Advent I the second reading

I'm beginning to think I may use the second reading as the basis of my sermon.

How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy that we feel before our God because of you? 10Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you face to face and restore whatever is lacking in your faith.

11Now may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus direct our way to you. 12And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, just as we abound in love for you. 13And may he so strengthen your hearts in holiness that you may be blameless before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.

More on this later.

Advent I

The Gospel this week is Luke 21:25-36.

“There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. 26People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27Then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in a cloud’ with power and great glory. 28Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

29Then he told them a parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees; 30as soon as they sprout leaves you can see for yourselves and know that summer is already near. 31So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near. 32Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all things have taken place. 33Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. 34“Be on guard so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day catch you unexpectedly, 35like a trap. For it will come upon all who live on the face of the whole earth. 36Be alert at all times, praying that you may have the strength to escape all these things that will take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.”

Ah yes, another end time Gospel. In Advent, we look at the second coming as well as anticipate the birth of Jesus. According to a commentary entitled "The Gospel of Luke" by Joel Green (I highly reccomend this commentary), says that Luke's audience was not living in expectation of the paruosia (another term for "second coming" literally from the Greek meaning "being present"). However, the commentary states that Luke is making the point that the the eschaton (a term for God's final plan from the Greek meaning "last") has not been delayed indefinitely but has in fact been incorporated into the plan and so Jesus' followers should live a faith that is vigilant and expectant rather than business as usual.

So, how do we live our faith expectantly? What does it mean to be vigilant? How have we become complacent in our faith?

Christ the King Sunday

Here is the scripture for Sunday, Nov. 26th. Here are some preliminary questions. Is Jesus a King? Is so, what kind of King? What happens when we use this kind of language today. What do you think about this dialogue between Jesus and Pilate?

Scripture: Daniel 7:9-14, Psalm 93, Revelation 1:1-8, John 18:33-37

John 18:33-37
33 Then Pilate entered the headquarters* again, summoned Jesus, and asked him, ‘Are you the King of the Jews?’ 34Jesus answered, ‘Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?’ 35Pilate replied, ‘I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me. What have you done?’ 36Jesus answered, ‘My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from here.’ 37Pilate asked him, ‘So you are a king?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.’

False Prophets

Thank you so much for contributing to this discussion. The thread of comments on the last posting have sent me in the direction of identifying and thinking about false prophets. When we talk about what is going on in Africa or the Rochester community there are many voices all "reporting" on what is really happening and commenting on what may happen in the future as a result. Especially today, there are "religious" people making all kinds of claims about who God loves and who God hates, when the end of the world is going to happen, and how we should live our lives.

At the time Mark was writing his gospel, Jerusalem and the temple was in ruins. There was much civil strife. Jews were fighting against other Jews because of the confusion created by false messiahs and false prophets. False messiahs were claiming that they were the second coming of Christ and false prophets were turning religion into a way of predicting future events like the end of the world. Does this sound familiar?

God is above all human structures and institutions. For us, the message is to separate out the false prophets and the superstitions that keep us from living the gospel. This happens on all levels. What messages have we received as individuals that keep us from being who God is calling us to be? What messages have we received as a community that keeps us from being who God is calling us to be? What messages have we received in the greater church? Have we gone astray?

Flee the End-time Turmoil

The title of this post is the title of this section of Mark in the New Interpreter's Bible Commentary. There is a lot of focus on "End times" these days. Recently, I got a letter at St. Peter's from a couple in Henrietta who recieved the post card. They were urging me to find the "narrow gate" and not listen to false prophets (the Episcopal Church). Just yesterday, there was a pamphlet outside the church doors warning us about the end times. There are actually internet sites predicting the end of the world. People seemed to be very interested in the apocalypse. Remember the series, Left Behind? It was a best seller.

So what do we do today we these prophecies? How do they relate to us? The warnings to flee in this gospel reflect the conditions in Judea at the time of the writing. Today, it makes me think of Africa. People are fleeing from their homes in desparate attempts to save their lives. I'm wondering why this doesn't get more attention?

Join the Sermon Team!

