Sermon 13NOV11
"All are Accountable in the Kingdom"
Matthew 25:14-30
There was a college in a certain Midwestern city and their football team was having a loosing season, so the coach was very nervous. By October the Alumni Association was in an uproar and were about to bear arms, then in November they lost to their arch-rival. At that, the coach received an email saying "The last train uptown leaves Sunday at noon, be under it". Football seems to be rather important doesn't it? We've seen some horrors come of that in the last week at Penn State. It was interesting to hear one commentator say "football was god at Penn State", so it must have been. Here was a sex abuse scandal that had been going on for a number of years. The coach seemed to have known about it, and overlooked it. The president of the university had known, and overlooked it. But, then there comes judgement day. It's horrible that we as parents have to worry about teaching our kids what is appropriate touching and what is not in this day and age, but there are predators out there. Sexual abuse and assault perpetrated upon anyone, but especially children, is a heinous crime. It seems though, in this instance, the university lost sight of their moral responsibility because their football program was so important to them. Finally though, at long last, after years of looking the other way; judgement came.
The lessons we've heard today from Zephaniah, 1st Thessalonians, and Matthew are about the last judgement. In Matthew we hear of the servant who took the one talent he was given and buried it, and because of that he is cast into outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. The last judgement isn't looked at as being a very "happy" time.
There was a tribal chief in Africa comparing Christianity to "ivory hunting". He said when you find ivory you know at the end of it there's always going to be an elephant. So here's Christianity where we have the "ivory" of the kingdom, but to get to it we have to first get past the crushing force of the "elephant" or the last judgement.
The word talent comes to us directly from the Bible, and at first it just meant a certain measure of a precious metal. Certainly as our Lord tells this story it is used to describe something of monetary worth, something that could be hidden or buried in a field and then dug back up. Through usage though, the word talent has grown larger than that.
There was a man who was visiting with a friend and he said; "Yesterday my wife asked for eighty dollars, the day before she asked for an hundred dollars, and today she asked for two hundred dollars". His friend asked "what in the world does your wife do with all that money?" He replied "I don't really know because I've never given her any".
The point here though is that our Lord has given us a great deal of talents. Whether in monetary terms, or in gifts and capabilities that we should be developing for the kingdom. We are called to invest those "talents" for our own good, and for the good of others. Whether it's monetary "talents", or "talents" in the form of gifts and abilities that God has given us that come from him; we're not tithing. Our Lord told us "Those who loose their life will save it, and those who save their life will loose it". Those who loose it, invest their lives and do something with their life. Trying to hold onto something, trying to save it to be selfish with it is not part of the doing of the kingdom.
There was an interesting scene in "All Quiet on the Western Front" where the nuns are singing in the hallway at the hospital. One of the wounded soldiers wants the singing to stop, so he takes his water pitcher and throws it into the hallway through the door. An inspector comes into the ward where the soldiers are and begins looking each of them in the eye asking if they were the one who threw the pitcher of water. Finally one of the soldiers speaks up and says "I'm the one who threw it, it was me" and the inspector looks at him and walks away and does nothing. The other soldiers, knowing the soldier who confessed wasn't the one who threw it, were surprised and asked him why he confessed. He told them; "The other day I took a lick to the head and they gave me a certificate saying I wasn't responsible for anything I do, and I've had a wonderful time ever since". Well, that's kind of the way we go through life; like we've took a lick to the head. We don't act like we realize we're held accountable for everything we do. To lead a really normal, productive life we have to have some sense of accountability outside ourselves; whether to others or to God. We have to be accountable for what we do.
There was a Viking Lord who sailed into a kingdom and discovered the rulers there were evil, they were taking advantage of the poor and weak. He defeated the rulers and gave the people their freedom. As Vikings are prone to do, he started preparing to return to sea. Some of his new subjects wanted to go with him, so he brought them aboard and allowed them to come with him. They sailed into an area with a climate the people had never been exposed to, and he took half of the people who had asked to come with him and told them he wanted them to stay on this island they had found. He left them supplies, materials, and plans and instructed them to use the materials and plans to build a wall around the island. So he departed with the other group and came to another similar island and left the other half of those who had asked to join him with supplies, materials, and plans with the same instructions; to build a wall around the island. The first group struggled with the task, they found it very tedious and laborious and finally agreed among themselves that the Viking Lord hadn't really meant for them to build the wall because they just couldn't do it. So they took the materials and each built fine homes for themselves. The other group experienced the same hardships and difficulties understanding the plans and making the materials work, but they were loyal to the command left by the Viking Lord. As they worked on the wall they found themselves becoming stronger, both as individuals and as a community. In the end, although not perfect, the wall was completed. Having never been in the southern climate they had no knowledge of hurricanes, but one evening in came the rush of the winds and the force of the waves and the hurricane blew in. The first group, who had given up on the task set before them and instead built for themselves luxurious homes, were destroyed; but those in the second group, who had been loyal to the command left to them by the Viking Lord and finished the wall, were saved. They applied themselves, they were loyal to what their lord had asked them to do. The wisdom was his and they received that wisdom and were grateful for it.
