Readings: Psalm 91:1-6,14-16, Jeremiah 32:1-15,1 Timothy 6:6-19, Luke 16:19-31
Preached at First Presbyterian Church, Baldwin, NY, on September 26th 2010
"Lazarus and the Rich man" is a drama of three acts. In act one the Rich man feasts whilst Lazarus festers. In act two the Rich man fries whilst Lazarus feasts. In act three the Rich man pleads for mercy whilst Lazarus enjoys Paradise.
Act One: The Rich man feasts whilst Lazarus festers
Picture the scene. "A rich man habitually living in splendor". A man who thinks he has it all. Dresses like royalty. Fine Linen and purple. Attire reserved for the cream of society, Emperors, Governors, Princes and Ceasers. Rolex watch. Ferrari in the garage, parked next to the Rolls Royce. Thick pile carpets. Chandeliers. Paintings by Rembrandt and Cezanne hanging on the wall. Gold medallion the size of a saucer hanging round his neck. Silverware on the table that shone like... well... silver.
He clicks his fingers. The string quartet playing Mozart in the corner bring their immaculate performance to a close. In comes the butler and the attendant maids with dinner. "Would sir like the Veal or the Beef?" He points at one and it is served onto his plate whilst the maid pours an ample quantity of sparkling wine into the sparkling crystal glass. "Give the other to the dogs" he says.
He rises from his table and strolls across to the window where he stifles a yawn as he surveys his ornamental garden, the fountain he had specially imported from Italy, the rare Japanese trees lining the mosaic path that led to the summerhouse. His yawn dissolves into a smile. "Ahh" he sighs contentedly "It's all soo perfect". He sits at the table. With a click of his fingers, the Mozart resumes and dinner is consumed.
Outside, beyond the security fence, beyond the barbed wire and video surveillance cameras, beyond the high, broken glass rimmed wall that kept the views and smells of the squalor of the city from invading the rich mans castle, lies the poor man, Lazarus, at the gate.
Those gates. So impressive. So impassable. What went on behind those walls was anybody's guess. But Lazarus was beyond guessing. He had been laid at the gate by some well meaning passer by in the hope that somebody might take pity on him. His filthy clothes barely concealed the rotting sores that covered his body. Bent over in pain, it is difficult to say if that is a human being or a pile of rags. His face contorted by pain. He drifts in and out of consciousness. His lips bloated and blistered. His eyes glazed. He can't remember when he last had food. Times were good when he worked up at the rich mans house. Times long gone by. "Sleep, sleep, let me rest for their is no pain in my dreams".
A passing dog sniffs at the wreckage of this once proud man. It idly paws at him, but seeing no reaction moves along the alley to investigate the more profitable trash cans.
Act Two: The Rich man fries whilst Lazarus feasts
As he bites into the succulent beef steak, the rich man is aware of a numbness in his left arm, that rapidly spread up his arm, across his chest and felt uncomfortably like a severe attack of indigestion. He tried to catch his breath, but the pain became stronger, more intense, like an elephant sitting on his chest.
Then the pain was gone and he found himself in an unfamiliar environment. It was dark and cold. At the same time he was burning up. A place of dark shadows and deep sighs. A place of longing and loneliness; desperate loneliness characterized by a total absence of light or love.
He was aware of others around him, wrapping their darkness around themselves like fearful animals caught in a trap. There was weeping. There was pain. And there were haunting memories of tasks left unfinished, words of love that were never spoken, constant compromise and failure, never forgiven, never atoned for. Now it was too late.
He remembered this place from his nightmares. When you sleep in life you wake to a new day. In this sleep of death he felt he would never escape his most fearful dreams. Sheol. The waiting room for Judgment. Hell. Hades. The place of the dead.
For a moment the darkness cleared. He glimpsed, through what looked like the perimeter wall of his estate, there, on the other side, through the impassable gates; green fields, clear cool springs and flowing water, warmth, light and... who was that? Father Abraham! Laughing, talking, with someone at table. Who was that close by his side? It looked like that servant ... What was his name, "I remember, Lazarus, that was him, Lazarus. Oh things will be all right now. Lazarus will be sent to help me"
Act Three: The Rich man pleads for mercy whilst Lazarus enjoys Paradise
The Rich man called out "Father Abraham... Send Lazarus over here with some of that clear cool spring water. I'm burning up here. Send Lazarus.". He heard a voice in the darkness, "Your wasting your time. Lazarus ain't gonna run no more of your errands rich man".
Then Abraham spoke. "Child, you had your share of good things. Lazarus had nothing. Now he has his reward and you have yours. Remember that wall you built around yourself? Your security, your protection from having to care or share. Death has closed the gate. You can no more share in this table than Lazarus could share at yours. Those things you welcomed in past days have determined your welcome in eternity. Your actions have fixed a great chasm between us, "
A great sadness descended on the Rich Man. He hung his head and choked back tears. He thought of his family. "Abraham... one thing... just send Lazarus to my Fathers house, I have five brothers, warn them, tell them of this dreadful place".
Again a voice from the darkness; "You are not listening... Lazarus ain't gonna run no more of your errands rich man". Abraham said, "Why send Lazarus, God's already sent them the message of Moses and the Prophets, let them hear them. They have a synagogue to learn in, teachers to help them, scriptures to reveal God's way, God has provided for them the Word they need to hear, they're hardly likely to listen to Lazarus".
The rich man pleaded. "Don't you see! If you send Lazarus, a man who was dead, but has come back to life, it will work. They'll turn their lives around, they'll start living right." Again a voice from the darkness. " Lazarus ain't gonna run no more of your errands rich man ". Sadly Abraham replied, "If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if someone rises from the dead"
Lessons from Lazarus
In Scripture the measure of how welcome eternity will be to us appears to be measured by the neighborliness we show to each other on earth. Those who in their pretensions enthrone themselves as Kings and see others as mere pawns to be used for their personal face a harsh awakening.
