Message Archive

Genesis 45:3-11, 15 1 Corinthians 15:35-38,42-50 Luke 6:27-38 Psalm 37:1-12, 41-42

Jesus said, “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.” [Luke 6:27b-28]

Jesus is speaking of transformation.  As in last week’s lesson, we are hearing the words of the Sermon on the Plain; the crowd remains seated in this level place, eye-to-eye with Jesus who is speaking to them of their shared poverty and hunger and earthly burdens.  Last week, we heard the dire warnings of allowing our desire for earthly prosperity to distract our sense of dependency on God. In our poverty and hunger, God is our central focus.  Woe to us if we come to believe that earthly wealth and joy are of our own making, or for that matter, are even relevant in our place within the Kingdom of God that is here now and is to come.

Discipleship, Jesus assures us, is costly.  Discipleship requires our continued central focus on God’s guidance, especially when confronted with the inevitable difficulties that tempt us away from the path.  Last week’s lesson provided the assurance that being hated, excluded, reviled, and defamed on account of our faith in Jesus Christ is, in fact, cause for rejoicing in anticipation of our heavenly reward.

As faithful disciples, focused on God’s guidance, Jesus is giving us instructions as to how we are to respond to those who treat us so harshly.  We read in the verses that follow last week’s verses that we are to love those whom we consider to be our enemies; we are to do good to those who hate us, bless those who curse us, and pray for those who abuse us. We are not to judge or condemn; we are to forgive.  These are truly tough tests of our discipleship.  Jesus’ power went out of him so that the sick within the crowd on the plain were healed and transformed into healthy disciples.  Just so, through the power of our faith in Jesus Christ, we can expect to be transformed, putting aside our hatred – God’s grace transforming our wounds into deeper faith – deeper commitment to God’s guidance – transforming our wounds through God’s restorative mercy directed toward those who have wounded us – healing and restoration, rather than our ongoing quest for retribution.

Likely, there is no better example of restorative relationship through God’s transforming mercy than that of Joseph and his older brothers about whom we read in our Old Testament lesson for today.

Recounting the history, Joseph was the younger of the two sons born to Jacob, Father Israel, by his most beloved second wife Rachel who had died giving birth to Joseph’s younger brother.  Of his twelve sons by four different mothers, Joseph was by far his father Jacob’s favorite; Jacob made no effort to hide his preference, and Joseph made every effort to flaunt his position as his father’s favorite child.  Of course, Joseph became an intolerably spoiled brat; he sneakily spied on his ten older brothers, then tattled to his father on their actions, intentionally inciting his father’s displeasure toward them.  To add insult to injury, Joseph had visionary gifts; he had distinct dreams of future times when his brothers would pay homage to him; and he relished in the opportunity to share the lofty details of these dreams with his incensed older brothers.  This is the Joseph of the “Coat of many Colors”; imagine Joseph strutting and sashaying in his luxury in front of his brothers as he displayed this emblem accentuating himself as the favored son.

Finally, pushed to the brink of their tolerance, a rare opportunity presented itself: Joseph arrived one day to bring a message to his brothers, out on the pastures, far from their father.  The brothers had Joseph to themselves without their father’s supervision.  As it happened the pastures were along the well-traveled trading route to and from Egypt.

Upon Joseph’s arrival, the thought of murdering their younger brother in this isolated place was tempting.  Fortunately for all, the more reasonable and humane decision was made to sell Joseph to the passing slave traders.  Their deed accomplished, having stripped away the fancy coat and having soaked it in animal blood, the brothers headed home to convince their father that Joseph had been attacked and mauled to death by a vicious animal.  Father Israel lived with this grief for many years to come.

However, in reality, during these many years held captive in Egypt, Joseph had lavished in God’s blessings.  In the years that followed his capture, Joseph’s gift of dream interpretation and his diligence to seek God’s guidance led Joseph to navigate through difficulties, to find favor with the Egyptian pharaoh, and to rise to a position of great prominence in Egypt.  All this gained prestige allowed Joseph, with God’s help, to provide the resources needed to accommodate his family’s desperate needs – the remnant of God’s people preserved through Joseph’s willingness to forgive and restore his relationship with his brothers.  Escaping famine in their homeland, the people of Israel joined Joseph in Egypt where they made their home for the next 400 years, until the time of Moses.

