Rock, Paper, Scissors

February 21, 2023

Do you remember playing the game “Rock, Paper, Scissors”?  You pound your fist three times while your friend pounds her hand and then you make the sign of a rock (a fist), paper (flat palm), or scissors (two fingers making a cutting motion).  Rocks crush scissors.  Paper wraps rocks.  Scissors cut paper.  Sometimes life feels like that game.  I question if I’m struggling with rocks in my garden of life or need to cut back thorns and hopefully is not the hard flat path.  We continue today with Jesus as he continues to tell his disciples the meaning of the parable of the sower throwing out his seed that we looked at yesterday.

18 “Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: 19 When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path. 20 The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. 21 But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. 22 The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful. 23 But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”  (Matthew 13:18-23)

Our seed can fall on hard ground.  The other just doesn’t get it.  In one ear and out the other.  Blank stare.  But the seed can fall where there is a little soil and there is some sign of growth.  Rocky soil means there is shallow dirt resulting in shallow thinking and no real roots.  Problems blow those sprouts away.  Thorny soil chokes the plant with anxiety and care.  Good soil gets a good plant.  I suspect that we all have hard places in our heart where old scars have hardened our ability to absorb truth.  Rocks like bad experiences can sour us to God’s word.  We tried to pray but God didn’t seem to be listening and so we quit.  We feel like God is too busy for me.  We do have days like that or, perhaps, we are too busy for God!  We all know about worries and anxiety that distracts us from God.  We want to be good soil but sometimes after our fist pounds three times we come up with rock, thorns or hard ground.

         Lent is a time when we examine our soil to see if rocks need to be removed, thorns pulled up, and hard places plowed.  Setting aside five minutes each evening before you go to bed or five minutes in the morning to review yesterday can be a valuable Lenten discipline.  Matthew 17-26, nine chapters are devoted to Jesus coming down from the Mount of Transfiguration and heading to Jerusalem.  Let’s read those chapters this Lent.  Blessings.

Leave a Comment » | Spiritual Vitamins | Permalink
Posted by srwantabee

“Seeds”

February 20, 2023

It is not until Matthew 13 that Matthew goes from miracles of Jesus to some of his famous parables.  The Parable of the Sower tells of a farmer tossing out seeds to plant and the type of soil they land on.  Some fall on hard ground, some on rocky, some on thorny and some fall into good soil and flourish.  The seed we understand to be the word of God and the type of soil can be seen as different types of listeners or our different responses when we hear the word of God.  I’m sure the pastor would be happy if the congregation went home every Sunday taking the sermon to heart but we know that just doesn’t happen.  Sometimes we are sleepy, sometimes distracted, and sometimes we even disagree with the sower.

“13 That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. 2 Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. 3 Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4 As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5 Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. 6 But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. 9 Whoever has ears, let them hear.” (Matthew 13:1-9)”

         My thought, as I write this, is that we are encouraged to be Christ-like in our lives.  If so, then what kind of seeds to we sow as we go through our day.  Do we sow seeds of doubt, of greed, of lust, or of doubt as we encounter others.  Few of us go around quoting Scripture to our friends but we are capable of planting seeds of encouragement, of hope, and of love.  Wednesday will be Ash Wednesday when we face our mortality.  Part of being human is our proneness to wander.  Tuesday is known as Fat Tuesday when refrigerators are emptied of food that might tempt whatever our Lenten discipline is.  Perhaps Monday we might check out what type of seeds we are sewing to those we encounter daily!  Blessings.

Leave a Comment » | Spiritual Vitamins | Permalink
Posted by srwantabee

 6th Sunday after Epiphany:  Transfiguration  

February 19, 2023

First Reading: Exodus 24:12-18

12The Lord said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain, and wait there; and I will give you the tablets of stone, with the law and the commandment, which I have written for their instruction.” 13So Moses set out with his assistant Joshua, and Moses went up into the mountain of God. 14To the elders he had said, “Wait here for us, until we come to you again; for Aaron and Hur are with you; whoever has a dispute may go to them.”
 15Then Moses went up on the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain. 16The glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days; on the seventh day he called to Moses out of the cloud. 17Now the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the people of Israel. 18Moses entered the cloud, and went up on the mountain. Moses was on the mountain for forty days and forty nights.