Have you ever heard the story of the stone soup? It's really more of a children's fable, but there is this group of soldiers traveling and they come into a village and ask the villagers to feed them. The villagers tell the soldiers that they have no food to give them. So, the soldiers get a big pot, fill it with water, and put a large stone in the pot. They build a fire under the pot and begin to stir the water. The villagers become curious as to what the soldiers are up to, so they start coming up to the pot and asking the soldiers what they're making. The soldiers tell them they're making "stone soup, and it's really quite delicious". The soldiers tell them though "you know it would be so much better if it had a little cabbage in it". Well, one family came forward and brought a head of cabbage. The soldiers kept telling the villagers how great this stone soup was, but that it would be even better if only they had a little onion. So, someone brought a few small onions. The soldiers continued stirring the pot and naming off all the things that would make this stone soup so much better (garlic, carrots, potatoes, turnips, celery, meat), and one by one people from the village came forward with a little of each to put into the pot. At the end of the fable we find both the soldiers and the villagers sitting down to share not stone soup, but what has become a wonderful stew made from what little each person had to contribute to the effort.
Dr. Karl Menniger (head of the Menniger Clinic) was approached once and asked "what should someone do if they're experiencing a nervous breakdown?". He said "Close your house and lock it, go across the tracks and find someone in need and help those peolpe out". I think the best thing about the final judgement is hearing the Lord say "if you've done it to the least of these, you've done it unto me", and there we are; accountable.
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Monday, November 7, 2011
Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee.
Sermon 6NOV11
"Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee"
Matthew 5:1-12
The Beatitudes have long been considered a blueprint for Saint growing and Saint making. Of course, when we hear the Beatitudes on the whole we seem to come up short and think to ourselves "who in the world wants that kind of Gospel? Jesus take that away!". Who wants to be poor? Who wants to be persecuted for his sake? Who wants all these negative sounding things, of course they all aren't negative. There are some beautiful things in there, and many consider them to be some of the most beautiful words in the Scripture.
I recall during the Diocesan Convention before last (the last one was just yesterday); George Luck, one of the most respected priests in the diocese, made an interesting comment: "I really never grew to be a Christian until I came to engage the Beatitudes and to learn more about them". This was central in his spiritual growth; coming to grips with the Beatitudes. Not necessarily an easy thing to do!
One problem we have is we don't have a good word, so we use the word "Blessed", but in the Greek it's "makarios" and the Hebrew equivalent of that is "asre" which means "a joyfulness that cannot be taken away from you". There's no one that can take the sense of joy, the inner sense of peace that you have in knowing the love of the Lord away from you. No matter what the circumstances are around you, no matter if those around you are saying false things or whatever. This is an inner joy and peace that is God given!
Now some translations have tried using the word "happiness" here, but that word is kind of diluted isn't it? "Happy Hour", "Happy Days are Here Again", "Happy Talk", and Dee told me there's a new movie out called "Happy Feet"; but that word has a way of going up and down depending on our spirits. So even though it was used in the "Good News" translation; "Happy is the" instead of "Blessed is the" in the Beatitudes, it just doesn't quite work.
There's a really fine New Testament scholar in his commentary on Matthew who suggested using the word "Congratulations". It sounds a little strange to us doesn't it? It has to do with congratulations is more divine than human. God congratulates you on what's going on inside you; that keeps you closer to God in Christ in the indwelling of His Holy Spirit. Because we can never become holy without the Holy Spirit; that is the work of the Holy Spirit: to make us Holy, to make us Saints! Congratulations, according to the dictionary, has to do with "sympathetic joy on the part of the one who is offering the congratulations" and also a sense of being fortunate. No matter how it sounds or what the circumstances you feel fortunate.
