“What is this? A new teaching!”

Meditation on Mark 1:21-28                  

Feb. 1, 2015

     They went to Capernaum; and when the sabbath came, he entered the synagogue and taught. They were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. Just then (immediately) there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, and he cried out, ‘What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God.’ But Jesus rebuked him, saying, ‘Be silent, and come out of him!’ And the unclean spirit, throwing him into convulsions and crying with a loud voice, came out of him. They were all amazed, and they kept on asking one another, ‘What is this? A new teaching—with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.’ At once his fame began to spread throughout the surrounding region of Galilee.

        Today, we will joyfully install and welcome four new members on our session. Two of them will also be ordained, for this is the first time they have served as ruling elders. Ordination to the office of ruling elder is not like serving in public office, where candidates are elected to represent their constituents. Ordination as a ruling elder is a call to a specific form of ministry, recognized and supported by the congregation. One may serve multiple terms as a ruling elder, though not more than six consecutive years.

      One is ordained a ruling elder only once for life. So this is, indeed, a very special day for the church. And it is truly exciting that those being ordained have only been with us as members a few years! This is confirmation that God has some amazing plans for this congregation and community--and that His Spirit is very much alive and well among us, guiding and empowering those who trust in Him.

      Our Book of Order tells us this about the ministry of ruling elders: “As there were in Old Testament times elders for the government of the people, so the New Testament church provided persons with particular gifts to share in discernment of God’s Spirit and governance of the people. Accordingly, congregations should elect persons of wisdom and maturity of faith, having demonstrated skills in leadership and being compassionate in spirit. Ruling elders are so named not because they ‘lord it over’ the congregation (Matt. 20:25), but because they are chosen by the congregation to discern and measure its fidelity to the Word of God, and to strengthen and nurture its faith and life… Ruling elders, together with teaching elders, exercise leadership, government, spiritual discernment and discipline and have responsibilities for the life of a congregation as well as the whole church, including ecumenical relationships.” 

       Session “shall have the responsibility for governing the congregation and guiding its witness to the sovereign activity of God in the world, so that the congregation is and becomes a community of faith, hope, love and witness.  The session has responsibility and power to provide that the Word of God may be truly preached and heard and that the Sacraments are rightly administered and received, and to nurture the covenant community of disciples of Christ.”

    Because our congregation decided some years ago not to utilize the ministry of deacons, ruling elders are also charged with the responsibilities of deacons. Theirs is a ministry of “compassion, witness, and service, sharing in the redeeming love of Jesus Christ for the poor, the hungry, the sick, the lost, the friendless, the oppressed, those burdened by unjust policies or structures, or anyone in distress. Persons of spiritual character, honest repute, exemplary lives, brotherly and sisterly love, sincere compassion, and sound judgment should be chosen for this ministry.”

   Every now and then, the question of authority in a Presbyterian church comes up. Some might wonder, “Who’s in charge? Session? The pastor? The presbytery? General Assembly?”

      The answer is that ruling elders and teaching elders share equally in the responsibility to shape and carry the ministry forward. They have different gifts and some different functions within the congregation, but they seek to be guided by the same Spirit, to see a glimpse of Christ’s Kingdom here on earth, and to be faithful and obedient to Him. And I want to make sure that everyone understands something very important. While the session and the pastor may have more visible ministries, every person in this congregation shares in the labor and mission of the church. Everyone is called to seek the Spirit’s guidance and Christ’s Kingdom, and to be faithful and obedient to Him.  

     So who is the boss of the congregation? Why, Jesus Christ, of course! This is His Church gathered in His name. And individually, we, too, belong to Him.

     The Book of Order says, “Almighty God, who raised Jesus Christ from the dead and set him above all rule and authority, has given to him all power in heaven and on earth, not only in this age, but also in the age to come. God has put all things under the Lordship of Jesus Christ and has made Christ Head of the Church, which is his body. The Church’s life and mission are a joyful participation in Christ’s ongoing life and work.”

 ***

         From the moment Jesus stands up to preach in the synagogues, the question of his authority arises. It comes up repeatedly in all four gospels!  By what authority does he preach, heal, and cast out “unclean spirits”? Today in Mark’s gospel, the people are “astounded at his teaching, for he taught them “as one having authority, and not as the scribes.” Yet, we aren’t told what his teaching is. So this “new teaching” must not be just the message but the embodiment of the teaching--the person of Jesus Christ. Haven’t you noticed? Strange and wondrous things happen whenever he is around.

