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The best pretenders!

Ash Wednesday

Matthew 6:1-6; 16-21

Dear Heavenly Father, send your Holy Spirit upon us so that we don’t pretend or ‘show-off’ our faith for our own glory, but instead seek to do our acts of righteousness for your glory, for the sake of the treasure given to us through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

We humans are so mixed up and so often get things the wrong way round!

Take for example, our fixation on awards.

One of the most popular and most watched award programs in the world would have to be the Oscars. You know, the Academy Awards for the best film, best actor, and so on. Just try to imagine how much money is spent to hold the event, how much is spent on the spectacular looking clothes all the artists wear, and how much is spent publicizing the event on TV and in magazines. The amount of money would have to be significant to say the least! The size of the audience watching the Oscars, either live, or delayed, or viewing summaries shown in news broadcasts, would be huge.

But, get this…the biggest award show on the earth gives away awards to…the best pretenders!

Have you ever realized this? The awards for best actors in most of these award shows go to those who are best at pretending to be someone else! Just think how many people become famous, or make incredible fortunes by pretending or making out they’re someone else.

Of course, not all people are paid to pretend, but they do seek something for their efforts. We have all, at some stage, put on a show for others in order to get what we want. For instance, have you ever seen children put on those ‘crocodile tears’ in order to get something, and then, once they got what they wanted, they quickly reverted back to ‘normal’? Or, have you seen children ‘show-off’ to get attention?

We adults are much more subtle of course. We’ve learned the art of pretending or ‘showing-off’ over the years and some of us are very good at manipulating people in order to get what we want, be that attention, praise, sympathy, or recognition.

We may even ‘pretend’ with our faith. Our ‘pretending’ or ‘showing-off’ gets even easier in church, because Jesus even tells us how we should act. For instance, in tonight’s reading, Jesus tells us to give to the poor, to pray, and to fast. We can pretend to do that. We can even try to impress each other by showing how generous we are with our giving, how many meetings of church committees we attend, how many times we pray, or what food and drink we are fasting from or how good we are at church cleaning duties and so on.

We might even show-off our faith or spirituality by showing people how long our prayers can be, how committed we are to the Lord by urging others to match our efforts, or how much we’re willing to sacrifice for the sake of Christ and his church. We even compare ourselves to others, criticising them when we don’t think they’re as good a Christian as we are, criticising them when they’re not good enough at ‘pretending’. For this reason Martin Luther insisted our righteousness is more dangerous than our sin because our ‘righteousness’ serves the most self-centred of all human desires – the desire for self-glorification.

You may not think you’re pretending. You may think you’re doing these things because of your genuine faith in Jesus. Yet, as Holden Caulfield, a character in the book ‘Catcher in the Rye’, written by J D Salinger, said: “If you do something good, then, after a while, if you don’t watch it, you start showing off. And then you’re not as good anymore.”

Also, unfortunately, sooner or later we stop pretending and people see us live differently at church compared to our public life during the week. They wonder which one is the “real” us and which is our fake life of pretending or showing off? They even call us names for our pretending, for the way we live a lie, or for the way we show off our faith by making people think we’re better than others. They call us hypocrites.

Jesus tells us how to act but he also tells us to do all these things in secret. How can we gain attention, praise, sympathy or recognition, when we have to do all these things in secret? How are we supposed to win awards if no one sees us? How are we to get the attention we’re craving if no one knows what we’re doing? How are we supposed to show-off or gain glory for ourselves if there’s no one about?

God’s not into pretending or lies: he sees right through our clever charades, our acting and pretending, and he sees the frightened sinful people behind the masks we put on to hide our true selves. He’s the one who sees everything we do, even when we do it in secret.

We don’t need to show off, or do a great song and dance act, or put on crocodile tears, or make huge shows of sacrificing time, talents, or money in order to be noticed by God. God sees us and knows us more intimately and more truthfully than we know ourselves. We don’t have to compete for his attention, because we already have it. Jesus wants to liberate us from the burden and never-ending task of trying to impress anyone- whether it be impressing ourselves, impressing others, or impressing God.

When we silly humans do things in order to impress God, he doesn’t see them. It’s as if our ‘showing off’ blinds him. But, when we do things in private, where no-one else can even see what we’re doing, God sees clearly.

If all our pretending and showing off is for a reward here on earth, then that’s all we’re going to get, and the rewards will remain on earth. The bank account of human admiration we build up for ourselves on earth can’t be transferred to heaven.

But instead, in this season of Lent, our Lord encourages each one of us to take up private acts of faith. For our secret or private faith practices of being charitable, praying and fasting, seen only by God, will be rewarded in heaven. The reward isn’t salvation or righteousness, because these have already been given to us as a free gift through faith in Jesus Christ. The reward referred to is recognition for our faithful service in heaven.

An example of this might be God boasting to the heavenly council of Job’s faithfulness, proudly pointing to him and how trustworthy he is. In this sense, the reward is a bit like a parent who is proud of their child and boasts to their friends and relatives. Even though we simply act how God expects us, the reward could simply be God saying to us: “Well done, good and faithful servant!”

We don’t have to impress God. We already have his attention. Nothing we do could make him love us more or less, yet he does reward his faithful servants in heaven. The reward isn’t silver or gold or an Oscar, but it might simply be God’s approval and pride in you, his precious child.

We don’t need to show off our faith in order to be noticed and awarded by others, but we do need to practice our faith – in private. God sees what you do and his lasting reward is waiting for you.

The peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Listen to him!

 

Sermon for the Last Sunday after the Epiphany
(Transfiguration)

Text: Matthew 17:5
While Jesus was talking, a shining cloud came over them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my own dear Son, with whom I am pleased—listen to him!” 

Listen to him!

Every now and then TV programs seek an answer to the question, “Is there life out there in space?”
Back in 2000 in a program called Universe it was stated that with the knowledge that scientists had available they hoped to be able to prove beyond any doubt by 2010 that there is life in space. Well, 2010 has come and gone and I don’t think we are much wiser about extra-terrestrial life.

But suppose for a minute that scientists did find that there is life out there in the universe.
How will that change our understanding of God as the creator of all things?
How will that change our view of God’s relationship with this world and us his special and unique people?

The first thing to note is that even though we continue to learn and discover new things about our world and the universe, none of this changes what we already know and believe about our unchangeable God and his love for you and me.

In fact, the more that we learn the more we realise we are only infants who have almost learned to crawl when it comes to understanding our world and the universe. The more that is discovered, the more questions are opened up and the more we realise that our universe is something that completely blows our mind.

The second thing that becomes clear is that you can’t find God looking through a microscope or a telescope. Neither can we find God on the golf course and in the most magnificent place on this earth – a place with a gentle waterfall, mossy banks, over-arching ferns and trees and the sound of the birds in the distance. It might be a place oozing with coolness, peace and serenity – a sharp contrast to traffic snarls, bickering children, blaring TV and our crazy pace of life. As godlike or as heavenly as we might think this place is, we can’t find God in the beauty of nature or the amazing discoveries of science.

The truth is this – unless we know God as he is revealed in the Bible, unless we know of his wonderful love and his creative power, and his determination to save all that is beautiful and wonderful in this world through the Word, we will not realise that there is an all-powerful, ever-loving, always-present, always-embracing creating and saving God behind all that is beautiful in this world. More than that, that he is even there in all that is ugly and horrible in our world. It is only when know God from the pages of the Bible that we can give him praise in all circumstances.

The third thing we realise is that we can scour the universe, have great knowledge and understanding, and still not know God. There is a lot more to our world and universe that what we can see, smell, hear and touch. In the end we have to admit that knowledge can take us so far until we come up against something so big we cannot fathom. It’s the point where reasoning stops, we say “wow” and faith takes over. We know from the Bible this “big thing” is God – the powerful, timeless, creative, intelligent, so big that nothing can contain him, and yet, so caring, personal, compassionate, and never-ending loving God.