The horrendous unthinkably evil deed of Joseph’s brothers, through God’s transformation, had culminated in their preservation.  Guided by his faith in God’s mercy, by virtue of Joseph’s transformation into a healthier, more humble child of God, there was no misdirection toward retribution; the relationship with his family was restored, Israel was preserved.  Joseph “kissed all his brothers and wept upon them.”  [Genesis 45:15]

If you truly want to experience the transformational power of your faith, begin today praying diligently for someone in your life with whom you are estranged; pray diligently, make this your Lenten discipline.  Pray intentionally and diligently every day, every time thoughts of this person come into your mind.  Pray diligently that your own position will be clarified and transformed.  Pray diligently to experience the power of Jesus Christ to heal the brokenness.  This is not to say that all relationships are meant to be restored in a conventional sense; perhaps it will be best that the relationship can come to a healthy closure. Nevertheless, you will experience God’s healing mercy; the relationship will be restored in a meaningful way that will allow you to live into this healing mercy.

One of the most meaningful prayers in our Book of Common Prayer is the Prayer for our Enemies.  It is most meaningful in that it doesn’t cast blame; it simply allows us to consider more intentionally God’s presence in the healing process – the third presence that we are called continuously to acknowledge. Turning now to that prayer on page 816, let us pray together.

For our Enemies

O God, the Father of all, whose Son commanded us to love
our enemies: Lead them and us from prejudice to truth:
deliver them and us from hatred, cruelty, and revenge; and in
your good time enable us all to stand reconciled before you,
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Jeremiah 17:5-10 1 Corinthians 15:12-20 Luke 6:17-26 Psalm 1

Blessed are those who trust in the Lord,
whose trust is the Lord.

They shall be like a tree planted by water,
sending out its roots by the stream.

 Did you know that there are dogs who have better lives than you?  So says e-trade investment advisers. One scene in their TV ad is of a yacht passing down the waterway with immaculately groomed poodles as captain and crew.  If you are envious, access e-trade; quite magically, your investment profits will increase, allowing you to be captain of your own yacht.

And, did you know that “inspired days begin with inspired closets?”  The secret of our daily inspirations is an enormous well-organized, well-stocked closet. Log on to find out more.

And then, feeling inspired, you can download an app on your phone that allows you to order from hundreds of restaurants of every imaginable ethnicity of food available for delivery in mere moments.  The catchphrase “I want it all, and I want it now” indicates that, through this app, all culinary desires and hungry bellies can be satisfied deliciously and immediately. The ad ends with a patron opening the door to a cadre of delivery drivers arrayed in their individually designated server attire.  “I want it all, and I want it now.”  Who knew that was available on your phone?

We really are turtles on a fencepost who think we got there all by ourselves. From Luke’s Gospel lesson for today, Jesus has some rather harsh words for us who want it all and want it now and are under the assumption that we can get it all by ourselves.

When we reflect on what kind of people we would be if we could have it all and have it now, our ears tune to Jesus’ words of woe to the wealth seekers gathered there on the plain.  When we reflect on the danger of misinterpreting our material prosperity as being attainable through our own efforts, the words begin to pound on our ears.

With these reflections, confronted with the question of why bad things happen to good people, we see the question in reverse:  What if bad things never happened?  What if bad things [loss of job, poor health, death of loved one] only happened to “bad” people?  Where do we draw the line between who’s good and who’s bad?  What if poverty was in direct relation to “badness,” and wealth in direct relation to our “goodness”?  Imagine the judgment we would inflict upon our neighbors every time they experienced hardship.

Well, we’re certainly not bad people, so we must have gotten on top of our fencepost by ourselves?  Jesus is warning us that when we become bathed in our self-satisfaction, God becomes an afterthought.  Woe to us.

Jesus confronts us with the fact that when our joy and peace are based on our materialistic prosperity, God becomes an afterthought; our faith falls hostage to shallow uncertain illusions; our discipleship is half-hearted at best. Woe to us.

In contrast, among the crowd seeking Jesus on the plain are those who have come for healing.  These among the crowd, desperate for healing, are clinging to every word from Jesus’ mouth. God is not an afterthought; there is no half-heartedness in their desire to follow; they have found the firm foundation for which they are searching.  They have found healing through their awareness of dependency on the divine grace offered to all through Jesus Christ.  They are blessed by their awareness of their dependency on God.

When we step out into a snowstorm without our coats, we may be able to keep moving and keep ourselves relatively warm and alive for a period of time, but eventually, we are going to freeze to death.  When we recognize our dependency on warm clothing before we step out into the freezing cold, then we can survive in the elements for the necessary period of time.  Similarly, perhaps we can make it on our own in our earthly endeavors for a while, with God as an afterthought, but the inadequacy of our self-sufficiency inevitably becomes an obvious conclusion.