God has sent to us the words of Moses and the prophets. We furthermore have the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ, a grace event that was only emerging as Jesus told this tale.
That grace was powerfully revealed to the disciples when they witnessed another man, this time not the Lazarus of this parable, but Lazarus, a brother of Mary and Martha, a great friend of Jesus, brought back to life from the tomb. (John 11)
The Sting in the Tale
Yet the sting in the tale is the very last verse. People hear the parable and think, "Now who do I identify with, the rich man or with Lazarus?" But at the end of the parable, we are called to identify with the ones who had been sent the message of Scripture, the ones to whom the testimony of Christ died and Risen would be told:- the Father and five brothers of the Rich man. (Verse 31) "If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if someone rises from the dead".
The conclusion of the parable is to point us to personal repentance and to embrace the message of the Living Christ for ourselves. It is more than just a story about humanitarian aid or a picture of judgment on the self centered. It suggests that the hope of the world lies in me and you accepting the gospel message of the Good News of the risen Christ. Accepting it in a way in that causes us to embrace in love those who stand at the gates of our lives in need of help and prayer.
God has done everything God can do to persuade us to accept His love. God has given us the Word of Truth in the Scriptures. He raised His Son, Jesus Christ from the dead. God sends the Holy Spirit to be our Helper and Guide. It is for us to respond; through loving actions towards our fellow human beings, through faithful stewardship and worship, through living our lives in a way that brings glory to the name of Jesus Christ.
There are indeed many lessons we can learn from Lazarus.
Rev Adrian J. Pratt
Monday, September 27, 2010
Monday, September 20, 2010
Tony Malonely
Readings: Psalm 7:1-9, Jeremiah 8:18:9:1, 1 Timothy 2:1-7, Luke 16:1-13
Preached at First Presbyterian Church, Baldwin, NY, on September 19th 2010
Tony Malonely enjoyed the high life. Classy suits. Expensive wines. Fine cigars. As Associatte manger of a mid-size commercial trading outlet he was doing pretty well. In fact he had just got back from a trip to Vegas. And the best thing about it was that it hadn’t cost him a dime. With his talent for creative accounting and his abilty to be more than a little economic with the truth the company had covered the bill for the whole trip, and as everybody knows “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.” But not always.
There he was. Sitting in his air-conditioned office, leaning back in the leather office chair with his feet up on the oak desktop when the telephone rang. It was the bosses line. He leant over and preseed the button for speakerphone. A distorted voice that was indicative of anger barked out “My office. Now!”
Tony quickly made his way to the only office that was bigger and brassier than his own. One of the two enormous doors was already half open and Tina the secretary, who as usual had one hand raised drying her nail polish, waved him straight past her desk… without the usual inane smile on her face. “Shut the door Tony” boomed the boss “We need to talk”.
Tony made his way across the expanse of office to the desk and sat down. The boss threw some photographs across the desk to him. “Explain these” he said. Tony looked in horror. There he was at a blackjack table. There he was coming out of a show that certainly wasn’t family entertainment. And that was him dissapearing into a limo with the redhead.
The boss snarled sarcastically and sneered… “So… how was the convention in Ohio, Mr Malonely?” “I… ermm.. that is..” For once Tony Malonely had ran out of baloney . “Tony” said the Boss, “Do you want to know something?” ‘Sure boss’ said Tony gulping hard. “You’re fired. You got a couple of hours to clear out your desk… and Tony? Don’t ever ask any one even remotely associatted with this company for a reference!”
Tony realized it was useless to plead his case. He made his way back across the thick carpet, out of the door, past Tina (who was still drying her nails, smiling inanely, and didn’t even look up), back to his own office, back to his own desk, shut the door, leant back in his chair and his mind started to process. What should he do now? Stay calm. Think it through. What are the options?
He could try a different company or start over at something else. No… he was to old. And who’s going to take me on after this! He could get out there and beg for forgiveness and hope that mindless compassion might sprinkle good fortune down upon him. That wasn’t going to work. What he needed were some friends! And he only had two hours to find them.
“Now wait a minute”. He pulled up the main accounting window on the computer screen and began to analyze who owed the company the most money right now. In the current economic climate there were a number of creditors that were really having a hard time meeting their payments. And the boss wasn’t one to let such things go.
“There” he said. “The Olive Oil contract.” Payment was well overdue on a shipment of a hundred barrels of olive oil. And he knew the company well enough to know they couldn’t pay. He calls them up. ‘Hey, Joe… it’s Tony… over at Traders… yeah that’s why I’m calling… you owe us for a hundred barrells… right. What if I said that if you can get it by the end of the week we’ll let you pay for fifty and we’ll call it quits! You like that! Hey anytime. Just trying to do the right thing. You have a good one too, my friend!”
He looked again at the screen. What about the wheat shipment? Gives them a call. “Mr Kellog… yeah that’s right Tony Malonely… yeah I know you are having trouble paying… that’s why I’m calling… look…you owe for a hundred… how about I charge you for eighty and we forget about the other twenty? Yeah? You like that. That’s me… Tony Malonely, anything to help an old friend.” And so the calls continued. One by one he called every debtor and gave them the sort of breaks that they only dreamed of!
Maenwhile back in the Bosses office, in the last hour he had received a number of unexpected calls. The first, from Joe, manager of the the Olive Oil company had taken him by surprise. Joe had been gushing with thankfulness. “Thankyou so much… for giving us this break. We’re never going to work through anybody else. Customer loyalty, man you just redefined it! That Tony Malonely… good guy you got there!” Of course the Boss couldn’t lose face by telling Joe at the Olive Oil company that he didn’t know what he was talking about. And so the hour went on… call after call, promising loyalty and praising Tony!
