First Reading: Isaiah 61:10—62:3

 ¹⁰I will greatly rejoice in the Lord,
  my whole being shall exult in my God;
 for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation,
  he has covered me with the robe of righteousness,
 as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland,
  and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
 ¹¹For as the earth brings forth its shoots,
  and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up,
 so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise
  to spring up before all the nations.

 ^62:1For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,
  and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest,
 until her vindication shines out like the dawn,
  and her salvation like a burning torch.
 ²The nations shall see your vindication,
  and all the kings your glory;
 and you shall be called by a new name
  that the mouth of the Lord will give.
 ³You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord,
  and a royal diadem in the hand of your God.

Psalm: Psalm 148

The splendor of the Lord is over earth and heaven. (Ps. 148:13)

 ¹Hallelujah! Praise the Lord from the heavens;
  praise God in the heights.
 ²Praise the Lord, all you angels;
  sing praise, all you hosts of heaven.
 ³Praise the Lord, sun and moon;
  sing praise, all you shining stars.
 ⁴Praise the Lord, heaven of heavens,
  and you waters above the heavens.
 ⁵Let them praise the name of the Lord,
  who commanded, and they were created,
 ⁶who made them stand fast forever and ever,
  giving them a law that shall not pass away. 
 ⁷Praise the Lord from the earth,
  you sea monsters and all deeps;
 ⁸fire and hail and snow and fog,
  tempestuous wind, doing God’s will;
 ⁹mountains and all hills,
  fruit trees and all cedars;
 ¹⁰wild beasts and all cattle,
  creeping things and flying birds;
 ¹¹sovereigns of the earth and all peoples,
  princes and all rulers of the world;
 ¹²young men and maidens,
  old and young together. 
 ¹³Let them praise the name of the Lord,
  whose name only is exalted, whose splendor is over earth and heaven.
 ¹⁴The Lord has raised up strength for the people and praise for    all faithful servants,
  the children of Israel, a people who are near    

         Lord. Hallelujah! 

Second Reading: Galatians 4:4-7

⁴When the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, ⁵in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children. ⁶And because you are children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” ⁷So you are no longer a slave but a child, and if a child then also an heir, through God.

Gospel: Luke 2:22-40

²²When the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, [Joseph and Mary] brought [Jesus] up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord ²³(as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord”), ²⁴and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, “a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.”
 ²⁵Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. ²⁶It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. ²⁷Guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him what was customary under the law, ²⁸Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying,
 ²⁹“Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace,
  according to your word;
 ³⁰for my eyes have seen your salvation,
  ³¹which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
 ³²a light for revelation to the Gentiles
  and for glory to your people Israel.”
 ³³And the child’s father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. ³⁴Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, “This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed ³⁵so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed—and a sword will pierce your own soul too.”
 ³⁶There was also a prophet, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, having lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, ³⁷then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped there with fasting and prayer night and day. ³⁸At that moment she came, and began to praise God and to speak about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.
 ³⁹When they had finished everything required by the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. ⁴⁰The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him.

CHILDREN’S SERMON:  Tonight many of us will sit by our TVs and watch the big ball drop in Time’s Square in New York City.  Fireworks are being sold all over here in Florida.  Many will sing the song “Auld Lang Syne”.  The song begins by posing a rhetorical question: Is it right that old times be forgotten? The answer encourages us to remember the blessings of friendship through this last year.  Think of someone who has blessed you this year with presence.

Auld Lang Syne

Should old acquaintance be forgot,
and never brought to mind?
Should old acquaintance be forgot,
and auld lang syne?

Chorus
For auld lang syne, my dear,
for auld lang syne,
we’ll take a cup of kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.

Let us pray.  Lord, may the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in your sight, my Rock and my Redeemer.

SERMON

            Today is Christmas 1 and we step into the church’s Christmas season.  We turn our hearts from celebration of the birth of Christ to contemplate his childhood.  The Christmas season goes from Christmas Eve to January 6th, the start of Epiphany, and the celebration of the arrival of the wise men. Today is Christmas 1 but today is also December 31^st and tonight we will step into a new calendar year. At midnight many will pause to sing, “Auld Lang Syne.”  AND today is also today, our present, when we stand surrounded by past and future that colors the meaning we make of our present.  The past, the present, and the future are heavy with meaning today.

         Our text takes us from Bethlehem to Jerusalem and the circumcision of baby Jesus.  Joseph and Mary were quietly following Jewish rituals defined by the laws of Moses.  In the midst of this ordinary routine of life, two other ordinary people, Simeon and Anna, walk into the Temple and our couple is amazed at what they hear.  Today we too are returning to the ordinary routines of our lives after Christmas celebrations and New Year’s celebrations.  As we come to God’s house today may our eyes be amazed as we lay our past, our present, and our future before God.

Simeon

²⁹“Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace,
  according to your word;
 ³⁰for my eyes have seen your salvation,
  ³¹which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
 ³²a light for revelation to the Gentiles
  and for glory to your people Israel.”

         None of the people we have met so far in the Christmas story have totally understood what was happening much beyond their present moment in history.  Certainly Herod was looking for a Messiah whom there was a past prophecy about and whom he thought he could kill if he identified him.  He thought he could end the threat to his future leadership and defeat the prophecy.  Certainly Zechariah and Elizabeth had seen an angel and bore a miracle son they called John whom they thought would rally their people to return to faith.  Faith for the Jews, though, was lived out in obedience to the law and its rules. John called people to repentance for breaking the law to prepare the way for the future Messiah.  Certainly Joseph and Mary had seen angels and knew their baby was of God and would be the Messiah, but the popular belief was that the Messiah would bring political salvation from the Romans and return the Jews to the glory of King David and King Solomon.  They may have been thinking their son would make Israel “great again.”  The shepherds, well, they visited and returned to their ordinary existence in the fields. None anticipated what the adult life of Jesus would be like.  And for sure, none anticipated the cross and the resurrection

         Simeon is different.  He has been waiting “for the consolation of Israel” for years. Simeon sees baby Jesus and sees salvation.  Simeon sees baby Jesus and sees “light for revelation to the Gentiles.”  Simeon sees baby Jesus and predicts glory for Israel.  Simeon is able to understand present reality from the perspective of his past experiences and then predict future potential.  He allows his past experience of God’s faithfulness and the future promises of God help him define his present reality.

     As we wait for God to unfold our future, I wonder if our hearts are open for seeing how God can use the potential hidden within a situation we face today and realize God is fulfilling a promise from the past?  Today many people will sit down to say goodbye to 2023.  For some, emotions of “Whew, made it through 2023 and hope I don’t have to repeat those trials again” will fill their thinking.  They may look back with gratitude that they survived Coved, divorce, cancer or perhaps even death of a loved one.  2023 memories will be deeply impacted by stories of survival from trauma.  Simeon challenges us as we reflect tonight to put those hard experiences that come to mind, not in a survival story, but a story that seeks to see how God is fulfilling his promise for our future, a story of potential.  Waiting is hard because often we wait for the answer we want.  Simeon saw a baby and envisioned a savior.  He saw a baby and realized that child would spread light into his world as he grew. He saw a baby and believed he would be used to bring glory to God.  His heart was open to the voice of the Holy Spirit. 

         Simeon was waiting for the “consolation of Israel.”  Consolation means comfort.  Simeon believed God speaks into reality, comforting his suffering people.  What am I waiting for as I anticipate 2024?  As we set aside a time to reflect on 2023 tonight, let us try to identify the hand of God comforting us. When all the events of the world surrounding Simeon were confusing, Simeon looked and listened.  God has been involved with ordinary people like Simeon and us today.  We call it inspiration.  There are those “aha” moments when we wrestled with the direction of life and suddenly the “light dawned,” as we say, and we knew in our gut which way to go.  God speaks through nature, through music, through friends, through Scripture and through experience as he journeys with us.  He speaks into our reality as we wait.  God wants to comfort us today.  Simeon saw through God’s eyes a babe that would bring salvation, light, and glory to God.  We can ask ourselves tonight where we saw God fulfilling his promises this past year.

Anna

³⁸At that moment she came, and began to praise God and to speak about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.

         Let us not forget Anna, a widow of many years, perhaps as much as sixty, who also was an ordinary person, and came to the Temple that day.  She has a sad story of widowhood at a young age.  She could certainly see herself as the victim of a cruel past. But she steps into our text today not as bitter and cynical but praising.  Her waiting for God’s consolation is not passive, victim mentality that sees her life as the result of some disengaged God but she waits for God’s consolation actively. 

         Anna had committed her time to prayer and fasting. She has spent many years waiting for an answer!  We have trouble waiting through commercials.  We now have instacart so we do not need to leave our TV to go get a snack but can have it delivered to our door.  Prayer and fasting are not passively waiting but active waiting. 

         A deep skepticism seems to have settled on us these days, I believe.  So many experts with so many opinions, it is easy to turn off and tune out.  What will be, will be, “que sera.”  Let us take a moment and reflect on our spiritual disciplines that help us actively listen for God’s voice for comfort. Spiritual disciplines often involve habits of reading Scripture, journaling, prayer, fasting, meditation, fellowship and even stewardship.  We may be willing to receive a revelation but is our cell phone charged, our antenna connected?  Anna was an ordinary person like us, listening and investing energy in her relationship with God through prayer and fasting.  How are we investing as we wait?

Amazement

         Joseph and Mary were amazed.  As we come to the end of this year and look back to our past and forward to our future, what will amaze us about our present?  The song “Auld Lang Syne” helps us think about the giftedness of today.

         Verse one reminds us to remember the friends who have blessed this last year in our lives and who will walk into the future with us.  As we reflect, may we not only remember old friends but a God who has walked with us and blessed us this past year.

Should old acquaintance be forgot,
and never brought to mind?
Should old acquaintance be forgot,
and auld lang syne?

Chorus
For auld lang syne, my dear,
for auld lang syne,
we’ll take a cup of kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.

         Verse two encourages us to share fellowship with those friends. May we thank God for the gift of prayer that also allows us to “share a cup” with him at any time.

And surely you’ll buy your pint cup!
and surely I’ll buy mine!
And we’ll take a cup o’ kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.

Verse three encourages us to remember the good times we had with those friends.  May we not be victims of our bad times but people who survived because of God’s presence.

We two have run about the hills,
and picked the daisies fine;
But we’ve wandered many a weary foot,
since auld lang syne.

         Verse 4 encourages us not to forget friends even though we are divided by miles.  May we not become discouraged and dispair because we do not see God but may we see his love in life around us.

We two have paddled in the stream,
from morning sun till dine;
But seas between us broad have roared
since auld lang syne.

         Verse 5 celebrates the trustworthiness of friends.  As we look back at 2023 we see God’s faithfulness that we can trust will go with us into 2024.  That blesses my life with hope that I am not alone.  I do have a friend!

And there’s a hand my trusty friend!
And give me a hand o’ thine!
And we’ll take a right good-will draught,
for auld lang syne.

Our text ends.

         “This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed ³⁵so that the inner thoughts of     many will be revealed—and a sword will pierce your own soul too.”

The Christ child revealed “the inner thoughts of many” and still challenges me today. Waiting reveals if I listen with human ears or spiritual ears.  Waiting calls me to faith in a mysterious God who is acting in history – yours and mine, past-present-future. God acts for salvation.  God sheds light.  And the story when finished will glorify God.

         Waiting is not just about waiting for a happy-ever-after ending and often acts as “a sword that pierces our soul.”  We are afraid to hear we will die. Yes, I want to go to heaven.  Yes, I want the Romans conquered.  Yes, I want the Messiah to come but recognizing what that looks like is difficult.  My inner thoughts and desires are revealed and I am challenged to trust God.

         Like Anna, may we praise and speak to others as we wait and see God’s hand at work.  Anna could not be quiet when she met the Christ child in the temple.  Her prayers and fasting had been answered! Anna sees the bigger picture, not the baby from God but the God in the baby.  Anna bursts into praise.  God is not defeated by Rome.  God is not defeated by poverty.  God is not defeated by our lack of understanding.  God is active in our world today and THAT, my dear friends, is grounds for praise and sharing.  May we see with the eyes of our hearts this week and may we find time to practice spiritual disciplines and listen to a God who reveals to ordinary people like us, his mysterious love.

Let the people of God say, “AMEN!”

First Reading: 2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16

¹Now when the king was settled in his house, and the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies around him, ²the king said to the prophet Nathan, “See now, I am living in a house of cedar, but the ark of God stays in a tent.” ³Nathan said to the king, “Go, do all that you have in mind; for the Lord is with you.”
 ⁴But that same night the word of the Lord came to Nathan: ⁵Go and tell my servant David: Thus says the Lord: Are you the one to build me a house to live in? ⁶I have not lived in a house since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt to this day, but I have been moving about in a tent and a tabernacle. ⁷Wherever I have moved about among all the people of Israel, did I ever speak a word with any of the tribal leaders of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, saying, “Why have you not built me a house of cedar?” ⁸Now therefore thus you shall say to my servant David: Thus says the Lord of hosts: I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep to be prince over my people Israel; ⁹and I have been with you wherever you went, and have cut off all your enemies from before you; and I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. ¹⁰And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, so that they may live in their own place, and be disturbed no more; and evildoers shall afflict them no more, as formerly, ¹¹from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel; and I will give you rest from all your enemies. Moreover the Lord declares to you that the Lord will make you a house. ¹⁶Your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me; your throne shall be established forever.

Psalm: Luke 1:46b-55

You, Lord, have lifted up the lowly. (Lk. 1:52)

 ^46bMy soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
  ⁴⁷my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
 ⁴⁸for you, Lord, have looked with favor on your lowly servant.
  From this day all generations will call me blessed:
 ⁴⁹you, the Almighty, have done great things for me
  and holy is your name.
 ⁵⁰You have mercy on those who fear you,
  from generation to generation. 
 ⁵¹You have shown strength with your arm
  and scattered the proud in their conceit,
 ⁵²casting down the mighty from their thrones
  and lifting up the lowly.
 ⁵³You have filled the hungry with good things
  and sent the rich away empty.
 ⁵⁴You have come to the aid of your servant Israel,
  to remember the promise of mercy,
 ⁵⁵the promise made to our forebears,
  to Abraham and his children forever.

Second Reading: Romans 16:25-27

²⁵Now to God who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages ²⁶but is now disclosed, and through the prophetic writings is made known to all the Gentiles, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith—²⁷to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever! Amen.

