Sermon preached at St Mary’s, Lapworth at 11am Eucharist
Sunday 20th June 2010 – Trinity III, proper 7
Readings: Gal 3: 23-29 Luke 826-39
Recently my daughter Caroline was in a dance show, so I went along to watch her dance. The show was based on a book called “Peter Pan in Scarlet” which has been written in 2006 as an official sequel to the story of Peter Pan, the little boy who has adventures in Neverland, and who never grows up.
Now the story of Peter Pan ends when Peter Pan’s arch enemy, the evil pirate Captain Hook is defeated by Peter and falls into the jaws of a crocodile. Peter Pan in Scarlet is all about Peter Pan, who carries on living in Neverland, wearing the scarlet robe that was formerly worn by Captain Hook. And as the story develops Peter Pan slowly takes on more and more of Captain Hook’s personality. He becomes angry and selfish and difficult. His gang of friends, “The Lost Boys” find him harder and harder to live with. Peter begins to dream the dreams of Captain Hook and to take on his desires, and all this because he is wearing Captain Hooks cloak. Peter Pan’s situation gets worse and worse until he realises the problems the cloak is causing him. He casts off the cloak, and from that point, although Peter has become very ill, everything starts to get better. The premise is that somehow, by wearing someone’s clothes you slowly become that person.
So in what way is that true? Last night we had a very enjoyable curry night to raise money for the charity “Warwick in India”. I wore the Indian clothes that I bought eight years ago in New Delhi. Did wearing Indian clothes make me more Indian? Well I don’t know? I certainly felt more Indian. And certainly, if I was more Indian, I would wear Indian Clothes more.
Well this all seems like the realms of fairytales. But in our epistle reading today Paul said, “As many of you as were baptised into Christ have clothed yourself with Christ”. And Paul is forever using this idea of putting on things which are good, like we might put on clothing, in order to make ourselves good. When we get up on a morning we have to choose the clothes to put on. In the same way we can start each day by choosing our attitudes and behaviours for the day. In different parts of the New testament Paul tells us to put on the armour of light (Rom 13: 12), the Lord Jesus Christ (Rom 13: 14), the imperishable, immortal body (1 Cor 15: 53), the whole armour of God (Eph 6:11, see also 1 Thes 5: 7) and the new self, the new man ( Eph 4: 24 Col 3: 10). It seems that Paul is always urging us to put on good things, holy things, good behaviours as we would put on clothes. These things might be external to us, they might come from God rather than from our own nature, but they have a positive effect on us, slowly changing us into something better. And Paul often talks about Christians as being changed and transformed. He says that we are transformed into the likeness of Christ (2 Cor 3: 18). Eventually, wearing these good things like clothes, they make us Christ like. Paul says, “it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me” (Gal 2: 20).
Equally Paul is always telling us to put aside bad things; to lay aside the works of darkness (Rom 13: 12). This is important because the opposite can also happen. If, when we get up in the morning, we choose to put on evil things and bad behaviours then evil grows within us. In our gospel reading we heard of a man processed by many demons. He was in a most terrible state, completely under the control of his demons, but Jesus still managed to heal him.
In the church we are all Saints and we are all Sinners. We all have Christ within us, especially since our baptism, but we also all have a tendency to sin, to rebel against God. Paul is urging us always to cloth ourselves in the Saint. Always live by the Saint, adopt the attitudes of the saint, the behaviours of the Saint, to think of the good of others, like the Saint. And this is important, because the Saint who grows within us has a future that is eternal and blessed. It can only get better. When we choose to live in the Sinner then we are building for ourselves a future that is in opposition to God. This might seem easy in the short term, but in the end it can only perish and decay and die.
And of course it is not just in the morning that we have to choose to live by the Saint. We have to do it in each present moment of our lives. It is the behaviours and attitudes that we are choosing right now in the present moment that have an effect; not our good aspirations for tomorrow. When I was training for Advanced Driving Test I often found that I had my hands in the wrong position on the steering wheel. As soon as I noticed, I would put my hands back in the right position and carry on. And sometimes this was really hard, I just felt that I could not be bothered. But the more I did it, the more natural it became to me and now I find it easy, instinctive even. Well in the same way I try to train myself always to put on the Lord Jesus Christ and to live each moment in the Saint. And over time that too becomes for natural and instinctive.
But what about the times when we just can’t do it? What about the times when, like the demoniac we are dominated by unruly forces within us and we can only choose behaviours which are bad and destructive. Or perhaps the problem is with the people around us, or the society we live in, and we find ourselves constrained towards violence and injustice. Well, in my opinion, this happens all the time and the key thing is to continue to live in the Saint, even when the Sinner is in control. Jesus, in his passion and death, seemed to be overpowered by the forces of evil. It seemed that they had overcome him completely and killed him. But Jesus’ cry went up to heaven. God revealed the Resurrection; new life for Jesus and defeat for evil. So, where the Sinner is in control in our lives, living in the Saint means sharing with Jesus in the experience of passion and death. It is painful and humbling, but where our cry rises to heaven united with the cry of Jesus, there God breaks the power of evil and gives new life.
So let’s be clothed in Christ. Let’s choose always the attitudes and behaviours of the Saint. And let’s practice this in each present moment of our lives, because practice makes perfect!
Showing posts with label sinner. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sinner. Show all posts
20 June 2010
01 November 2009
All saints day
Informal sermon preached at St Alphege 9.15 Eucharist
Sunday 1st November 2009 – All Saints Day – Year B
(A more traditional version of this sermon was also preached at the 11am Eucharist.)
Readings: Wisdom 3: 1-9 Rev 21: 1-6 John 11: 32-44
[AV - Camera]
So it’s All Saints Day; the day when we remind ourselves about all the saints in heaven, both those who are famous and have their own special days in the churches calendar, and especially those who are not so famous, those whose holiness is known to God alone.
And what is a Saint? Well a saint is a person who is holy. A saint is a person who has drawn very close to God, who is illuminated by the holiness of God. A saint is someone who is completely filled with the love of God, who moves in complete harmony with God. A saint is someone who has at last become precisely what God created them to be. God’s creation in them has been realised in all its fullness.
