On the Second Day of Christmas

 

The Night AFTER Christmas  by Albert Brewster

‘Twas the night after Christmas and all through the house,
again no creature was stirring, not even a mouse.

Mama in the bedroom; me asleep in my chair,.
totally relaxed without a worry or care.

When all of a sudden came a great rush of thought!
We had received so much more than we had bought.

And to think about that one Christmas day
was just about enough to blow you away.

The children had been especially nice to each other.
(You would never have guessed they were sister and brother.)

Together at the table; each in our place;
no pushing or shoving while I said grace.

We shared our love, our songs, our laughter.
We shared the chores and didn’t even have to!

Just what was it that made it all work?
Was it all planned, or simply a quirk?

As I think back I seem to recall
a series of messages from a man named Paul.
Andrew, Simon, John, and James,
Matthew, Bartholomew, and other odd names.

Someone is gone but is coming again,
We’re all brothers, or some kind of kin.

Coming from childhood these thoughts surround me.
Complex truths so simple they astound me!

The Word that reaches me doesn’t come through my ear -
from so far away - and yet so near.

Now I am looking for answers, and they must be viable.
I open the desk drawer, and dust the Bible.

We counted our blessings this wonderful day
and knew it could always be that way -

Or, would we let it escape us and again be gone,
when we get back to routine; and turn the TV on?

Bert Brewster  UMC Pastor: adbrewster@aol.com

Christmas: A time for Recognizing God With Us

 

Isaiah 52:7-10
John 1:1-14

So, for us in the church, this is the Fourth Sunday of Advent – a time for us to contemplate why we celebrate Christmas anyway.

Again, this year, during these weeks before Christmas, we have been looking at the very earliest documents we have to ascertain just how those earliest Christians celebrated Christmas –
hoping to find clues as to how we might have a better understanding and actually experience a better Christmas this year.

The first week of Advent, we looked at the very earliest writings we have –
the letters of Paul and some of the writings that were found in the Dead Sea Scrolls and Nag Hammurabi and other places in the desert country of Egypt and Syria and Palestine,
and the very earliest Gospel in our Bible:
the Gospel of Mark – which was published around the year 70.

We actually have several texts now that were published during these early  years – during the first 75 years or so after Jesus was killed.
And, look as we may, it is obvious that none of these texts say anything at all about the birth of Jesus.  
It just was not important to those earliest believers.

Yes, Jesus was a pivotal figure in their history,
yes, Jesus was a pivotal figure in their faith,
yes, Jesus was a pivotal figure in their life experience –
in their understanding of who they were and what they to do.
Clearly, they each articulate a faith that in Jesus, they saw God incarnate – God in the flesh –
for them,  Jesus was Emmanuel – God with us.

The second week we looked at the second Gospel of Matthew, published some 15 years after Mark, and intended for a somewhat different audience.
Matthew begins his Gospel with a detailed genealogy setting Jesus firmly in the Jewish camp – a descendent of King David,
and even Father Abraham, himself.

In the 15 years between Mark and Matthew an interest in birth stories had developed.
Matthew’s community wanted to believe that their Jesus was no less a god than the mighty Caesar or any of the other gods they encountered among the cosmopolitan culture of the Roman Empire.
Every other god had a miraculous birth story to show their specialness, so, Jesus should have one, too.

The Gospel of Luke is the third Gospel of the collection in our Bible.
It was published some 15 years after Matthew.
And, again, it was intended for a different audience than Mark or Matthew.

Again, we are reminded that during these early years, indeed, for the first 100 to 150 years, there was no separate Christian church.
They were Jews who believed that Jesus was the Messiah and revered as Emmanuel – God with Us – and they would meet as small groups –
sometimes even sharing meals and resources and living arrangements –
but, when they worshiped, they went to the Temple.

We see Luke being addressed primarily to a predominately Gentile audience to show that belief in Jesus in Emmanuel conflicted in no way with their ability to serve as good citizens of the Roman Empire.

And, we see that each of the Gospels have a very different starting place.
Matthew starts very differently than Mark does – again with that long genealogy.
And Luke starts differently than either Mark or Matthew does with that miraculous birth story – not of Jesus, but of John.

And, here in the Gospel of John, we have an even stranger beginning.

Most scholars agree now that this Gospel of John was published no earlier than 110 years after the death of Jesus.
Clearly this Gospel was addressed to people under stress –
there was a conflict between the communities of believers in Jesus as Messiah
and the communities of believers in John as Messiah;
and there was a widening rift between these communities of Jesus believers
and the other believers of Judaism.
The break that we know today was occurring by the time John was published.
And this Gospel is written in that context.

