The Scandal of the Gospel

This sermon was heard at the First Presbyterian Church in Marshall, Texas on Sunday January 20, 2013, the 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time.

Isaiah 62:1-5

Psalm 36:5-10

1 Corinthians 12:1-11

John 2:1-11

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to you, O Lord, our rock and our redeemer.  Amen.

Beginning on Christmas Eve we celebrated the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. As I said that evening, Christmas just isn’t Christmas unless somebody reads Luke’s Christmas Story. It’s just not Christmas without the annunciation of the angelic host to the shepherd boys singing, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.”

The Epiphany story of the Magi coming from Mark’s gospel is also one of the great narratives of scripture. The Wise Men came guided by the star in the east. They came to worship the Lord. They didn’t quite know where they were going so they violated “guy code” and stopped to ask for directions. Then again King Herod didn’t know either, so he consulted his people and got them the directions.

There is something startling about these stories. I mentioned this about the shepherds, but I missed this point about the Magi—neither of these parties was particularly welcome in the world of the babe who is Jesus of Nazareth.

The shepherd boys were all but expendable. They were supposed to stand in the gateway of the sheep pens to fend off predators. If the wolf or the lion got to the boy it was a shame, it they got to the sheep it was worse. They were dirty little boys. They were the bottom of the society’s structure. They were the least in the community.

At least the shepherd boys were a part of the community, the Magi didn’t have that. They were gentiles. You know, the folks Paul called “the pagans who were led astray to mute idols.” This sentence, this fact, this truth didn’t even cross my mind until a pastor friend from St. Mark’s United Methodist here in Marshall shared those very words with me. The Magi were gentiles. So as far as social standing goes, as low as the boys were in the social structure, at least they were in the social structure. These Magi, these wise men, these unclean foreigners who came to worship the King of the Jews were not just outsiders; they were the representatives of the ultimate outsiders.

Whether by the angelic host or the star in the skies, it is the outsiders who receive the revelation that God is doing something new. It is the least amongst the people of the world, the children and the gentiles, who respond when the call is made. It is the outsiders who come to worship Jesus. It is those who receive the call, respond to the call and worship him that Jesus welcomes.

The events of our gospel reading happen on the third day, or as we would call it, about thirty years after Epiphany. Everybody is heading to a wedding in Cana. Jesus was invited and so were his disciples. Jesus’ mother was there too.

Weddings, the industry behind weddings is huge. I don’t know about you, but my in my family we planned our own weddings, all eleven of them. Marie did most (alright, all) of the planning for our wedding. There hasn’t been a wedding here in the past two years that has used a wedding planner either. They have all been wonderful and glorious too. They’ve been about God and the couple and the covenant of marriage, not the spectacle of the wedding.

Then we end up seeing the festivals and fiascoes of weddings on television. I like to watch those shows from time to time just to say “there but for the grace of God…” They focus on the circus that is the event, not on the true focus of the marriage celebration. Then again, there are real crime shows for some of these marriages. The sixty-five year marriage is only celebrated on TV by Willard Scott and Smucker’s Jams on The Today Show.

Weddings in these ancient of days were spectacular events! They were glorious celebrations with a holy ceremony as the focus. And as with many weddings in our time, the party that followed was generally more memorable than the ceremony itself. In that way, they aren’t so different from our weddings. There was one thing that was different, in Jesus’ day; if you ran out of food and wine at your wedding is was a sign that you did not know how to take care of your family, your friends, and your community.

In our time, it would be like getting drunk at the company picnic and making a pass at the boss’ wife, daughter, son or worse-a combination. It’s a sign that you don’t know how to take care of your business. You wouldn’t be able to be trusted at work anymore. Any hope of promotion is completely out the window. You’re the shame of the company and a laughingstock in the community.

The only real difference is back in the day you didn’t have enough where today it’s about having too much. The effects are the same though, you’re shunned by the people you need and care about the most.

Everybody knew this back in the day, so when Jesus’ mother discovered the wedding party was out of wine she knew there was trouble in River City. She called her son and told him what was happening and Jesus didn’t need etiquette classes to know what this meant. Still, it wasn’t his moment to shine and with all due respect told her so. Yet Mary was confident Jesus would do something so she told the servants to follow his lead.

This is when the miracle story springs to life. Jesus has the servants bring the jugs used to hold water for the family’s ritual cleansing. He told them to fill them with water so they filled them to the brim. He told them to take some to the banquet master and again they did as they were told. And when the banquet master tasted the wine, his reaction was a rave. Wine Spectator magazine would have given it a 101. It was so good the banquet master either complemented or complained that the host held out on the good wine serving it when nobody could appreciate it.

Now let’s look at the facts. The banquet master didn’t know where the wine came from. Scripture tells us that. If the banquet master didn’t know the groom sure didn’t know, he hired the banquet master to take care of that. The guests sure didn’t know; they were just glad to sample the best, the finest wine. So who knew? The house slaves knew.

It was the house slaves who drew water. It was the house slaves who drew wine. It was the house slaves who knew that everything that happened in between had nothing to do with them. They were the only ones who knew the source of the miracle. The fullest revelation of the miracle was made not to the groom, not to the banquet master, not even to Mary. The fullest revelation of the miracle of changing water to wine was made to the weak and powerless house servants.

On Christmas Eve during the children’s time I said,

Another sign that he loves children is that as soon as he was born, the angels went and told the shepherd boys. The angel didn’t tell the President, or Caesar the Ruler of Rome. The angel didn’t tell the leaders of the temple or the Session of the church. The angel didn’t go to anyone who most people would think is important, he went to the children.

On Epiphany I could have said something similar. Instead of saying “the angels went and told the shepherd boys” I would have said, “only the Wise Men responded to the sign in the skies.” Other than that it’s the same point. Today I make that point again.

During the wedding in Cana Jesus himself made it clear to the servants that he was doing something new in the world. He didn’t tell the President, or Caesar. He didn’t tell the leaders of the temple or the Session of the church. He didn’t tell the groom or the banquet master or even his mother. He didn’t go to anyone who most people would think is important.

With what is tantamount to a wink and a nod he tells the slaves, the lowest, that something new is happening. It’s the lowest of the household who know God is doing something new.

There’s one more thing that’s important about these three bible stories; there is in each of these stories someone with greater church status in the neighborhood when these events happen. The people who were supposed to be getting the message either didn’t get the message or the message they got was lost in the mail.

We don’t know if the angels made their call to others before the shepherd boys answered. Scripture doesn’t say who didn’t answer the call, it only says who did. As for Epiphany and the Wise Men, guided by the most unusual star in the heavens, only these magi decided to follow. Thousands of thousands of other folks would have seen it and said, “Golly, that’s different” but only one group of folks decided to see what it was all about.