[AV - Picture of saints in heaven]
And here we have a picture of the saints in heaven. In the centre you can see Jesus on the cross, above him God the Father, and above him the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove. And around the three persons of God we have countless saints, all looking to Christ and all moving in perfect harmony with God.
And the good news is that we are all saints. In the New Testament, all the baptised people are commonly called saints. And we have been baptised. We are a new creation (2 Cor 5: 17), we are members of Christ’s body (1 Cor 6: 15), children of God, and co-heirs of God with Christ (Roman 8: 16-17). By our baptism we become part of God’s chosen people, part of his royal priesthood, and holy nation (1 Peter 2: 9). And all this because we have believed and been baptised (Mark 16: 16). So there is a sense in which we are all saints, already!
[AV - Camera]
Well you are probably sat there looking at the person next to you and thinking, “Well she’s not a saint. I know that for sure. If my wife was a saint she would be far better at cooking!”
And this is where we get to the bad news. Although all of us in the church are saints, we are also all sinners. We all have this part of us that rebels against God’s love; that says, “No, I want to do it my way.” And this sin affects us in many ways. First of all it clouds our vision. It makes us look at things selfishly and not as God sees them. There is a sense in which your wife really is a saint, but in your sinfulness you don’t see it. You are too busy thinking about your stomach! But then our sinfulness also leads us into bad attitudes and bad behaviours. We treat other people as enemies or threats and not as children of God. And as we all know, it gets worse.
So we are all saints, and we are all sinners. Well we probably knew that already, because we know that everyone has their good points and their bad points. But the very important point that we must not overlook is that the saint within us has an eternal and blessed future with God in heaven, and with the saints, whereas the sinner within us has no future. He can only shrivel up and die. The wages of sin is death (Rom 6: 23). So the skill of life on earth is to always make the saint within us grow, and flourish because the saint is our future. And the sinner we allow to die, because in the end that is all he can do.
And how do we do this? How do we make the saint within us grow? Well we do it by focusing on Christ, who is THE saint, the holy one, the source of our holiness.
Our gospel reading today presented a powerful picture of Christ as the resurrection and the life. Jesus was able to restore the body of Lazarus despite the stench of four days of decay in the tomb. Jesus was able to call Lazarus back from the dead and give him life once more. So it is that Jesus is the source of our resurrection life. He is the one who gives life to the saint within us makes it grow. Our holiness does not come from us, it comes from God. It is the gift of grace. Our part is to want it, to pray for it, and to accept it and co-operate with it. And accepting this grace means accepting the commandments of Jesus, especially the commandments to love other people. If we practise loving then the saint grows within us. The kingdom of God within us might feel like a very small mustard seed, but it has the potential to grow into a great tree (c.f. Matt 13: 31).
And as the saint grows within us, so the sinner within gets marginalised and squeezed out. And this can be painful; it a kind of death. But its worth it because it allows the saint to grow.
[AV - Picture of saints in heaven]
Let’s go back to that picture of the saints. One of the amazing things is that they are all very different. In Revelation 7 (v 9) we are told that they come from every tribe and nation, every people and language, and they all have a specific role in heaven. They all have their own distinctive way of ministering to the other saints. And the church on earth is like this too. We are all very different. We do come from many different tribes and peoples, nations and languages. And we all have a distinctive ministry to one another, each of us our own particular way of helping the others.
[AV - Picture of listening]
And today I would like to emphasise one particular ministry that lies beneath all the others; the ministry of listening. It is so important to listen properly to one another, to create the space for the other person to express themselves. Listening is the basis of so many other ministries because only by listening can we understand the needs of the other person, only by being attentive to them can we be sure that our ministry is exercised for their benefit and not out of our own pride. And listening is also very counter cultural. Our culture always emphasises the importance of getting our message across. Listening, in contrast seeks to hear the truth of the other person; not the bluster and self propaganda, but the truth of the person created by God. In October’s parish magazine we advertised a taster evening of training on Christian listening coming up on 17th November. I commend this to you. Look out for more details in the next weeks pewslip.
[AV - Camera]
So, on All Saints day let us rejoice with the saints in heaven. Let’s praise God for our baptism which like a small mustard seed means that we too can grow up to become great saints. And let’s focus on Christ. Even if our lives are sinful and putrid, like a body four days in the grave, Christ can show us the way and make it happen, so that we grow up to discover our own small place in heaven, along side all the other saints. Amen.
Sunday 1st November 2009 – All Saints Day – Year B
(A more traditional version of this sermon was also preached at the 11am Eucharist.)
Readings: Wisdom 3: 1-9 Rev 21: 1-6 John 11: 32-44
[AV - Camera]
So it’s All Saints Day; the day when we remind ourselves about all the saints in heaven, both those who are famous and have their own special days in the churches calendar, and especially those who are not so famous, those whose holiness is known to God alone.
And what is a Saint? Well a saint is a person who is holy. A saint is a person who has drawn very close to God, who is illuminated by the holiness of God. A saint is someone who is completely filled with the love of God, who moves in complete harmony with God. A saint is someone who has at last become precisely what God created them to be. God’s creation in them has been realised in all its fullness.
[AV - Picture of saints in heaven]
And here we have a picture of the saints in heaven. In the centre you can see Jesus on the cross, above him God the Father, and above him the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove. And around the three persons of God we have countless saints, all looking to Christ and all moving in perfect harmony with God.
And the good news is that we are all saints. In the New Testament, all the baptised people are commonly called saints. And we have been baptised. We are a new creation (2 Cor 5: 17), we are members of Christ’s body (1 Cor 6: 15), children of God, and co-heirs of God with Christ (Roman 8: 16-17). By our baptism we become part of God’s chosen people, part of his royal priesthood, and holy nation (1 Peter 2: 9). And all this because we have believed and been baptised (Mark 16: 16). So there is a sense in which we are all saints, already!
[AV - Camera]
Well you are probably sat there looking at the person next to you and thinking, “Well she’s not a saint. I know that for sure. If my wife was a saint she would be far better at cooking!”
And this is where we get to the bad news. Although all of us in the church are saints, we are also all sinners. We all have this part of us that rebels against God’s love; that says, “No, I want to do it my way.” And this sin affects us in many ways. First of all it clouds our vision. It makes us look at things selfishly and not as God sees them. There is a sense in which your wife really is a saint, but in your sinfulness you don’t see it. You are too busy thinking about your stomach! But then our sinfulness also leads us into bad attitudes and bad behaviours. We treat other people as enemies or threats and not as children of God. And as we all know, it gets worse.