When you think about it when you're on top of the world, when you're "happy go lucky", and all that wonderful stuff that we like to think about in this world and the pleasures that it brings; we can be farther from God than ever. It's when we're contrite, when we're meek, when we may be experiencing some kind of pain that we also experience the indwelling of God's Holy Spirit and much more strength and growth. So, these things can be good in and of themselves because they open us to the indwelling of God's Kingdom.
There is a Buddhist poem and riddle which is meant to teach that goes: There was a monk that was running from a hungry bear. The monk came to the edge of a cliff and the only chance he had to escape the bear was to jump off the cliff. As he was falling he grasped onto a tree root that was growing out of the cliff face and held on for his life. He looked down below him and saw a hungry lion that was waiting for him to drop. He didn't know what to do, and as he was hanging there contemplating his next move two gophers come out of the cliff face and begin eating on the root he's hanging by, so it looks like all is lost. As he's looking around for a way to escape he notices some strawberries growing on a small ledge next to him with one really large ripe strawberry hanging in the midsts of the plant. He reaches over and plucks the berry, puts it in his mouth and says "delicious". That's where the riddle ends. The point is that this blessedness that we hear talked about in the beatitudes, this joyfulness we experience is something that is for the here and now. At one point it does tell us that "great is your reward in heaven", but this feeling of inner peace and joy is something you experience now that makes your life worth living no matter what the circumstances are. You can have the hungry bear above, the hungry lion below, and the gophers eating at the only root you have to hold on to; but you have the sense of joy and peace because God is with you.
We are guaranteed the pursuit of happiness in this country, and there are a lot of people trying to pursue happiness. They may be pursuing the "blue bird of paradise" only to find out later that they've been following a crow all along. Many say "if we just had enough money, we would be happy". That seems to be the American Dream. People think that all their problems will be solved if they had "plenty of money", but some of the most unhappy people in the world are billionaires who don't know what to do with their money. Some have started to follow a beautiful path by just giving it away, and making their life's work to give away what they've spent their lives accumulating. It really is a beautiful thing. Then there is the pleasure principle. That brings happiness doesn't it? But, how long does it last? Those who find "happiness" in drugs. It won't be long before they find they have a monkey on their back, and that they are addicted. Addiction is one of the most difficult things to overcome. So, their life doesn't become happy; it becomes miserable. There are all sorts of ways we seek after "happiness".
There was a piece of correspondence found in "Dear Abbey" many years ago. There was a 15 year old girl who wrote in and said "I am unhappy. I don't have the best clothes in school. I don't get the telephone calls I want. I don't have the best friends in the world. I don't have all the money I need to spend in the mall.", and she goes on and on about all these things she doesn't have. There was a 13 year old girl who wrote back in response to what she'd read from this other girl and said "happiness is when you can walk, when you can talk, when you can sing, when you can hear. That is happiness. I feel sorry for this girl who is so unhappy, but she can do all these things. At thirteen, I can't walk but I'm happy". She was walking into the kingdom of God, even though she couldn't physically walk; because she realized the joy of having those things even though she had a major component in her life missing. So, even with the bear above, the lion below, and the gophers going at it; there is still the Joy of the Lord! Those who trust in Him can have a marvelous existence no matter what the circumstances are surrounding their lives.
C.S. Lewis wrote the book "Surprised by Joy". The book had a two part theme to it. Staring out, Lewis was a confirmed bachelor and a confirmed atheist. Then he meets a woman by the name of Joy, who is an American citizen living in England and she has cancer. She wants to stay in England to be treated there for her cancer, but the only way for her to do that is for her to marry an Englishman. Lewis says that he had a melting of the heart as a bachelor, and he married Joy. Their marriage lasted for three years until she died. But, during that three years of their marriage relationship he had a greater sense of joy than he'd had in all of his life. The other surprise was the joy of knowing Christ. He said "I'd been seeking after all kinds of things that I thought I needed in my life. I had expectations for this and that". He said that only after his conversion did he discover that real joy was a by product. You have your life committed to something, to God in Christ. There's a marvelous way, again no matter what the circumstances are, of having that inner peace and joy in knowing that the Lord is with you. That you can trust in Him.