Gospel: Luke 1:26-38

²⁶In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, ²⁷to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸And he came to her and said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” ²⁹But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. ³⁰The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. ³¹And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. ³²He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. ³³He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” ³⁴Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” ³⁵The angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. ³⁶And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. ³⁷For nothing will be impossible with God.” ³⁸Then Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.

CHILDREN’S SERMON:

After a mother duck hatched her eggs, one of the ducklings was different.  He was grey and big, not yellow and cute like the other chicks.  They called him the ugly duckling.  He was teased and rejected by his nest mates. He finally fled the barnyard.  One day the ugly duckling saw a flock of migrating wild swans. They were so beautiful and graceful. He was delighted and excited but could not join them because he was too young, ugly, and unable to fly. When winter arrived, a farmer found him and carried the freezing duckling home and cared for him.  In the spring, the duckling, now having fully grown and matured, again saw the flock of swans.  He was shocked when the swans welcomed and accepted him. He realized when he saw his reflection in the water that he had not been a duckling but a swan all this time. The flock took to the air, and he spread his wings to take flight with the rest of his new family.

Can you think of a time when you realized that by standing up for your Christian beliefs you would be different from others?

Let us pray.  Lord, may the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in your sight, my Rock and my Redeemer.

         SERMON

         Today is Advent 4.  In fact today is Christmas Eve.  We have been preparing all month for the arrival of tomorrow, Christmas Day.  Advent 1 we celebrated HOPE as John the Baptist arrived on the world scene and announced that it was time for prophecy to be fulfilled.  God keeps his promises.  There is hope for the future.  Advent 2 we celebrated PEACE as John the Baptist challenged us to confess and repent to prepare ourselves for the arrival of the Messiah who would show us the way of true peace.  Advent 3 we celebrated JOY as John the Baptist challenged us to claim our identity in Christ and become more than we are now.  Today, Advent 4 we celebrate LOVE.  Our text takes us to Mary’s encounter with the angel when her pregnancy was first announced.  Mary, a young, unwed mother is to carry God’s baby.  We are challenged today to see how love works it’s transformation in Mary as she grapples with the angel’s message and all its implications.  Becoming pregnant outside marriage could lead to being stoned.  How would her family, her pledged husband and her community respond?  The angel must have been fearful and his message was even more fearful.  Not only was the scene scary, the message spoke of a God who does the impossible.  How can it be that a virgin becomes pregnant by God?  Mary has to live outside the box of her reality.  And thirdly who will ever believe her.  She will be like that ugly duckling living in a chicken coup.  Let’s ponder how these three glaring challenges are transformed by love.

Love Transforms fear

1 John 4:19 says “We love because he first loved us.”

²⁹But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.

         Mary is confronted with an angelic visitation.  The Old Testament encounters between prophets and angels resulted in people falling on their face, weak and wobbly knees, speechless, and full of disbelief.  Zechariah, John the Baptist’s father, a priest had become dumb when he questioned the angel.  Mary wasn’t a priest, just an ordinary teenage girl.  The text says she was “much perplexed.”  I think we would translate it “terrified.”  Encounters with alien beings are not stories Hollywood puts into many romantic scenes.  Alright, It’s a Wonderful Life had the angel Clarence as angel second class who hadn’t earned his wings.  George Bailey was not believing him either but did become famous. Mary, though, is approached by the angel Gabriel.

         Could we please note the opening of our text, the order of events.  The angel comes to Mary.  God initiates this encounter by sending Gabriel.  It is easy for the evil one to whisper in our ear that God is not answering our prayers because we have done something wrong or because we are not good enough. Gabriel comes to Mary, not Mary praying hard and working hard to deserve an angelic encounter.  God is not motivated by our goodness but he has a plan to redeem a creation he loves.  Love steps into fear and transforms it.

         The angel responds to Mary’s great perpexity with words of comfort, “Do not be afraid.”  Gabriel continues telling Mary that God has been seeing her, favors her, and she is chosen for the task.  He tells what her son’s life will be like, his resume so to speak.  Perhaps you can identify with being given a task that you felt totally unqualified for, a task far beyond your imagination.  I remember some of the thoughts before my first son was born.  I pondered if I had unwittingly harmed the baby before I knew I was pregnant by eating something wrong.  I wondered if I would be a good mother.  I knew my husband and I were headed to Africa but that was only a word to me.  It was a vast unknown.  I thought the plain he talked about was the airplane we would fly on.  That may not be your challenge with the impossible task facing you but perhaps you have been very hesitant stepping into a new job, a new home, a new anything.  New phases in life are scary.  If an angel suddenly appeared and announced it, it would be doubly scary.  Hearing the wonderfulness of parenthood, new employment, any new prospect may take the edge off your fear but it still feels like being an ugly duckling that won’t quite fit it.  The love of God, reaching out to impact his world through you, is comforting and transforms the panic, the “much perpexity” into questions.  “How will I be able to do this?”

Love Transforms problems

Matthew 11:28-30 says,”‘Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.”

“How can this be…”

         Mary now speaks.  She has found her voice.  She does not argue with God like Zechariah who declares the task impossible.  He is too old and so is his wife.  She does not bargain with God like Moses did when he reminds God that he, Moses, is wanted for murder and his brother is a better speaker.  She does not ignor God as David did by taking Bathsheba and killing Uriah.  She does not raise excuses like Isaiah did when he realizes he was a man of unclean lips.  Mary simply states the obvious.  The divine and the ordinary are different beings and don’t procreate.  A dog does not mate a cat.  Some relationships are strictly forbidden in the Torah and so she asks, “How can this be?”  She is a virgin.  To become pregnant without a husband and sex is problematic.  Gabriel explains. 

         We do not understand the explanation.  But then, I do not understand how that catepillar becomes a beautiful butterfly in the cacoon.  I do not really understand how the sunrise can be so different every morning and different in so many colorful ways.  I sit in the airport and wonder how those two people ever got together.  Much of the “hows” of life we take on faith even if we are given an explanation.  It is enough that God knows and cares.  God’s love overshadows the events of our lives.

         Jesus says to his followers, ”‘Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.”  He does not invite us into a magical resolution of our problems so that we no longer have to go through it, he invites us to trust his love for us in all situations.  Whatever is going to happen to Mary will be overshadowed by God.  The ugly duckling is different and in many ways that is out of the duckling’s control.  The duckling only need be who he was created to be and time will reveal how the story ends.  We are not promised health, wealth and prosperity from God but we are reassured as we bring our problems to him that we are being carried in his love.  We can trust him for he overshadows us and leads us when we are in relationship with him.

Love Transforms community

John 14:18 sats, “¹⁸ ‘I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you.”

³⁶And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son”

         In these brief verses Mary has made a journey from fear to faith because of God’s love. “³⁸Then Mary said, ‘Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.’”  What sealed the deal?  Mary was rightfully scared.  Mary rightfully questioned how such a thing could happen.  But I would suggest there is a third element.  Gabriel adds another layer of God’s love.  Even as Moses had Aaron, even as David had his faithful prophet Nathan, and even as Elijah had Elisha, Gabriel tells Mary she is not alone. Her relative Elizabeth is also miraculously pregnant.  Mary will visit Elizabeth and find fellowship and understanding.

         There are others who are living the journey of stepping into the impossible because of the love of God.  Mary is not alone as she walks this path.  The ugly duckling looks up and sees a flock of beautiful swans fly overhead.  He feels hope.  We are not alone.  God has given us the church, the fellowship of believers to walk with us when times are challenging and we feel like that ugly duckling.  When we are called upon to trust God working in our lives in ways that make us feel like that ugly duckling, we are surrounded by the fellowship of believers.

           God does work outside the boxes of how our traditions, our expectations, and our wants dictate to our lives.  God allows challenges to enter our lives that feel impossible and terribly threatening.  It is then that we remind ourselves that God favors us, not the bad guys.  God believes in us even when we doubt ourselves.  We can have HOPE because of Christmas.  God comes to us, we do not need to become good enough to go up to him.  God is willing to explain to us the “hows” of our situation and meet with us in prayer.  He is not sitting off in the heavenlies seeing if we pass some cosmic test of faith but the Holy Spirit walks with us, guides us and shows us the way – even during the dark night of the soul.  We can trust him with what we do not understand.  We can be at PEACE knowing that God is in control even when we feel out of control and threatened.  On those days when we feel like the ugly duckling, we can have JOY.  Joy may be the bowing of our heads and humbly trusting God, “‘Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.’”  Joy may be found in singing the Halleluya chorus on Christmas Day but it may also be found in the tears of knowing a loved one is now in God’s care.  The Christmas story is a story of LOVE.  It is the love of God who creates and redeems each one of us and places us in community to be the person he created us to be.  We are not all of us are eyes or ears. 

         Tonight we will come to the incarnation of Christ.  We will see God’s love transform a census into the birthplace of his son.  We will see God’s love do the impossible as a baby is born inspite of Herod’s fears, in a village with no place to stay, and be announced to shepherds on the fringes of society.  Tonight we will see God’s love become community as the wise men, the perhaps foreigners like us, be included in the event.  Tonight we will celebrate HOPE, PEACE, JOY and LOVE.

Let the people of God say, “AMEN!”

First Reading: Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11

 ¹The spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
  because the Lord has anointed me;
 he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed,
  to bind up the brokenhearted,
 to proclaim liberty to the captives,
  and release to the prisoners;
 ²to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor,
  and the day of vengeance of our God;
  to comfort all who mourn;
 ³to provide for those who mourn in Zion—
  to give them a garland instead of ashes,
 the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
  the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit.
 They will be called oaks of righteousness,
  the planting of the Lord, to display his glory.
 ⁴They shall build up the ancient ruins,
  they shall raise up the former devastations;
 they shall repair the ruined cities,
  the devastations of many generations.

 ⁸For I the Lord love justice,
  I hate robbery and wrongdoing;
 I will faithfully give them their recompense,
  and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.
 ⁹Their descendants shall be known among the nations,
  and their offspring among the peoples;
 all who see them shall acknowledge
  that they are a people whom the Lord has blessed.
 ¹⁰I will greatly rejoice in the Lord,
  my whole being shall exult in my God;
 for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation,
  he has covered me with the robe of righteousness,
 as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland,
  and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
 ¹¹For as the earth brings forth its shoots,
  and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up,
 so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise
  to spring up before all the nations.

Psalm: Psalm 126

The Lord has done great things for us. (Ps. 126:3)

 ¹When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion,
  then were we like those who dream.
 ²Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue     with shouts of joy.
  Then they said among the nations, “The Lord has done      great things for them.”
 ³The Lord has done great things for us,
  and we are glad indeed.
 ⁴Restore our fortunes, O Lord,
  like the watercourses of the Negeb. 
 ⁵Those who sowed with tears
  will reap with songs of joy.
 ⁶Those who go out weeping, carrying the seed,
  will come again with joy, shouldering their sheaves. 

Second Reading: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24

¹⁶Rejoice always, ¹⁷pray without ceasing, ¹⁸give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. ¹⁹Do not quench the Spirit. ²⁰Do not despise the words of prophets, ²¹but test everything; hold fast to what is good; ²²abstain from every form of evil.
 ²³May the God of peace himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. ²⁴The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do this.

Gospel: John 1:6-8, 19-28

⁶There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. ⁷He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. ⁸He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light.

 ¹⁹This is the testimony given by John when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” ²⁰He confessed and did not deny it, but confessed, “I am not the Messiah.” ²¹And they asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the prophet?” He answered, “No.” ²²Then they said to him, “Who are you? Let us have an answer for those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” ²³He said,
 “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness,
 ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ ”
as the prophet Isaiah said.
 ²⁴Now they had been sent from the Pharisees. ²⁵They asked him, “Why then are you baptizing if you are neither the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the prophet?” ²⁶John answered them, “I baptize with water. Among you stands one whom you do not know, ²⁷the one who is coming after me; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandal.” ²⁸This took place in Bethany across the Jordan where John was baptizing.

Children’s Sermon  “It is time.”  A Disney film that has helped me a lot recently is “Lion King.”  Simba, the young lion, flees after seeing his father killed in a political move by his Uncle Scar.  Pumba, a warthog, and Timon, a lemur, rescue him.  He matures but one day his childhood girlfriend arrives to plead with him to return and save the kingdom that is “a real fix-er upper.”  Simba runs away but encounters the monkey Rafiki who challenges him that the past does hurt but you run from it or you learn from it.  Simba runs to the river where he sees his father’s reflection and hears his father speak from the clouds. “You are more than you have become. Remember who you are.”  Simba returns. In the finale, Rafiki says to Simba, “It is time!”  Simba steps onto Pride Rock to claim his rightful position in the kingdom and the sun shines as all the animals applaud.  Today we see John the Baptist proclaiming, “It is time.”   It is time for the Messiah to appear.  He is questioned, though, “Who are you?”  If you were asked “Who are you?” how would you answer?

Let us pray.  Lord, may the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in your sight, my Rock and my Redeemer.

SERMON

My brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of any kind,

consider it nothing but joy,  James 1:2

         When I started dating my future husband, he was memorizing the biblical book of Colossians.  I thought he was weird but my sister said she was memorizing Philippians and the organist at the church was memorizing Hebrews.  I had not done much memorizing of Scripture since confirmation.  I was shocked and decided to work on the book of James because it talks about wisdom.  Chapter 1 opens by encouraging readers to consider our trials pure joy.  That has always been a conversation stopper and thought provoker for me.  How do struggles and joy relate?  How does John the Baptist and joy relate?  JOY is our theme today.  Again we grapple with how John the Baptist as the forerunner of Christ and the face of Advent for us this year, helps us to understand real joy rooted in the truth of who we are and not just because we get our wish list on Christmas day.

         Advent 1 we focused on the HOPE that comes from a God who is true to his word and fulfills prophecy.  John the Baptist calls out, “It is time!” for prophecy to be fulfilled and for the Messiah to appear.  Advent 2 we focused on PEACE as John the Baptist encouraged us to open our hearts through confession and repentance to prepare to hear the forgiveness the babe brings.  “It is time” to come clean with God.  Advent 3 focuses on JOY as John the Baptist and we are questioned about our identities.  “Who are you?”  “It is time” to ponder the truth of who we are and who we were created to be.   Are we more than we have become?

