Telling our story

Video Clip It’s Pentecost: free from the Luther Seminary website http://cbpstore.luthersem.edu/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=3&products_id=40

 

We've got a story to tell and we can’t help tell it

Just like the disciples that first Pentecost.

 

What is the story we have to tell?

How do we tell it?

 

Thinking time

Speak with people near you.

 

[hopefully some people will have ideas they want to speak about with the whole congregation]

Freedom from what?

Usually when I think about this passage I think about Paul and Silas in prison, their freedom and the conversion of the jailer and his family. But what I noticed this time, was the incident which put Paul and Silas in prison.

They were not in prison for preaching, they are in prison for taking away the income of the people who made a living out of a woman.

The woman, unnamed, is used by others to make money out of her affliction. When Paul calls forth the evil spirit, is there cheering? Rejoicing because she is no longer afflicted? No! there is anger!

When the Gospel is lived, some will be angry.

When the poor are raised up, some will be resentful.

When the oppressed are free, some will not celebrate.

The outworking of the gospel challenged the established pattern of life in Philippi; and the gospel also challenges the established patterns of life here in Australia, and around the world.

song: We Who believe in freedom - beginning only

What does it mean to live in freedom?

What does it mean for all lives to be equal?

Reflecting on this reading from Acts, I am reminded of the building collapse in Bangladesh recently. Notice it is only a week or so ago, and already it is out of the headlines, replaced by football and horse racing.

Looking at news reports, this isn’t the first time there has been a disaster in Bangladesh factories. : “It’s not the first time a Bangladesh factory “accident” has killed huge numbers of workers. 110 people died in a fire in Dhaka in November 2012, after three managers told panicking workers that it was just a routine fire drill and refused to let them leave the building, which manufactured clothing for brands including Walmart and European chain C&A.”

http://www.thevine.com.au/fashion/news/owners-arrested-after-bangladesh-clothing-factory-collapse/

[2 pictures of collapsed building] would you want to work here?

Would you want your daughter to work here?

Where is freedom for those who live and work in places like this building?

Paul freed the woman from the evil Spirit, but it is the ‘system’ that keeps so many enslaved. The evil Spirits in our world today are poverty, oppression, and greed.

solo:

We who believe in freedom cannot rest

We who believe in freedom cannot rest until it comes

The Gospel reading from John is part of the long farewell prayer of Jesus for his disciples. Note that this section begins: “I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word.” That means us; Jesus is praying for us, shortly before his death. This is the end of chapter 17, and chapter 18 is begins with the betrayal in the garden.

One of the last things Jesus did, was pray for his disciples and pray for us, each one of us. Now, I find John’s style of writing to be quite dense, but if we take a little time to read this section, the prayer is for unity in Christ, not for its own sake, but “so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” , that occurs twice in this section.

Jesus has made God known, and we are to make God known.

How do we speak the gospel message, how do our lives witness to God’s love and grace shown to us in Jesus?

We need to remember what happened to Jesus, and Paul and Silas. The message of grace, of new life, of transformation and liberation is not a popular message for those with much to lose.

Look at what happens when the Government wants implement changes in taxation and social welfare payments. This Tuesday evening the Budget will be announced, and the response will be???

At this time of year, the usual responses we hear are from special interest groups about how much they will gain or lose – various media will bring out a ‘typical’ family, a pensioner and a self-funded retiree, and ask what difference it will make to their lives – and my guess is there will be  complaints about how hard it is to make ends meet with private school fees and the cost of electricity and petrol. When interest rates go down for those with a mortgage, we hear how difficult it makes life for those living of investments. Usually no-one is happy with the budget, because they get too little.

How about instead of thinking about our bottom line, we think about what the budget means for those on the lowest incomes, what the budget means for all of God’s creation.  

Oh, but that isn’t popular. 

When did being a follower of Jesus, a disciple, an apprentice, become about popularity.

Jesus didn’t pray for the disciples because it was going to be easy, Jesus prayed that we would keep our nerve, that our lives would witness to God’s presence.

Which brings us back to Paul and Silas, in witnessing to God’s presence, they healed a woman, which led to beatings and imprisonment. While in prison they sang songs of praise and when they could have walked out of prison, they did not. This is a gospel that turns lives upside down, this is a gospel that changes the very foundations of the earth and society. This is a gospel that values all people and all creation.