      In today’s reading, he is preaching when suddenly a man with an “unclean spirit” interrupts, crying out, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, you are the Holy One of God.”

     Jesus rebukes him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of him!” This is the first of many healings and the casting out of demons that Jesus will do in Mark. Sometimes, people respond with joy and gratitude. Other times, they will respond in anger, jealousy, fear, and unbelief. Some will say Jesus has a demon in him that gives him the power to cast out demons.

     On this particular day, though, at this early point in his 3-year ministry, the people are amazed. They ask one another, over and over again, “What is this?? A new teaching--with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits and they obey him.”

    As I read this, I find it hard to understand why they are not asking, “who is this?” rather than “what is this?” Perhaps the people may think they already know Jesus. He is the son of Joseph the carpenter, isn’t he? From the little town of Nazareth, with fewer than 400 people. This is Capernaum--a fishing village of 1,500 or more! He isn’t a scribe or a priest. He isn’t formally educated. He isn’t from a well to do family. He has no human authority to preach. And yet, when he speaks, people listen--and strange and wondrous things happen.

     Only the demons know the truth, that Jesus is the “Holy One of God.” And the demons are right to be worried. He has come to break down all that divides human beings and God. He has come to destroy the power of evil and death--to make what is unclean and broken clean and whole.  To do for us what we cannot do for ourselves--to die on a cross. And take all our sins away.

   Word of Jesus’ miracles spread quickly. Crowds begin to mob him wherever he goes. They bring him their sick and demon possessed, without knowing who he really is or from where his authority comes.

   They don’t understand that this “new teaching” is the person of Jesus Christ. But the demons know. He is “the Holy One of God.”

***

       Friends, I look forward to ministering with our new and returning ruling elders this year. I ask you now to pray for your session and your pastor--that the Lord would reveal to us a glimpse of Christ’s Kingdom and guide us as we seek to follow Him. I ask that you encourage all our ruling elders, especially our newest ones. We aren’t perfect. We are all learning. I am still learning. Trust that we are all doing our best, and that we care very much for one another, for this church, and for the Lord.

   And to our new ruling elders, especially those who will be ordained and serving for the first time ever, I urge you to pray often for the church, to seek Him who has been given all the power and authority on heaven and on earth. Nurture your spiritual life. Don’t ever get to be in so much of a hurry that you no longer pray and read God’s Word. The busier we are, the more we need times of quiet, and to be in conversation with Him.

      There may be some days when you wonder why you said, “Yes,” to serving on session! You will experience the joy and wonder of shared ministry, but sometimes the labor will feel like hard work. And it is! Or you may tell yourself one day that you aren’t that important to the group, and that maybe it won’t matter if you don’t attend every meeting. But you are important. And it will matter.  If you don’t come, you will miss a blessing and we will miss being blessed by you.

    Remember it is not just the Church, but the Lord Himself who has chosen you to serve. Remember to whom this church belongs--and to whom you belong. Put your trust in Him. You are the Lord’s. He is with you now and forever!

    And haven’t you noticed? Strange and wondrous things happen whenever Jesus is around…

Let us pray.

    

Holy One, we thank you for Jesus, whom you gave all power and authority on heaven and on earth--so that he would be the one to break down what separated us from you. Thank you for your wonderful plans for this church, for each of our ruling elders, and for every person who attends this church. Help us to be your faithful and humble servants. We trust that you know what you are doing by choosing us for your work and that you will guide us in your will. Help us to obey. Strengthen us with your joy and stir us to compassion to bring the good news of your salvation to our community and world, so that all that is broken and unclean will be made clean and whole. Grow us in spirit and number this year. Give us your Kingdom vision so that we may live here on earth as it is in heaven. In Christ our Savior we pray. Amen.

"Let's try this again..."

Meditation on Jonah 3:1-10
Here's the video link
https://vimeo.com/117863252

Jan. 25, 2015

      "The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time, saying, ‘Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you.’ So Jonah set out and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly large city, a three days’ walk across. Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s walk. And he cried out, ‘Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!’ And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth. When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. Then he had a proclamation made in Nineveh: ‘By the decree of the king and his nobles: No human being or animal, no herd or flock, shall taste anything. They shall not feed, nor shall they drink water. Human beings and animals shall be covered with sackcloth, and they shall cry mightily to God. All shall turn from their evil ways and from the violence that is in their hands. Who knows? God may relent and change his mind; he may turn from his fierce anger, so that we do not perish.’ When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it."