Even Herod’s advisors who knew the scripture thought nothing of it. They knew what it was all about, they even told Herod, but they didn’t respond to the Word of the prophets they had just read.

Today, Jesus isn’t volunteering any information, but nobody asks either. The groom doesn’t ask the banquet master where he got the wine and he doesn’t ask the slaves. Did Jesus have to close their inquisitive minds miraculously or did he just figure their minds would close on their own? Who ever looks a gift horse in the mouth? Well, if these guys had then they would have seen something new and different and the one who makes it new and different. Then again, it wasn’t his time yet, so for Jesus this was just as well.

I titled this gospel interpretation “The Scandal of the Gospel.” There are several scandals happening that we need to be aware. The first is that Jesus makes his appearances to the poor and oppressed. We have three examples of this truth in scripture since Christmas Eve. Jesus appeared to the weak and poor and the humiliated. Slaves and boys and gentiles meet the Lord. Jesus shows himself to the people who need the Lord the most.

This first truth lines us up for the second even harder truth, often people who are supposed to see Jesus first don’t. It may be for any number of a million reasons, but here is the best: The people who are doing just fine have often quit looking for Jesus. It’s human nature that when things are going good we quit looking. People begin to think they can do it on their own.

Some people quit looking for God because they’re doing fine on their own. Isaiah knows and understands this. He also warns us in 30:1,

Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help,

who rely on horses,

who trust in the multitude of their chariots

and in the great strength of their horsemen,

but do not look to the Holy One of Israel,

or seek help from the Lord.

Woe to those who rely on themselves and their stuff. Instead we are called to respond to the Lord our God, and when we do we will see the first verse from our Old Testament reading:

For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,

for Jerusalem’s sake I will not remain quiet,

till her vindication shines out like the dawn,

her salvation like a blazing torch.

Only when we rely on God for our vindication, only when for the world’s sake we cry out to the Lord, only when we do these things will our salvation burn like the dawn, like a blazing torch.

Still, there is one more scandal we need to remember; a scandal so ripe that it was the greatest controversy of the ancient church. Jesus came, fully human and fully divine-these qualities distinct yet inseparable from one another-he came to show us the way. It is up to us to know just how poor we are. Only then might we stop relying on ourselves and rely on the Lord our God. It’s not our boot straps; it’s the thong of the sandal we are not worthy to untie. Now that’s a scandal.

Marriage Covenant

This homily was heard at the wedding of Jerry and Lea Satterwhite on Saturday June 18, 2011 at the First Presbyterian Church in Marshall, Texas.

1Corinthians 12:27-13:13

There was a movie some years ago where one of the characters was talking to a computer program. The program spoke to the man about love. The man began to say that he had never heard a program speak of love. He wanted to ask “How can you know love?” Instead he says “It’s a human emotion.” The program answers, “No, it is a word. What matters is the connection the word implies.”[1]

This reading from 1Corinthians is probably the most common piece of scripture read at weddings in America. No doubt, there are hundreds of thousands of people hearing and reflecting on these words right now, that’s a powerful amount of attention paid to Christian love.

That’s what Paul was talking about, Christian love not romantic love. This is why as well as we know these words, we often don’t consider them in context. Paul is not telling the Corinthians how to live as husband and wife, but as the body of Christ.

He begins, “Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.” He continues that God has appointed specific people to specific roles in the church. God appoints apostles, prophets, teachers, miracle workers, healers, deacons, leaders, and communicators. No one person is called to do all of the work of the church; that would be impossible. He then tells us to strive for the greater gifts and shows us how they are to be used in a most excellent way.

Paul tells us that the mightiest of us all, those given the most powerful gifts are nothing if the gift is used without love. Without love, nothing we do is worthwhile. Without love, screaming the Good News from the mountain tops is nothing but noise. If we are able to do everything but do it without love, we’ve done nothing at all. If we give everything without giving love, we have given nothing.

This describes how Christ loves the church and how he wants us to love him. Of course, in Paul’s letter to the Ephesians he reminds husbands to love their wives just as Christ loved the church; giving yourself up for her. So maybe it’s not far-fetched to read this at a wedding.

There’s a word I have used several times and will use several times more, covenant. Covenant is a distinctive word of faith. In scripture covenant takes the form of God making promises to his people. In Genesis God promised Noah never again to curse the ground nor to destroy every living creature. God promised Abraham would become a great nation.  In Hebrews it is revealed Jesus is the mediator of a better covenant.

The special element to biblical covenant is that these are not contracts. Contracts are between two parties who give up something to receive something else. A covenant is a promise made one to another; a promise made without condition. Today you do not make a contract with each other. Today you each make a covenant, one to the other.

Today you give yourself one to another. Today you give yourself one to another for the sake of something better. Today you give yourself to one another to become one family. This is only possible by love; love that is patient and kind, love that is not envious or boastful, love that is neither arrogant nor rude. Love that does not insist on its own way; isn’t irritable or resentful. Love that does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things.

Above all, love never ends. Yes all things of this earth end, but that’s because what we know we only know in part; like a mirror dimly. This is why God gives us family. This is why God gives us the church; the church that has made a covenant with you, giving you our blessing as the assembled body of Christ and promising to uphold you and your family. We take this covenant very seriously. (Amen?)

We receive so that we may have a glimpse into God’s unending, overflowing love.

Love is a word, this is true. Love is a human emotion, but in the hands of God it is far more. The joy and the glory of love is the connection, the relationships that spring from God’s love. Love is a way of life that in its fullest never fails. Love is more than a word or an emotion. Love is why God sent his Son, to redeem us with love that never fails.

It is from the past work of God that we have faith. And it is in assurance in things to come that we have hope. But it is in God’s work here and now that we have love. And as Paul writes, now faith, hope, and love exist side by side, these three. And the greatest of these is love.

May the love of God bless you and your family.

Amen.

---

[1] “The Matrix Revolutions” http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0242653/quotes, retrieved June 18, 2011.

As a Matter of Fact...

This sermon was heard at the First Presbyterian Church in Berryville, Arkansas on Sunday January 24, 2010, the 3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time.

Nehemiah 8:1-3, 5-6, 8-10
Psalm 19
1 Corinthians 12:12-31a
Luke 4:14-21

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to you, O Lord, our rock and our redeemer. Amen.

Last week we read from the Gospel of John, the wedding at Cana; the wonderful and glorious story of Jesus’ first public miracle. From this act we get the expression “turning water into wine,” a phrase we use to show the transformation of something common into something extraordinary, something holy. By this miracle, may we never think of the ordinary as ordinary ever again, in God’s capable hands all things, especially the most common, are holy.

Today, we read Luke’s version of the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry. Jesus returns from the desert where he was tempted by the devil. The temptations he is offered come in the form of taking the easy way out. Jesus is offered sustenance, power, and protection if he just does as the devil tempts. Resisting these temptations, the devil retreats until what Luke calls, “an opportune time.”