Psalm: Psalm 2

 1Why are the nations in an uproar?
  Why do the peoples mutter empty threats?
 2Why do the kings of the earth rise up in revolt, and the princes plot together, against the Lord and against the Lord’s anointed?
 3“Let us break their yoke,” they say;
  “let us cast off their bonds from us.”
 4God whose throne is in heaven is laughing;
  the Lord holds them in derision.
 5Then in wrath God speaks to them,
  and in rage fills them with terror.
 6“As for me, I have anointed my king
  upon Zion, my holy mountain.”
 7Let me announce the decree of the Lord,
  who said to me, “You are my son; this day have I begotten you.
 8Ask of me, and I will give you the nations for your inheritance
  and the ends of the earth for your possession.
 9You shall crush them with an iron rod
  and shatter them like a piece of pottery.”
 10And now, you kings, be wise;
  be warned, you rulers of the earth.
 11Submit to the Lord with fear,
  and with trembling bow in worship;
 12lest the Lord be angry, and you perish in a sudden blaze of wrath.
  Happy are all who take refuge in God!

 

Second Reading: 2 Peter 1:16-21

16For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty. 17For he received honor and glory from God the Father when that voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory, saying, “This is my Son, my Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” 18We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven, while we were with him on the holy mountain.
 19So we have the prophetic message more fully confirmed. You will do well to be attentive to this as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. 20First of all you must understand this, that no prophecy of scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, 21because no prophecy ever came by human will, but men and women moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.

Gospel: Matthew 17:1-9

1Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. 2And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white. 3Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. 4Then Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three dwellings here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” 5While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!” 6When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear. 7But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Get up and do not be afraid.” 8And when they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus himself alone.
 9As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them, “Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”

CHILDREN’S SERMON:

         “Beauty and the Beast” is a story that tells of a prince who has been transformed into a beast and he must learn to love and earn the love of another before a rose totally wilts.  The story, thanks to Disney, is much more complicated with subplots but basically a prince looks like a beast and Belle, the young girl, must learn to love him.  So turn to your neighbor and share why you would find the beast so repulsive?

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 Transfiguration Sunday.  The Son of God has appeared to us as, Jesus, the Son of Man, and we have been checking him out during Epiphany and learning to love him.  Unlike the fairy story, Jesus was not selfish and cursed but his life is not how our world paints heroes either.  We want God to ride in on a white charger, be handsome, and rescue us from the evil Garcon, that selfish bad-guy in the story who wants us as a trophy.  Through Epiphany we have seen Jesus talk about his kingdom but somehow “happy ever after” just does not happen.  If we read the rest of Matthew, as we have been doing in our daily devotions, we see Jesus doing remarkable feats of power.  He heals the sick, raises the dead, gives vision and is a fantastic teacher.  His people don’t fall asleep during the sermon, I bet. But he still looks human and the Romans, disease, problems and death still plague us.  In the tales of the kingdom of this world, the hero saves the poor and suffering, us, from pain and danger.  We want Jesus not only to  “walk the talk” but also rescues us, preferably before the next commercial.

         Today we have another “epiphany” moment as Jesus transfigures in the presence of Peter, James and John, and us.  Epiphany season is bookended by the voice of God speaking from heaven, “This is my son!”  For a brief moment in these epiphanies we see the caterpillar’s future form as a butterfly.  We glimpse the prince inside the beast.

Transfiguration

         My husband and I love to watch the beginning episodes of the series, “The Crown,” telling about the life journey of Queen Elizabeth.  The early episodes include Kenya and the famous hotel Treetops where even we stayed.  We watched yet again this week her coronation where she is anointed with oil as kings and priests of the Old Testament were.  The abdicated King, David, tries to explain what is happening to his French guests.  He shared how as the oil is applied, a spiritual experience occurs.  The presence of God transforms an ordinary woman into a goddess, the Queen of England.  The “mystery” of the moment is transformative.

         Jesus, Peter, James and John climb a mountain and at the summit Jesus for a moment is transfigured.  His face shines like the sun and his clothes glisten dazzling white.  Moses and Elijah appear and talk to him.  Twilight Zone could not do it better.  Beam us up, Scotty, to that mountain!!!  What was that about?

         I have looked at this moment before with you and pondered why Moses and Elijah were present.  God does not do random.  I have suggested that both these men came to encourage Jesus, Son of Man, who could step into eternity because he is also Son of God.  How could they encourage Jesus?

  • Moses stood on Mt. Sinai to receive the 10 Commandments.  Elijah stood on Mt. Carmel and confronted the 400 priests of Baal.  They knew what it was like to stand alone for people and for the truth of God.  Jesus would stand alone before Pilate and so the two saints encouraged him and us. 
  • Moses faced the Red Sea leading the people of Israel out of Egypt.  It looked impossible.  Elijah faced 400 prophets and a sacrifice that had 12 barrels of water poured over it and he believed God could make a fire.  It looked impossible.  Jesus would die for sin.  That seems impossible. The two saints encouraged him and us.
  • Jesus would face crucifixion and be deserted by his followers.  He would face death.  Moses went into the desert by himself to die but God was there to close his eyes.  Elijah was taken up by chariots in a whirlwind and walked through death.  Jesus would face death too.  He needed encouragement and so do we.