    I want to begin my message today by thanking you all for your kindness and patience with me while I have been sick these past few weeks. This last week, in particular, was difficult. I had to cancel all my groups, meetings, and Bible studies. I was not able to make the pastoral care visits that I had planned. It was hard for me not to be doing all the things that I usually do--that I feel called to do as your pastor. While I was sick, I heard God speaking to me, “Rest! Just rest!” I heard that word so much that I was getting tired of hearing it! I even heard that word in our lectionary scriptures this week! Psalm 62 verses 1 and 2, speaks right to my heart: “Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from him. Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress! I will never be shaken!”

     The rest of which the psalmist speaks isn’t just an “I’m not tired anymore” rest. This is a spiritual and emotional rest, a feeling of peace and serenity that can only be found in God. This is the rest that Jesus promises is a gift from him to all who trust in Him. Listen to Matthew 11:28-30, “Come to me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

      After hearing this Word from God this week, my reluctant response was, “OK, Lord, you have my attention now. I can’t do anything but pray.” And in the stillness, in the quiet, I did learn from the Lord just how much I need Him and how much it pleases Him when I pray! And with all the kindness, gentleness, and encouragement I received these past few weeks, I could hear our Lord reminding me of His love--the love He has for all human beings!

     This is the merciful and gracious God in whom Jonah believes. His story begins with the Lord commanding him, “Go at once to Ninevah, that great city, and cry out against it; for their wickedness has come before me.” Jonah’s answer is to run far, far away from the great, wicked city of Ninevah, the enemy of the Israelite people. It was the oldest and most populous city of the ancient Assyrian Empire, situated on the east bank of the Tigris River opposite modern Mosul, Iraq. The city, located at the intersection of important north-south and east-west trade routes, was actually the largest city in the entire world until a civil war broke out in 612 B.C.  It was close to a tributary of the Tigris, the Khawṣar River, which added to the value of the fertile agricultural and pastoral lands in the district.

   The Gentile city was wicked in the sight of God because it was an important religious center for worship of the Akkadian goddess Ishtar.People came from all over to worship and offer sacrifices to her. The king’s palace was unrivaled in beauty and splendor. Archeologists studying the ruins of the ancient city discovered a palace of at least 80 rooms on a foundation of 160 million bricks! Stone carvings on the walls include many battle scenes, with impalings and scenes showing the king’s men parading the spoils of war before him. The king bragged about his conquests: writing of Babylon "Its inhabitants, young and old, I did not spare, and with their corpses I filled the streets of the city." He later wrote about a battle and his persecution of the Jews, saying "And Hezekiah of Judah, who had not submitted to my yoke...him I shut up in Jeruselum his royal city like a caged bird. Earthworks I threw up against him, and anyone coming out of his city gate I made pay for his crime. His cities which I had plundered I had cut off from his land."

   No wonder Jonah didn’t want to go to Ninevah! But he does--after God gets his attention by having him swallowed by a great fish. In the belly of a fish for 3 days and 3 nights, Jonah cries out to the Lord in his distress. “As my life was ebbing away,” Jonah prays, “I remembered the Lord; and my prayer came to you, into your holy temple. Those who worship vain idols forsake their true loyalty. But I with the voice of thanksgiving will sacrifice to you; what I have vowed I will pay. Deliverance belongs to the Lord!’ Then the Lord spoke to the fish, and it spewed Jonah out upon the dry land.”

     Now we come to today’s passage.“The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time, saying, ‘Get up, go to Ninevah, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you.”

     Our merciful Lord is saying to this reluctant, frightened prophet, “Let’s try this again…”

    Jonah finally obeys, going to the city and proclaiming, “Forty days more, and Ninevah shall be overthrown!” And to Jonah’s dismay, the Spirit draws the people to repent. The king comes down from his lofty throne in the palace unrivaled in beauty and splendor, and he covers himself with sackcloth and ashes. This is a Gentile who has adopted a religious practice of ancient Israel when it humbles itself before God. This is truly a miracle! Even the animals repent and take part in the fast and wearing of sackcloth. Everyone proves their repentance is real when they sin no more, they turn from “their evil ways and from the violence that is in their hands.”

    With a surprising twist, the cruel king is the one who is the model for faith in the God of Israel who is, as Jonah says in chapter 4, “gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and ready to relent from punishing.”

     The king tells his people, “Who knows? Who knows?! God may relent and change his mind, he may turn from his fierce anger, so that we do not perish.”

