The Feast of Pentecost Year B - John 16:1-15

John 16:1-15

The Spirit as Advocate contends for us to prove the world’s ways will not be the way for us. That is because the Spirit convicts the less than satisfactory definition of sin as the things we do proving that what is made manifest in behavior always begins in belief. But then those who think right often do not act in right ways which means righteousness “being made right with God”  can only be directed from God towards us and not vice versa. And judgment is reserved for the one who is the parent of lies and deceives us at every turn even if “every single one of us (has) the devil inside” (INXS) Jesus may have many things left to say that none of us can bear but this much is true, the “God so loved the world” Jesus makes it possible for the world to welcome the truth telling Spirit who will reveal the love of God while exposing deceitful ways.

The Feast of Pentecost Year B - Romans 8:22-27

Romans 8:22-27

When inward groaning anticipates the cry of new birth the joy anticipated is the hope that endures. In our weakness, when confused and conflicted, our patience wears thin and we know not what to pray, so God intercedes for us. Sighs too deep for words match our need breath for breath, so that fed by the first fruits of the Spirit our hearts are lifted from despair. In that way the future adoption that is the redemption of our mortal bodies can be known in the present even as a kick from inside the womb allows expectant parents to imagine the life of the new born they await. Here and not yet – that is the nature of this pregnant pause before we know fully the full fruit of the eternal tomorrow.

The Feast of Pentecost Year B - Psalm 104:24-35

Psalm 104:24-35

Psalm 104:20 is the basis of the “Come Holy Spirit” prayer of the Cursillo movement. “Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of the faithful and kindle in us the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and we shall be created and you shall renew the face of the earth…” The Spirit filled community (aka the church in all its various forms) is created to renew whatever portion of the face of the earth on which it is found. That means the heart kindled with love seeks to refresh the weary with refuge and replenish the hungry with good things, even as we care for “all creatures great and small” and the habitats that support them. So the song we sing to the Lord as long as we live is best expressed when the words of our mouth are confirmed by the work of our hands.

The Feast of Pentecost Year B - Acts 2:1-21

Acts 2:1-21

It is a lay lector’s nightmare lesson and even those who wear the collar tread lightly in the linguistic territory of “Phrygia and Pamphylia.” But then the confusion of language has spawned more trouble than mispronunciations and the divisions that begin with the inability to understand what the other is saying are too often translated into the universal language of bigotry and violence. In whatever way we understand the historical Day of Pentecost the meaning could not be clearer. The lines of language that divide were erased by the “Spirit poured out on all flesh.” Of course the language that was understood on that day was discounted as tongue tied drunkenness but there was a moment when the confusion of the Tower of Babel was reversed and suddenly every tongue was translated into the powerful deed of God that is the cross of Jesus Christ. It didn’t take long for the universal language of mercy to be confused and confined and the ability to speak in tongues became more important than understanding what was said. But the Day of Pentecost was not about speaking in tongues. It was about declaring the powerful deeds of God in ways that people could understand no matter where they came from or what language they spoke.

Easter 7 B - John 17:6-19

John 17:6-19

If you’ve read the other Gospels you might agree that John’s Jesus is less than human, or if you won’t go that far at least will acknowledge that no one in real life makes speeches like the Jesus in John. That doesn’t mean it isn’t true just that John remembers a different Jesus than Matthew or Mark or the “orderly Gospel” historian Luke. But the purpose of John’s Gospel could not be more clearly stated. “These are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” (John 20:30) So all this “I am he as you are he as you are me and we are all together” makes as much sense as “I am the walrus goo goo g’joob”. (The Beatles) unless you understand that believing what cannot be fully understood (that the “in the beginning” Word became flesh and dwelt among us) means the beginning and the ending can be fully known in the present in such a way that the joy of the future is fully realized in the here and now. I know it might sound like a less melodic version of goo goo g'joob, but truth is if we could live today as if the forever tomorrow was already here our present might actually begin to look like God’s future.