⁷He came as a witness to testify to the light

         In our Gospel text today we have three groups of people.  John the Baptist is witnessing.  The priests and Levites who were sent by the Jews in Jerusalem are worrying about John’s identity.  But there is also all the people watching this scene unfold – us.  Let us ponder witnessing, worrying, and watching and the joy they bring.  The question hanging in the air, “Who are you?” confronts us about which of these three do we identity with today.  When we know whose we are and why we are alive, we can find true joy in life even in the midst of trials.  So take a moment to reflect right now.  In your relationship with Jesus are you a witness, a worrier, or a watcher?

Witness in the Wilderness

         Simba’s father’s appearance reminds his son that he is more than he has become.  “Remember who you are!”  John the Baptist is questioned and twice asked, “Who are you?”  John answers that he is a “voice” witnessing to light.  My first take-away in the text is that we are only voices, witnesses.  We are not God.  We are not perfect.  We are only witnessing to truth, as we understand it now. The evil one would like to convince us that we have failed when a child goes astray or a spouse leaves or our business struggles that we have failed. As we live acknowledging that we have done our best with the truth we have been entrusted then we can leave the rough spots in life for God to level out.  When we demand of ourselves that we be “the light” and do everything right, then we loose joy.  We have forgotten who we are. We are not the light. We witness to the light. 

         Also John identifies with his audience as he claims he is a voice in the wilderness with the people.  John is asked if he is a prophet.  Prophets were messengers bringing words from God to the people often in correction of behavior or to foretell the future, but John says he is not a prophet but he is a witness testifying, telling truth to those in the wilderness of life.  He is not correcting his audience but identifying with them and calling to them to prepare.  We travel in community and live our “voice” for the good of all, hopefully pointing others to the Messiah who is coming.

         So what does our life “voice” or testify or witness to today?  As we think of the words coming out of our mouths, we are challenged to be honest if those vulgar explicatives frequently explode from us when we get frustrated and under pressure.  Do our friends know they will always receive truth seasoned with compassion to tell them about what’s wrong?  I pray we are not known for our sharp and cutting, sarcastic responses.  One of the radio stations here in Florida advertises as the station that is safe for little ears listening.  Is our voice safe for all the people around us?  What does our voice witness to now?

         Being a voice, being a witness, means that the Holy Spirit does the convicting.  He changes the heart in another’s life but it is my role to witness to the truth of Christ in my life, not to change someone else.  I know we love to say the popular saying that we need only show love, only use words if necessary, but as John reflects on being a “voice”, I tend to think that it is good that we use our voices to share our truth specifically pointing others to God and not just being kind.  We are challenged to use our voice to testify about the real light of life, God.  We are who we are, not because of the success of our hands but by the grace of God.

Worriers

         If John is a witness, a voice testifying to the light, then the priests and Levites might be called worriers about the light.  They are people sent by authorities in Jerusalem and they are concerned about reporting back to their bosses.  Twice they ask John, “Who are you?”  They “need an answer for those who sent them.”  Perhaps we can put them in the category of people who want to be politically correct during Advent as they make decisions about how they are aligning themselves.  They are not witnesses but responders looking for approval from those they seek to please.

         I listen to all the advertisements during Advent that try to convince us to buy this or that, do this or that, go here or there.  The motivation is pleasing the other, not developing relationship or finding the true light.  When we are “people pleasers” worrying about the response of another, then I suspect we will have trouble finding true joy.  It feels like conflict.  Can we truly feel joy from within when the approval of another determines our success?

         Advent is a time of the year when it is very easy to be a worrier.  Presents are given and often there are more people we would like to bless than our budget allows.  Meals are cooked and the evil one loves to remind us of burnt offerings or how well someone else did it last year.  Christmas programs are presented where people wear their best, kids do their best, and musicians are outstanding.  Comparisonitis can ruin our self-value as we imagine another evaluating us.

         Perhaps our focus is the problem.  Instead of worrying if so-and-so will like this or that, we need to work on placing the gift in God’s hand through prayer to bless that person.  Seeking God’s help to use our efforts to voice light into another’s life connects us with real power and helps us silence our fears.  Who do you seek to give an answer to this Christmas?

Watchers

         The unnamed group in our text today is the people watching this exchange.  It is we the readers.  We may not see ourselves as a John the Baptist or even the preacher giving this sermon.  We may not be called to be an upfront person, a voice witnessing to the light, but we are being called today to decide if we are following the light or settling for traditions.  In our culture of leniency, tolerance and diversity, it feels dangerous to be too defined.  It sounds a bit judgmental so we leave witnessing to the professionals or the TV, podcast, or the web.  On the other hand, we do not want to think of ourselves like the priests and Levites reporting to Lutheran headquarters.  We are not tattle tales.  Our family tradition is Lutheran and we are proud of it.  We may come and go to church but do we go through the motion without personally investing for the health of our own soul?  We may be good people trying to live right but it is easy to become kind of neutral.  We might be described as lukewarm.  We can become people sitting in the pews.  Advent challenges us to reflect if we are more than we have become.  Hopefully we are not so overwhelmed that we feel like we are wandering in the wilderness as we are involved in all the hurry and scurry of the season.

         Simba was happy living with Timon and Pumba.  He had learned to survive on worms and grubs, “slimy but satisfying.”  He was content.  The problem was that he was not all that he was made to be, the child of the King, the heir apparent.  Nola arrives and challenges him.  The image of his father in the river and cloud challenge him also.  “You are more than you have become.  Remember who you are.”  John the Baptist arrives and challenges us.  Advent reminds us that we are created to walk in the light and our life is a testimony to the light.  It is as we step into our rightful roles in our “fixer-upper world” that the sun shines and we experience true joy.  Joy is different than contentment.  Joy is hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit whispering in our soul about some situation, “It is time” and we respond.  Perhaps it is time to give a hug.  Perhaps it is time to pray or read.  Perhaps it is time to pick up a phone.  Perhaps it is time to forgive.  As we step into witnessing to the light as the light calls to us then we experience true joy. 

         Allow me to rephrase slightly the close of our text today.

“Among us stands one whom many do not know, ²⁷the one whom we celebrate as coming in Advent;

I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandal” but he is the light of life and worth celebrating at Christmas.”

It is time for us to witness to the light of our world.  We are not the Messiah.  We are not Elijah.  We are not the prophet Moses talked about.  We are just voices speaking to our world about the one who comes to our hearts, who came in Bethlehem and who will come someday to make our world right.  Blessings as you share this week.  May you experience true joy.

Let the people of God say, “Amen!”

First Reading: Isaiah 40:1-11

 ¹Comfort, O comfort my people,
  says your God.
 ²Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,
  and cry to her
 that she has served her term,
  that her penalty is paid,
 that she has received from the Lord’s hand
  double for all her sins.
³A voice cries out:
 “In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord,
  make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
 ⁴Every valley shall be lifted up,
  and every mountain and hill be made low;
 the uneven ground shall become level,
  and the rough places a plain.
 ⁵Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed,
  and all people shall see it together,
  for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
⁶A voice says, “Cry out!”
  And I said, “What shall I cry?”
 All people are grass,
  their constancy is like the flower of the field.
 ⁷The grass withers, the flower fades,
  when the breath of the Lord blows upon it;
  surely the people are grass.
 ⁸The grass withers, the flower fades;
  but the word of our God will stand forever.
 ⁹Get you up to a high mountain,
  O Zion, herald of good tidings;
 lift up your voice with strength,
  O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings,
  lift it up, do not fear;
 say to the cities of Judah,
  “Here is your God!”
 ¹⁰See, the Lord God comes with might,
  and his arm rules for him;
 his reward is with him,
  and his recompense before him.
 ¹¹He will feed his flock like a shepherd;
  he will gather the lambs in his arms,
 and carry them in his bosom,
  and gently lead the mother sheep.

Psalm: Psalm 85:1-2, 8-13

Righteousness shall prepare a pathway for God. (Ps. 85:13)

 ¹You have been gracious to your land, O Lord;
  you have restored the good fortune of Jacob.
 ²You have forgiven the iniquity of your people
  and blotted out all their sins.
 ⁸I will listen to what the Lord God is saying;
  for you speak peace to your faithful people and to those who turn       their hearts to you.
 ⁹Truly, your salvation is very near to those who fear you,
  that your glory may dwell in our land. 
 ¹⁰Steadfast love and faithfulness have met together;
  righteousness and peace have kissed each other.
 ¹¹Faithfulness shall spring up from the earth,
  and righteousness shall look down from heaven.
 ¹²The Lord will indeed grant prosperity,
  and our land will yield its increase.
 ¹³Righteousness shall go before the Lord
  and shall prepare for God a pathway. 

Second Reading: 2 Peter 3:8-15a

⁸Do not ignore this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like one day. ⁹The Lord is not slow about his promise, as some think of slowness, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish, but all to come to repentance. ¹⁰But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a loud noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fire, and the earth and everything that is done on it will be disclosed.
 ¹¹Since all these things are to be dissolved in this way, what sort of persons ought you to be in leading lives of holiness and godliness, ¹²waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set ablaze and dissolved, and the elements will melt with fire? ¹³But, in accordance with his promise, we wait for new heavens and a new earth, where righteousness is at home.

 ¹⁴Therefore, beloved, while you are waiting for these things, strive to be found by him at peace, without spot or blemish; ^15aand regard the patience of our Lord as salvation.

Gospel: Mark 1:1-8

¹The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
 ²As it is written in the prophet Isaiah,
 “See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you,
  who will prepare your way;
 ³the voice of one crying out in the wilderness:
  ‘Prepare the way of the Lord,
  make his paths straight,’ ”
⁴John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. ⁵And people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him, and were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. ⁶Now John was clothed with camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. ⁷He proclaimed, “The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. ⁸I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

CHILDREN’S SERMON:  Advent 2: PEACE

         Today we will try a little quiz.  I will tell you a slogan and you tell me the name of the product. 

• “betch ya can’t eat just one”   (Lay’s Potato Chips)
• “You’re in good hands with…”  (AllState)
• In 2009 this company claimed, “We live to deliver.” But now they say, “Where now meets next.”  (Fedex)
• “Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom…” stops these carriers.  (The US Postal system)
• And of course if I said “Golden Arches” you would know I was talking about McDonalds.

All these slogans bring smiles to our faces.

Let’s pray.  Lord, may the words of my mouth and the thoughts of my heart be acceptable in your sight, my Rock and my Redeemer.

SERMON

¹⁵ And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful.   Colossians 3:15

            Today is the second Sunday in Advent and we light the PEACE candle.  Last week we learned that the journey of Advent is a journey of hope.  God always fulfills his prophecies and promises and so we celebrate the incarnation in Bethlehem with hope.  Old Testament prophecy was fulfilled. We know Christ’s promise that he will return and take us to be with him will come true.  We live in that hope.  Today we ponder peace with God. 

         So back to slogans.  I will say a slogan and you tell me the company.

1. “The original.  If your grandfather hadn’t worn it, you wouldn’t exist.”  It’s Old Spice.  (I didn’t recognize it but I have often given my father Old Spice at Christmas.)
2. “The happiest place on earth.”  (People in California would recognize that as Disney Land’s tagline but people in Florida would say Disney World.)
3. “The breakfast of champions.”  (Wheaties)
4. “Fly the friendly skies of…”  (United)

Today’s text points us to a very different slogan and logo.  If I were to ask you who preached wearing clothing of “camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey,” you would probably identify John the Baptist, even if we had not just read the Gospel.  His slogan was not a call to happiness like Disney, not to safe car issues like AllState, or not even to a friendly trip into the heavens with United Airlines.  He preached “a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.”  The people from all levels of society flocked to hear John the Baptist and be baptized. His slogan is worth checking out this morning.  John the Baptist paved the way for us to understand PEACE.

“a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins”

Our text today suggests that a world as chaotic, fragmented and fraught with political intrigue as theirs, was changed by a slogan that opened eyes to a new reality.  Our world is just as chaotic, fragmented and fraught with political intrigue.  John the Baptist came offering a way to find peace.  So let me start by asking you this question this morning, “What do you understand to be the core problem with our world today?  What really needs to change?”

• Some might answer, “all the world needs now is love, sweet love” written by songwriting team Burt Bacharach and Hal David and sung by Dion Warwick.
• Others might cry for equality, “a chicken in every pot and a car in every garage,” as Herbert Hoover offered in the 1928 presidential elections.
• Then again, our constitution originally saw “each man’s home is his castle”, secure from unreasonable searches and seizures of property by the government.”

         The Gospel of Mark starts the story of peace with John the Baptist as an adult calling people for repentance to prepare the way for a Messiah’s coming.  John the Baptist, born to Zechariah and Elizabeth in their old age, as the prophesized forerunner to the promised Messiah, has grown up and now appears on the world stage, like a real prophet in camel’s hair clothes and eating locust and honey.  He certainly caught the attention of people.  He did not preach health, wealth and prosperity as God’s solution for life like our TV evangelists do today.  He was not performing miracles as far as we know.  He was a voice of truth confronting people about peace, an issue of their day….and ours!

         We are separated from God because of the things we do and the things we forget to do.  We are not at peace in our world or within ourselves.  We open our worship service, as we come before God, with a confession that we just cannot seem to get it right.  We are separated from God – HELP – forgive us.  Perhaps it has come to feel like a routine part of coming to church, kind of like a prelude, but it is core to peace, peace that passes understanding.

“prepare the way for the Lord”

         Confession prepares our hearts for forgiveness, for the ability to reconnect with God and be at peace.  Confession is a way of coming to grips with reality.  In the 12 step program of Alcoholics Anonymous, a person must first admit powerlessness over alcohol making their life unmanageable, next they agree that there is a Power greater than themselves that can restore them to sanity, and thirdly that they will turn their life over to the care of God as they understand him. Until we understand that we are the creatures and God is the creator, we live with victim mentalities.  We are the victims of the government, of our family history, of our bodily imperfections and we have trouble taking responsibility for our lives.  I love the confessional that admits we have done wrong but also we have forgotten to do right.  Confession is saying out loud the accusations that the evil one loves to whisper in our ears that we just are not enough in and of ourselves.  Speaking the truth lays our souls open before that higher power and allows for God to speak.