The conclusion of our dependency on divine grace is our first step toward discipleship. Jesus is demonstrating divine grace in the healing of the people on the plain; Jesus is bringing the message of hope to the poor and the hungry who are completely disposed to their dependency on divine grace; but, Jesus’ primary purpose is to confront the great crowd of disciples in his audience with the consequences of their discipleship – to confront the disciples with their responsibility to the poor and hungry. Did you miss that element in the first line of our Gospel lesson for today?  Within Jesus’ audience was a “great crowd of disciples.”

Two thousand years later, Jesus continues to confront his disciples – the Church – and WE are the Church – with the consequences of our discipleship.

Our first step toward discipleship is to realize we don’t get on that fencepost by ourselves; we are dependent upon God; our foundation is divine grace.  If our material prosperity is our assumed reward on earth, Jesus warns that it is an empty reward; and, it is of no significance to our spiritual prosperity.

Our second step toward discipleship is recognizing the poor and hungry among us and acknowledging our responsibility to provide food and healing and hope.  It is our responsibility as the Church to turn the world upside down in its understanding that true wealth is in spiritual prosperity, and that materialistic hardship is not an indication of God’s displeasure.  In fact, it is through our hardship on earth that we are challenged again and again to return to God and discover the blessing of humility.  We might lose our jobs; we might lose our good health; we might lose loved ones dear to us; but we never lose God.  This is our radical message for the world.

We want it all and we want it now.  Jesus wants all of us to be his disciples, and he wants us now.  Through Jesus Christ we have it all and we have it now; we are rich in faith.  We shall be as a tree planted by water, sending out it roots by the stream, roots reaching immeasurable blessings upon the poor and hungry.  Blessed are we.

Jeremiah 1:4-10 1 Corinthians 13:1-13 Luke 4:21-30 Psalm 71:1-6

‘The word of the Lord came to me saying, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you.’”

We are now 40 days out from December 25^thon which we celebrated the birth of Christ. In Jewish tradition, it is required that 40 days after birth, the mother appears before the priest for the purpose of purification.  It was on this occasion, 40 days following the birth of Jesus, that his parents visited the Temple in Jerusalem as required for Mary’s purification, and in order to present Jesus, their firstborn child, to be designated “holy to the Lord.”

We read the account of the purification/presentation in Luke’s 2^ndchapter in the verses that follow soon after the narrative of Jesus’ birth.  Every year on February 2^nd, we celebrate the Feast of the Presentation, reading the beautifully poetic words of Simeon, whom the holy family encountered on this visit to the Temple.  We know these words of Simeon as the nunc demittis:

“Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace,
according to your word;

for my eyes have seen your salvation,
which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,

a light for revelation to the Gentiles
and for glory to your people Israel.”

We acknowledge yesterday’s Feast of the Presentation, as it relates to our lessons assigned for today, the 4^thSunday after the Epiphany.

Luke’s account of Jesus’ inaugural address in the synagogue in his hometown of Nazareth that led to the confrontation with the religious leaders comes early in Luke’s record of Jesus’ life and ministry.  In these early chapters, we move quicklyfrom the glorious adoration of the infant Jesus by the angels and shepherds and later by Simeon in the Temple; we move quickly through these early life episodes to this outrageous threat of deadly assault on the adult Jesus by his own hometown community.

Luke is eager for his readers to become aware that Jesus was not born for the typical earthly glorification and luxuries associated with lords and kings as would have been expected by his fellow Jews.  Already, Jesus, at the very beginning of his ministry, has spent time in the wilderness where he was taunted by the devil; today we read of his return to Nazareth where he was rejected by the people closest to him throughout his upbringing and early adult life.

The babe Jesus was not born for earthly glorification and luxury normally awarded to earthly royalty.  Jesus came to this world of sin, to live among sinners where he would be taunted by the devil and rejected by his own people.  Because of this sin and evil, Jesus came knowingly, intentionally, and willingly to reveal the light of salvation to all people; he would be rejected by his own people for his message that the salvific power of God included all people – even the Gentiles, considered up until Jesus’ time to be the non-believers – those non-redeemably outside the realm of God’s people.