    

***

   Friends, I ask you today, “Who knows? Who knows this God who is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love--ready to relent from punishing?” I know Him! Do you know Him as your Lord and Savior? Do you trust in Him? He is God who revealed Himself to us, as Philippians 2:7 says, when he emptied himself of his divinity and took on the humble form of a slave! John 3:17 assures us that God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him! “Come unto me,” Jesus says, “you who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest!”

   Come to Him, friends, so that you may have Christ’s peace. So that you might know his salvation! This is a God of second chances! A God who sent a fish to rescue his disobedient prophet. God had an important job that He wanted Jonah to do. Then God said, “Let’s try this again.”

    Brothers and sisters, God has an important job for His Church! He has important work for us all to do, if we listen for His voice! May we all learn from Jonah, who FINALLY obeyed, and the Lord blessed Him by doing some amazing things through his servant. He spared the largest city in the world of its time from perishing in its sins!

    May we especially learn from God’s Son, who spent time in prayer no matter how tired or busy He was. His Son who is gentle and humble--and wants us to learn from him. Christ's ways are easier because He does the work through us. His burden is light. Be still and wait quietly for the one who is our hope, rock and fortress. And you will find rest for your souls!

Let us pray.

Holy One, we offer You our thanksgiving and praise. We come to You now for your rest and to listen for your voice. We thank you for your Word to us who are so like Jonah, at times. We run from you by allowing the noise and busy-ness of our lives wear us out, consume us so there is very little left for you. You have a simpler life in mind for all of us. This is your new life in Jesus Christ. We are your creatures, commanded only to love one another and ALL people, to forgive one another and ALL people, and to share Your Good News with everyone. Give us faith to proclaim Your hope to friends and neighbors near and far, to strangers and enemies. Give us courage to be obedient, even if we are the only ones who seem to be responding to your call. Lord, may you never have to say to us, “Let’s try this again…” In Christ Jesus we pray! Amen.

   

   

     

    

“Come and See”

Meditation on John 1:43-51 

January 18, 2015  
Here's the video link to this sermon:
https://vimeo.com/117177889  

***                               

      

     The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, ‘Follow me.’ Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathanael and said to him, ‘We have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth.’ Nathanael said to him, ‘Can anything good come out of Nazareth?’ Philip said to him, ‘Come and see.’ When Jesus saw Nathanael coming towards him, he said of him, ‘Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!’ Nathanael asked him, ‘Where did you come to know me?’ Jesus answered, ‘I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you.’ Nathanael replied, ‘Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!’ Jesus answered, ‘Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these.’ And he said to him, ‘Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.’

    ***

   

     When I was living in York, Pennsylvania, and working as a journalist, I met a lady named Orpha. Her aunt had given her the name, if you’re wondering. And she probably meant to call her “Orpah,” from the book of Ruth. Orpah, a name that means “back of the neck,” was Ruth’s sister-in-law. She was a Moabite and a widow like Ruth, but unlike Ruth, Orpah decided to turn back and stay with her people in Moab, rather than going with Naomi, her mother-in-law, who decided to return to live with her kin in Bethlehem. This decision wasn’t just a decision about where to live and who to live with. The decision was also a religious one. Ruth chose the religion of her mother-in-law. She chose to worship the God of the Israelites. While Orpah, in returning to live with her parents in Moab and perhaps find a new husband, chose to worship the many gods--the idols--of the Moabites.

     I always thought that my friend Orpha was misnamed--not just because Orpah was spelled incorrectly, but because she was anything but a quitter. She wasn’t the type to turn back in fear. She was the loyal kind, like Ruth, who, as you know, became the great, grandmother of David.

    Orpha made a decision for Christ as a teenager when she attended a revival. Back then, churches would host revivals with guest speakers who preached sometimes several days or nights in a row.  At one point in the service, those who didn’t know Jesus would be invited to come forward. And yes, Orpha was one of those. And she never looked back.

    After giving her life to Christ, Orpha, who had a beautiful voice and loved to sing for the Lord, went to a Bible college in Florida where met a fellow student, a young man, with evangelical gifts. They became good friends. Orpha used to go with him, and a few other friends, to sing when he had preaching gigs on the weekends. Billy would preach anywhere he could find a group that would listen, including trailer parks. He only had a few sermons that he preached, Orpha said, but he preached them well. He was very dramatic and used to practice his facial expressions and hand motions in the mirror. Orpha and her other friends used to tease him about it. But with every sermon, he always gave an invitation for people who didn’t know Jesus to come forward, pray the sinner’s prayer, and accept him as their Lord and Savior. This young man was Billy Graham.

