Palm Sunday – Salvaged Faith

The Lord’s Prayer: Thine is the Kingdom

Posted on April 10, 2022Leave a comment

Text: 1 Chronicles 29:1, 5b-6, 9-13; Luke 19:28-40

In our confirmation lessons this month, we are exploring the vows that these young folks will make on May 15.

They will stand before this church and pledge to renounce the spiritual forces of wickedness, reject the evil powers of this world and repent of their sin.

They will accept the freedom and power God gives them to resist evil, injustice, and oppression in whatever forms they present themselves.

They will confess Jesus Christ as their Lord and promise to serve him in the church which Christ has opened to people of all ages, nations, and races.

And I can’t help but realize that they will be standing here, proclaiming:

For Thine is the Kingdom…

For Thine is the Power…

For Thine is the Glory… forever and ever.

Today, we wrap up our exploration of the prayer that Jesus taught us.

It is so familiar to us, and yet there is still so much to learn and discover about these few simple words.

And one of the surprising things about the phrase of the prayer we are focusing on for today is that it is not included in the gospels of either Matthew or Luke.

If you were to pull out your Bible, and looked at Matthew, it would, however, likely include the phrase in brackets or italics or even a footnote.

And that is because other ancient sources did include this ending… most notably The Didache… and it was then included in some copies and translations of Matthew as time went on.

Didache literally means teaching and this document is the oldest existing catechism of the Christian faith.

Basically, it is like a confirmation lesson guide for the first Christians!

It teaches Christian ethics, and about the rituals of the church and how the church is organized.

And it includes the version of the Lord’s Prayer… with the ending… that we are all so familiar with today.

In fact, it instructs those in the faith to pray this prayer three times every day… just as we have invited you to practice during this Lenten season.

In the chapter for this week from our study book, Adam Hamilton notes that the language of this ending, this doxology, this praise for God, is inspired by our scripture from 1 Chronicles for today which recounts the words of King David.

“Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of our ancestor Israel, forever and ever. Yours, O Lord, are the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty; for all that is in the heavens and on the earth is yours; yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head above all. Riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might; and it is in your hand to make great and to give strength to all. And now, our God, we give thanks to you and praise your glorious name.”

Yours is the power.

Yours is the glory.

Yours is the kingdom.

Forever and ever.

Our scripture lesson for this morning is actually a sort of altar call or a request for the people of the land to give freely of their own resources to help build the temple of God.

David himself wanted to build this home for God’s presence, but because of his own sin, God replied that it would have to be carried out by David’s son, Solomon.

I think often of the fact that David, this man after God’s own heart, made such terrible mistakes in his life.

He harmed people who were in his care.

And there was probably a bit of pride that tempted him to make up for it by dedicating this temple to the glory of God… a temple that might come with his own name attached to it.

But he let go of his own power and wealth and pride and glory.

He remembers that this is not about him, but about God and David puts his full energy into setting his son up for success in this task.

David begins to gather the materials that will be needed and makes an offering from his own resources and treasures. Then, he invites the leaders among the people to give from their own hearts and treasures as well.

Wealth and riches and raw materials and precious gems are all laid before the Lord.

For as David rightly proclaims, it all comes from you God… we have only given you what already belongs to you.

Which is the same message Paul shares with the Romans, “For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever. Amen.” (11:36)

Paul goes on to write to the church:

So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what [God] wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you. (Romans 12: 1-2, MSG)

Take your everyday, ordinary life and place it before God as an offering.

All of which is another way of saying:

Thine, not mine, is Kingdom.

Thine, not mine, is the power.

Thine, not mine, is the glory.

I’m going to offer what I have up to you, O God, because it all already belongs to you anyways.

I surrender to your will.

I will love and care for those people you put in my path.

I will confess the places I’ve strayed and turn my attention back to you so that you can forgive me.

I will let you lead me and guide me, rather than the forces of the world around me.

You will be my focus today and tomorrow and as long as I breathe.

Today is not just the end of our series on the Lord’s Prayer, but the start of Holy Week.

On this Palm Sunday, we recall the triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem.

And I can’t help but think about the disciples and the crowds who gathered to line the streets.

They recognized in Jesus the power and the glory of God.

They were ready and willing to offer up their lives and their resources to follow Jesus and to work for God’s kingdom.

They set aside their own safety and privilege and power in order to praise and worship God.

And all of this because they caught a glimpse of what it truly meant to allow God to take hold of their lives.

John Vest reflects upon the power of this moment and I want to close today by sharing some of his words:

“Jesus’ ride into Jerusalem was more than a show, more than a simple provocation, more than the beginning of a cute celebration.

It was a signal that things are changing, an unmistakably potent message to the powers that be that the world as we know it is becoming the world as it should be.

It was a radical act of defiance directed against those in his day who wielded power through violence, oppression, and tyranny…

This simple ride reminds us – and tells the whole world – that you are indeed coming to make all things new.

You are coming to release those who find themselves in all manners of bondage: chains of injustice… addiction… conformity and apathy.

You are coming to provide for the poor: food for the hungry and shelter for the homeless.

You are coming to assure the dignity and equality of all who are marginalized or oppressed.

You are coming to end violence and divisions, to provide safe communities and opportunities for education.

You are coming to offer healing and wholeness, comfort, consolation, and hope.

You are coming to transform all that we know.

