Andrew

This sermon was heard at St. Andrew Presbyterian Church in Longview, Texas on Sunday January 19, 2014, the 2nd Sunday in Ordinary time.



Isaiah 49:1-7
Psalm 40:1-11
1 Corinthians 1:1-9

John 1:29-42

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

A movie I like to see every time it’s on TNT is “A Knight’s Tale.” You might remember; it starred Heath Ledger, Mark Addy, and Paul Bettany. Ledger played a peasant who served a knight who died in the middle of a tournament. Impersonating the knight, Ledger wins. With a bit of mischief, a ton of gumption, and a cadre of great friends Ledger becomes Sir Ulrich von Lichtenstein and sets the medieval world afire with his jousting.

Adding fun to the festivities, Paul Bettany plays the poet Geoffrey Chaucer . In this version, Chaucer is a down on his luck degenerate gambler who joins up with our merry gang to provide papers of nobility, vital for a band of peasants masquerading as a knight and his squires, and serves as von Lichtenstein’s herald announcing him before battle.ⁱ My favorite of his introductions goes like this:

I have the pride, the privilege, nay, the pleasure of introducing to you to a knight, sired by knights. A knight who can trace his lineage back beyond Charlemagne. I first met him atop a mountain near Jerusalem, praying to God, asking his forgiveness for the Saracen blood spilt by his sword. Next, he amazed me still further in Italy when he saved a fatherless beauty from the would-be ravishing of her dreadful Turkish uncle.

This is when the crowd boos the dreadful Turkish uncle.

In Greece he spent a year in silence just to better understand the sound of a whisper. And so without further gilding the lily and with no more ado, I give to you, the seeker of serenity, the protector of Italian virginity, the enforcer of our Lord God, the one, the only, Sir Ulllrrrich von Lichtenstein!

And the crowd goes wild!

I love this, and Bettany sells it so well. You know who the good guy is and who the bad guy is. Then under his breath, as the crowd goes wild, in an aside meant for himself and the theater audience, Chaucer says, “Thank you, thank you, I’ll be here all week.”

In its own way, this reminds me of the introductory portion of Paul’s first letter to the church at Corinth, which we read today. I enjoy Paul’s writings because they are so rich. There is so much in every letter. It may seem awkward for us to read what we would think of as an intimate form of communication being shared publicly. Then again, in an age of social media; maybe we’re actually getting back to this more open form of letters… but that’s for another day.

Paul’s letter begins as so many of them do, with greetings and uplifting words.

To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, together with all those who in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours.

How’s that for a greeting. It sure beats “Dear Valued Customer.” Once at the church in Berryville, Arkansas I got a piece of junk mail addressed to the “Owner” of the church. I spent a good hour praying over the glorious theology and horrible polity of that little tidbit.

Paul tells them they are sanctified in Christ Jesus! It is through Jesus the Christ, the Messiah, that they are made holy, set aside for God's work; and it’s not just the church at Corinth. It’s “all those who in every place call on the name of our Lord,” together, all of us, the entire body of Christ; we are sanctified in Christ Jesus. We aren’t “Lone Rangers,” we aren’t flying solo. Now that’s what I call a greeting. So what’s next?

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

When I begin a service, I like to begin with words similar to theseⁱⁱ because, well, those words? How’s that for a blessing? Then Paul said says “God our Father.” First he established that the church is the church of all believers, and then he makes sure that all believers know that God is our Father. Our Father! Absolutely glorious.

Seeing that we just heard the rest of this I won’t rereading more of it, but what Paul writes is so wonderful. He gives thanks for them; the Apostle gives thanks for the congregation. As one who has been sent to congregations, pastors do give thanks; and Paul gets even more specific. He is thankful for the grace God has extended in Christ so that they may be enriched in spiritual gifts as the testimony of how Christ has been strengthened amongst them as they wait for the return of the Lord.

Again, Paul explains that as they have become stronger in Christ they have received these gifts. Now, the gifts aren’t a reward. It’s not “You know Jesus, here’s a cookie.” No, gifts are given for a specific reason, and if you are familiar with Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians you will know what Paul has to say about this. Again... that’s for another day.

Paul also affirms that God will strengthen them to the end so that they may be blameless on the day of the Lord. Code? Maybe a little. He’s saying that until the day of Christ’s return God will strengthen them so that they may be righteous under the law. Would you like someone to tell you that? How about Kemper? How about me? [In the Late Service I added the name of the person who read the passage from 1Corinthians: How about William?] I can do you better. The Apostle Paul speaking with the authority of scripture tells us all that.