     Years later, Orpha and her girlfriend were still traveling with Billy on his preaching gigs to be his “back-up singers.” Only he wasn’t preaching in trailer parks anymore. He was preaching to crowds in stadiums and concert halls and other large venues. And sometimes hundreds of people came forward at the end of his sermons to give their lives to Christ.

    Orpha said she was always amazed when the crowds of people would come forward to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior. It truly was a supernatural work. That was the only way she could explain why people would come, tears streaming down their faces, after hearing Billy preach. And although I am sure some of the people who answered the invitation may not have had a true conversion experience, many who came on the altar call that day made the decision that forever changed their lives.

 

***

    And this is what we read today in the gospel of John--the conversion experience of Philip and Nathanial. Not as dramatic, perhaps, as a Billy Graham Crusade and probably without backup singers. These early conversions were, nonetheless, a supernatural happening--a work of the Spirit. That’s the only way they can be explained--that two men would meet a stranger named Jesus who would invite them to join Him for His Kingdom journey. To Philip he says only, “Follow me.” But then Philip immediately goes and finds his friend and tells him about Jesus--the one whom all Israel has waited, the one about whom the prophets spoke.

  And Phillip, when Nathanael wasn’t enthusiastic about meeting a man from the small village of Nazareth, responded with the words Christ used the day before when he invited Andrew and Simon Peter to be his disciples. He said, “Come and see.”

     What moves Nathanael to accept Christ’s invitation was that Jesus knew him--really knew him--before they had even met, face to face. Watching Nathanael approach him, Jesus declared, “Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!”

     Neither of these men could have possibly known that day, the day they made the decision to follow Jesus, that they would follow him all the way to the cross.

***

     Friends, in the Presbyterian church we don’t have altar calls. We never ask anyone to come forward or slip up their hand while everyone’s eyes are closed and pray the sinner’s prayer if they don’t know Jesus.  We just assume that everyone in church is a believer and loves Jesus. But, brothers and sisters, there are people who have not made a serious commitment to “Follow him” or even to “Come and see.” Some who have come today may not be convinced that they would want to follow the One who assures us that when we live out our faith, we will suffer for His sake. Some may not want to give up what is comfortable--like Philip and Nathanael did-- to seek His will for their lives. Some are not ready to trust Him and obey, because that’s what being a Christian is all about.

       But to be honest with you, before I was a believer who had made a lifelong commitment to follow Christ, the story of Philip and Nathanael’s conversion, alone, may not have persuaded me. What persuaded me to “Come and see” and accept the plans that God had for me was when I finally began to understand how much He loved me. And this wasn’t a surface or conditional love. This was a God who knew me like no other.

      What this passage doesn’t tell us is what the call of Christ really is--what it means to “answer the call.” The call of Christ is a call to love--to love God, first and foremost, and to love people. It’s simply a call to surrender our lives to the Lord and seek to be what He wants us to be. In this returning to God what He has given us to us, we will find our deep contentment, our wholeness and completeness in Him.

       Those of you who may be still on the fence and not ready to make a commitment to the Lord, listen again to the words of Psalm 139. Hear of a love you have never experienced if you haven’t accepted Christ’s work on the cross for the forgiveness of all your sins, if you haven’t turned away from sin and turned back to follow Him. Listen now and may the Spirit move you to make the decision, like my friend Orpha did and like I did, that will forever change your life.

      “O Lord you have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from far away!... Even before a word is on my tongue, O Lord, you know it completely… In your book were written all the days that were formed for me, when none of them as yet existed. How weighty to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them. I try to count them--they are more than the sand. I come to the end --I am still with you.”

    

Let us pray.

Holy Lord, thank you for your message to us today, for assuring us that you know us, really know us, better than we know ourselves. And that you have planned our lives before we yet existed. Thank you for your promise to be with us always. Thank you for your forgiveness for all our sins, and our reconciliation with you if only we trust in Jesus Christ and his death for our sakes, his sacrifice on a cross. Lord, open our ears and our hearts so that we may truly hear your invitation, your call to “Follow me,” and “Come to See.” Help us to obey. Stir us to be your loyal servants who will humbly journey with you, though it will mean suffering and persecution, though the journey takes us all the way to the cross. Help us to surrender our wills and walk faithfully with you each day. Teach us thy way. In Your Son’s name we pray. Amen.