After the twentieth call the Boss couldn’t help reflect that, despicable, dishonest, total crook though he may be, Tony Malonely was one shrewd dude who didn’t know the meaning of the word loser! Always ready to find a new angle, always on the look out for a way to turn somebodies misfortune to his personal advantage, you had to hand it to him, Tony Malonely was the man!
And I’m hoping you noticed that Tony Malonely was very similar to the man that Jesus told a story about in our reading from the Gospel of Luke today. After telling the story, Jesus added that if the Tony’s of this world were able to look after there self-interested lives by their own street-smart ways, then shouldn’t the people of God be able to harness their creative energies, not for doing wrong, but for doing good? I love the way that Eugene Petersens ‘The Message Bible’, transliterates verses 8 and 9 of Luke 16.
"Now here's a surprise: The master praised the crooked manager! And why? Because he knew how to look after himself. Streetwise people are smarter in this regard than law-abiding citizens. They are on constant alert, looking for angles, surviving by their wits. I want you to be smart in the same way—but for what is right—using every adversity to stimulate you to creative survival, to concentrate your attention on the bare essentials, so you'll live, really live, and not complacently just get by on good behavior."
There are some phrases in there that could really revolutionize the way we live our lives both as individuals and as churches. “Use every adversity to stimulate you to creative survival”. That’s deep! That’s what God did through the cross of Jesus Christ. There cannot be a more adverse set of conditions than a death by crucifixion. Yet it was followed by the miracle of resurrection.
In our lives we reach those dead ends where we feel like its ‘Game Over’. We just want to roll over and die. But Jesus in our story from Luke is saying that there’s people out there in the world who have a better atitude to survival than those of us who are seeking to follow Him! That we could benefit from some street-smart, surviving by our wits alone, rock bottom experiences.
Again, from ‘The Message’; “Concentrate your attention on the bare essentials, so you'll live, really live, and not complacently just get by on good behavior." I fear that as churches and good decent people we play that game of ‘trying just to get by on good behaviour’ day after day, year after year, rather than truly exercising our hearts and minds in the risky business of faith without a safety net.
‘Concentrating our attention on the bare essentials’ means redefining what is necessary and what we could let go. That doesn’t mean that we have to let everything non-essential go, just that we come to understand the difference between what is important and vital and life giving, and the rest of the stuff that we fill our lives with.
How do we do that? We begin with the small things. Everything begins with the little actions, the consistent practices, the everyday virtues. A crook begins his crooked ways one crooked act at a time. Likewise with faith. A faithful person is one who is consitently faithful! It starts with the small things. Fred Craddok in his ‘Interpretation’ commentary on Luke writes,
“Most if us will not this week christen a ship, write a book, end a war, appoint a cabinet, dine with a queen, convert a nation or be burned at the stake. More likely this week will present no more than a chance to give a cup of water, write a note, visit a nursing home, vote for a county commisioner, teach a Sunday School class, share a meal, tell a child a story, go to choir practice, or feed the neighbours cat. Luke 16:10 ‘Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much’.”
We also need to be clear about who and what we are being faithful to. The closing line of our passage couldn’t put it much clearer. “No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.” (Luke 16:13)
We are either building a Kingdom on this earth, (a Kingdom which will be ultimatly be taken away from us) or we are building our lives with the Kingdom of God in mind. ‘Wealth’ it has been said, “Is a great servant, but a terrible master”. It is not about how much we have, but what we do with what have, that defines who we are serving!
There are many Tony Malonely’s in this world who are quite clear on whom they are serving. They are out for number one and will do everything they can to keep it that way. But there are lessons we can learn, even from them. If they can give their all for aims that ultimatly will leave them lonely, how much more should we be committed to values that can change our world for the better. And it is the little things that make the big difference in the long run.
Let us pray that we can go into this next week committed to doing what we can with what we have in order to bring glory to God. When the problems come, as they may, let us not wallow in them but be as street smart as Tony Malonley and use the ‘situation of adversity to stimulate us towards creative survival’.
Above all let us seek to be servants of God, faithful stewards of the Kingdom who seek to solve the problems of our world by not becoming one of them. May we be people of God with the ability to harness their creative energies to doing the right thing! And to God’s name the glory. Amen.
Preached at First Presbyterian Church, Baldwin, NY, on September 19th 2010
Tony Malonely enjoyed the high life. Classy suits. Expensive wines. Fine cigars. As Associatte manger of a mid-size commercial trading outlet he was doing pretty well. In fact he had just got back from a trip to Vegas. And the best thing about it was that it hadn’t cost him a dime. With his talent for creative accounting and his abilty to be more than a little economic with the truth the company had covered the bill for the whole trip, and as everybody knows “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.” But not always.
There he was. Sitting in his air-conditioned office, leaning back in the leather office chair with his feet up on the oak desktop when the telephone rang. It was the bosses line. He leant over and preseed the button for speakerphone. A distorted voice that was indicative of anger barked out “My office. Now!”
Tony quickly made his way to the only office that was bigger and brassier than his own. One of the two enormous doors was already half open and Tina the secretary, who as usual had one hand raised drying her nail polish, waved him straight past her desk… without the usual inane smile on her face. “Shut the door Tony” boomed the boss “We need to talk”.
Tony made his way across the expanse of office to the desk and sat down. The boss threw some photographs across the desk to him. “Explain these” he said. Tony looked in horror. There he was at a blackjack table. There he was coming out of a show that certainly wasn’t family entertainment. And that was him dissapearing into a limo with the redhead.
The boss snarled sarcastically and sneered… “So… how was the convention in Ohio, Mr Malonely?” “I… ermm.. that is..” For once Tony Malonely had ran out of baloney . “Tony” said the Boss, “Do you want to know something?” ‘Sure boss’ said Tony gulping hard. “You’re fired. You got a couple of hours to clear out your desk… and Tony? Don’t ever ask any one even remotely associatted with this company for a reference!”