So we are all saints, and we are all sinners. Well we probably knew that already, because we know that everyone has their good points and their bad points. But the very important point that we must not overlook is that the saint within us has an eternal and blessed future with God in heaven, and with the saints, whereas the sinner within us has no future. He can only shrivel up and die. The wages of sin is death (Rom 6: 23). So the skill of life on earth is to always make the saint within us grow, and flourish because the saint is our future. And the sinner we allow to die, because in the end that is all he can do.
And how do we do this? How do we make the saint within us grow? Well we do it by focusing on Christ, who is THE saint, the holy one, the source of our holiness.
Our gospel reading today presented a powerful picture of Christ as the resurrection and the life. Jesus was able to restore the body of Lazarus despite the stench of four days of decay in the tomb. Jesus was able to call Lazarus back from the dead and give him life once more. So it is that Jesus is the source of our resurrection life. He is the one who gives life to the saint within us makes it grow. Our holiness does not come from us, it comes from God. It is the gift of grace. Our part is to want it, to pray for it, and to accept it and co-operate with it. And accepting this grace means accepting the commandments of Jesus, especially the commandments to love other people. If we practise loving then the saint grows within us. The kingdom of God within us might feel like a very small mustard seed, but it has the potential to grow into a great tree (c.f. Matt 13: 31).
And as the saint grows within us, so the sinner within gets marginalised and squeezed out. And this can be painful; it a kind of death. But its worth it because it allows the saint to grow.
[AV - Picture of saints in heaven]
Let’s go back to that picture of the saints. One of the amazing things is that they are all very different. In Revelation 7 (v 9) we are told that they come from every tribe and nation, every people and language, and they all have a specific role in heaven. They all have their own distinctive way of ministering to the other saints. And the church on earth is like this too. We are all very different. We do come from many different tribes and peoples, nations and languages. And we all have a distinctive ministry to one another, each of us our own particular way of helping the others.
[AV - Picture of listening]
And today I would like to emphasise one particular ministry that lies beneath all the others; the ministry of listening. It is so important to listen properly to one another, to create the space for the other person to express themselves. Listening is the basis of so many other ministries because only by listening can we understand the needs of the other person, only by being attentive to them can we be sure that our ministry is exercised for their benefit and not out of our own pride. And listening is also very counter cultural. Our culture always emphasises the importance of getting our message across. Listening, in contrast seeks to hear the truth of the other person; not the bluster and self propaganda, but the truth of the person created by God. In October’s parish magazine we advertised a taster evening of training on Christian listening coming up on 17th November. I commend this to you. Look out for more details in the next weeks pewslip.
[AV - Camera]
So, on All Saints day let us rejoice with the saints in heaven. Let’s praise God for our baptism which like a small mustard seed means that we too can grow up to become great saints. And let’s focus on Christ. Even if our lives are sinful and putrid, like a body four days in the grave, Christ can show us the way and make it happen, so that we grow up to discover our own small place in heaven, along side all the other saints. Amen.
26 December 2008
New years resolutions
Article written for the Faith Matters column of the Solihull News for publication on 26th December 2008. (I am not sure whether this edition ever came out)
Every year I have the same New Year’s resolutions! I always try to eat and drink a bit less, and to exercise and rest a bit more. In fact, I find I have to have this resolution all the year round! It is so easy to fall off the programme! It reminds me of Mark Twain, who said, “Giving up smoking is the easiest thing in the world. I know because I've done it thousands of times.” It would be easy to become disheartened, but somehow it is the process of being honest about the consequences when I get it wrong, that builds within me the desire and aptitude to do better. Very slowly, and through all kinds of ups and downs, I do make progress!
Churches are made up of sinners who are learning to be saints. Some people say that it is hypocritical to try to become better than you really are. They suggest it is more honest to behave as the sinner you are. I don’t agree with this. It is not hypocritical for an uneducated person to go to school and slowly to become educated. Neither is it hypocritical for a sinful person to go to church, to practice living the gospel, and to slowly become a saint. In fact I worry that the person who rejoices in just being a sinner is not being completely honest about the pain that sin causes. It is humbly admitting our sinfulness and accepting the pain it causes that somehow allows God to build the saint within us.
So, how about a New Year’s resolution to become a better person? How about a resolution to grow in love for God, and to grow in love for the people around us? Of course, we know before we start that we will fail miserably! But it is by trying, failing, accepting the suffering and trying again that we allow God to work on us, and ultimately God never fails!
Every year I have the same New Year’s resolutions! I always try to eat and drink a bit less, and to exercise and rest a bit more. In fact, I find I have to have this resolution all the year round! It is so easy to fall off the programme! It reminds me of Mark Twain, who said, “Giving up smoking is the easiest thing in the world. I know because I've done it thousands of times.” It would be easy to become disheartened, but somehow it is the process of being honest about the consequences when I get it wrong, that builds within me the desire and aptitude to do better. Very slowly, and through all kinds of ups and downs, I do make progress!
Churches are made up of sinners who are learning to be saints. Some people say that it is hypocritical to try to become better than you really are. They suggest it is more honest to behave as the sinner you are. I don’t agree with this. It is not hypocritical for an uneducated person to go to school and slowly to become educated. Neither is it hypocritical for a sinful person to go to church, to practice living the gospel, and to slowly become a saint. In fact I worry that the person who rejoices in just being a sinner is not being completely honest about the pain that sin causes. It is humbly admitting our sinfulness and accepting the pain it causes that somehow allows God to build the saint within us.
So, how about a New Year’s resolution to become a better person? How about a resolution to grow in love for God, and to grow in love for the people around us? Of course, we know before we start that we will fail miserably! But it is by trying, failing, accepting the suffering and trying again that we allow God to work on us, and ultimately God never fails!