         Slogans appeal to something core within a person.  Disney appeals to those who want to be happy and who pray a happy vacation will draw their family or group into greater harmony.  Old Spice appeals to our deep desire to be loved and to find a faithful spouse.  And United Airlines speaks to our fear of flying.  If we are honest, we also have a deep desire to be at peace with our world, others in our world and with the power that controls our world.  Conflict is not fun even for those who enjoy the adrenaline rush at first.  Conflict is exhausting.  I would suggest that the wars going on, the mass shootings, and the high divorce rates would say that our generation is looking for peace also.

“make his paths straight”

         Repentance is the act of straightening out the paths of our lives.  Many will acknowledge that they are powerless and caught in self-destructive behavior.  They might even be willing to admit they were partially to blame and acknowledge that the whole problem is not the other person.  I think counseling tries to get us to see two sides to the story.  Acknowledging the problems of reality does not make things right, though.  How do we straighten out our paths?  That’s called repentance.

         Repentance is not just saying we did wrong.  It is changing and going in a new direction.  I can cry in my beer about the grip alcohol has on my life but it is as I work on giving up drinking that my life starts to change. I have shared with you before how much I enjoy a chapter in Walter Wangarin’s book, As For Me and My Household.  Forgiveness is not just saying the words, “I’m sorry,” not just kissing and making up or making out, and not just trying to forget an event happened.  Forgiveness is acknowledging the part I had in the sin that occurred and laying it at the foot of the cross for God to take care of in his time.  I am giving up my right for justification and vengeance.  It is allowing God to have the final word.  I open my fist and turn my anger or my fear or my greed or my addiction or my loneliness or my mistakes over to God.  It is hard stuff and often I cannot do it myself but need the help of the Holy Spirit and perhaps a friend to pray with.  When I no longer need to be in control of the outcome of a situation, I can find peace.  It is no longer mine to deal with.  I turn away from that destructive behavior.

⁸I have baptized you with water;

 but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

         John the Baptist appeared on the world stage to prepare people for the arrival of Jesus the Messiah.  I remember back in the earlier days of computers when the word used to capture our imaginations and money was the word “power.”  If we would only buy a computer we would have power at our fingertips. Now we focus perhaps on the time saving value of technology so we have “instacart”, “zoom” meetings so we don’t have to waste time going places, and CNN claims they have instant news in case an event like Mohamed or Jesus appeared anywhere in the world.  We can hear about it tonight on the news.  But back in the day, technology gave us “power” over our lives.

         John the Baptist has a promise.  He is but the “voice of one crying in the wilderness” telling us that his baptism prepares our lives for the arrival of the Messiah who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.  For sure that sentence collapses a lot of religious wisdom into a few words.  We probably don’t fully understand and nor can fully explain as much about the Holy Spirit just as we understand kind of the “world wide web” and “the cloud.”  Slogans don’t tell us how Disney delivers happiness or how eating Wheaties makes me into a champion but slogans speak to a truth, to a deep human desire.  John the Baptist spoke to a world hungry for peace.  They did not want Roman rule.  They did not want the poverty and problems of their day. 

         Today Advent speaks to us through the fulfilled prophecies that give us hope and through the spiritual disciplines of confession and repentance that open our hearts to hear the message of forgiveness.  Jesus will baptize us with the Holy Spirit who walks with us to achieve peace.  We can be at peace within ourselves, with our acquaintances, with our world and with the God who created us.  Wow.  That is a slogan worth wearing camel’s hair clothes and shouting in the wilderness about.  Advent promises PEACE.

Let the people of God say, “Thank you, Lord.”

First Reading: Isaiah 64:1-9

 ¹O that you would tear open the heavens and come down,
  so that the mountains would quake at your presence—
 ²as when fire kindles brushwood
  and the fire causes water to boil—
 to make your name known to your adversaries,
  so that the nations might tremble at your presence!
 ³When you did awesome deeds that we did not expect,
  you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence.
 ⁴From ages past no one has heard,
  no ear has perceived,
 no eye has seen any God besides you,
  who works for those who wait for him.
 ⁵You meet those who gladly do right,
  those who remember you in your ways.
 But you were angry, and we sinned;
  because you hid yourself we transgressed.
 ⁶We have all become like one who is unclean,
  and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy cloth.
 We all fade like a leaf,
  and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.
 ⁷There is no one who calls on your name,
  or attempts to take hold of you;
 for you have hidden your face from us,
  and have delivered us into the hand of our iniquity.
 ⁸Yet, O Lord, you are our Father;
  we are the clay, and you are our potter;
  we are all the work of your hand.
 ⁹Do not be exceedingly angry, O Lord,
  and do not remember iniquity forever.
  Now consider, we are all your people.

Psalm: Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19

Let your face shine upon us, and we shall be saved. (Ps. 80:7)

 ¹Hear, O Shepherd of Israel, leading Joseph like a flock;
  shine forth, you that are enthroned upon the cherubim.
 ²In the presence of Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh,
  stir up your strength and come to help us.
 ³Restore us, O God;
  let your face shine upon us, and we shall be saved.
 ⁴O Lord God of hosts,
  how long will your anger fume when your people pray? 
 ⁵You have fed them with the bread of tears;
  you have given them bowls of tears to drink.
 ⁶You have made us the derision of our neighbors,
  and our enemies laugh us to scorn.
 ⁷Restore us, O God of hosts;
  let your face shine upon us, and we shall be saved.
 ¹⁷Let your hand be upon the one at your right hand,
  the one you have made so strong for yourself. 
 ¹⁸And so will we never turn away from you;
  give us life, that we may call upon your name.
 ¹⁹Restore us, O Lord God of hosts;
  let your face shine upon us, and we shall be saved. 

Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 1:3-9

³Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
 ⁴I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus, ⁵for in every way you have been enriched in him, in speech and knowledge of every kind—⁶just as the testimony of Christ has been strengthened among you—⁷so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁸He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you may be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁹God is faithful; by him you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Gospel: Mark 13:24-37

 [Jesus said:] ²⁴“In those days, after that suffering,
 the sun will be darkened,
  and the moon will not give its light,
 ²⁵and the stars will be falling from heaven,
  and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.
²⁶Then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in clouds’ with great power and glory. ²⁷Then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.
 ²⁸“From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near. ²⁹So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates. ³⁰Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. ³¹Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
 ³²“But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. ³³Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come. ³⁴It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his slaves in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch. ³⁵Therefore, keep awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or at dawn, ³⁶or else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly. ³⁷And what I say to you I say to all: Keep awake.”

CHILDRENS’ SERMON:  “Let’s start at the very beginning, it’s a very good place to start.”  Maria in Sound of Music teaches the children to sing by using the Do-Re-Mi song.  The song opens:

“Let’s start at the very beginning
A very good place to start
When you read, you begin with A-B-C
When you sing, you begin with Do-Re-Mi”

Where do you begin when you want to tell someone about your faith or talk about Jesus?  Today we connect the past to present to start our Advent Season and learn to sing our faith song.

Let us pray.  Lord, may the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in your sight.

SERMON

         Today we start a new church year.  Advent opens our church calendar.  In Advent we celebrate the physical nativity of Jesus in Bethlehem, the birth of Christ in the heart of a believer, and Advent looks forward to the return of Christ at the end of time, as we know it.   Today we switch from looking at our faith through the Gospel of Matthew to seeing Jesus through the Gospel of Mark.  Mark is a bit problematic for Advent because it opens differently than Matthew who starts talking about Jesus by sharing a long genealogy and Joseph’s story of finding Mary pregnant.  Mark also does not open as Luke does with the traditional Mary and Joseph story and the journey to Bethlehem.  Nor is Mark philosophical like John who goes back to creation when the Word was God and the Word was with God.  Mark is a much more action packed narrative and he jumps right in opening with John the Baptist and Jesus as an adult.  Next week we will go to Mark 1 but our Gospel text today goes to chapter 13 as a bridge, a connection between the end of Pentecost to the beginning of Advent.  In Mark 13 the writer reports Jesus saying, “In those days…” What days?

²⁴“In those days,

         In Mark 13, Jesus has been talking to his disciples about the end of time when he will return.  He gave the disciples the parable about the wise and foolish bridesmaids followed by the parable about the owner entrusting his slaves with talents while the owner goes on a journey.  He warns that the bridegroom or the owner will come at an unexpected time.  Be prepared.  Perhaps it is not so very different from all the advertising about Black Friday and Christmas right now.  We put on our happy music to welcome a Christmas that has not yet arrived and we hurry and scurry to get gifts, prepare menus, ponder who travels where and we budget how many programs we can attend.  “These days” for us are like “those days” of the Bible.  Both are days of anticipation and preparation for Christ’s coming or return.  As Christians we celebrate the coming of Jesus in the manger but we also anticipate the return of Christ.  Prophecy, those words that speak of God’s plans for the future, give us hope for our future because God does what he promises.  Hence our Advent candle #1 is hope.  God WAS faithful to fulfill his prophecies and his promises in the past and so we know Jesus IS going to return.  We are people of hope.

         So what are the “do, re, mi-s” of Advent, the building blocks of our anticipation?  Jesus says today that suffering will precede his arrival.  I do not think he is referring to our stretched finances in December.  Jesus gives the example of the fig tree.  We know summer is coming because the tree puts forth buds.  How do we know the end is coming near? The tree starts shedding leaves.  As an elder, I feel the signs of aging in my body.  Somehow I just don’t jump out of bed like I used to.  Beloved friends die like leaves falling from a tree.  I am reminded now is time to prepare myself spiritually to meet the Lord.

         We go through this cycle of suffering that precedes a big event in other areas of our lives.  After all the uncertainty, we won’t call it suffering, of wondering if the wonderful person will propose or not and after agonizing over clothes, cake, and invitations, we know the wedding is coming.  After hours of committed workouts in the fall before schools open, football games fill our TV screens and we build up to the big “bowl” on New Years Day.  We get blisters preparing Bethany Gardens to produce.  Struggling and perhaps suffering often seems to precede a big event. 

         “In those days”, those days of preparation we work hard, suffer, to prepare.  We know Christmas is coming and so we put up the tree, change the colors of our church decorations, practice for programs, and invite friends.  Culture reminds us of the do-re-mi-s of preparing for Christmas in 2023 but our text challenges us today to ask ourselves how we are preparing for the second coming of Christ. Some of us will focus on “end times” and believe we will meet Christ when he comes in the sky.  Some of us, who sit by the side of a declining spouse or friend, realize meeting Christ again may be sooner than we would like.  Hopefully none of us will have to experience an accident or medical emergency that takes us into Christ’s presence immediately.  How are we preparing during Advent for Christ’s coming whether it is physical or spiritual? What are the building blocks your hope is built on?  Might I suggest that spiritual disciples like reading the Word, prayer, singing and fellowship are all things that we need to remember now in anticipation of Christ’s return.

“Then they will see…”

         “Then.”  Maria tells the children that once they have learned the sounds of the notes, then they can put them together to make tunes.  Jesus tells his disciples that once we have gone through the preparation period of suffering “then we will see ‘the Son of Man coming in clouds’ with great power and glory.”  May I suggest that in the midst of crisis we cry out “help.”  Often it is only as we sit back afterwards that we can identify God’s hand that carried us.  The phone rang.  A surprise check came in the mail.  When all hope was lost, Jesus turned to the thief on the cross and said, “Today you will be with me in Paradise.”  We put the notes, the events, together and begin to see a bigger picture of God at work.  It was his power that rescued us and he deserves the glory, not us.

         Jesus adds that the angels will be sent out to gather the saints from the all around the world.  Tunes are not individual notes or single group notes but are created when we put the notes together.  Even as the eye cannot exist for long by itself, so we all are products to the Church universal.  We are part of a body.  Often it is through fellow Christians that help comes.  We stand together during moments of suffering like death and illness and at moments of celebration like baptisms, confirmations, and weddings.  Hopefully we gather to support each other during divorce when our dreams die, during illness when our friends decline and during other crises in our lives. Do-re-mi notes are the tools that when put together makes tunes.

         Maria continues to tell the children that when we put words to the tunes, a word for each note, that then we create songs, music.  As we put words to our spiritual experiences we create testimonies that share our spiritual truth with others.  I would suggest this is not referring just to the preacher who shares experiences with “words.”  Your words may be art, may be music, may be helps, may be the love of sitting silently with the grieving or the gift of a meal to the family overwhelmed by life.  It may be the gift of gardening and giving fresh vegetables to food shelves.  We need each other in community to see the bigger picture, the music God is creating.

³⁵Therefore, keep awake…

         “In those days” that so often seem characterized by suffering, “then” are followed by insight into the ways God is working in our lives and in our world.  We see his power defeating evil not with vengeance but with sacrificial love.  We are part of a bigger picture, bigger than our individual lives.  God deserves the glory.  A song is emerging as we learn to put words to our tunes and tell our story.

         I love to watch orchestras or bands play music during Advent.  I can’t do two things at once but those musicians read the notes on a piece of paper, tap their feet and know just when their note is needed. The over-all affect is enjoyment.  I especially love the song “Sleigh Bells Ring, Are You Listening.”  Near the end of the song, the trumpet makes the sound of a horse neighing and someone cracks something that sounds like a whip.  My son played the trumpet and I always listen for that horse to come it at just the right beat and make us all smile. Will the trumpet sync with the rest of the song?  I always listen.  Each musician’s notes combine to make a tune and the audience knows the words that bring a message.  Can you imagine what a mess the concert would be if the players decided to take naps or forgot their music or did not watch the conductor?  Catastrophe.  They must “keep awake.”

         One of the other times the disciples are told to “keep awake” is in the Garden of Gethsemane, “³⁸ Keep awake and pray that you may not come into the time of trial; the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak’ (Mark 14:38).”  How very true.  I am willing but I am not always “awake.”

         We do not know when we will be called up to meet the Lord face to face.  It could be the end time theories are right.  It could be that we will have a long life full of years.  And it could be another time.  But for sure our lives are in God’s hands and the timing of meeting him is for him to decide.  We are weak, prone to be sleepy about our faith and need to be reminded to “keep awake.”  God is daily working in our world to bring about a great symphony.  As we prepare for Christmas, as we prepare for the arrival of the Christ child, as we anticipate the return of Christ and as we celebrate the presence of Christ in our lives, may we never forget that we worship a God who has and who can incarnate into our very lives and walk with us through the suffering of preparation of meeting him face to face.  Keep awake!

We are people of hope.

Let the people of God say “AMEN!”

