In what ways do we bear witness to Jesus?

This morning we have heard words about God,

and we said these words about God as we have sung,
as we have prayed,
and as we baptised xxx.
We have also spoken to God we have also spoken to God in our prayers and our songs.

In our gospel reading this morning we hear part of Jesus prayer for his disciples, and that includes us. Often when we think about prayer we think about praying to God or to Jesus; but here Jesus is praying for the disciples, those present at the time and those yet to come, and that includes us, modern-day disciples.

I wonder what it means for us to be part of a community that Jesus prays for? Does this change the way you think about church?

The reading from the book of Acts refers to the ascension of Jesus, and I'm not going to try and explain that particular part of the story today :-).

I want us to think today about the part that talks about us being witnesses: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

Next Sunday is the day the church celebrates Pentecost, the coming of the holy spirit. Here just before the ascension Jesus again tells his followers that the holy spirit will come upon them. But it isn't just that they have the holy spirit, it is that they will be witnesses to Jesus in all the known world.

I wonder in what ways we bear witness to Jesus?

Maybe the prior question is what do we want to say about Jesus?

Do we want to talk about judgement, grace, forgiveness, sacrifice, peace,….

With most people we don't get to tell them the whole story, we don't get to talk about God's action in creation, liberation, salvation. We don't get to talk about the whole story of Jesus and how he taught and healed and welcomed outcasts. Often we don't get to use the words God and Jesus at all, because people see what we do, how we treat each other and other people.

In what ways do we bear witness to Jesus?

In the Acts reading we have the disciples looking towards heaven,

watching the last spot they saw Jesus, and two men in white robes stood before them – where have we met men in white robes in before? The resurrection story.

These particular men are recorded by Luke as asking the disciples why are they looking to the heavens?

I wonder where do we look for Jesus being active in the world today. Do we stand around wondering when something amazing is going to happen?

Jesus didn't say wait here, do nothing, stay safe. Jesus told the disciples to go and be witnesses to all the known world, starting with their own city.

 What stories to what we tell? I have a couple of examples for you from the media over the past week:

 [Image one ]

the report of the Special Commission of Inquiry into allegations of child abuse and non-reporting child abuse in parts of the Hunter Valley was released this week. This commission has concluded that yes there was child sexual abuse, and yes there was a lack of timely reporting, and an unnamed person may yet stand trial.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-05-30/hunter-child-abuse-special-commission-of-inquiry-clears-police/5488942

What in this news story do we hear about Jesus?

[Image two and three, 4]

“Church leaders are among two groups of Christians holding simultaneous sit-in prayer vigils at the Sydney office of Prime Minister Tony Abbott and the Melbourne office of Opposition Leader Bill Shorten.  ….

Among the sit-in participants are two Catholic priests, a nun, two Baptist pastors, an Anglican Priest, five Uniting Church ministers, and a number of lay church leaders. They are refusing to leave the offices until both major parties commit to releasing children from detention.” ….

The Moderator of the Uniting Church in NSW and ACT, Rev Dr Brian Brown is currently praying in Mr Abbott’s office, while former President of the National Assembly of the Uniting Church in Australia, Rev Dr Alistair Macrae is in the office of Mr Shorten. - See more at: http://www.biblesociety.org.au/news/church-leaders-stage-prayer-sit-offices-tony-abbott-bill-shorten#sthash.apdMrOIV.dpuf

 

What in this news story do we hear about Jesus?

We are a community that Jesus prays for and prays with, a community of faith called to witness to the local community and the entire world. What does our life as a community of faith, of Jesus people, say to our local community? and to the world?

Gatekeepers

Today we think about gatekeepers. I wonder what you think of when I mention that word?

[any offers?]

One small church we were part of had an annual catering job – chicken and ham salad at the local show.  As in most churches, it was announced that help was needed. Being new I offered and was gladly received. I turned up on the day and asked what needed doing. Every job the leader suggested was someone else’s job. I was glad not to get lettuce because they cut it so– o-o-o fine, I don’t think I would have managed it. Eventually they decided that I could set the tables and later wait on tables, which was fine.