Solo:

We who believe in freedom cannot rest

We who believe in freedom cannot rest until it comes

Paying attention

One article I read about the resurrection this week is headed: If It's Not Hard to Believe, You're Probably Not Paying Attention!. (1)

Most of us have heard the resurrection stories so many times they all merge together. This year we have heard from the gospel according to Luke. Luke who begins the gospel with Elizabeth and Zechariah and the birth of John; Joseph and  Mary and the birth of Jesus, the angels appearing to the shepherds, telling the good news of the birth of the saviour. And on the day of his blessing in the temple and the words of Simeon and Anna.

In the part of the story we heard today, more women and angels - the women make sure they know where the tomb is so they can go back after the Sabbath and anoint the body according to their traditions.  Notice that Luke names 3 women and adds as well as the others, so at least 5, maybe more.

Luke is a great storyteller, in this passage the thing that stood out for me is the action and emotion.

• they were perplexed at the empty tomb
• they were terrified when the angels suddenly appeared
• they remembered his words
• returning from the tomb
• these words seemed to them an idle tale
• Peter got up and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in
• Amazed

Notice no-one shouts Hallelujah, or says I told you so. No-one was expecting this to happen, even though Jesus had told them about it beforehand.

This could make a great thriller – who stole the body, the guards? The religious leaders? Did Pilate change his mind and put it back up to decay as was normal? Then the appearance of angels, and the disbelieving disciples and Peter’s amazement. Then to find out the body hasn’t been stolen, Jesus is alive?

If you read further in chapter 24, there is conversation and meal with Jesus.

If It's Not Hard to Believe, You're Probably Not Paying Attention!.

I wonder what Easter means for us today, a long weekend, chocolate, the Easter show.

I sometimes wonder if the gospels and in particular the story of resurrection is so amazing that we don’t think too much about it, because if we did it would create too many questions for us.

Between the gospel records we have Jesus appearing behind locked doors, so maybe a ghost but then Jesus eats in other stories, so not a ghost; in some of the resurrection appearances people recognise him instantly, others do not.

I have no idea about the nature of the resurrection body, I don’t know how it was done; would I have remembered Jesus words on that Sunday morning if I had been one of the women, I doubt it, overwhelmed by grief, scared of the guards reaction, and all too aware that dead means dead.

Yet I know that the resurrection is real, not because I can explain it, not because I understand it, but because of the new life I have been offered.

Why do I believe, in Jesus, in Resurrection, in salvation? I believe because of my experience, because of times when the presence of God is all that kept me breathing; because of times when I  have been aware of something happening in my life, of a warmth, a glow, a voice. I don’t understand any of these things, but they happened to me, and still do; and the Christian gospel is the what makes sense of those experiences.

Believing is one thing, but the call of Jesus is not to believe, but to follow. Not just about what is in our head, or even our heart, but our hands, our voice, our life.

If It's Not Hard to Believe, You're Probably Not Paying Attention!.

I wonder if we want the Gospel to be easy, to be about comfort and forgiveness, to be about God and me. But the Gospel isn’t just about God and me, sure there is the personal relationship that we have through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus; but there is more to it than that.   I wonder if we want the gospel to be personal and warm and easy, so that we don’t struggle with what the gospel asks of us.

 

Believing in the resurrection means not only saying yes to Jesus, but also saying no to those things that destroy life. It means committing ourselves to living in ways that are sustainable for all people, not just ourselves.  It means opening our lives to the new life we are offered, and living that out every day.

Jesus, all through Luke’s gospel is breaking down barriers, against women, gentiles and anyone considered to be a sinner. Believing in resurrection means living out that inclusion, welcome and respect for all people.

In Resurrection God is reconciling the whole of creation, sure we know it isn’t completed yet. but we also play our part in the reconciliation of all things, working as part of the new order of resurrection, not the old order of judgement and selfishness.

If It's Not Hard to Believe, You're Probably Not Paying Attention!.

Poem by Ann Siddall (2)

For those who first went out

into the early dawn, when the sky was grey,
taking spices to the tomb,
there was terror, and surprise.
.......

 What parts of today’s story do you find hard to believe?

What difference does resurrection make in your life?