First Reading: Zephaniah 1:7, 12-18

 ⁷Be silent before the Lord God!
  For the day of the Lord is at hand;
 the Lord has prepared a sacrifice,
  he has consecrated his guests.

 ¹²At that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps,
  and I will punish the people
 who rest complacently on their dregs,
  those who say in their hearts,
 “The Lord will not do good,
  nor will he do harm.”
 ¹³Their wealth shall be plundered,
  and their houses laid waste.
 Though they build houses,
  they shall not inhabit them;
 though they plant vineyards,
  they shall not drink wine from them.

 ¹⁴The great day of the Lord is near,
  near and hastening fast;
 the sound of the day of the Lord is bitter,
  the warrior cries aloud there.
 ¹⁵That day will be a day of wrath,
  a day of distress and anguish,
 a day of ruin and devastation,
  a day of darkness and gloom,
 a day of clouds and thick darkness,
  ¹⁶a day of trumpet blast and battle cry
 against the fortified cities
  and against the lofty battlements.

 ¹⁷I will bring such distress upon people
  that they shall walk like the blind;
  because they have sinned against the Lord,
 their blood shall be poured out like dust,
  and their flesh like dung.
 ¹⁸Neither their silver nor their gold
  will be able to save them
  on the day of the Lord’s wrath;
 in the fire of his passion
  the whole earth shall be consumed;
 for a full, a terrible end
  he will make of all the inhabitants of the earth.

Psalm: Psalm 90:1-8 [9-11] 12

So teach us to number our days that we may apply our hearts to wisdom. (Ps. 90:12)

 ¹Lord, you have been our refuge
  from one generation to another.
 ²Before the mountains were brought forth, or the land and the earth were born, from age to age you are God.
 ³You turn us back to the dust and say,
  “Turn back, O children of earth.”
 ⁴For a thousand years in your sight are like yesterday when it is past and like a watch in the night;
 ⁵you sweep them away like a dream,
  they fade away suddenly like the grass:
 ⁶in the morning it is green and flourishes;
  in the evening it is dried up and withered.
 ⁷For we are consumed by your anger;
  we are afraid because of your wrath.
 ⁸Our iniquities you have set before you,
  and our secret sins in the light of your countenance.
[ ⁹When you are angry, all our days are gone;
  we bring our years to an end like a sigh.
 ¹⁰The span of our life is seventy years, perhaps in strength even          eighty; yet the sum of them is but labor and sorrow, for they         pass away quickly and we are gone.
 ¹¹Who regards the power of your wrath?
  Who rightly fears your indignation?
]  ¹²So teach us to number our days
  that we may apply our hearts to wisdom.

Second Reading: 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11

¹Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers and sisters, you do not need to have anything written to you. ²For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. ³When they say, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them, as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and there will be no escape! ⁴But you, beloved, are not in darkness, for that day to surprise you like a thief; ⁵for you are all children of light and children of the day; we are not of the night or of darkness. ⁶So then let us not fall asleep as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober; ⁷for those who sleep sleep at night, and those who are drunk get drunk at night. ⁸But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, and put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. ⁹For God has destined us not for wrath but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, ¹⁰who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep we may live with him. ¹¹Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, as indeed you are doing.

Gospel: Matthew 25:14-30

¹⁴“For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them; ¹⁵to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. ¹⁶The one who had received the five talents went off at once and traded with them, and made five more talents. ¹⁷In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents. ¹⁸But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. ¹⁹After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. ²⁰Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.’ ²¹His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ ²²And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.’ ²³His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ ²⁴Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed; ²⁵so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ ²⁶But his master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter? ²⁷Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest. ²⁸So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents. ²⁹For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. ³⁰As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ ”

CHILDREN’S SERMON:  One of our family’s epic adventure movies is the “Lord of the Rings” series.  It tells of a Hobbit, Frodo Baggins, who goes on an adventure with his friends Samwise Gamgee, Merry and Pippin, assisted by Aragon-the Ranger, Legolas-the Elf, Gimli-the Dwarf, and Gandolf-the  Grey Wizard. Together they outsmart Gollum, the creature who loves his “Precious”.  They journey to Mount Doom, entrusted with destroying the Ring of Power to defeat the Dark Lord Sauron. They rescue Middle Earth.  Let’s refresh our memories.  When I say a word, what do you think of?

         When I say Frodo, you think of…    (the ring, Hobbit, quest??)

         When I say Sam, you think of …      (faithful friend)

         When I say Gollum, you think of …            (get back the ring)

         When I say Sauron, you think of…     (evil)

Let us pray:  May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, my Rock and my Redeemer.

SERMON

         Today Jesus continues talking with his disciples about the end of time.  He goes from the global perspective of last week’s parable to the local perspective of today’s parable. Last week we saw that the bridegroom, Jesus, shall return to claim his bride, the Church universal.  That’s the big picture but no specific details.  The door will be closed and believers will step into eternity.  We are the wise and foolish bridesmaids.  Today Jesus continues with another parable about a master who goes on a journey but entrusts his slaves with talents before he leaves. The Lord of the Rings series starts with a simillar introductory book, The Hobbit, telling of Bilbo Baggins who went on an adventure in his youth that resulted in the possession of a “ring of power.”  As our trilogy opens, Bilbo goes on one last journey, entrusting, not a talent but the ring-of-power to his nephew Frodo.

¹⁴“For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them; 

         Perhaps the thought has crossed your mind, if God is all knowing, all-powerful, and loves us all then what’s the deal with Ukraine or the Middle East or the mass murders in the United States?  We can look out on our world today and it certainly seems like “the boss is out for lunch” or on a journey.  Slaves have been left in control and they are just not a good substitute.  Or perhaps we might say that some of our leaders are wise and some are foolish and some days it is hard to tell the difference.  Did I hear an “amen” to that? Frodo, in caring for the ring entrusted to him, must go through a series of unwelcomed adventures.  At one point Frodo laments to Gandolf, the wizard. 

         I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo. “So do       I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is    not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the     time that is given us.

Frodo felt the weight and responsibility of carrying the ring and lamented that he was “chosen.”

           Often we do not want to consider ourselves slaves entrusted with “talents” that we will have to give an account for.  “Slave” is a hard word and does not leave room to say “no.” In today’s text, Jesus has switched from talking about a bride and bridegroom to language about a master and slave.  Ouch.  I would prefer Jesus spoke about servants and not slaves and better yet “hired hands.”  Those words give me a bit more self-respect. Slaves are not free to follow their own dream.  We tend to think of the authority as distant Washington DC whereas we think of “master” as someone present.  If I need to bow to Jesus as my “master,” I may well discover I have arthritis in my knees!           

         The master entrusts the slaves with his property.  All slaves are entrusted with property, even the one talent slave.  I hear Cain calling from ancient history, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” when confronted by God about the whereabouts of his brother Abel.  “Property” I suspect does not just refer to keeping the church looking nice but includes all that God puts within our lives to relate to – environment, people and possessions.  Frodo is entrusted with the ring of power.  Sam, Merry and Pippin travel with Frodo.  Their role is different.  Perhaps they are an example of the five talent and two talent heroes but their faithfulness in doing their part impacts the outcome of the story.  All slaves are entrusted with a part to play. 

         We are each “entrusted” with something.  I do not see that the master is a micro-manager with a hidden agenda about how he thinks his property should be cared for.  The challenge facing these slaves is whether they will be faithful and trustworthy doing the best they can given their ability or will they become bitter and resentful because of their status and the difficulty of the task.

         Perhaps this opening line to the Gospel calls us to an attitude adjustment.  How do we see ourselves?  We might be like the foolish bridesmaids just enjoying waiting for the coming party that promises to be lots of fun or we might need to see ourselves more as slaves of a master entrusted with his property, not ours, to care for.  How we understand ourselves and the role we play are important.

         The master is responsible for the life of the slave.  The master returns and rewards.  The master has multiple slaves.  Frodo is not alone.  Sam faithfully accompanies Frodo and carries him when Frodo is too tired to walk.  Aragon, Legolas, Gimli and Gandolf all contribute to Frodo’s success.  We are slaves serving a master we cannot exactly see but we are surrounded by a cloud of witnesses that affirm us as we carry out our tasks.

¹⁵to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability

         The parable is about a master who gathers his slaves and gives them differing amounts of talents according to their ability before he goes on a long journey.  Here we can say “different strokes for different folks.”  The master knows his slaves, what they can and cannot do.  He is not going to entrust his talents with slaves unsuited for the task because that would be to the master’s detriment.  God sees us and knows us and knows what we can bear.  It’s easy to doubt that when we feel unable to cope and feel the challenge is bigger than our ability and fear of failure overwhelms us.

         Lord of the Rings balances the roles of the differing characters and their contribution very well.  I sometimes wonder if the hero is Sam who faithfully accompanies Frodo and carries Frodo up the mountain in the end.  Then again, maybe the hero is Aragon who diverts the attention of evil Sauron at the last minute to Hells Gate and gives Frodo that last moment of opportunity.  But for sure even evil Gollum plays a role in the outcome and his greed for the ring, throws him over the ledge into the river of fire. We all want to be the hero of our story.  Sometimes it is hard to know if the hero looks like Hollywood or like Christ on the cross.  The trick is not to gauge ourselves by our neighbors but by God’s word and be faithful to our task.

         People have various types of talents contrary to public thought. We want to believe success is about training, heritage, money and hard work. We want to think slavery is reversible. “All men are created equal and endowed with certain inalienable rights: life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”  We resist the inequality in this parable.  The master, though, entrusts all.  God loves us all equally and opens the gates of heaven for all of us.  It is by faith and not by works and talents and riches we will be rewarded.  Destruction of the ring of power affects all on Middle Earth.

          Also we resist thinking the master would punish the one-talent slave.  We want to think of the master as loving and forgiving, kind of a glorified Santa Claus. The truth is, though, that there is accountability.

We think “good” masters are kind and forgiving and slaves do not have to fear them. In the parable the master does not accept the slave’s victim language. The one-talent slave says he had to bury his talent because he was scared.  He knew the master was harsh.  He accuses God for his own actions.  We blame others for our faults. We justify alcohol or pornography as something we cannot resist. We convince ourselves we had to indulge or someone drove us to it.  When the slave claims he knew the master was strict, it reminded me of Adam answering God that it was the wife God gave him that led him to eat the apple.   Both Adam and this slave blame God for their problems.  The master in the parable does not accept this whine.  The slave blames God but goes one step further when he buries the talent, essentially cutting off communication with God. We are responsible for our actions.  God will not make us love him.

enter into the joy of your master.’

         The master gives talents to all.  Every person receives something.  My talent may not be yours but we all bring something to this fellowship of believers.  No one here today is unimportant or unneeded.  We form a body with different roles.  There are no instructions on how to use our talents.  Singing in the opera, singing in the church choir, and singing my child to sleep all have meaning.  How we use our talents is up to us.  The slaves are “entrusted” to manage the talents.

         The master gives and goes about his business allowing the slaves to enjoy their talents.  There is trust. The master does not micro-manage the slaves.  The talents are not a test to evaluate the slave but a gifting, designed to enhance the life of the slave.  The criteria is the trustworthiness of the slave not how well the slave uses the talent compared to another slave.

         As this parable unfolds, we see a picture of a master who knows his slaves, trusts them, departs and then returns.  It is possible then to equate the master with Jesus.  Jesus has walked in our shoes, seen, heard and felt what we’ve felt and understands us. Jesus “sees” me and understands.  He has walked with me through my life.  He is not Santa Claus making a list but he is the Good Shepherd leading me, guiding me, and with me even in the valley of the shadow of death.  I need fear no evil.

         “Enter into the joy of your master, ” are the words at the close of the age.  “Well done though good and faithful servant”. The end of our journey is “JOY,” a sense of always being loved, of never disappointing, of continual presence. Wow.  Frodo’s perseverance, Sam’s faithfulness,  Merry and Pippin’s quirkiness all contribute to the defeat of The Dark Lord Sauron.  Those enchained by him are freed.  All rejoice.  A reign of justice and peace begins on Middle Earth.

         Next week we will stand at the throne and hear about Christ, the King.  This parable tells us that day is coming but is not yet.  It will be like a wedding feast when the groom receives his bride.  It will be like a master returning to reward his slaves.  It will be a time of reward for all that has been entrusted to us.  It will be a time of transparency, of being known.  And it will be a time of joy.  It is a time to look forward to.

Let the people of God say, “AMEN.”

First Reading: Micah 3:5-12

 ⁵Thus says the Lord concerning the prophets
  who lead my people astray,
 who cry “Peace”
  when they have something to eat,
 but declare war against those
  who put nothing into their mouths.
 ⁶Therefore it shall be night to you, without vision,
  and darkness to you, without revelation.
 The sun shall go down upon the prophets,
  and the day shall be black over them;
 ⁷the seers shall be disgraced,
  and the diviners put to shame;
 they shall all cover their lips,
  for there is no answer from God.
 ⁸But as for me, I am filled with power,
  with the spirit of the Lord,
  and with justice and might,
 to declare to Jacob his transgression
  and to Israel his sin.

 ⁹Hear this, you rulers of the house of Jacob
  and chiefs of the house of Israel,
 who abhor justice
  and pervert all equity,
 ¹⁰who build Zion with blood
  and Jerusalem with wrong!
 ¹¹Its rulers give judgment for a bribe,
  its priests teach for a price,
  its prophets give oracles for money;
 yet they lean upon the Lord and say,
  “Surely the Lord is with us!
  No harm shall come upon us.”
 ¹²Therefore because of you
  Zion shall be plowed as a field;
 Jerusalem shall become a heap of ruins,
  and the mountain of the house a wooded height.

Psalm: Psalm 43

Send out your light and truth, that they may lead me. (Ps. 43:3)

 ¹Give judgment for me, O God, and defend my cause against an un-        godly people; deliver me from the deceitful ^| and the wicked.
 ²For you are the God of my strength; why have you rejected me,
  and why do I wander in such gloom while the enemy oppresses         me?
 ³Send out your light and your truth, that they may lead me,
  and bring me to your holy hill and to your sanctuary;
 ⁴that I may go to the altar of God, to the God of my joy and    gladness;
  and on the harp I will give thanks to you, O God my God.
 ⁵Why are you so full of heaviness, O my soul, and why are you so disquieted within me?
  Put your trust in God, for I will yet give thanks to the one who is        my help and my God.