Another church I knew of had one or two people who kept a tight hold on everything that happened – who had access to buildings, keys, nothing happened without there say so.

In the gospel reading this morning Jesus is described as a gatekeeper – i wonder what it means?

Does it mean Jesus doesn’t let anyone cut up the lettuce?

When I was a teenager we would regularly travel to my Grandfathers place about 45 minutes from home. We would drive through the village of Paterson [picture], you may just be able to make out the automatic railway gates. When I was travelling up there with my parents, the gates were not automatic, and they were not the style they are now. A person would ride their pushbike the few blocks from the station to the crossing, close the gates, wait for the train to pass, and open the gates again.  Sometimes it seemed to take so long for the train to arrive.  As I said these days it is automated.

 

[picture] if you are here at the church at school start or finish time, you will see one of these Lollipop  ladies helping the children and their parents to cross the road. Even with a pedestrian crossing it is dangerous for children and difficult for traffic. We know children and cars don’t mix. Without the lollipop people, traffic builds up as children and parents wander across the road, and sometimes children run to catch up with a friend.

The lollipop people stop  pedestrians form crossing until it they stop the traffic, then make sure it is safe.

 

I think maybe John’s idea of Jesus as a gatekeeper is like the lollipop people we have at school crossings.

The gatekeeper was to keep to the sheep safe, not to lock them up, not to exclude some sheep, not to ridicule. The Gatekeeper kept the sheep safe; safe and fed; safe and rested; safe in the flock.

One of the issues the church as a whole is dealing with at the moment is safety. that is in a number of ways.  All institutions involved with children are involved in the Royal Commission on institutional responses to child sexual abuse. As a congregation we need to make sure all people who are in ministry with children complete safe church training, Working with children check, and that we have good policies in place to protect vulnerable people. We also need to be aware of the safety of our property.  

Child play areas are now generally fenced, with child proof gates. Swimming pools now have to adequately enclosed.

Sometimes it seems like there are so many rules, but really there is one rule – and that is the rule of love.

At the last church council meeting we looked at the questions of what can be done to make this a safe place, emotionally, physically and spiritually? In many ways it already is, but what can be done to keep it safe, and make it safer?

 Gatekeepers aren’t for keeping people from the good things in life, or for holding onto all the power. Gatekeepers, who follow the example of Jesus, are there to protect and guide, so that all may live life to its fullest.

 Reflection [I have added images]

A sheepfold is a simple thing,

it doesn’t require any great engineering.
There may not even be a gate…
at least in the physical sense.
A sheepfold without a gatekeeper
is not secure.
A sheepfold with a gatekeeper
is as safe as safe can be.
A gatekeeper knows his sheep,
he keeps them safe and secure.
They trust and follow him.
They know His voice.
A stranger cannot deceive.
A stranger will be ignored.
A stranger’s lies will not be believed.
A stranger will not be trusted.
The gatekeeper of our hearts—
does not deceive,
cannot be ignored,
can be believed and trusted.
Christ is our gatekeeper.
We are his flock.
As we enter the sheepfold
that is a life with Him,
we know he guards us,
loves us.

In him we find fresh pastures.

He is our gateway to life.

© Spill the Beans

 Gathering Activity

Issue everyone with a small cut out picture of a sheep (ideally on thick card) as they enter the worship space. Invite people to write something on the sheep of a time when they have known that God has been close to them, for example, they have felt protected, uplifted, loved. Invite people to keep the sheep in their pocket, purse, wallet or put it on the fridge at home to remind themselves of the ongoing protection and love of God. [spill the beans]

Affirmation of faith

 

I believe I need a shepherd.

— Copyright © 2002 Bruce D. Prewer. Posted on Bruce Prewer’s Home Page.