 

(1) an article by David Lose

(2) http://stillpoint.unitingchurchsa.org.au/

 

genrous, humble, christ like

Over the past 5 weeks we have mainly thought about the Old Testament readings for the week. This week we make up a little for that, with 2 gospel readings and a reading from Philippians.  Each reading will be followed by a reflection and hymn.

Reading: John 12:1-8

Reflection

 

Mary doesn’t speak about her love for Jesus

Mary doesn’t stay in the background

Mary shows her love

 

During Lent we think about giving something up,

often it is seen as a sombre time,

a time for grey rather than colour;  

a time to simplify our living

 

Yet, here we have this story of extravagance, of generosity.

Extravagance, not for herself, but for Jesus.

 

This is a family that is close to Jesus, we have heard about them in the raising of Lazarus, and the argument between Mary and Martha. In this section of John’s gospel we again see Mary at the feet of Jesus. Pouring perfume over his feet, wiping them with her hair. It sounds very sensual. Judas points out the cost.

 

When Jesus responds to Judas concern for the poor, he is quoting from Deuteronomy 15. “Since there will never cease to be some in need on the earth, I therefore command you: Open your hand to the poor and needy neighbour in your land.”

 

This is not to say ignore the poor, but live generously.

 

In what ways do you live, and give, generously?

 

Prayer based on John 12

http://stillpoint.unitingchurchsa.org.au/files/2012/04/Lent-and-Easter-liturgies-Year-C-2010.pdf

 

Hymn/song : TIS 439 What shall we offer our good Lord

Offering

 

Luke 19:28-40

 

Reflection

 

Some comments:

In Luke, there are no palms, only cloaks on the ground.

In Luke, it is the disciples not the crowds who shout in praise.

At his birth the angels sang:

 ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace among those whom he favours!’

[Luke 2:14 New Revised Standard Version, Anglicised]

Here, the disciples call out :

"Blessed is the king
who comes in the name of the Lord!
Peace in heaven,
and glory in the highest heaven!"

 

At his birth, and as Jesus nears death, his is a reign of peace. Peace on earth and peace in heaven.

Can you imagine going to a parade to welcome not a winning sports team, not a political parade, but the one who brings peace without a sword?

Peace was a big issue for the community, then as now.  The Romans and Jewish leaders had their own version of peace, that is keep everyone so constrained that  nothing destabilises the empire.

That is not the kind of peace that Jesus lived, or that Jesus offers us.

Jesus does not rule us with terror and threats, Jesus offers life, and love and hope. Jesus is riding a humble animal into Jerusalem at the beginning of the festival season. A time when there is also a parade to ‘welcome’ the armed reinforcements to keep ‘the peace’.

It has been said that peace is not the absence of conflict.

How would you describe peace?

Peace in Heaven – the triumphal entry

— written by Lynette Wiebe, 2004. Posted on the Mennonite Church Canada Resource Centre website.

Hymn/song : Lord, What a Parade!

Prayers of the people      and    The Lord’s Prayer

 Philippians 2:5-11

 Reflection

“Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,”

In the first reading today we hear of a Jesus who accepted the offering of Mary, who defended her right to show extravagant love.

 

“Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,”

In the second reading we hear of a humble man, a man of peace, bringing in a peaceable kingdom.

 

“Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,”

In the letter to the Philippians we hear of a king who took the form of humanity.

We hear of a person who is humble and obedient.

 

“Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,”

 

Lent is a time when we prepare to hear again the passion story. A love story. A story of betrayal. A  story of courage and devotion. A story of fear and rejection.

 

This is a powerful story, a life changing story, a story with the potential to change the world.

 

“Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,”

 What needs to change in your life?

Hymn/song TiS 609 May the mind of Christ my Saviour

 

a new thing

“ Do not remember the former things,
or consider the things of old.
I am about to do a new thing;
now it springs forth,
do you not perceive it?”  [Isaiah 43: ]

I am about to do a new thing. The prophet Isaiah was speaking God’s word to a people in exile, a people lost, demoralised, a people who for generations had lived outside their land.

Two of the major formative periods for the people of Israel were the Exodus and the Exile. The exodus was when the people left Egypt. In Egypt they had been slaves. Moses led the people out of Egypt, through the parted waters, then led them for 40 years in the wilderness [about 1250 BC]. This story is recounted many times in the Bible. It is a story about their identity as a people.

