Prophets, Wisdom, Knowledge, New Teaching

 God tells his people that he will choose a prophet from among their people to speak his words to them.

The psalmist talks about the wonders God has created and how he provides for every need of this world. He ends by saying that “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding.”

Paul begins by saying that everyone has knowledge but that it isn’t everything. Knowledge doesn’t have the power that love has. Those who believe in Jesus as the Christ and believe that in God everything came into being have this knowledge but not everyone has the same degree of understanding. His emphasis is on being careful with that knowledge. Be careful…“that the exercise of your rights does not become a stumbling block to the weak.”

And Mark’s gospel is about the teaching style used by Jesus. It was new; it was delivered with confidence. It was different from what they were used to hearing in the synagogue. Mark described it as forthright and confident, different from their normal fare.

So, from all these words what are we to learn? Here’s what I think. It’s all God, wisdom, knowledge, understanding, compassion, and learning. God created, God cares for and provides, God gives us knowledge and understanding and compassion, and God teaches, first through Jesus and now through his Holy Spirit. It’s all God and we would do well to remember that.

God didn’t create all this and then go away to sit and watch and wait to see what would happen. He has been active from the very beginning. His hand has been constantly stirring, rearranging, adjusting, and protecting. He still calls people to prophesy. He still gives people wisdom and knowledge. And he still teaches, and it would be wise to listen and learn.

Friends, that’s the lesson I believe is in these words we have heard read today. As John puts it, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” It’s all God, God the Father, God the Son, Jesus the Christ, and God the Holy Spirit. It’s all God and he cares. Thanks be to God. Amen.

Choices

Choices, all of us make them every day. We have to choose what clothes we’re going to wear, what coat to put on, what we’re going to eat for breakfast, whether we’re going to get groceries today or wait until the snow has melted or the temperature has improved. We choose whether we’re going to support one political candidate or another, or none of them. We choose whether we’re going to go out or stay home.


There are some of us who really believe that we’re here today because we chose to come. But is that really true? And some of us believe we made the choice to follow Jesus.

Let’s look again at the scriptures beginning with Jonah. God’s word came to Jonah and called him to get…”up on your feet and on your way to the big city of Nineveh! They’re in a bad way and I can’t ignore it any longer.”

First off Jonah did make a decision. It was to go in the opposite direction. Then, after some particularly persuasive circumstances, Jonah decided to listen to God’s call to go to Nineveh. He turned around and headed straight for the big city.

Friends, was it Jonah’s choice, really? Or…could it be that God had chosen Jonah and he, God, wasn’t going to change his mind about that? He didn’t want anyone else for this job.

What about the fishermen Jesus invited to…”Come…” Was it their choice or God’s? Did they have another option? They could have said, “No, I’m too busy. Maybe later.” But they didn’t. Was it their choice or did God just know that they would follow Jesus? What do you think?

Let’s get back to our choices. Are we here as God’s church because of our choices? Or…are we here because God chose us, because he called us and then we came?

Are there other examples where God called people and they were reluctant to answer his call? What about Moses? Or Gideon? Or Elijah? Or Abram? These men didn’t totally trust God at one time or another. Moses didn’t think he could speak for God to the people. He didn’t think they would listen to him. He tried to talk God out of choosing him. But God wanted Moses, so God gave him Aaron and he went.

Gideon wanted all sorts of proof that the voice he heard was really God’s voice. When God did everything Gideon asked Gideon had no choice but to follow God’s call to lead the people into battle.

Elijah, after he had massacred the prophets of Baal with God’s help, and after Jezebel threatened to get even with him, then he ran for dear life. He went into the wilderness to die. He’d had enough. But God had other plans. He hid in the mountains until God whispered to him and then he went to anoint the king, Hazael, God had chosen.

Each of these men was called to perform a particular piece of work for God. And at one point or another they wavered. But God didn’t. He had chosen them and he didn’t change his mind. He didn’t want to change his mind because he knew they were perfect for the task he had for them.

So, when we feel that tug on our heart to do something we’ve never done before, something we don’t feel equipped to do should we turn and go the opposite direction like Jonah? Or…should we do like Simon and Andrew and drop everything and follow the Teacher?