Second Reading: 1 Thessalonians 2:9-13

⁹You remember our labor and toil, brothers and sisters; we worked night and day, so that we might not burden any of you while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God. ¹⁰You are witnesses, and God also, how pure, upright, and blameless our conduct was toward you believers. ¹¹As you know, we dealt with each one of you like a father with his children, ¹²urging and encouraging you and pleading that you lead a life worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.
 ¹³We also constantly give thanks to God for this, that when you received the word of God that you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word but as what it really is, God’s word, which is also at work in you believers.

Gospel: Matthew 23:1-12

¹Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, ²“The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat; ³therefore, do whatever they teach you and follow it; but do not do as they do, for they do not practice what they teach. ⁴They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on the shoulders of others; but they themselves are unwilling to lift a finger to move them. ⁵They do all their deeds to be seen by others; for they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long. ⁶They love to have the place of honor at banquets and the best seats in the synagogues, ⁷and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and to have people call them rabbi. ⁸But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all students. ⁹And call no one your father on earth, for you have  you have one instructor, the Messiah. ¹¹The greatest among you will be your servant. ¹²All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted.”

CHILDREN’S SERMON:  Last Wednesday, November 1^st, was All Saints Day.  I looked up “saints” on the Internet and the first thing that popped up was the football team, the New Orleans Saints.  Now how did they get that name and might it be somehow related to what we are celebrating today?  I read on Wikipedia under the Saints early history, this paragraph:

“Local sports entrepreneur Dave Dixon and a local civic group had been seeking an NFL franchise for over five years and had hosted record crowds for NFL exhibition games. To seal the NFL-AFL merger, NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle arrived in New Orleans within a week, and announced on November 1, 1966, that the NFL officially had awarded the city of New Orleans an expansion franchise. The team was named for “When the Saints Go Marching In“, the classic jazz standard associated with New Orleans. When the deal was reached a week earlier, Dixon strongly suggested to Rozelle that the announcement be delayed until November 1, to coincide with All Saints’ Day. Dixon cleared the name with New Orleans’ Archbishop Philip M. Hannan, who “thought it would be a good idea,” according to Dixon. “He had an idea the team was going to need all the help it could get.”

Let us pray.  Lord, may the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in your sight, my Rock and my Redeemer.

SERMON

         So who is your favorite Saint?  When we put that question in a church context we might think of Mother Teresa or St Augustine or Mother Mary.  I discovered there is even a Saint Barbara! In fact the Catholics have canonized over 100,000 people.  Some of you might think of some monk sitting on top of a platform in the dessert, seeking to draw nearer to God.  Others might think of Joan of Arc being burned at the stake for her faith.  The top ten saints Catholics most likely know about are:  St Michael the Archangel, St Christopher, St Jude, St Anthony of Padua, St Joseph, St Mary the Virgin, St Francis of Assisi, St Thomas of Aquinas, St Peter and St Joan of Arc.  Saints are people who we think of as leading holy lives that are examples to others and, for Catholics, the person is canonized or officially declared a saint by the larger church.  As we celebrate All Saints Day we remember that Martin Luther broadened the definition of “saint.”

         Luther calls Christians “simultaneously saint and sinner” because he redefines “saint” as a forgiven sinner. We are called saints not      because we change into something different but because our         relationship with God changes as a result of God’s grace.

Sounds to me like Martin Luther thought of us more like the New Orleans Saints, players on the football field of life, getting red and yellow flags, involved in a rough game where players are carried off the field on stretchers, and each player has a position to play. Perhaps we can think of Jesus as our quarter back.  Sometimes that long pass connects and we all cheer and call it a miracle.  We groan when there is a sacking, when a saint is caught in sin.  But now I have used up my knowledge of football.  Our advantage over the New Orleans Saints is that we know the outcome of the game.  We are on the winning side.  Let’s see how our text for today speaks into the celebration of saints that we honor today.  Perhaps you have not known anyone who passed into eternity this year but the subject is fresh on my heart.

²“The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat;

³therefore, do whatever they teach you and follow it;

         Our text starts with Jesus speaking to the crowds about the Scribes and the Pharisees.  Jesus is an ordinary person like you and me speaking about the religious hierarchy that is teaching in the name of Moses, the one to whom The Law was given.  Jesus tells people to obey the Law.  Let us not skip by this too fast.  In our culture today that values tolerance and diversity and that usually talks about God being love, Jesus’ opening is a conversation stopper.  He does not tell us to ignore the Old Testament because it is outdated, from a different age and a different culture.  Jerusalem was as different from the Wilderness experience as the United States is from modern Israel.  Our starting point on our life’s journey is not our feelings but the rules of the game.  The referees blow their whistles in the football game and we know something has been done wrong.  The Law defines how the game of life is played best.  It is the guidelines to victorious living.  When the ball is in motion before the hike, there will be consequences and penalties.  When we cheat on our spouse or friend there will be consequences.  We deceive ourselves if we think that the cross eliminates the consequences of sin.  “I didn’t know the gun was loaded,” does not bring back lives of those 18 killed in Maine this week.  The foundation of the life of the saint is respect for the Law and an attempt to adhere to that basic set of values.  Saints live a “holy” life, a principled life built on a set of values and rules.

Integrity:  Walk the Talk

“but do not do as they do, for they do not practice what they teach.”

         “But”…do you hear the shoe dropping.  The player threw a long pass

that connected with the receiver and we cheered but…dum, dum…instant replay confirms the receiver caught the ball out of bounds.  People may say all the right words but when the news shares that another preacher fell into moral sin, we bow our heads and cry.  Unless we walk the talk and live a life of integrity with our beliefs, our words are hollow.

         1 Corinthians 13 shares:

         13 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. ² 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. ³ 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.

         In the kingdom of heaven, the ends do not justify the means.  Let me say that again.  The ends do not justify the means.  The health of the heart and our motives are important.  Raising money by preaching the Word but then flying around on a personal jet brings into doubt the truth that was preached.  Treating a spouse respectfully in public does not justify abuse at home.  Tax evasion to support a luxurious lifestyle is not respected.  A corrupt politician, when exposed, often looses votes. Our social media is full of stories of social heroes with questionable lifestyles and it is also full of stories of ordinary people who do the extraordinary act of kindness. Saints walk the talk.  That is not to say they are perfect but they are in the game.

         Our challenge today is to reflect on our lives.  We most likely are a bit uncomfortable identifying as a “saint” for we know how imperfect we are and most of us have memories of when we failed terribly to live up to the values we hold.  I have gotten red flags and yellow flags thrown on plays I’ve been involved in.  Martin Luther affirmed that we are both “saint and sinner” but by God’s grace we are important players on God’s team of saints playing not for New Orleans but for the Kingdom of Heaven now.  All Saints Day reminds us that God has the final call and labels us his saints.  In Ephesians 2 we read,

            ¹⁸ for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the     Father. ¹⁹ So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are         citizens with the saints and also members of the household of   God, ²⁰ built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with          Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone.

A Servant’s Attitude

¹¹The greatest among you will be your servant.

 ¹²All who exalt themselves will be humbled,

 and all who humble themselves will be exalted.”

         Saints are people who choose to live by a set of guidelines given by God to Moses and passed down to King David, to Paul, and to us.  The life of Jesus Christ clarified and modeled these principles for us.  Saints are people who attempt to live by these guidelines.  We make mistakes but we find forgiveness through Jesus’ work on the cross.  Death cannot separate us from the love of God.  We also know that saints have a servant attitude and do not live to their own glory but to the glory of God.

         The New Orleans Saints are a team.  According to the Internet Drew “Brees has thrown for 65,068 yards, and has 467 touchdowns compared to just 184 interceptions. He also led the Saints to a Super Bowl victory over the Indianapolis Colts, which will forever make him one of the most popular people in the city of New Orleans.”  He is the most famous player but there are many more that stand with him.  He did not play alone and his team carried him to his fame.  Likewise we may feel like we are some unknown nobody on God’s Saints team but each of us plays a position in the game of life.  As our family came to the funeral of my husband, cards came in the mail remembering his quiet, gentle spirit.  He was not Drew Brees but he faithfully played his position and encouraged others around him.

         When we find ourselves trying to live a system of faith that feels impossible like we are trying to please an angry God who is distant and judgmental, we need to listen to messages in our heart and ask if they come from God or from people.  Luther’s desire was to find a God of grace whom he could love.  The text challenges me to ponder if when I share my faith, I am trying to make myself look better than the other or are the words I’m sharing helping others to draw closer to God.  A good “play” may not carry me to a goal but it draws the team closer to a down and moves us closer to the goal, relationship with God.  A bad “play” may not gain ground but we do not quit because of a sacking.  We return to the huddle, pat the other on the back and affirm our confidence that we are in this together.

         I find it interesting that New Orleans is associated with the classic jazz song, “When the Saints Go Marching In.”   That is not only a classic jazz song but also it is also a famous Gospel song that expresses a deep desire to be on God’s team.  We try to live life by the guidelines that have been passed down from Moses, through the ages, and that we know are true.  We try to walk the talk and live with integrity a way that reflects those truths.  And we try to live in a way that serves those we encounter and draws them closer to God.  We are all saints for we are all forgiven sinners.  This is most certainly true.

Oh, when the saints (when the saints)
Go marching in (marching in)
Now, when the saints go marching in (marching in)
Yes, I want to be in that number
When the saints go marching in,

Oh, when the Son begins to shine

Oh, when the Son begins to shine.

Lord, I want to be in that number

When the Son begins to shine.

Let the people of God say, “AMEN!”

First Reading: Isaiah 45:1-7

 ¹Thus says the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus,
  whose right hand I have grasped
 to subdue nations before him
  and strip kings of their robes,
 to open doors before him—
  and the gates shall not be closed:
 ²I will go before you
  and level the mountains,
 I will break in pieces the doors of bronze
  and cut through the bars of iron,
 ³I will give you the treasures of darkness
  and riches hidden in secret places,
 so that you may know that it is I, the Lord,
  the God of Israel, who call you by your name.
 ⁴For the sake of my servant Jacob,
  and Israel my chosen,
 I call you by your name,
  I surname you, though you do not know me.
 ⁵I am the Lord, and there is no other;
  besides me there is no god.
  I arm you, though you do not know me,
 ⁶so that they may know, from the rising of the sun
  and from the west, that there is no one besides me;
  I am the Lord, and there is no other.
 ⁷I form light and create darkness,
  I make wealth and create woe;
  I the Lord do all these things.

Psalm: Psalm 96:1-9 [10-13]

 ¹Sing to the Lord a new song;
  sing to the Lord, all the earth.
 ²Sing to the Lord, bless the name of the Lord;
  proclaim God’s salvation from day to day.
 ³Declare God’s glory among the nations
  and God’s wonders among all peoples.
 ⁴For great is the Lord and greatly to be praised,
  more to be feared than all gods. 
 ⁵As for all the gods of the nations, they are but idols;
  but you, O Lord, have made the heavens.
 ⁶Majesty and magnificence are in your presence;
  power and splendor are in your sanctuary.
 ⁷Ascribe to the Lord, you families of the peoples,
  ascribe to the Lord honor and power.
 ⁸Ascribe to the Lord the honor due the holy name;
  bring offerings and enter the courts of the Lord. 
 ⁹Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness;
  tremble before the Lord, all the earth.
 ¹⁰Tell it out among the nations: “The Lord is king!
  The one who made the world so firm that it cannot be moved will judge the peoples with equity.”
 ¹¹Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad;
  let the sea thunder and all that is in it; let the field be joyful and all that | is therein.
 ¹²Then shall all the trees of the wood shout for joy at your coming, O Lord, for you come to judge the earth.
 ¹³You will judge the world with righteousness
  and the peoples with your truth.

Second Reading: 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10

¹Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy,
  To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:
  Grace to you and peace.

  ²We always give thanks to God for all of you and mention you in our prayers, constantly ³remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁴For we know, brothers and sisters beloved by God, that he has chosen you, ⁵because our message of the gospel came to you not in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction; just as you know what kind of persons we proved to be among you for your sake. ⁶And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for in spite of persecution you received the word with joy inspired by the Holy Spirit, ⁷so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. ⁸For the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but in every place your faith in God has become known, so that we have no need to speak about it. ⁹For the people of those regions report about us what kind of welcome we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols, to serve a living and true God, ¹⁰and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath that is coming.

Gospel: Matthew 22:15-22

¹⁵Then the Pharisees went and plotted to entrap [Jesus] in what he said. ¹⁶So they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that you are sincere, and teach the way of God in accordance with truth, and show deference to no one; for you do not regard people with partiality. ¹⁷Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not?” ¹⁸But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why are you putting me to the test, you hypocrites? ¹⁹Show me the coin used for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius. ²⁰Then he said to them, “Whose head is this, and whose title?” ²¹They answered, “The emperor’s.” Then he said to them, “Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” ²²When they heard this, they were amazed; and they left him and went away.

CHILDREN’S SERMON:  Let me share one of my favorite poems again.  The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost.

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim,

Because it was grassy and wanted wear;

Though as for that the passing there

Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I kept the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way,

I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

   Let us pray:  Lord, may the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart glorify you, my Rock and my Redeemer.  Help us as we ponder the roads we choose today.

SERMON

As I write this sermon, I am aware of the life choices I made, the path I chose, in marrying my husband and the repercussions of that choice.  “It made all the difference.”    Thank you all who prayed me through the funeral last Saturday and thank you for the beautiful bouquet of flowers.

         I am also aware that some of the questions dominating the news in the US this week are issues that divide people like the question in our text about Caesar’s coin.  Who do we pay taxes to?  We polarize red and blue over presidential candidates.  We polarize over the Middle East conflict.  We are tired of Russia – Ukraine conflict.  Those are only a few issues that are divisive today.  Paying taxes to the emperor, to Caesar, became a litmus test of Jesus’ allegiance, of the condition of his heart.  We stand and stare at the roads in front of us and avoid talking with others about our choices for fear of being lectured or alienated.  Jesus faced the same dilemma.

¹⁷Tell us, then, what you think.

         Jesus is in Jerusalem, the Washington DC of the Jewish world.  He is at the Temple, the center of government, and he is before leaders. He is in the public eye.  I’m guessing CNN would have loved to be there covering that moment.  The pundits would have spent at least an evening debating the whys and wherefores of the conversation.