Today is the Feast of the Transfiguration of Jesus. What has all this got to do with Jesus’ transfiguration? We are told how Jesus’ appearance changed and his clothes became dazzling white and how he chatted with Moses and Elijah. Then there was the voice that spoke from a cloud, “This is my own dear Son, with whom I am pleased—listen to him!” 

Let’s look at it this way. We all need oxygen. With every breath of air, we take in the oxygen that our bodies need. Oxygen is also present in water, but we can’t use the oxygen in the water. It’s not available to us.

Like the oxygen in the water, God is there in nature, in science, but he’s not available to us there. If you want to know God don’t stare at a waterfall or a tree or a sunset. If you want to know God don’t look in amazement at a newborn baby, or look through a microscope or gaze into space through a telescope. As you look at all that is beautiful in our world, I can point you to just as much that is cruel, ugly, distorted and dangerous that will make you question whether there is a God.

If you want to really know God, gaze at the Word made flesh. God has made himself known to us in his Son. It is through his Son that God shows himself to us. In this man, Jesus, is the God of the universe, whom science cannot find but who is present here on earth as a human being and suffered everything we humans suffer. It is through God’s Son that we see what God is really like. We see the heart of God – his love, his compassion, his grace and forgiveness.

We hear the voice of God the Father coming from a cloud. The voice says, “This is my own dear Son, with whom I am pleased—listen to him!”  Jesus is God’s own Son. He is more than a man; he is God himself. He is “The Beloved”, a messianic title; he is the one who has been longed for over many centuries and whom Moses and Elijah had just honoured. This is the Messiah. He is God here on this earth.   This is as close as anyone can get to God in a physical sense. This is the divine standing right in front of the disciples and the voice from heaven commands, “Listen to him”.

It’s no wonder the disciples were so terrified that they threw themselves face downward on the ground. They were so unholy; he was so holy.

We aren’t in the fortunate position of the disciples on the mount of transfiguration, where we can see the holiness of Jesus face to face in real life, but we can listen to him. During these past weeks we have come face to face with the divine as we have listened to Jesus speak to us through his the Sermon on the Mount. Right near the beginning, he says to his disciples, “You are the light of the world” and then proceeds to explain how this works in the everyday life of a follower of Christ.

Whether it’s seeking reconciliation instead of revenge,
loving your enemies,
praying for those who hate you,
giving to the needy without expecting a reward,
avoiding judging others,
making friends with those you don’t like,
he makes it quite plain that the values and principles of a Christian are very different to those of the rest of the world.

As followers of Christ we stand out and make a difference in our families or the community in which we live and to the world around us. It’s not a matter of going along with flow but it means letting the light of Christ shine through us and letting his love and mercy and peace rule the day.
It means holding back on the harsh words and letting love rule.
It means not getting back but seeking reconciliation.
It means praying for those who are giving you a hard time and avoiding bad mouthing those you don’t agree with;
forgiving those who hurt you;
and loving those who hate you.

“Listen to him”, the voice of the Father said from the cloud. This is God revealing his will for us. This is God speaking to us and showing us how to live the way he created us to be before sin messed things up. This is the way he recreated us to be when he called us into his family. Jesus said, “You are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect” or as another version puts it “Live out your God–created identity. Live generously and graciously toward others, the way God lives toward you” (The Message) (Matt 5:48).

“But I can’t do this!” you might object. “I try but I mess things up all the time. I want to love those who don’t like me, but it’s so hard”.

“Listen to him”, the voice of the Father said from the cloud. Jesus is about to walk the road to Jerusalem for the last time. This is the road of suffering and death; the road of sin and shame; the road of tears and cries of grief and pain. The one who is called “The Beloved” is God who came to bring forgiveness to us
for our failure to live the new life;
for our failure to let the light of Christ shine through us;
for those moments when we aren’t any different to the world and our need for revenge, and pride, and speaking unkindly get the better of us.

“Listen to him” when he says,
“Your sins are forgiven”;
“you are my child, I will never give up on you”;
“when you are in the deepest despair, I am right there beside you”;
“when you think no-one else cares for you, you are my precious child”;
“when you are afraid and need to walk down dark paths, I will walk with you”.
“Listen to him”, the voice says. Listen to his words that he speaks to you directly and personally through the pages of the scriptures and through mouths of others.

We live in a marvellous world and an amazing universe but even greater than all the mysteries and wonders of creation is the one who made it all. God is all powerful and far beyond anything we can imagine in all our wildest dreams and yet he is a God who has come amongst us and has spoken to us. He has revealed himself to us through his beloved Son and shown to us how we can be his beloved children shining in our world.

After the voice had spoken the disciples looked around and saw no one except Jesus. When we listen to him we too will see no one but Jesus.
We will see his hand at work in creation.
We will see his hands with nails driven through them for us;
we will see hands raised in blessing over us;
we will see him in the joys and tears of life,
in fact, we will see him everywhere, for he fills the entire universe.
It is then that we will see him in the microscope and telescope, in the beauty of a flower and in an amazing sunset.

 

Pastor Vince Gerhardy

Too many hypocrites

Sometimes people tell us that they want nothing to do with the church. The reason?  Because, so they say, there are too many hypocrites there. Many times we probably feel like saying that one more hypocrite won’t make much difference. But we haven’t, because there’s a point in what they say. The trouble is that Christians don’t always know who they are, and they don’t act accordingly.

People can tell what your relationship with God is like by watching how you treat those around you. If you put people down by insults or jokes, you may not be right with God. If you’re pushy and bossy with people, thinking you deserve certain privileges, you may not be right with God. If you argue or fight with others, you may not be right with God. If you treat people badly out of spite or revenge, you may not be right with God. If you take advantage of, or exploit others, or think you’re better than everyone else, you may not be right with God. If you put on an act in order to gain attention for yourself, you may not be right with God. Even if you do the right things with the expectation God will be good to you and give you what you want because you do the right thing, then you may not be right with God.

Now you might protest, wondering how anyone could possibly say that you’re not right with God. You might want to say Jesus died for you, and therefore, through his sacrifice, you’re now right with God. And that’s correct! You are saved freely for Christ’s sake through faith. You don’t make yourself right with God through your actions, but are made right with God through trusting Jesus.

However, as a result of this saving faith, as a result of receiving God’s undeserving forgiveness, as a result of being joined to the holy body of Jesus through baptism, as a result of having Jesus’ blood course through your veins through your participation at the Lord’s Supper, you would naturally live in peace and love with those around you. If you don’t, then God, and those around you, could easily argue you may not be right with God because they don’t see his love reflected in your living. Christians need to be genuine. They dare not be a phony or a hypocrite. The world is quite right in judging the truth of Jesus by the sort of people faith in Jesus is able to produce.

So the question for us, as Christians, is this: what are we?

The answer to that question comes from Jesus. In the first two verses of today’s Gospel he said, that we are salt and light!  Listen carefully! Jesus does not say you ought to be salt, or that you should be light, but rather “You are salt . . . You are light.” What a tremendous saying! After all, what Jesus is saying is this: “You disciples standing here before me—you are the salt of the earth and the light of the world.”

Let’s look at what it means that we are “the salt of the earth”. The ancient world felt that there was nothing more useful than salt and light. Salt was seen as indispensable. A bag of salt was reckoned to be as precious as a person’s life. They believed that without salt, human life could not be sustained. The term “salt” is used for that which is permanent, that which lasts, and also to describe a person’s worth and wisdom.