Even if we do decide to go the opposite direction what if we feel the tug of the Spirit again? Do we want to take a chance and keep going…or should we stop and turn back? Remember what happened to Jonah?

Choices, we do have them but I’m convinced that if God had called us then he has chosen us and it’s not likely he’s going to change his mind. We do have the freedom to choose to go the opposite direction but that might not be the wisest decision to make.

Thank God the disciples didn’t say no. Thank God Moses did go to Egypt and lead God’s people through the wilderness to the Promised Land. Thank God for those who have preceded us, the ones who taught us in Sunday school, the ones who mentored us, the ones who shared their faith stories with us. Thank God for them and their courage to answer God’s call.

God still calls us to particular work. And it’s not just to preach or do mission work. I believe everyone of us is called. And yes, we do have a choice. God doesn’t twist our arms but…don’t forget Jonah, or Moses. If God calls then he wants you and no one else. How will you answer when God calls you?

Thanks be to God for his gracious patience. Amen.

Come, See, and Know

Think about everything you’ve learned in your life. How did it happen? How is it that some of us know about soil and seeds and some of us know about building things with wood and some of us know how to do plumbing and some of us understand electricity and how to put it to work. Other people seem to know how to heal and comfort people and others have the skills of knowing the law and politics.


How come we don’t all know the same things? And how does it all happen? Why am I a pastor? And why are some people teachers or carpenters or farmers or managers or salespeople? Why and how, haven’t you ever wondered these things?

Samuel was an apprentice for Eli because his parents had made the commitment to dedicate him to the Lord. There in the temple he “heard” God call his name. How come God chose Samuel? Why?

The psalmist tells us that God know everything completely about us. He searches our hearts and he just knows. The psalmist can’t even imagine all the thoughts of God. He just knows that God knows. God knows us inside and out.

John tells us the story of Philip and Nathanael. He tells us that Jesus knew Nathanael before they were introduced.

As he traveled toward Galilee he met Philip. He invited him to… “Come, and follow.” What he learned, what he saw was so exciting he could hardly wait to tell his friend about Jesus. He invited him to… “Come, and see.”

And when he was almost there Jesus talked like he knew him. When Jesus described to him how he’d seen him sitting under a tree earlier Nathanael called him the Son of God, the King of Israel. It sounded like Nathanael stayed to follow Jesus because he knew him.

Have you ever had someone ask you about your faith, about your belief in Jesus? Have you ever found yourself stumbling to explain what it is that draws you to the church, the Body of Christ, and Jesus? Have you ever finally arrived at a point where you just say, “Come and see for your self?”

Friends, that just may be what we’re to learn from these lessons today. It just might be that all we have to do is invite folks and let God do the rest. It just might be that we make it way too difficult. Maybe we should follow the example of Philip. “Come, and see for yourself who this Jesus is.” That may be all God calls us to do in the beginning. Invite our friends to come, and see.

So, lets take notice this week. Pay attention to see where God is active and when the opportunity presents itself invite your friend and neighbor to “come and see.”

Thanks be to God for his all-knowing grace. Amen.

Change

First this: God created the Heavens and Earth—all you see, all you don’t see. Earth was a soup of nothingness, a emptiness, an inky blackness. God’s Spirit brooded like a bird above the watery abyss.


God spoke: “Light!” And light appeared. God saw that light was good and separated light from dark. God named the light Day, he named the dark Night. It was evening, it was morning—Day One. Genesis 1:1-5 MSG

First there was nothing, just a watery chaos…and darkness, total absence of light. Then God’s voice thundered over the emptiness and there was “light” and “light” was good. Everything changed when God spoke, when Light entered the darkness.

There still wasn’t anything except the watery abyss…and light and darkness. Then God separated it with “Sky.” There was water above and water below, water everywhere, nothing but water.

Our world is 70% covered with water. Our bodies are 60% water. Our world as we know it can’t survive without liquid H2O. If you don’t believe it go on a water fast and see how you feel without taking in any of that colorless, odorless, nourishment. You will begin to act very strange and without it you will die. The same thing happens to the soil if it doesn’t receive water in the form or rain or snow. Without water seeds can’t germinate, plants will not grow or last long without water.