So Jesus returns to Galilee where his teaching was praised by everyone. Now let’s remember that Jesus had just spent forty days in the desert. Unless the Holy Spirit gave Jesus a spa day as a reward for resisting temptation, when Jesus came into Galilee, he looked like a man who had just spent forty days in the wilderness.

He would have been sunburned and windblown. His face would be peeling from the blisters of the exposure he received and his hair would have been flying wildly from his head, his beard shaggy even by first century standards. His clothes and sandals would have had enough sand whipped through them that when he walked he would look like Pigpen from the “Peanuts” comics. Shaking out his cloak, he could generate his own dust storm.

So looking maniacal, this wild man, looking like he was wearing the “John the Baptist” Halloween costume; he came to Galilee filled with the power of the Spirit where his teaching was praised by everyone. I imagine the look brought people to the synagogue the first time to hear him speak, but it was what he taught that kept them coming back.

So Jesus returns home for the first time since his baptism and his time in the desert. He returns for the first time since he began this chapter of his teaching ministry. I say “this chapter” because as we noted a couple of weeks ago, at the age of twelve Jesus amazed all who heard him at the temple, his Father’s house, with his understanding and his answers. This may not be his first rodeo, but it is the first at his hometown synagogue since his baptism.

As with our service today, the ancient synagogue service had its own particular liturgy. There is an order of service not unlike the one we follow today. In the day, it was not uncommon for the leader of the synagogue to ask or appoint readers and teachers before the service began. Jesus, the one whose teachings are praised by everyone, is invited to read by the head of the synagogue. So he stands up and this is what he reads:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.”

Then he sits, as is the tradition of the teacher in the synagogue, and he says, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” Jesus reads one of the prophecies from the book of Isaiah which announces the Messiah, the Anointed. Using the word which comes to us through the Greeks, this is how Isaiah introduces the Christ. Luke, using these very words, formally introduces Jesus and his ministry to the world.

Imagine what’s going to happen next in Luke’s gospel. On TV they call this a cliff-hanger and like on TV, we’ll see how the synagogue responds to Jesus’ words next week.

I want to add a historical comment here. Scholars debate about whether or not in this time there were scheduled readings for a particular day’s service, what we call a lectionary. I mention this boring little fact because of the question it raises about the reading selection. When Jesus came forward to read, one of two things happened, either he specifically asked for the Isaiah scroll to read this very piece, or this scroll was already prepared for the reader before worship began.

I side with the scholars who believe this was a lectionary reading, a reading planned by the ruler of the synagogue or chosen by the scribes in the temple. Not so much because of the quality of scholarship or the arguments of professors and theologians and folks with an alphabet soup following their names; M.Div., D.Min., Ph.D., ASPCA, MOUSE, you get the idea. No, I like it because of what it says about Jesus.

What draws me to this conclusion is that if Jesus specifically chose the reading of this piece, it would mean that it was his intention to drop a bomb on those who came to listen. At this moment in his ministry, I just don’t see Jesus as being so brazen as to draw attention to himself this way. Jesus never seemed like the “Hey, look at me” kid on the playground hanging upside down from the swing set.

Yet I do believe that if handed the scripture to be read, and being called upon to interpret it, he would share the Good News with the people of Nazareth. After being given this to read, I do believe Jesus would say to the world, “As a matter of fact, yes, this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.

This is the Messiah, the Christ sharing the Good News with the people of Nazareth and with all creation. Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing. In this place, in this time, the Spirit of the Lord is upon me to bring good news to the poor. Jesus has been sent to proclaim release to the captives. Don’t you just know Jesus was talking about more captivity than just county jail? Don’t we know he was talking about physical and personal prisons when he talked about recovery of sight to the blind and letting the oppressed go free?

This is how Jesus presents himself to the world, proclaiming the year of the Lord’s favor, as the embodiment of the Lord’s favor.

On December third of last year, Carolyn Gains left this earth. Just a few days earlier, both Marie’s—Bolerjack and Andresen—and I went to the nursing home to see her. We had just finished our prayer group meeting and we went for a chat. There was her many pictures. There were cards and a poinsettia. Her life surrounded her in that little cube, a room she truly did not like. As homey as a nursing home could be, it was. But it wasn’t home, not by a long shot.

We all knew Carolyn loved to sing. She loved to study. She led worship here often. Carolyn served as an Elder on the Session of this church. She laughed. She loved. And her body failed her every step of the way.

I am not going to say that her passing was a good thing. Those words are just too brutal and tactless for my tastes. I will say that it is a joy that she is now with her heavenly Father. The pain that she experienced because her joints had failed her for so long has now ended. She has been released from that captivity. She now is dancing in heaven, her heavenly body joining her heavenly voice singing of the new day of the Lord for the glory of God.

The day before yesterday we came to know another loss; the loss of a wife, a mother, a mother-in-law, a grandmother, a surrogate mother and a wonderful friend to many. We lost an Elder, regular member of the nominating committee, and a saint of the Church. I heard of Marie Bolerjack’s death at about 10:30 Friday morning. Getting ready to head to Fayetteville, I stopped by the office and that was where I got Pam’s message. For me, time stood still. Pam told me that she told my Marie, so I knew that I had to get home and be with her.

And my grief next that of the Bolerjack family pales.

Today, I know I need to say something about Marie, but finding what to say and how to say it is difficult. Her importance to her family and to this community, to this part of the Body of Christ will not fade for a long, long time. As we celebrate her life, and her love for all creatures great and small, if I were to say that “God needed another angel so He called Marie home,” if I were to say that I would expect a slap to the face, a hard punch to the stomach, and a kick in the shins. We are richer for her presence in our lives, not for the loss.

So we ask ourselves what Jesus means when he tells us here today that he brings good news to the poor, because today we are poorer. Today our hearts are bound by sorrow that cries for release. Marie’s joyful life was filled with love of her family and friends; for her church and especially for her Lord. To Marie, the Good News of Jesus Christ was, is, and always will be real and vibrant.

Friends, here’s the Good News of Jesus Christ; the Good News brought to us, the release that comes from the Lord, the healing of our eyes so that God may be seen, the oppression that is conquered so that freedom can be lived in God’s sight; this promise, this freedom, this year of the Lord’s favor is upon us.

Our reading from Corinthians reminds us that when one member suffers, all suffer together; when one member is honored all rejoice together. Wonderfully, gloriously, Marie Bolerjack lived the glory of new life in Jesus Christ every day. She reveled in her Lord and Savior. I can think of nobody who displayed the grace of the Almighty like she did. She knew no stranger; she shared life in Christ with all creation.