         How does transfiguration speak to us?  We have tracked the differences between the kingdom of this world and the kingdom of heaven during this Epiphany season.   We learn to tell in this world if our eyes are blue or brown.  We fill out forms about our ethnicity, height, and weight.  We see life with eyes of flesh that are trained to function in the kingdom of this world.  But we also have spiritual eyes.  Do we look at others, our friends and grandkids, our neighbors and those we meet seeing the potential within them.  When they are discouraged can we say that word of encouragement that draws their hearts to God and to a positive future? Or do the words of criticism and critique jump to our lips?  I pray Bethany will be known as a place where lives are transformed into being their better selves and our community will be a better place to live, a place of hope. May we see the prince in others and not just focus on the beasts we can often be!

Voice

         Our text continues and we hear two voices in response to the transfiguration.  The seen and unseen world witnessed as Jesus transfigured and met with Moses and Elijah.  Peter speaks up and says, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three dwellings here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”  Then for the second time this Epiphany season we hear the voice of God speak from heaven, “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!”

         May I suggest that as we have been tracking the kingdom of this world through Epiphany, that I think we see that in this world we have a tendency to freeze time.  We like to build memorials to those special moments in our life.  Peter is ready to build three “dwellings” or perhaps churches or monuments so people can visit and remember this moment.  This is not necessarily a bad thing.  People go to the special sites in the Holy Land all the time.  Those special moments from our past are preserved in scrapbooks, in videos, put into movies and socially dissected from the various points of view of people involved.  The present walks on the heels of the past and we need to learn those lessons.  We don’t want to get stuck in the past, though.

       Also Peter makes the mistake of making Moses, Jesus and Elijah equal.  Peter is still not clear about what is happening.  Those special memories from the past are a piece of the picture of our lives in God’s story but they are only a piece of the picture. They are not the whole picture.  We learn from them but we don’t want our history to freeze us there so there is no room for growth.

         It is then that God speaks.  Even as God spoke at the baptism of Jesus when Jesus stepped onto the public stage, God now steps out of eternity.  This is not transfiguration like Jesus who has taken on humanity.  This is God speaking from beyond our reality, coming to us.  He again affirms the deity of Jesus but adds a phrase, “Listen to him.”  The Kingdom of Heaven transfigures us and reveals the truth of Jesus but that is not just a special mountaintop experience when we become believers that Jesus is God and will someday return to claim us in all his glory.  The Kingdom of Heaven is about relationship where we “listen”.  That is an ongoing activity, not a moment in time to be memorialized.  God says, “Listen.”

         Our holy moments and experiences are not places to stay but places to get up and get started.  Listening starts our journey with God but then we must walk the talk and be his person.  We come down from the mountain and live in our everyday world. So often we focus on wanting God to listen to our concerns that we forget to listen to his concerns and how he sees the events in our lives unfolding today. 

         So are we listening or are we too busy doing?  Perhaps our reflection here is to ask ourselves how we have stagnated, memorialized our faith and how can we better “listen” and increase the vitality of our relationships.  I’m guessing most of us have room for growth.  Even as Belle was challenged to learn to love the Beast, may we be growing in loving God who sometimes appears cruel and angry like a beast while he loves us.

“Get up and do not be afraid.” 

         Our text concludes with Jesus’ words to Peter, “Get up and do not be afraid.”  I have confessed before that I am a “fearling” so whenever I read the words, “do not be afraid,” God has my attention.  The disciples see Jesus transfigured and hear the voice of God and they fall on their faces in fear.  Jesus tells them to “get up and not be afraid.”      

         You have heard me talk about that other voice that seems to sit on our shoulders and seems to like to whisper in our ears doubts and fears that would discourage us.  Listening is a spiritual skill that grows as our faith grows.  We learn to recognize the voices of our friends and of God.  We can easily become afraid that we will make a mistake or misunderstand.  But that is what the body of Christ is for.  We are not alone.  We are part of a team with God and with his body.  We help each other to hear and to do.  God said, “listen”, and Jesus says, “Get up, and don’t be afraid.”

         We will all leave church today.  I do not know what “get up” will look like in your life but for sure, God is working in us, with us, and through us.  We must come down from the mountaintop.  Jesus walked with the disciples into their challenges, not to rescue them from the pains of life but to walk with them through the pains, as the God who understands our humanity.  Belle runs from the Beast but the story climaxes with her return amidst the attack by the town.  She loves the Beast.  As she has learned to love him, the truth is gradually unveiled.  He is the Prince that will walk with her into “happy ever after.” 

