Living in-between time

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Have you ever watched a little child with a helium-filled balloon?  Kids are fascinated by helium balloons.  They love to hold on to them and look up.  The safest thing, of course, is to tie the string around their wrist so that they don’t loose it.  If you go to large indoor events where balloons are sold, you will always see balloons that have escaped up among the rafters – or outdoors, you will sometimes see them drifting off in the breeze.  And I know you‘ve seen kids crying because their balloon got away – as they stand there looking up watching it go up and up and away.  

Sam tells the story about his brothers, Ted and Harry, who had built a perfectly balanced glider.  It was their pride and joy.  It was quite large and they loved to take it out in the pastures around their house and sail it on rather calm days when it could catch the air currents and stay up for a long time.  One day it caught several good updrafts and literally sailed away.  They watched it go, thrilled at the beauty of it, but even though they chased it, they never did find it.

Three days ago (Thursday) was the feast day of the Ascension.  Our first lesson has the disciples watching Jesus rise up into the heavens.  Imagine how they felt on that day as they watched him go.  It was probably one of the most magnificent sights they had ever seen, but at the same time it both confused them and scared them.  During that 10 days between the ascension and pentecost, they were living in the in-between times:  in between the ascension of Jesus and the coming down of the Holy Spirit, in between heaven and earth, in between the present and the coming kingdom, in between the local (what was happening then and there) and the global (the commission to go out and preach the word.)

After all this time they had been with Jesus, they heard him preach, they saw the miracles, they witnessed his death

 and his resurrection, and he made all these appearances to them and now they are on the hillside.  And the first 

question the disciples ask him is, “Lord, is now the time you will restore the kingdom to Israel?”  They are still 

expecting a military victory – an overthrowing of the current Roman government.  They still didn't get it. 

He tells them, “You don’t need to know the times,” because the kingdom that Jesus talked about had nothing to do with the political structures of our earthly governments.  The kingdom that Jesus talked about had to do with our interior state of being – our attitudes toward one another – and our love and caring, not only for  God, but for one another.

Jesus tells them here that they “will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon them and that they will be witnesses to Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”  This could be an overwhelming job – so they went back to the upper room where they were staying.  And for 10 days, they devoted themselves to praying together.  And I’m sure – trying to figure out what it was that Jesus had been trying to tell them.

They didn’t have a clue what it meant to have the Holy Spirit – the nearest concept they could entertain was probably the stories of the prophets of old who were filled with the Spirit of God.  But it hadn’t happened yet, and they couldn’t quite imagine themselves as the prophets of old.  They were living in-between.  They were planted firmly on the ground, living in the present time, day by day, in Jerusalem waiting for what would happen next.

In our second lesson, Peter tells us to humble ourselves before God – to cast all our cares upon him – and to discipline ourselves, keeping alert at all times.  And he tells us that Christ will restore, support and strengthen us.  Peter learned this during that in-between time in Jerusalem and with the coming of the Holy Spirit.  I’m sure it was hard not to become discouraged – waiting.  

I don't wait well - I find it hard to just sit and do nothing.  Different people wait in different ways, and some people wait in different way at different times in their lives.  

My idea of waiting is to stay busy, find something to do.  At one time in my life that meant coming down here to this church and spend hours praying and reading scripture.  At another time it meant spending hours singing and playing spiritual songs.   Especially Change my heart, O God...    ----    At another time, it meant spending hours in the hospital visiting and working with people there.  At another time it meant sitting still praying with beads or contemplating scripture or centering prayer.  

We live in the in-between – we are in the world – right here in this time and place - and while we are here, we are to be present to those around us and live in the moment for Christ. Grace Church is in an in-between time, between Father David and whoever will be called as your new rector.  

This is your time to strengthen your ministry - to build up your church - to come together to find what God is calling you to be and do - both individually and as a church.  God doesn't want you to just sit on your hands doing nothing -

he wants you to be active, remembering that the person preaching to you isn't the be-all and end-all.  

The future of this church does not depend me or whoever comes next.  The future of this church depends on you!  

Our gospel lesson is Jesus’ prayer for us.  He doesn’t pray for world harmony – he prays for the disciples – for us – for unity – that we are able to work together to live and bring about his kingdom on this earth.  

How can you make this place a little better for someone else?  How can you reach out to someone in need or pain?  Some of you do this on a daily basis – praying for each other or helping each other out working and planning for ministry.

In his prayer, Jesus begins, “The hour has come…”  Now is the time – to pray for others - to reach out to help others – to live into God’s purpose in your life.  Not later, but now.  I don’t know about you, but sometimes I get so overwhelmed by the things that I have to do – the sheer volume – that I become less than productive, less than effective.  