08 June 2008
Dealing with our sin
Preached at the 11am Eucharist at St Alphege, Solihull on Sunday 8th June 2008
3rd Sunday after Trinity, Proper 5 – Year A
Readings: Hosea 5:15 – 6:6 Romans 4:13-25 Matthew 9:9-13, 18-26
Our gospel reading today tells us a great deal about Jesus’ approach to sin and sinners. To understand it properly we need to understand the role of tax collectors in the society in which Jesus lived. Tax collectors were considered to be very public sinners. They were key collaborators with the Roman army of occupation. The occupying Roman powers gave to the tax collectors both right and the obligation to collect taxes from the local people. Most of the taxes went straight to the Romans, increasing the strength and resilience of their occupation. However the tax collectors were entitled to collect slightly more than they handed over to the Romans in order to cover their own living expenses. Of course some tax collectors had grand ideas about their own living expenses and became very rich at other people’s expense. To collect taxes effectively the tax collectors needed information about people, income and wealth so they would always be prying people for information. Nobody would voluntarily speak to a tax collector. The tax collectors were outcasts, treated with the utmost suspicion and often deeply hated.
And yet, most surprisingly, Jesus calls a tax collector, Matthew, to be one his disciples. Mathew becomes one of the 12 chosen by Jesus as apostles. He also becomes the writer of one of the gospels. The choice of Matthew can only have been damaging to Jesus’ reputation as a religious leader. How would we feel nowadays about a religious leader who chose a terrorist or paedophile to be one of his closest followers? Clearly Matthew must have left behind his tax collecting ways in order to follow Jesus, but it is still rather shocking. Clearly, in the mind of Jesus, sin, even very serious public sin, does not disqualify a person from being called by God. Coming from a background of sin does not prevent someone from eventually becoming absolutely central to the life and ministry of the Church. This is not saying that sin does not matter or is not a problem, but it is giving the most categorical assurance that, in relationship with Jesus, the problem of sin can and will be overcome. Through a relationship with Jesus, even the worst sinners can and will be made good.
And the gospel reading goes on to reinforce this by telling us about Jesus and his disciples eating with tax collectors and sinners. In those times, sharing food with someone was seen as a very intimate act of sharing. Eating food with tax collectors and sinners could easily be interpreted as condoning their sin. For the Pharisees this is a scandal, and they ask why Jesus does it. In his answer Jesus’ compares himself to a doctor, whose role is to heal the sick. He is not pretending that the sinners are righteous, but rather he is recognising that they need help and that he has come to give them help. “I have come to call not for the righteous, but sinners,” he said.
We all like to think of ourselves as righteous. We, none of us, like to think of ourselves as sinners. And yet we know that all of us are both saints and sinners at the same time. Particularly through our baptism, we all have the new life of Christ somewhere within us. Hopefully it is being well looked after, well nurtured and we are steadily growing up into the full stature of Christ. However we also know that sin, that is rebellion against God, is also present in each one of us, causing problems for ourselves and for others, and seeking to stop us growing up into Christ. And it is very important to be honest with ourselves about sin, otherwise we do ourselves a great disfavour and sell ourselves far short of what we are called to be.
Suppose (although it is quite impossible) that there was a scale for measuring how good or bad a person is, and suppose we are quite a good person, say plus seven or plus eight! This might sound quite good, but we must realise that this plus eight is actually made up of a plus 80 for our saintly part, and a -72 for our sinful part. Further we have the opportunity to make the 80 grow by choosing always to live in our saint, and we can reduce the effect of the -72, by recognising our sin, commending it to God’s mercy and asking for his help in overcoming it. Being honest before God about our sin is the really important first step towards its being healed. It is all too easy to say, “Well that’s not sin because everyone does it. It’s beyond my control. I can’t help it that I hate that person. I can’t hep it that I have this greed, this resentment, this disordered desire.” And often this is true, often our sin is not directly “our fault”. Often our sin arises from hurts and pains that we have received from other people. Often it arises because we have not been loved as we need to be loved. Often it arises because of the culture we live in. It can arise from adverts that teach us to want things that we do not need. It can arise from TV and films that fill our mind with sex and with selfish ideas of fulfilment. It can arise from newspapers that teach us to have fear; to fear bird flu or teenagers or other faith groups. And it may well be that much of this is not “our fault” as individuals. Much of it is not our personal rebellion against God. We may not be culpable, but this sin is still our problem. It is still limiting our development as human beings. It is still down to us to do something about it.
So what do we do about our sin. Well, as I have said, the first step is to honestly acknowledge our sin before God, without pretending its not there, or pretending it is not sin, or that it is not our responsibility. The second step is to continue loving ourselves, despite our sin, as God continues to loves us. We need to love ourselves with the same love that Jesus had for the tax collectors and sinners that he eat with. As we become aware of our sin we might be tempted towards self hatred, but this is quite wrong. We have to learn to forgive ourselves and believe in God’s love for us. Often this means accepting some pain associated with our sin, just as Jesus on the cross accepted the pain of human sin. Jesus, suffering for the sin of others, is the ultimate model here. We need to grow in love, honour and respect for Jesus in his suffering, and this will help us to approach our own sufferings with the right mindset.
Above let’s remember Jesus, quoting our first reading from Hosea, “I desire mercy not sacrifice.” We can’t buy our way out of sin with the blood of lambs or with burnt offerings, still less with money. Rather sin is overcome by mercy, that quality of love which has compassion on those in difficulty. Let’s pray that God will fill our hearts with mercy for our own sins and the sins of the people around us. Amen.
3rd Sunday after Trinity, Proper 5 – Year A
Readings: Hosea 5:15 – 6:6 Romans 4:13-25 Matthew 9:9-13, 18-26
Our gospel reading today tells us a great deal about Jesus’ approach to sin and sinners. To understand it properly we need to understand the role of tax collectors in the society in which Jesus lived. Tax collectors were considered to be very public sinners. They were key collaborators with the Roman army of occupation. The occupying Roman powers gave to the tax collectors both right and the obligation to collect taxes from the local people. Most of the taxes went straight to the Romans, increasing the strength and resilience of their occupation. However the tax collectors were entitled to collect slightly more than they handed over to the Romans in order to cover their own living expenses. Of course some tax collectors had grand ideas about their own living expenses and became very rich at other people’s expense. To collect taxes effectively the tax collectors needed information about people, income and wealth so they would always be prying people for information. Nobody would voluntarily speak to a tax collector. The tax collectors were outcasts, treated with the utmost suspicion and often deeply hated.