         So as we come to the end of Epiphany and celebrate Ash Wednesday this week, we turn our hearts to Lent and the journey to the cross.  Jesus, Son of Man who came to us as a small babe in Bethlehem and who entered public ministry with the voice from heaven calling him, “my son,” has now stepped through that veil of time and transfigured and we glimpse the Son of God.  It is a dazzling, frightful moment that we are tempted to freeze in our memories but the voice again reminds us that “this is my son, listen.”  We pick ourselves up and return to all the challenges of our everyday life.  We do not need to be afraid of the beast for as we learn to love and trust him we discover he is a wonderful prince who will fulfill all our real dreams and even more.  We will live happily ever after some day in his kingdom.

Let the people of God say “AMEN!”

Leave a Comment » | Sunday Scripts | Permalink
Posted by srwantabee

“Be Thou My Vision”

February 18, 2023
https://www.google.com/search?q=be+thou+my+vision+hymn&oq=Be+Thou+M&aqs=chrome.2.0i67j69i57j0i20i263i512j0i512l2j69i60l3.7668j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:1ab3d48b,vid:ihJAJA4ibEs

Tomorrow is Transfiguration Sunday when Peter, James and John accompany Jesus as he climbs a mountain and for a moment Jesus steps into eternity and talks with Moses and Elijah.  I like to think that those saints came to encourage Jesus as he now chooses to turn to Jerusalem and the cross he knows awaits him.  This week has been a heavy week with the earthquake in the Syrian area and the rising number of people who died.  Our readings talk about a father who came to Jesus because his daughter had died, a woman who desperately tries to touch his hem to cure her bleeding of 12 years, and two blind men who seek vision.  During desperate times we can point fingers and accuse of blame but comfort comes as we turn to our God who turned to Calvary for us.  He understands the parent’s heart, the women’s last-ditch effort and the blindness we all struggle with.  It seems appropriate to listen to this hymn this morning as we bring to God the things we want him to see and heal in his wisdom. We need him to be our vision when our eyes are clouded with tears!  Blessings as you pray.

Leave a Comment » | Spiritual Vitamins | Permalink
Posted by srwantabee

“Blind Men”

February 17, 2023

         Matthew next shares with us that after healing the young girl that had died; two blind men approach Jesus.  These two men could not see Jesus any more than we can.  They could only hear the testimony of others, just like us.  Also they did not really fully understand the whole “salvation” prayer that we talk about.  They simply called out, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!”  Jesus did not sort out their theology.  He simply asks, “Do you believe I can do it?”

27 As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed him, calling out, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!”  28 When he had gone indoors, the blind men came to him, and he asked them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?”  “Yes, Lord,” they replied.  29 Then he touched their eyes and said, “According to your faith let it be done to you”; 30 and their sight was restored. Jesus warned them sternly, “See that no one knows about this.” 31 But they went out and spread the news about him all over that region. (Matthew 9:27-31)

         In so many ways we are blind too.  We can’t see the whole picture.  We do not know the factor driving that other who is the focus in our prayer.  We do not know the skeletons in their closet and the wounds the other carries that affect their behavior.  They do not know all the skeletons we carry around that give us trigger spots.  I love the songs that pray, “Open my eyes Lord and help me to see.”  Let us pray today for God to open our eyes that we might see more clearly, that we might love more dearly, and we might follow him more nearly.  Lord, have mercy on our blindness!

Leave a Comment » | Spiritual Vitamins | Permalink
Posted by srwantabee

“Hands: The Power of Touch”

February 16, 2023

            As Jesus draws the disciples into pondering about fasting, a religious leader kneels before Jesus and asks for Jesus to extend his hands to his daughter, not his son, who has just died.  On the way to the house a different woman reasons that if she could just extend her hand and touch Jesus she could be healed.  Other Gospels tell us the little girl that needed touch was 12 and that the woman who braved touching Jesus had been bleeding for 12 years and was “untouchable, unclean.”  Both were women in a male dominated culture.  Jesus touches and is touched.  We might say in our colloquial language that Jesus’ heart was “touched” by the plight of these females.

“18 While he was saying this, a synagogue leader came and knelt before him and said, “My daughter has just died. But come and put your hand on her, and she will live.” 19 Jesus got up and went with him, and so did his disciples.

20 Just then a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak. 21 She said to herself, “If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed.”  22 Jesus turned and saw her. “Take heart, daughter,” he said, “your faith has healed you.” And the woman was healed at that moment.