God's nature

We have heard parts of the Matthew passion story this morning. 

I am aware that at times on Good Friday we are encouraged to think about ways in which we have failed God. I can remember being in services hearing about how I had hammered the nails into the hands and feet of Jesus.

 

I confess, I find that understanding of God, and Good Friday, difficult.

 

yes, we sin, we fall short of what God desires for our lives, we don’t live in ways that honour God or Gods creation.  We sin, and that pains God.

 

We live in a world where betrayal, violence, oppression, fear, anxiety and sorrow all exist. We live in a  world where people hurt each other, and the world we live in.

 

Today we reflect on the worst of humanity, as seen in the torture and death of Jesus; and we reflect on the best of God.

God didn’t leave us to our own devices, God didn’t give up on us or the world. God in Jesus stayed true to who he was and is.

 

A story: The Old Man and the Scorpion

One morning, after he had finished his meditation, the old man opened his eyes and saw a scorpion floating helplessly in the water. As the scorpion was washed closer to the tree, the old man quickly stretched himself out on one of the long roots that branched out into the river and reached out to rescue the drowning creature. As soon as he touched it, the  scorpion stung him. Instinctively the man withdrew his hand. A minute later, after he had regained his balance, he stretched himself out again on the roots to save the scorpion. This time the scorpion stung him so badly with its
poisonous tail that his hand became swollen and bloody and his face contorted with pain.

At that moment, a passer-by saw the old man stretched out on the roots struggling with the scorpion and shouted: "Hey, stupid old man, what's wrong with you? Only a fool would risk his life for the sake of an ugly, evil creature. Don't you know you could kill yourself trying to save that ungrateful scorpion?"

The old man turned his head. Looking into the stranger's eyes he said calmly, "My friend, just because it is the scorpion's nature to sting, that does not change my nature to save."

http://www.ic.sunysb.edu/Clubs/buddhism/story/oldmanscorpion.html

 

 

Good Friday reminds us of the nature of God.

God doesn’t rely on our faithfulness, goodness, obedience or love.  God doesn’t turn away from us, or from the world, in the face of rebellion or degradation or violence. 

We see God’s nature for what it is.

God is love,

God brings grace and forgiveness into our lives

because that is the nature of God.

 

Today, as we reflect on the cross, we see two sides, we see the inhumanity that people are capable of, and we see the great love of God.

 

resurrection - so what?

Proclamation

It is Easter again, already – where has the year gone?

And we hear the familiar story, a story of procession, of eating, of praying, betrayal, arrest, trial, crucifixion, death and burial. And this morning we hear of the resurrection, because it is Easter Sunday and we hear it every year.

This is a story we know.

Matthew has his own twist, the earthquake and angels, but basically, Jesus is killed, Jesus is alive.

So what? Yes, I know it isn’t the usual sequence of events.

 

But what does this mean to us?

We could talk about the reaction and responses of the women and the disciples, we could think about what it was like for Jesus, we can ponder the how of the mystery of resurrection.

But if that is all we do: talk about the historical reaction, have a philosophical discussion, what difference does it make?

Jesus was a trouble maker, he upset the neat ordered world of Rome.  The Emperor was considered divine, God. Sure they let the people of Israel worship their God, just as long as the religious leaders kept the people in line. Then along came Jesus, he upset the religious and civic leaders. And he didn’t even stay dead. They thought they had gotten rid of this agitator and  troublemaker, and then … he’s back!?

On Facebook this week a friend asked the question:

“Easter is about resurrection right? So I was wondering in what ways churches could witness to resurrection on Easter Sunday? In what ways can we embody resurrection not just talk and sing about it?” [Phil Newton] 

The first thing is do we believe in resurrection, do we think anything happened that we can witness to, that makes a difference?  We may say we believe that Jesus rose from the dead, but what does that matter in 2014?

The tomb was empty, The guards were told to say the body was stolen.  Which brings another question – when does an empty tomb mean resurrection, and when is it just a blank space?