And yet, most surprisingly, Jesus calls a tax collector, Matthew, to be one his disciples. Mathew becomes one of the 12 chosen by Jesus as apostles. He also becomes the writer of one of the gospels. The choice of Matthew can only have been damaging to Jesus’ reputation as a religious leader. How would we feel nowadays about a religious leader who chose a terrorist or paedophile to be one of his closest followers? Clearly Matthew must have left behind his tax collecting ways in order to follow Jesus, but it is still rather shocking. Clearly, in the mind of Jesus, sin, even very serious public sin, does not disqualify a person from being called by God. Coming from a background of sin does not prevent someone from eventually becoming absolutely central to the life and ministry of the Church. This is not saying that sin does not matter or is not a problem, but it is giving the most categorical assurance that, in relationship with Jesus, the problem of sin can and will be overcome. Through a relationship with Jesus, even the worst sinners can and will be made good.
And the gospel reading goes on to reinforce this by telling us about Jesus and his disciples eating with tax collectors and sinners. In those times, sharing food with someone was seen as a very intimate act of sharing. Eating food with tax collectors and sinners could easily be interpreted as condoning their sin. For the Pharisees this is a scandal, and they ask why Jesus does it. In his answer Jesus’ compares himself to a doctor, whose role is to heal the sick. He is not pretending that the sinners are righteous, but rather he is recognising that they need help and that he has come to give them help. “I have come to call not for the righteous, but sinners,” he said.
We all like to think of ourselves as righteous. We, none of us, like to think of ourselves as sinners. And yet we know that all of us are both saints and sinners at the same time. Particularly through our baptism, we all have the new life of Christ somewhere within us. Hopefully it is being well looked after, well nurtured and we are steadily growing up into the full stature of Christ. However we also know that sin, that is rebellion against God, is also present in each one of us, causing problems for ourselves and for others, and seeking to stop us growing up into Christ. And it is very important to be honest with ourselves about sin, otherwise we do ourselves a great disfavour and sell ourselves far short of what we are called to be.
Suppose (although it is quite impossible) that there was a scale for measuring how good or bad a person is, and suppose we are quite a good person, say plus seven or plus eight! This might sound quite good, but we must realise that this plus eight is actually made up of a plus 80 for our saintly part, and a -72 for our sinful part. Further we have the opportunity to make the 80 grow by choosing always to live in our saint, and we can reduce the effect of the -72, by recognising our sin, commending it to God’s mercy and asking for his help in overcoming it. Being honest before God about our sin is the really important first step towards its being healed. It is all too easy to say, “Well that’s not sin because everyone does it. It’s beyond my control. I can’t help it that I hate that person. I can’t hep it that I have this greed, this resentment, this disordered desire.” And often this is true, often our sin is not directly “our fault”. Often our sin arises from hurts and pains that we have received from other people. Often it arises because we have not been loved as we need to be loved. Often it arises because of the culture we live in. It can arise from adverts that teach us to want things that we do not need. It can arise from TV and films that fill our mind with sex and with selfish ideas of fulfilment. It can arise from newspapers that teach us to have fear; to fear bird flu or teenagers or other faith groups. And it may well be that much of this is not “our fault” as individuals. Much of it is not our personal rebellion against God. We may not be culpable, but this sin is still our problem. It is still limiting our development as human beings. It is still down to us to do something about it.
So what do we do about our sin. Well, as I have said, the first step is to honestly acknowledge our sin before God, without pretending its not there, or pretending it is not sin, or that it is not our responsibility. The second step is to continue loving ourselves, despite our sin, as God continues to loves us. We need to love ourselves with the same love that Jesus had for the tax collectors and sinners that he eat with. As we become aware of our sin we might be tempted towards self hatred, but this is quite wrong. We have to learn to forgive ourselves and believe in God’s love for us. Often this means accepting some pain associated with our sin, just as Jesus on the cross accepted the pain of human sin. Jesus, suffering for the sin of others, is the ultimate model here. We need to grow in love, honour and respect for Jesus in his suffering, and this will help us to approach our own sufferings with the right mindset.
Above let’s remember Jesus, quoting our first reading from Hosea, “I desire mercy not sacrifice.” We can’t buy our way out of sin with the blood of lambs or with burnt offerings, still less with money. Rather sin is overcome by mercy, that quality of love which has compassion on those in difficulty. Let’s pray that God will fill our hearts with mercy for our own sins and the sins of the people around us. Amen.
17 February 2008
Transfiguration
Preached at St Alphege Church on Sunday 17th February 2008 at 11am Eucharist
Second Sunday in Lent, Year A
Readings: Genesis 12:1-4a Romans 4:1-5,13-17 Matthew 17:1-9
Perhaps you are familiar with J K Rowling’ series of Harry Potter books? The books are primarily set in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. At the school one of the first subjects that a new student is likely to encounter is called Transfiguration. Transfiguration is magic that changes something into something else. Professor McGonagall demonstrates transfiguration by changing her desk into a pig. In their first lesson the students are asked to change a matchstick into a needle.
And so it is that for a whole generation of children, and probably many adults too, the word “Transfiguration” conjures up images of witches and wizards, wands and incantations, which have absolutely nothing to do with the Transfiguration that we heard about in our gospel reading today!
As a child I remember hearing the Transfiguration story from the gospels. I remember thinking that the Transfiguration was just about the strangest story in the whole of the New Testament. Healing miracles I could understand. Bringing people back from the dead was easy to imagine, but the Transfiguration was very hard to picture. It was very hard to imagine what happened, why it happened and why it was necessary.
The story starts as Jesus leads his three most trusted disciples up a high mountain. The scriptures do not tell us which mountain this was, but traditionally it has always been assumed to be Mount Tabor, to the west of the Sea of Galilee, not far from Nazareth. While they are on the mountain, the three disciples witness a most extra ordinary event. It is as though the disciples are briefly allowed to peer into some heavenly realm and see things that are not usually seen from earth. Important things about Jesus are revealed to them.