23 When Jesus entered the synagogue leader’s house and saw the noisy crowd and people playing pipes, 24 he said, “Go away. The girl is not dead but asleep.” But they laughed at him. 25 After the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took the girl by the hand, and she got up. 26 News of this spread through all that region. (Matthew 9: 18-26)”

         So what touches your heart today?  41,000 have died in the Syrian earthquake.  How many have died in Ukraine and Russia conflict?  Perhaps you grieve for the children lost seeking refugee in the U.K.  Then again the statistics on drug deaths in the US is staggering.  That is only the evening news tonight!  For most of us those numbers are incomprehensible!  Our hearts are touched as we pray about our children, grandchildren, and neighbors and perhaps spouse.  Jesus saw individuals as they called out for healing.  It did not matter that they were women that he was already dealing with someone else, or the status of the person requesting.  Jesus reached out and touched the little girl with his hand.  Jesus healed the woman.  He cares about our concerns as we kneel at his feet with the burdens of our heart today.  We have the power too to offer hugs and touch to lonely people.  Let us spend a few minutes praying about the places we need God’s touch today and where we can be his touch to another.  Blessings.

Leave a Comment » | Spiritual Vitamins | Permalink
Posted by srwantabee

“Fasting:Patches:Wineskins”

February 15, 2023

         Remember those tests that involved reasoning skills.  The test would ask 1:2 as 3:? Read “One is to two as three is to what? How are things related and could we see the reason for the sequence and what the next number would be.  The text today shares that John’s disciples ask Jesus about the spiritual discipline of fasting.  Jesus, as usual, challenges our reasoning and does not give a direct answer that defines fasting and that would then probably result in a New Testament law about how and when to do….anything.  He reflects a scenario back to the disciples that forces them to think about context and motives and what their real question is.

         A wedding is not the time to fast but to celebrate.  He equates himself to the bridegroom, an image that is used elsewhere in the gospels.  He did not negate fasting but delved into context.  It would appear he is not talking about dieting!!  We might explain it as fasting is for developing or deepening relationship, not for celebrating relationship. 

         Next Jesus compares fasting with patching a torn cloth with new, unshrunk material.  Perhaps Jesus is asking if our motive for fasting is like trying to fix an issue with fasting, just finding a solution.  A patch may cover a hole or a tear and helps us extend the life of the cloth but it does not change the problem.  Fasting is not to cover up a problem or perhaps trying to make something work that is torn and ruined.

            The third comparison is to wineskins.  Perhaps this might be using fasting to find a new solution to an old question.  I think I might fail the reasoning test here.  In any case I would suggest that Jesus does not give a rule about fasting, deny the value of fasting.  He gives us picture to think about.

“14 Then the disciples of John came to him, saying, ‘Why do we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples do not fast?’ 15 And Jesus said to them, ‘The wedding-guests cannot mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them, can they? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast. 16 No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old cloak, for the patch pulls away from the cloak, and a worse tear is made. 17 Neither is new wine put into old wineskins; otherwise, the skins burst, and the wine is spilled, and the skins are destroyed; but new wine is put into fresh wineskins, and so both are preserved.’ (Matthew 9:14-17)”

         As you think about the spiritual disciplines that you might use and those you could use but aren’t, perhaps you might sense a challenge.  Fasting from watching TV to the wee hours but rather spending time in prayer before bed?  Fasting from that last cup of coffee to help you get through the day?  Be creative about where you might put in a little extra time focusing on your relationship with God as we come into Lent next week.  Blessings.

Leave a Comment » | Spiritual Vitamins | Permalink
Posted by srwantabee

“Matthew’s Story ”

February 14, 2023

            I just realized that the author of Matthew is now telling his story, his testimony, of how he came to be a follower of Jesus.  He was not a fisherman like Peter.  He was a hated tax collector. He worked for the “feds.”  Perhaps today it would be like being a policeman, not oh so popular by many.  And he probably worked for the Romans, the oppressors, the “other” tribe.  There is probably a sermon right here! Jesus called Matthew to cross many social barriers to follow and Matthew did.

“9 As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him. 10 While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples. 11 When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”  12 On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 13 But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Matthew 9:9-13)”

         Matthew invites Jesus into his home to have a meal with his friends.  Matthew and Jesus are criticized for the guests.  Not only does Matthew come from the wrong side of the tracks but so do his friends.  Jesus defends Matthew but in so doing calls Matthew one of the “sick” who needs a doctor.  Ouch. 

         Matthew is very upfront about the importance of Jesus reaching into his life and calling him, a sick person.  The Apostle Paul also is one of the people who is able to talk about his sorted past killing Christians before Jesus reached into his life.  Not all of us have a colorful testimony of a conversion experience but being able to express the difference Jesus has made in our lives helps us get a handle on how to explain God’s role in our life also.  We might say

  • I was sick and needed a doctor
  • I was a murderer and needed a compassionate judge
  • I was shy and needed courage
  • I was lost and needed direction

How would you describe the difference Jesus has made in your life?  Let’s take a minute and thank God for the transformation faith has brought into our life stories.