Tony realized it was useless to plead his case. He made his way back across the thick carpet, out of the door, past Tina (who was still drying her nails, smiling inanely, and didn’t even look up), back to his own office, back to his own desk, shut the door, leant back in his chair and his mind started to process. What should he do now? Stay calm. Think it through. What are the options?
He could try a different company or start over at something else. No… he was to old. And who’s going to take me on after this! He could get out there and beg for forgiveness and hope that mindless compassion might sprinkle good fortune down upon him. That wasn’t going to work. What he needed were some friends! And he only had two hours to find them.
“Now wait a minute”. He pulled up the main accounting window on the computer screen and began to analyze who owed the company the most money right now. In the current economic climate there were a number of creditors that were really having a hard time meeting their payments. And the boss wasn’t one to let such things go.
“There” he said. “The Olive Oil contract.” Payment was well overdue on a shipment of a hundred barrels of olive oil. And he knew the company well enough to know they couldn’t pay. He calls them up. ‘Hey, Joe… it’s Tony… over at Traders… yeah that’s why I’m calling… you owe us for a hundred barrells… right. What if I said that if you can get it by the end of the week we’ll let you pay for fifty and we’ll call it quits! You like that! Hey anytime. Just trying to do the right thing. You have a good one too, my friend!”
He looked again at the screen. What about the wheat shipment? Gives them a call. “Mr Kellog… yeah that’s right Tony Malonely… yeah I know you are having trouble paying… that’s why I’m calling… look…you owe for a hundred… how about I charge you for eighty and we forget about the other twenty? Yeah? You like that. That’s me… Tony Malonely, anything to help an old friend.” And so the calls continued. One by one he called every debtor and gave them the sort of breaks that they only dreamed of!
Maenwhile back in the Bosses office, in the last hour he had received a number of unexpected calls. The first, from Joe, manager of the the Olive Oil company had taken him by surprise. Joe had been gushing with thankfulness. “Thankyou so much… for giving us this break. We’re never going to work through anybody else. Customer loyalty, man you just redefined it! That Tony Malonely… good guy you got there!” Of course the Boss couldn’t lose face by telling Joe at the Olive Oil company that he didn’t know what he was talking about. And so the hour went on… call after call, promising loyalty and praising Tony!
After the twentieth call the Boss couldn’t help reflect that, despicable, dishonest, total crook though he may be, Tony Malonely was one shrewd dude who didn’t know the meaning of the word loser! Always ready to find a new angle, always on the look out for a way to turn somebodies misfortune to his personal advantage, you had to hand it to him, Tony Malonely was the man!
And I’m hoping you noticed that Tony Malonely was very similar to the man that Jesus told a story about in our reading from the Gospel of Luke today. After telling the story, Jesus added that if the Tony’s of this world were able to look after there self-interested lives by their own street-smart ways, then shouldn’t the people of God be able to harness their creative energies, not for doing wrong, but for doing good? I love the way that Eugene Petersens ‘The Message Bible’, transliterates verses 8 and 9 of Luke 16.
"Now here's a surprise: The master praised the crooked manager! And why? Because he knew how to look after himself. Streetwise people are smarter in this regard than law-abiding citizens. They are on constant alert, looking for angles, surviving by their wits. I want you to be smart in the same way—but for what is right—using every adversity to stimulate you to creative survival, to concentrate your attention on the bare essentials, so you'll live, really live, and not complacently just get by on good behavior."
There are some phrases in there that could really revolutionize the way we live our lives both as individuals and as churches. “Use every adversity to stimulate you to creative survival”. That’s deep! That’s what God did through the cross of Jesus Christ. There cannot be a more adverse set of conditions than a death by crucifixion. Yet it was followed by the miracle of resurrection.
In our lives we reach those dead ends where we feel like its ‘Game Over’. We just want to roll over and die. But Jesus in our story from Luke is saying that there’s people out there in the world who have a better atitude to survival than those of us who are seeking to follow Him! That we could benefit from some street-smart, surviving by our wits alone, rock bottom experiences.
Again, from ‘The Message’; “Concentrate your attention on the bare essentials, so you'll live, really live, and not complacently just get by on good behavior." I fear that as churches and good decent people we play that game of ‘trying just to get by on good behaviour’ day after day, year after year, rather than truly exercising our hearts and minds in the risky business of faith without a safety net.
‘Concentrating our attention on the bare essentials’ means redefining what is necessary and what we could let go. That doesn’t mean that we have to let everything non-essential go, just that we come to understand the difference between what is important and vital and life giving, and the rest of the stuff that we fill our lives with.
How do we do that? We begin with the small things. Everything begins with the little actions, the consistent practices, the everyday virtues. A crook begins his crooked ways one crooked act at a time. Likewise with faith. A faithful person is one who is consitently faithful! It starts with the small things. Fred Craddok in his ‘Interpretation’ commentary on Luke writes,
“Most if us will not this week christen a ship, write a book, end a war, appoint a cabinet, dine with a queen, convert a nation or be burned at the stake. More likely this week will present no more than a chance to give a cup of water, write a note, visit a nursing home, vote for a county commisioner, teach a Sunday School class, share a meal, tell a child a story, go to choir practice, or feed the neighbours cat. Luke 16:10 ‘Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much’.”
We also need to be clear about who and what we are being faithful to. The closing line of our passage couldn’t put it much clearer. “No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.” (Luke 16:13)
We are either building a Kingdom on this earth, (a Kingdom which will be ultimatly be taken away from us) or we are building our lives with the Kingdom of God in mind. ‘Wealth’ it has been said, “Is a great servant, but a terrible master”. It is not about how much we have, but what we do with what have, that defines who we are serving!