As was characteristic of Jesus’ innovative teaching style, he used stories or parables to clarify his message.  To make his point in today’s lesson, Jesus reminds his audience of the experiences of the great prophets Elijah and Elisha.   Both accounts to which Jesus refers would be very familiar to this group.  Both prophets were held in highest regard.  To this day, at Passover, the Jews fill a cup of wine and place it on the Seder table for Elijah.  They then stand and wait for the prophet to enter along with the Messiah.  And Elisha, Elijah’s successor, received Elijah’s mantle in a great whirlwind as Elijah rode into heaven in a great chariot drawn by horses of fire.  The accounts tell of these great prophets of Israel reaching out to and being accepted by individuals who were notamong the people of Israel:  Elijah reached out to the broken and destitute widow – a foreigner, an outsider waiting to die; Elisha healed Naaman – a man of great faith in Elisha’s God, though a foreigner and an outsider, and most importantly, a member of the enemy army.  Elijah and Elisha reached outside the boundaries of acceptable norms of their day.

Jesus’ message is that it is the responsibility of all the elite hearers of the Word to carry that message to those who exist inside andoutside the margins of society – inside and outside our comfortable chosen companions. Jesus is telling us that His coming to fulfill the prophecy is not for us only, but for outsiders – those from whom we divide ourselves in society.  This is not at all what Jesus’ own people had expected; this is not the Messiah they thought they had been waiting for.

The elite religious leaders within Jesus’ audience in the synagogue in Nazareth were incensed by this outrageous message.  This message is the message of divine love – love without fear.  Perhaps, we too are uncomfortable with Jesus’ message of love without fear.

Paul speaks of love in our epistle lesson for today.  The Greek word for this love of which Paul speaks is αγαπν – self-giving love – the type of love that Jesus modeled for us.  We are called to love without fear, without condition, as God loves us, as Jesus came to exemplify for us.

The good news is αγαπν, – the unconditional self-giving love of Jesus Christ.   The good news is that, even in the face of rejection and suffering, persecution and death, the Eternal Word that is Jesus Christ is for all.  And, it will not be stopped.  He is here, now, in our midst.  Divine love will overcome all evil in God’s time on God’s terms.

Certainly, it is easy for us to stand by in critical assessment of this attitude of the religious leaders in Jesus’ audience.  Yet, we too, at times, are taunted by the devil to exclude others from the message of divine love – the message of love without fear.  We, too, at times, drive out the message of divine love when confronted with its uncomfortable realities.

Ringing in our ears are the words of Simeon giving glory to God for salvation provided for allpeople, coming to earth in the human person of Jesus Christ – this babe Jesus, recognized by Simeon as the one who was to be the “light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to God’s people Israel.”  The writer of Luke knew of the power of this divine love – and of its cost.  We are not to let Jesus’ message of divine love for all slip out of our midst; we are to carry the special message of Jesus’ radical self-giving inclusive love -the “light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to God’s people Israel.”

Each of us, the Lord knows before we are formed in the womb.

Each of us consecrated before we are born.

Each of us appointed to bring the message of divine love as light to all people – to all nations.   Thanks be to God.

Nehemiah 8:1-3, 5-6, 8-10 1 Corinthians 12:12-31a Luke 4:14-21 Psalm 19

The most famous of all biblical metaphors is the one described in Paul’s letter to the Corinthians that we explore this morning.  This is the metaphor that equates the Church with the human body. None of us would choose to give up a portion of our body; none of us would choose to give up a portion of our church – this specific Body of Christ designated as the Episcopal Church of the Advent.  Do you realize that you are an essential part of that body, and that without you, our body is not complete?  Without you, we are less able to walk as steadily; without you, we miss part of our vision; without you, we do not hear as clearly.

Perhaps you misinterpret your ministry here as insignificant.

Ed, have I expressed to you how comforting it is to know that you will arrive at 7:30 a.m. every Sunday morning to unlock the doors and turn on the lights and be present here until others arrive?  It is quite unwelcoming to arrive here and find doors locked; Ed’s efforts assure that the rest of you arrive within the spirit of welcome, light, and warmth.

Do you realize that when I arrive here at 7:00 a.m. and the AC or heat is sounding funny, I roust Toby from that last little bit of a morning snooze to come and offer his expertise in the interest of your comfort?  And, he comes willingly.

Dick, have you any idea how many of the acolytes wear the crosses you have fashioned in your woodshop?  Chuck, Phyllis and Gladys, your contributions as greeters/ushers don’t go unnoticed. How many visitors could we count who have been made to feel welcome by your warmth and hospitality?

For those not on the Altar Guild, do you realize that as you go about your Saturday errands, the Altar Guild team for the week is gathering and arranging the flowers for the altar; polishing the silver and brass; updating the hymn boards; replacing the tabernacle candle; changing the altar hangings; checking supplies of wafers, wine, wicks, and oil? – all this, before beginning to set the Table for Sunday Eucharist, which they do with a great sense of reverence and diligence for every service of Holy Eucharist.