In “A Knight’s Tale,” there was more than one stadium introduction, here’s another gem from Chaucer:

Yes, behold my lord Ulrich, the rock, the hard place, like a wind from Guilderland he sweeps by blown far from his homeland in search of glory and honor, we walk... in the garden... of his turpulence!

As we know, Paul teaches hard lessons as well as encourages. He showed people the rock and the hard place like a wind from Guilderland. Paul wasn’t in it for glory or honor and we may still be walking in his turpulence. Whatever that is. ⁱⁱⁱ

While we stopped at verse nine, the timbre of Paul’s words changes at verse ten, “Now I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you be in agreement and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same purpose.” Yes, Paul's turpulence will be known in abundance by anyone who reads this letter regardless of the century it is read.

So if Paul takes the people to the rock and the hard place, why does he begin with such flowery prose? First it's not unusual to open a letter with something nice to say, but undeserved flattery isn't Paul's style.

That leaves only one viable conclusion, what Paul wrote in verses one through nine is absolutely true, and what he wrote in verse ten and beyond is absolutely true too. Paul loves the people of the church at Corinth enough not to tell them what they want to hear. He tells them the truth. He tells them that they are blessed. He tells them that they are sanctified to do God's work with the gifts of the Holy Spirit. He tells them that God is their Father and Jesus is their Lord. He tells them that they are blessed. The grace and peace of the Lord Jesus Christ is with them all.

And he will show them where their walk with their Lord lacks, and again... that is for another day.

Paul loves them enough to share the joys and the pain of new life in Christ. He loves them enough to build them up. He loves them enough to point out the rock and the hard place. He loves them too much to lie. He loves them too much to hide their demons; he'd rather they meet them in Christ. He does this as an Apostle and as an evangelist.

This takes us to our gospel reading; Jesus walking through the wilderness as John the Baptist screams out “Look, here is the Lamb of God!” Now John had been proclaiming the coming work of the Lamb of God, and while many of the temple leaders considered him the weirdo-in-the-wilderness, he had followers. So when John announced the coming of the Lamb two of John's disciples left to follow Jesus. One of these was Andrew and the other was unnamed.

Jesus noticed them, of course and asked the big question, "What are you looking for?" They asked in reply, "Where are you staying?" I can only imagine a coy smile and maybe a cock of the eyebrow as the Lord said "Come... and see." There they stayed. Except for that nastiness around the crucifixion, they stayed.

Jesus walked and they followed.

When they followed their world opened up. They lived the greatest story ever told, and went on to tell it themselves. Andrew is known as the great evangelist, and the first person he brought to the Lord is his brother Simon, the man who would become Peter, the Rock upon whom Christ would build the church.

Jesus walked. They followed. But on that first day, where did Jesus walk? Where did they follow? Scripture's kind of vague on this, the city square perhaps. Maybe they went to the garden, maybe a nice sitting room. Maybe there was some place in a vineyard, scripture doesn't say.

I would love to imagine that they had their conversation at the fisherman's or carpenter's union hall. Or maybe they found a place to hold their discussion over a cold one and a game of pool. If they were in a hipster state of mind, maybe they went to a coffee house that sold fair trade coffee. What I'm saying is that I imagine they assembled where people assemble.

We put names and titles and labels on Jesus, Andrew, and the Unnamed Apostle; names they have earned and deserve. But when we do we might forget that they were men. They were guys. They had calloused hands from working a hard trade. They had first century lunch pails. So I imagine when they went to talk about what ever they talked about that day, they were comfortable. They weren't in the Pastor's Study .

So what happened next? What happened after the following of the earthbound Lord?

According to ancient church historians Andrew preached in Scythia. He preached along the Black Sea and the Dnieper river as far as Kiev, and from there he traveled to Novgorod. He became a patron saint of Ukraine, Romania and Russia. According to tradition, he founded the See of Byzantium in AD 38, installing Stachys as bishop.

He preached in Thrace, and his presence in Byzantium is mentioned in the 2nd century Acts of Andrew. This diocese would later develop into the Patriarchate of Constantinople where Andrew is recognized as the patron saint.

He is considered the evangelist to the people of Soviet Georgia. After being shipwrecked in Malta, Andrew struck the rocks where they ran aground, A healing spring opened and the ship's captain who was blind in one eye was healed.

In short, he got around.