Salt’s power lies in being different from its environment. It alters what it is mixed with. We are the salt God rubs into the wounds of the world. In the context of verse 12, Jesus is saying, “You are those through whose persecution the earth will be seasoned, purified and preserved.”  Christians make the world a more palatable place to live. Like salt, we act as a leavening influence in our world. To not laugh at a cruel joke can season the atmosphere of a group. A healing factor enters in when we forgive someone who is difficult to pardon, whose actions seem unpardonable.

In Matthew Jesus also says 14 “You are the light of the world.

But in reality people; you and me can be like frogs? We can hide in the dark and people can miss seeing us or see us not as Gods Child but something jumpy and frightening. Sometimes we do not feel like Jesus’ light do we? We do things wrong, we can be nasty and cranky sometimes and we would rather not put ourselves out there. But Jesus says to his followers; to the people on the sermon on the mount, to Christians to you to me.“You are the light of the world.… Your light must shine before people”.

There is a continuous, never ceasing aspect to this. There isn’t a switch that you a believer can turn off and say, “Today or at this moment, I’m not a light.  I just want a break.  I just want to go somewhere and hide for a while”.

You are the Light to this world. You will shine a light to your world, your family, your workplace, your school, even if it is the wrong light. So even if you think you are the frog hiding in the Dark; you are not. To everyone around you, you are a child of God, you are Jesus.

It is made easier by being plugged in and switched on!

What are you talking about? You might be saying.

When we come to church, when we worship God, when we praise him, read his word, talk to him we get plugged into God. The more we do these things the more in tune we are with what God wants us to be. When we believe in Jesus as our saviour, like we announced in the creed a little while ago we have his power. Jesus gives us the power, the courage and strength to do anything. When a person is united to Christ, he or she is no longer an ordinary person. When Christ affirms us, we become strong enough to withstand anything, to “take on the world”!  Light makes growth possible. As light reveals beauty, so, too, we radiate with the joy of our salvation.

Remember salt and light become useful only when they give of themselves, when they are mixed with something else; Light goes into darkness and salt loses itself in the food. Salt remains salt if it stays in a jar and if light is kept under a bowl its light helps nobody, and what is more, it exhausts the oxygen and nothing is left but a nasty, shapeless wick.

You don’t need to be super-confident to ask your neighbour to come with you to worship. You can do it faithfully in weakness, and in fear and trembling. You don’t need to be brimming with slick ideas to teach Sunday School,  help with breakfast or Scripture. You don’t need to be comfortably sure of what to say in order to visit a fellow member in the hospital or go with the youth to visit at the nursing home. You don’t have to be financially secure, guaranteed of a surplus for life, to be a steward who tithes. You can faithfully begin in weakness. You don’t need to feel sure of your faith to begin to pray regularly for others. You can stumble over the words, praying in weakness. With day-by-day efforts like that, we make our light shine. We bring rich flavour to a tasteless society, and so become the salt of the earth.

Remember when we are plugged into God’s power supply and turned on to Jesus our light will shine. We need not worry.   The peace of God, which passes all understanding keep our hearts and minds in Jesus Christ. Amen.

The Light Has Come

The Light Has Come

John 3:19-21 (256)                                                                                                  24 December 2016

012This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.  Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed.  But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.

 

Even in the middle of the day, when the suns at its brightest, you can find lights on in just about every building you go into.  It seems as if we put them on, and sometimes leave them on, whether we need them or not.

Of course, lights are very valuable, even during the day, especially when we’re doing work which requires us to be able to see exactly what we’re doing without having to strain our eyes.

If we drop our keys in the dark, we can search for them for a long time if we haven’t got a light that’s handy.  It’s so much easier when we’re reading if we have a good strong light behind us.  Good light can help us avoid tripping over things.

And when we’re cleaning something or repairing a tiny piece of equipment – we appreciate good lighting.  We could get very frustrated without it.

 

But we don’t always appreciate the light.  There are times when we’d rather have darkness.  On some occasions, we can be doing things that we’d rather not be seen doing.  And so we can cringe at the light.

A really strong spotlight, for example, which might be very valuable for us at one particular time, would be the last thing that we’d want shining on us if we were involved in some kind of embarrassing activity.  It exposes us.

And when there are bright lights around, showing up marks or stains on table-cloths and clothes, and dirt and smudges on walls and carpets, we can feel a little uncomfortable, too, especially if other people notice them.

Light certainly does make things very plain.  It enables us to see clearly what’s going on about us, and helps us to avoid danger.  It also exposes us, our actions and intentions; it brings out into the open that which we may be ashamed of and want to hide.

 

And Jesus, the Light of the World does both of these things too.  He exposes us for what we really are.  He makes us face up to and admit all our weaknesses, blunders, and selfish thoughts and actions.  He sees right through us.

There’s no way we can hide from the Light of the World, and there’s nothing that we can keep from him.  Everything we do and say that’s not perfect is uncovered and made visible by him.

Jesus wants us to front up, accept the fact that we don’t live up to his expectations, and acknowledge that we’re not the innocent models of virtue that we make ourselves out to be at times.  He comes to expose us so that we stop kidding ourselves into believing that all we need to do is try a little harder and everything will be OK.

And Jesus comes to convince us that by ourselves, by our own strength and initiative we’ve got nothing that we can do to make ourselves acceptable before God.  No efforts, no great acts of heroism, not even generous contributions of time, effort or money to the church, will make any difference.

Our efforts are all tainted by sin, and so of no use at all in our attempt to win God’s favour.  Jesus exposes us as we really are and shows us that we have no way of changing, improving ourselves or influencing God to change his mind about us.

 

But Jesus, the Light of the World, doesn’t come to just to expose our sin, nor to take great delight in us having to suffer because of our sin.  Jesus Christ came to help us acknowledge our sin – yes, but only so that we can see our great need and welcome him into our lives so that he can do something about our predicament.

God sent his Son into the world, not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.

He came into the world to do what no-one else could do.  He came to free us from all stain of sin, so that we can stand confidently before God, and not have to squirm in our boots.

The punishment we deserve because of our sin has been wiped out by Jesus.  The Light of the Word has overcome all that we have deserved, and has given his light to replace the darkness in our lives.  So, no longer do we have to wonder whether or not we’re acceptable to God.  We’ve been made acceptable.  God no longer holds our sin against us, because Christ has wiped it out.

 

Everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.  Believing means holding to be true everything that Jesus has said about God, and about the way to God.  It means trusting that God does love us and does care for us – that he does forgive and bless us, that he is our Father, who wants only to have friendship and fellowship with us.

Whoever believes in him shall, not could, not might, but shall have eternal life.  That’s what God wants, and that’s what he’s made possible for all of us.

 

That’s why we need to hear the Christmas message over and over again – even though we may know it off by heart.  The Light has come, and it’s come for us and for our good.  We gain by Jesus’ presence – maybe not physically or materially, but certainly emotionally and spiritually.  Jesus coming to us means that we have his promise of eternal life.

That eternal life has already begun for us.  And because of it we can make changes in our lives, and live a life of service for others.

Jesus has come to us.  He’s offered us God’s friendship and love.  He’s offered us God’s grace and mercy.  He was born so that he could be lifted up on the cross for us so that we could have life with him, now and forever.

 

The Light of the World has come.  He’s exposed our sin, and he’s covered it over with his brilliant perfect life, his innocent suffering and death, and his glorious resurrection.  We need that Light, even though it shows us as we really are.  We need that Light, because without it we remain in the darkness, bring judgement on ourselves and suffer the consequences of a life without God.

But Jesus has come.  He was born in Bethlehem so that he could be lifted up on the cross for us to turn to, believe what he offers us, and live confidently and joyfully as his people.  Amen.

Bishop Mark.