Choir members don’t wake up on Sunday morning and say, “Ugh, I don’t think I’ll make it to church today.”  They know they’ll be solely missed and that worship is not complete without them. And, Rebecca doesn’t just arrive here on Sunday and magically pound out the hymns for the day.  She spends time early in the week making the final decisions on hymns, communicating with the office; selecting hymns, not only that expand upon and coordinate with the lessons, but bring joy for you to sing.  And, while you’re snoozing through the news on Wednesday evening, she and the choir are rehearsing so that our Sunday worship is complete with the praise of their music leadership.

How many of you sit in awe of our lay readers and chalice bearers who are willing to pursue these ministries while so many fear being asked to stand and speak in public?  We thank Danielle for keeping these lay ministers scheduled and informed each week.

How many of you are aware that long after you have headed home to lunch on Sunday, Terrance is here wiping down the tables in the Parish Hall and gathering up our trash?

Do you wonder where your Sunday offerings go once you place them in the alms basin. Lorena, Margaret, and others gather the offerings we bring; and they do not leave on Sunday afternoon until all is counted, recorded, and prepared for deposit and records are updated.  Then, they return on Tuesdays to pay the bills and reconcile all accounts.

Mary Beth, as junior warden, I am sure cannot begin to count the hours and frustrations she has devoted to buildings and grounds, mostly overseeing long-overdue rectory repairs.

And, I cannot begin to list the behind-the-scenes tasks to which Bill Menheer constantly and steadily attends – not just on Sunday morning, but throughout the week.  He along with a cheerful few keep the kitchen abuzz, snacks for our coffee hour enjoyment, and the endless cleanup week after week.

Your vestry meets at least once monthly.  Seldom do we have less than perfect attendance.  Today, we elect new vestry members to join those remaining, and we are grateful for their unselfish commitment.

How about the children?  Do any of you parents fully realize the joy it brings – the comfort it brings – to see these children being brought up in the Church, participating in our worship. As they have been baptized, we have pledged to support them and nurture their Christian upbringing.  Thank you for your persistence in getting them here on Sunday.

These references include mostly Sunday ministries; there are unlimited hours between Sundays devoted to our various and life-changing ministries through the food pantry, clothes closet, lending library, AA groups, Boy Scouts, unrecorded efforts of evangelism, and numerous fervent prayers as we pray for one another.

To amputate any of these ministries would leave our Body less than complete – handicapped in our function.  We could spend time speculating on the Body of Christ beyond this local setting, expanded to all Christendom – The Body of Christ.  What limb would we lop off?  What eye would we pluck out?  When any one individual steps away, the body is diminished; we are reduced in our ministry. If any one part of our body is hurting, it is felt throughout the entirety of our body.  When you are in pain, this body is in pain.

Conversely, as our vitality and numbers increase, we grow tall and healthy in our ministry.

The words of the prophet Isaiah that Jesus shares with the listeners in the synagogue are not meant for that first century audience only, they are just as relevant for us.  We hear those words as they apply to Jesus; we hear those words as they apply to us – the Church – the Body of Christ.  So, let us change the pronoun so that we hear this message as it calls us – this Body of Christ – to our evangelistic purpose:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon us,

because he has anointed us
to bring good news to the poor.

He has sent usto proclaim release to the captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,

to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

We’ve come to celebrate this day in this our 100^thyear – to celebrate our mission and ministry as the Body of Christ – good news to the poor, release to the captives, sight to the blind.  This “day is holy to our Lord, for the joy of the Lord is our strength.”

Isaiah 62:1-5 1 Corinthians 12:1-11 John 2:1-11 Psalm 36:5-10

As is so typical of John’s Gospel account, our lesson this morning is fraught with theological imagery, deep symbolism, and the unmistakable presence of the Holy Spirit.  Rather than miracle, the writer John refers to this event as the first “sign” indicating God’s all-powerful presence in the human person of Jesus Christ.  There would be other “signs” to come, and we should pay close attention to these signs.

The scene is a wedding feast, which we so frequently equate with the Holy Eucharist; Isaiah speaks of the joy of the bridegroom over his bride as symbolic of God’s joy over us, his people.  The true bridegroom is the host of our weekly feasts, and he invites us to come again and again.

