Tag Archives: Jesus

May 20, 2013 · 12:01 am

Visitation of the Blessed Virgin

mary_elizabeth_07Rejoice in Hope

1 Samuel 2:1-10; Psalm 113; Romans 12:9-16b; Luke 1:39-57

In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.”   (Luke 1:39-45)

God makes promises to us. Have you noticed that they are not always fulfilled immediately? There is often a gestation period. During that time our primary focus should be to hold on the promise with faith and hope. Elizabeth commended Mary for believing in the promise of God when what was promised seemed preposterous. Never had a virgin given birth to a child.

The Apostle Paul, who endured many hardships in his ministry, wrote this advice to the Church at Rome:

Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer.   (Romans 12:11-12)

Paul rejoice while he was in prison. How was he able to do so? He held on to his hope and persevered in prayer. He even sung praises to God when all seemed lost. Perhaps he and Mary had something in common that made them believe in the fulfillment of God’s promises. They must have an understanding of the overall purpose and plan of God. God had acted in the past on behalf of Israel and He would continue to do so.

Mary replied to Elizabeth this way:

He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
according to the promise he made to our ancestors,
to Abraham and to his descendants forever.   (Luke 1:54-55)

Has God helped us in the past? Do we see a continuity in His saving acts in our lives and in the lives of others. Perhaps if we pray for an understanding of His overall plan and purpose for us we will be better able what He made be doing in us in the moment. God is faithful. His Son was faithful to the plan of the Father because He understood the requirement of salvation. Our hope is that the faithful One will lead us in the way that leads to everlasting life.

Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.   (Philippians 1:6)

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· 12:00 am

Trinity Sunday, Year C

The Ecumenical Church

Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31; Psalm 8; Romans 5:1-5; John 16:12-15

The first Sunday after Pentecost is traditionally known as Trinity Sunday. The appointed readings for this Sunday point to the Holy Trinity. One of the important advantages of the lectionary is that it requires us to address Biblical concepts that we might otherwise avoid.

There was a great deal of confusion over the Trinity within the Early Church. Questions arose about the nature of God. Ecumenical councils were convened to address these concerns. The Nicene Creed, a Christian statement of faith accepted by the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, and most Protestant churches, was formulated to address these questions. The creed gets its name from the First Council of Nicaea (325 A.D.), where it was initially adopted, and from the First Council of Constantinople (381 A.D.), where a revised version was accepted. A contemporary English translation of this version reads as follows:

We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is seen and unseen. We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, light from light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, one in Being with the Father. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven, by the power of the Holy Spirit he was born of the Virgin Mary and became truly human. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered, died and was buried. On the third day he rose again in fulfillment of the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end. We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son. Who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified. Who has spoken through the prophets. We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.

Why is this creed important? It is more than just a document of passing historical or theological interest. It speaks to us about who God is and what we believe about God. The Christian Faith and the Church itself cannot be fully understood outside the context of the Trinity. The fundamentals of the Faith embodied in the Nicene Creed have been agreed upon my most Christians. Perhaps we need to revisit some of those fundamentals on Trinity Sunday. We want a true and balanced understanding of the Church which Jesus established through the Holy Spirit.

Why is the Church either liturgical, evangelical, or pentecostal? Each of these three “branches” of the church tend to emphasize certain aspects of the Faith over others. The liturgical church seems to emphasize the Law of God and obedience to the Law, but may neglect the concept of new birth. The evangelical church values a salvation by a personal statement of belief in Jesus and, in some cases, that is all that is required – a “once saved always saved” approach. The pentecostal church in its most radical form may value spiritual signs and wonders, in some cases, to the exclusion of all else. Many counterfeit gifts have filtered into certain churches with little discernment and Godly authority in evidence.