There's an Hassidic tale involving a rabbi in a small community who was deathly ill. All of the Jewish community were talking among themselves worrying because this was the only rabbi they had, how were they going to get another rabbi out here in the middle of nowhere. So, they all decided to go to the synagogue and pray for their rabbi. Well, the town drunk goes up to the local tavern only to find that it's closed because the owner is at the synagogue praying for his rabbi. Some people pass him on their way to synagogue and chastise him saying "you need to be praying for the rabbi not worrying about getting something to drink". So, somewhat reluctantly, he follows them to pray. "Dear God, please let the rabbi get well so I can have my schnapps". Well, at the very moment he said that prayer the rabbi was healed, and the rabbi explained to the people: "no matter what you think of this guy; he was sincerely praying with all his heart, with all his mind, with all his spirit. He was trusting that God would give him what he needed". Now, we don't really want to emulate the town drunk, yet he was the only one who was sincere in his prayer, who was completely trusting in God that He would provide his needs. That's where we need to be in our lives in Christ. To be totally trusting God.
In Beethoven's "Ode to Joy" it doesn't say "Happy, Happy, We Adore Thee" does it? It says "Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee". We are joy filled in Christ with the indwelling of His Holy Spirit. Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee!
"Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee"
Matthew 5:1-12
The Beatitudes have long been considered a blueprint for Saint growing and Saint making. Of course, when we hear the Beatitudes on the whole we seem to come up short and think to ourselves "who in the world wants that kind of Gospel? Jesus take that away!". Who wants to be poor? Who wants to be persecuted for his sake? Who wants all these negative sounding things, of course they all aren't negative. There are some beautiful things in there, and many consider them to be some of the most beautiful words in the Scripture.
I recall during the Diocesan Convention before last (the last one was just yesterday); George Luck, one of the most respected priests in the diocese, made an interesting comment: "I really never grew to be a Christian until I came to engage the Beatitudes and to learn more about them". This was central in his spiritual growth; coming to grips with the Beatitudes. Not necessarily an easy thing to do!
One problem we have is we don't have a good word, so we use the word "Blessed", but in the Greek it's "makarios" and the Hebrew equivalent of that is "asre" which means "a joyfulness that cannot be taken away from you". There's no one that can take the sense of joy, the inner sense of peace that you have in knowing the love of the Lord away from you. No matter what the circumstances are around you, no matter if those around you are saying false things or whatever. This is an inner joy and peace that is God given!
Now some translations have tried using the word "happiness" here, but that word is kind of diluted isn't it? "Happy Hour", "Happy Days are Here Again", "Happy Talk", and Dee told me there's a new movie out called "Happy Feet"; but that word has a way of going up and down depending on our spirits. So even though it was used in the "Good News" translation; "Happy is the" instead of "Blessed is the" in the Beatitudes, it just doesn't quite work.
There's a really fine New Testament scholar in his commentary on Matthew who suggested using the word "Congratulations". It sounds a little strange to us doesn't it? It has to do with congratulations is more divine than human. God congratulates you on what's going on inside you; that keeps you closer to God in Christ in the indwelling of His Holy Spirit. Because we can never become holy without the Holy Spirit; that is the work of the Holy Spirit: to make us Holy, to make us Saints! Congratulations, according to the dictionary, has to do with "sympathetic joy on the part of the one who is offering the congratulations" and also a sense of being fortunate. No matter how it sounds or what the circumstances you feel fortunate.
When you think about it when you're on top of the world, when you're "happy go lucky", and all that wonderful stuff that we like to think about in this world and the pleasures that it brings; we can be farther from God than ever. It's when we're contrite, when we're meek, when we may be experiencing some kind of pain that we also experience the indwelling of God's Holy Spirit and much more strength and growth. So, these things can be good in and of themselves because they open us to the indwelling of God's Kingdom.
There is a Buddhist poem and riddle which is meant to teach that goes: There was a monk that was running from a hungry bear. The monk came to the edge of a cliff and the only chance he had to escape the bear was to jump off the cliff. As he was falling he grasped onto a tree root that was growing out of the cliff face and held on for his life. He looked down below him and saw a hungry lion that was waiting for him to drop. He didn't know what to do, and as he was hanging there contemplating his next move two gophers come out of the cliff face and begin eating on the root he's hanging by, so it looks like all is lost. As he's looking around for a way to escape he notices some strawberries growing on a small ledge next to him with one really large ripe strawberry hanging in the midsts of the plant. He reaches over and plucks the berry, puts it in his mouth and says "delicious". That's where the riddle ends. The point is that this blessedness that we hear talked about in the beatitudes, this joyfulness we experience is something that is for the here and now. At one point it does tell us that "great is your reward in heaven", but this feeling of inner peace and joy is something you experience now that makes your life worth living no matter what the circumstances are. You can have the hungry bear above, the hungry lion below, and the gophers eating at the only root you have to hold on to; but you have the sense of joy and peace because God is with you.