Then, there are empty vessels that become filled abundantly and miraculously to overflowing with the finest of wine.  We are drawn to the reality of the presence of Jesus Christ filling our emptiness over and above our expectations.

And, there is the God bearer, the Theotokos, herself the vessel of the abundant miracle of the Incarnation and, now, the instigator of this very familiar transformation of water into wine.

Jesus’ mother, who remains unnamed in our Gospel account, surely is aware that her son was born exclusively for God’s purpose; in this case, she seems to prod him to get on with his mission – a prodding Jesus doesn’t seem to appreciate. In this way, the writer catches our focus and broadens our understanding of the human aspect of the beginnings of Jesus’ earthly ministry.  Jesus and his mother seem to be struggling for clarity of their roles in this encounter and how and if the empty wine vessels enter into God’s plan.  We, too, need to struggle, question, and discern our calling to ministry – where we begin, how that ministry takes shape as we remain clearly focused on God’s call on God’s terms in God’s time.  In this account of the Wedding in Cana, Jesus came to understand clearly that he was called to fill these empty jars to overflowing with the finest of wine; we too are called to fill the emptiness of the world for the common good of the Gospel message.

This filling of emptiness is accomplished often through unexpected and creative means.  When our daughters were in middle school, the morning student drop off procedure was a serious matter as it is and should be everywhere.  Not only was there concern for student safety in getting from the car to the sidewalk, it was necessary for the long line of vehicles to move smoothly; otherwise, traffic would back up on a busy through street during morning rush hour.  Parents dropping off their children quickly became aware that the drop off rules were specific and non-negotiable.  Children were not to exit the car before arrival at the appropriate location, and upon arrival should not tarry to gather up belongings and be out the door.

Combine all this with the natural tendency of eleven to thirteen-year-olds to be somewhat less than attentive and congenial before 8:00 a.m. on a school day.  How then, could a school possibly accomplish such a critical feat without a team of no-nonsense traffic cops?

Not so, in this case.  Here, directing this hurry scurry conglomeration of frustrated parents, sleepy-eyed preteens, and mislaid lunches and homework, was one tiny female teacher, tiny in stature, but hugely energetic and creative in nature, hiding beneath the silly hat of the day.  Successfully capturing everyone’s necessary attention and respect, approaching children and parents were eager to spot the day’s headdress.  It’s hard to be crabby when you are being greeted by a lady with an enormous and ridiculous crab on her head.  The morning’s grumpiness subsided in cheeriness.

This woman was the Martin Middle School Miracle.  The traffic flowed, the students smiled, the entire disposition of a cold dark morning became sunny and light.  Lunches and homework still got mislaid, but lives were safely redirected with a positive rippling effect.  This tiny woman under the crab was following her call to ministry.

The spiritual gifts about which the Apostle Paul writes in his letter to the people of Corinth do not specify which ones require wearing silly hats, but Paul’s words are clear in specifying our variety of ministries that are the manifestations of our individual spiritual gifts – manifestations for the common good, which is the essential question.  Does this service or activity meet the common good?

Paul writes that there are a variety of services and activities, but all from one spirit.  He lists spiritual gifts as the utterance of wisdom and knowledge; in addition, sharing the faith, bringing healing, and working miracles (such as cheerfulness to the morning student drop off); and, there are others that we too often assume are elusive or archaic – prophecy, discernment of spirits, speaking in tongues, and interpreting the speaking of tongues.  These spiritual gifts are just as real today as ever, and we should not sneer or dismiss the reality of any of these spiritual gifts and certainly not the manifestation of common good that they produce.

Our spiritual gifts and calls to ministry are various, but the Apostle Paul reminds us that they are from one Spirit in which we are united.  This was a particularly important message for the people of Corinth whose Greek ancestry revered multiple gods and spirits.   Newly adopted into the Body of Christ, their greeting had become, “Jesus is Lord.”  United with these earliest Christians, our affirmation is the same.  Our constant discernment is focused on the common good.

We began last week’s service of Holy Baptism with the opening acclamations for the Liturgy of Baptism found on page 299 of the Book of Common Prayer.  We acclaimed these words:

Jesus is Lord; his earthly presence is the manifestation of all common good.  Jesus is Lord.  There are empty vessels in this wedding feast we call life.  Often, they are not easily identified by familiar criteria. Before this day is past, make it your ministry to transform the emptiness to abundance – abundance for the common good – that the Good News of Jesus Christ might be revealed in glory and all will believe.