First of all the disciples see Jesus’ face start to shine like the sun and his clothes turn to a dazzling white. This hints at the divinity of Christ, or at least of his closeness to God. Then the disciples see Moses and Elijah alongside Jesus and talking to Jesus. Moses and Elijah are the two most important prophets in Judaism, so their appearance alongside Jesus emphasises the importance of Jesus, and his relevance to the Jewish tradition. Mark’s account of the transfiguration emphasises that the disciples were overcome by fear. Luke’s account has them overcome with sleep, but in both those accounts Peter hardly knows what he is saying as he offers to build shelters for Jesus, Moses and Elijah.
Then suddenly a bright cloud envelops them and a voice says, “This is my Son, the beloved with whom I am well pleased; listen to him!” This is the voice of God, and a clear affirmation that Jesus is the Son of God.
Then suddenly it is all over. The cloud has gone, Moses and Elijah are gone. It seems that Jesus look like a normal human being once again. He helps the disciples to get up and tells them not to be afraid. He also tells them not to discuss this incident until after the resurrection.
The Transfiguration is very strange, but it clearly tells us some important things about Jesus.
But there are also some aspects of the Transfiguration story that make us think about the very start of Jesus’ public ministry; the moment when Jesus was baptised by John the Baptist in the River Jordon. The most powerful link is the voice from heaven that proclaims “This is my Son, the beloved with whom I am well pleased.” This is almost exactly what is said by the voice from heaven at the Baptism of Christ. But there are other links too. If we had read a few verses further in Matthew’s gospel this morning we would have heard Jesus explaining that John the Baptist has the role of Elijah, the prophet who comes before the Messiah. So Elijah’s presence at the transfiguration can be compared to John the Baptists presence at the Baptism. Moses was present at the Transfiguration. He was not present at the baptism, although passing to new life through the waters of baptism always reminds us of Moses leading the Israelites through the waters of the Red Sea.
There are also things about the Transfiguration that make us think about the very last moments of Jesus’ ministry on earth; the Ascension. The account of the Ascension in the Acts of the Apostles (acts 1) is also set on a mountain; Mount Olivet, near Jerusalem. Jesus is hidden by a cloud and two men in white robes appear to the disciples and talk to them.
So the Transfiguration reminds us of the Baptism of Christ at the start of his ministry and it reminds us of the Ascension at the end of his ministry. It also reminds us of the Most Holy Trinity. God the Father speaks, God the Son, Jesus, is transfigured and God the Holy Spirit is often associated with the bright cloud that envelops them all.
And it seems to me that it is very helpful for us to have this image of Jesus in Glory and to keep this image before us. As Christians we are on a journey towards heaven. We aspire to eternal life, and this life is in Jesus (1John 5:11, 2Timothy1:1). We aspire to share in the holiness of God (Hebrews 12:10), to share in the glory of Jesus (2 Thessalonians 2:15, Romans 8:17) and we don’t necessarily really know what this means or what the experience might be like. And perhaps the Transfiguration starts to give us a glimpse of what it might be like to live in heaven, to dwell permanently close to Jesus with his face shining like the sun and with his clothes dazzlingly white. The disciples seem to have found this experience completely overpowering. Probably there is part of us that wants nothing more than this, that longs for it and waits for it. A yet probably there is also a part of us that finds the idea very exposing, very exhausting, very threatening. We all have our saintly tendencies that rejoice in the presence of Christ, and will all have our sinful tendencies which want to turn from Christ and to hide in the dark. The Transfiguration reminds us that we need to develop and practice and grow in our saintly tendencies that are of Christ, and that rejoice in the presence of Christ and that want to bring us to Christ. Similarly it reminds us that our sinful tendencies have to be left behind. We have to be ready to lose them and to let them die and wither away. We know that it is the pure of heart who will see God. Our impurities might be very hard to live with in the intense light of the glory of Christ.
This is what Lent is about. It is about reminding ourselves anew that we must turn from sin and to follow Christ. This means following in the commandments of Christ and seeking always to grow in love for God and grow in love for our neighbour. Of course we can only do this by the grace of God, but we can pray for that grace and we can make sure that we make the best possible use of the grace that God gives us. Growing in love means living according to our saintly tendencies, it means be generous to others, serving others and wanting their good. It means forsaking our tendencies towards greed and selfishness; our desires to reject, dominate or manipulate others.
So let’s choose to always live in our “saint” so that our saint can grow and develop and come to maturity. Let’s be ready to let our “sinner” wither away, because we know that when we come to encounter Christ in his glory, our “saint” will rejoice to share in the life of heaven, but our “sinner” will find it quite impossible.
Second Sunday in Lent, Year A
Readings: Genesis 12:1-4a Romans 4:1-5,13-17 Matthew 17:1-9
Perhaps you are familiar with J K Rowling’ series of Harry Potter books? The books are primarily set in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. At the school one of the first subjects that a new student is likely to encounter is called Transfiguration. Transfiguration is magic that changes something into something else. Professor McGonagall demonstrates transfiguration by changing her desk into a pig. In their first lesson the students are asked to change a matchstick into a needle.
And so it is that for a whole generation of children, and probably many adults too, the word “Transfiguration” conjures up images of witches and wizards, wands and incantations, which have absolutely nothing to do with the Transfiguration that we heard about in our gospel reading today!
As a child I remember hearing the Transfiguration story from the gospels. I remember thinking that the Transfiguration was just about the strangest story in the whole of the New Testament. Healing miracles I could understand. Bringing people back from the dead was easy to imagine, but the Transfiguration was very hard to picture. It was very hard to imagine what happened, why it happened and why it was necessary.
The story starts as Jesus leads his three most trusted disciples up a high mountain. The scriptures do not tell us which mountain this was, but traditionally it has always been assumed to be Mount Tabor, to the west of the Sea of Galilee, not far from Nazareth. While they are on the mountain, the three disciples witness a most extra ordinary event. It is as though the disciples are briefly allowed to peer into some heavenly realm and see things that are not usually seen from earth. Important things about Jesus are revealed to them.
First of all the disciples see Jesus’ face start to shine like the sun and his clothes turn to a dazzling white. This hints at the divinity of Christ, or at least of his closeness to God. Then the disciples see Moses and Elijah alongside Jesus and talking to Jesus. Moses and Elijah are the two most important prophets in Judaism, so their appearance alongside Jesus emphasises the importance of Jesus, and his relevance to the Jewish tradition. Mark’s account of the transfiguration emphasises that the disciples were overcome by fear. Luke’s account has them overcome with sleep, but in both those accounts Peter hardly knows what he is saying as he offers to build shelters for Jesus, Moses and Elijah.
