets of the Old Testament, he is relaying the most important message – God is not done with us yet. Take care – John’s visions in Revelation are not a prediction of the end times. Instead, they are more like an impressionist painting, offering an alternative life plan to the one offered by those who use power to their benefit. Biblical scholar John Holbert says,

“John's Revelation is a great book of the promise of God to create a world where all have a place, where hierarchies disappear, where all live together in harmony and peace. Do not allow anyone to make this book into a thing of scary fear, of partisan choice, of believing rightly lest you end in fire. No! It is a book of hope, founded in love, and the gift of the lamb for all of the people of God.”[ii]

The slain lamb is the key to life for people of faith, not victory in the traditional sense of the word. The key to life is service – service to God and to others - service that may lead to suffering and giving and dying.[iii] And while John’s Revelation is multi-layered and interpreted in many different ways, one thing we know for sure: God wins and evil loses. God will make “all things new,” not “all new things.” The heaven described in this biblical writing is the fulfillment of what God intended from the beginning of time – a new Eden, a place of order, structure, and designed to be ruled by love.[iv]

On All Saint’s Sunday, we acknowledge that we stand on the shoulders of those who lived and died before us, and we recognize them for their faithfulness and their witness. Being a saint isn’t about being perfect – it doesn’t mean they never made a mistake. Today’s celebration isn’t about the official process of being a recognized saint in the church. Today’s celebration is about recognizing that there is a saint at the heart of everyone who has followed Christ, and also at the heart of who we are ourselves. And more than anything, sainthood is defined as “Living grace,” the embodiment of our faith.

In his book, Revival, Methodist author Adam Hamilton defines Living Grace this way:

It is an act of kindness, an expression of selfless love that is completely undeserved and is given without any expectation of repayment. We are never more like God than when we are giving selflessly to others. Because God created us to live in this way, we seldom feel more alive and joyful than when we are serving, blessing, and helping someone else. That is charis. This is grace.[v]

Sainthood is only possible if we fully embrace this amazing gift of grace. Grace changes
us, it molds and shapes us and re-creates us in the image of Christ. As we celebrate at this All-Saints celebration, let us be reminded of the gifts of the saints who came before us, and of the great gift we have in them. May we move forward by looking back and living with their witness in our minds and hearts. All Saints reminds us that we don’t have to make up our faith as we go along. There are trustworthy guides who have walked before us – people like Isaiah, John, and others who form the “communion of the saints.” They have much to teach us if we will only listen.[vi]  

One of my favorite All Saints hymns is "I Sing a Song of the Saints of God." Here's a great video version that reminds us that we are all called to be among the saints.

Peace, Deb

Let us pray:

You are our God and we are Your people,
and we are grateful that You have claimed us as your own.
You have set us in the company of saints past and present,
among those who have made bold witness
to Your goodness and Your truth.
Your Word opens up new futures
where we see no way forward.

You know the places in our hearts
where we are afraid
— afraid of a future we cannot control;
— afraid of losing health and independence
— afraid for the well-being of our children
— afraid that past mistakes will ruin our future

Write the stories of your people deep into our hearts
so that we may learn to trust you beyond our fears.
Give us hearts and minds and spirits
ready to trust and follow wherever your Spirit leads,
confident that you will not lead us
beyond your loving embrace.
We ask in Jesus’ name
whose outstretched arms welcome us
and hold us securely in your grace. 

~ written by Christine Jerrett, and posted on the Christine Jerrett blog. https://christinejerrett.wordpress.com/

 

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[i] Will Willimon, https://www.ministrymatters.com/all/entry/10927/october-31-2021-unbound-by-the-saints

[ii] John Holbert, “No, It’s Not "Revelations," and It Is Not About That!” http://www.patheos.com/Progressive-Christian/Reflections-on-Revelation-John-C-Holbert-10-24-2014.html#ixzz3Hp378v1H  

[iii] Ibid.

[iv] Ibid.

[v] Adam Hamilton, Revival, 2014, page 80.

[vi] Willimon, Ibid.