Who’s naughty or nice.

  1. MATTHEW 24:36-44   LENT 1

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

Christmas is coming, this is the first Sunday in advent and I’m sure that in the stores there is an abundance of the Christmas carols and songs being played. Unfortunately a lot of these songs and carols are played to prick our consciences;     so that we will spend more money in good-will toward one another. I have to confess that I haven’t been shopping yet this year, but I live in HOPE.  I’m hoping Yvonne has bought me something.
I have to confess that I don’t get the opportunity to listen to the radio all that much and I’m not aware of the Christmas tunes that are being played, but I remember a few years back there was a song that everyone was talking about, the title was, “GRANDMA GOT RUN OVER BY A REINDEER.”

I have never heard it, have any of you? I am led to believe that it has been around for quite some time.  I dread to think what the words must be.

One of the popular songs that I have heard is “SANTA CLAUSE IS COMING TO TOWN.” The words sound very much like an effort by parents to get children to behave during the next few weeks.
If you think I’m going to sing it your wrong, I will recite the words. “YOU BETTER WATCH OUT, YOU BETTER NOT CRY, YOU BETTER NOT POUT, I’M TELLING YOU WHY: SANTA CLAUSE IS COMING TO TOWN.
And especially the next few lines, “HE’S MAKING A LIST, CHECKING IT TWICE, HE’S GONNA FIND OUT WHO’S NAUGHTY OR NICE.” Some people think of God that way. People tell their children that God is watching them and if they be naughty God will punish them.Please don’t tell your children or grandchildren that, tell them instead that God is a loving God.
Lent is a time of living in expectation, of HOPE, waiting for our Lord. It is a time of preparation, a time to prepare our hearts for the coming of Jesus.
It was Christmas many years ago when a soldier named  Rex  was stationed in Korea as a young  lieutenant. His wife and baby daughter, whom he had never seen, were home in Australia. On Christmas morning the thermometer hovered around zero with several inches of snow covering the ground.
Outdoor worship services were planned for that morning. Although no one was required to attend services, Rex went out of respect and “to set a good example for the even younger soldiers.” Nearly two hundred  turned out for the service. They sat on their helmets in the snow. They faced a small portable altar. The chaplain had no microphone, and the portable organ suffered from the extreme cold.Something happened to Rex in that worship service. God broke through into his life. He thought of all that was precious to him: home, his wife, his unseen infant child. In that moment as they tried to sing Christmas carols in the cold air he realized that Christmas does not depend on church architecture or fine clothing, expansive meals or expensive gifts. Instead Rex claimed, “Christmas is best celebrated as a voluntary act in which we replenish our personal faith; in the company of others.” Far from home and loved ones, Rex realized “that Christmas Day, in itself, is not important, but the faith it represents is.”

Let us not forget in the coming weeks that Jesus is the reason why we celebrate Christmas. Advent reminds us that God often breaks into our lives in unexpected ways and at unexpected times. At those times we discover that we must change our ways and realign ourselves with Jesus Christ.

 In Isaiah we read, the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, a young woman shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.”

 That name means “God with us.” That would be a sign that God would save his people. Centuries pass by, and finally;          the hope of the world comes through;      the hope of a girl.

 Saint Luke tells us about it. The angel Gabriel was sent by God to a little out-of-the-way town up in the Galilee district. He spoke a simple message to a simple peasant girl. Her name was Mary. She was just a teenage girl, whose future had already been planned for her by her family and the family of a man named Joseph, a carpenter by trade.

 But God had other plans for Mary. He chose her to be the mother of the Messiah.                God chose her because she was only engaged, and there would be no doubt this virgin was having God’s Son and the son of no other. But we know people, don’t we? And we know what they said about her.

 However, she and Joseph held onto what the angel Gabriel had said about him: “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.”

 It is here in this event that we see coming together in Bethlehem the hope of a girl and the hope of the world.     Young Mary, approaching marriage, had wonderful hopes about her own little family and the birth of her own little children.

 Her hopes came together with God’s plan about his Son who would be born to become the hope of the world.   The hope of this girl has become the hope of the world — AND HE IS OUR ONLY HOPE  This is what the Advent season says to us. Prepare to receive the hope of the world. The commentary on this passage in Luke says, “The glory of Christmas came about by the willingness of ordinary people to obey God’s claim on their lives.” I wonder if you are willing to do that, to obey God’s claim on your life?

If you are; you will experience the glory of Christmas, and you will find hope in your life, the hope of the world. I want to tell you why this child became the hope of the world.

 He is the hope of the world because he is God coming to us. Gabriel said to Mary, “He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High.” He is God coming to us. He is bringing God into our world and our experience. We have him as a part of our lives today and will forever. That is what this Advent time of preparation is all about. We are getting ready to celebrate the fact that he is God coming to us.

 Years ago in a small European town a visitor noticed that on one of the streets THERE IS A WALL. And when the citizens of the town walked by it they would nod and make the sign of the cross. As he stood there and watched he observed that they all did this. He became curious about the practice and began to ask around.

 But no one could tell him what it meant. Finally, he obtained permission to investigate the wall. He began to chip away at layers of paint and dirt. He discovered underneath a beautiful mural of Mary and her baby.

 People had always made the sign of the cross as they passed by that painting even after it was covered over. They had passed on the tradition, though the reason for it had been lost.

 Remove some of the things in which we dress Christmas and there beneath the surface you come to the central meaning. And you find there this beautiful story about a young girl and her baby – the hope of a little girl and the hope of the world.

 On these Sundays we are thinking together about the theme, “They Came Together In Bethlehem.” And today we turn to this: “The Hope Of A Girl – And The Hope Of The World.”                                             

 Long ago the prophet Isaiah saw a time when God would send a Messiah to set his people free. In a few weeks we will celebrate the birth of our Lord! Jesus was born of a woman, lived on this earth and died for our sins; so that we could be free.

 The Isaiah passage has a beautiful image. At the close of chapter 10, the hopeless fall of Assyria is magnificently pictured as the falling of the cedars of Lebanon by the axe swung by God’s own hand.

 I’m told that a cedar once cut down will not put out any new shoots. So the great Assyrian power has fallen and will fall forever. The metaphor is carried out in surpassing beauty in the 11th chapter

 It, too, is the picture of a shoot growing out of a stump — but not a cedar stump — an oak, which everyone knows will put out new growth from the old. And Isaiah uses that to talk about the coming Messiah: “There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse.”

Here is the beautiful prophecy of the coming Messiah, the coming of Jesus Christ out of the line of David,          specifically from the shoot of Jesse — a shoot that will grow up out of that stump to flower and bless all humankind.

It was that kind of longing for the coming Messiah that was expressed over and over again in the heart and mind and soul of ancient Israel.

That Messiah came in Jesus Christ — grew, taught, ministered, was crucified, was raised by God from the dead and ascended back to the Father from whom He had come. But now the Gospel writers are telling us that this One will come again. That’s the witness of Scripture. “Look up and raise your heads,” says Jesus in Luke’s Gospel, “because your redemption is drawing nigh.”

So we believe — so we pray “Come, O Come Emmanuel.” That’s the way we sing it; when singing;  it expresses far more than we can simply say. The promise of Advent is that word from the prophet Isaiah,

 “For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.” And the ringing call of Advent is the word of Jesus from Luke, “Look up and raise your head,  for your redemption is drawing nigh.”

 To-day the WORD is fulfilled in our hearing! To-day all that Jesus accomplished in His perfect life, His innocent death, His glorious resurrection, all that Jesus did is applied to us, fulfilled in our ears full of His word.

