Like a Change of Clothes: November 7 Psalm 102:23-28
23 He has broken my strength in midcourse; he has shortened my days. 24 “O my God,” I say, “do not take me away at the midpoint of my life, you whose years endure throughout all generations.” 25 Long ago you laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. 26 They will perish, but you endure; they will all wear out like a garment. You change them like clothing, and they pass away; 27 but you are the same, and your years have no end. 28 The children of your servants shall live secure; their offspring shall be established in your presence.
Changing clothes… …is a good metaphor It is easy to understand…the images come clearly to mind Most parents have generally had a child…at a certain point in their growing up when they they go through two or three or four changes of clothes a day…leaving little piles of clothes in their bedrooms relegated to the laundry The sequence of outward change in costume reflects the rapid inward changes of juvenile imagination We all (well most of us) somewhere were taught…you have wear something different each day Every day we get up and decide… “Well what should I wear today?” Changes of clothes are determined by the agenda for the day…work or play, adventure or just hanging out And while some of us (men?) have a favorite shirt/pants/jacket that is worn until its wear is more than obvious [did I ever tell you about my corduroy jacket?]…most of us want to wear clothing that is relatively intact and not “out of style” Even though the pslamist sang this song, long, long ago his point is well made: God changes his creation like we change clothes Things are worn out and are placed in the rag bag…or sent to one of those clothing collection boxes.
The point of the psalm is that God is eternal…and we aren’t The contratt is between our imited nature vs. God’s unlimited nature The tone of the psalm is however not pessimistic…but hopeful The unlimited eternity and power of the Creator is the context in which we understand our creaturely liimitations and the changes through which we go…particularly the changes of pain and illness, of destitiution and incarceration… And if we are careful to note: it is God who changes us, who wears us out we are the recipients of existential change and not the authors Yet somehow, The God who changes us, is present to us through our faith…even in the midst of pain and limitations Our crises are a part of God’s involvment with us
As much as we would seek to avoid illness and disaster… As much as we would like to live in a perfect world Crises: illness, accident, abuse, war and oppression happen These all constitue Existential crises, situations that cause us to ponder why and how we are in existence, how and why we experience what we do And challenge our faith in the Creator… Wondering if we have been abandoned Or if our purpose in life is simply to suffer And ask…does anyone hear my cry? It would seem to me that this morning, the folks in Haiti would be lifting their voices with these sorts of questions Earthquake and flood, wind and water all destructive forces …have the Haitians been abandoned by the God in whom they have faith?
Faith and feeling and feeling go together We who are the creatures experience change While we are the masters of some reasoned change, the most challening of change is what happens to us from outside, external forces Change in health, change in age, change in political context, change in economic status…all are a part of a bigger system in which we are but a small module When we experience devastating change, our feelings are of fear and abandonment, of being worn out and wasted our feelings fall to depressive levels of despair which might leave us listless and unmotivated to help ourselves This is why the psalmist sings “The Lord will build up Zion; he will appear in his glory. He will regard the prayer of the destitute, and will not despise their prayer.” When we are the victims of change, and our limited nature allows vulnerability…we need that which is unchanging…eternal and compassionate Faith in that which is “greater than us” is not a “knowing” in the sense that we can be so assured that doubt does not arise Faith, in the face of the challenges to our very existence, is the hope that our lives, well or ill, are meaningful, useful and important Faith is that feeling that allows us to feel comfortable in a world that is sometimes experienced as cruel and uncaring Faith is that which lifts us from the depths of limitation to glimpse the glory of that which is forever
This morning we hope that we find some wisdom in this ancient song A wisdom that emerges in the midst of crises A wisdom that perceives the greater Presence beyond the pain As the Whites invite us to ponder (see quote), crises can be understood as those moment in which we look beyond our individual experiences and perceive the great patterns of human existence that move not toward destruction but toward redemption If we can move through our difficulties there is religious growth, a depth of understanding and faith not possible when life is lived without pain I can, as I am sure some of you can, give witness to the changes in faith that I have experienced as I moved throught the illness and death of my first wife A movement that forced me to re-examine the cliches of religious doctrine A movement that challenged me to regard not just my own situation, but that of all humanity A movement that has resulted in an intuitive confidence that can not be easily articulated, but gives rich meaning to each moment of life and optimism for each day An intuitive understanding that does not allow for easy answers but empowers a critical understanding of human ideas and institutions It is this wounded faith, that embraces change as the stream, the movement toward the eternal