Water also creates change. Enough of it all at once has the power to create drastic changes to the environment. Just look at the pictures of what the Missouri River did where it went out of it banks this summer.

Isn’t it interesting that God began creation with water. Isn’t it interesting that Jesus’ ministry began after he had been baptized in the Jordan River. Isn’t it interesting that our lives begin with us surrounded by water in the form of amniotic fluid.

…before our birth, we float in amniotic fluid, which provides temperature stability, cushioning, and a necessary presence within collapsed airways to help stimulate lung development. Amniotic fluid is a clear, watery fluid that is filtered out of the maternal via the amniotic epithelium into the amniotic cavity. A large portion stems also from the fetus itself (from the skin, the umbilical cord, the lungs and the kidneys). The makeup of the amniotic fluid is thus quite complex, with many maternal and fetal constituents. The main constituents are water and electrolytes (99%) together with glucose, lipids from the fetal lungs, proteins with bactericide properties and flaked-off fetal epithelium cells. Its quantity changes over the course of the pregnancy (20 ml in the 7th week, 600 ml in the 25th week, 1000 ml in the 30th to 34th week and 800 ml at birth). From the 5th month the fetus also begins to drink amniotic fluid (400 ml/day). Close to the end of the pregnancy the amniotic fluid is replaced all 3 hours, stressing the importance of this exchange between the amniotic fluid and the maternal compartment.

Now we can understand how very important, and necessary, water is to our survival. And that is why the sacrament of baptism uses water as a symbol, a symbol of life, a symbol of change, a dying and rising again to new life, a cleansing, a cleansing from our sinful lives to being changed … from the inside out when we are baptized with the Holy Spirit.

People change when they are baptized with the Holy Spirit. It may or may not happen when they are baptized with water. But when it happens they’re changed from the inside out. Jesus was different after he was baptized. God confirmed that He was indeed His Son.

When people receive the Holy Spirit God confirms that we are His sons and daughters and we’re changed. We’re different than we were before. And as we mature we continue to change as we learn to wait upon God and His Spirit, as we learn to let the Spirit correct, control, and guide us.

Think back 5 years. Are you the same as you were then? I don’t think you are. I know I’m not. Physically as we age our bodies change but I’ve also noticed that my spirit, my soul, has changed over the years. I know I’m not the same person I was 5 years ago and I imagine you aren’t either.

It’s inevitable that things, and we, change. And there’s more change coming for us. Who knows what 2012 will bring us? One thing is certain. One thing won’t change. God will continue to be there for us. He will continue to provide for our world and us. He will continue to love us, to heal us, to teach us, to guide us home. He is the one Constant, reliable Force when all around us everything is changing.

Today we are going to reaffirm our baptismal covenant with God. Together we will be reminded of that day when we made the decision to be baptized or someone made that decision for us. And ever since that day we have been changing, and with God’s grace we will continue to change.

Thanks be to God for his unchanging grace. Amen.

Hope

Choose Wisely-Roddy Hamilton
Words for the beginning of New Year worship
Choose wisely
the words you will use
this new year time

Choose wisely the words
you wish to use to fill this sacred space
in the first few hours of the year

Will it be a word of justice
or one of compassion
a word that holds forgiveness
or one that invests in peace?

For this word
shapes the beginning
and it is in the beginnings
hope is begun

Whether that hope lasts
is ours to decide in later days
but whether it has hope at all
is ours to decide now

Choose wisely the word
you speak in these fresh hours
for The Word has chosen now
to speak of us

Hope, on this first day of the New Year we hear God’s words for us from Isaiah, the Psalmist, Paul, and Luke, words of hope for us.

The writer of Third Isaiah is speaking of the delight he has because of what God has done and is going to do for his nation, a nation that has been literally destroyed and is now just beginning to be rebuilt. It hasn’t happened yet, in fact the task looks impossible, but his hope, his faith, is that God will be true to his promise and will again make Jerusalem a city that nations will look up to as an example of how much God loves his people.