 Advent is a time of HOPE! Hope that our Saviour will come! Hope that we will be ready for HIM. Our hope is not in vain, as Jesus has promised us, HE WILL RETURN; He  is preparing that place for us.                                 His great love for us is real, HIS GRACE for us is real.   There is no need for us to fear, for Jesus loves us.So we believe — so we pray: “Come, O come Emmanuel.”

Amen.

Pastor Ian Kotzur

 

 

I will be good Mummy

SERMON ON REFORMATION

pastor-hans-cropWhen Robert Louis Stevenson was a boy he once remarked to his mother, “Momma, you can’t be good without praying.” “How do you know, Robert?” she asked. “Because I’ve tried!” he answered. This brings to mind a story about another little fellow — one who had been sent to his room because he had been bad. A short time later he came out and said to his mother, “I’ve been thinking about what I did and I said a prayer.” “That’s fine,” she said, “if you ask God to make you good, He will help you.” “Oh, I didn’t ask Him to help me be good,” replied the boy. “I asked Him to help you put up with me.”

 Dear Friends! God says in JEREMIAH 31:28 “And just as I have watched over them to pluck up and break down, to overthrow, destroy, and bring evil, so I will watch over them to build and to plant, says the Lord.”

 The world around is broken, destroyed and is filled with evil and so God wants to Repair, Rebuild and Reform our lives but often most people are satisfied to be the way they are as long as others are able to put up with them.

THEME: “JESUS REPAIRS, REBUILDS AND REFORMS US FOR LIFE ETERNAL”

Dear Friends! Look at the world around us or switch on the news on your TV and we hear violence, breaking down of lives, destruction, persecution, hatred, injustice, bombing of the innocent and the list goes on. People in the Middle Eastern world, the ISIS or Talibans or the fundamentalists are trying to destroy this earth that God created.  We learn to put up with all the nonsense and these people take advantage. God’s word has the power to make us stand up and fight the good fight and run the race. We are not meant to just put up with rubbish around us but to stand up to the truth.
We as human beings are so comfortable in our lives as long as people around us are able to put up with us. We don’t see the need to change, to be repaired, to be rebuilt and to be reformed for life eternal.

God promises I will build you up and plant you to be a new creation. We are not called to live lives as unrepairable people, we are called to be people repaired by the Grace of God. A lot of people think they are beyond repair.

Do you feel you are beyond repair?

Hear the good news from Jeremiah 31 “But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. From the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more”.

The good news is we are repaired as the law is written in our hearts. Hans Peethala “When the law is written in your minds: we will be slaves to the law and will keep struggling to keep the law and be perfect, But when the law is written in our hearts, it repairs our hearts and rebuilds it so that we may be reformed for life eternal”.

The good news is God has written the law in our hearts and the law is reformed in our hearts and it transforms us to be Gospel living disciples.

Today we remind ourselves Martin Luther saw the church breaking down and losing the Gospel. The Catholic Church was so focused on being perfect and the whole emphasis was on keeping the law. It was all about good works and striving to get to heaven by paying purgatory. Martin Luther stood up and said “Enough is enough” I will not put up with this rubbish anymore.

Martin Luther had tasted the Gospel and he was not able to see God’s children being led astray by working on their good works to be saved. He wanted to ensure that things were put in place and the church was repaired, rebuilt and reformed by God’s Grace. He proclaimed that we are saved by Grace alone. He reminded the church that we need to undergo some repair so that our faith might be rebuilt with Grace, Mercy and Love of God.

Martin Luther said, “I have held many things in my hands, and I have lost them all; but whatever I have placed in God’s hands that I still possess”.

We cannot save ourselves with our good works, But the good news is God has placed us in the hands of Jesus and It’s by the Grace of our Lord Jesus we are repaired, rebuilt and reformed for life eternal.

God enabled Luther to use God’s word to repair, rebuild and reform the lives of the needy. The Church was reformed as the Gospel penetrated into the hearts of the people. The power of the Gospel has “Repaired, Rebuilt and Reformed our lives forever”.

Paul also was in a similar situation as he was ok as long as people were able to put up with him. But when his eyes opened, He saw that God had “Repaired, Rebuilt and Reformed his life”.

He said “For I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 17For in it the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it is written, “The one who is righteous will live by faith.”

Reformation is a reminder that we are Reformed people by the Grace of Jesus Christ our Saviour. We are made righteous by Grace and the Holy Spirit will guide us to live by faith. The world around us is being destroyed, plucked down and torn apart but we who have become righteous by Grace alone that we may live by faith. We do not live by seeing what is happening around us in this world, but we live by faith in what is promised to us by God our Saviour.

Romans 3:22 – 26 “The righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction, 23since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; 24they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, effective through faith. He did this to show his righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over the sins previously committed; 26it was to prove at the present time that he himself is righteous and that he justifies the one who has faith in Jesus”.

Dear Friends! We are justified by the Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ to be righteous before God. This is the truth that Jesus has given us. John 8:31-36 “Then Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, “If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; 32and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”

This is the truth. Jesus has “Repaired, Rebuilt and Reformed” our lives forever. We are set free by the Gospel, Jesus answered them, “Very truly, I tell you, “Everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin”. 35The slave does not have a permanent place in the household; the son has a place there forever. 36So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed”.

The Son of man has set you and I free by the truth. The truth is we are saved by Grace and a faith response to the Grace we have received is good works that builds our faith.  Go in peace. Amen

Pastor Hans Peethala

God Throws Rocks?

God Throws Rocks?

Colossians 3:1-4 (246)                                                                                                31 July 2016

You have been raised to life with Christ, so set your hearts on the things that are in heaven, where Christ image001sits on his throne at the right hand side of God.  Keep your minds fixed on things there, not on things here on earth.  For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.  Your real life is Christ and when he appears, then you too will appear with him and share his glory.

A builder was working three stories up on a construction site when he looked down and saw a woman unknowingly drop a parcel from her arms.  He tried to get her attention by calling out to her, but the noise of the traffic was just too loud.

So he searched for something in his pockets that he could throw down and hopefully to get her to look up.  He found a twenty cent piece – so he threw it down.  The woman didn’t realise where it had come from, thought that it had just fallen out of someone’s pocket, but she couldn’t see anyone around that was looking for a coin, so she picked it up and kept on walking.

The construction worker tried again – this time with a two-dollar coin, but with the same result.  So he looked around, found a reasonably large piece of scrap metal, and threw that down.  His aim was good, and he certainly didn’t hit the woman, but he did give her a bit of a fright.  She looked up, saw where it had come from and started to abuse the builder for his carelessness.

It took a little while, but he finally got through to her, that he wasn’t in any way trying to hurt her, but rather that he wanted to let her know that she’d dropped something.  The woman did thank him in the end, but she was still a little shaken by what had happened.

It can sometimes take a bit of a shock to get our attention too.  We can be absorbed in our own lives, busy with lots of important things – even busy helping people, serving in the church and community, doing the work that’s expected of us, raising our families and caring for others.  One day can run into another, one week into the next, and even one year after another.

And things might be going quite smoothly and pleasant.  We might be quite content with what’s happening, and not aware that anything should change, or that we might we missing out on something else.

We can be walking along the footpath of life, perhaps blissfully unaware that we may have lost something, be missing out on something, or that there’s something more that we could have to make us even more happy and joyful.

 

At times like this, our Lord God may be wanting to get our attention so that he can say something to us.  He throws some blessings down to us so that we’ll look up and see who’s talking.  He gives an exciting new opportunity for us to enjoy, or a recovery from an illness, or healing in a relationship, or an unexpected bonus from work, or a win in a competition, or satisfaction from some job completed, or a new friendship, or passing an exam.

Whatever it may be, whatever the gift or experience, it may be our Father saying through it: “Hey you, look up and thank me for it, and listen to some other things that I want to say to you”.