You are coming to save us.” (https://re-worship.blogspot.com/search?q=palm+sunday+meditation)

God’s kingdom…

God’s power…

God’s glory…

It is all breaking into this world.

May we, like those first disciples… and like those faithful leaders… set aside our crowns and pledge allegiance to the only one who can truly save us.

May it be so. Amen.

Again & Again, We Draw on Courage

Posted on March 28, 2021Leave a comment

Text: John 12:1-19

Over these past few years, our church has become a sacred space for a group of folks who once called Myanmar home.

Their families came here to the United States seeking opportunity and possibility and escape from violence they found welcome not only in our city, but here in this building.

This week, at our Global Ministries meeting, I heard a report from National Justice for our Neighbors. This incredible United Methodist organization provides legal assistance for immigrants, asylum seekers and refugees from across the globe. In their clinics across the United States, they serve people from more than 122 countries.

One of the top five nations in 2020 served is Myanmar… largely because of the JFON clinic right here in Des Moines.

We’ve gotten to know these neighbors through Wednesday night suppers and VBS and third grade bible and by joining in with a few of their quarterly revivals.

Over the last few months, my heart has ached for these new friends of ours as word came about a coup in their homeland.

The seeds of democracy that were beginning to sprout have been hijacked by military forces that are determined to hang on to the power and position they enjoyed for over 70 years.

As protestors have risen up in the streets, the military junta has responded with force. Yesterday, 114 protestors were killed when the military switched to live ammo.

Now, the people of Myanmar find themselves living in a situation that feels oh so familiar, and yet so hard to comprehend.

I reached out a few weeks ago to Mu and asked how we can pray for her community here and back in Myanmar. Peace and stability are hard to come by, but she was grateful to know that they have our support.

As I thought of these friends and neighbors of ours and the experience of their homeland, I began to consider the reality of the people of Jerusalem at the time of Jesus.

It is easy to forget that Jerusalem and Israel were occupied by military might.

The Roman Empire ruled the land… not the Israelites.

And the Jewish leaders we read about on these pages of scripture only had as much authority as the Romans allowed them to have.

Step out of line or raise too much fuss and their positions could just as easily be taken away.

The longing for a Savior was not just a spiritual yearning.

It was political, too.

It was about God toppling over all of the systems and powers and authorities that were holding the people back.

It was about God’s promised future taking root and becoming real, not in some heavenly reality, but on earth, on that land, in that place.

In the gospels, we hear glimpses of this promise: “Thy will be done on earth.”

“God became flesh and lived among us.”

“ The Kingdom of Heaven is here.”

In the gospel of John in particular, which we have been following for a few weeks, the ministry of Jesus and the inbreaking of God’s reign is causing a lot of friction and tension.

Every step of the way, every sign, every teaching is creating conflict with the religious, political, and social establishments.

Upending the world as they knew it.

And all of this comes to a head in chapter 11 when Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead.

Lazarus lives near Jerusalem and going there to heal… or to raise him… was itself a risky proposition.

But the love of Jesus calls Lazarus out of the tomb, knowing that it would cost his own life.

And then, knowing that people wanted to kill him…

Knowing that the powers of this world wanted to destroy his message…

Knowing that everything was on the line…

Jesus entered Jerusalem. Not quietly. Not undercover.

But drawing upon the strength of scripture and tradition and the community, he stages a kind of political theatre.

He uses Messianic imagery from the scriptures, riding on the colt, a sign of a King entering the city and he does it perhaps at the same time as the Roman governor, Pilate, would have been paraded into Jerusalem for the feast by another gate.

“Through the Palms” Rev. Lauren Wright Pittman | A Sanctified Art | www.sanctifiedart.org

It was a living, breathing protest against those in power.

In the same moment that hands were lifted in praise, others were lifted in shouts of accusation.

And those who showed up to line the streets and shout their, “Hosannas!” were doing so at their own risk.

In her piece, “Through the Palms,” Rev. Lauren Wright Pittman tries to capture this moment. You can see both the fingers pointing and the hands lifted.

In the midst of it all, Jesus pauses.

When we have a target on our back, sometimes we need to stop and steel ourselves.

We need to draw on courage.

Pittman writes about what Jesus must have been imagining as he closed his eyes and stroked the donkey’s hair… the anguish of Mary and Martha, the fragrance of the burial perfume, the judging glare of Judas… reminders of what these steps into Jerusalem would entail… death and resistance and misunderstanding.

Pittman offers this image, “as a reminder to call upon God for the courage you need to rest and recharge for the work ahead. But I hope it also heartens you to move forward in courage, even in the midst of great resistance.”

The very word, courage, comes from the Latin word for heart.

“Courage is deep within us;” Rev. Lisle Gwynn Garrity writes, “drawing on courage is both internal and external. We often find it when we most need it, when everything else has been stripped away.”

When we draw upon God, upon our traditions, upon one another, we find the strength we need to “take heart” and keep going.

There is so much in our world today that calls for courageous action.

Whether it is standing up to white supremacy, or challenging injustice in institutions, or advocating for the vulnerable in the halls of congress…

Or more ordinary, every day things like challenging a bully in your life or speaking up for yourself…

Whether it is finding the courage to address your own mental health, or to search for a new job that brings you life and allows you to use your gifts…

When we catch a glimpse of how things could be, sometimes we need to be still and recharge our spirits and connect with that well of strength in our own hearts to step forward and act.