Easter 7 B - 1 John 5:9-13

1 John 5:9-13
To have the Son of God means the Son of God has you. Human testimony would own the Son by tradition or dogma or piety without being possessed by the "lay down one’s life for one’s friends - no greater love than this” Son . (John 15:13) The testimony of God is this – “not that we loved God but that God loved us …” (1 John 4:10) If God gave up all to possess us then maybe the reverse is true as well. We lay down our life to open ourselves to the life of the Son not by self-discipline but by self-sacrifice that would give up even the Son and eternal life as well for the sake of someone else. But how can that testimony be true if the scripture doesn’t spell it out clearly in black and white, cross the t’s and dot the i’s, sign on the dotted line? That is a human testimony question. The love of God is pretty simple. God gave up life for love because two millennium of law didn’t produce the desired result – a people whose heart was God’s heart, who loved as God loves. Two millennium later God’s life and love is still in jeopardy as the cradle of Christ (the church) argues over the color of the comforter. The love of God is color blind and cares more about the child than the comfort of the crib which means eternal life is not the prize for having the Son – having the Son in the same way the Son has you is already life that is eternal.

Easter 7 B - Psalm 1

Like a Tree Planted by the River by Donald Simpson

Psalm 1
We know the counsel of the wicked is nothing but trouble and lingering in the way of sinners is a dead end street and the seat of the scornful is uncomfortable at best, but still we listen and linger and pull up a chair. Even those who delight in the perfect law of the Lord, the counsel of love, the way of righteousness, the mercy seat of peace, can find themselves listening and lingering and longing for that which in the end withers the soul and saps the spirit. But then the tree doesn’t plant itself by streams of water and so we, too, depend on the One who creates and cultivates a right spirit within us – sometimes with refreshment and sometimes with reprimand - always intending to bring new life to dead limbs as the prosperity of hope enriches impoverished faith to meditate on “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, whatever is excellent or praiseworthy…” (Philippians 4:8) Uproot us, Lord, from complacency and plant us by streams of living water that flow from the perfect law of love.

Easter 7 B - Acts 1:15-26

Acts 1:15-26
If the church had continued the practice of casting lots for leaders you can bet it wouldn’t have taken long for someone to load the dice. After all choosing church leaders is too important to be left up to chance and after all doesn’t the Almighty help those who help themselves? So choosing a replacement for Judas would seem to require at least an endorsement and a position paper and a speech to the delegates. But then Joseph and Justus (aka Barsabbas and Matthias) were not random candidates. They were companions of Jesus from the baptism to the ascension and reliable witnesses to the resurrection. Given that they both met the standard set by the selection committee the choice by lots means they were equally acceptable and choosing by chance removes ego from the equation. Since the ego of candidates and constituents almost always leads to conflict it’s not such a bad idea. Could we do the same thing today? Of course we could, but I’m sure someone would object.

Easter 6 B - John 15:9-17

 

John 15:9-17
It is significant that this “status update” from servant to friend occurs in the Gospel of John. After all Jesus’ status was updated from mostly “Messiah” in the synoptic Gospels to “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.” (John 1:1) So the God of Sinai (fire and smoke on the mountain don’t come near lest ye die) is now revealed as the Word made flesh. Since true friendship does not operate as a hierarchy, Jesus’ statement is as radical as anything uttered in the scriptures. We are on a first name basis with the God whose name could not be spoken. The flip side of this new arrangement is that our continuing in the ways of our first parent’s garden rebellion is that much more damaging to ourselves and the God come near who is our friend. Friendship can only endure so much before the one whose heart is open to the other is hurt in such a way that the real benefit of friendship, “my joy in you that your joy may be complete” is exhausted. Not that God abandons us but “I’ve got friends in low places” (Garth Brooks) is not nearly as friendly as it sounds and Jesus desires a relationship that blesses Jesus as much as it blesses us. Nothing blesses Jesus more than when you and I, and everyone else for that matter, friend each other in ways that go beyond “likes” on a page. Jesus' joy can only be as complete as our joy. Which means my joy can only be complete when your joy is complete and your joy can only be complete when my joy is complete and all our joy begins and ends with acting more friendly towards the One who chose us, aka the Word made Friend.

Easter 6 B - 1 John 5:1-6

1 John 5:1-6

The way faith conquers the world is not made manifest in the way the world appears to conquer faith. Despite the apparent militancy of “Onward Christian Soldiers” the way of faith “is not by might nor by power but by my Spirit, says the Lord.” (Zechariah 4:6) That is why the victory of faith often appears first as defeat. “We preach Christ crucified.” (1 Corinthians 1:23) But it is a “magnificent defeat” (Frederick Buechner) that the world cannot see or understand and which the world cannot ultimately overcome. “Were they to take our house, goods, fame, child or spouse; though life be wrenched away; they cannot win the day; the kingdom ours forever.” (Martin Luther) That faith conquers the world is not a panacea for the pain and suffering experienced when one is on the losing end of Luther’s list of things to be taken away. No faith is often pushed to the limit and indeed beyond. But though the bloodlust of the wicked may hold the field today the final outcome has been predetermined and the faith that is tried in the here and now will triumph in the forever tomorrow.

