Sermon for Sunday, May 16

Day of the Church Year: 7th Sunday of Easter

Scripture Passage: John 17:6-19

Always having been a Lutheran kid, my mental picture of nuns is shaped by movies.  By nuns, I mean, yes, Roman Catholic women who enter into a convent, live in community, and devote themselves to God.  I imagine Whoopie Goldberg in Sister Act, using music to reach out to the convent’s neighborhood and the world.  I imagine Susan Sarandon in Dead Man Walking, running an after school program for kids in her New Orleans neighborhood and visiting a man on death row, a story actually based on the ministry of Sister Helen Prejean.  I imagine Julie Andrews in The Sound of Music, sent as governess to live with and care for the Van Trapp family.  In real life, I have never personally met a nun though I’ve certainly heard many stories from friends who grew up Roman Catholic.  What’s interesting to me is the dual narrative of nuns’ lives.  One narrative is women living in isolation though in community, praying for hours a day, married to God, and largely restricted from any interaction with the outside world, even through technology.  The other narrative is about strong, radical women using the freedom and energies of single life to pour themselves into works of justice and acts of deep love for humanity.  Though, like I said, I am not an authority on the realities of committing oneself to a convent, the dual narrative of nuns’ lives reveals the confusion that I think many of us Christians have about our relationship to the world.

In today’s gospel reading, Jesus prays for his disciples on the night before his death, and he prays about this question: how the disciples are to interact with the world.  By the time John’s gospel was written, Christian persecution was in full swing: lions’ dens, crucifixion, stoning.  In this terrifying context, how are Jesus followers meant to understand and engage with the world?  Jesus asks God to protect the disciples, and he acknowledges that the world hates the disciples.  But, in verse 15, Jesus says, “I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I ask you to protect them from the evil one.”  A couple verses later, Jesus declares, “As you have sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.”  The world, in the gospel of John, is a place God loves.  Remember that John is the gospel where we hear: For God so loved the world…, John 3:16.  In John, the world, the cosmos, though certainly a mixed bag of sin and righteousness, light and darkness, is not an entity to ignore or avoid or think ourselves better than.  Jesus sends the disciples into the world even though that world, literally, historically hated the disciples.  Jesus sends the disciples into the world to share the life they know in Jesus, that others may abide in him, that all people may come to love one another. 

Jesus prays that God would protect his disciples as they enter the world into which Jesus sends them, so we can only assume that Jesus sends us later Jesus followers into the world God so loves too.  Of course, Christians’ relationship with the world was one of those hot topics in theology back in the day, say, mid-20th century.  We know we’re not of the world.  Perhaps we are in the world and meant to escape unscathed.  Some of the theological reflection produced in seminaries and universities has led Christians of many traditions to try and remain unstained by the world, to read only Christian books, to listen only to Christian music, to refrain from profanity.  (I’m not saying I want to hear profanity from any of you, just being clear.)  We assume when we speak of the world that it is with disdain.  The world and its values oppose us and our values, is how the story goes.  There is a clear line drawn between Christians and non-Christians, between those who are of the world and those who are simply in it.  I think this is a grave misunderstanding of our sacred scripture. 

For one, we Christians are not somehow more pure than other people.  Just last week, someone commented to me, “It’s a good thing you weren’t here earlier, pastor.  I had some choice words about this situation.”  The person who said this to me was apologetic, implying he was not acting as a Christian should.  But the situation was genuinely frustrating, fraught with practical difficulty.  We are Jesus followers, and we are also just people living in a complex, imperfect world.

Even more importantly, the gospel of John reveals a God who so loves the world that God shows up in the flesh—in Jesus.  God does not remain unstained by the world.  God comes here, to get mixed up in all that the world is.  God enters the world, not to condemn the world but to save it, love it, feed it, heal it—to save, love, feed, and heal us.