Marie lived a life of grace, peace, and joy in the Lord. Our sadness, our mourning is real. Attempts to mask our sadness are a disguise. Still, the Spirit of the Lord is upon Jesus, he has been anointed so that we, we who love Marie, so that we may be set free from our sadness and released into the Lord’s favor. As in our reading from Nehemiah, the joy of the Lord is the source of our strength. It is by this strength that our grief is removed.

Remembering Carolyn and Marie, remembering these wonderful women, these saints of the church; we are reminded that the glory of the Good News is that as we mourn and as we celebrate the lives of these wonderful women, we are called to share in the Good News of Jesus Christ. It is by his stripes, by the truth that he shared that day at the synagogue in Nazareth, that we will be healed.

We will be set free from all sorrow. From all chains, we will be unbound. In all joy, we will come together and celebrate the saints who have gone before us and await both the presence and the coming of the year of the Lord’s favor. It is by our sorrow and by our joy in the Lord Jesus Christ that we are transformed, like the water into wine, into the children God wants us to be. In this passage Jesus described to the people of Nazareth how he has come to them. And as a matter of fact, by the power of the Holy Spirit this scripture continues to be fulfilled on our hearing.

Wedding Presence

This sermon was heard at the First Presbyterian Church in Berryville, Arkansas on Sunday January 17, 2010, the 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time.

Isaiah 62:1-5
Psalm 36:5-10
1 Corinthians 12:1-11
John 2:1-11

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to you, O Lord, our rock and our redeemer. Amen.

It was nearly fourteen years ago, but I can still remember Marie and me planning our wedding. I proposed on November 30th at the First Presbyterian Church in Lamar, Colorado after decorating the church for Advent. One of the things we decided to do that Christmas was to go and visit both of our families. We knew it would be a fiasco, er… adventure, and if we did it once we figured we would never have to do it again. So we went.

Working at the college, I had some time off, but Marie’s job at the travel agency put us on a tight schedule. We left her apartment in Colorado Springs heading toward central Missouri after lunch on Christmas Eve. Getting on the road, Marie smiled at me and brought out her wedding planner book and said, “I’ve got you where I want you!” and we started making wedding plans.

Of course among our plans were the plans for the wedding reception, a wonderful luncheon affair. Marie and I planned carefully. We made sure to take nut allergies into account. We went with beef, chicken, and vegetarian options for the main course and as a former bar manager, I made sure there was enough wine and beer to go around. It’s a dirty job, but hey …

In this way there is very little difference between our wedding and the wedding in Cana. Family came and celebrated. To make sure the guests were taken care of, there was a steward. Jesus even showed up for both weddings, thanks be to God. The biggest difference? The biggest difference is that in the ancient Middle East the wedding reception could go on for days and days long into the nights. Our reception ended by the time the daily 3:30 thundershower paid its scheduled visit to Colorado Springs.

So while the hospitality responsibilities were similar, in the ancient of days the bridegroom’s responsibility was far more extensive than ours. Further, the expectations of his hospitality were far greater too. The offering and accepting of the invitation to the wedding was more than an invitation to a celebration. The marriage celebration contained an implicit social contract as well.

The prospect of offering hospitality to a guest, traveler, or sojourner often formed long term reciprocal relationships. One of the most ancient scriptural examples of this is from Genesis where Abraham welcomes the three travelers and demands they stay for a meal. In return, one of the men blessed Abraham, promising that when he passed by in the next year they would have a son. Of course Abraham was described as old and Sarah as well beyond child bearing age; so this promise to the childless couple brought with it miraculous implications; implications that were fulfilled with the birth of Isaac.

So when we read about the end of the wine at the wedding in Cana, we aren’t reading about a gaffe, a social blunder that the society page of the paper will pooh-pooh in next Saturday’s edition. We read of a major breech of cultural and social taboos that will endanger the new couple’s status in the community for a long time to come. After failing with your marriage ceremony, it will be a long, long time before your neighbors will trust you with any important community responsibility.

We know the rest of the story. Jesus argues with his mom that it isn’t his responsibility to go to the liquor store and get more wine. He even barks at his mother when she suggests it. “Woman, what concern is that to you and me?” He does give his reason though, “My hour has not yet come.” Jesus doesn’t seem so concerned because it’s not his time yet, and he’s right of course. We’ll come to his time in a few weeks on Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Sunday. So really, it isn’t his time yet. But it is the meantime, and what should he do in the meantime?

Well, what ever he does, his mother has prepared the waiters to follow his lead.

When he does act, it is not just to do enough, Jesus goes the extra mile. He doesn’t create a bunch of box wine for the wedding party, his gift to the happy couple and to all creation is the best wine ever.

Giving good gifts is important, and it is important for us that the Lord God is the giver of the greatest gifts. The Lord has given us his Son, Jesus Christ. It is the relationship between our heavenly Father and the Son which we receive. We also receive the relationship between the fully human and fully divine Jesus who is the Messiah. And the Holy Spirit comes from them.

In the Holy Trinity and in their eternal dance we are received into their relationship. We see the union between father and son. We see the union between humanity and divinity within one individual and between God and humanity. We see the union between the three who are not just three individuals but are one God revealed three distinct and inseparable ways. In God and in God’s relationship with us, we become a part of the dance. By God’s grace through faith, we receive this, the greatest gift of all.

This gift is followed by more gifts, the gifts of the Spirit mentioned here in 1Corinthians. And while there are many gifts, there is only one who gives them. There are many different types of service, but only one Lord. There are many different types of activities, but only one God who activates them. According to scripture, each of us is gifted, but there is only one who gives such wondrous gifts.

Yet the gifts God gives are not only the charismatic signs; the gift is in the work done with the gift as well. We are joined to God in three persons for more than just the joy of being connected to God. This joining is glorious, but it’s not all. Our Prayer of Illumination this morning helps show us what this connection means to us individually and as the church of Christ:

Your Son turned water into wine,
delighting all who were there.
Transforming our hearts by your Spirit
that we may use our varied gifts
to show forth the light of your love
as one body in Christ.

We are joined in union with the Lord not just for our piety; we are joined to be God’s instruments in the redemption of all creation. We are to be transformed by the Spirit not just to accept God’s good gifts, but to benefit all God has created and continues to create. We are to shine God’s love not just as a million points of light, but as the one body in Christ.

Using the marriage passage from our Isaiah reading, scholars point to the union between the bride and groom in this passage as a model for the way we are to respond in union with God. Marriage is the model of the re-ordering of humanity into its original state, the state known before the fall. This coupling between bride and groom represents the relationship between the Heavenly Father and the Holy Son, between the two natures of Christ, between the three persons of the Trinity, and between God and us. It is this coupling; it is all of these couplings that Jesus celebrates in Cana with the greatest vintage known.