Like faithful servants and prophets and disciples before us, we draw on courage to move towards the vision of who and what God desires this world to become.

And often, when we tap into that courage we find creative ways of resisting and challenging the world as it is.

Like the men and women and children that lined the streets on Palm Sunday to wave branches and shout hosannas and to call out for a new king to come and save us… even if it meant speaking out against forces that could kill them.

Or the ways that everyday folks in Myanmar are living out this kind of courageous Palm Sunday protest against the military forces oppressing the democratic spirit.

Even in the midst of deadly response from the military junta, they are taking to the streets to resist. The images shared here are from Frontier Myanmar, a community of independent journalists in the country.

The theologian and poet, Maren Tirabassi, captured the courageous spirit of their protest in her poem, “Hope is a bag of onions”

Hope is a bag of onions
I am praying for Myanmar and I am crying,
then I open my Australian newspaper
and an article by “Anonymous”
tells me about new creative protest.

Some is by Generation Z surely,
those who do not remember
the horrific violence of 1988 or 2007,
but know they do not want
the coup to succeed.
The generation of “pop up” and “work around,”
is joined also by many others.

Every night is the “metal bucket protest,”
fifteen minutes of banging pots and pans.
Too short to pinpoint the homes,
and too traditional,
after all, it is
the way to drive out evil spirits.

Ten cars stop in the road, open their hoods,
tell police they’ve broken down –
traffic grinds to a halt.
A bride in a wedding dress
holds a sign telling the world
she doesn’t want her babies
to grow up under martial law.

And students cross the streets
with bags of onions,
except there are holes in them.
Cars stop,
while they pick up and bag again,
pick up and bag again –
onions, the same ones,
over and over again.

I am praying for Myanmar
in the midst of this terrible coup,
and my heart fills
with their tremendous courage –
today these onions do not make me cry.

I am praying daily for the people of Myanmar and for our neighbors here…

and I hope you will join me.

And I hope that we might all draw on the courage of Christ as we live out our faith in this world, that we might stand up for the vulnerable, and speak out against things that would destroy, and together build a world that looks more and more like the reign of God every single day.

The Stones Would Shout

Posted on April 5, 2020Leave a comment

Text: Luke 19:29-40

If the disciples were silent, the stones would shout.

I’ve been thinking a lot about how no matter what happens in this world… no matter the destruction or devastation…no matter the obstacles or despair… there is nothing that can stop God from being praised.

About three weeks ago, tornadoes filled the skies over Nashville. My friends at East End UMC woke up to discover their building had been destroyed. But they gathered that Sunday morning in the park next to the church. An alter made from broken pieces of their sanctuary grounded them. And they sang their hearts out, surrounding one another with love and lifting up the name of God in praise.

This week, I tuned into “Some Good News” a web series launched by John Krasinski, whom you might know from the Office or the new Jack Ryan series. One of the stories he shared was of an elderly couple separated by COVID-19, because the wife is in an Alzheimer’s care unit. Even in the midst of their separation and struggle, the husband stood outside of her window, singing “Amazing Grace” and you can hear her gradually catch on and start singing out her own praises of God.

I think about those disciples of Jesus, headed into Jerusalem on that morning. They had seen mighty and amazing things done by this man, their teacher. They had witnessed the dead being raised. The blind and the sick healed. They had witness barriers and boundaries being crossed as women and children and Gentiles and Samaritans were welcomed by their Master.

Jerusalem was the seat of power. And heading there, on that day, on that morning, with that colt… Well… it felt like a victory march! Of course they were singing and shouting and praising God with a loud voice:

Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!

Peace in heaven and glory in the highest heaven!

These are echoes of the cries of the angels in the field… Of the psalmists…Of the prophets throughout history… They were witnessing God’s glory revealed and present…

and it was all taking place before their eyes! Of course, they were praising God.

Only…

If we move just one verse past this Triumphant Entry, there is not joy, but weeping. Jesus weeps. He looks out over the city and can’t contain himself. Because he knows that this Kingdom they are waiting for, it will not arrive in an instant. He knows that in the coming week, those same disciples that were praising him would betray him. He knows that there will be wars and destruction and illness and death long before these visions are ever realized. He knows that this moment of God’s embodied presence with the people is fleeting.

We live in that in-between times. That Kingdom of God, it’s not fully here yet. Conflict rages in our world. A virus has brought us to a standstill. I could go on about the climate, and poverty, and racism… Jesus still weeps over our cities and towns and neighborhoods.

And there are days when it is awful hard to praise God. It’s hard to lift up our heads and see the good. Some of you are already exhausted and the peak of this illness is still weeks away here in Iowa. Some of you are worried about loved ones who are sick. Some of you are on the front lines and every day you put yourselves at risk for others. And we can get so focused on the task before us, that sometimes, its hard to stop and focus on God’s goodness.

Maybe your own heart has been quiet this week. Maybe your lips have been silent. Maybe it’s not just this week, or this crisis, but the grief or the pain in your life has been weighing on you for some time.

I keep thinking… how do we praise God when the words just won’t come?

And then I realized… maybe you don’t.

If the disciples were silent… the stones would shout. That’s what Jesus told the Pharisees who were trying to silence their voices. He was telling them that there is nothing that can stop God from being praised. There is no force on earth or on heaven that can stop this momentum. The Kingdom is coming and there is nothing they or any other power in this world can do about it.