Jesus sends us into the world, I think, like nuns into a lifetime of service to God.  We live in community because Jesus following can be hard, and we rely on each other for strength and encouragement.  Our question of the day is: What is the most spiritually fortifying part of church life for you?  Perhaps the part most fortifying for you is related to worship or perhaps to a way that you serve others here.  Perhaps it is Bible study or relationships that you have with people at Grace.  To read reflections from our community, go to the Grace Facebook live stream feed for Sunday, May 16.

We are nourished by weekly worship and prayer, music and Holy Communion, study and discussion, acts of service and relationships.  But once we are strengthened and encouraged, we go back out into the world to follow Jesus wherever he leads us, to works of justice and acts of deep love for humanity.  We go out not to condemn the world but to love it as God does...or as best we can approximate.  The world God so loves is the world where we live.  We, alongside Jesus, pray that through us and guided by the Spirit of God, all the world may know the love of God.  Thanks be to God!  Amen.

The GLOW Show: The Glory of Creation

What does the Bible say about creation and humans’ role as part of creation? During the season of Easter on The GLOW Show, Pastor Sarah will explore biblical stories and passages that reveal God’s posture towards Earth, God’s call for humans as part of creation, and the ways Jesus’ ministry was deeply embedded in creation. Today, we rejoice alongside the psalmist in the glory of creation by reading Psalm 104. Grab your Bible and enjoy!

Sermon for Sunday, May 9

Sunday in the Church Year: 6th Sunday of Easter

Biblical Passage: John 15:9-17

Note: On May 9 during our sermon time, we discussed this complex biblical passage together. Jesus’ words raise more questions than they provide answers. If you are reading this sermon for the first time, I invite you to open your Bible and read John 15:9-17 and then truly consider the questions I raise during this sermon. To find some of the community’s reflections on these questions, go to the Grace In The City: Grace Lutheran Church Facebook page and find the May 9 live stream worship feed. As always, if you would like to discuss these questions over the phone, email, or in person, I would love that! Feel free to contact me.

In the gospel of John today, Jesus is gathered with disciples, his closest companions.  The message he shares is for them, not for the Pharisees, not for the crowds, for the disciples.  He is gathered with them the day before his death, calling his disciples friends, naming them intimate companions.  No one knows Jesus better than the disciples as he himself says here: I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father.   What is this intimate message Jesus shares with his closest friends?  I invite you to actually open your Bibles to John 15:9-17 and walk through this passage with me. 

First of all, our passage begins in the middle of a paragraph at the beginning of which Jesus declares: I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower.  A few verses later, Jesus says: I am the vine, you are the branches.  Jesus tells his disciples that they rely on him for nourishment and that they and he have the closest of connections for the branch cannot survive apart from the vine.  The disciples’ connection with Jesus connects them also to God, the vinegrower.  In verses 9 and 10, we hear a similar sentiment.  Jesus’ love for us is similar to God’s love for Jesus.  Jesus then connects abiding in his love with following his commandments.  First of all, how do we abide in Jesus’ love for us?  Secondly, how does abiding in Jesus’ love empower us to keep Jesus’ commandments?

Then, in verse 12, Jesus repeats a command he shared with the disciples earlier that evening after he washed their feet.  “Love one another as I have loved you.”  How did Jesus love the disciples?  What implications does this have for how we ought to love one another?

Jesus, of course, knows that he will die the very next day, that he will lay down his life for his friends.  So, after telling them to love one another, he tells them that great love involves laying down one’s life for one’s friends.  And, in case you didn’t know it, disciples, Jesus says, you are my friends.  I lay down my life for you.  Is Jesus calling us to go and do likewise, to lay down our lives for our friends?  Are we expected to be capable of such great love?

I don’t know if Jesus meant for his followers to literally lose their lives for the sake of their friends.  I do know that losing your life for a friend was not simply Jesus’ definition of great love.   In the broader first century culture, philosophers of old heralded the virtue of laying down one’s life for one’s friend. 

However, the reality today is that we are rarely called upon to lose our lives in order to save the lives of others.  For us, the more relevant questions are: Will we lay down being right? Will we lay down popularity? Will we lay down our comfort? …to better steward Earth, to support public policy that creates wellness for the greatest number of people, to end structures that discriminate against some more than others.