Leave a Comment » | Spiritual Vitamins | Permalink
Posted by srwantabee

“Paralyzed ”

February 13, 2023

            We will continue in the gospel of Matthew this week looking at how Jesus “walked the talk” of the Sermon on the Mount in his everyday life.  He read how he crossed the Sea of Galilee at the end of last week and healed two demon-possessed men.  The people of the area asked him to leave.  They did not want what he was living.  He left.  He did not insist they follow him.  He returned to Galilee and met a paralyzed man being carried by friends.  Again we see the faith of some and the skepticism of others.  The man being carried by friends is physically paralyzed but the scribes watching are spiritually paralyzed and doubt the man’s healing.

      Jesus asks a question of the scribes that always confronts us, the reader, as well as the people in the text.  Is it easier to forgive sin or to do a miracle of healing? Jesus is able to heal our soul and our body if we allow him.

“1 And after getting into a boat he crossed the water and came to his own town.2 And just then some people were carrying a paralyzed man lying on a bed. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, ‘Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.’ 3 Then some of the scribes said to themselves, ‘This man is blaspheming.’ 4 But Jesus, perceiving their thoughts, said, ‘Why do you think evil in your hearts? 5 For which is easier, to say, “Your sins are forgiven”, or to say, “Stand up and walk”? 6 But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins’—he then said to the paralytic—‘Stand up, take your bed and go to your home.’ 7 And he stood up and went to his home. 8 When the crowds saw it, they were filled with awe, and they glorified God, who had given such authority to human beings. (Matthew 9:1-8)”

         Many things paralyze us, not just disease.  We can be paralyzed by fear, by guilt, or by hate.  What threatens to paralyze you today?  Perhaps the problem is too big like wars and earthquakes and you feel so small.  Perhaps the issue is too personal like the pain of separation from loved ones by family rifts, divorce, or distance.  Perhaps the pain is too humiliating like rape.  Of course there is disease.  Jesus has the authority and power to speak into our dilemmas.  He wants us to stand up and walk.

         Perhaps you are the friend who in faith carried the paralyzed person to Jesus.  That role is crucial here.  Jesus saw “their faith”, the faith of the friends.  May we not tire of carrying the issues we care about and our issues to God in our prayers.  Jesus sees our hearts and cares.  Blessings.

Leave a Comment » | Spiritual Vitamins | Permalink
Posted by srwantabee

 6th Sunday after Epiphany  

February 12, 2023

First Reading: Deuteronomy 30:15-20

 [Moses said to the people:] 15See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, death and adversity. 16If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God that I am commanding you today, by loving the Lord your God, walking in his ways, and observing his commandments, decrees, and ordinances, then you shall live and become numerous, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to possess. 17But if your heart turns away and you do not hear, but are led astray to bow down to other gods and serve them, 18I declare to you today that you shall perish; you shall not live long in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess. 19I call heaven and earth to witness against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Choose life so that you and your descendants may live, 20loving the Lord your God, obeying him, and holding fast to him; for that means life to you and length of days, so that you may live in the land that the Lord swore to give to your ancestors, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.

Psalm: Psalm 119:1-8

 1Happy are they whose way is blameless,
  who follow the teaching of the Lord!
 2Happy are they who observe your decrees
  and seek you with all their hearts,
 3who never do any wrong,
  but always walk in your ways.
 4You laid down your commandments,
  that we should fully keep them.
 5Oh, that my ways were made so direct
  that I might keep your statutes!
 6Then I should not be put to shame,
  when I regard all your commandments.
 7I will thank you with a true heart,
  when I have learned your righteous judgments.
 8I will keep your statutes;
  do not utterly forsake me.

Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 3:1-9

1Brothers and sisters, I could not speak to you as spiritual people, but rather as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. 2I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for solid food. Even now you are still not ready, 3for you are still of the flesh. For as long as there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not of the flesh, and behaving according to human inclinations? 4For when one says, “I belong to Paul,” and another, “I belong to Apollos,” are you not merely human?
 5What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you came to believe, as the Lord assigned to each. 6I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. 7So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. 8The one who plants and the one who waters have a common purpose, and each will receive wages according to the labor of each. 9For we are God’s servants, working together; you are God’s field, God’s building.