 …

We live in a world where it is easy to see the pain of Good Friday; tragedies of suicide; terrorism; famine; child abuse; violence in the home; ….

But where do we see resurrection?

In our own lives we are aware of our need for God’s grace, forgiveness and love – but do we recognize God’s grace, forgiveness and love in our life?

It isn’t so easy to see signs of resurrection, new life, transformation.

It is easy to focus on the problems of the world, and on our own problems.

Resurrection is about being transformed.

This morning isn’t just about an empty tomb
This morning is about possibility
Hope
New life

 

On Friday I said it isn’t about you – Jesus dies because it was his nature to love.  Well now you get to make a decision – what do you make of the empty tomb – not only in your head, but in your heart and hands and feet and life.

It is and was and always will be the nature of God to love.

What do we do as people who are loved, who are offered transformation?

 

The angel said: do not be afraid.

Jesus said: do not be afraid.
I think it is code for –
you don’t know what might happen next
or strap yourself in for a wild ride
because being part of the resurrected body of Christ is not ordered and regimented like life was under the Romans.

A quote:

“The proof that God raised Jesus from the dead is not the empty tomb,

but the full hearts of his transformed disciples.
The crowning evidence that he lives is not a vacant grave,
but a spirit-filled fellowship.
Not a rolled-away stone, but a carried-away church.”

(Clarence Jordan).

In what ways can we embody resurrection not just talk and sing about it?”

Hosanna and Peace

We come again to the time of the Jewish festival season, extra soldiers would come into Jerusalem to keep the peace. They didn't come with a pale blue helmets of United Nations peacekeeping force. They came with sword and shield, these peace keepers are more about keeping people under control, this was a style of peacekeeping that was about holding on tightly to power.

In the passage we heard read this morning we hear of a Parade, Jesus riding into town on a donkey people waving palm branches , well not exactly waving palm branches. It says a large a very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. I can't imagine what it is like for a donkey to is tread over branches and things like that, it doesn’t sound like it would be comfortable to walk on.

What is called in some Bibles: “the triumphal entry into Jerusalem”, was a parody of the entry of the extra soldiers that came into Jerusalem at that time of year to maintain the peace of Rome.

The Roman version of peace was for everyone to do as they were told. Peace meant nobody stepped out of line, or spoke out of turn. This was really a veneer of peace, which was actually oppression. This kind of peace is easily shattered.

How often does brutality, oppression, even the law and order campaigns, come dressed in the guise of a peaceful, ordered society. Peace is not something that can be imposed from the outside. Peace is something that comes from within.

For each one of us to live in peace, in a society or community that is built on peace, it needs to be peace for everyone, not just some.

What we saw in the life of Jesus was an acceptance of people who were considered unclean, who were outsiders in some way or another. It is only when people are included, treated with dignity, have access to food, water, shelter, health care and education, that we have any chance of peace. All people need to have access to the basic necessities of life.

My guess is the day that Jesus rode the donkey into Jerusalem there were a whole lot of things happening, and many different responses. Some people would have been watching the Roman army come into town, because a crowd would have been rounded up to make sure there was a welcoming group for them; some people would have stayed home and kept off the streets for fear of doing the wrong thing; some people would have tried going about their regular daily routine; and some people came across Jesus and the disciples.

 

And we are told that the people who saw Jesus riding into town called out :

“ Hosanna to the son of David!

blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the highest heaven!”