Jesus is not done.  He tells the disciples: You did not choose me but I chose you.  We know Jesus picks who he wants to follow him.  He doesn’t put an announcement in the bulletin that reads: Disciples Needed for ministry.  If you’re interested, please talk with Jesus after service.  No.  Jesus goes and picks who he wants to follow him, and they do.  He’s chosen us too—in Holy Baptism.  And he tells the disciples further: I appointed you to go and bear fruit.  Clearly, in this passage, the fruit is love.  We, the branches, are called to grow and blossom and bear the fruit of love. 

In verse 11, Jesus tells the disciples: I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.  I rarely consider Jesus’ countenance, his general mood, his attitude.  But here, he speaks of being joyful and wanting to share his joy.  If we were to abide in his life and bear the fruit of love, how does this bring us joy? 

Of course, the news is always good for us if it’s from Jesus.  Even a command is good news for this command to abide in Jesus’ love and to bear the fruit of love catapults us into a life of joyous love—for ourselves, the world, and God—and then to receive that love right back.  Thanks be to God!  Amen.

The GLOW Show: Awe & Humility

What does the Bible say about creation and humans’ role as part of creation? During the season of Easter on The GLOW Show, Pastor Sarah will explore biblical stories and passages that reveal God’s posture towards Earth, God’s call for humans as part of creation, and the ways Jesus’ ministry was deeply embedded in creation. Today, we explore humans’ relationship to God through the lens of creation by looking at Job 38 & 39 as well as Psalm 8. Grab your Bible and enjoy!

The GLOW Show: Laws of Rest

What does the Bible say about creation and humans’ role as part of creation? During the season of Easter on The GLOW Show, Pastor Sarah will explore biblical stories and passages that reveal God’s posture towards Earth, God’s call for humans as part of creation, and the ways Jesus’ ministry was deeply embedded in creation. Today, we explore the third commandment and the Levitical law of rest for creatures and the land. Grab your Bible and enjoy!

Sermon for Sunday, April 25

Day of the Church Year: Fourth Sunday of Easter

Scripture Passage: John 10:11-18

I’m on the proverbial hot seat this morning, me and all of my pastor colleagues and bishops and lay church leaders—that’s many of you in various roles.  We’re all on the hot seat today because Jesus speaks of shepherds.  Now, we’re used to hearing Jesus speak of us, God’s people, as “sheep,” ones who need leading and guiding, and we are accustomed to thinking of Jesus as our “shepherd,” one who protects and shows us the way.  Every fourth Sunday of Easter, we read from the tenth chapter of the gospel of John, a chapter full of sheep and shepherd imagery.  And every fourth Sunday of Easter, we sing or read Psalm 23 which begins: The Lord is my shepherd.  Given the ubiquity of the use of sheep and shepherd metaphors within Christianity, we probably know that sheep need a shepherd even if we’ve never personally shepherded sheep.  What we may not know is that the metaphor of sheep and shepherd is not limited to Psalm 23 and John 10. 

Throughout the Old Testament, God appoints shepherds, leaders of God’s people.  The role of shepherd is messianic, meaning the shepherd is called to save the people.  Kings are called to the role of shepherd with King David its most ardent example.  Just as a note: God only appoints shepherds because God’s people demand it.  God says: well, okay, if you really want it that badly, here ‘ya go.  Unsurprisingly, these leaders consistently disappoint. In Ezekiel 34, God through the prophet Ezekiel describes in agonizing detail the failures of the shepherds God had appointed.  Therefore, God declares, “I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I will make them lie down.  I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, but the fat and the strong I will destroy.  I will feed them with justice.”  God is our shepherd, settling us, seeking us, bringing us back, binding up our wounds, strengthening us, and also bringing an end to unjust power dynamics. 