There are many Tony Malonely’s in this world who are quite clear on whom they are serving. They are out for number one and will do everything they can to keep it that way. But there are lessons we can learn, even from them. If they can give their all for aims that ultimatly will leave them lonely, how much more should we be committed to values that can change our world for the better. And it is the little things that make the big difference in the long run.
Let us pray that we can go into this next week committed to doing what we can with what we have in order to bring glory to God. When the problems come, as they may, let us not wallow in them but be as street smart as Tony Malonley and use the ‘situation of adversity to stimulate us towards creative survival’.
Above all let us seek to be servants of God, faithful stewards of the Kingdom who seek to solve the problems of our world by not becoming one of them. May we be people of God with the ability to harness their creative energies to doing the right thing! And to God’s name the glory. Amen.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Lost without Knowing it
Readings: Psalm 14, Jeremiah 4:11-12,22-28, Luke 15: 1-10, 1 Timothy 1:12-15
Preached at First Presbyterian Church, Baldwin, NY, on September 12 2010
Little Belinda the sheep normally stayed with the rest of the flock. But this day there was a particularly nice fresh looking patch of green grass on the other side of the fence. And what was that? A hole in the hedge? "Maybe I could just squeeze through… there we are. And look, over there, right the other side of the road. That grass looks so good. Baa. I'll be O.K. Hey it's getting dark, I'll just take a nap and .. wait .. did I doze off.. what's that crazy shepherd doing, lifting me upon his shoulders, big smile on his face... saying "Welcome home".. Was I lost without knowing it?"
It's not a very exciting life being a coin. You are created, you get passed around, then you get melted down and made into something else. Some coins get to travel the world, but most just circulate their own neighborhoods. One of the things about being a coin is that you have absolutely no consciousness of your own worth or value. So when a woman drops you between the floorboards you have no realization that she is going frantic, sweeping, and shining lights into dark corners, all because she really wants you back. You have no idea that when she finds you she is going to throw a big party to celebrate. You're ‘lost without knowing it’.
It can be fatal to be ‘lost without knowing it.’
During World War II action in Northern Africa, a B-17 Flying Fortress, called "Lady-Be-Good" was on her way back from a mission. Guiding the plane was a radio beam from the desert airstrip where they were based. The crew didn't realize there was a strong air wind that night, and with no visual reference, they flew right past the airfield and landed in the Libyan desert. The men survived the crash landing, only to perish, in the blazing suns heat, of thirst. Sometimes you only realize how bad a situation is when it's too late. It can be a tragic thing to be lost without knowing it.
There are times when the sense of being lost does break into our hearts. There are those times when things happen and we throw up our hands and say, "Why, Lord, Why?" There are those moments when we question what purpose life has, where our lives are heading, why we are here and a hundred other things. But we tend to push those moments aside. They become lost in the business, in the routines, in the every day-ness that getting by in life demands.
Belinda the sheep who strayed from the path could have been found by all sorts of things. Could have ended up as Roadkill mutton. Could have found a ditch to fall in. Could have been found by a passing wolf. Instead, a crazy shepherd endangers the life of 99 others by leaving them on a hillside whilst he searches and searches for her. Stupid sheep. It was her own fault. She was the one who walked away. She was the one who went off on her own. She was the one whose actions put her and the rest of the flock in danger. That crazy shepherd! Just holds her high and says "Come and rejoice… I've found my sheep!"
The old coin that rolled away. Do you think a coin is bothered whether it's lost or found? Even though it was totally incapable of realizing it's own worth, the woman who owned it did. And she was a bit of a crazy woman, because when she finds it, she ends up throwing a party for her friends that may well have cost more than the coin was worth.
The great statesman and theologian of the earliest church, St. Paul, made no pretense that his former position was one of being totally lost, without knowing it, when he writes to his young friend Timothy, "I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service; even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor. And yet I was shown mercy, because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus". (1 Timothy 1:12-14)
He acted ignorantly. He didn't know he was lost.
He had to be found without deserving it.
The remedy for being lost without knowing it;
Is to be found without deserving it.
When Jesus spoke those parables about the lost sheep and the lost coin, He did so in the face of murmuring religious leaders, who felt that He was the one who was lost. They believed that He was so lost that He was turning out to be dangerous. So they opposed Him and His crazy notions about God being like a shepherd or a woman who lost a coin. They never got the point that they were the ones who were truly lost without knowing it.
Parables are stories with many layers of meaning. We may well agree that the remedy for being ‘lost without knowing it’ is to be ‘found without deserving it’. Indeed we may identify with those who at times feel lost and know that they are undeserving of having received the grace of God. But if we leave it there... we're still lost.
So listen and hear these stories. A crazy shepherd leaves 99 in the fold and goes off in search of one. "I am the Good Shepherd" proclaims Jesus, "Who lays down His life for his sheep". A woman loses a coin and then throws a party when she finds it. "In the same way," Jesus tells us, "There is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents".
Friends, do we get it? God’s crazy about us. Even when we are not too crazy about the things of God’s Kingdom, God still calls out to us and seeks to be a part of our lives. God has a passion for our lives that they should be all that God first created them to be, a commitment so great that Jesus died upon the Cross of Calvary to kill forever any notion that God didn’t know what life was like for everyday people.
Don’t get lost without knowing it. As those airplane pilots I mentioned earlier, who ended up miles from nowhere, in the middle of the desert, being lost can cost you everything, even life itself. Today God is just waiting to take us by the hand and lead us home. And… no… it’s nothing we deserve. After all we are the ones who wander away from the path; we are the ones who can go through life remaining ignorant of the God who seeks us out.
Don’t be lost without knowing it. Allow the love of God to find you and welcome you and seek to live your life in the security of that relationship. Then your life will echo the words of the many in our world whose Christian testimony is simply “I was lost, but now I am found!”
May we find in the coming days that our lives are being made new in Jesus name. Amen.