As I said earlier hosanna was originally a plea to God asking God to come and save them. The people are crying out for God to save them from Roman oppression. I'm told that hosanna is an Aramaic word, where most of the gospel of Matthew is written in Greek. To ask anyone other than the Roman Emperor to save them was an act of treason, so calling out to God to come and help them was done in a language that most of the Romans would not have understood. While the Romans would have realised that this was a different language they would not have sensed the potential for revolution that comes in that word: Hosanna! [1]

Today, Palm Sunday, is traditionally a day for peace, a day when we think about peace. For many people it is also a day when they attend a rally for peace. While I was at college one activity that I was involved in was a Palm Sunday rally at Parramatta. While it was organised by an ecumenical Christian group, the rally started with an interfaith service or maybe multi - faith service would be a better way of putting it. People from a variety of faith backgrounds came together to pray for peace. And then together, this mixture of Christians and Buddhists and Muslims and other religions and people of no religion at all, would march from the park down to the town square, where there were some speeches. That's one march I was actually being in, rather than watching from the sidelines.

Today, Palm Sunday, there will again be a peace rally, with a march, this time in the city.

Over the centuries people have tried finding a way of bringing about peace. As I said earlier, to a certain extent peace comes from within, it cannot be imposed as the Romans tried to. But for true peace it near the dignity and life of each person needs to be respected. In mid-March the Uniting Church set aside a week called Destiny Together, it was a week set aside for prayer and fasting (though I don't know how much fasting went on), that as a church we might recognise that our future, our destiny, is tied up with the destiny of our indigenous brothers and sisters.

Our destiny, as people of God in this country, is not only connected to the people that we sit with this morning, but with all God's people. That means those of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander background . It also means people who worship in a variety of languages each Sunday. All God's people aren't only those who believe in God, but all people, for we are told that all people are created in the image of God.

While a family lives in a car because they can't get adequate and appropriate housing, while children are in detention centres on Manaus Island and Nauru, while people can't access the medical care they need because of cost, while people are treated as less because of the gender, ethnic background, sexuality or religious beliefs, none of us can truly be free, none of us are able to live in peace, if we are truly the body of Christ.

In what way are you working for peace for all people?

---

[1] Swanson: Provoking the Gospel of Matthew Page 113

Hope in despair?

Ezekiel, is one of the prophets of the old testament. The people of Israel are in exile. For people at this time God was tied tightly to the land that they lived in, so being outside of their land meant that they were distant from their God, remember the song By the Rovers of Babylon, it is based on a  psalm, which includes the words “How can we sing the Lord’s song In a foreign land?”. Another country's army beating them in battle meant that the other nations God was more powerful than the Israelites God. The people felt hopeless, they didn't know if they would survive as a nation. And God brings a vision to Ezekiel. A vision that speaks to the people of Israel on a number of levels.

The vision is of a valley of dry bones. During this time those defeated in battle were often not buried, but left for wild animals, this was another way of humiliating the defeated country.

The nation of Israel had been defeated, humiliated, and is now in exile they wondered what the future held.

I wonder have you ever felt that way, but things are going so badly that you just can't see a future at all. Can you remember a time when you lost all hope?

This is how the people of Israel were feeling. A few times in the last few weeks we've talked about our identity. Where do we find our identity, how do we live out our identity. Today is about how do we hold on to that identity and how do we rediscover it when life has changed so much.

In this vision Ezekiel speaks the bones come rattling together to form a skeleton, and then the sinews and muscles. And Ezekiel sees bodies where once there were bones. But there is still no life.

And God breathes into the bodies, and they come to life. This is similar to the creation story in the second chapter of Genesis where God makes people from dirt and breathes life into them . The breath of God is life-giving. The word for breath is ruach, the same as the word for spirit.

Right through this passage is Ezekiel listens to God, trusts God, speaks the word that God has given to him, and in the process sees new life, new hope for the nation of Israel.

Where are the places we see hopelessness and despair today? I see it in the faces of parents waiting at hospital with a sick child. I see it on the nightly news in the face of people living in war-torn areas. I see it in the body language of people who are stressed and tired. And I see it in the art that comes from children being held in detention centres.

The gospel reading we heard this morning also has images of resurrection. Notice when Jesus calls Lazarus out of the tomb it is the community who gets to unwrap the grave clothes. And yep, there is probably some smell.