Easter 6 B - Psalm 98:1-9

Psalm 98:1-9

A new song of marvelous things means before there was this song there were times less praiseworthy. Singing the rejoicing refrain is preceded by times of lament. Righteousness revealed means there was a time when it was hidden. “You turned my wailing into dancing” is how Psalm 30 describes the reversal of fortune. At the dawn of the new day the long night is forgotten so that even the sound of crashing sea and rushing rivers are in harmony with harps and trumpets and human voices. The good news for those still waiting for steadfast love and faithfulness to be revealed is that God gives us each other so that my new song can be heard in your time of silence and when life conspires to still the song in my heart perhaps you will be in a place to sing me into a marvelous new day. In that way the song never ends and at the same time is always new.

Easter 6 B - Acts 10:44-48

Acts 10:44-48

Acts chapter ten begins with God telling Peter that shellfish is now in season and he is free to eat whatever he wants. To which Peter replies, “Heaven forbid!” which is the proper response when one is tempted by all manner of culinary delights denied to kosher Jews for almost two thousand years. But God insists that Peter sit down and dine and before you know it Peter is acting like Jesus and eating and drinking with tax collectors (aka Romans) and sinners (aka Gentiles). “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean” is true for all manner of animals as well as people so that Peter, who often appears dumb as rock, suddenly perceives that God shows no favoritism, which is shocking given the restricted relationship God demanded from the children of Israel. That is not to say the early church welcomed the new neighbors with open arms. Even Peter had to defend his Acts chapter 10 actions to James and John and the rest and if you believe Paul’s account in Galatians 2 Peter didn’t do so well and “began to draw back and separate himself from the Gentiles because he was afraid of the circumcision group”. The church has been declaring clean and unclean ever since making what is binding arbitrary (the law of love) and what is arbitrary binding (the love of law). I wonder what acts of God might astound us in this day and age so that we ask the question, “What is to prevent us from suspending the rules we have come to rely on and welcome the new thing God is doing?” Heaven knows.

Easter 4 B - 1 John 4:7-21

1 John 4:7-21
“Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love.” You would think the church could get this right since the command to love is the foundation of our faith. Some say the reason the church is in decline today is because those on the outside have finally figured out that the petty jealousies and judgmental attitudes that have come to characterize so many Christian communions are a direct contradiction to the teaching of Jesus. Individual Christians and whole communities elevate their particular doctrines or preferences to the denial of the one law that is in fact binding. Even Unitarians fight over doctrine for God’s sake!  But “the commandment we have from him is this: those who love God must love their brothers and sisters also.” So what can we do that we have not done already? Maybe we should stop doing what we’ve been doing and learn the lesson of love so that “as he is, so we (will be) in this world. I know it is passé but for all the hype around WWJD bracelets and bumper stickers there is only one answer to the question "What Would Jesus Do?" and it is what Jesus did - Love.

Easter 5 B - Psalm 22:25-31

Psalm 22:25-31

Psalm 22 begins not with praise, but lament. “My God! My God! Why have you forsaken me?” In the verses that follow human suffering is spelled out in detail. “My heart melts like wax within me… all my bones are out of joint… a band of dogs surround me… they pierce my hands and feet!“ Insults and mocking and spitting accompany the abuse heaped upon the one who cries out by day with no answer, at night with no rest. Yet this “man of constant sorrow” trusts that the God far off will come near and even if going down to the dust is his destiny praise will spring forth from the grave. Some might call that a fool’s hope and be more inclined to go with Job’s wife’s advice, “Curse God and die.” But then the people yet unborn would not know the sacred story of the God who came so near to humanity as to wear our flesh and die our death so that we might live God’s life.  And so we proclaim and so you believe, “The Lord has acted.” Thanks be to God.  