Sunday, Nov. 19th is the 24th Sunday after Pentecost. The scripture is as follow: Daniel 12:1-4a, Hewbrews 10:31-39 and Mark 13:14-23. Here is the Gospel text.

14“But when you see the desolating sacrilege set up where it ought not to be (let the reader understand), then those in Judea must flee to the mountains; 15the one on the housetop must not go down or enter the house to take anything away; 16the one in the field must not turn back to get a coat. 17Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing infants in those days! 18Pray that it may not be in winter. 19For in those days there will be suffering, such as has not been from the beginning of the creation that God created until now, no, and never will be. 20And if the Lord had not cut short those days, no one would be saved; but for the sake of the elect, whom he chose, he has cut short those days. 21And if anyone says to you at that time, ‘Look! Here is the Messiah!’ or ‘Look! There he is!’ —do not believe it. 22False messiahs and false prophets will appear and produce signs and omens, to lead astray, if possible, the elect. 23But be alert; I have already told you everything.

WOW! I could use some help with this one. I was thinking that this would be a great reason to switch from the Episcopal lectionary to the revised common lectionary. Or perhaps I could preach on Hebrews???? I have never preached on this passage before. Let's get some questions and ideas coming!

Join the Sermon Team!

Sunday, Nov. 19th is the 24th Sunday after Pentecost. The scripture is as follow: Daniel 12:1-4a, Hewbrews 10:31-39 and Mark 13:14-23. Here is the Gospel text.

14“But when you see the desolating sacrilege set up where it ought not to be (let the reader understand), then those in Judea must flee to the mountains; 15the one on the housetop must not go down or enter the house to take anything away; 16the one in the field must not turn back to get a coat. 17Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing infants in those days! 18Pray that it may not be in winter. 19For in those days there will be suffering, such as has not been from the beginning of the creation that God created until now, no, and never will be. 20And if the Lord had not cut short those days, no one would be saved; but for the sake of the elect, whom he chose, he has cut short those days. 21And if anyone says to you at that time, ‘Look! Here is the Messiah!’ or ‘Look! There he is!’ —do not believe it. 22False messiahs and false prophets will appear and produce signs and omens, to lead astray, if possible, the elect. 23But be alert; I have already told you everything.

WOW! I could use some help with this one. I was thinking that this would be a great reason to switch from the Episcopal lectionary to the revised common lectionary. Or perhaps I could preach on Hebrews???? I have never preached on this passage before. Let's get some questions and ideas coming!

All Saints Sunday - Friday

Well, at this point I have a rough draft of my sermon. I'm sticking to the advertised topic, the saints up close and personal which means I will be talking about how we are all members of the community of saints. My connection with the Gospel reading is the verse that says "love your enemies". I really wanted to know what that means. A few of the commentaries talk about this concept as giving to people when you expect to get nothing in return. That when we give, there is no debt or obligation on either person's part. Sometimes when we give to those we love, we expect gratitude, love, or something back from them. As the Gospel says - giving to those we love is not what it is all about. Giving to strangers or people who are not part of our community, or people who are opposite of who we are is what real giving is. Giving gifts without expectation is one of the marks of sainthood. The church is called to sainthood. I will talk about what that means and how it happens.

All Saints Sunday - All Saints Day Wednesday!

Love your enemy. What a tough subject especially today. In Luke, Jesus has a vision for the world that is so counter cultural especially for today. Jesus teaches the repudiation of privilege basked on wealth and the repudiation of retaliation that spawns violence (see New Interpreter's Bible, vol. 9 pg. 149). I wonder how a politician supporting non-violence would do in next week’s election. How do we deal with the violence in our own country and the violence around the world? Jesus suggests we take action. What does that action look like for us? It all can seem overwhelming.

I have always thought that we can make a difference. Each individual can make a difference but what a huge difference we can make as a community! We are already a part of the communion of saints. Those who have already come and those who have yet to come. We can gather energy from the cloud of witnesses that have come before by looking at how they overcame some of these obstacles. I think for the sermon, the idea would be to pick one of these witnesses that people are not overly familiar so that the story is fresh. Then I'm thinking of using an example from someone living to show how determination and perseverance is key to living into the gospel, and how all of this is important for the continuation of our faith in those yet to come.