Andrew was an evangelist. Looking at John's gospel he was the first evangelist, bringing Peter to the Lord. His influence has been known far and wide in Asia and Europe for over two millennia. And it is known in this sanctuary.

The name by which this congregation is known, St. Andrew, was suggested by Dr. Joel May and was met with enthusiasm because of Andrew's association with evangelism and with the nation of Scotland, yet another land where Andrew is the patron saint.^iv Where does that leave us today? How has this congregation been sanctified to continue doing God's work?

Gloriously since the very beginning, since 1965 this congregation has been breaking new ground in ministry. While still a mission of First Presbyterian here in Longview, St. Andrew was the first local congregation to scandalize the mission of Christ by ordaining and installing women as Elders. It's as right as rain to us today, but 50 years ago it was a scandal as large as any the church faces today in ordination standards. And St. Andrew led the way.

From the very beginning the congregation has opened the doors of the building and put blade to the land for the community. Within the last ten years, St. Andrew has helped birth the Longview Interfaith Hospitality Network. LIHN is an ecumenical coalition which houses homeless families in various local churches. This provides a safe place for people to get on their feet out of the cold. The next year saw literal ground breaking on the community garden providing fresh veggies to LIHN families.

Throughout the years this congregation has also provided support to seminarians and missionaries including our friend the Rev. Jan Dittmar.

There is no way we can ever forget our Lord's love for children and the love shown through the Little Angel's Academy. Help to those who are homeless began here with Habitat for Humanity. The original Longview offices were on this very campus. St. Andrew is now able to serve as an assistance center with the American Red Cross.^v

As for the future of St. Andrew, a vision is laid out. By the insight of the Spirit, led by the Pastor Nominating Committee, the congregation has developed a mission study to guide you as you seek your next pastor.

At the end of “A Knight's Tale,” when the charade is up, Sir Ulrich has died and Heath Ledger's Sir William Thatcher has risen like a phoenix out of his ashes, Chaucer gives one final stadium introduction.

I would lay rest the grace in my tongue and speak plainly. Days like these are far too rare to cheapen with heavy handed words, and so, I'm afraid without any ado whatsoever... Here he is, one of your own, born a stone's throw from this very stadium, and here before you now, the son of John Thatcher... Sir Wiiiiiilliam Thatcheeer.

Days like these are far too rare, so let me end without any ado. Just last week this part of the Body of Christ responded to new life in Christ by ordaining and installing new Elders to the Session. In the Presbyterian Church in baptism, confirmation, ordination, and installation; the children of God are referred to by their first names alone. The reason for this is glorious. The reason is that in Christ we share the same last name. We are the children of God and by this miracle of grace the family names we carry are an earthly convention. The Lord does not need them to know whose children we are. We are the Lord’s children, the children of God.

So today, as the children of God, living wet in the waters of our baptism, remembering the heritage of Andrew's evangelistic fervor, I leave you with the words of St. Andrew's third pastor, the Rev. Michael Parsons, “As we go about our daily business, we should remember a witnessing church is a living church—and a church is PEOPLE. … This is no easy task for me; it is a day by day challenge to us all... it may well be said that 'fellowship is as fellowship does'—where this church goes depends on you, for you are the church.”^vi

iAll quotes from “A Knight's Tale” come from the Internet Movie Database page for “A Knight's Tale.” http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0183790/trivia?tab=qt&ref_=tt_trv_qu

ii I begin worship saying “May the grace and peace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.” To many it seems like a formula, but what it is is a wonderful and powerful blessing.

iii According to the Urban Dictionary, turpulence is “a tumultuous explosion of persona resulting in a feeling of total envelopment by another person's presence.” http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=turpulence

ivRogers Smith, Nancy, “St. Andrew Presbyterian Church, The First Twenty-Five Years, 1965-1990.” page 3.

vFrom the St. Andrew Presbyterian Church Mission Report.

viIbid Rogers Smith p. 10.

Introductions

This sermon was heard at the First Presbyterian Church in Berryville, Arkansas on January 20, 2008, the Second Sunday of Ordinary Time.

Isaiah 49:1-7
Psalm 40:1-11
1 Corinthians 1:1-9
John 1:29-42

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

Sir Henry Morton Stanley was an extremely resourceful man.[1] Born in a family that would have been comfortable on The Maury Show, he was initially raised by his grandfather. After he died, Stanley went to live with cousins. Sent from there to a workhouse for the poor, at fifteen he became a pupil-teacher in a Welsh Anglican School. At eighteen he immigrated to New Orleans where he fought on both sides of the American Civil War.