Often though, we can receive what we’re given, smile to ourselves with a sense of satisfaction, and just continue on our journey through life, with no thought of looking up.

 

So maybe, God has to drop some lumps of metal, some rocks, around us to really get our attention.  And sometimes it may seem as if the rocks get a bit too close, maybe even hit us and injure us a little – but that’s not God’s intention.  It’s never his desire to hurt anyone.  What he wants more than anything else is for us to look up and listen to what he has to say.

And when we do respond, we don’t hear him yelling at us, or making us always feel guilty or ashamed of what we’ve done; we don’t hear him demanding things from us like a dominating authoritative figure; and we don’t hear him telling us that we’ve got to come up to some kind of standard of behaviour before we can receive anything from him.

What he says and gives are things that can give us confidence, help us to cope better with life, and look to the future with real hope.  He comes to us with gifts and promises that can give us what we need to be able to have a good and positive attitude and a desire to serve him, despite what goes on around us.

He comes to us in and through his Son, Jesus Christ, to give us a hope that can enable us to live on despite all the struggles we face.  He comes to give us a peace of mind that can make us satisfied with what we have and not to always have to go after everything that seems bigger and better and brighter.  And he gives us a future to look forward to, a future that can give us certain victory over death and the grave.

 

There are lots of things that keep our attention, that stop us from looking up.  We spend time with our families.  We’ve got financial commitments.  Our sport and recreational activities are important.  And so are our homes and our work and our service in the community and the church.

And our Lord doesn’t want us to neglect any one of them.  We may be irresponsible if we did.  But God comes to us and wants us to have his perspective on all these things, and see how they fit into the overall scheme of his plan for our lives.

So he says, spend time with your families – and enjoy it.  See this as being the most important gift you can give them, and know that God wants to give you the peace, the patience and the wisdom to be a valuable family member.

Don’t forget your financial commitments – but believe that God can provide for you even when you have to pull in your belt and make some sacrifices.

Be involved in some sport or recreational activity – not to prove you’re better than others, but see that through it God wants you to enjoy life, build relationships with others, and use it as a way to help others to have a healthy outlook on life.

Put an effort into caring for your home, do your work to the best of your ability, and serve others in the community and in the church – but see these things not as burdensome or drudgeries, but as ways in which God can work in and through you to use the gifts he’s given you.

 

In everything then, look up and see the blessings God’s given to you, look up and thank your Father for the opportunities you have to touch the lives of others, look up and see that God has a plan for you and a reason for putting you here.

 

 

He doesn’t want you to be focussed on merely surviving or just putting up with the things of this world.  He doesn’t want you to spend your energies on doing things that are just going to make a difference in this world – because this world won’t go on for ever, and you won’t go on for ever, and because he’s got much more in store for you than even the best that you experience now.

God adds a new and exciting dimension to life.  Life is more than food and clothing, working hard and paying the bills, scrimping and saving simply to keep our heads above water.  It’s also more than having employment, raising a family and participating in and enjoying life in our community.  Those things are a part of life, but they don’t make up the full meaning of life.

 

You have been raised to life with Christ, so set your hearts on the things that are in heaven, where Christ sits on his throne at the right hand side of God.  Keep your minds fixed on things there, not on things here on earth.  For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.  Your real life is Christ and when he appears, then you too will appear with him and share his glory.

You have been raised to life with Christ.  The fact is that we may not always want to hear that.  We can be so content to just live this life – where things are reasonable and comfortable, and maybe most of the time happy.

But God has something more that he wants us to have, something greater, something better, and he invites us to look up to him, listen to him, and receive what he has to offer.

We have life in and with Jesus Christ.  We have God’s presence with us, God’s promises for us and God’s protection over us – in Christ; we have forgiveness for our sins; we have the opportunity of a new start in life every day; we have hope for the future; we have the free gift of eternal life.

 

God just might throw some rocks our way at times to help us see this and appreciate his gifts, but his intention is always good.  He wants to get us to look up and listen, and receive what he wants us to have.

So lift up your eyes.  Set your sights on the rich treasures that you can’t buy with cash or a credit card.  God has new and rich experiences that he wants you to enjoy.  He wants you to have real joy and peace in your lives, and a confidence that when this life is over, you’ll have another better life to enjoy forever.  Amen.

Famous Last Words

Famous Last Words

Acts 1:8 (236)

 

image001You’re watching an exciting movie on TV, and one of the characters is about to die.  As he lies there on a hospital bed, he whispers some final words to his family.  You quickly turn the volume up, but can’t quite hear what he says.

They may have been words of farewell, words of advice, words offering forgiveness, or maybe words that told the rest of the family where the treasure was buried.

People’s last words can often be significant.  They can have some importance.  They can even be remembered and passed down from one generation to the next.

And that’s the case when it comes to a number of “last words” that some characters in the Bible have spoken.  We’re going to have a look at a few today and see what significance they have for us today.

We’re going to start with Moses.  Towards the end of his life God took Moses up on to a mountain, and while he was there God showed him the land that the Israelites were going to inherit.

Just before he died, Moses pronounced a blessing on his people, and the last words of his blessing were these: Israel, you will live in safety; your enemies will be gone.  The dew will fall from the sky, and you will have plenty of grain and wine.  The Lord has rescued you and given you more blessings than any other nation.  He protects you like a shield and is your majestic sword.  Your enemies will bow in fear, and you will trample on their backs.  (Deuteronomy 33:28,29).

In these last words of Moses, he acknowledged that Israel was very blessed because God was their Lord.  He had led them safely through 40 years wandering in the desert, and was about to give them a country where they could settle down, grow crops and plant vineyards, have victory over their enemies, and live in security.  They could be confident that God would continue to provide for them.  God was in control.

Famous last words from Moses: God was in control!

Another very well known Old Testament character was David, King David.  He had some “famous last words” as well.  We read in 2 Samuel 23:3-5.  Our Mighty Rock, the God of Jacob, told me, ‘A ruler who obeys God and does right is like the sunrise on a cloudless day, or like a rain that sparkles on the grass.’  I have ruled this way, and God will never break his promise to me.  God’s promise is complete and unchanging.  He will always help me and give me what I hope for.

David was chosen by God to carry out a specific task.  He was to make Israel a great nation, and bring honour and glory to God.  David didn’t do this perfectly by any means.  In fact, there are episodes in his life that can only be described as being very questionable.

But at the end of his life he could look back and see that through it all, it was only because of God that he and his kingdom survived.  It was because of God’s covenant, God’s promise that David was able to achieve anything.

Famous last words from David: God was in control!

You might remember three men by the name of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego.  They were three friends of Daniel, who were thrown into a fiery furnace because they weren’t prepared to bow down and worship anyone but God himself.  They were prepared to die and to remain faithful to God, rather than to obey King Nebuchadnezzar.

As they were about to be killed they cried out to the king: Your majesty, we don’t need to defend ourselves.  The God we worship can save us from you and your flaming furnace.  But even if he doesn’t, we still won’t worship your gods and the gold statue you have set up. (Daniel 3:6-18).

There was no way that they were going to turn their backs on God, because he’d never let them down.  And even though it meant certain death for them, they were confident that God would watch over them

Famous last words from Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego: God was in control!

As it turned out, these weren’t their last words at all, because God rescued them, but they weren’t sure that he was actually going to, so we can still consider them being “famous last words”.

Then there was Simeon, a priest in the temple in Jerusalem.  God had promised him that before he died, he would see with his own eyes, the fulfilment of God’s promise of a Saviour.  Simeon would see Jesus.

So just after Jesus was born, Mary and Joseph took him to the temple; Simeon took the baby in his arms and said: Lord, now let your servant depart in peace, according to your Word.  For my eyes have seen your salvation which you have prepared in the presence of all people; a light to reveal you to the nations, and the glory of your people Israel. (Luke 2:29-32).