Learning to live in the moment, what is happening this very minute – and not worry about what I have to do in the next hour, or tomorrow, or the next day – is one way I can begin to live into what Jesus wants me to be.  And I invite you to contemplate what it is that Jesus is calling you to be and do.

Let us pray,

Most precious Father, send your Holy Spirit onto us, into us, 

that we may live into your plan for our lives and for our church.  

Help us to live in the tension of this world, 

keeping the promise of your kingdom 

always on the horizon of our consciousness.  

Help us to see those around us here in this world, 

And to see your heavenly purpose in their lives also.

This we ask in the name of your son, Jesus, 

as we await the coming power of His Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Identifying an Unknown God

Our Tuesday Bible study has been studying the letters of Paul. The bulk of the letters in the New Testament were written by Paul.  Last week we got the first reference to Paul in the book of Acts.  We heard the story of how the men who stoned Stephen gave their coats to a young man named Saul.  Saul and Paul are the same person, so I think it bears taking a closer look at exactly who Paul is and why God chose such a person to bring the Good News to the Gentiles.

After the stoning of Stephen, Saul/Paul made it his business to track down and arrest everyone who called on the name of Jesus.  Acts 8 tells us he went house to house in Jerusalem to arrest both men and women.  And once he got everyone he could find in Jerusalem, he went out to track them down in the rest of the world.  He was zealous for God, and wanted to rid of world of these people he considered blasphemers.

Now the question is, why would God want to use a person like this as his chosen instrument?  Why did God want to send Saul out into the world as his witness to the Gentiles?  Part of the answer is that zeal for God that Saul had.  If God could take that zeal and channel it where he wanted it, then Saul could be a powerful witness for Jesus.  

The second reason was because of his upbringing.  Saul had been raised in Tarsus, a Mediterranean city in what is now Turkey.  His father was a Pharisee and a Roman citizen.  Being raised in this area of the Diaspora, Saul not only received the traditional Jewish education, but he also received a classical Greek education.  He was skilled, not only in the Jewish scripture and traditions, but also in philosophy.  He was familiar, not only with the Jewish Midrash, but also with the philosophical rhetoric of the day.  Paul grew up knowing Plato and Socrates as well as he knew Moses and Elijah and David.  

Today's lesson from Acts shows us just how important it was for Paul to have these skills in knowing and dealing with people.  Our lesson from Acts picks up after Paul had been run out of both Thessalonica and Berea.  He was taken to Athens to wait there for Timothy and Silas.  But Paul was not the type of person to sit quietly and wait.  He walked around the city and observed the people and the many temples there.  The Greek culture in Athens included the worship of many gods (little "g").   There were temples and shrines everywhere.  

Paul was greatly distressed over all the different temples and shrines and the idol worship.  He sought out the Jewish community and began to preach and teach in their synagogue.  He preached to the Jews and God-fearing Gentiles as well.  

He preached the Gospel of Christ - the Good News of Jesus and he moved out from the synagogue into the marketplace where other Greeks heard him preach.  What he was preaching was different from anything else that these people had ever heard.  He got into a debate with the Epicureans and the Stoics in the market place.  

Now the Epicureans believed that the gods were inaccessible and did not interfere with human life.  They stated the presence of evil as proof that the gods either were impotent or uncaring.  They saw no purposeful design so they lived life to seek out happiness and pleasure.  Madonna’s Material Girl might be an example of Epicureanism.

The Stoics on the other hand believed that God was everything – the soul of the Universe.  They believed in logic and reason and self-control – stiff upper lip - sort of like "Spock" from Star Trek - no such thing as emotion in their world.  So they didn't quite understand what Paul was saying about a God that you could have a relationship with.  They took him to the Areopagus to explain what he was saying.  Now the Areopagus was a hill where aspiring philosophers sat and debated ideas all day.  

Now look what Paul does - he doesn't condemn the people of Athens for their many gods or false ideas - he compliments them.  He compliments them for their desire to find meaning in life - "I can see that you are religious people - you have many temples and many gods.  I even saw a temple to “An Unknown God.'"  

Now, isn't that strange?  Why would they have a temple to an unknown god?  Many people of that time believed that everything that happened to them was controlled by the gods.  This Greek concept is something like having God in a box.  They have a particular god in a particular place and if something goes wrong, they can go sacrifice to that god and he will do what they want him to do.  If something bad happened, they thought they must have offended one of the gods.

There was a story that during the time of a terrible pestilence in the city.  The powers that be released a flock of black and white sheep in the city from the Areopagus.  Wherever a sheep lay down, they would sacrifice it to the god or goddess who's temple was close by.  If there was no temple nearby, they would erect a shrine to "An Unknown God."