The Exile was 6-800 years later, the people of Israel were taken during the war with the Babylonians. The country was destroyed and people were taken from the land.  

Ancient empires knew that to eradicate a people, it didn’t just mean capturing the king and army; they knew they had to destroy the vision, the  dream, the spirit if the people. Not only were armies taken captive, but poets, artists, anyone who might be able to keep the hopes and dreams of the people alive.[1]

Life was comfortable, they could settle into the ways of the Babylonians and forget who they are. In many ways we are like the people in exile. How often are we so caught up in paying the mortgage, updating the house, more and more experiences of sport or theatre, holidays in more exotic places.  How often are we caught up in the system of making money, making a name for ourselves?

It is easy to get on this escalator, and harder and harder to remember who we are, the people of God. People who are marked with the sign of the cross; people whose identity is found in Christ, not commercialism, capitalism or communism.

Prophets were not people who told the future, they were people who spoke God’s word into the public space. Not religious leaders, but people who were given a word to speak at a particular time, sometimes a word of challenge. Here in this section of Isaiah it is no longer a word of challenge, but a word of comfort. The people were broken in spirit, and Isaiah is reminding the people of God; the God who rescued them from Egypt will lead them home.

For  a people whose identity is bound up in the past, part of this reading seems strange to me, this is from an Aussie paraphrase:

“Now I say to you: Don’t dwell on the things of the past;
........don’t get bogged down in nostalgia.
I am about to do something completely new;
........can’t you see it taking shape before your very eyes?”[2]

A lot of what we do in Church is remembering the past, we remember the story of the exodus, the story of people entering a new land, the story of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. These stories are foundational to our faith. But, we too need to hear what Isaiah is saying: don’t get bogged down in nostalgia.

The stories of this country and this community; the stories of this congregation and the Uniting Church are what we build on. It is no good having foundations if that is all there is. The events of the past are just that, in many ways they shape us; but God tells us the past does not hold us or define us. Here Isaiah is telling the people to look for the new thing that God is already doing in their midst. Remember the past, because that can bring hope. In the same way God was present in the Exodus, God is present in the exile and God is present now. Remember the past, but don’t dwell in it, don’t long for the past, look to what new thing God is doing.

One thing I have learnt is that life with God means taking some risks.

I look at Mary in the Gospel reading today and think of the great risk she took; and the great love she showed. Mary risked ridicule, gossip and rejection. She showed devotion in a way that recognised that Jesus was likely to die very soon.

We need to act out of faith, and that includes taking risks:

Risking the way of Jesus, the way of love, of inclusion, of welcoming the stranger,

Risking the way of Jesus, the way of peace, of non-violence

Risking the way of Jesus, the way of generosity, of giving all, of sharing resources with those in need.

Faith is a verb, not a noun. Faith is active. Faith is acknowledging God’s faithfulness in the past, and being open and alert for what God is doing now.

“Don’t dwell on the things of the past;
........don’t get bogged down in nostalgia.
I am about to do something completely new;
........can’t you see it taking shape before your very eyes?”[3]

When do you get bogged down in the past?

What new thing can you see taking shape?

Where is your identity formed?

 

We now take some time to listen to what God is saying to us today .

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[1] Kathryn Matthews Huey on UCC SAMUEL

[2] ©2001 Nathan Nettleton www.laughingbird.net

[3] ©2001 Nathan Nettleton www.laughingbird.net

change is normal

Our themes over the past few weeks have been taken from the Old Testament

Lent 1 we looked at Isaiah 58, the reading for Ash Wednesday, as we thought about what an acceptable fast might look like.  The reading for that day was from Deuteronomy, while the people were still wandering in the wilderness. Here we thought about the dominant story in our lives. Moses gave the people rituals to remember the story of the exodus, the story of liberation from oppression, of wandering in the wilderness and the entry into an new land.  What rituals help you to remember and tell the story of faith?

Lent 2 we heard a reading from Genesis, where Abram and Sarai are promised a future, something that seemed impossible given their age and lack of children.  Do we look at the future, in despair, or can we trust God with the future?