He soon began a career in journalism; visiting mines, reporting on conflicts with Native Americans, and joining an expedition to establish the course of a river. He even organized an expedition to the Ottoman Empire that landed him in a Turkish prison, but somehow talked himself out of jail receiving damages for lost equipment.

Stanley was eventually retained by James Gordon Bennett, founder of the New York Herald, who was impressed by Stanley's exploits and by his direct writing style. He became one of the Herald’s overseas correspondents and in 1869 was instructed by Bennett's son to find the Scottish Presbyterian pioneer, medical missionary, and explorer Dr. David Livingstone, who was known to be in Africa but had not been heard from for some time.

Stanley and his expedition traveled to Zanzibar in March 1871. The expedition through the tropical forest became a nightmare. Imagine plodding across African tropical jungles, crossing over 700 miles, fighting disease and insects, losing porters and supplies daily in this mess. Nine months later, a full three seasons including a tropical African summer, these two men meet. Finally Stanley found Livingstone on November 10, 1871, in Ujiji near Lake Tanganyka in present-day Tanzania, greeting him with the now famous, “Dr. Livingstone, I presume?”

Now, no one can ever know exactly was what was said. Stanley destroyed his diary pages from these days and Livingstone made no mention of these words in his journals. But in the English language, I can’t think of a more famous introduction. This has become the stuff of legends. To this day most of us know this classically understated introduction, “Dr. Livingstone, I presume?”

Greetings and introductions are how we present our selves to others. Some times we introduce ourselves by where we live or what we do. Sometimes we introduce ourselves by who our parents are or where we were born. This piece from John’s gospel is loaded with many different introductions.

John begins by introducing Jesus to those who are around him. He says, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” How’s that for an introduction, you’re walking down the levee and suddenly your cousin, the guy in camel hair, introduces you to everyone within shouting distance, using words from Exodus. “Here comes the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”

Using this image, John invokes the purpose of the Paschal lamb, the lamb slaughtered and eaten at the Passover. The lamb whose blood was placed around the doors of the sons and daughters of Israel so the angel of death would pass over their homes. John’s disciples along with the Sadducees, Pharisees, scribes, lawyers and pretty much everyone else at the river would have known exactly what John meant.

Then John tells the assembly “This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’” This seems mysterious as introductions go, but no more so than the introduction to the gospel itself, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.”[2]

Separately, these words are mystifying, together they explain one another. Since Jesus was in the beginning with God, of course he came before John. And born about six months after the Baptist, Jesus has been since before the beginning. Again, in words the assembly would understand, John introduces Jesus to the world.

Then John says something we don’t expect, “I myself did not know him.” This is odd because they’re cousins for crying out loud. Of course they knew each other. But there’s knowing; and there’s knowing. Of course John knew who Jesus was, but when John saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove and remain on him, only then did he truly know.

By these sayings; Jesus ranking ahead of John, Jesus coming before John, and John not knowing Jesus, we come to know who the Baptist is. John introduces himself to us. We know that he is not the Messiah, but rather the one who comes before him. John is not God; rather he comes as a witness to testify to the presence of the Son of God. He can do this because he knows first who he is. Not only does John see, he testifies. Not only does John know, he shares. Not only is John called, he responds.

Often when we talk about sharing the witness of the Lord with someone we think of an intimate very personal setting, but this is not John’s proclamation. As spectacular as these words are, these first introductions are public, not private. These words are a shout to the world. John is like a ringmaster crying out, “Ladies and gentlemen and children of all ages.” He is telling whoever will listen. But John’s introductions are heard and followed by individuals responding to the word.

This introduction is heard as a personal invitation by two of John’s own disciples. When they were introduced to Jesus, they leave their Rabbi John and follow the new Rabbi, Jesus. And follow they did. They physically got up and pursued Jesus as he made his way from the Jordan.

Next, Jesus turns around seeing two men following him and asks, “What are you looking for?” That’s a loaded question, isn’t it? Does he ask it like he feels uncomfortable with them following? “What are you looking for?” Or maybe he asks them like he all ready knows? “What are you looking for?”

They ask “Teacher, Rabbi, where are you staying?” Jesus invites them to come and see. No mention is made in John’s gospel about what happened that night. What we can imagine is that on this night, this special night when the first two disciples stay with Jesus, they are introduced to a way of life they will share together until their last supper.