As a community of faith, we are to be like Ezekiel listening for God's word, being open to the vision that God puts before our eyes. And we are to be like the people who unwrapped Lazarus, removing that which stops people from living life to the fullest.

Often I hear, and read, about the decline of the church. There may be less people going to church these days, but there is more to the Christian life than turning up to church on Sunday morning. As the people of God we are people who God has breathed life into.  The Holy Spirit dwells in us, is active in our lives. We are people who see hope when others see despair. We are people who are willing to go out of our way to remove the things that hinder fullness of life.

I sometimes wonder if the church is going back to a similar model to the early church, small groups of people meeting together to learn, to pray, to eat together, to encourage each other. What people noticed about the first disciples was the way they cared for each other and cared for those in the community who were outcasts.

What do people in this community notice about us?

In what ways are we bringing hope to those who are in despair?

who do we see

Reading through the passages this week I wondered how do we see people.  I know I sometimes hear people talking about the deaf man, or the paraplegic, or the diabetic or the asthmatic. It seems at times we are known by one element of our life. It may not be health related, it may be single parent, or refugee, or plumber, or parent.

If you were describing me to a friend, I can guess you would mention I am female, a minister, what next, I wonder?  Probably not my singing ability.

In the Old testament reading we are told that God does not look on the outside as people do, but on the heart. When we look at the person sitting near us this morning, what do you see…

What are their eyes like? Small, large, round, almond ????

Hair colour?

Clothing style?

Maybe a smile?

Now what do you see of the person, not their outward appearance, but what do you know and value about that person.

……….

I wish I had a mirror to give each of you at the moment, because I want us to do a similar exercise.

When you look at yourself in the mirror, what do you see…

Eye colour?

Hair colour?

Clothing style?

What do you like best about your appearance?

Do you have a smile for yourself?

Now what do you see, not your outward appearance, but what do you know and value about that person in the mirror?

[1 minute]

…

I know these are hard questions, but they are valuable questions.

My guess is many of you are uncomfortable thinking about what you value about yourself. Many of us grew up in a time when we were not encouraged to value ourselves.

As we move toward Easter, we are reminded of how much God thinks we are worth.

David was the youngest son, he was out minding the sheep. When Samuel asked Jesse to get all his sons, David wasn’t called in from the fields, not until none of the others was chosen. No-one was expecting David to be the chosen one, but God chose David.  God saw something in David that other people, even his family, had not recognised.

How do you think God sees you? what does God value about you? it maybe something no one else sees in you.

[1 minute]

…

I know another really hard question. For too long the church has been a place where people are told they are sinners, bad, incomplete, not good enough. Yes, we are all sinners, but that isn’t a label God pins in us to shame us.  

The people travelling with Jesus asked who sinned, the man born blind or his parents.  Here sin is a badge of shame.

Recently I read that we feel guilt when we perceive that we have done something wrong, and we feel shame when we feel we, in our being, is wrong or not good enough.

Well, the gospel tells us that we are made in the image of God, that we are loved, valued and precious to God and that we need not be ashamed of who we are.  I have met too many people who live with shame because of illness or some aspect of their life, often something in their past or their families past.  

We need to cut ourselves some slack. As I said earlier we aren’t perfect, none of us is perfect, but then God does not expect us to be perfect. The call, the challenge of the gospel is to love, to love as God loves us, to live in the way Jesus did – standing with the outcast, eating with the alienated, healing, liberating, knowing who we are in relationship with God.

To love other people, we need to know love, love of God, love of neighbour and, yes, love of self. We cannot value another person, if we don’t value our own life, our own personhood.

The neighbours of the man born blind weren’t sure if it was him after Jesus gave him sight. The focus had been on his blindness, without the blindness they didn’t recognise him as the same person.

How do we see people?

Or maybe that should be do we see, really see, people?

 [silence]

 As we sing our next hymn[1],  I want you to think about how you see yourself, as well as how you see other people.

---

[1] “Lord let me see, see more and more”  by Ross Langmead