It’s also kind of cool that there is a “Lone Ranger/Who was that masked man?” quality to the whole thing. No one knew where the wine came from; the steward complements the bridegroom on bringing out such great wine. But, the steward may also be wondering if the bridegroom isn’t casting pearls before drunks. Why wait so long to bring out the good stuff?

Why wait indeed? This is the first of his signs in Cana. You gotta start somewhere.

You gotta start somewhere.

God chose humanity long ago and continues to choose us today. This is where God starts and has always started. As foreboding as this sounds, here’s the good news, all are gifted. Paul was writing to the church when he said each is gifted. He did not say the pastor is gifted. He did not say the Elders are gifted. He said each is gifted as the Spirit chooses. And the gifts are given to the church for the common good. The Spiritual gifts are given this way; the Spirit gives the church the necessary gifts and they are given for an intended purpose. If misused, they are not effective, but when God gives a gift and it is used as God wills, the gift is perfect.

The Spirit then makes people capable of using the gift putting us in places to use the gifts. Not only are all gifted, but the Spirit prepares us, enables us to use those gifts. If this seems difficult, don’t worry. If Jesus can change water to wine, imagine what he can do with us.

In this part of the body of Christ, I see people pray, and sing, and play. I have seen people serving at times of joy and times of grief. I have seen people act with great compassion, and most of the time this isn’t done by active session members, it is done by members acting with might exercising the gifts of the spirit to fortify the church and to glorify God. The gifts are given to the entire church for the world by God for God’s glory.

This is not unlike the servants at the banquet. While their roles seem quite limited, they were in direct service to Jesus, delivering the fruit of his first public miracle. Imagine the banquet master: Not only did he announce the miracle; he announced it to the groom with joy and bravado. But he makes the announcement with qualification; the gift will not be fully appreciated by those who receive it. This reigns true for us today. We receive gifts that we don’t expect or don’t recognize—and we aren’t fully aware of what they are, or their value, or what to do with them. But Jesus accounts for this. He knew the wine would be perfect and he knew it would not be properly appreciated. And he gave, Jesus gave.

It reassures me that Jesus seemed reluctant to exercise his power. When his mother tells him there is no more wine, he asks, “What’s that to you and to me?” Then he tells his mother that it’s not his time, not yet. Yet his mother persists, telling the servers to do whatever Jesus tells them to do. Then he exercises the power and miracles happen.

When we use the gifts of the Holy Spirit, we are able to do so much more than we can without these gifts. We can do miracles. They may not even be noticed. They certainly may not be appreciated on earth, but when they are exercised, miracles happen for the glory of God, not just by the ordained, but from all members of the church. Not just for the church, but for all of creation.

Just as the banquet master proclaimed this wine to be the best, we must glorify the name of the one who provides the wine, and all that the wine represents. The gifts are important, what we do with them is also important, and thanking the one who gives them is vital.

The Church Emerges

This sermon was heard at the First Presbyterian Church in Berryville, Arkansas on May 11, 2008, Pentecost Sunday.

Acts 2:1-21
Psalm 104:24-34, 35b
1Corinthians 12:3b-13
John 7:37-39

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to you, O Lord, our rock and our redeemer. Amen

Since Easter, we have been on a journey exploring the ancient church during the time of the crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension. Today, that journey brings us to the starting point of what we know as the church; the presence, the coming of the Holy Spirit, the Pentecost.

Our reading from John begins as Jesus cries out, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink.”

Our reading from Acts has a prophecy from the book of Joel, “God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh.”

The Lord promises to pour out the Spirit on all flesh and Jesus cries out for those who believe to come to him. John’s gospel promises the coming of the Holy Spirit, Acts describes the Spirit’s coming.

The Spirit has come, the church is born. From these beginnings, the church emerges. And as it emerges, it does with authority granted by the Lord and empowered by the Holy Spirit. And for the past seven weeks, we have gotten a scriptural image of what the church is, what it should be, and what it can be.

Our readings have pointed us toward a community rooted in the resurrected Christ; the messiah who bore the wounds of pain and death for us; the Shepherd who knows and protects his sheep. The sheep, knowing the Shepherd’s voice, called to come together as a community sharing fellowship, a common meal, and prayer as the family of God.

We are the people who are given a new message of new life, a life that begins with the gift of free grace offered long before the beginning. We are the people called to respond to this glorious gift in faith shown in repentance and baptism.

We are called to worship the Jesus who died and rose and lives today who is the Lord of life, not of death. The Lord who created us, loving us freely, wants us to respond in love, not out of obligation. Since there is no way we can repay the Lord, one of the ways we love God is by loving one another.

Most importantly perhaps, we, as the people of the resurrected Lord have been told to go, see, and tell. We are to share the person and in the work of Jesus Christ our Lord.

In Acts, Luke writes of the coming of the Spirit as a heavenly sound, like the rush of a violent wind. The concept of a heavenly wind isn’t unusual to the Jewish reader; this phrase is found in other places in scripture noting the arrival of the Spirit of God. So when the Spirit comes, it comes with the same power it came with in Genesis when the wind blew across the waters when the Earth was a formless void.

If as one of the three persons of God, the Spirit blows beginning the process of creation, giving the gift of tongues must be a snap.

In Acts the people ask the question, “How is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language?” People today still ask this question, “How does the gift of tongues work?” In our reading from Acts, this question is never answered.

When the question, “What does this mean?” is asked, this question is answered. Peter speaks telling the assembly “Let this be known to you, listen to what I say.” Peter tells the assembly that how the Lord speaks to them through the power of the Holy Spirit is not nearly as important as the message itself.

The message is simply this, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” This is the message of the Pentecost. This is the message we are given the power and authority to take into the world, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

So on this, the birthday of the church, what does this message mean to us? What does it mean to us as individuals? What does it mean to us as the body of Christ?

Above all, it means that we have been given the power to do as the disciples did two thousand years ago, we are to share the good news that “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” And we have been given the power to do this so that all may understand.

What you don’t know, but I’m about to tell you, is that when I got to this point in the sermon, I had no idea where to go from here. I was looking for some grand words, a wonderful gesture, a stunning illustration; and it just wasn’t there, and I spent days looking.

Oh, don’t get me wrong, I had plenty of words. But of those that made sense, many of them were accusatory without being convicting. I was doing some good blaming, but there was nothing constructive. I was deeply theological, but not terribly practical. Good stuff, but frankly, other than a few professors and maybe a journal editor, who cares about my deep theological epiphanies? But for the love of God and all that’s holy the words I had written just sounded preachy… to me! I couldn’t imagine any of those words were pointing to Christ and moving us toward to the kingdom of heaven.

So, I punted. There were some things I needed to do in the office this morning, so I went to McDonalds and got some coffee and came in to do some worship chores. I changed the paraments to the proper liturgical color, changed the outdoor sign, stuff like that.