But before the three left together, Andrew went to find his brother Simon. Andrew introduces his brother the to revelation that the Messiah has come.

The next day, Andrew brought Simon to Jesus for a proper introduction, but Jesus takes the initiative and makes the introduction instead. “You are Simon son of John. You are to be called Cephas.” Cephas is the Aramaic word for Peter. If you will though, the literal way to translate this name is Rock; maybe even Rocky. In a stunning reversal, Andrew doesn’t introduce Simon to Jesus; Jesus introduces Simon to himself. Jesus knows Peter will be the rock, so the Messiah introduces Simon to Peter, the man he is and the new man in Christ he will become.

John the Baptist introduces himself as the one who testifies about Jesus. John introduces Jesus to the world and to his disciples. John introduces Jesus as the Lamb and who precedes all others. Then Jesus and two of John’s disciples are introduced to each other. The stakes are raised as Jesus introduces them to a taste of what it will be like to be his disciples. But first, Andrew introduces his brother Simon to the fact that the Messiah has come. Finally, marvelously, Jesus introduces himself to Simon and then in an amazing turn Jesus introduces Simon to Peter.

John points the way for everyone to know Jesus. Andrew responds to John’s prompting and tells his brother about the Lamb who will take away the sin of the world. We are fortunate, we have heard these stories. We know the Lamb who is the Christ. We know Simon who became the Rock upon whom the church was built.

Our reading this morning invites us back to a time before we knew, a time when we were like John and Andrew and Simon, not knowing who Jesus really is or what that means for our lives, but aching to know more. We need to be like them, and marvel in the wonder and mystery of the new thing the Messiah does.

We need to be like John, know the prophecy and see Jesus when he appears. We need to be like John, and know who Jesus is when we see the Spirit light upon him and stay. We need to be like John and proclaim the name of Jesus to a weary yet hungry world.

We need to be like Andrew; once he is shown the Son of God he follows like a lamb follows its mother. The ewe leads her lamb and provides what it needs to live. We need to be like Andrew, and once we hear the voice of the one follow and eat the good food of the Lamb of God.

We need to be like Andrew and the unnamed disciple and follow Jesus into a new life of discipleship, even when we have no idea what that may be like. Even in times like in this passage when scripture doesn’t even tell us what their first discipleship experience was like.

We need to be like Andrew, and introduce the Lord to our brothers and sisters. In the light of danger and insecurity, we need to speak the name of the Lord and announce he is the Messiah, the Anointed, the Lamb who takes away the sin of the world, the Son of God.

We need to be like Simon, and become Peter. We need to know who we are and when the Anointed makes us something new, we are to leave the old behind and embrace the new creation in God. And yes, we are bound to be like Peter who never made it easy on himself or his Lord. Yet from his rocky discipleship, he becomes the rock.

We need not only to be available; we need to make ourselves available to those in this world who need to hear the name of the Lord. We need to cry his name from the river and from the rocks. We need to cry the name of the Lamb who takes away the sin of the world to the modern-day Sadducees and Pharisees, the scribes and the experts in the Law. We need to cry his name in our homes with our families. We need to tell the world that may never have heard the name of the Lord who he is and that he makes all things new. Jesus has introduced himself, we need to continue to make the introduction to the world.

The important first step to making the introduction is to listen first as the Lord introduces himself to us in scripture and in prayer. Then when like Simon Peter, as the Son of God introduces us to ourselves, we are to respond to the new life in Jesus Christ.

A couple of weeks ago this part of the Body of Christ ordained and installed new Elders to the Session. In the Presbyterian Church it is usual that in baptism, confirmation, ordination, and installation; the children of God are referred to by their first names alone. The reason for this is wonderful and glorious. The reason for this introduction is that in the church we share the same last name. We are the children of God and by this miracle of grace the family names we carry are an earthly convention. The Lord does not need them to know whose children we are. We are the children of God.

So let us be introduced to Jesus again, sharing in the newness and the wonder of the days following his baptism. Let us listen. Let us follow. And let us share. And in the grace and forgiveness of our Lord Jesus Christ, let us share signs of God’s peace and wondrous love with one another.

The grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.
And also with you.[3]

[1] Stanley and Livingstone biographical information taken from Wikipedia articles: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Morton_Stanley and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Livingstone both retrieved January 18, 2008.
[2] John 1:1-2, NRSV
[3] These two sentences are a common liturgical formula.