Simeon thanked and praised God that he was able to see what God had promised hundreds of years before.  He was prepared to die in peace, knowing that Jesus the Saviour had come. So “famous last words” for Simeon were that God was in control!

Not too many years afterwards a man called Stephen spoke some words too that have been acknowledged as being “famous last words”.

He’d preached a fairly strong sermon, and some people had taken exception to it because they couldn’t accept the fact that he’d said they were partly responsible for Jesus’ death.  They dragged Stephen out of the city and began to stone him to death.

While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed: “Lord, Jesus, receive my spirit.”  Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord do not hold this sin against them.”  When he had said this, he died. (Acts 7:59,60).  Stephen was prepared to face death, confident that God would give him all he needed to remain strong in his faith, confident that God would take him to himself in heaven.

Stephen’s “famous last words” – God was in control even in the face of a difficult and painful death.

And that was very similar to another situation.  When Jesus was hanging on the cross he spoke a number, seven in fact “famous last words”.  And the last of these was: Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.  (Luke 23:46).

The work that he had come to do was completed, and he was giving up his life, so that we could have life after death.  In the face of what seemed like failure and tragedy, Jesus acknowledged that God was in total control.

This was no unlucky and unhappy ending to Jesus’ life and ministry.  It was the beginning of something new and exciting.  There was no misfortune or catastrophe here.  God was in control and everything was going to plan.  Jesus’ resurrection from the dead was just around the corner.

But these weren’t really the last words of Jesus.  Forty days after his resurrection, just before he ascended into heaven he spoke some “famous last words” again.  He had his disciples gathered round him and said: The Holy Spirit will come upon you and give you power.  Then you will tell everyone about me in Jerusalem, in all Judea, in Samaria, and everywhere in the world.  (Acts 1:8).

Jesus was leaving, but the Holy Spirit was coming.  The disciples wouldn’t be alone.  Jesus was going but nothing was going out of control.  God the Father still had, and has, control over the work that Jesus began.  Through his Spirit, this work was going to continue.

And through his Spirit that work continues today in and through God’s spirit-filled people – you and me.  We look around and see what’s happening in our world, and even in God’s church at times, and wonder how we can ever be a positive influence, and what little good we can do.

But God’s still in control – and always will be.  That’s his promise.  That’s his “famous last words” if you like – words that he wants us to hold on to, to trust in, and to look on as being all that we need to continue to serve faithfully.

Have you ever thought what your last words may be?  They may be words of farewell, words of advice, words offering forgiveness, or maybe even words that let your family know where the treasure is buried.

Whatever you last words may be, you can be sure that as you face death, you can be absolutely confident that death is not the end of your existence.  Christ has overcome death, and nothing can ever separate you from his love.

But this assurance is yours not just as you face death – it’s also there for you as you face life, and all the difficulties and challenges that you have before you.

God was, and God is, in control.  Amen.

Bishop Mark Leischke

I will see you again.

Revelations 7:9-17
Psalm:23

“Down the lane I walk with my sweet Mary, hair of gold and lips like cherries.
It’s good to touch the green, green grass of home.
Yes, they’ll all come to meet me, arms reaching, smiling sweetly.
It’s good to touch the green, green grass of home.

Then I awake and look around me, at the four grey walls that surround me
and I realize, yes, I was only dreaming.
(But) arm in arm we’ll walk at daybreak.
(and) Again I’ll touch the green, green grass of home.
Yes, they’ll all come to see me in the shade of that old oak tree
as they lay me neath the green, green grass of home.”family

image001It doesn’t seem that long ago that in my first year here I sat at the bedside of one our sisters in Christ in the hospital as she was about to see the Lord face to face and with the curtain around her bed drawn I read plasm 23. It was the last time I saw her but I’m sure I’ll see her again, but as I departed the lady in the next bed loudly said “thank you so much for reading that.”

Today we have heard the scriptures read in a different order, but the order in life of how things work out. The Gospel of Christ pronounced to those before Him. The epistle of how His words work out in our lives, and finally revelation of how it works out at the end of earthly life, and all we could say encompassed by that beautiful psalm, psalm 23.

It seems strange to me now, but there was a time where I could not see any comfort in that psalm as it did not seem to show I was closer to Jesus but further apart. Where were my green fields and still waters? Where’s my comfort and my overflowing cup?

Two of America’s most infamous African-American gangs are the Crips and the bloods from South Central LA. A piece of land between Rodeo Drive and Hollywood that in the 50’s was separated by highways that were not to be crossed by those marginalized inside or those of racial anger or fear encircling this suburb of internment.

A suburb that has grown from young men forming their own clubs in the fifties because of not being able to join the boy scouts because of the color of their skin, to now open warfare between the gangs where most families are broken. Young men who grew up without role models to a future where a quarter of them will be either in prison or dead.

A future where many, many of them have never been outside their turf never mind feeling the breeze at a beach and all must not be caught “slipping.” Which is not to be caught unfocussed at all times because to do so at the edges of the gang territories, be it at the petrol station or the deli caught well get you killed by those wearing other colours. Blue for the crips, red for the bloods.

In the Middle East, Arab against Arab except for the universal hatred of Israel. South Central L.A. Afro American against Afro-American except for the universal hatred of the Authorities of Law that they see as wardens.

A climate of anger, un yet fear not to be showed, and hopelessness that saw one young 19 year old voice that “he did not choose that destiny, it chose him, a life that he knows God did not want in society, yet trapped, his only way out is if someone will come down into the pit with him and show a way out.”

In the beginning God created the earth, the heavens above and all within and saw that it was good, only for us to fall to sin.

Sin that has seen nation rise against nation and those within, brother against brother and sister against sister and in the church, Christian against Christian and maybe the most fierce of all, the inner fight of self against self.

Mary Magdalene standing at the Tomb in the presence of Jesus was asked “Woman, why are you crying”

Her tears that could not be quelled for she saw not the risen Christ, but a tomb of lost hope.

On Jesus Cross, Pontius Pilate wrote an inscription “Jesus of Nazareth, the king of the Jews” and when those present sought for that truth to be distorted, Pilate answered “What I have written, I have written.”

I read this and for you, and for those still fighting the emptiness as I bring it before you as it was to me.

Woman, why are you crying?  I’m crying because the one who gave me hope, the one who accepted me not for what I do but for me as a person, my friend, Jesus, is dead!  I’m crying for all those who pinned their hope on him; for all those who saw God like they’d never seen him before; for those who felt unburdened by chains which bound them, chains of oppression, chains of hopelessness, chains of feeling you have to do the right thing but never being able to do it well enough, chains which said you weren’t allowed here, you couldn’t go there, you weren’t the right race, didn’t have the right background, weren’t rich enough, religious enough, healthy enough, weren’t the right gender to be a part of God’s plan for his people.

I’m crying for all those people who felt a sense of liberation in the message of Jesus who are now shattered because he is dead.  I’m crying for all those through the ages who have lost a loved one, for those who have experienced what it is to be separated from someone they thought they would have for ever, for all those who know the pain of sickness and disease and tragedy and have sat by the bedside of a loved one as they slowly let go of the breath of life, or have been stunned, shocked, numbed by news of an inexplicable tragedy, those who in the death of Jesus see nothing more than that he went the same way we all go.

I’m crying for all those with emptiness inside, all those who search for meaning, and all those who are confused and lonely and wanting to give up.  And I’m crying for a world which is without direction, spinning hopelessly out of control, a world marked by millions without a home, without enough food, without the security of knowing how safe they will be tomorrow, with the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer, for all the displaced people, all the orphaned, for the unborn who are terminated before they see the light of day and the elderly and frail who wonder when it will be their time to be extinguished– I cry for all those who could have found hope in this Jesus who have now been left hopeless as Jesus lies cold, dead in the tomb!