When Jesus says, “I am the good shepherd,” in John 10, Jesus is actually speaking to the Pharisees, the Pharisees who are leaders among the Jewish people, the Pharisees who have just driven out of the synagogue the man born blind because the man is a “sinner” according to them and also because this man disagrees with them.  As far as we can tell from the biblical record, the Pharisees are genuine in their desire to serve God, but they miss the mark time and time again.  At the very end of John 9, after Jesus opens the eyes of the man born blind and he sees Jesus for who he really is, the Pharisees cannot and will not see Jesus.  Ironically, they ask him, “Surely we are not blind, are we?”  The reader may shout an emphatic “YES!” 

So, this morning, leaders of God’s people are on the hot seat for we are not good shepherds.  We have been filled with the Holy Spirit at baptism and called to leadership and service within the church.  Still, whatever role we have been equipped for and called to within the church, today’s scripture reminds us that there is only one good shepherd, and it’s not us.  It’s Jesus.           

This is why I appreciate so much that the first guiding principle here at Grace is Jesus is Lord.  Such a declaration may seem obvious...except when we are defending our position, except when we get angry when people don’t agree with us, except when we get caught up in using our power to hurt others.  Such a declaration of Jesus is Lord may seem obvious...until we embrace bitterness over forgiveness, until we believe ourselves morally superior, until we claim ourselves entitled but not responsible.  Jesus is Lord which means that arrogance among humans is laughably inappropriate.  We are not perfect, and we do fail, each one of us.  No matter our position of authority, no matter our moral authority, we are not Lord, and we are not the good shepherd.  If generations of the kings of Israel couldn’t get it right, we’re certainly not going to. 

To say Jesus is Lord or The Lord is my shepherd is to walk humbly, to live with humility.  Even though we are filled with the Holy Spirit and called to lead and serve God’s people, in whatever large or small way, we are also the sheep God seeks, brings back, binds up, and strengthens.  I think there is a real struggle for us to walk the line of humility, recognizing that we are the sheep who need the guidance and protection of God while at the same time using our God-given gifts to contribute confidently and passionately to the world.  For us to deny our gifts or to even degrade ourselves is not humility.  So, our question of the day is: What does true humility look like?  Who is someone who practices humility, and what do they do?  To read the community’s reflections, go to Facebook live stream worship for Sunday, April 25.

We sheep can get lost—for a whole variety of reasons including our own perceived greatness or power.  Thanks be to God that Jesus is the good shepherd who seeks us, brings us back, binds us up, strengthens us for lives of service and leadership, love and humility.  We are not Lord, but we have a good shepherd.  Thanks be to God!  Amen.

The GLOW Show: Noah & the Flood

What does the Bible say about creation and humans’ role as part of creation? During the season of Easter on The GLOW Show, Pastor Sarah will explore biblical stories and passages that reveal God’s posture towards Earth, God’s call for humans as part of creation, and the ways Jesus’ ministry was deeply embedded in creation. Today, we explore the story of Noah and the flood. Grab your Bible and enjoy!

Sermon for Sunday, April 18

Day in the Church Year: 3rd Sunday of Easter

Scripture Passage: Luke 24:36b-48

In the gospel of Luke, the women come to the tomb with spices early on Easter morning. When they arrive, they meet two men in dazzling clothes who ask them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here. He is risen.” Later that day while walking along the road to Emmaus, two followers of Jesus meet a stranger who talks with them about the death and reported resurrection of Jesus and then opens up the scriptures to them. When they arrive at Emmaus and sit down at the table together, the stranger takes the bread, blesses it, breaks it, and gives it to them. Their eyes are opened. It is Jesus. But he vanishes from their sight. These two rush to tell the disciples, “The Lord has risen indeed and has appeared to Simon!” And in the middle of the conversation about how they recognized Jesus as the stranger breaking the bread, suddenly, Jesus appears to them all in today’s reading.