This week, Billie shared with us a passage from Romans 8 as a part of our staff devotion. And I got to thinking about how Paul captures this sentiment in his particular chapter.

He tells us that there is no comparison between these hard times and what will come next…But Paul also reminds us that it isn’t just us, not just human people, who are waiting for God’s Kingdom. Even the creation is groaning and waiting and breathless with anticipation.

And the moment we get worn out and can’t wait any longer and don’t know what or how to pray… well, that’s when the Spirit steps in. That’s when our “wordless signs, our aching groans” are turned into prayer by God’s very spirit. Even the groans of creation are turned into prayer. Because when we fall silent and have no words to say, even the stones will shout. It will shout out the truth that there is nothing at all in this world or beyond this world that can separate us from God’s great, amazing, sacrificial love. Not trouble or hard times or hunger or homelessness or danger or threats… Nothing. No thing. No power. No principality. Nothing that was created. Not even death itself.

When we don’t have the words to sing. When the world overwhelms our hearts. When our lips fall silent. Look around. Look around at the signs of this great truth blossoming everywhere. Look at the crocus and the daffodils with their white and yellow and purple blossoms of joy. Look at the buds forming on the tree and the grass turning green. Open the windows and listen to the birds sing their own tunes of praise. Watch the squinnys play in the yard and the wind blow. Let the warm sun fall on your face. How are these not divine messages…songs from above… creation itself shouting out God’s praise?

We might not be gathering in the sanctuary this morning to praise God together. We might not be waving palm branches and lifting our voices. But we are not alone. No matter where we are today, the creation has joined us in praising our maker. The creation has joined us that hope-filled wait for the new creation, the Kingdom of God.

So my challenge to you all… Get out there and join in the song. Where do you see God’s wondrous world shouting out praises? Take a picture…. Make a short video… Send it to us here at Immanuel on our facebook page or by email… But also – share it with your friends and neighbors and loved ones. Think of all the mighty things you have seen God do in your life and with a photo or a snapchat or an email… share the good news… shout God’s praises… let your voices raise in glory. Amen.

The Wilderness: God Provides

Posted on April 14, 2019Leave a comment

Text: Deuteronomy 29:2-6, Mark 1:12-14

A few years ago, I was asked to plan worship for our semi-annual clergy gathering. My team had everything arranged and ready to go. I just had to make sure to arrive early enough in the morning that I could meet with the technical engineer to set up the microphones and other electronics we would need that morning.
At this point in my life, I was not a morning person. And in order to get halfway across the state, I had to be out the door of my house by 5:30 am.
The alarm went off at 5:00.
I turned it off and promptly pulled the covers back over my head.
Every fiber of my being wanted to go back to sleep. So I did.
Notice, I didn’t hit the snooze button. I turned the alarm off, and fell back to sleep.
Ten minutes later, something woke me up.
Whether it was the rustle and squacks of the birds in the tree, or a cat pouncing on my legs in the bed or just some kind of internal switch – I woke up.
And I remember very distinctly taking a deep breath and saying – thank God.
I didn’t mean it in an offhand, irreligious kind of way.
I was grateful to God that I had woken up.
I was grateful to God that although my body was not ready or willing, God was making sure I was going to be able to answer the call I had received.
I was grateful to God, because God provided.

How many of you have heard of the word “providence”?
What exactly does “providence” mean?
The word originally comes from the Latin providentia – and has to do with foresight, prudence, the ability to see ahead. So when we talk about God’s providence – we think of God’s ability to provide for, to direct, to shape the future.
Martin Luther understood providence to be both the direct and indirect work of God in the world. Not only does God provide the good things we need for human life – but God also works through family, government, jobs, and other people. “We receive these blessings not from them, but, through them, from God.”
John Wesley in his sermon “On Divine Providence,” speaks of the care that God has for all of creation and claims, “Nothing is so small or insignificant in the sight of men as not to be an object of the care and providence of God, before whom nothing is small that concerns the happiness of any of his creatures.”
It is intimately related to his idea of prevenient grace, in that God has already laid the foundation for all people to come into a saving relationship with God.
And so, providence is the way that God cares for the universe – upholds the universe – and also the special ways that God extraordinarily intervenes in the lives of God’s people.

Throughout this journey through the wilderness, God’s providence has been all around.
We have remembered together that our ancestors were a stubborn and rebellious people.
They witnessed miracles!
They were released from bondage in Egypt…
they passed through the Red Sea…
they were led through the desert by cloud and light…
they were fed by manna and quail…
they drank pure clear water from rocks in the midst of the wilderness…
and yet they doubted and tried to go their own way.
Yet they did not, could not, would not believe that God would continue to provide.
God did.
The words shared with us in the book of Deuteronomy come from the end of a forty year journey through the wilderness.
For forty years… longer than I have been alive… God led them. God fed them. God provided.
As Moses reminds the people on the edge of these promised land:
You couldn’t make bread or ferment wine because you were not in a place where you could raise grain or grapes… you had to rely upon God and God provided.
The clothes and sandals that you are wearing come from the same fabric and resources you had when you fled from Egypt… and they have protected you from the elements for all of these years.

I meant to bring it today because this piece of clothing is a sermon in and of itself, but my husband still has a t-shirt from elementary school that he wears.
We think the shirt is just over twenty-five years old, but since it hasn’t fallen apart completely, he refuses to add it to the rag pile.
When he worked in the Amana factory, he cut the sleeves off making it sleeveless.
The fabric itself is so worn that it is nearly see-through.
Now, it has become a staple of our summer adventures on the boat and we joke that the shirt has a Sun Protection Factor of 15.