It is this kind of faith that makes me ponder what is happening in our society and in our culture… If the experience of real suffering results in a deeper and more vibrant faith, why do we see the great decline in church/religious participation over these last 50 years? (80% => 20%) What is the church doing wrong? As we end this series of sermons on “Change” we ask “How can these images from the psalmist change the church? Shouldn’t we be able to convey some powereful message to “outside observers” that there is a “usefulness” or purpose for religious faith? If the post-modern context has so deconstructed religion as to leave it a bunch of dysfunctioning parts, can’t we put it back together in a more contemporary fashion to demonstrate to those feeling abandoned and despairing that God still hears our prayers? If we have personally moved through pain to promise, can’t we express that promise to others? Can’t we tell convincingly the story of Jesus as an antidote to post-modern skepticism? Didn’t Jesus feel abandoned upon the cross? Didn’t Jesus suffer willingly when it was for the redemption of others? Didn’t Jesus call out Why? …and didn’t God respond? The church today can not afford to lapse lazily into cliché or rely upon the worn out clothing of past doctrines and practices The church today must change…put on new clothes, dress itself in new and attractive apparel that looks beyond hapless pain to healthy empowerment The church must reclothe itself in a new mind and a new manner Where you might ask, will we get such new raiment? I still think the answer lies in the store of Tradition (our history and Biblical resource)… where we can go to shop and say… “I would… like a change of clothes”
"The Supervisor": November 14 1 Timothy 3:1-7
1Here is a trustworthy saying: If anyone sets his heart on being an overseer, he desires a noble task. 2Now the overseer must be above reproach, the husband of but one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, 3not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. 4He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him with proper respect. 5(If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God’s church?) 6He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil. 7He must also have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the devil’s trap.
Church in transition
I come back to the pastoral letters (often) because I believe tha professor of church history was right: that we live in a time that has similar responsibilities In the second century the church was in a critical transition A time in which the Traditon needed to be passed to the next generation A time when it had become easy to forget how the church was founded and what it was about because there many voices shouting around it Vocies from the culture-outside False teachers within The issues of leadership were crucial if the church was to survive. The author of the Pastorals, reclaimed Paul’s name and wrote the documents, addressing them to those concerns And to the leadership of the church that was to be handed the awesome responsibiities of guiding the community of believers through that moment into their future In the 21st century the church is experiencing, I believe, another very critical moment We can certainly understand how much the church and its surrounding culture has changed in the last 350 years: when our church was organized It was illegal to be a Baptist Religious toleratioin was simply an idea and not the law At our beginning worship was hours long …people were held accountable before the congregation for behavior in the town The pastor gave a lecture each week which people were expected to attend Parents were the primary religious educators of their children Everyone in Swansea was expected to live with certain guidelines set out by the church leaders The ruling elder (Myles) was assisted by one or two deacons and was in addition to his ecclesiastical duties also the first school master Now in our post modern society all religious expressions are available without penalty we can only hope that people show up to church and have no way of even commenting on the way they behave during the week The pastor is asked not to use big words Parents defer to the church school most responsibilities for religious education Our town is awash with different value systems Though the pastor has no role in public education (schools are reluctant and suspicious of religious influence) But we still have deacons Though these big changes have taken a long time to occur The last 50 years has seen even more profound changes and organized religion has diminished in its influence on society 80 % of folks out there no longer participate regularly in “church” or = What does this mean for us? It means that the management = stewardship of the church is exceedingly more difficult than it was Expectations of church members is different Expectations of church leaders are more complex Social and cultural forces seem to outweigh religious fervor to the point where the institution itself is vulnerable We can not tax the residents of town or sell pews to support us; the church must rely on voluntary contributions to meet its budgets Its budgets which now must include the high cost of oil to heat the building, health care to sustain the pastor and family, meet the legal requirements of housing the programs and the maintain the upkeep of building that is over 150 years old Seminary did not prepare us for this…for the teachers then could not envision accurately such changes even thought they were as Prof. Nielsen indicated, quite sure that we were in a time of profound change