As I was putting up the “Happy Mother’s Day” sign, one of the women who worked in the county dispatch office across the street came to work. She looked over at me and said, “So you’re the one who changes the sign!” I replied “Yes I am.” (This wasn’t the time for the Bill Engvall “Here’s Your Sign” snappy comeback.)

She reminded me of a couple of months ago when the sign said, “Ashley, We’re Praying for You.” Of course, we were praying for Ashley here in church. But she told me that they appreciated it because there were two women in the dispatch office named Ashley and they appreciated that someone was praying for them.

This wasn’t the first time that happened because of that sign. While the sign was up, a woman asked me the last name of the Ashley we were praying for. I told her that she was a member of this congregation and that I would keep her last name in confidence. So she asked me if we were praying for Ashley So-and-so and I said no. But then I said that in a way, we were praying for her if she believed we were. The Lord does things with words and prayers that I cannot control.

One little sign, in one little sign four women were blessed and bathed in prayer that I know of! Through that one little sign, one tiny prayer, the Good News of life eternal was being shared in ways I never imagined. My intent was for only one of them, but the Holy Spirit would not be constrained to my little corner of the world or by my intent. The Spirit blows as the Spirit will and we must be ready for where that Spirit takes us.

In my study there is a small picture of the Isenheim Altarpiece in Colmar, Alsace titled “John the Baptist.” by Matthias Grünewald. Karl Barth used this image to inspire him and to serve as one of the goals of his preaching.[1] The central image of this altar piece is Christ on the cross. To his left is John the Baptist in camel hair holding holy writ and pointing to Christ. Barth believed that all good preaching was holding holy writ and pointing to Christ crucified.

This is the message we take into the world. We take Christ crucified into the world. We are to use the power of the Holy Spirit, given to the church on Pentecost so long ago, and use it to point to Jesus who lived and died and conquered death so that we may live. And the Spirit gives us the power to do just that. And by the variety of gifts given for the common good—the good of the church; whether by wisdom or knowledge, by faith or healing or miracles, by prophecy or discernment, by tongues or interpretation of tongues; we are able to take the word into the world saying, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” By this, the church emerges.

[1] Willimon, William, Conversations with Barth on Preaching. Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 2006, page 6.

Job Description

This sermon was first delivered at the First Presbyterian Church in Berryville, Arkansas on January 19, 2007.

Nehemiah 8:1-3, 5-6, 8-10
Psalm 19
1 Corinthians 12:12-31a
Luke 4:14-21

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to you, O Lord, our rock and our redeemer. Amen.

When I began to consider this piece of the Gospel, I was overwhelmed. There is so much stuff in this reading that I had no real idea what needed to be said. If you look in your bible, the heading over this section is often called something like “Jesus Rejected at Nazareth,” and as you can well see, there was no rejection in this section of our reading. When I began looking at this passage, I was thinking of history. I was thinking of the other passages we read today. I was thinking of the Isaiah passages Jesus refers to in verses 18 and 19. I was thinking of the passages we’ll read next week. I was stumped!

So as we begin today, I need to thank the “Listening for God” group that met last Wednesday night. For those of you who are curious about what we do on Wednesday nights, we sit together, read the Gospel reading for the coming Sunday, discuss it, and then we pray.

We begin with a prayer of illumination—just like we do on Sunday before reading scripture. We read the Gospel passage and then we mention words and phrases that catch our attention. After reading the Gospel passage again, we discuss the passage more deeply and broadly, often focusing on the words that caught our attention in the first reading. Then we read the Gospel for a third time and discuss how it is calling us to respond in the coming week. If you ever have the inkling to join us, it is really a lot of fun and we find some very interesting insights about scripture.

As we were discussing this passage, one of the group members took a look at verses 18 and 19 and said, “It's a job description.” Well, I had never thought of it that way and I don't mind saying I was intrigued. Honestly, I missed this tree because I was too busy looking at the forest. As Jesus is reading this passage, the assembly is hearing Jesus read from the prophet Isaiah. Jesus reads the prophet Isaiah like he is reading a job description to the assembly. It’s like he is reading his job description.

There are several parts of this job description.[1]

The first part is that Spirit is manifest in ministry. In the time of our Lord, they thought there to be two different and very specific states of existence, the flesh and the spirit.[2] The fleshly existence is more solid and the spiritual more fluid. The definition of the spirit is imprecise, as would be the definition of any fluid entity—especially one that is not of our world. So the Spirit is able to fill our solid flesh with its nourishing power. With this filling comes the power and the joy and the glory of the Holy Spirit.

The second part is anointing. To anoint someone is to set them apart for special service under divine direction.[3] We anoint the ill for healing. We anoint the baptized setting them apart. We pray for the anointing of the Spirit, especially for the officers of the church, particularly in our case the elders. Sometimes we anoint with oil. More often we lay hands as a symbol of the anointing of the community.

We have other words that mean something similar. Another word we use to say something is set apart for service to the Lord is to make something holy. It is also said when something is made holy it is sanctified. These lofty words and concepts mean one thing—anointing, making something or someone holy, and sanctifying are means of setting something aside for service under divine direction. And by this divine direction, it is above all that God anoints us through the power of the Spirit to do the work appointed to the body of Christ.

The third part is proclaiming the word of God to the marginalized. Here in Berryville, we are familiar with the Greek word that means “I proclaim.” Do you know what it is? It’s kerusso, the same as the t-shirt company.[4] When Marie and I came to town the first time, I loved the name of the company, because I love the power of this verb. One of the most important features of kerusso is that the content of the proclamation takes authority over the one making the proclamation. And the proclamation Jesus makes is to those on the margins. So when we read of freedom for the prisoners, we read of a church prosecuted in the time of Luke. When we read of recovery of sight to the blind we read of those who are blinded like Paul, that they may regain their sight as he did in Acts. When we read about release to the oppressed, we read of those on the margins of society, those who are tread down by events and circumstances. These are the ones who are ill who need healing. These are the ones who are poor who need food. These are the able who need work. These are the people who are shattered by society yet today need to hear the good news.

This leads us to an unavoidable conclusion. The Gospel, the Good News of God demands a response. And I mean demands. Sometimes that demand is made in the weakest of whispers, a voice that can only be heard in our silent moments of prayer and contemplation. Sometimes the demand is made in a loud voice that insists on being heard.

Here’s an example, The Lord makes demands on from Moses from a bush which burns but is not consumed by fire. Moses is commanded to go to Pharaoh and bring the people of the Lord, Israel, out of Egypt.[5] The most ironic part of this example is that people often speak of wanting or seeking their own “burning bush” experience. But nobody ever talks about having their own “confront Pharaoh” experience. Often we get caught up in the mode of the message instead of the message itself. The bush which burns but is not consumed by fire is impressive, but it is not the most important link in the chain. We respond to the Lord, we do as we are required, but we should never hold the experience above the message.