Then suddenly a bright cloud envelops them and a voice says, “This is my Son, the beloved with whom I am well pleased; listen to him!” This is the voice of God, and a clear affirmation that Jesus is the Son of God.
Then suddenly it is all over. The cloud has gone, Moses and Elijah are gone. It seems that Jesus look like a normal human being once again. He helps the disciples to get up and tells them not to be afraid. He also tells them not to discuss this incident until after the resurrection.
The Transfiguration is very strange, but it clearly tells us some important things about Jesus.
But there are also some aspects of the Transfiguration story that make us think about the very start of Jesus’ public ministry; the moment when Jesus was baptised by John the Baptist in the River Jordon. The most powerful link is the voice from heaven that proclaims “This is my Son, the beloved with whom I am well pleased.” This is almost exactly what is said by the voice from heaven at the Baptism of Christ. But there are other links too. If we had read a few verses further in Matthew’s gospel this morning we would have heard Jesus explaining that John the Baptist has the role of Elijah, the prophet who comes before the Messiah. So Elijah’s presence at the transfiguration can be compared to John the Baptists presence at the Baptism. Moses was present at the Transfiguration. He was not present at the baptism, although passing to new life through the waters of baptism always reminds us of Moses leading the Israelites through the waters of the Red Sea.
There are also things about the Transfiguration that make us think about the very last moments of Jesus’ ministry on earth; the Ascension. The account of the Ascension in the Acts of the Apostles (acts 1) is also set on a mountain; Mount Olivet, near Jerusalem. Jesus is hidden by a cloud and two men in white robes appear to the disciples and talk to them.
So the Transfiguration reminds us of the Baptism of Christ at the start of his ministry and it reminds us of the Ascension at the end of his ministry. It also reminds us of the Most Holy Trinity. God the Father speaks, God the Son, Jesus, is transfigured and God the Holy Spirit is often associated with the bright cloud that envelops them all.
And it seems to me that it is very helpful for us to have this image of Jesus in Glory and to keep this image before us. As Christians we are on a journey towards heaven. We aspire to eternal life, and this life is in Jesus (1John 5:11, 2Timothy1:1). We aspire to share in the holiness of God (Hebrews 12:10), to share in the glory of Jesus (2 Thessalonians 2:15, Romans 8:17) and we don’t necessarily really know what this means or what the experience might be like. And perhaps the Transfiguration starts to give us a glimpse of what it might be like to live in heaven, to dwell permanently close to Jesus with his face shining like the sun and with his clothes dazzlingly white. The disciples seem to have found this experience completely overpowering. Probably there is part of us that wants nothing more than this, that longs for it and waits for it. A yet probably there is also a part of us that finds the idea very exposing, very exhausting, very threatening. We all have our saintly tendencies that rejoice in the presence of Christ, and will all have our sinful tendencies which want to turn from Christ and to hide in the dark. The Transfiguration reminds us that we need to develop and practice and grow in our saintly tendencies that are of Christ, and that rejoice in the presence of Christ and that want to bring us to Christ. Similarly it reminds us that our sinful tendencies have to be left behind. We have to be ready to lose them and to let them die and wither away. We know that it is the pure of heart who will see God. Our impurities might be very hard to live with in the intense light of the glory of Christ.
This is what Lent is about. It is about reminding ourselves anew that we must turn from sin and to follow Christ. This means following in the commandments of Christ and seeking always to grow in love for God and grow in love for our neighbour. Of course we can only do this by the grace of God, but we can pray for that grace and we can make sure that we make the best possible use of the grace that God gives us. Growing in love means living according to our saintly tendencies, it means be generous to others, serving others and wanting their good. It means forsaking our tendencies towards greed and selfishness; our desires to reject, dominate or manipulate others.
So let’s choose to always live in our “saint” so that our saint can grow and develop and come to maturity. Let’s be ready to let our “sinner” wither away, because we know that when we come to encounter Christ in his glory, our “saint” will rejoice to share in the life of heaven, but our “sinner” will find it quite impossible.
28 October 2007
Knowing our need of God
Informal sermon - 28/10/07 – Last Sunday after Trinity – Year C
Readings: Ecclesiasticus 35:12-17 2 Timothy 4:6-8,16-18 Luke 18:9-14
First of all I would like to thank Club 1 for proclaiming the gospel for us today, via video clip! As you know, Club 1 have been reflecting on the parable the we heard in today’s gospel reading, so I thought it might be good to ask them a question or two!
[What do we know about the Pharisees at the time of Jesus? Tell me about the Pharisees.]
In the world that Jesus grew up in the Pharisees were pretty much the most respectable people around. They were religious leaders, usually well educated and usually from good families. People would like to be associated with the Pharisees; they would like to invite them to their parties and to talk to them in the streets.
[What do we know about Tax Collectors at the time of Jesus? Tell me about Tax Collectors.]
By contrast the tax collectors were about the least respectable people in society. The tax collectors worked for the occupying Roman force. They had the power to decide how much or how little tax you paid, so you could afford to fall out with them. If they wanted to take money off you they had the full power of the Roman army behind them. Also they often took a bit of money on the side for themselves, in addition to the money that they took for the Romans, and there was nothing you could do about it. People hated the tax collectors. It was dangerous to talk to tax collectors, because everything they knew about you or your friends they used to get taxes out of you. So people stayed away from the tax collectors and tried to have nothing to do with them.
[Last question! What is it about the parable that would have been rather
shocking to the people that Jesus was talking to?]
The parable is shocking because, when they pray to God, it is the Tax Collector not the Pharisee who walks away justified, that is who walks away in the right relationship with God. This could be very unsettling. It tells us that the ordinary values of human society can be very different from what matters to God. I was wondering how the parable might look if we switched it into modern times.
Solihull is a very respectable place. Someone from Solihull, a priest even, might go up to the church and pray “I thank you God that I have a nice house and a nice car and a nice family. I thank you that I obey the law of the land and go to church and I keep the Ten Commandments and I give money to the church. I thank you that I am a really respectable person.”