Now Paul keys on that, "Let me tell you about this unknown God."  And he proceeds to tell them about the God who made both heaven and earth.  The God who created everything that exists - including us.  This God is not bound by the things of earth.  Paul explains that gods made by human hands have no power - and that the true God can never be contained in any temple or shrine.  Paul does eventually get around to telling them that God raised Jesus from the dead - and that's where he lost his audience.  

Most of the Athenians couldn't accept that God could and would do that.  For one reason, it was preposterous to think a person could come back from the dead.  And even if it were true, then that would place Paul's god above all the rest and then their debates would be over.  The Athenians loved to talk about religions, but they didn't want to make any conclusive decisions.

Actually, the Athens of Paul's time doesn't sound a whole lot different from the world today.  There are many different religions - not to mention numerous sects of the major religions.   Many people today want to sit around and argue religion or philosophy - or the absence there of.  Sigmund Freud argued that God does not exist apart from human beings, and that God is only a figment of our imagination.  He says that humans have a certain basic psychological need to create gods.  

As human beings, we do have a basic need for God.  Walking into any bookstore would give evidence to that - just try looking up spirituality - the world is filled with people looking for religious experiences - but not necessarily in our Christian churches.  The vast majority of books on spirituality have absolutely nothing to do with the God of Abraham.

The middle of last century – doesn’t that sound strange to say that about the 1940s and ‘50s?  The middle of the last century saw a stoic kind of movement.  A person’s relationship with God was a private affair and you sucked up and accepted life as it was dealt out.  It was a very philosophical time with great teaching about the doctrinal issues of the church.  A spiritual experience was looked upon with great distrust in the Christian church.  That’s why my former parish of Redeemer was such an enigma.   

The truth is that most major religions contain elements of truth.  Many of them promote similar ideals - philosophies.  The so-called "golden rule" can be found in most religions - but there is a difference between its statement in Christianity and in all the other religions.  

All of the other religions say something to the effect of "Don't do to others what you don't want them to do to you."  Very negative in connotation and focuses more on mistreatment.   Christianity is the only one in which this is stated in the positive "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."  This very action orientated and focuses on the positive ways we can reach out to one another. 

There are some non-Christians living grace-filled lives in fellowship with God - Hindus, Buddhists, and Muslims, and probably others, too.  God can and will, by whatever means, reach out to and save those we disagree with and even those we don't like very much.  God can and will work through whatever means are available to draw in his children - all his children - through whatever means they will respond to.  But the difference is that in Christianity, we find the fullest expression of God's love and presence with us - Jesus Christ.  This is the same Jesus Christ that the Epicureans and the Stoics of today still don't want to hear about.  

Jesus Christ, who says, "I am the vine, you are the branches - abide in me and bear much fruit."  Jesus Christ offers us relationship - up-close and personal - part of the body extending down from God.  Jesus Christ offers us the opportunity to be a part of the saving grace in this world.  

Too often we hesitate to speak out for Christ.  The reasons may be many and varied.  Some people are afraid that others will look at them funny - that their works will be rejected - that people will think they are a "Jesus Freak."  I think instead of being afraid, that we should be aware - aware that there are some people who need the love of Christ in their life.  They need the healing power that comes from a life in Christ.  They need to have some place of hope for their life and their future.  Sometimes just sharing our story is a catalyst for new believer.  I look back behind me and find the landscape of my life littered with the evidence of God's presence and his guiding hand.  And I am willing to share any of it at any time or place.  You should never hound people, but given the opportunity don't be afraid to speak out - "Let me tell you about this 'unknown' God."  "Let me tell you what God did for me...".   

Jesus Christ invites us to make a difference in the world around us by reaching out and by telling others the story of God’s love for us.  In a world that still has many gods and many religions, what can we do?  We can treat others with understanding and respect, tell the story of Jesus Christ, live the gospel and trust that God will use us to further his purpose on earth.

Amen.

The Way, the Truth, and the Life

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In our second lesson today – the one from Peter – is an exhortation to new believers to grow strong in the faith.  Even if you have been rejected by someone here on earth – you are chosen and precious in the sight of God.

The disciples started out teaching the faith to Jews.  Jesus was a Jew and the disciples were also.  That was the only way of life that they knew - the life of a Jew.  Remember that Jesus taught primarily in the synagogues and the temple courts.  He did do some ‘street teaching’ and out on the mountain side or along the shore line where he got into a boat to talk to people on the shore. 

But his message was primarily for Jews and he mentioned that more than once.  His was a prophetic message aimed at drawing back those who had strayed from the faith – those whose priorities had become distorted – and those who cared more for the externals of worship than for the interior shape of the soul.  His was a message of hope for those who were being rejected by others.