When I think about the wear and tear on that one item of clothing that is worn only a dozen or so times a year, I am astonished by the way God provided for the Israelites all throughout that journey in the wilderness.
There were not laundromats or department stories in the Sinai.
No places to trade or barter for the raw materials.
Just the cloth and creatures they had when they fled from Egypt.
What little they had sustained them for forty years.
God clothes the lilies of the field (Matthew 6:25-34) and God clothed the Israelites in the wilderness.
Why do we doubt God will provide for us?

For most of our season of Lent, we have explored how Jesus’ forty days in the wilderness echoes the journey of the Israelites. Faced with some of the same trials and temptations, he shows us how to trust in God and not seek our own way.
Mark’s account of this time is very different however.
The entirety of his journey is summed up in one single verse:
“He was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan; and he was with the wild beasts; and the angels waited on him.” (1:13)
Matthew, too, pulls out that final detail in his account, tell us that when the devil left, angels came and took care of him.
God shows up again in the wilderness.
And God provides.
God cares for and tends to every need of Jesus during this liminal time.
Food, water, protection from those wild creatures, companionship.
God provides.

And as our Palm Sunday account reminds us, God is providing at the end of Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem as well.
Before they even get to the city, the colt is ready.
It is tied up just where Jesus tells the disciples it would be.
And the strange and wonderful part of this account is that when they tell the owner that it is the Master who needs it, there are no more questions!

As they enter the city, the disciples break into song, shouting “Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!”
And when the Pharisees grumble and complain, begging Jesus to tell them to be quiet lest they make a scene and disturb the Romans, Jesus tells them that this awareness of God’s blessing and providence in their midst is so powerful, so noticeable, that if the disciples closed their mouths the very rocks of the earth would start to shout!

And we cannot forget that this entrance into Jerusalem is the beginning of another act of providence in our lives.
For the rest of the journey this week takes us through the gates, to the upper room, the garden, the trial and ultimately to the cross.
In the very life and death of Jesus, God has provided a way for us to be reconciled… to our sin, to one another, to creation, and to ultimately, to God.

Over and over again in the Psalms, we are asked to tell the coming generations about the glorious deeds of God.
We want them to set their hope in God and to know that God will provide for their future.
But I think this act of proclamation is also for us.
When we remember how God has already provided, we find confidence for our future.

Our denomination, the United Methodist Church is wandering through the wilderness right now and we aren’t sure where the end of our journey will be.
But this past week, I gathered with others in Atlanta to celebrate that we have been in mission together for 200 years.
200 years ago, a free black man named John Stewart was a drunk and penniless and falling apart. But one night on the way home, he heard singing and he stumbled into a Methodist revival happening in the woods. His life was forever changed.
And then he heard God call him to head northwest and share to share the good news.
He found himself among the Wyandotte Nation and our first Missionary Society was formed on April 5, 1819 in order to support Stewart and those who would come in this work.
For 200 years, people have set out to share the love of God with complete strangers, and God provided.
They made mistakes along the way, but God provided mercy and forgiveness and we have learned from their journeys.
They encountered opposition, racism, sexism, the death of loved ones, hunger… but they kept going because God provided them strength.

As I heard their stories this past week, it was a reminder that even in times of uncertainty and change, hardship and conflict, God is in our midst.
Even in the wilderness…. Maybe especially in the wilderness… God is providing us with the things that we need to keep going.
When we remember all of the ways that God has worked in the past, we find the ability to have faith and to trust that God will continue to be there providing for our future.
Thanks be to God. Amen.

The Beginning in the End

Posted on March 25, 2018Leave a comment

We spend so much of our lives looking for a savior.
In the book of Judges, chapter 3 – the Israelites cry out for a savior when the going gets tough… and God responds by lifting up individuals who would save the people… Othniel and Ehud and Deborah.
Over and over, the Psalmists cry out for a savior: “Save us!” Oh God… “Hosanna!”
“Save us by your power and answer us so that the people you love might be rescued.” (Psalm 60:5)
A savior will resolve our problems.
A savior will end our struggles and oppression.
A savior will rescue us from despair.
As the Remy Zero song, the theme for the television show, Smallville, goes, “somebody save me… I don’t care how you do it.”

But when the hero shows up… how quickly we discover that we only want a savior on our terms.
How soon do we start to question the motives, the control, the power of the one who is acting on our behalf…

We do care how our savior shows up.
We have ideas and expectations and want that saving to be on our terms.
And so you find pundits and politicians questioning the presence of Superman in the world in much the same way as the Pharisees question the actions of Jesus.

But it is not just the leaders who turn their backs on this savior in Jesus day…
The crowds who lined the streets to welcome Jesus to Jerusalem, riding on a donkey, cried out “Save us!” “Hosanna!” But in reality, they did care how he saved them.
They wanted a king.
They wanted an earthly victory where Rome got kicked out of their country.
They wanted a personal savior on their own terms.
And as soon as Jesus was arrested and their path to freedom started to dim, their shouts turned to “Crucify Him!”
When death looms on the horizon…
When hope starts to fade…
When our savior becomes powerless… or even dies…
Then where do we turn for help?