Does anyone wonder or worry about their ability to hear and respond to the Gospel? In the words of scripture, I say “Fear not!” It is human nature to wonder if we will be able to accomplish what the Lord has set us to do. But it is just as important to remember that the Lord does not call the equipped, but instead equips the called. We have been selected and because of our selection we have been gifted. Some say, “I am not like the heroes of the faith or Billy Graham or any other of the great shepherds of the church.” And that is true, we are not, but this is not to our shame. And this does not let us off of the hook from our responsibilities.

Our reading from Corinthians reminds us that we are all parts of the body of Christ, the very same body as the heroes of the faith, Billy Graham, or other great shepherds of the church. And if we are weaker parts, we are just as indispensable as the major organs. Yes, we may not be the heart, or the lungs, but without the smallest bones in the ear, we will never hear the cries of the poor. Without the many tendons and muscles in the hand, we cannot do the work God demands.

And as we are all called to different ministries for the same body, we must remember that we are equipped as we are anointed—as we are set aside for ministry. God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers; then deeds of power, then gifts of healing, forms of assistance, forms of leadership, various kinds of tongues. No one is equipped to do all of these things, thanks be to God. But all of these gifts are given to the church for the work of the Lord.

While this pretty much takes care of Luke 4:18, there is one more thing we read in this passage that are important when the Spirit of the Lord comes.

When we read deeper in this section, we read that the gospel is not tied to one specific geographic location. By the time we read this piece of the Gospel, Jesus has all ready begun to make a name for himself in Judea proclaiming the good news of God. At a young age, he was the “boy-wonder” in the temple, impressing the old men with questions and wisdom beyond his years.[6] John the Baptist made a tremendous to-do about his coming and his place before Jesus was baptized.[7] And when he was baptized, the Spirit of God came upon him bodily like a dove and he heard “You are my son, the beloved. In you I am well pleased.”[8]

Jesus has made a reputation for himself in a relatively short time. To quote our reading, “He began to teach in their synagogues and was praised by everyone.” He was beginning to become established in ministry. He was coming to his old stomping grounds, his home town, and the folks at home were proud to see him again.

So Jesus was in his hometown of Nazareth and, as was his custom on the Sabbath, he went to the synagogue. In the synagogue, it was customary that the men of the synagogue would read the scripture and give an interpretation.[9] Since Jesus was the hometown boy done good, the Rabbi was more than happy to offer him this honor.

By the way, this sort of welcome is not unusual for a seminarian who preaches at the home church for the first time after a year or so at seminary. Often after the first year of seminary, the candidate for ministry comes home for an annual evaluation with the Session and then with the Presbytery’s Committee on Preparation for Ministry. This is a joyful time for the church and the seminarian. It’s a homecoming, often there is a celebration with luncheon and other events. Everybody asks how everything is going; this applies to the church and the seminarian. Everybody is catching up on time apart.

Often, the seminarian is invited to come and preach on the reading for the day. For some seminarians, it is a time to share their newly acquired heresies with the congregation. Whoops, did I say heresies? The seminarian is often exposed to many new ideas and concepts, some of which don’t always sit well with the folks at home. But at least there is precedent for this sort of behavior.

On Wednesday night, another of the “Listening for God” participants wondered how Jesus read the text from Isaiah. She asked us all to imagine Jesus reading from the Isaiah scroll with special emphasis on the first person pronouns, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me…” You get the idea. Imagine the response from the people in the pews: “Yeah, he’s the hometown boy, but isn’t he getting a little full of himself?”

So, then, after reading from the scroll, Jesus gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of the synagogue were fixed upon him. Then he began his interpretation of the text. He says to say to them, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” How does the hometown crowd respond to this?

You know, this is a story better left finished next week.

[1] This is not an original thought, but I am unable to find the source reference. The source split the description into four sections, I have chosen more segments
[2] Kittel, Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, vol. 2 page 540
[3] Bauer Danker Greek English Lexicon of the New Testament from BibleWorks
[4] The t-shirt company claims “kerusso” means “to proclaim” when it really means “I proclaim.”
[5] Exodus 3:10
[6] Luke 2:41-52
[7] Luke 3:1-21
[8] Luke 3:22
[9] Homiletics Magazine Online, http://homileticsholine.com/subscriber/pritner_friendly
_installment.asp?installment_id=2630. accessed January 9, 2007.

Gifts

This sermon was delivered on Sunday January 14, 2006 at the First Presbyterian Church in Berryville, Arkansas.

Isaiah 62:1-5
Psalm 36:5-10
1 Corinthians 12:1-11
John 2:1-11

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to you, O Lord, our rock and our redeemer. Amen.

Ten years ago, about nine months before Marie and I got married, we were invited to the wedding of our friends, Nicole Hernandez and Greg Young.[1] Nicole was the Director of Student Activities and Greg was the Head Basketball Coach at the community college where I worked in Colorado. Marie asked me to be sure to find out where they were registered so that we could get them something nice. So I went down to Nicole’s office and asked where she was registered. She was in a hurry to get to a meeting so she said, “Oh, don’t worry, we have what we want and need,” and she was off. Well, it’s just plain rude to go to a wedding empty handed, we had to get something.

I had an idea, so I checked with Marie and we decided to do something a little different. Instead of getting china, or a setting of the silver, or some serving bowl, we got them a Black and Decker VersaPak Drill. This was one of the first generation of cordless tools made for the home market. It had those removable rechargeable power cells that you could put into any number of different tools.

So imagine if you will… it’s a couple of weeks or so after the wedding, and Nicole and her sister and her mother and Greg were sitting around the house opening the presents. Greg was thrilled. For a guy, there was nothing like sitting around opening wedding presents because you never knew when you would get china, or a setting of the silver, or some serving bowl. Then Nicole opened the drill. She knew what it was, of course, but she was surprised. After all, it wasn't china, or a setting of the silver, or some serving bowl. Greg was overjoyed! Suddenly there was a gift for him! He could hardly wait for the batteries to charge so that he could begin to assemble the buffet cabinet. He was so happy, after a long afternoon of stuff for her; there was finally a gift for him.