Again, dwelling on establishing the specialness of Jesus with stories of his birth was not important to these people.
What was important, was how their faith in this radical new religion based on Emmanuel –
based upon the Incarnation –
based on God now being with us instead of dwelling from on high –
how life based on this new faith fits into the cosmic scheme of things –
and how it is different from the old ways of doing.

Curiously, we know from the writings of a Jewish Greek philosopher from Alexandria, Philo, that this concept of God as the Doer, the Speaker, the One who Acts, the Word
was emerging in Alexandria some 50 years before the Gospel of John was published.

Here, Jesus is remembered not primarily as a specific man at a specific time in history, but
as the embodiment of a wisdom, a sophia, that pervades all things and all people.

The Word has existed from the beginning, and the Word came and dwelt among people, “they knew him not.”

Here, John tells the story in a radically new way.

Jesus is identified with the Logos – the Word of God –   and becomes something other than a man from Nazareth born of flesh and blood –
but nothing less than a construct of God –
a part of Almighty himself –
a very part of the cosmos itself.

Like I concluded last week,
I think it is important for us to ask why each of the Gospels treat the birth of Jesus differently.
And to remember that the story that you and I have learned and could tell on a moments notice, actually does not occur in any of our gospels.

The story you and I learned,
and the story you and I tell,
is really a composite of the stories we see in the Gospels.
We tend to take a part from one and combine it with a part from another and a part from another, and lo, we have our story.

But, if we actually did what those early Christians did, we wouldn’t revere any of the details of any of these stories;
but, we would come up with our own story –
like they did.
A story that begins with an experience with Emmanuel –
an experience of God being with us –
and then coming up with an explanation as to how special that experience is.

For you and me to fully understand and celebrate Christmas, we have to seek out and identify times of Emmanuel for us:
times we have been in the presence of God,
times we when we have been absolutely convinced that God is with us.

And, so we say Where or where is Emmanuel today?
And we are on the lookout for signs of Emmanuel in our times:
for some, like the shepherds in Luke’s Gospel, it is in celestial music;
for some, it will be in coming to the Lord’s Table;
for some, it will be in helping feed the hungry at the food closet;
for some, it will be in sharing special time with loved ones;
however and whenever and wherever;
this Christmas will be the best you have ever had when you open yourself to the presence of Emmanuel and recognize God with us.
Amen.

The congregation of Christ Presbyterian Church in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, experienced this sermon during a worship service December 24, 2006

Gaudete!

 

Isaiah 12:1-6
Luke 2:8-20

Throughout these days before Christmas, we have been looking at some of the Christmas stories – trying to determine what was going on when they were being told, what they mean for our faith, and how they might impact our personal and corporate life today.

There is an ancient proverb that says: “God created man because he liked good stories . . . .”
Well, we have some mighty good stories that are passed down to us about Christmas.  
And, the fact of the matter is, you will not hear these stories anywhere else.

This third Sunday in Advent has traditionally been called Gaudete Sunday.  
Gaudete is the Latin word meaning, rejoice!  
That’s what we hear the angel Gabriel telling Mary: “Rejoice!”
And that’s what the shepherds heard the celestial voices singing.

As we reflect on Christmas and Advent this year,
I am introducing the word theophany.  
A theophany is an event where God becomes visible –
when a person glimpses the holy.

And, our story of Christmas is punctuated by many theophany stories –
with the climax being the ultimate theophany –
the Incarnation, Emmanuel!
The incarnation of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the Creator of all that is, the great Jehovah, into our very lives.  

Because, you see, the Christmas stories are stories of cracks that occurred in the cosmic egg that traditionally separates the holy from the mundane – cracks through which people were able to glimpse the divine,
cracks through which people encountered the holy.

So, this year, during this Advent season we are purposely focusing on these encounters with the holy from days gone by –
through the stories we hear and the stories we tell.

Through our telling and hearing these stories again, this Christmas, maybe, just maybe you and I can encounter the holy.

So, each week we have been looking for the breakthroughs in the stories of our faith and in the days of our lives.  

The first Sunday of Advent we looked at the stories about angels that show up in the Christmas stories – there are five of them, five stories about messengers of God, angels, coming to speak to different people,
five theophany stories describing how God and God’s will is made known through angels .  
And we are reminded to pay special attention to the disadvantaged in our midst, for oftentimes we entertain an angel unawares –
and, Jesus said, this is the way we encounter the Christ himself.

Then, we looked at the dream stories.
There are three stories about God speaking to people through dreams – three theophany stories describing God and God’s will being revealed through dreams – and we were reminded that dreams provide windows to the very soul of a person.