Let us consider God. He is Father; He is Son; and He is Holy Spirit. He is all three and He is One. We cannot neglect one person of God in favor of another. God cannot be divided and His Church should not be divided, though we have divided it. Our understanding of the Church should not be divided. We need a vision of the Church that is ecumenical, which does not emphasize one aspect of God over another. The Apostle Paul speaks of a balance in the faith:

Since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand; and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God. And not only that, but we also boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.   (Romans 5:1-5)

Jesus makes it clear that we need the Holy Spirit to guide us into all truth. Further, He stipulates that the same Spirit will glory Him and not act apart from Him:

Jesus said to the disciples, “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine. For this reason I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.”   (John 16:12-15)

We see that the Faith about which Jesus speaks is dependent upon the leading and empowering of the Holy Spirit. How can a church not be pentecostal? We see that our heart needs to be transformed. We need to be born from above by the Spirit. How can a church not be evangelical?

The ecumenical church is as much a right path through life as it is an institution. Let us seek the fullness of God within ourselves and within our churches. Let us pray for those in leadership that they might have the mind of Christ. Let us pray for a revival and reformation by the Spirit under the authority of God.

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May 19, 2013 · 12:01 am

Day of Pentecost, Year C

The Spirit of Unity

Acts 2:1-21 or Genesis 11:1-9; Psalm 104:25-35, 37; Romans 8:14-17 or Acts 2:1-21; John 14:8-17, (25-27)

When Jesus was accused of casting out demons by the power of demons He offer this defense:

So He called them to Himself and said to them in parables: “How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end.   (Mark 3:23-26)

There is a reason for the disunity we see on this earth. When faced with an enemy who is evil and intends to do harm, steps must be taken to divide him. This is a precept of warfare. Regrettably, humankind has shown a propensity to follow evil. God found it necessary to thwart the plans of those who would not follow Him.

Now the whole earth had one language and the same words. And as they migrated from the east, they came upon a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. And they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly.” And they had brick for stone, and bitumen for mortar. Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves; otherwise we shall be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.” The LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which mortals had built. And the LORD said, “Look, they are one people, and they have all one language; and this is only the beginning of what they will do; nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. Come, let us go down, and confuse their language there, so that they will not understand one another’s speech.” So the LORD scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city. Therefore it was called Babel, because there the LORD confused the language of all the earth; and from there the LORD scattered them abroad over the face of all the earth. (Genesis 11:1-9)

On the Day of Pentecost, God made it possible for people to comprehend the various languages which once separated them.

When the day of Pentecost had come, the disciples were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.   (Acts 2:1-4)

God did something extraordinary. He placed His very nature into the heart of  those who sought Him. Jesus told His disciples that this event was coming:

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever. This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you.”   (John 14:23-24)

Unity can only be brought about in those who are willing to be led by the Spirit of Unity. Are we now ready to be led God’s Spirit? If so, we have a great promise from God.

All who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, “Abba! Father!” it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ– if, in fact, we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.   (Romans 8:14-17)

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May 12, 2013 · 12:00 am

Seventh Sunday of Easter, Year C

shekinahThe Glory of God

Acts 16:16-34; Psalm 97; Revelation 22:12-14, 16-17, 20-21; John 17:20-26

Jesus prayed that His disciples see His glory:

Jesus prayed for his disciples, and then he said. “I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. Father, I desire that those also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory, which you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.   (John 17:20-24)

To see the glory of Christ is a great gift, but it is not without conditions. One of the difficulties with the lectionary readings is that, on occasion, the authors seem to pick and chose what to emphasize while apparently skipping over more difficult or controversial issues. Let us examine a more complete reading from the Book of Revelation:

“Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.

“Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.   (Revelation 22:12-15)

Disciples must wash their robes in the blood of the Lamb of God. This requirement should never be overlooked. But there is a more subtle requirement that seems to escape some of our churches today. The magic arts are ruled out. Witchcraft is a way of seeking spiritual power or experiences that are outside of the blood. There are leaders in the church today who are practicing witchcraft.