It is fascinating that one of the most powerful superheroes in the entire comic book world, Superman, is also one that has faced death. In the 1993 comic book series, he dies in the arms of Lois Lane after fighting a villain to death. This storyline was revisited again in the 2016 film, Batman v Superman. The entire world goes into mourning over the savior who they thought would always be there to rescue them from disaster.
Jesus, too, not only faces death, but embraces it.
Death is a part of his calling.
“Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains a single grain,” he tells the crowds (John 12).
But our limited imaginations see death as the end of our stories.
Life is where we are rescued.
Death is defeat.
And if the cross is where Jesus is headed, we want no part of it.
I think this is because we want a savior who acts more like Superman than like Jesus… even if we have doubts about the extent of his power.
Matt Rawle reminds us that Superman saves us over and over again, but “I don’t really have to love my neighbor with Superman flying around. If things get bad, Superman will just swoop in and fix them. There’s not much reason to build up neighborhoods, improve education, feed the hungry, and clothe the naked. If it gets bad, Superman will know what to do.” (p. 125)
Isn’t that how some of us as Christians in this world act?
Jesus is my Savior, so I just need to believe, and I will be rescued from this world of sin and carried away to heaven where everything is perfect.
We want a savior who will save the day without us lifting a finger.
And if that savior is headed towards the defeat of death… there is no saving there for us.

This is because the crowds drastically misunderstood how Jesus saves us.
The kingdom Jesus ushers in doesn’t start in some heaven far away, but right here and right now.
The kingdom is like a mustard seed that someone took and planted in a garden.
The kingdom is like yeast, hidden in flour.
The kingdom is like a grain of sand in an oyster.
The kingdom is like a treasure that is buried.

The kingdom breaks forth out of what we thought was dead, buried, hidden away.
The kingdom is the power of new life rising out of death.
The kingdom says that in every end there is a new beginning.

Just like those crosses that we gave our children this morning in the children’s message will sprout and give birth to new life if we care and tend them, so too, does the life of Jesus unexpectedly bring forth something new out of what we thought was over and done with.
The mustard seed becomes a great tree.
The yeast causes the bread to rise.
The sand becomes a pearl.
The treasure is uncovered.
In the bulb there is a flower.
The stone that sealed the tomb has been rolled away.

Our journey over this next week takes us from the last meal Jesus shares with his disciples, through the cross, and takes us all the way to Sunday morning.
We discover that the cry of “It is finished” on the cross is not the end, but the beginning of what is starting in your life and in mine.
A spark is lit in the world and in our hearts so that we might go out and be the hands and feet of God in this world.
At the end of “Batman vs. Superman,” the world is in mourning because they believe that one of their heroes is dead. People of all stripes are gathered holding candles around his tomb.
And there is an amazing inscription written in chalk below his symbol:
“if you seek his monument – look around you.”

That is the message of the gospel.
We don’t have to wait for heaven.
We don’t have to wait for rescue.
We are invited, encouraged, called… God is BEGGING us to get busy being a part of the work of the kingdom right here and right now.
What the world thought was an ending was only the beginning.
Now the story is YOURS to live.
You are the hero that someone is waiting for.
So go out there, in the name of Jesus, and do it.

Love Is All You Need

Posted on April 9, 2017Leave a comment

As Coptic Christians gathered in Egypt this morning to celebrate Palm Sunday, bombs rocked their sanctuaries. Thirty-six people were killed in the blasts.

This week has seen horrific chemical attacks upon the Syrian people, but what is more horrific is that these kinds of atrocities are happening all the time, but only occasionally make it to our headlines.

In the Des Moines area, this week has seen a slew of gun violence, with five people shot last Sunday morning and three deaths in Bondurant this week.

When we gather in this sanctuary and wave our palms in the air, we cry out Hosanna!

And that very word has a double meaning that is meaningful in our world context.

We typically think of the Hosanna as a call of praise and glory, welcoming the coming King.

But Hosanna also is a cry for salvation. “Save us!” the people call out.

“Save us” we cry out.

Save us from our striving for power.

Save us from unending violence.

Save us from the walls that threaten to divide.

Save us from social forces that stomp on the sick, the poor, and the outcast.

Save us.

In the Jewish tradition, the laws were given to the people as a guide for how to live as a saved people. The Israelites had been rescued from the Pharoah’s grip and in the wilderness they were formed as a people. And the laws were given as a means to help them live in community and to prevent the kinds of personal and social evils that could destroy them.
613 different commandments are given in the Torah to try to accomplish this purpose.

And when Jesus was asked about which was the most important, he referred to only two.

The Shema from Deuteronomy 6: Love the Lord

And

Leviticis 19 – love others.

When Jesus summarized all of the law and the prophets, he basically took the ten commandments and boiled them down to five words:

Love God. Love your neighbor.

That’s it.

These laws are all about the relationships we have been talking about these past few weeks.

Love is the fence that guards us from harmful activity. Love is the standard for how we are to behave. Love defines who we are.

Throughout this series, we have been touching on the surface of some of the conflict that threatens to divide us as a church. We are not all the same. Across this great wide world we worship in different languages and sing different types of songs. We live in various political and social and economic realities.

And I believe that is a good and a holy thing. But it is also a really difficult reality to live in the midst of.

All of our differences, all of our separate gifts and hopes and desires, all of the nonessentials that can tear us apart, they can only be put into perspective if we take the time to truly be in relationship with one another.