Zephaniah 3:14-20; Isaiah 12:2-6 (1st Song of Isaiah); Philippians 4:4-7; Luke 3:7-18

Today is Gaudete (gou-day-tay) Sunday.  The name is the Latin word for the first word of our Epistle lesson for today from Paul’s letter to the people of Philippi.  “Rejoice.”  “Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say Rejoice.”

Gaudete Sunday, traditionally the 3^rdSunday of Advent in the Western Church, is the day we take a break from the penitential focus of this preparatory season and bask for a while in the celebratory rose.  Our lectionary gurus of long ago assigned us these celebratory lessons from Zephaniah and Isaiah and Philippians.  So, we are called today to rejoice in this proclaimed foretaste of Christmas joy. In recognition of that joy, we will light the rose candle of our Advent wreath.

What is it to rejoice in the Lord always?  What is joy? And, how do we find joy amidst such hardships and unthinkably horrible tragedies as those that confront us with every hour of “breaking news.”

What is joy?  Joy is the inbreaking of God into the mundane routine, the happiest celebrations, and the grievous tragedies of our daily lives – the smell of salt air or ginger cookies, a song that reminds us of happy times.  Marriage counselors know well that one of the first steps toward healing a troubled couple is to help them recapture the joy of their courtship.  What was it that brought them together?  Sometimes, hopefully often, as God’s children, a sense of joy just seems to overtake us at a dark hour with an indisputable confidence that God is present with us and that all will be well in His Kingdom.

Explaining joy is beyond our human limitation of language and understanding.  But, we can cite some characteristics.  Joy brings us patience in our trials and tribulations, as we remain confident that God’s threshing process, of which John the Baptist speaks in our Gospel lesson, will separate the good grain from the chaff – all on His time and terms – not ours.  We long patiently for an ever-deepening relationship with God, our neighbors in need, and our most beloved.

Our joy brings a non-anxious presence that allows us to move calmly through the trials of each day – even the tragedies of the day.  How often do we remind ourselves in the face of grave difficulties that we just need to get through today – one day at a time.  Contemplating the fears that lie beyond will paralyze us.  We seek that non-anxious presence that allows us to devote our energies toward embracing the blessings, moment by moment.

And, thus, we come to God in prayerful humility, accepting that God is all-powerful – omnipotent, and that we are dependent upon His direction in all things just as we are dependent upon our winter coats to keep us warm.  We come to God with a greater sense of thanksgiving, coming worthily though aware of our unworthiness.   Joy comes when we can, with gratitude, successfully lay our cares and anxieties in God’s hands – when we can say along with Julian of Norwich, “All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well.”

And, with joy’s non-anxious presence comes peace.  Peace – that peace beyond our human understanding that keeps our hearts and mind in the knowledge and love of God and his son Jesus Christ – positive peace, not simply the absence of violence or conflict.   Peace is beyond our human understanding and articulation.  When we have come through the process of a difficult decision or we have accepted grievous circumstances that we cannot change, we say we are at peace.  What a blessing it is to us when a loved one facing a life-threatening diagnosis can say to us, “I am at peace.”  This peace of God that passes our human understanding is placed mercifully within our reach as we seek a right relationship with God.

Joy brings patience, release from our anxieties, and peace.

John’s message to the Jews who gathered at the River Jordan was that their title as children of Abraham – the chosen people of God, had no merit if their lives did not bear good fruit. John’s message for us would be that our title as Christian has no value if it bears no fruit.  The title as Christian in and of itself does not entitle us to joy.   Our joy comes from the experience of God’s bountiful grace; our joy comes in the bearing of the good fruit; our joy comes in the accepting of the responsibility of our title as God’s children commissioned to spread the Good News of the Gospel to all the ends of the earth.

C.S. Lewis would say that joy is the serious business of heaven.

None of us has the satisfactory answers to the many questions that haunt those around us suffering deep grief in the season of joy.  The bittersweet message for Gaudete Sunday is that tragedy reminds us that we have reason to rejoice – not that I would dare say those words to someone in raw deep grief. We do rejoice, though, that there is no evil that can snuff out the goodness of God.  In the words of St. Francis of Assisi, “All the darkness of the world cannot extinguish the light of a single candle.”

But, each of us can be that single candle that the darkness cannot extinguish – that single candle that is the inbreaking of God, bringing joy into the dark lives of those who are suffering.

In the name of Christ, be that single candle.  (Light candle)

Baruch 5:1-9; The Song of Zechariah; Philippians 1:3-11; Luke 3:1-6

Most of us can remember a time when traveling across state was a major undertaking. My grandparents on both sides lived a half day’s journey from the coast.  We would leave at day break for the long hot journey to my grandmother’s home in Greensboro, NC.  My father had a ritual; into the trunk would go his coveralls and work gloves, his tool box, some hoses; he would evaluate the tires, change the oil, and check the battery.  Always be sure you have a good battery and good tires.