The psalmist, Paul, and Luke write about all that God has done. They remind us that God has indeed kept his word. This spinning piece of space debris is perfect, ideally created, for us. It’s just the right environment for us. When God uttered the word it became everything it was intended to be, a home for all God’s children. The psalmist believes that every piece of creation gives, or should give, praise to the Creator. And some days can’t you just feel it? Haven’t you felt it, the air surrounding you just filled with joy and exuberance? Maybe that’s happened this past week.

Paul, in his letter to the Galatians, speaks of a different hope. The hope of acceptance, the hope of being received into a family, of being loved by a family, the hope of being forgiven, of having the slate wiped clean of all offenses. He speaks of the hope of not having to jump through hoops to be one of God’s children.

Some of us might not be able to understand what that’s like. Can you imagine never experiencing the unconditional love of a parent? Some of us can, and then to one day to wake up and realize that everything’s changed…we find that we are loved. We really can call on God. We can whisper “Papa” and he hears us. He stretches his hand out and we take a hold of his finger and we know, no matter what, we are loved.

We’ve hoped. We’ve dreamed. We’ve prayed for this moment and when it comes we can hardly believe it. Some one has taken all our burdens, all of our anxieties, and we’re free. We’re no longer on the outside looking in but we’re inside, we can’t believe it’s happened to us, and we really are part of the family. And we’re filled with such joy that we think our hearts are going to burst.

Luke tells us the story of when Joseph and Mary took the baby Jesus to the temple to be given as a holy offering to God. Can you imagine how these two must have felt coming into that space, two young parents who have been spoken to by angels and have been given the responsibility of raising the Messiah? The prophet Isaiah thought the rebuilding of the Temple was huge, what about raising and caring for God’s Son? I imagine their hope was that they didn’t muck this up. God wouldn’t let that happen but still…

But then to have two people, first Simeon and then Anna, take the baby and give him their blessings and prophecy about his life. They both probably wondered what God was doing. How could they possibly do everything right? But they had hope and faith that God would keep his promises to them.

As we begin this New Year, we have hope. The hopes I have are revealed in this poem by Roddy Hamilton…

Still (a new year blessing)
May God still shape this community as a place of life
that lives that life to the full

May The Word still move us towards justice
and let that justice disturb our souls

May our names still be known
and loved by all who speak them

May faith still deny what we consider answers
and set us free instead to explore the questions

May the Spirit still enable us to believe into tomorrow
by trusting what she does in today

And may God still surround us and embrace us
with grace, imagination and a love that will not let us go

Friends, I pray that these are your hopes and that together with God we can see them come to be. Thanks be to God for his grace. Amen.

Who Are We Listening To?

The guys sent from Jerusalem wanted to know who John was. And when he didn’t give them the answers they were looking for or tell them what they expected to hear they changed their tactics and asked, “…why do you baptize?”

Is there anyone today who’s taken John’s place? Who are the ones thundering in the desert today? Who’s doing today what the prophet Isaiah preached? Who’s preaching repentance? Who’s preparing us for the coming of the Messiah? If someone is, are we listening to them or are we too busy questioning their competence or their authority to hear the Message?

Do we, today, still question those people who tell the story of Jesus? Do we ask to see some form of certification that says they’re qualified or authorized do what they’re doing? And if we’re satisfied they’re properly qualified do we then ask them, “Why are you doing this thing?”

With all the questions we ask do we miss hearing the story? Are we missing the Good News they’re preaching? Is the noise of the world drowning out the Message they preach?

I’m asking these questions because all I’m hearing are politicians who have nothing good to say about their opponents or the incumbent. All I’m hearing is how bad things are and it’s all one person’s fault. And they’re the only ones who have all the answers. But I don’t believe any of them can be described as the “thunder in the desert.” Not once have I heard anyone talk about the things John spoke of, repentance and turning back to God.

The only places I’ve found anyone talking about social justice issues is in Sojourners magazine or The Christian Century or the Friends magazine published by the Quakers. So, my question is, “Who is the “Voice” for God’s people today?”