This body only works if at the core of who we are and how we live is love.

When the Apostle Paul hears about the mess that the Corinthians have made of their church by squabbling over non-essentials, he writes to them. He wants to encourage them to be their best selves. And if you remember from last week, he tells them that they are the body of Christ and that each of them has an important role to play in the church. He tells them that each of them is gifted and that they should pay attention to and rely upon the gifts of others. He tells them they need to give and accept help and to treat all members with respect.

And then he launches into a beautiful part of his letter that is very familiar to us.

If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.

And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.

If I give away all my possessions, and if I hand over my body so that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing

All of this stuff that you think is so important – Paul writes – all of this stuff that you are arguing about, it means absolutely diddly squat if there isn’t love in the midst of your community.

You could have the most money or be the most talented or live in the most beautiful house, or even have the most elegant prayers or know the scripture backwards and forwards…. But all of it is for nothing if there is not love in your life.

Paul’s not just talking about the romantic love between two people. He’s talking about deep, sustaining love. He’s talking about the love that knits people and communities together. He’s talking about the love that only comes from God.

Love that is patient and kind.

That that is not envious or boastful.

Love that doesn’t seek its own advantage and doesn’t keep a record of complaints.

Love that isn’t satisfied with injustice.

Love that endures all things.

As the people of God and followers of Jesus Christ, and as the people called United Methodist, we are all have the same calling: to love.

The primary thing that unites us is the love of Jesus Christ.

The love of Christ reminds us we are all sinners in need of God’s grace.

The love of Christ shows us what grace and mercy are all about.

The love of Christ is sacrificial and bends down in service to others.

The love of Christ gives life to others.

Love seeks the good of others, no matter who they are, even if it is at our own expense.
Love is not a feeling… love is a verb.

It is a daily decision to choose to love and be in relationship with others.

In our prayer of confession this morning, we asked that God might turn us, cleanse us, and forgive us our transgressions.

We asked that God might set us again into the procession of love that makes all things new.

When we leave this place today, we are going into a world that praises all of the wrong things and that desperately needs to experience the saving power of God.

We are going into a world where children are hungry and parents are frustrated. Where the mentally ill don’t have access to care and where innocent people are trapped in the midst of countries at war. If we took the time to list all of the problems and concerns of our nation and world we might never leave this sanctuary.

And yet, God has called us to be his hands and feet in the world.

God has called us to be the Body of Christ.

And that means that God wants us to be the answer to the world’s cries for salvation and healing. God wants us to carry these palms into the world as a procession, a parade of love and healing and salvation.

God wants us to bind up the brokenhearted and feed the hungry.

God wants us to welcome the refugees and the strangers.

God wants us to seek peace and pursue it.

God wants us to visit the sick and imprisoned.

And through it all, God wants us to love.

You know, we are ending this series with the call to love, but in reality, this is only the beginning of the life that we are called to. As Bishop Bickerton writes, love is “the source of our being, the fuel for the journey, and the goal for which we live.”

Love God.

Love your neighbors.

Amen.

Save Us!

Posted on March 29, 2015Leave a comment

Some of you sometimes ask what I like to do in my spare time and one of my favorite things to do is binge watching television. I like all sorts of things, from Grey’s Anatomy to Breaking Bad, but I also have a healthy obsession with British television and sci-fi. Both of which are perfectly satisfied by Doctor Who. About five years ago, I discovered Doctor Who and I think I’ve watched every episode of the newer material about three or four times.

So, what, you might be wondering, does Doctor Who have to do with Palm Sunday?

Well, this is a show about a time-traveling alien with twelve lives, but of all the places the Doctor could go in the world, Earth seems to be his favorite. One the one hand, he sees its vulnerability and innocence. On the other, he praises humanity for their survivability and curiosity, their fortitude and spirit of exploration. He wants to see them thrive.

In the series two premiere, Christmas has come, but chaos is reigning on our planet with a large alien war ship hovering over London. The Sycorax have seized control of 1/3 of the population and Prime Minister Harriet Jones issues an urgent plea – “Doctor, if you are out there, save us!”

That’s what we all hope for, isn’t it? Someone to save us? Someone to make everything better and the monsters and demons and agonies of our lives to go away?

When Jesus appeared on the scene in Galilee, people flocked to the countryside, to the houses, to the shores just to catch a glimpse of this man who would save them. He healed their illness, he cast out their demons, he even forgave sins… He made their worldly pains go away. He saved them from their current predicaments. He was amazing.

And then, like any good Savior, he rides in on a donkey, the ancient world’s version of a white horse or a blue box to save the day and make everything better.

You see, that’s what the people thought Jesus was there to do. He fufills the prophecy, as told in Zechariah 9: the symbolic triumphant entry of a King into Jerusalem on a young donkey:

“Rejoice, greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”

Unlike conquering forces who rode in on war horses, this was the sign of a true king – the one who brings peace and hope to the people.

And so when he rides into Jerusalem on the back of a colt, when he comes bringing peace and hope, the people spontaneously shout out: HOSANNA! Which means Save us!

Their lives are full of problems and stresses and this Jesus has shown that he can solve them.

He can heal them.

He can save them.

He is on their side.

HOSANNA!

Only, Jesus doesn’t save us in the way we expect.

They, and we, expect our hero to be a Clint Eastwood or Sylvester Stallone type hero: riding in to save the day, confident, untouchable, there is no question that they will triumph.