           We have Matthew’s report, though.  Matthew is in the middle of telling us about the last week of Jesus’ life. We have been reflecting on Jesus’ parables given about the kingdom of heaven. Judaism was compared to God’s vineyard, and the religious leaders seem to have been the bad guys.  Accountability was predicted and the leaders’ feathers were ruffled.  The Jewish leaders now are “plotting to entrap Jesus” and so they set him up.  “Tell us, then, what you think.”  I would suspect they do not genuinely want to know what Jesus thinks.  It is a set up question to get Jesus to say something they can hold against him.  We know this tactic.  Before I can give my answer to a question, the other is already giving me feedback.  The leaders are threatened, plotting and so open with a setup.

         In today’s text, two sides, Pharisees and Herodians, come together to ask Jesus a question designed to entrap.  Both are groups within the Jewish system but Pharisees are defenders of Mosaic Law, defending Jewish spiritual tradition, and Herodians are defenders of the Herod dynasty, involving Jewish political tradition. Pharisees are like the rule writers and Herodians are like those who carry out the rules.  We might say the legislators and the police unite.  They unite to tackle a common enemy, Jesus.

“Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar?”

         Caesar represents the hated Roman emperor that abuses all of them.  To what extent must the Jews obey a repressive, abusive regime?  This is a moral, ethical question but it is also a legal or political question.  We stand at the intersection of the kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of this world.  Twice in the text we are told the intent of the question is “to entrap” and asked with “malice.”  Jesus even went to far as to call the questioners “hypocrites.”  Ouch!  But that does not change the fact that our faith is often lived out in a world of murky forces and in response to difficult choices.  Our civil responses occur within the context of our religious beliefs.  Both systems bear weight on us.  Life is like a coin with two sides.  We answer to God in a world of political powers.

         I am compelled to obey the speed laws but I am also told by faith to forgive the guy who cuts me off in traffic and not give him the finger. Hmmm.  I am compelled to pay taxes but the honesty with which I respond is a matter of conscience.  It reminds me of the moral dilemma our generation faced in deciding how to respond to the draft for the Viet Nam war.   Clear but not so clear.  Our faith is lived in a context.  Our responses often reveal the intent of our heart.  The question was a genuine dilemma facing people but the asking of it revealed the intents of the askers’ heart. We must obey the law…but…which law – God’s, human, and if they contradict what do we do? As we respond to situations, we must always check the motives of our heart and then act.

“¹⁸But Jesus, aware of their malice, said,

 “Why are you putting me to the test,

 you hypocrites?”

         Jesus does not avoid the question because it is malicious or murky, designed to entrap him. He stands firm in the midst of the mess. Jesus stands firm in the midst of our chaotic choices we face too.  For many it is difficult to find God in the midst of situations that challenge faith.  In the face of death, war, poverty and disease, we often throw up our hands and ponder, where is God.  How can a God of love allow the civil reality of injustice?  Our pain and discomfort blinds us to a bigger reality and we forget that we live in this kingdom of this world that is fallen and we live by a spiritual reality that is eternal.  God is working and answering our questions and not afraid of our dilemmas.   Jesus does not zap the Pharisees and the Herodians but uses their duplicity as a teaching moment.

“Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s,

 and to God the things that are God’s.”

Jesus answers.  We live in two realities.  We must give to Caesar that which is Caesar’s and give to God that which is God’s.  When we burn the candle at two ends, we must not be surprised if we burn out.  If we dabble with pornography, is it a surprise there are marital problems?  If we play with fire, we get burned.  Disease kills people and at the same time our lives are in God’s hands. Faith grows in this tension.

         But we must also give to God, that which is God’s. Now here comes the bind.  Works measures our civil responsibilities but our spiritual responsibilities are issues of loyalty and allegiance and our response to situations often reveal our heart’s allegiance.  When I choose to forgive the idiot who is slow on the take-up at the traffic signal, it says something about faith.  When I treat the stranger with kindness, I live out faith.   Next week we will focus on Reformation and the truth that we are saved by grace, through faith to do good works.  Our good works do not save us but are an expression of our love of God.  Giving to God is loving God with our whole heart, our whole mind, and with all our strength and loving our neighbor as ourselves.  The two sides of the life coin are seen as we respond to events. Justice of Caesar can be tempered with mercy from God.  Hate for evil deeds is answered with love found in forgiveness.  Sin is met with second chances.  Civil rules have a flip side in spiritual rules that are different.

         So. Let’s go back to our original scenario, the debates we are living with today in our culture.  I would not want to end this sermon leaving the impression that there is only one way, one candidate, one perspective that speaks into our quandaries today.  The answer is not Republican or Democrat.  Fortunately good, godly people stand on both sides of the isles on these issues and we have the freedom to engage them in public debate even as Jesus engaged people who questioned him, in the Temple. Jesus stands in the middle of the issues that confuse us and calls us to honor both Caesar and God with what belongs to each.

The last line to the text today comforts me, “²When they heard this, they were amazed; and they left him and went away.”  Coming to Jesus diffuses some of the malice and drive to entrap the other.  Engaging with God and not just arguing our case defuses arguments and anger.  God’s wisdom goes beyond our reasoning.  As we go to the polls, we submit to our civil system of choosing leaders.  But as we ponder our choices we submit to a God who sees our hearts and sees what malice may be lying therein.  May we never forget “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:12)”  Our enemy is not our neighbor.

         Our prayer, “May people be awed by our love of God and may political unrest and violence be avoided.” 

Let the people of God say, “AMEN!”

First Reading: Isaiah 5:1-7 ¹Let me sing for my beloved
  my love-song concerning his vineyard:
 My beloved had a vineyard
  on a very fertile hill.
 ²He dug it and cleared it of stones,
  and planted it with choice vines;
 he built a watchtower in the midst of it,
  and hewed out a wine vat in it;
 he expected it to yield grapes,
  but it yielded wild grapes.

 ³And now, inhabitants of Jerusalem
  and people of Judah,
 judge between me
  and my vineyard.
 ⁴What more was there to do for my vineyard
  that I have not done in it?
 When I expected it to yield grapes,
  why did it yield wild grapes?

 ⁵And now I will tell you
  what I will do to my vineyard.
 I will remove its hedge,
  and it shall be devoured;
 I will break down its wall,
  and it shall be trampled down.
 ⁶I will make it a waste;
  it shall not be pruned or hoed,
  and it shall be overgrown with briers and thorns;
 I will also command the clouds
  that they rain no rain upon it.

 ⁷For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts
  is the house of Israel,
 and the people of Judah
  are his pleasant planting;
 he expected justice,
  but saw bloodshed;
 righteousness,
  but heard a cry!

Psalm: Psalm 80:7-15

Look down from heaven, O God; behold and tend this vine. (Ps. 80:14, 15)

 ⁷Restore us, O God of hosts;
  let your face shine upon us, and we shall be saved.
 ⁸You have brought a vine out of Egypt;
  you cast out the nations and planted it.
 ⁹You cleared the ground for it;
  it took root and filled the land.
 ¹⁰The mountains were covered by its shadow
  and the towering cedar trees by its boughs. 
 ¹¹You stretched out its tendrils to the sea
  and its branches to the river.
 ¹²Why have you broken down its wall,
  so that all who pass by pluck off its grapes?
 ¹³The wild boar of the forest has ravaged it,
  and the beasts of the field have grazed upon it.
 ¹⁴Turn now, O God of hosts,
  look down from heaven;
 ¹⁵behold and tend this vine;
  preserve what your right hand has planted.

Second Reading: Philippians 3:4b-14

 [Paul writes:] ^4bIf anyone else has reason to be confident in the flesh, I have more: ⁵circumcised on the eighth day, a member of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; ⁶as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless.
 ⁷Yet whatever gains I had, these I have come to regard as loss because of Christ. ⁸More than that, I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and I regard them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ ⁹and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but one that comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God based on faith. ¹⁰I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death, ¹¹if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead.
 ¹²Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal; but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. ¹³Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, ¹⁴I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.

Gospel: Matthew 21:33-46

 [Jesus said to the people:] ³³“Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a wine press in it, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenants and went to another country. ³⁴When the harvest time had come, he sent his slaves to the tenants to collect his produce. ³⁵But the tenants seized his slaves and beat one, killed another, and stoned another. ³⁶Again he sent other slaves, more than the first; and they treated them in the same way. ³⁷Finally he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ ³⁸But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him and get his inheritance.’ ³⁹So they seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. ⁴⁰Now when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?” ⁴¹They said to him, “He will put those wretches to a miserable death, and lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the produce at the harvest time.”
 ⁴²Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the scriptures:
 ‘The stone that the builders rejected
  has become the cornerstone;
 this was the Lord’s doing,
  and it is amazing in our eyes’?
⁴³Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that produces the fruits of the kingdom. ⁴⁴The one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and it will crush anyone on whom it falls.”
 ⁴⁵When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they realized that he was speaking about them. ⁴⁶They wanted to arrest him, but they feared the crowds, because they regarded him as a prophet.

CHILDREN’S SERMON: Today we are going to start with a riddle.  How do you know an elephant is in the refrigerator?

   (Look for its footprints in the Jell-O – or butter!) 

How does an elephant hide in a strawberry patch?

                  (It paints its toenails red!)

Let’s pray.  Lord may the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in your sight, my Rock and my Redeemer.

SERMON

I learned this week that elephant jokes are actually part of a 4-step logic test given by some corporations. 

Question 1.  How do you put an elephant in a refrigerator?  Answer: Open the door, put it in, and close the door. It tests if you can you do complicated things in a simple way?

Question 2.  How do you put a giraffe in a refrigerator?  Answer: Open the door, take out the elephant and put in the giraffe, then close the door.  It tests if you can think of the repercussions from your previous actions?

Question 3.  The lion hosted a banquet and invited all the animals.  Who did not come?  Answer: the giraffe because he’s in the refrigerator.  It tests if you can you remember what you just did?

Question 4.  How do you cross a river full of crocodiles? Answer: Jump in and swim across because the crocodiles are at the lion’s banquet.

         We laugh at these childhood jokes that tease the edges of our logic.  Our text today reminds me of how often Jesus combines things that don’t seem at first to make sense.  Elephants can’t fit in a refrigerator.  What do a vineyard and a cornerstone have in common?  Not so obvious.  What in the parable does Jesus want us to see?  Are we looking at the Jell-O when we should thinking about the elephant?  Let’s look at this a bit closer.

“There was a landowner who planted a vineyard,

put a fence around it,

dug a wine press in it,

and built a watchtower.”

         The parable opens with everyday images, a vineyard with a fence, a wine press, and a watchtower.  Often Israel is compared to God’s vineyard that he plants.  Our Old Testament reading and our Psalm reading use these images.  God is the creator, the owner.  The religious leaders are responsible to care for the vineyard.  They are the tenants.  God will expect his share of the harvest at the end of time.  He sends his servants, the prophets, and eventually his son, Jesus, to collect his share from the tenants.  The tenants kill the son thinking that then the vineyard will be theirs.  The religious hierarchy knew Jesus was talking about them.  The parable implies the leaders know Jesus is from God and their greed at wanting the vineyard is their downfall.  Jesus continues to talk, though, about a cornerstone pointing to God’s victory despite the tenant’s self-centeredness.  So how does the story speak into our lives today?  Is there more we can learn from pondering the relationship between vineyards and a cornerstone?

         Jesus is quite specific about the vineyard the landowner planted.  The landowner put a fence around it.  He dug a wine press in it.  And he built a watchtower.

A cornerstone is a stone uniting two walls at an intersection.

         A cornerstone defines where one wall ends and the other one starts.  A fence also is an intersection where the vineyard starts and ends.  One side of the fence is not the owner’s property and the other side is.  In the parable, the tenants have gotten confused.  They had come to believe that the vineyard was theirs because they worked there and they believe the death of the son would eliminate the owner’s claims.  When we baptize our children or when we are baptized, we define ourselves as wanting to be part of God’s vineyard.  We no longer belong to the world and the evil one no longer has power to control us because the Holy Spirit has taken up residence in our heart.  We may experience harassment from evil but evil can no longer owns us.  Baptism and faith are fences that define us as belonging to God.  Jesus is the cornerstone that defines how far evil can go.

         So one of the challenges of today’s text is to ask ourselves what confuses us and deceives us into misunderstanding the fences of our faith?  Why do we look at the Jell-O and miss the elephant that makes the footprints?  What are the fences that define us?  The social media would like us to think it is our political party – red or blue – or our ethnic heritage – American, Norwegian, German – or our family business – farmers, medical, missionaries.  All these titles are part of our identity and in fact are often used to create social hierarchies.  The titles help us know the good guys from the potentially bad guys.  But those are footprints in the Jell-O.  Jesus is the elephant of faith that is important.  The church spelled with a capitol C, not a small C, the church universal not the local meeting of believers, is defined by the fence of faith in Jesus.  How we baptize, if we speak in tongues, or even on what day of the week we meet are not the big issues but faith in Christ is.

         So where do the Ten Commandments come in?   Our baptism, our confirmation, and our faith define our fences.  But I think the law, the Ten Commandments, help us know when we are in danger of leaving the protection of the vineyard.  God sends prophets, preachers and his Son to speak into our lives and remind us where our boundaries are.  The Holy Spirit is our advocate that speaks to our consciences and convicts us when we are stepping out of bounds.  Sometimes we act as if being a part of God’s vineyard is like a ‘get out of jail free” card.  We think of God as love and we think we can leave the refrigerator door open and there will be no consequences.

         The cornerstone tells us when we have come to a corner and we need to turn if we want to stay in the building.  The cornerstones warn us of potential danger when we can get into trouble.  When our anger drives us to motor mouth criticisms we are in danger of hate and murder.  When our Saturday night partying leads us to exhaustion and skipping spiritual fellowship, we are in danger.  When our “wants” leads us into credit card debt and covetousness, we are in danger.  The fence is there to define us and to protect us.  When we leave the refrigerator door open, we will have problems! 

³⁴When the harvest time had come,

he sent his slaves to the tenants to collect his produce.