Preached at First Presbyterian Church, Baldwin, NY, on September 12 2010
Little Belinda the sheep normally stayed with the rest of the flock. But this day there was a particularly nice fresh looking patch of green grass on the other side of the fence. And what was that? A hole in the hedge? "Maybe I could just squeeze through… there we are. And look, over there, right the other side of the road. That grass looks so good. Baa. I'll be O.K. Hey it's getting dark, I'll just take a nap and .. wait .. did I doze off.. what's that crazy shepherd doing, lifting me upon his shoulders, big smile on his face... saying "Welcome home".. Was I lost without knowing it?"
It's not a very exciting life being a coin. You are created, you get passed around, then you get melted down and made into something else. Some coins get to travel the world, but most just circulate their own neighborhoods. One of the things about being a coin is that you have absolutely no consciousness of your own worth or value. So when a woman drops you between the floorboards you have no realization that she is going frantic, sweeping, and shining lights into dark corners, all because she really wants you back. You have no idea that when she finds you she is going to throw a big party to celebrate. You're ‘lost without knowing it’.
It can be fatal to be ‘lost without knowing it.’
During World War II action in Northern Africa, a B-17 Flying Fortress, called "Lady-Be-Good" was on her way back from a mission. Guiding the plane was a radio beam from the desert airstrip where they were based. The crew didn't realize there was a strong air wind that night, and with no visual reference, they flew right past the airfield and landed in the Libyan desert. The men survived the crash landing, only to perish, in the blazing suns heat, of thirst. Sometimes you only realize how bad a situation is when it's too late. It can be a tragic thing to be lost without knowing it.
The problem with being lost without knowing it is simply stated;
You are lost and you don't know it!
You are lost and you don't know it!
There are times when the sense of being lost does break into our hearts. There are those times when things happen and we throw up our hands and say, "Why, Lord, Why?" There are those moments when we question what purpose life has, where our lives are heading, why we are here and a hundred other things. But we tend to push those moments aside. They become lost in the business, in the routines, in the every day-ness that getting by in life demands.
The remedy for being lost without knowing it
is to be found without deserving it.
is to be found without deserving it.
Belinda the sheep who strayed from the path could have been found by all sorts of things. Could have ended up as Roadkill mutton. Could have found a ditch to fall in. Could have been found by a passing wolf. Instead, a crazy shepherd endangers the life of 99 others by leaving them on a hillside whilst he searches and searches for her. Stupid sheep. It was her own fault. She was the one who walked away. She was the one who went off on her own. She was the one whose actions put her and the rest of the flock in danger. That crazy shepherd! Just holds her high and says "Come and rejoice… I've found my sheep!"
The old coin that rolled away. Do you think a coin is bothered whether it's lost or found? Even though it was totally incapable of realizing it's own worth, the woman who owned it did. And she was a bit of a crazy woman, because when she finds it, she ends up throwing a party for her friends that may well have cost more than the coin was worth.
The great statesman and theologian of the earliest church, St. Paul, made no pretense that his former position was one of being totally lost, without knowing it, when he writes to his young friend Timothy, "I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service; even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor. And yet I was shown mercy, because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus". (1 Timothy 1:12-14)
He acted ignorantly. He didn't know he was lost.
He had to be found without deserving it.
The remedy for being lost without knowing it;
Is to be found without deserving it.
When Jesus spoke those parables about the lost sheep and the lost coin, He did so in the face of murmuring religious leaders, who felt that He was the one who was lost. They believed that He was so lost that He was turning out to be dangerous. So they opposed Him and His crazy notions about God being like a shepherd or a woman who lost a coin. They never got the point that they were the ones who were truly lost without knowing it.
Parables are stories with many layers of meaning. We may well agree that the remedy for being ‘lost without knowing it’ is to be ‘found without deserving it’. Indeed we may identify with those who at times feel lost and know that they are undeserving of having received the grace of God. But if we leave it there... we're still lost.
So listen and hear these stories. A crazy shepherd leaves 99 in the fold and goes off in search of one. "I am the Good Shepherd" proclaims Jesus, "Who lays down His life for his sheep". A woman loses a coin and then throws a party when she finds it. "In the same way," Jesus tells us, "There is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents".
Friends, do we get it? God’s crazy about us. Even when we are not too crazy about the things of God’s Kingdom, God still calls out to us and seeks to be a part of our lives. God has a passion for our lives that they should be all that God first created them to be, a commitment so great that Jesus died upon the Cross of Calvary to kill forever any notion that God didn’t know what life was like for everyday people.
Don’t get lost without knowing it. As those airplane pilots I mentioned earlier, who ended up miles from nowhere, in the middle of the desert, being lost can cost you everything, even life itself. Today God is just waiting to take us by the hand and lead us home. And… no… it’s nothing we deserve. After all we are the ones who wander away from the path; we are the ones who can go through life remaining ignorant of the God who seeks us out.
Don’t be lost without knowing it. Allow the love of God to find you and welcome you and seek to live your life in the security of that relationship. Then your life will echo the words of the many in our world whose Christian testimony is simply “I was lost, but now I am found!”
May we find in the coming days that our lives are being made new in Jesus name. Amen.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
THE CALL AND THE CROSS
Readings: Psalm 139:1-6,13-18, Jeremiah 18:1-11, Philemon 1-21, Luke 14: 25-35
Preached at First Presbyterian Church, Baldwin, NY, on September 5th 2010
At home on our kitchen wall we have a series of plates depicting rural English scenes. There's quite a few of them. We hadn't meant to get quite so many, but it was one of those offers where you see an advertisement and you think it would be nice to have one of those, and then the one became a set of two, then the two became a set of six and the six became a set of twelve and you end up spending a lot more than you at first intended.
Same thing can happen with book clubs or music clubs. You sign up thinking you have the best bargain in the world and suddenly end up with stuff you hadn't really wanted. It can happen with Committees to. You say, in all innocence, "Yes, I'll serve on so-and-so", and it's only further down the road you realize just exactly what you've got yourself into.