We are guaranteed the pursuit of happiness in this country, and there are a lot of people trying to pursue happiness. They may be pursuing the "blue bird of paradise" only to find out later that they've been following a crow all along. Many say "if we just had enough money, we would be happy". That seems to be the American Dream. People think that all their problems will be solved if they had "plenty of money", but some of the most unhappy people in the world are billionaires who don't know what to do with their money. Some have started to follow a beautiful path by just giving it away, and making their life's work to give away what they've spent their lives accumulating. It really is a beautiful thing. Then there is the pleasure principle. That brings happiness doesn't it? But, how long does it last? Those who find "happiness" in drugs. It won't be long before they find they have a monkey on their back, and that they are addicted. Addiction is one of the most difficult things to overcome. So, their life doesn't become happy; it becomes miserable. There are all sorts of ways we seek after "happiness".
There was a piece of correspondence found in "Dear Abbey" many years ago. There was a 15 year old girl who wrote in and said "I am unhappy. I don't have the best clothes in school. I don't get the telephone calls I want. I don't have the best friends in the world. I don't have all the money I need to spend in the mall.", and she goes on and on about all these things she doesn't have. There was a 13 year old girl who wrote back in response to what she'd read from this other girl and said "happiness is when you can walk, when you can talk, when you can sing, when you can hear. That is happiness. I feel sorry for this girl who is so unhappy, but she can do all these things. At thirteen, I can't walk but I'm happy". She was walking into the kingdom of God, even though she couldn't physically walk; because she realized the joy of having those things even though she had a major component in her life missing. So, even with the bear above, the lion below, and the gophers going at it; there is still the Joy of the Lord! Those who trust in Him can have a marvelous existence no matter what the circumstances are surrounding their lives.
C.S. Lewis wrote the book "Surprised by Joy". The book had a two part theme to it. Staring out, Lewis was a confirmed bachelor and a confirmed atheist. Then he meets a woman by the name of Joy, who is an American citizen living in England and she has cancer. She wants to stay in England to be treated there for her cancer, but the only way for her to do that is for her to marry an Englishman. Lewis says that he had a melting of the heart as a bachelor, and he married Joy. Their marriage lasted for three years until she died. But, during that three years of their marriage relationship he had a greater sense of joy than he'd had in all of his life. The other surprise was the joy of knowing Christ. He said "I'd been seeking after all kinds of things that I thought I needed in my life. I had expectations for this and that". He said that only after his conversion did he discover that real joy was a by product. You have your life committed to something, to God in Christ. There's a marvelous way, again no matter what the circumstances are, of having that inner peace and joy in knowing that the Lord is with you. That you can trust in Him.
There's an Hassidic tale involving a rabbi in a small community who was deathly ill. All of the Jewish community were talking among themselves worrying because this was the only rabbi they had, how were they going to get another rabbi out here in the middle of nowhere. So, they all decided to go to the synagogue and pray for their rabbi. Well, the town drunk goes up to the local tavern only to find that it's closed because the owner is at the synagogue praying for his rabbi. Some people pass him on their way to synagogue and chastise him saying "you need to be praying for the rabbi not worrying about getting something to drink". So, somewhat reluctantly, he follows them to pray. "Dear God, please let the rabbi get well so I can have my schnapps". Well, at the very moment he said that prayer the rabbi was healed, and the rabbi explained to the people: "no matter what you think of this guy; he was sincerely praying with all his heart, with all his mind, with all his spirit. He was trusting that God would give him what he needed". Now, we don't really want to emulate the town drunk, yet he was the only one who was sincere in his prayer, who was completely trusting in God that He would provide his needs. That's where we need to be in our lives in Christ. To be totally trusting God.
In Beethoven's "Ode to Joy" it doesn't say "Happy, Happy, We Adore Thee" does it? It says "Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee". We are joy filled in Christ with the indwelling of His Holy Spirit. Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee!
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