We should not be surprised by this. Witchcraft followed the Apostle Paul:

With Paul and Silas, we came to Philippi in Macedonia, a Roman colony, and, as we were going to the place of prayer, we met a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners a great deal of money by fortune-telling. While she followed Paul and us, she would cry out, “These men are slaves of the Most High God, who proclaim to you a way of salvation.” She kept doing this for many days. But Paul, very much annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I order you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And it came out that very hour.   (Acts 16:16-18)

Witchcraft follows after the Church. Leaders must not allow it in and they must not participate in it themselves. Let us heed the warning of Jesus:

For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

Behold, I have told you before.   (Matthew 24:24-25)

The glory of God is offered freely to those who believe. Let us not look for shortcuts. We must go to the author and giver of life:

The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life. (Revelation 22:17)

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May 9, 2013 · 12:00 am

Ascension Day, Year C

Above all Rule and Authority

Acts 1:1-11; Psalm 47  or Psalm 93; Ephesians 1:15-23; Luke 24:44-53

Perhaps the greatest struggle on this earth is who has the authority. Battles have been fought and lives have been lost over this question. There are those today who question whether or not there should even be an authority. We are living in a time of lawlessness.

The Apostle Paul prayed for the Church in Ephesus that they might know the authority of Christ:

I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power. God put this power to work in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come. And he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.  (Ephesians 1:17-23)

Whom are we to follow? Whom do we trust? Who is worthy of our praise? Are we open today to the teachings of Jesus?

Jesus said to his disciples, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you– that everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, and he said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And see, I am sending upon you what my Father promised; so stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”   (Luke 24:44-49)

True disciples of Jesus are open to His teachings. They are  open to His revelations. They are open to His Spirit. Are we?

After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”   (Acts 1:3-11)

We need the Baptism with the Holy Spirit. That baptism comes with obedience to the authority of Christ:

God exalted him to his own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might bring Israel to repentance and forgive their sins. We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”   (Acts 5:31-32)

What is our witness today? Whom do we obey?

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May 5, 2013 · 12:00 am

Sixth Sunday of Easter, Year C

new-jerusalem-from-heaven01The New Jerusalem

Acts 16:9-15; Psalm 67; Revelation 21:10, 22-22:5; John 14:23-29; or John 5:1-9

In the spirit the angel carried me away to a great, high mountain and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God.

I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. Its gates will never be shut by day– and there will be no night there. People will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. But nothing unclean will enter it, nor anyone who practices abomination or falsehood, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.   (Revelation 21:10, 22-27)

The Christian world view and the secular world view are at odds today, but they always have been since the resurrection. For Christians, only Christ can repair a broken world.  Secularists believe that, if the world is broken, man will be able to repair it. For the Christian the return of Jesus is anticipated with great hope. This was true from the beginning of the Church and is true today. In fact, Jesus cautioned that we should live in preparation for His return:

“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.   (Matthew 24:42-44)

There are no shortages of biblical “scholars” who tell us that the apocalyptic literature of the Bible is just that — literature. It is not to be taken too seriously. They believe that the element of time is on their side. Jesus has not returned yet. A similar theme emerges with the story of creation. The universe has evolved over a long period of time. How long? Well, a very long time. To remove God from the equation the formula requires an extended period of time.

God is involved. He is not removed. He is Immanuel, God with us. The Psalmist wrote:

Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,
for you judge the peoples with equity
and guide all the nations upon earth.

What is our world view today? Are we anticipating the return of Jesus? Or is our lives not in need of His guidance? If we are hungry for Jesus then we may have a taste of the new Jerusalem in our lives today:

Jesus said to Judas (not Iscariot), “Those who love me will keep my word, and my Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.  (John 14:23)

Alternative Homily

31-days-18-The-Infirmed-ManDo You Want to be Made Well?

Based on John 5:1-9
 

Jesus asked the paralyzed man at the Sheep Gate a strange question: “Do you want to be made well?” The man had been paralyzed for thirty-eight years. Why would he not want to get well? Why do I not want to get well?

There are many reasons for not receiving God’s healing. Healing may require some hard work on my part. The paralyzed man answered Jesus question with an excuse:

“Sir,” the invalid replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.”   (John 5:7)

We can sympathize with him but Jesus did more than that. He healed the man but first He required that the man take a bold step:

Jesus said to him, “Stand up, take your mat and walk.” At once the man was made well, and he took up his mat and began to walk.   (John 5:8-9)

The paralytic had made excuses up to this point but he boldly accepted Jesus challenge. He really wanted to be made well and was able to quickly put the past behind him. How quick would I be to respond to such a bold challenge?

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