Each Easter Sunday and throughout the season of Easter, we joyously proclaim: Christ is risen! To which you respond: Christ is risen indeed! This Easter proclamation comes from the 24th chapter of Luke. These words announce our hope, our joy, our confidence in the power of God. But on that first Easter, it is not all hope. It is not all joy. It is not all confidence in the power of God. For the women at the empty tomb and for the followers who only recognize Jesus in the breaking of the bread, “He is risen” is a puzzlement. Even when the followers declare, “The Lord has risen indeed and has appeared to Simon!” they still ask themselves, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking with us on the road?” When Jesus appears among them in the passage of scripture we read today, quite suddenly, his presence is not met with sighs of relief, shouts of joy, and hugs all around. Jesus starts with “Peace be with you” because they are startled and terrified and think they are seeing a ghost. Jesus shows them his wounds, asks to eat in their presence, to further assure them of his real-ness, and then opens their minds to understand the scriptures. Yet, still, they persist in wonderment and disbelief.

There is a space between “Christ is risen” and “Christ is risen indeed.” To hear the announcement of Christ’s glorious resurrection is one thing. To respond, “Indeed“ and “alleluia” is another. Because, at least at first glance, Christ’s new life, Christ’s risen life is not all hope, joy, and confidence. New life does not mean the old life resuscitated. New life does not mean reverting back to life the way it was before, no matter how great it was. For the disciples, Christ’s risen life, Christ’s new life does not mean they will again travel with Jesus from place to place as he heals, teaches, feeds, and befriends people. New life means something entirely new, something the disciples and we cannot anticipate or plan for or control.

This Easter, we rejoice when we hear “Christ is risen,” but responding “Christ is risen indeed” at least partly means letting go of the old life and embracing whatever new life is breaking forth in our presence. To say “Christ is risen indeed” is not simply an affirmation of an age-old story but also a somewhat terrifying relinquishment of control. We who are fond of 5-year strategic plans and our daily routines, we may struggle to embrace Christ’s risen life, with Christ’s new life. Maybe we are happy with our old lives. The old lives we can control and understand and predict, each year unfolding like all the years before, with perfect regularity.

On Easter Sunday at both our worship service in the courtyard and during live stream worship, I asked how we all practice resurrection. Many of you responded insightfully and thoughtfully, from saying hello to people who are determined to be grumpy to taking care of ourselves when we could be consumed by despair to practicing gratitude and forgiveness to serving others. At worship in the courtyard, Ursula raised her hand and said: “Grace is a resurrection church, and I’m part of Grace.” Grace is a resurrection church. We are a resurrection people who embrace the new, risen life of Christ, personally and communally. On a really concrete level, there’s not much for us to do but to be present to what God is doing, to show up for what God is leading us to do, to walk forward even when we are afraid. We do not and cannot control the new, risen life of Christ breaking forth among us any more than the disciples could stop Jesus from showing up among them to say “Peace be with you.”

What Christ’s new, risen life looks like here and now, I can’t really tell you until we walk into it together. The plan, for all those of us who want a plan, is that, when Christ’s new, risen life breaks forth among us, either individually or communally, we will embrace it even though we might be scared. Today, I invite us to practice mindfulness for just a moment. Mindfulness is simply becoming aware of what we can perceive through our five senses as well as tracking the thoughts of our minds. When we are caught up in our thoughts, we can miss what is right in front of us. My hope is that by practicing mindfulness today and moving forward, we might become aware of Christ’s new, risen life breaking forth among us instead of getting stuck in old habits and patterns, fears and thoughts about what we believe should happen.

Please put both your feet on the floor, hands at rest in your lap or on the arms of a chair. Breath in. Breath out. What do you smell? Taste? Touch? Hear? See? What thoughts are entering your mind? Where and how is Christ’s new, risen life breaking open? Breath in. Breath out.

We have heard: Christ is risen. Will we respond? Christ is risen indeed! Alleluia! Amen.

The GLOW Show: Creation Story #2

What does the Bible say about creation and humans’ role as part of creation? During the season of Easter on The GLOW Show, Pastor Sarah will explore biblical stories and passages that reveal God’s posture towards Earth, God’s call for humans as part of creation, and the ways Jesus’ ministry was deeply embedded in creation. Today, we explore the second creation story from Genesis 2:4b-25. Grab your Bible and enjoy!