Gospel: Matthew 5:21-37

 [Jesus said to the disciples:] 21“You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, ‘You shall not murder’; and ‘whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.’ 22But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, ‘You fool,’ you will be liable to the hell of fire. 23So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift. 25Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are on the way to court with him, or your accuser may hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. 26Truly I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny.
 27“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away; it is better for you to lose one of your members than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away; it is better for you to lose one of your members than for your whole body to go into hell.
 31“It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ 32But I say to you that anyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of unchastity, causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
 33“Again, you have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but carry out the vows you have made to the Lord.’ 34But I say to you, Do not swear at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, 35or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. 37Let your word be ‘Yes, Yes’ or ‘No, No’; anything more than this comes from the evil one.”

Children’s Sermon:  Belling the Cat by Aesop:  Allow me to return to one of my favorite Aesop Fables to set the tone today.

      The Mice once called a meeting to decide on a plan to free themselves of their enemy, the Cat. At least they wished to find some way of knowing when she was coming, so they might have time to run away. They lived in such constant fear of her claws that they hardly dared stir from their dens by night or day.  Many plans were discussed until at last a very young Mouse got up and said:  “I have a plan that seems very simple, but I know it will be successful.  All we have to do is to hang a bell about the Cat’s neck. When we hear the bell ringing we will know immediately that our enemy is coming.”

All the Mice were much surprised that they had not thought of such a plan before. But in the midst of the rejoicing over their good fortune, an old Mouse arose and said: “I will say that the plan of the young Mouse is very good. But let me ask one question: Who will bell the Cat?” 

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 the sixth Sunday after Epiphany and our last text from the Sermon on the Mount.  Next Sunday is Transfiguration Sunday when Jesus climbs another mountain and we all turn our attention to Lent and the journey to Mount Calvary.  Today’s Gospel text continues on in the Sermon of Mount reported by Matthew.

  We started Epiphany with the baptism of Jesus and the Father’s voice speaking from heaven, “This is my Son with whom I am well pleased.”  The disciples living in a Roman dominated world had heard stories of gods intermarrying with humans.  Today in our culture, our grandchildren are likely to think of Jesus as another Super Hero, just a human with super powers.  The Jews were expecting a Messiah but was this Jesus the one?  The people gathered on the mountain to check Jesus out.  Jesus opens with the Sermon on the Mount, his State of the Union Address laying out the nature of the Kingdom of Heaven and just how life works when we choose to believe in Him.  The Kingdom of Heaven is not like the Kingdom of this World!

  John the Baptist then told his disciples, “This is the lamb of God!” so they too turn to check out Jesus.  Jesus asked them and us, “Whom are you seeking?”  Jesus’ question comes down through the ages and confronts us in Epiphany, what kind of God are we seeking.  Are we chasing after the gods of this world that offer health, wealth, and prosperity or are we seeking the God that Jesus incarnate reveals?

The disciples of John responded to Jesus, “Where can we find you?”  Where do you stay?  And so as the crowds gather to hear Jesus preach, Jesus climbs a mountain and teaches his disciples.  We have turned to The Sermon on the Mount during Epiphany. It is still the best description of the God we seek and where to find him.

The beatitudes confirmed that there is a cat in the house that makes life miserable for us mice.  In the face of all the promises of culture we still live with poorness of spirit, mourning, injustice, deceit, hate, vengeance, and persecution.  Jesus says “blessed” are the people who do not follow the false gods who promise a way out of the problems of life.  Blessed are his people when we find ourselves immersed in these problems! It is there we find God! 

The mice in our fable do not decide to kill the cat but to bell the cat!  Jesus tackles three problems that the cat uses to destroy our world today:  murder, adultery and deceit.  The law given by Moses is very clear.  Do not kill.  Do not commit adultery.  Do not bear false witness or swear falsely about your neighbor.  Law has been defeated to eliminate these big three, though.   Our courts are still full of people arguing their cases and seeking justice.  So what is the bell that allows us to know that the cat is coming and wanting to devour us?

Murder

Jesus proposes that when we become angry and are tempted to hate our brother or sister, we are starting down the path to murder.  Anger is the bell of murder.  Hate is a strong emotion that most of us would deny.  But I think the text still challenges us.  Perhaps we do not murder with a knife.  We are more sophisticated.  We can murder with a word or a raised eyebrow or a question where we call the other’s person’s credibility into doubt.  We might say in our meetings that we need to pray for that person because they are not living life the way we think is right, errrr healthy.

The bell for the cat of murder is anger.  Jesus says the solution is not the law but forgiveness.  Jesus is ushering in a Kingdom that does not work in the courts of law but in the courts of the heart.  We are familiar with the Lord’s Prayer that we pray and ask God to forgive us as we forgive others but Jesus goes one step further here and suggests that we go to the other if we know there is a problem and we humble ourselves and start the conversation.  Forgiveness is relational and affects the whole fabric of society.  Forgiveness is not just what we do in the privacy of our closet.  When the bell of anger rings, the cat threatens the whole community of mice.  The cat of anger and hate, throws us into an emotional jail until we turn to God and find forgiveness for the other and ourselves.