So we come back to these pastoral letters: 1 & 2 Timothy, and Titus and listen to the message they contain for us We do this in hope that we can reclaim the insight and wisdom put forth so long ago, that we may be again empowered to accomplish the great task of the church: to provide the next generation with the Gospel of Jesus, the good news which has since the 2nd century shaped the course of human history For we believe that the church and its practical faith, must contribute to our society and to the course of world history the content for which it was created: love and reconciliation, peace and justice and a sense of hope for humanity The way that we manage our congregation, the manner in which we conceive our stewardship of the Great Tradtion is before us and is our responsibility So the question of church leadership is a critical and penetrating part of our challenge Our lesson today articulates the cultural and personal values for leadership as held by the author: Above reproach, husband of one wife, temperate, self controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, no drunk, a gentle soul, that avoids quarrels and able to avoid being motivated by money The image of such a person would now, as then, qualify them for being a supervisor…an overseer for just about any job. A steady, stable, capable, articulate person who understands the nobility of the task, the importance of the mission, that is person who others will follow But another ancient set of values is put into play There is a parallel created between managing the church and managing the home Even then as today the healthy process of home and church households was understood While we tend now to avoid the comparison because in the past it has been used to create a double standard for pastors, we need to reexamine this linkage to see if there is yet something that can be extracted from it If our task, our mission, is to provide a Gospel faith to the spiritually hungry all about us, an observable coherence between the public behavior of our church leaders and their private practices should be evident. It seemed good to this ancient author to emphasize the relationship between the mangement of the home household and the church as household That the oversight, the supervision required a similar skill set and comprehension And in the verses just following the Bishop’s charge, the charge to the deacons continued the parallels It seemed that the expectation then, was for all church leaders was to maintain the same values and practices at home as they brought to the church For us today…the stewardship or management of the church needs this reemphasis: That whether we are pastor, or deacon, or property committee or hospitality committee, or simply a rank and file believer sitting in the pew, our task is to make our church behavior consistant with our home behavior ? what does this mean… it means that our spiritual practices of prayer and study, of meditation and reflection, of economic responsibility happen not only on Sunday, but also through the week It means that our priorities in our life styles be guided by the tasks of the church’s overall mission It means that our lives must be lived out of the center of our faith and visible to the world around us
There is great reason for us to regard the last admonition in this passage: the snares, the traps of the devil For the Reputation of the church in our time is waning From the church scandals of TV evangelists To the sex abuse of priests To the inability to articulate an attractive or persuasive invitation to attend The church is not seen as nessary to the good life which most folks seek
What we need is super-vision The word episcopas means overseer…it connotes someone who as a broader understanding of the tasks and operations of an organization (military or commercial or sports or ecclessiastical) It means someone to sees the whole and not just the parts It means someone who can manage all the interrelationships and dynamics of the systems in which we live It used to be given only to the pastor…but now, I believe, it must be shared We must all have that encompassing over view, that allows us to interact between home and work, play and worship.
As this congregation moves towards its 350th year, the tasks of leadership will be more difficult to locate/lodge in one office, the pastoral office. The leadership of the congregation will, I believe, can be shared more and more amongst the many And the many will need to understand how home and work, play and worship interact… They (you?) will need to understand and manage their reputations within the secular society so that the people of the church will be identifiable as distinctly different and unique in the way they behave and manage their lives So we all need to have the values (as mentioned in our lesson) the skills and responsibilities for “super-vision” over sight!
The supervisor of the future church will be one who is seen in his/her private and public life as a practicing disciple of Jesus the Christ, a member of a caring and concerned congregation and a capable leader of households
How we manage the church in the future is dependent not on the pastoral office, but on the people in the pews.
"Alert with Thanksgiving": November 21 Colossians 4:2-6
4:2Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with thanksgiving. 3At the same time pray for us as well that God will open to us a door for the word, that we may declare the mystery of Christ, for which I am in prison, 4so that I may reveal it clearly, as I should. 5Conduct yourselves wisely toward outsiders, making the most of the time. 6Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer everyone.