Easter 5 B - Acts 8:26-40

Acts 8:26-40

The Ethiopian eunuch was well respected in the court of Candice but in Jerusalem he was denied access to the temple of the faith he was so anxious to understand. Cut off from the people of God by race and circumstance he none-the-less worshipped the God whose holy word branded him unclean. It is no surprise then that one so excluded would be drawn to the suffering servant described by Isaiah and wonder if the word about the prophet or someone else might also be a word for him. So God sends Philip the Greek to evangelize the African official into the faith of Jesus the suffering Jew. Irony is not lost on the Lord. Truth is the eunuch already had all the faith he needed and indeed was the one who asked the question, “What is to prevent me from being baptized?” Unfortunately the church has more often than not excluded those who in the church’s estimation are lacking, without allowing that God is more than able to compensate for whatever we are without.

Easter 4 B - 1 John 3:16-24

1 John 3:16-24

If my mind could convince my heart of the surpassing greatness of God’s goodness maybe it would stop condemning me. But then maybe the purpose of the condemning heart (aka conscience) is to get the mind to pay attention to what the hands are doing or the mouth is saying. Word and speech and truth and action are to work together for the common good which includes our own. That is because when we please God by helping others we are gifted with the Spirit of a quiet heart, a peaceful mind, a mouth full of praise and hands that help.  Martin Luther said it this way “A Christian is a child of the Holy Spirit, an heir of eternal life, a companion to the holy angels, a ruler of the world, and a partaker of God’s divine nature. A Christian is a wonder of the world, a terror to Satan, an ornament of the church, a desirable object of heaven with a heart full of fire, with eyes full of tears, with a mouth full of supplications and with hands full of good works.”

Easter 4 B - Psalm 23

Psalm 23

Souls are restored when guided along right pathways even if it takes a rod and staff to get us there. That’s because we can get lost in the shadow valleys of this world where the lines between right and wrong are obscured by selfish desire and sinful pride. Truth is our sight can adjust to low light and we can grow accustomed to being less than we were meant to be and before you know it we can’t tell the difference between a green pasture and a desert. But the Lord like a shepherd does not abandon us to our wandering ways but prods us with the rod of the Law even as the staff of the Gospel frees us to live into peaceful places of soul refreshing rest.  

Easter 4 B - Acts 4:5-12

Acts 4:5-12

The same Peter who cowered in courtyard and wept bitterly because of it has become the rock who will not back down even when confronted by the powers that be who “crucified Christ”. But that is what resurrection can do to you that the cross cannot. I don’t mean that we neglect the mandate to preach Christ crucified. We wouldn’t pay attention to this Galilean prophet if after being as dead as you and I will one day be he hadn’t walked out of the tomb. The Romans crucified Jews all the time. But as a good friend and colleague pointed out to me the other day our focus on the cross can obscure the point of the resurrection. We are meant to be transformed into resurrection people even if the cross is the way we get there. The cross accuses and convicts and like Peter brings bitter tears – and rightly so. But on the third day those who cower in courtyards of their own design are to walk out of tombs of shame and guilt to live as people set free from sin and death once and for all. It doesn’t mean we stop sinning or falling short of all we will one day become. It does mean we recognize that confession is for the amendment of our sinful life and act accordingly.

Easter 3 B - Luke 24:36-48

Luke 24:36-48

“Peace be with you” doesn’t do the trick. “Look at my hands and feet” doesn’t dispel disbelief. Even touch me and see doesn’t get a “My Lord and my God!” But eat a piece of broiled fish and maybe the impossible will seem more plausible to doubting disciples. In the everyday necessity of nourishment the crucified, dead and buried Messiah is accepted as really resurrected. It is the final and most intimate act of the incarnation that the One who rose beyond the boundaries of death and life entered this realm again to share a morsel with those still bound by mortality so that seeing would be believing. In that sense “have you anything here to eat?” might be the most grace filled words ever spoken by Jesus.

Easter 3 B - 1 John 3:1-7

1 John 3:1-7

There is no way around it. Since we all sin we are all guilty of lawlessness even though in the love the Father has lavished upon us we are children of God now and when Jesus is revealed we will be like Him. That means even as children of God by virtue of our rebellious nature we do not abide in God or know God or see God. But then John will go on to say, “This is love: not that we loved God but that God loved us…” (1 John 4:10) So the ultimate consequence of our lawlessness is that God loves those who do not love in equal measure but who purify themselves with the hope that when we do see Him as He is Jesus will not see us as we are but what we were always meant to be.