The disciples followed Jesus’ leading – after he was gone, they taught primarily in the synagogues and the temple courts.  Their message was still for Jews.  These disciples – and those who followed them – were called followers of “The Way.”  They taught that Jesus was the way – the truth – and the life.  And many of the traditional Jews became incensed – outraged – because they thought that these followers of Jesus were perverting the faith by teaching things that were outside their understanding.  

In many places, the followers of “The Way” were kicked out of the synagogues – so they began teaching in the market places, in people’s homes, outside the city gates – anywhere people gathered and would listen to them. And people who were not Jewish began to hear the message – and to be converted, convicted and they too were being filled with the Holy Spirit – and the believers began to realize that God was doing a new work – that he was building for himself a new house – one made of living stones – one that included people who were outside the Jewish faith.

Once the disciples figured out that God was working in people other than Jews – they had to scramble to catch up with God.  In Acts 10, we read:   

“While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles. For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God.  Then Peter said, "Can anyone keep these people from being baptized with water? They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have." So he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked Peter to stay with them for a few days.”  (vs. 44-48)

These were not Jews – but Peter recognized God’s hand at work building this new house out of living stones.  Peter talks about that in this letter.  "Though rejected by mortals" – the believers were being rejected by the Jewish communities – they were being rejected by authorities – yet they were chosen and precious in God’s sight.  And he encourages them to let themselves to be made into a new creation – a spiritual house for the God – a holy priesthood – to become living stones.

Remember that when Moses went out to bring the children of Abraham out of Egypt – they had begun as a family – and now, in fulfillment of the promise to Abraham, they were a great nation.  After 40 years of wandering in the desert, they had finally become a people distinct from the surrounding nations.

Followers in the days of Peter had become a very diverse group.  There were Jews, Greeks, Romans, Asians, even Ethiopians and Egyptians.  Peter tells them, “once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people.”  He encourages them telling them that they were “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation.”  And he encourages them to proclaim the mighty acts of God and tell people how he called them out of darkness into the light.

If we look back at the Gospel lesson for today, Jesus tells his disciples, “I go to prepare a place for you?   --  so that where I am, there you may be also.”  When he tells them, you know the way to where I am going…”  and Thomas tells him, “we don’t know where you are going, how can we know the way?”  And Jesus tells them, “If you know me, you will know my Father also.”  And Philip responds, “Show us the father…”  And Jesus tells them, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.”  That’s very important for us, because if we want to know what God is like, all we have to do is look at Jesus.  One of the most important things that Jesus does for us is to give us a view of God.  God is reflected through Jesus and that is where we come to know God more closely.   Jesus says, “I am the way, and the truth and the life.”    

That sounds great and if often repeated, but what does it mean?  

There is a song in the hymnal that I dare say no one here has ever sung; number 464.

The first verse says, "He is the way.  Follow him through the land of unlikeness and you will see rare beasts and have unique adventures."  You know that these disciples saw things unlike anything in their experience - things they couldn't explain.  Follow him on the way.

The second verse says: "He is the truth.  Seek him in the kingdom of anxiety; you will come to a great city that has expected your return for years."  Whenever you are anxious or afraid, look to Jesus and his truth.  That great city waiting for you is heaven - the heavenly city of God.

The third verse:  "He is the life.  Love him in the world of the flesh and at your marriage all its occasions shall dance for joy."  The way we follow Jesus is to reach out to those around us who are in need, who are seeking something that they don't even understand.  And when you give yourself over fully to God, the angels in heaven will dance for joy.

To see God - to see the Father, we look to Jesus and follow him as the way to the Father, knowing that he holds all truth and that in him we have life eternal.   

Peter encourages us to fulfill our destiny – to live into the promises we made or that were made for us at baptism. If we want to grow, if we want our church to grow, then we need to live into the promises – the vows we made - and renew every time we have a baptism or confirmation.    Amen.

Sanctified and Holy

In 1 Peter 2:2-10, we are admonished to long for spiritual milk so that we might. become part of a spiritual house and a holy priesthood.  I don't know about you, but a number of years ago, I would have said, "Who me?  Holy?"  I didn't understand that "holy" means sanctified by God.

We are not holy because we are perfect - none of us are, but we are indeed a holy priesthood because we are followers of Jesus Christ.  We are that chosen race that was redeemed through the blood of Jesus, and although we are all different colors and nationalities, we all worship the same God and we are therefore God's people, a holy nation.  From the minute we said "yes" to God, He lifted us up and crowned us with his own glory.  And now, accepted, forgiven, and lifted up, we begin the life-long process of living into that identity as a part of God's family.