And I’m crying for me and for those like me, for those who lived before me and believed that God would one day set things right, and all those who come after me. And I’m crying because a man like this, a man we thought was God’s man, the holy one, should be treated this way.

But then like a voice from the dead, Woman why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking? “Mary, Mary it is I who you seek.”

Un yet still she cries.

Woman, why are you crying?  Lord my tears now are for this moment where my joy no one can take away from me.  My hope was dashed but now it has been restored.  I wept for others, but now I know that they, too, can have the experiences I’ve had of Jesus and everything he brings.  I cried because my Jesus, the Rescuer, the Saviour was dead, but now I smile because I know that my Redeemer lives!

The average age of death for those gang members of South Central L.A. is 20 years and 5 months. One of those more fortunate was former gang member Robert Martinez who like many of his once colleagues sported religious tattoos to which he stated, that “we all believed in God but we never talked about it. Everybody was afraid they were going to die and we wanted to be ready. Now a practicing Christian he still carries the same tattoo of Christ on his left arm that he carried into those mean streets of his youth. Christ with that boy on the streets and Christ with Him now in Church.

I, like Robert Martinez have come to see Psalm 23 through our trials and tribulations caused by self and others not as a separation from Jesus, but rather see His underserved and unfaltering love and presence amongst it.

Martin Luther King Jnr, the day before he was shot and killed finished his speech with these famous words: “I don’t know what will happen now. We’ve got some difficult days ahead. But it really doesn’t matter to me now, because I’ve been to the mountain top. And I don’t mind. Like everybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place but I’m not concerned about that now. I just want to do God’s will. And He’s allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I’ve looked over. And I’ve seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people will get to the Promised Land! And so I’m happy tonight. I’m not worried about anything; I’m not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.”

Yes our redeemer lives. Jesus having been into death itself, came out of it as Victor; having trumped Satan’s last trump.  Having verified, underlined, and confirmed everything he did, everything he said as real, genuine, believable, trustworthy, life-changing.  Not a loser but a winner.  Not defeated but victorious.  Not just one with us in our pain and our dying. Not just one with us, but one who is in front of us, who has gone ahead of us, offering us healing and help and hope.

Like a thief on a cross we too have seen the Promised Land that is Jesus Christ next to us. Like to that gang member lost, angry and fearful, God stands with us with His presence tattooed into our soul when we saw Him not and like Martin Luther King we know the glory of the coming of the Lord and though some of us may reach the promised land early or later than others, in that number will we be:

“One of the great multitude from every nation, tribe and peoples of earth. Standing before the throne of the lamb, clothed in white robes washed clean by the blood of the lamb. The lamb Jesus Christ who has lead us beside still waters and restored our soul. Who has lead us in paths of righteousness for His names sake. Jesus in goodness and mercy who has followed all the days of our lives that there in the house of the Lord shall we dwell forever, sheltered with His presence to neither hunger nor thirst any longer. To never shed a tear in sorrow nor ever again tremble in fear.

Like a thief on the cross we have seen the Promised Land that is Jesus Christ and asked that He remember us. And in knowing His response I leave you now with the same departing words as those I have said in confidence to all our brothers and sisters in Christ about to enter the Promised Land. Whether tomorrow here on this earth or not-I will see you again. Amen.

Just do our “job” as Christians

image001Acts 9:1-6

Often in society and in the Church we like to see, or even expect some positive changes in people when we extend our hand in help.

Well who said so? And for that matter what is positive change. Maybe the change needs to come in us. To have that perseverance and staying power when to us it seems a futile and lost cause. To just do our “job” as Christians and persevere and stay, knowing that God is somehow in that person’s life doing His job.

The same perseverance we suffer under in our own “stuff”. To persevere in our own hardships and disappointments knowing that God’s amongst it. To persevere in the knowledge of our sin, the stuff we detest of ourselves yet continually fall for, but stay clinging to what Christ has told us-that he is amongst it with us-seeing it and knowing it-yet staying firm in his commitment to bring us his grace.

And in these times of enlightenment and self-help, when we have to rely completely on someone else when we have no answer to the situation it can be the gaining of wisdom outside of “self”.

A man was a successful Wall Street analyst until drink drove him into deep depression which led to his mental disintegration. Following an accident which resulted from him being drunk, he decided to deliver himself from the depths into which he had sunk and became a member of an organisation called the “Moral Re-Armament”-an organisation that stresses do-it-yourself redemption. But instead of gaining his freedom through self-help, he sank deeper and deeper into the depths and after a three day drinking binge he ended up in a Manhattan hospital completely shattered. In his moment of complete and utter helplessness he prayed to God for help and said “suddenly, the room lit up in light and he was caught up into a feeling that words cannot describe”. This changed his life and what had been impossible for him to achieve was achieved in him through the power of God. From the depths of his defeat, degradation and despair he was “resurrected” from a living death and made alive. A “resurrection” that would be felt in the lives of millions, as this man Bill Wilson was to go on and be the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous.

A gift, a miracle-an encounter with God that saved him and countless others.

A gift, a miracle and encounter with God that changed the apostle’s Peter and Pauls lives and the lives of the countless millions others who saw and heard the truth of Christ in the lives of these two men who accepted his offer to leave behind their mistakes and live instead under His grace.

Peter who denied Christ three times and went missing in his time of need and Paul, a leader of those inflicting death and punishment on Christians who when they met the raised Christ came not to just know what he stood for, but what he came for-to set them free of themselves, of their failures, character flaws, and most importantly-of the things that they could not undo themselves-their sin.

These direct encounters, miracles if you like may seem reserved for the few but all who encounter Christ are offered his same life changing power.

A team mate of Shane Warne’s once remarked that no matter how much turbulence and media attention he was getting because of his personal life, when he walked onto the oval he left all his troubles on the ovals picket fence and was free to be the champion he was.

In our lives Christ is the picket fence that surrounds us. In our lives Christ brings the truth that sets us free:

“For I am the Lord, I change not. If you come to me, I will not cast you out. Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heaven burdens and I will give you rest”.

We may not seem to have that moment like the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, Peter or Paul, but those same gifts and miracles are hidden in every aspect of our lives. In our joyous moments Christ is there just as he is there guiding us as we walk through the chaos and confusion.

Like Paul, we may have a thorn in our side that we wish wasn’t there, but like Paul we have God’s grace and that is enough because living in that grace, we have the sureness of the resurrection on our last day and the sureness, that now-today we can serve God the Father by leaving our mistakes, burdens and sins from the past with our Saviour, Jesus Christ.

The knowledge of our inability and failure to live as we should is the start of wisdom. The knowledge of Christ’s power and love is the emergence of that wisdom. To live in Christ’s forgiveness and his total acceptance of you in every facet of your life is to understand that wisdom.

To give Christ our past and present burdens is to answer his call and whether we answer that call and lay them off to him or not, in his name we are still forgiven and free in this world-that will not change. But his desire is that we join with a man that God said “was after his own heart”, yet a man that fell to adultery and murder.

A man called King David who in his sin truly came to know restoration in the grace of God. That restoration is what Christ craves we know and join with King David in testifying, and giving evidence of in our lives: From Psalm 55: verses16 to 18:

“As for Me, I will call upon God; and the Lord will save me…He shall hear my voice. He has delivered my soul in peace from the battle that was against me” (Ps. 55:16-18).

The Lord has blessed you and kept you. The Lord has made His face shine on you and been gracious to you. The Lord has looked upon you with favour and the Lord gives you his peace.