Our early morning setoff would carry us through every one-stoplight town and busy crossroads, creeping along narrow two-lane roads around sharp curves, stop sign after stop sign, as the July heat increased and the terrain became hillier. There were few clean available restrooms along the way [I still have the well-used little enamel chamber pot under my back seat].  These were the days before car air conditioning.  Interstate 85 was under construction; we knew we were getting closer to our destination when we were stopped in the traffic smelling the asphalt through the open windows.  My brother and I inevitably became overheated and car sick.  By the time we arrived into the loving arms of my grandmother, we were weak as dishrags, put to bed in a cool dark room to recover from the brutal ordeal.

So, when I hear these words of Isaiah quoted by the writer of Luke, my mind connects to these narrow, curvy, hilly, seemingly insurmountable, never-ending roads – stop after stop.  In today’s times, few of us would set out on such a journey.  Per the words of our lessons, the salvation promised to us as the result of the one full and perfect sacrifice of our Lord is to be on paths made straight and hills made low.  No longer are we to fear our earthly death and the wrath of punishment for our sinfulness. Our Lord has paid that price; we are not punished for our sins [though we are certainly punished by our sins.].

Luke quotes the words of the prophet Isaiah.  Centuries before the birth of Jesus Christ, Isaiah spoke the words of God to the people of Judah who had been taken into captivity and driven from their homeland into exile. Isaiah is no longer warning the people of Judah that they will suffer destruction as the result of the lack of faithfulness; thathas already happened.  Now, Isaiah is speaking words of encouragement and hope that the people of Israel should remain faithful that they will be restored to their homeland. The way of their salvation – the way of the Lord – would be made straight, the rough ways of the past would be made smooth.  They were to be alert and to open their hearts; they were to prepare the way of the Lord; keeping themselves in the loving embrace of the Lord, they were to wait for the day that ALL flesh would see the salvation of God.

The centuries pass, Jesus Christ is born, crucified, died, and raised again.  Luke is inspired by God to record the account his life and ministry.  He begins with the account of the lead up to the Incarnation – the Word made flesh that would bring about the salvation of God – the salvation of God promised for centuries and prophesied by Isaiah.  In preparation for that coming, there was a voice in the wilderness to alert the people of God, as in the days of Isaiah, that they were to prepare the way.

Still, as in every generation before and since, the people of God need words of hope. Still, the people of God need to be reminded that we are to remain alert with all our senses, alert to the presence of the salvation of God.  Life without that alertness; life without that expectation of eternity with Christ at the end of our journey is a life of ever increasing rough paths and crooked roads in our earthly journey.

Our Gospel lesson is the account of John the Baptist alerting the people of God to the coming of Christ – the first Advent.  In our epistle lesson, the Apostle Paul is alerting the people of Philippi to the coming day of Jesus Christ when the Kingdom of God will be perfected and complete – the second Advent.  Our hearts are preparing for the celebration of the Incarnation, but our preparations do not end with the Incarnation; our ongoing preparations are centered on the second Advent.  Only through our faith in Jesus Christ can we attain that harvest of righteousness where we are pure and blameless on that day.  Only through our faith in Jesus Christ might our love overflow every day from the first Advent to the second Advent.  Only through our faith and knowledge in Jesus Christ might we be guided by insight into all that is best for us until that day.  All for the glory and praise of God.

I don’t know that I have ever heard our Lord referenced as a highway engineer – a builder of interstates.  But, if you know and love Jesus Christ, you know of straight paths and rough places made smooth, even though sometimes we feel stuck in the heat with the smell of asphalt wafting into the open window.

Our celebration of Christmas, with all its secularization and commercialization and tackiness, is a foot in the door for evangelism.  Like the exiled Israelites of the 6^thcentury BC, like the seekers during and soon after the earthly life of Jesus Christ, like the people of 1^stcentury Philippi, we remain desperate for these words of hope and assurance that the crooked paths will be made straight and the rough places will be made smooth.  We are the privileged who carry the message of hope.

The world is desperate for these words of hope; we are called to be the voice in the wilderness; we are called to prepare the way; we are called to have the courage of the Apostle Paul in spreading this message of hope.  The journey remains difficult; we are to be prepared, maintaining a good battery and good tires.  All for the glory and praise of God.