Who are we listening to? Who commands our attention? Who is promoting change in our society today?

Friends, the Message John was preaching was important then and is important for us to hear today. If the only voice we hear is John’s speaking to us from the Bible then maybe it would be good for us to listen. If the only thunder we hear is John’s voice asking us to repent, to turn back to the One who cares for us, then maybe it’s good that we hear the Message repeated again and again.

Maybe instead of questioning who John is we should listen for God’s message from those whom God has called. They might not be John the Baptizer, they probably don’t look like him either, but the Message is the same. Turn back to God; prepare the way for the Lord.

So, what are we to do? I think Paul has some good advice for us, “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
Do not quench the Spirit. Do not treat prophecies with contempt but test them all; hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil.”

John preached a message of repentance. Paul reminded his readers to always be joyful, pray constantly, and to give thanks no matter what happens in our lives.

It doesn’t matter who John was or who is proclaiming the word from the pulpit. What matters is that we listen to the Message and take it to heart. What matters is sharing the Message with those folks God brings to us everyday. What matters is not waiting for someone else to do something but to take care of those God brings to us. We all know who they are.

Whose voice are you listening to? In this Advent season let’s all take time to sit and listen for God’s voice. Let’s be God’s voice for those around us. Let’s be the hands and feet of God for those who are searching for something good in this world, and the next.

Friends, remember God loves you. Listen for his voice and share his love with everyone you meet. Thanks be to God for his grace-filled joy. Amen.

Joy

Are you always filled with joy? Are you one of those fortunate people whose glass is always half full? Do you wake up in the morning with a smile on your face and just can’t wait to begin the day?

If you are you must are probably in the minority. I know a few of those folks and they are a fun to be with. When I’m feeling a little bit low they have a way of lifting my spirits. I forget about what was bothering me and the light in my world becomes a little bit brighter.

I never stop to think about why I’m not always the cheerful one. But now that I’ve read Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians I might have an answer. Do you know what it is?

First, it might be that we have to make an effort to be joyful. It could be that joy doesn’t come to us without some work on our part first. There’s that word again, work. Maybe if we’d call work play then it wouldn’t be so hard to do.

Any way it sounds as if we begin the day really trying to be joyful, put on a happy face, even when we don’t feel happy, before long we may actually be happy.

That’s the first part and the second thing is to pray continually. That’s another thing that’s hard for all of us to do. How do we find the time to pray without stopping?

I’ve heard people say, I’ve probably said it myself, we need to keep talking to God in our minds just as if he was walking right beside us. And that’s not so hard to do if you don’t move your lips all the time. Because then people might think you’re talking to yourself. They probably wouldn’t believe you if you said you were talking to God.

But, if we spend our days talking to God like he was always right beside us don’t you think our days would be more joyful? When I think back to the times I’ve been in constant prayer I realize I didn’t have time to think about my problems and I was happier.

So, let’s make a commitment to pray, talk, with God all the time. And I promise I won’t think you’re talking to yourself. In fact I’ll know you’re talking to the One who has all the answers.

The third thing Paul says is that we should give thanks no matter what happens. Now that’s not an easy thing to do either. Have you ever tried to give God thanks after running into a deer? Or thanking God when your water heater quits working? But hey, we shouldn’t say that won’t work until we give it a try.

I really believe that we could be filled with joy more often if we’d really try to do what Paul said. So, in the Advent season as we prepare our hearts and minds for the coming of the Messiah let’s all make the effort together to be “always joyful, pray continually, and give thanks for everything.” I’m going to make the commitment to try and I hope you will join me. Just think, if we all do it how much happier this world will be and if we’re talking with God more often then more of our prayers will be heard and it’ll be easier for us to be thankful for everything, everyday, no matter what takes place. And just think what a wonderful gift that would be for those around us.

What a way to share the love of our Lord, Jesus Christ by deciding to change our lives to be more joyful, more prayerful, and more thankful. We will more than likely find it easier to share the Good News of Jesus with those we meet on our journey through life.

Thanks be to God for his loving and forgiving grace. Amen.