But Jesus appears more like Frodo Baggins: he seems to be facing an uphill battle, he is humble, at times during this holy week questioning his purpose, and yet always willing to sacrifice his own life for the purpose to which he was called.

In our Philippians reading this morning, that picture of a humble servant is painted for us. It has come to be known as the Christ Hymn – a song of praise for the one who gave everything up, the one who emptied himself of power and life rather than grasping at it for himself and for others.

Repeatedly, Jesus demonstrates humility. He gave up his seat at the right hand of God to be born among us, an infant whose life was in danger from the very start. He reached out to the hurting and sick and those imprisoned by sin. He invited them to his table and was rejected for doing so. He touched the unclean and welcomed children onto his lap.

Jesus went to the underdogs of this world. Those who don’t have power, money, or the system on their side, and he loved them.

If that was how he lived his life, I’m not sure why we expect the road to salvation will be different.

We want fireworks and trumpets and victory, but instead the path before us this week is marked by the cross.

Jesus will spend the coming week in Jerusalem, but he doesn’t leave victorious… he leaves carried away to be buried in a tomb. The people couldn’t understand how his way of humility and love and grace and sacrifice could bring about the reign of God and TRULY save them and us… save us not from our current oppressive problems but save us to the core of our very being.

And so they stubbornly turn their backs on him. Like children, they stomp their feet and pout: If he refuses to help me the way I want to be helped, I don’t want any part of it.

I find “The Christmas Invasion” episode of Doctor Who to be such an interesting parallel, because the Doctor too is rejected in the end. He stands up for earth and is willing to be their champion in an epic duel for the planet. And although he defeats the Sycorax, he does so without killing the leader. He sends them packing with a warning – “When you go back to the stars and tell others of this planet, when you tell them of its riches, its people, its potential, when you talk of the Earth, then make sure that you tell them this… IT IS DEFENDED!”

And the Sycorax leave. They head back for the stars.

But Harriet Jones… the one who cried, “Save Us!” in the first place is not satisfied.

He didn’t save them in the way she hoped he would.

He didn’t save them in a way that would continue to isolate them from the stars.

He didn’t save them in the way that she was completely willing to do. And so with a word, Harriet Jones signals for a weapon to be fired and the Sycorax are blown out of the sky.

We are not happy when things don’t go our way. And when our “savior” comes along and isn’t what we expected, it is surprising how quickly we turn to violence. How quickly we become the very thing we are fighting against. How quickly we lose our humanity in a desperate attempt to cling to the salvation we think we deserved.

Just five days after they shouted in the streets for Jesus to save them, the people reject Jesus, and shout for him to be crucified instead.

And as Paul writes in Philippians, Christ was obedient to God’s will, Jesus remained the humble servant, even when it meant death on the cross.

When we praise Jesus, it is not the triumphant entry, but the cross that truly shows us God’s glory. In giving up his power, in emptying himself, in this act of love, Jesus reveals what divine power is all about: non-abusive, patient, never grasping, “power… made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9)

Today, we live on the other side of the cross. We know the power of the resurrection. We know that death was not defeat at all, and that Christ has not only risen from the dead but has been exalted on high.

The question is: how do we live in light of that knowledge?

From a jail cell, Paul penned the “Christ Hymn” and encouraged the Philippians to embrace the power of Jesus… to “adopt the attitude that was in Christ Jesus.” (2:5)

We are to let go of our power and live in obedience to God’s will.

Here at this church, we claim a particular vision: In Christ, live a life of love, service and prayer.

Our salvation demands that we live as Jesus lived.

And as we adopt the mind of Christ, our eyes are opened to those all around us who are in need of love, and service, and prayer.

We are called to love: we are called to go and stand with the widow and the orphan. We are called to the dark and lonely corners of this community – to the people who have no one and to carry the love of Christ with us… even if it means putting our own lives on the line.

We are called to serve: We are called to be in relationship with people and offer ourselves. We are called to sacrifice time and energy and money to help our brothers and sisters. And that service extends to more than just a handout… we are called to bow down in service and treat those with whom we minister as honored guests.

Finally, we are called to pray: Sarah Coakley believes that to be in Christ, we need to practice prayer. We need to “cease to set the agenda… [and] make space for God to be God.” In doing so… in praying for our community and our world, we set aside what we think we are entitled to and instead ask for God’s will to be done. We ask for God to give us the courage and strength to act on behalf of those who can’t.

Today, Jesus rides triumphantly into Jerusalem.

He rides not on a war horse, but a humble donkey.

He rides not to conquer and destroy, but to die for our sins and to set us free.

As one of my colleagues wrote this week:

We thought that we wanted a King.

We thought of all that he would bring.

Power and might and wealth and singing.

We thought we wanted a King.

Instead, we got everything. (Jessica Harren)

Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!

Blessed is the one who sets the prisoner free!

Blessed is the one who comes to save us!

The praise of crickets

Posted on December 2, 20131 Comment

Today, I discovered this recording of crickets, overlayed with the same recording slowed down. Their song is a hymn… voices in harmony… like the sounds of a human chorus. It got me thinking about Luke 19: 37-40.

Even if we don’t notice, the whole creation is lifting up a song of praise.

Even if we can’t hear or comprehend, the world is singing out.

Next time this verse comes up in the lectionary, I might just play this entire piece as the backdrop for worship.