Adultery

Jesus next brings up the cat of adultery.  Most of us have seen this cat destroy either our lives or the lives of our children or friends.  The court of law does not erase adultery and divorce tears families apart.  Lust is the bell that warns us that the cat of adultery is stalking us.  Let us not make the mistake of thinking Jesus was only speaking to “those people” either back in the day or “those” on the other side our fence, I would suggest that we might consider the bell to warn not only of lust but also extreme desires lust implies.  For example we can lust for power.  Lust speaks of our emotional appetites.  When something other than God, like desire, rules our actions then we are in danger.  I love that old commercial, “Bet you can’t eat just one!”  They were right.  I can’t. 

Unlike the kingdom of this world that calls to our bodily desires, sexual, physical, and otherwise, the kingdom of heaven calls to our spiritual desires, our desire for God to reign supreme.

      So if the cat of adultery has the bell of lust, what is the solution?  Accountability partners, support groups like AA, prayer, and avoidance all help us to control the urge, the desire for physical pleasure.  That dessert that tempted us in not the problem but the desire that drives us.  Jesus is far more radical.  He says to tear out the eye or cut off the hand.  Ouch!!  Is adultery, putting another god before Jehovah, that serious in God’s eyes?  The text says yes.

As you know, I visit my husband in memory care daily.  There are people there who cannot see, whose minds are garbled as well as their speech, and do not function properly according to this world.  My pastor has a Downe’s Syndrome daughter who medaled in the Handicap Olympics.  The congregation clapped for her as she proudly showed her medal.  God’s love is not stopped by our desires that don’t honor him.  God still loves us enough to go to Calvary.  While we were yet sinners, he died for us.  The sun still shines and he is still working like salt in our lives to bring out our best flavor but our experience of him is diminished by our distraction with our desires.  Let us not take our desires to the courts of law in the kingdom of this world but let us turn to the courts of God who created our desires, sees us and rules the Kingdom of Heaven.

Bearing False Witness

I’m going to call this cat deceit.  We like to think of this as the commercials that offer more than they can deliver.  Or perhaps it is a grey area and we are just putting the best construction on our speech so as not to hurt the other’s feelings.  It only becomes really wrong when we lie. The temptation to sugar coat our story by adding authorities to back us up or by skipping details or by just slanting the truth lets us know that the cat of false witness is stalking us.

  Jesus is not so clear about this cat’s bell.  Whenever we are tempted to support our story with some “authority” that agrees, we might be on a slippery slope.  Bearing false witness seems to imply intent to deceive or cover up some truth we know or fear.  Jesus tells us to just keep it simple.  Let our yes be yes and our no be no.  The solution is integrity.  We are called to live a life that is congruent with the faith we profess.  Walk our talk!

The Epistle of James asks us if we do not know what causes fights and quarrels among us.  It comes from our desires that battle within us.  The bell of hate rings when we demand justice in the courts of this world, either legally or in the court of public opinion.  That bell of anger tells us the cat of murder is playing with our heart.  The bell of lust rings when we demand the joys of our heart and not the joys of God’s heart.  Adultery breaks a promise to another or ourselves.  The cat of false witness is stalking us when we feel the need to sugar coat truth or lie.  The bell rings to warn us that the cat of false witness is near.  Murder, adultery and false witness break the Law.  Hate, lust, and deceit are bells that warn us we are in danger.

The mice cannot kill the cat.  The cat is serving a purpose only God knows.  Perhaps it will kill the snake. So where is the gospel, the good news in our text today?  May I suggest it comes in our opening phrase, “Jesus said to his disciples.”  Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount lays out the Kingdom of Heaven and how it works. God is not far off and distant but he is here in the midst of the problems we face that would defeat us.  As Aslan said to the children in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, “There is a deeper magic at work.”  We are like salt and light that do not come to destroy but to bring out flavor and shed light into life. God is working even when we feel like the cat is about to pounce and destroy us.  We are not strong enough in ourselves to bell the cats of this world.  We need a God who comes to us to help us.  Jesus gives us the warnings that act like a bell telling us to call to him.  He will deal with the cat.  When we are angry, when we are tempted by our desires, when we feel like we need to twist the truth to protect others, or ourselves we are not alone.  We can turn to a God who cares enough to bell the Cat. These struggles are often long and exhausting.  Jesus says,

‘Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens,

and I will give you rest.  (Matthew 11:28)

Let the people of God say, “AMEN!”

Leave a Comment » | Sunday Scripts | Permalink
Posted by srwantabee

« Previous Entries
Next Entries »