Context: thanksgiving
Well here we are once again: Thanksgiving week Our turkey is still frozen…we captured it at Stop and Shop at 47 cents a pound We have been given our assignments for the feast: besides the bird, stuffing squash and a pie of some sort The big news though, as millions anticipate traveling, is the big pat down…if you don’t want the full body scan. (ask Bruce if he’s ready) Now the stores advertise “Black Friday” specials ….used to be a term of some concern now they tweak it to get us into the frenzy of supporting our economy (things should be better this year than the last two, they forecast) Oh and football… high school teams are preparing to meet their ancient rivals onT-Day I suppose the college and pro teams are all practiced up too …so that folks will be entertained as they lay about with sated appetites, wondering if there is room for one more piece of pie… Occasionally we hear about the Pilgrims and the neighbors the Pokenokets and the brief spell of neighborliness they shared before they had a real rip roarer of a war It’s really easy now poke fun at what this season has become ( a brief preparation of feasting and shopping before Christmas consumerism takes hold) even our criticisms have become cliched All the bad qualities of American culture rise to the top While the good is sometime hidden And there is good Everywhere the issue of hunger is addressed by collections of foods and free meals Scouts, schools, TV stations, food stores all participate Churches gather to feed people (like we did yesterday) But I guess my concern is the consciousness of it all is seasonal When we celebrate our prosperity and abundance When we remember our national story It is too brief and too often too limited For thankfulness should not be a one day celebration (I’m probably not the first to say this), it should be a consistent and pervasive attitude
So we come to today’s lesson: Paul’s plea for persistent prayer Prayer we too often limit to words said over a meal, pastoral phrases from the pulpit, a brief call for help when we are driving and perhaps a time of pondering at some quiet break in our day But persistant prayer…constant offering up and words to God? Not so much a part of our lifestyle It has really been done well since Brother Lawrence practiced prayer while in his kitchen doing mundane duties of food preparation: His advice…do everything as if you were doing it for God Be constantly aware as if God was in the same room with you all the time (which of course is what we all believe…) Paul’s phrase now seems to us a bit strange: “keeping alert in it (prayer) with thanksgiving” This is of course, why I picked this verse; it mentions thanksgiving But it also calls us to a constant, everyday practice of being thankful Of being alert to the change of events and linkages of opportunities that provide for us life, health, wealth and meaning Other translations say “watchfulness” and I would add “minfulness” Paul’s plea here is for an on going awareness of how God is involved, from origin to delivery, from way back then to sometime in the distant future in every moment of our lives A belief, a trust that should make us thankful, mindfully grateful, always appreciative But, my guess is that few if any of us can maintain such a steady focus
Especially when things are not going so well! The context of Paul’s letter is Persecution He seems to have landed himself in the slammer He’s sent Onesimus with the letter back to the folks in Colossae to remind them that even when things are bad, there are opportunities to express your faith and share with others the faith that keeps us trusting the God who provides
Here we can insert the story of the Pilgims Those faithful from whom we receive our faith It was some of them, that started this church and practiced thanksgiving even when things were not so good They would have days when the whole town just stopped and worshipped thankfully Then it was not a cycle in the season but an expression of what was happening in their lives…when they had lived through difficult times and realized God was with them and upheld them: the gathered for prayer and raised up thanksgivings Pilgrims came here because of the persecutions… unfortunately they did a little persecuting themselves… but the good part of their faith was that they were constantly aware of how their faith informed their public behavior They understood that “outsiders” people beyond their fellowship learned about them through what they saw them doing within their community
Paul ends our scripture lesson today talking about Public witness (for us in the 21st century the 80% who now do not participate regularly in religious activites) Outsiders Paul described non-Christians looked upon them, in the first century with a critical gaze: why did they do what they did? What motivated thoe who followed that Jesus fellow? The early Christians must have appeared somewhat mysterious to the pagan world around them Paul reminded them, Conduct youreselves wisely toward outsiders! The attitude of gratitude, the inward awareness of God’s providence needed to be an outward appearance that invited others to understand the mystery of our faith, the belief in Jesus as God present to us providing a lifestyle of healthiness, spiritually, socially, and physically Paul knew that Christians needed to be seen as confidently gracious in making appropriate response to every criticism, every question, every pointed inquiry so that they could spread the Gospel message in word and deed Paul knew, as he languished in prison, that someone who was gracious and thankful in such a context, would be seen as completely different than others And to be so different, they must be examples of those whose behavior emerges from constant prayerfulness, mindfulness and gracious appearance
So if we are to be the 21st century witnesses of our 1st century faith, we must be seen as different from the folks around us… Not simply different, but radically different Displaying a thankful attitude, a prayerfully gracious demeanor not just during the holiday season but each and every day Our quote in the bulletin today suggests that “Seeing through the gift to God” is a manner of producing thankfulness Paul suggests that we the gift, are we? Can “outsiders” see God in us and in our thankfulness a faith that is encompassing and consistent with the care that comes from the great caregiver, the product of the Great provider? Is God’s mysterious presence revealed through us…every day and in every place…? That is of course a standard which few of us can boast but toward which all of us must aspire So in this cycle of the season, lets practice our prayerfulness, being alert with thanksgiving and hopeful that others may see how thankful we are, and understand something more about the God who provides for us!