When the crowds were following Him, Jesus was uncompromising in His expectations of those who would be His disciples. He told them to count the cost and to weigh up the implications before they signed up for discipleship. He told them that commitment to Him was all or it was nothing. That followers would have to restructure their whole life, their priorities, and their commitments, if they were to inherit the blessings of the Kingdom of God. He was crystal clear that if they responded to the Call they would also need to be prepared to take up the Cross.
An old gospel chorus my youth group used to sing put it plainly and decisively;
Have the rules changed? Does Jesus ask any less of disciples of the twenty first century?
The impression given by some preachers is that buying into the gospel is much like buying a used car. They make it sound as easy as possible. "To ensure your salvation, call for a quotation, and make a donation." It is like a throwback to the pre-Reformation days when you could purge yourself (and your relatives) from sin and purgatory by paying the right price to the right priest.
It is always a temptation for any preacher to say what they think they want the people to hear and try and avoid saying anything that may cause them offense, because, after all, a preacher's congregation are those who put the money in the collection plate that keeps him or her comfortable. It's always a temptation to try and make the message easier to swallow for some people because they might easier become followers. It's always a temptation to play to the crowd rather than make disciples. It's a temptation for all disciples to please people rather than please God.
So pray for your church leaders that they hold before your understanding not simply the call of Jesus that is beckoning you to be His follower, but also hold before you the Cross of Jesus that He is calling you to carry! Why? Because the cross has to be central to our life if we are in any true sense of the word going to be Christian.
The fact is that our Churches, Preachers, and Christian friends are going to let us down sometimes. But the One who died upon that cross, whose name is Jesus, He is not going to let us down. Even the greatest friend who deeply loves us can not go to Calvary to die for our sins, but Jesus did that.
There are always religious folk that we can point the finger at and say; “Phoneys, do-gooders, know-it-alls, holier than thou's, religious cranks, Bible freaks, hypocrites.” You can not point the finger at Jesus Christ and make such accusations. His love is truth and His life is life, life that burnt with such intensity that death, Hell and the Devil could not extinguish it. His way, is the ‘Way’ He is calling us to follow. His way is the way of the cross.
You may say, "But, you don't know what I'm going through, you don't know the struggles I have, you don't know what I have to put up with!" You know what? You are right. I don’t know. But Jesus Christ knows exactly what you are going through, exactly how you are trying to deal with things, exactly how you are feeling about things right now, and He is the One who uncompromisingly calls us to stand out of the crowd and make our stand, not for our church or for our preacher or our Christian friends, but for Him.
How uncompromising is that stand? Listen again to verse 26: "If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.
Let's clear away one stumbling block that's due to translation here. Jesus is not preaching about any anti-family statements or justifying hatred. He is speaking in a manner of traditional rabbinical teaching, (sometimes called "Semitic hyperbole") that greatly exaggerates a contrast so that the meaning of a phrase or a concept is seen more clearly. The word used for hatred, in Greek mijes (miseô), does not imply anger or hostility.
What Jesus appears to be saying is that our response to the call of discipleship has to take precedence over and above even the most sacred of human relationships; even that of family. That there is no higher obligation in life than commitment to Him and being His disciple. That the love we are to have for Him and the things of God's Kingdom, is of such a quality and depth that it seems to make, by comparison, our love for those closest to us seem like hatred.
What are the things that we give our time to? The things that excite us? The things that make up our life? Maybe it is our family. Or maybe it's our job. Or maybe it's our home. Or maybe it's hanging out with our friends. Or maybe it's the golf course. Or maybe it's having a quiet Sunday morning snoozing in bed. There is nothing wrong with any of those things.
But hear Jesus and hear Jesus loud and clear. "Whoever comes to me and does not love me more than these things, can not be my disciple". Can not. Will not. Shall not. May go through the motions but in reality not be getting there. God calls us to have a love for Jesus Christ, that by comparison to our love of all other things, seems like hatred.
Move on to verse 27. "Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple". Sadly we live in a world where many, faced with this challenge, will ask, "What's in it for me?" What's in it for us? What have we to gain by taking up a cross, by loving Jesus more than anything else? By making the decision to be disciples?
Think what Christ has done for us. Think on how He gave His life for our salvation, for our healing and wholeness. Think on all He said, all that He did. Think how His love has changed the world and so many of the freedoms we enjoy today have come about through those who sought to hold up His light in the darkness.
Reflect on those who died so that we could have a bible to study and freedom to worship Reflect on those who gave all so we can gain all. Look at how many hospitals and educational establishments and forms of government and structures of law bear the marks of His teaching.
Instead of asking "What's in it for me?" we should be asking, "What are we doing to reflect the love of Him who first loved us? How should we live in the light of the grace God has freely bestowed upon us? What heritage are we passing on to others?".
It was Isaac Watts who penned these words;
The Call and the Cross.
Both are essential for genuine discipleship.
May God enable us to hear clearly the Call to follow Jesus Christ.
May God enable us through the Holy Spirit,
to daily take up our cross
and go wherever this awesome discipleship journey may lead!
I invite you, as we come to a table laid with bread and wine, to reflect on these words:
Preached at First Presbyterian Church, Baldwin, NY, on September 5th 2010
At home on our kitchen wall we have a series of plates depicting rural English scenes. There's quite a few of them. We hadn't meant to get quite so many, but it was one of those offers where you see an advertisement and you think it would be nice to have one of those, and then the one became a set of two, then the two became a set of six and the six became a set of twelve and you end up spending a lot more than you at first intended.
Same thing can happen with book clubs or music clubs. You sign up thinking you have the best bargain in the world and suddenly end up with stuff you hadn't really wanted. It can happen with Committees to. You say, in all innocence, "Yes, I'll serve on so-and-so", and it's only further down the road you realize just exactly what you've got yourself into.