Wedding gifts can be a tricky thing. I love a bride who registers and hope that there is still something left on the list by the time we get to the store. The custom of wedding presents was important during Jesus time, maybe even more important than it is today because of the hospitality codes. Jesus had begun his ministry and had just commissioned his disciples. When you get down to brass tacks, an itinerant preacher who has just begun his ministry and commissioned his disciples was probably quite poor. Not bringing a gift did not seem to bother Jesus, it sure bothered his mother. Social graces and hospitality are motherly things to worry about. Anyway, the lack of wine left an opening for Jesus to provide a gift. After motherly prompting, the miracle happens, water becomes wine, and Jesus’ wedding gift is given not just to the wedding party, but to the world. Not just for that day, but for all time. The banquet master is the first to discover this gift. He declares to the groom that his fine taste in wine is a delight, even though he was wasting it on the late hour when no one would be able to appreciate it. It was the custom in that day to bring out the good wine first and when the guests could not tell the difference, bring out the lesser stuff. But anyway, it is a treat; a treat which will be enjoyed.

What strikes me in this passage is the role of the servants, the word we translate as deacon. The way the passage is written, the servants who drew the water into the pitchers, the ones who drew it for the banquet master, drew the liquid with consequences that extend far into the future. And so it is we still talk about “changing water to wine.” I wonder if they knew just how important what they were doing was? I wonder if they could have imagined that the one for whom they are drawing water was the Messiah? How could they?

Giving good gifts is important, and it is important for us that the Lord God is the giver of the greatest gifts. The Lord our God has given us his Son, Jesus Christ, and from them both come the Holy Spirit. This gift is followed by more gifts, the gifts of the Spirit mentioned here in 1Corinthians. And while there are many gifts, there is only one who gives them. There are many different types of service, but only one Lord. There are many different types of activities, but only one God who activates them. According to scripture, each of us is gifted, but there is only one gives such wondrous gifts. Yet the gifts God gives are not only the charismatic signs; the gift is in the work done with the gift as well.

If you remember the story from earlier, a Black and Decker drill is a petty good gift, but it wasn’t until it built the buffet that it begins to meet its potential. Wisdom is not just to be wise and saying, "I would have done that differently." So too the gift to prophesy isn’t just about the ability, it is about the prophecy that follows. Faith and healing are about more than just the ability, it is about the work the gifts require for the benefit of the church and the world.

In the next couple of weeks, we will ordain and install new Elders to the Session. When they are ordained, we will ask if they will fulfill their office in obedience to Jesus Christ, under the authority of Scripture, guided by the confessions. We will then ask them if they will be faithful elders, watching over the people, providing for their worship, nurture, and service sharing in government and discipline, serving in governing bodies of the church, trying to show the love and justice of Jesus Christ.[2] This is a high calling, and a desperately important one. Surely these new elders are gifted, the nominating committee prays about this during its discernment process. It is not a responsibility taken lightly.

It is tempting to say that there is no higher calling; it would certainly honor both the office and those who serve in it. But that isn't where the honor belongs. We must remember…all service is honored by God, and given to glorify God. So imagine taking these vows: professing Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, renouncing all evil, and declaring the intent to participate actively and responsibly in the worship and mission of the church. These vows are weighty, important, and substantial. And these are the vows we accepted ourselves, or were accepted on our behalf, when we were baptized.[3] These are the same vows taken when joining this or any other PC (USA) Church.[4] Ordained ministry is a high calling, but we need to remember our first call is to be a Christian, professing Christ, renouncing evil, and working in the worship and mission of the church. There is no higher calling than this.

As foreboding as this sounds, here's the good news, all are gifted. Paul was writing to the church when he said each is gifted. He did not say the pastor is gifted. He did not say the ordained Elders are gifted. He said each is gifted as the Spirit chooses. And the gifts are given to the church for the common good.

About five months before we were married, Marie took me to Pier 1 and Target where we registered. When we went to the hardware section at Target and we registered for a Black and Decker VersaPak drill and VersaPak flash light. While I was looking at some other tools, she asked if I needed one of these. She was holding the VersaPak reciprocating saw. As I have told you before, I love watching “This Old House;” it's one of my favorite shows. And these guys cut things with reciprocating saws I only dream about.

They take down decks. They cut openings through interior and exterior walls. They cut timbers and plumbing. I once saw Master Carpenter Norm Abram demolish an old bump-out kitchen using just a reciprocating saw. I could imagine the damage I could do with one of those things. I looked at the saw and I looked at Marie and I said, "No, and if I ever tell you I need a reciprocating saw, then ask me a lot of questions." There is no good reason for me to have a saw like that. I can work a drill without causing harm, but I have no business with that saw. There are those of you here today that could use that saw, but not me. If we had given that saw to Greg and Nicole, it would have been used, but not to build a buffet. The Spiritual gifts are given this way too; the Spirit gives the church the necessary gifts. And they are given for an intended purpose. If misused, they are not effective. But when God gives a gift, the gift is perfect.

The Spirit then makes people capable of using the gift putting us in places to use the gifts. Not only are all gifted, but the Spirit prepares us, enables us to use those gifts. For some, this leads to ordained ministry, but for many it does not. If this seems difficult, don’t worry. If Jesus can change water to wine, imagine what he can do with us.

As a part of this church, I see people pray, and sing, and play. I have seen people serving at times of joy and times of grief. I have seen people work at Loaves and Fishes. I have seen people act with great compassion, and most of the time this isn’t done by active session members, it is done by members acting with might exercising the gifts of the spirit to fortify the church and to glorify God. The gifts are given to the entire church for the world by God for God’s glory.

Earlier I mentioned the servants at the banquet. While their roles seem quite limited, they were in direct service to Jesus, delivering the fruit of his first public miracle. Imagine the banquet master: Not only did he announce the miracle; he announced it to the groom with joy and bravado. But he makes the announcement with qualification; the gift will not be fully appreciated by those who receive it. This reigns true for us today. We receive gifts that we don't expect or don't recognize—and we aren't fully aware of what they are, or their value, or what to do with them. But Jesus accounts for this. He knew the wine would be perfect and he knew it would not be properly appreciated. And he gave, Jesus gave.

It reassures me that Jesus seemed reluctant to exercise his power. When his mother tells him there is no more wine, he asks, "What’s that to you and to me?" Then he tells his mother that it's not his time, not yet. Yet his mother persists, telling the servers to do whatever Jesus tells them to do. Then he exercises the power and miracles happen. When we use the gifts of the Holy Spirit, we are able to do so much more than we can without these gifts. We can do miracles. They may not even be noticed. They certainly may not be appreciated on earth, but when they are exercised, miracles happen for the glory of God, not just by the ordained, but from all members of the church. Not just for the church, but for all of creation. Just as the banquet master proclaimed this wine to be the best, we must glorify the name of the one who provides the wine, and all that the wine represents. The gifts are important, what we do with them is also important, and thanking the one who gives them is vital.

[1] I was given permission to share this story by Greg Young in 2004. Here’s to good friends!
[2] PC(USA) Book of Order, 2005-2007 edition, Governance Section G-14.0207.
[3] Ibid, Directory for Worship, W-3.3603.
[4] Ibid.