Sermon Dialogue-"In the Wilderness Prepare": November 28
Background: Context: These verses reflect the situation in the middle of the 6th century BCE when the power of the Babylonian Empire was waning. The words are addressed to those Jews still in captivity by “second” Isaiah who is responsible for chapters 40-55 including the “servant songs.” The political fortunes of Babylon were reversed by Cyrus, the king of the emerging Medo-Persian empire. Cyrus was tolerant of the religious traditions of his vassal states and allowed exiles to return to their native lands. This happened in 538 BCE for the Jews. The tone of this section of Isiah is joyful, singing and expectant. The prophecies are rendered in long poems assuring the worshippers that God (Yahweh) was involved in the unfolding historical events. They are used by the early Christian communities to understand the person and mission of both John and Jesus; a further revealing of God’s Good News.. The text: Isaiah 40:1-11 (NRSV) 1Comfort, O comfort my people, says your God. 2Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that she has served her term, that her penalty is paid, that she has received from the LORD’S hand double for all her sins. 3A voice cries out: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. 4Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. 5Then the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.” 6A voice says, “Cry out!” And I said, “What shall I cry?” All people are grass, their constancy is like the flower of the field. 7The grass withers, the flower fades, when the breath of the LORD blows upon it; surely the people are grass. 8The grass withers, the flower fades; but the word of our God will stand forever. 9Get you up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good tidings; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings, lift it up, do not fear; say to the cities of Judah, “Here is your God!” 10See, the Lord GOD comes with might, and his arm rules for him;his reward is with him, and his recompense before him. 11He will feed his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms, and carry them in his bosom, and gently lead the mother sheep. The points for reflection… Responses to the text, questions, feelings, words/images Comfort: What is the difference between Isaiah’s audience and ours? …any similarities? What is it that burdens or captivates us in our 21st century context? Is the church captive to old habits and anachronistic practices? What is it like to be released from bondage or burden? How joyful are we these days? …what is the source of such joy? How do we publish a message of comfort today? Preparation in the wilderness What do we see in the image of wilderness? Where do we experience “wildness” now? Words associated with wilderness? How do we prepare for a new experience of God in the cycle of seasons? Could we describe the “new spirituality” that restores and renews the church as a faithful community? (see quote in bulletin…) Time Magazine: How will our technological progress make us feel about God? Ray Kurzweil: “I believe our civilization is going to be vastly more intelligent and more spiritual in the decades ahead. You can argue how we got here, but we are the species that goes beyond our limitations. We didn’t stay on the ground. We didn’t stay on the planet. Our speicies always transcends.” The frailty of the human condition Why is it important to understand that humans are like the “flower of the field”? Are we still inconstant in our relationships to God? Do we waver or become disillusioned? Why? How do we share our faith/trust in the constancy of God? The announcment of good news If there are “good tidings” that we can announce, how do others understand the message? …what do they see happening? Do we have leaders (political or religious) today within whom we see God’s presence, who relieve our fears? The image of shepherd is powerful: where do we experience this gathering up and gentle leading? Do we trust that God is still behind the events of history, shaping the future? What is the lesson for this Advent (as informed by 2nd Isaiah)?
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