And perhaps somewhere else in the Borough, perhaps in Chelmsley Wood a drug addict might go into church, and he might have all kinds of debts, and problems, and a broken family and he might pray “God, be merciful to me, a sinner.” And perhaps it is that person who is in the right relationship with God.
To be in the right relationship with God! To be in a right relationship with God we have to humbly accept our need of God. We have to humbly accept the love that God has shown us in making us, in giving us our families, our friends and all the good things that we have. And above all we have to humbly accept that God has overcome our sins, through the passion and death of Jesus.
It is very easy to think, “I am a very respectable person…I’m not a sinner…well that’s not a sin…well everyone does that nowadays.” But that’s the Pharisee talking! It is much, much harder to be honest about the painful reality of our own sin; we have to cry out with the tax collector “God be merciful to me, a sinner.”
And the key thing here is to believe ever more truly and ever more deeply in the mercy of God. The more that we can truly trust in God’s love for us, despite all the worst things about us, the more we can start to love ourselves as God loves us, to forgive ourselves as God forgives us and to move beyond denial, to move beyond self hatred, to move beyond our sin.
And I think it is important to acknowledge that this can be a painful process. Sin can cause pain in our relationship with God and our relationship with other people. Jesus on the cross has accepted that pain and we too need to accept some of the hurt before relationships can be properly restored.
Now I would like to tell you about a prayer that can help us to do this. Perhaps you know it already. It is called the “Jesus Prayer”, and it is rather similar to the prayer that the Tax Collector made in our gospel today. The prayer has many forms, but probably the most common is the simple phrase, “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” , “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” In the tradition of the Orthodox Church it is recommended to repete this phase time and time again for several minutes. To start with we say the prayer with our lips, but the idea is that we build up a rhythm of prayer and slowly we start to say the prayer with our whole mind, our whole body and our whole spirit. And this is very helpful, because it reminds us ever more deeply who Jesus is, the Son of God, who we are, sinners, and of the mercy of God in which we are held.
So as we continue our service today, and as we go home, let us continue to reflect on this parable. Let’s be honest about our sin to God, and honest about our need of God. And let’s use the Jesus prayer to remind us that we stand always and only in the mercy of God. Amen.
Readings: Ecclesiasticus 35:12-17 2 Timothy 4:6-8,16-18 Luke 18:9-14
First of all I would like to thank Club 1 for proclaiming the gospel for us today, via video clip! As you know, Club 1 have been reflecting on the parable the we heard in today’s gospel reading, so I thought it might be good to ask them a question or two!
[What do we know about the Pharisees at the time of Jesus? Tell me about the Pharisees.]
In the world that Jesus grew up in the Pharisees were pretty much the most respectable people around. They were religious leaders, usually well educated and usually from good families. People would like to be associated with the Pharisees; they would like to invite them to their parties and to talk to them in the streets.
[What do we know about Tax Collectors at the time of Jesus? Tell me about Tax Collectors.]
By contrast the tax collectors were about the least respectable people in society. The tax collectors worked for the occupying Roman force. They had the power to decide how much or how little tax you paid, so you could afford to fall out with them. If they wanted to take money off you they had the full power of the Roman army behind them. Also they often took a bit of money on the side for themselves, in addition to the money that they took for the Romans, and there was nothing you could do about it. People hated the tax collectors. It was dangerous to talk to tax collectors, because everything they knew about you or your friends they used to get taxes out of you. So people stayed away from the tax collectors and tried to have nothing to do with them.
[Last question! What is it about the parable that would have been rather
shocking to the people that Jesus was talking to?]
The parable is shocking because, when they pray to God, it is the Tax Collector not the Pharisee who walks away justified, that is who walks away in the right relationship with God. This could be very unsettling. It tells us that the ordinary values of human society can be very different from what matters to God. I was wondering how the parable might look if we switched it into modern times.
Solihull is a very respectable place. Someone from Solihull, a priest even, might go up to the church and pray “I thank you God that I have a nice house and a nice car and a nice family. I thank you that I obey the law of the land and go to church and I keep the Ten Commandments and I give money to the church. I thank you that I am a really respectable person.”
And perhaps somewhere else in the Borough, perhaps in Chelmsley Wood a drug addict might go into church, and he might have all kinds of debts, and problems, and a broken family and he might pray “God, be merciful to me, a sinner.” And perhaps it is that person who is in the right relationship with God.
To be in the right relationship with God! To be in a right relationship with God we have to humbly accept our need of God. We have to humbly accept the love that God has shown us in making us, in giving us our families, our friends and all the good things that we have. And above all we have to humbly accept that God has overcome our sins, through the passion and death of Jesus.
It is very easy to think, “I am a very respectable person…I’m not a sinner…well that’s not a sin…well everyone does that nowadays.” But that’s the Pharisee talking! It is much, much harder to be honest about the painful reality of our own sin; we have to cry out with the tax collector “God be merciful to me, a sinner.”
And the key thing here is to believe ever more truly and ever more deeply in the mercy of God. The more that we can truly trust in God’s love for us, despite all the worst things about us, the more we can start to love ourselves as God loves us, to forgive ourselves as God forgives us and to move beyond denial, to move beyond self hatred, to move beyond our sin.
And I think it is important to acknowledge that this can be a painful process. Sin can cause pain in our relationship with God and our relationship with other people. Jesus on the cross has accepted that pain and we too need to accept some of the hurt before relationships can be properly restored.
Now I would like to tell you about a prayer that can help us to do this. Perhaps you know it already. It is called the “Jesus Prayer”, and it is rather similar to the prayer that the Tax Collector made in our gospel today. The prayer has many forms, but probably the most common is the simple phrase, “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” , “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” In the tradition of the Orthodox Church it is recommended to repete this phase time and time again for several minutes. To start with we say the prayer with our lips, but the idea is that we build up a rhythm of prayer and slowly we start to say the prayer with our whole mind, our whole body and our whole spirit. And this is very helpful, because it reminds us ever more deeply who Jesus is, the Son of God, who we are, sinners, and of the mercy of God in which we are held.
So as we continue our service today, and as we go home, let us continue to reflect on this parable. Let’s be honest about our sin to God, and honest about our need of God. And let’s use the Jesus prayer to remind us that we stand always and only in the mercy of God. Amen.
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