When the crowds were following Him, Jesus was uncompromising in His expectations of those who would be His disciples. He told them to count the cost and to weigh up the implications before they signed up for discipleship. He told them that commitment to Him was all or it was nothing. That followers would have to restructure their whole life, their priorities, and their commitments, if they were to inherit the blessings of the Kingdom of God. He was crystal clear that if they responded to the Call they would also need to be prepared to take up the Cross.
An old gospel chorus my youth group used to sing put it plainly and decisively;
"If you will not bear a cross
You can't wear a Crown"
You can't wear a Crown"
Have the rules changed? Does Jesus ask any less of disciples of the twenty first century?
The impression given by some preachers is that buying into the gospel is much like buying a used car. They make it sound as easy as possible. "To ensure your salvation, call for a quotation, and make a donation." It is like a throwback to the pre-Reformation days when you could purge yourself (and your relatives) from sin and purgatory by paying the right price to the right priest.
It is always a temptation for any preacher to say what they think they want the people to hear and try and avoid saying anything that may cause them offense, because, after all, a preacher's congregation are those who put the money in the collection plate that keeps him or her comfortable. It's always a temptation to try and make the message easier to swallow for some people because they might easier become followers. It's always a temptation to play to the crowd rather than make disciples. It's a temptation for all disciples to please people rather than please God.
So pray for your church leaders that they hold before your understanding not simply the call of Jesus that is beckoning you to be His follower, but also hold before you the Cross of Jesus that He is calling you to carry! Why? Because the cross has to be central to our life if we are in any true sense of the word going to be Christian.
The fact is that our Churches, Preachers, and Christian friends are going to let us down sometimes. But the One who died upon that cross, whose name is Jesus, He is not going to let us down. Even the greatest friend who deeply loves us can not go to Calvary to die for our sins, but Jesus did that.
There are always religious folk that we can point the finger at and say; “Phoneys, do-gooders, know-it-alls, holier than thou's, religious cranks, Bible freaks, hypocrites.” You can not point the finger at Jesus Christ and make such accusations. His love is truth and His life is life, life that burnt with such intensity that death, Hell and the Devil could not extinguish it. His way, is the ‘Way’ He is calling us to follow. His way is the way of the cross.
You may say, "But, you don't know what I'm going through, you don't know the struggles I have, you don't know what I have to put up with!" You know what? You are right. I don’t know. But Jesus Christ knows exactly what you are going through, exactly how you are trying to deal with things, exactly how you are feeling about things right now, and He is the One who uncompromisingly calls us to stand out of the crowd and make our stand, not for our church or for our preacher or our Christian friends, but for Him.
How uncompromising is that stand? Listen again to verse 26: "If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.
Let's clear away one stumbling block that's due to translation here. Jesus is not preaching about any anti-family statements or justifying hatred. He is speaking in a manner of traditional rabbinical teaching, (sometimes called "Semitic hyperbole") that greatly exaggerates a contrast so that the meaning of a phrase or a concept is seen more clearly. The word used for hatred, in Greek mijes (miseô), does not imply anger or hostility.
What Jesus appears to be saying is that our response to the call of discipleship has to take precedence over and above even the most sacred of human relationships; even that of family. That there is no higher obligation in life than commitment to Him and being His disciple. That the love we are to have for Him and the things of God's Kingdom, is of such a quality and depth that it seems to make, by comparison, our love for those closest to us seem like hatred.
What are the things that we give our time to? The things that excite us? The things that make up our life? Maybe it is our family. Or maybe it's our job. Or maybe it's our home. Or maybe it's hanging out with our friends. Or maybe it's the golf course. Or maybe it's having a quiet Sunday morning snoozing in bed. There is nothing wrong with any of those things.
But hear Jesus and hear Jesus loud and clear. "Whoever comes to me and does not love me more than these things, can not be my disciple". Can not. Will not. Shall not. May go through the motions but in reality not be getting there. God calls us to have a love for Jesus Christ, that by comparison to our love of all other things, seems like hatred.
Move on to verse 27. "Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple". Sadly we live in a world where many, faced with this challenge, will ask, "What's in it for me?" What's in it for us? What have we to gain by taking up a cross, by loving Jesus more than anything else? By making the decision to be disciples?
Think what Christ has done for us. Think on how He gave His life for our salvation, for our healing and wholeness. Think on all He said, all that He did. Think how His love has changed the world and so many of the freedoms we enjoy today have come about through those who sought to hold up His light in the darkness.
Reflect on those who died so that we could have a bible to study and freedom to worship Reflect on those who gave all so we can gain all. Look at how many hospitals and educational establishments and forms of government and structures of law bear the marks of His teaching.
Instead of asking "What's in it for me?" we should be asking, "What are we doing to reflect the love of Him who first loved us? How should we live in the light of the grace God has freely bestowed upon us? What heritage are we passing on to others?".
It was Isaac Watts who penned these words;
When I survey the wondrous Cross
On which the Prince of Glory Died
My richest gain, I count but loss
And pour contempt on all my pride
On which the Prince of Glory Died
My richest gain, I count but loss
And pour contempt on all my pride
Were the whole realm of nature mine
That were an offering far to small
Love so amazing, so Divine
Demands my soul, my life, my all.
That were an offering far to small
Love so amazing, so Divine
Demands my soul, my life, my all.
The Call and the Cross.
Both are essential for genuine discipleship.
May God enable us to hear clearly the Call to follow Jesus Christ.
May God enable us through the Holy Spirit,
to daily take up our cross
and go wherever this awesome discipleship journey may lead!
I invite you, as we come to a table laid with bread and wine, to reflect on these words:
“Love so amazing, so Divine
Demands my soul, my life, my all.”
Demands my soul, my life, my all.”
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