Lent 3, last week, we read psalm 63, and thought about the ways in worship is, or is not, a safe place for people; we also heard Isaiah 55, and thought about God’s invitation to eat and drink; this led to us reflecting on the choices we make. In what ways do the choices we make give life to us and others, in what ways do the choices we make kill our spirits or inhibit life in general?

This morning we have heard a reading from the book of Joshua.  At the end of Deuteronomy, Moses dies; Moses, along with many others who left Egypt, never set foot in the promised land. Joshua was appointed by Moses to lead the people after his death. In chapter 3, the Israelites cross the river Jordan; on dry ground, as the priests stood in the middle of the river holding the ark of the covenant.

Joshua 4: 19-24 “The people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and they camped in Gilgal on the east border of Jericho. ²⁰ Those twelve stones, which they had taken out of the Jordan, Joshua set up in Gilgal, ²¹ saying to the Israelites, “When your children ask their parents in time to come, ‘What do these stones mean?’ ²² then you shall let your children know, ‘Israel crossed over the Jordan here on dry ground.’ ²³ For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you crossed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up for us until we crossed over, ²⁴ so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the Lord is mighty, and so that you may fear the Lord your God forever.””

[1]

 “Our Old Testament thread in Lent has been on the covenant between God and the people of Israel. Today’s lesson from Joshua marks another instance of where God fulfills the covenant, even when the people have gone astray. God has made a nation out of the descendants of Abraham and Sarah. God has led them through the wilderness, and now as they enter their new home, God is providing them with the stability of home. No longer will they gather manna, they will be able to grow their own crops. As they celebrate the Passover, remembering what God had done for them in delivering them from slavery in Egypt, the manna ceases, and God’s abundance is revealed in the land around them.” [2]

What has all this to do with us today, 3-3 ½  thousand years later?

The people we have been reading about, people in exile, people in the wilderness, Moses, Abram and Joshua, are our ancestors in faith; their story is part of our story – part, not all, of our story.  and like them we need to remember who we are. We are people of the story, and we need to keep telling the story, the story of a God who is faithful, the story of a God who keeps reaching out to us, who offers a future, reconciliation and a continuing presence.  The people of Israel had markers, like the stones at Gilgal; rituals like the Passover, times when the story would be told, times when people would hear and remember and tell the stories of faith. 

We too have rituals, we too have places that mean something to us, we too look for ways to tell and retell the story of God’s love and grace and persistence with a stubborn people.

We do that each time we baptise and celebrate communion; we also tell the important stories of the birth and death and resurrection of Jesus each year. Christmas and Easter are celebrated in the wider community, but for us they are times to tell the story of birth, of shepherds and angels and wonder, to tell the story of trial and crucifixion, the story of an empty tomb, of new life.

We often think of change as something new. Moses and the people went through great change; at times the people in the wilderness wanted to go back to the known, which was oppression under Pharaoh. For many people trying something new, something different is so risky, that it is easier to stay where we are, even if that is not a healthy place to be.

“The fear of change can overwhelm us, paralyse us and keep us from living. But that is not our only option.

Changes on this journey to the Promised Land – even when the rules change and nothing is predictable anymore – also mean that everything is about to become new. Life is about to emerge from death. That is God’s promise.

Even as change sweeps over us, can we be ashamed no more? Can we give up what is holding us back or holding us down? Can we move towards the Good News of Jesus Christ? Can we keep joy in our hearts?” ^[3]

Without change there is stagnation and decay. The reading from Corinthians today includes the words: Anyone who belongs to Christ is a new person. The past is forgotten, and everything is new. God has done it all!^[4]

[5] 

 

Where is God calling us to tell the story in a  new way?

Where is God calling us to embrace change?

[leave image up]

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[1] Prepared in PowerPoint by Carolyne Chandler, based on the Lion Handbook to the Bible and generated as an animation by pyvnc2swf

http://www.croydon.unitingchurch.org.au/www/ot_history.html

[2] By Rev. Mindi On March 1, 2013

 

[3] By Jodi H. Beyeler, assistant director of communications and marketing Goshen College

[4] 2 Corinthians 5: 17-18 Contemporary English Version (CEV)

[5] Unfortunately I can’t remember where this came from - an image which has on it 'we live in a time of momentous historical change that is both exhilarating and frightening christianity itself is becoming something different to what it once was' Diana Butler Bass