         The second thing the landowner built after the fence was a wine press.  The vineyard had a purpose.  The cornerstone often is laid and marks the place where the building will be built.  It might also say something about the purpose of the building and acts as a maker, identifying the future use of the building. When God created people, you and me, he did not just roll dice letting genes determine our fate.  As a youth, I can remember bemoaning my curly brown hair that was not blonde and straight like my sister’s and wondering what God had in mind.  I have listened to the moans of my mother lamenting that if she had had an opportunity to go to college during the Depression she would have written a book.  I have sat by the bedside of my four year old son as he was frozen in the pain and fever of juvenile rheumatoid arthritis and asked, “Why, Lord?”  I remind God now that I prayed to go to Alaska and not Africa and that I was suppose to die first not my husband so that he could help me be brave walking the valley of death.  I look at the giraffe in my refrigerator and question why it is not an elephant.  I look at the footprints and wonder where some of them came from.  But that does not change the fact that I have a purpose and a job to do.  Keep the Jell-O from melting.  Be a preservative for what God places in his refrigerator.  Likewise, when Jesus is the elephant in our refrigerator we will have footprints of the presence of the Holy Spirit.

         Psalm 139 is a comfort to many

O Lord, you have searched me and known me.
² You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
    you discern my thoughts from far away.
³ You search out my path and my lying down,
    and are acquainted with all my ways.
⁴ Even before a word is on my tongue,
    O Lord, you know it completely.
⁵ You hem me in, behind and before,
    and lay your hand upon me.
⁶ Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
    it is so high that I cannot attain it.

God knows our names and wrote them in his book of life.  Ephesians 2:8-9 says we are saved by grace, through faith.  It is a gift.  And then it says, “¹⁰ For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life.”  The cornerstone does not only define each one of us, we are given purpose in life.  We are the grapes that in the process of being stomped produce wine and praise to God.  The cornerstone defines you as important, valuable and part of God’s purpose for his vineyard.

So the watchtower?

How do we cross the river full of crocodiles?

         According to the Internet, the watchtower was “by the side of city gates in the East, in which a watchman was stationed to observe what was going on at a distance, especially in times of danger.”  Watchmen have perspective.  Jesus as our watchtower watches for crocodiles and warns us.  Watchmen on the tower looked for danger from the outside or potentially explosive issues on the inside and sound the alarm.  Jesus as the cornerstone of our lives acts as a watchtower because he has perspective and he is “the way, the truth and the life.”  He has walked in our steps and stands on the watchtowers of our lives to guide us.  The watchtower does not prevent danger or evil but sees it coming and can give warning.  That is different from just defining where the vineyard begins and ends.  That is different than telling us the purpose of the vineyard.  The watchtower is the warning system, the truth telling system in our lives.

         Jesus, as our cornerstone, tells us we are his.  His fence is around our lives and we live in his vineyard, the kingdom of heaven.  Jesus, as our cornerstone, desires for us to have productive, fruitful lives to his glory.  He does not design evil to hurt us.  He delights when we produce fruit of the Spirit.  Jesus, as our cornerstone, is our Geek Squad, our Norton Virus protection plan.  He is our watchtower that keeps us healthy and productive by being diligent for problems. 

         So let us end with our riddle.  How do we know what kind of elephant is in our refrigerator?  We can look to see the footprints in the Jell-O or butter.  We should find footprints of Jesus in our life, telling us who we are, why we are, and how we are doing.  If there are no footprints, we need to check to see if the refrigerator door was left open. 

Let the people of God say, “AMEN!”

First Reading: Ezekiel 18:1-4, 25-32

¹The word of the Lord came to me: ²What do you mean by repeating this proverb concerning the land of Israel, “The parents have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge”? ³As I live, says the Lord God, this proverb shall no more be used by you in Israel. ⁴Know that all lives are mine; the life of the parent as well as the life of the child is mine: it is only the person who sins that shall die.
 ²⁵Yet you say, “The way of the Lord is unfair.” Hear now, O house of Israel: Is my way unfair? Is it not your ways that are unfair? ²⁶When the righteous turn away from their righteousness and commit iniquity, they shall die for it; for the iniquity that they have committed they shall die. ²⁷Again, when the wicked turn away from the wickedness they have committed and do what is lawful and right, they shall save their life. ²⁸Because they considered and turned away from all the transgressions that they had committed, they shall surely live; they shall not die. ²⁹Yet the house of Israel says, “The way of the Lord is unfair.” O house of Israel, are my ways unfair? Is it not your ways that are unfair?
 ³⁰Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, all of you according to your ways, says the Lord God. Repent and turn from all your transgressions; otherwise iniquity will be your ruin. ³¹Cast away from you all the transgressions that you have committed against me, and get yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! Why will you die, O house of Israel? ³²For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, says the Lord God. Turn, then, and live.

Psalm: Psalm 25:1-9

Remember, O Lord, your compassion and love. (Ps. 25:6)

 ¹To you, O Lord,
  I lift up my soul.
 ²My God, I put my trust in you; let me not be put to shame,
  nor let my enemies triumph over me.
 ³Let none who look to you be put to shame;
  rather let those be put to shame who are treacherous.
 ⁴Show me your ways, O Lord,
  and teach me your paths. 
 ⁵Lead me in your truth and teach me,
  for you are the God of my salvation; in you have I trusted all the day   long.
 ⁶Remember, O Lord, your compassion and love,
  for they are from everlasting.
 ⁷Remember not the sins of my youth and my transgressions;
  remember me according to your steadfast love and for the sake of your       goodness, O Lord.
 ⁸You are gracious and upright, O Lord;
  therefore you teach sinners in your way.
 ⁹You lead the lowly in justice
  and teach the lowly your way. 

Second Reading: Philippians 2:1-13

¹If then there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love, any sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy, ²make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. ³Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. ⁴Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. ⁵Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,
 ⁶who, though he was in the form of God,
  did not regard equality with God
  as something to be exploited,
 ⁷but emptied himself,
  taking the form of a slave,
  being born in human likeness.
 And being found in human form,
  ⁸he humbled himself
  and became obedient to the point of death—
  even death on a cross.

 ⁹Therefore God also highly exalted him
  and gave him the name
  that is above every name,
 ¹⁰so that at the name of Jesus
  every knee should bend,
  in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
 ¹¹and every tongue should confess
  that Jesus Christ is Lord,
  to the glory of God the Father.

 ¹²Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed me, not only in my presence, but much more now in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; ¹³for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

Gospel: Matthew 21:23-32

²³When [Jesus] entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him as he was teaching, and said, “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?” ²⁴Jesus said to them, “I will also ask you one question; if you tell me the answer, then I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. ²⁵Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin?” And they argued with one another, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say to us, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ ²⁶But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ we are afraid of the crowd; for all regard John as a prophet.” ²⁷So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And he said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.
 ²⁸“What do you think? A man had two sons; he went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’ ²⁹He answered, ‘I will not’; but later he changed his mind and went. ³⁰The father went to the second and said the same; and he answered, ‘I go, sir’; but he did not go. ³¹Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you. ³²For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him; and even after you saw it, you did not change your minds and believe him.”

CHILDREN’S SERMON:  (Hold up a toy car if you can)  I have had a lot of doctor visits recently.  I jokingly tell my friends I am going in for my 75,000 mile check-up, a little late as I am turning 77!  We laugh but it is a truth I was taught by my father when I was learning to drive.  Take care of your car regularly and don’t wait for an emergency.  So let’s group-think a minute.  When we take our car in for a routine check-up, what do we want the mechanics to look for?

Let’s pray.  Lord, may the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptible in your sight, my Rock and my Redeemer.

SERMON

         Today Bethany is celebrating 100 years of ministry.  100 years of the Lord’s leading and blessing.  I don’t think any of us were here 100 years ago but I have heard stories of how people were married here, had children baptized at Bethany, worked at VBS to train these children, and have faithfully aged together.  That is a 100-year-love-story of God’s grace through good times, hard times, fighting times and loving times.  You have cried together at the death of pastors, spouses and friends.  You have laughed together at meals and celebrations.  You have dug in the dirt together in Bethany Gardens and you have welcomed the neighborhood in the Bethany Day Care Center.  You have enjoyed the days of plenty, pews full, and you have been faithful during the meager days when finances were stretched.  Bethany has been an honest ministry in the midst of a real world that struggles, waiting for God’s final coming.  So how does our given text that is kinda serious, speak into the celebration reality we live in today?  I think Jesus asks us two very serious questions and ends with a challenge for us to take home and ponder.

Question 1:

“By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?”

         The chief priests and elders come to Jesus in the Temple and ask him by what authority he does what he does.  The day before, he has just thrown out the money changers, “cleansed the Temple,” and declared, “My father’s house is to be a house of prayer.”  So much for quiet, gentle Jesus.  Then returning to Jerusalem he curses the fig tree that is not producing and it withers immediately.  The disciples are speechless.  Jesus enters the temple courts and is confronted by the chief priests and elders.  What is his authority?  Jesus reverses the conversation by asking them what authority was John the Baptists operating under, God’s or people’s.  

         Now that is a question that goes to the heart of integrity.  I suspect it might be like walking into the car shop and the receptionist asking how you are going to pay.  Is your credit card goood?  Jesus is asking Bethany today if our credit card is tied to God or are we charging based on confidence that our hard work will eventually be able to pay the bill we are building up.  What is Bethany’s credit card that backs her ministries?  Do we draw from the Bank of Human Hopes or do we draw from the Bank of Heavenly Promises?  How would you answer?

         Jesus couches the question in the life of John the Baptist.  Was John operating from heaven’s authority or people’s authority?  Interesting.  Jesus did not ask about Moses or Abraham, the fathers of their faith.  He did not point them to their past successes but to their present dynamics.  John was a current personality.  As we put this in our present context, I do not think Jesus is asking if our car, Bethany, was beautiful, shiny and economically running well at the beginning.  He is not asking about all the road trips and all the places our car has taken us.  He is asking how we understand ourselves now, at the 100,000 mile check-up.  I think it is like lifting the hood and checking out the engine.  What makes Bethany tick?

         At 100,000 miles we often start considering whether we are approaching a new car.  We subconsciously start checking out the other guy’s car and ask questions like if the electrical car is the car of the future or perhaps we look at a hybrid something.  Maybe we should switch to a foreign brand with a good reputation.  It is no different in our spiritual life.  The temptation to surf the church options is always there.  Perhaps we ponder new programs, how to get younger people, and what a new pastor might look like.  Jesus’ question goes to the heart of our commitment to God here at Bethany.  Are we hungry for God or are we hungry for success?

           We can look at our documents about mission statements, aims, goals and objectives but that is like trying to convince ourselves we are good Christians because we listen to the Gospel lesson on Sunday.  Jesus is not asking if we listen and read Scripture but if we know God and are obedient to his voice.

         John the Baptist preached a baptism of repentence in preparation for the Messiah, the One who was to come.  John was preaching about life style and heart commitment, not church membership or church goals.  John was popular with people flocking to hear his sermons and being baptized but those numbers did not seem to go to his head.  When Jesus went to be baptized, John immediately realized that Jesus should baptize him, John, not visa versa. Jesus tells the disciples,

         ¹¹ Truly I tell you, among those born of women no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.  (Matthew 11:11)

The chief priests and elders could not acknowledge this truth.  They were caught in their own hypocrisy.  They were not being honest about the condition of their engine – the odometer was inaccurate, the pistons missing beats, and an accident had caused damage – so when Jesus lifted the hood and looked and asked his question, they hung their heads and could not answer for fear.  Jesus did not answer them in their duplicity either.

         As God lifts the hood of the engine of Bethany today, he asks by what authority we do what we do.  I pray our answer is true relationship with God and not just a clinging to tradition.

Question 2:

³¹Which of the two did the will of his father?”

         Jesus now tells a parable of a father who has two sons.  The father needs his son’s help.  He asks the first who refuses but later goes and helps his father.  He asks the second who agrees to go but never shows-up for work.  Jesus asks the chief priests and elders, which son did the will of the father?  They agree it is the son who actually shows up for work.

         I recognize this scenario.  I tell the kids to clean up their room and they are so very agreeable.  I suspect they quickly realized that with five kids, I would forget.  Sure enough the rooms often were not cleaned.  “Yeh, Mom, Sure, Mom” sounds good, stops any potential lecture, and pacifies me but the work is not done. We come on Sunday and Jesus asks us to reflect.  Do we just say, “Yeh God, Sure God” and agree but walk out and immediately forget?  I do not want to make this sound like works so that we end up with a kind of New Testament law like “thou shalt witness to your neighbor.”  So let us go to our New Testament reading.

            Phillippians 2 is famous as it charges us, “⁵Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus.”  Paul pleads with us to be of the same mind, united, not quarreling and gossiping and not jealous.  Are we guarding our hearts against selfish ambition, regarding others better than ourselves?  As we read the passage, it is not a “to do” list but a “to be” list.   As I read about “the body of Christ,” I hear a diversity of functions, of looks, of gifts, and of honor being mentioned.  Walking in the image of Christ does not mean that we all are the same in our thoughts and actions but we do work in a united way to the glory of God with a humble heart for others.

         Jesus asks Bethany as we celebrate our 100^th anniversary if we are living by our goals and mission statement to the glory of God.  Are we using our talents as we can to support Christ’s body here at Bethany?  Then he adds a closing comment:

The Challenge

“and even after you saw it,

you did not change your minds and believe him.”

         After experiencing truth presented by John the Baptist, the chief priests and elders did not change.  They could not embrace John the Baptist and the baptism he taught to prepare for the Messiah.  They saw and heard and they did not change.  The problem was not being a sinner.  Jesus would take care of sin on the cross.  But the problem was that even after experiencing truth, they could not adapt.  Perhaps they were frozen in their traditions.  Bethany of 2023 is a different Bethany than the Bethany of 1923.  Our context has changed.  We are older.  Our culture has changed.  But our God has not changed.  God still speaks into our lives through his Word, through his people, and through our giftings. I wonder, how will Bethany respond to their love story with God? 

         By what authority does Bethany do what Bethany does?  I pray that we are attuned not just to our mission statements and specific goals but also to the voice of a God who watches over us and directs our paths.  He wants to partner with us.

          Is Bethany doing the will of God?  That is not a question of Bethany Gardens or Bethany Day Care but a question of our hearts in relation to each other and to God as we seek to respond to his authority. 

         Bethany is on a journey.  I pray we will have eyes to see and adapt as God opens the path into our future.  I pray we will have ears to hear his voice and hearts open to the new horizons he is calling us to.  I pray Bethany’s feet are ever running to serve their Lord who guides, redeems and loves his presence here at 4702 South East Street, Indianapolis, Indiana.

Let the people of God say, “AMEN.”

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