Next week, we will look at how an act of hospitality ushered in the ultimate theophany story

And, today’s theophany story is about the time the heavens opened –
a time when the cosmic egg cracked –
a breech occurred in the space-time continuum – and real life people heard celestial music –
the music of the spheres   –
singing of God’s glory
and of God’s wish for peace on earth.

Luke lets us know that some local shepherds in the hills above Bethlehem experienced a theophany that night – actually, two theophanies.  
While they were tending their sheep –
as they did every night,
night after night after night –
an angel suddenly appeared to them:
the first theophany they were to experience that night.

Now, as we are to understand, this was an extremely unusual occurrence for them.  
This had never happened to them before.  
This was far from their normal day to day –
or night to night – experience.
And, so, when it happened, they were afraid –
like you and I might very well be.  

After the angel calmed them down,
reassured them and gave them God’s message of this special baby being born,
Luke vividly describes another theophany:
An actual rift,
a tear in the fabric of the cosmos,
a spacial worm-hole through which mere mortals got to glimpse the holy –
through which the divine was seen and heard.

To their amazement, the shepherds actually heard the music of the spheres singing of God’s glory and God’s wish for peace on earth –
sounds they had never ever experienced before.

And we are reminded that theophanys can occur through the expression of music.  

You don’t have to tell this to anyone who sings in a chorus or choir.  
There are times when your voice is blended with the others in such a way that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts and you are transported to another plane of existence –
and for a time you experience a theophany –
an encounter with the holy.

The reality of that experience is why we offer so many opportunities for all of us to lend our voices in song throughout our worship services with congregational singing.  

Shortly after I planned this Advent series and set up the topics to be addressed each Sunday, I was in Borders bookstore browsing the magazine section when my eyes fell on the December edition of Astronomy magazine.  
I don’t know if you’ve looked at your copy of Astronomy magazine yet.
Astronomy magazine is a professional journal published for scientists with the latest findings in the field.
And, right here on the cover of Astronomy magazine is the headline: The Music of the Spheres –
and the lead article proclaims
that space is alive with music
and tells about scientists’ encounters with the sounds of the cosmos
as they purposely listen in for breaks in the space time continuum and hear sounds from the beginning of time.

Like those shepherds of old, let us listen to this music with open minds and eyes and ears
and experience a celestial encounter with music of the spheres.  

There is an old old story of how God called the angels of heaven together one day for a special choir rehearsal.
God told the angels that they were to learn a special song . . . a song that they would sing at a very significant occasion.
The angels went to work on it.
They rehearsed long and hard . . .
with great focus and intensity.
In fact, some of the angels grumbled a bit . . .
but God insisted on a very high standard for this celestial choir.

As time passed, the choir improved in tone,
and in rhythm,
and in quality.
And finally God announced that they were ready... but then, God shocked them a bit.
They were told that they would sing the song only once . . . and only on one night.
There would be just one performance of this great song they had worked on so diligently.

Again, some of the angels grumbled.
The song was so extraordinarily beautiful and they had it down pat now . . .
surely, they could sing it many, many times.
God only smiled and told them that when the time came, they would understand.

Then one night, God called them together.
God gathered the celestial choir above a field just outside of Bethlehem.
"It's time," God said to them... and the angels sang their song.
O my, did they sing it!
"Glory to God in the highest . . .
and on earth peace and good will toward all..."
And as the angels sang, they knew there would never be another night like this one,
and that there would never be another birth like this birth in Bethlehem.

When the angels returned to heaven, God reminded them that they would not formally sing that song again as an angelic choir,
but if they wanted to, they could hum the song occasionally as individuals.
One angel was bold enough to step forward and ask God why.
Why could they not sing that majestic anthem again?
They did it so well.
It felt so right.
Why couldn't they sing that great song anymore? "Because," God explained, "my son has been born... and now earth must do the singing!"

Once each year, Christmas comes around again to remind us of that . . .
God's Son has come to earth . . .
and now it is up to us to do the singing!
And look at how we have tried.

Without question, one of the best and most beloved parts of the celebration of Christmas is the music!

The good news of Christmas is so awesome,
so full of wonder, that it's not enough to just talk about it.
We have to burst forth in song.
We have to sing it.

These are moments of theophanies.  

These are moments God breaks through to us
to let us experience the Christus Praesense  –
the presence of Christ in our lives –
the holy in the mundane world we know and live in –
and glimpse the true nature of God.

There are times when we can hear the celestial music.
The celestial music resounds throughout all creation – and we can hear it if we try.
The celestial music pulses with the beat of the heavenly drum.
The celestial music hums under the sounds heavenly harmony.

Do you remember Nipper, the RCA Victor dog –
for years and years, RCA used the image of this dog, Nipper, sitting in front of a phonograph with his head cocked – and the caption read “listening to his master’s voice.”

In a real sense, that is what your and I are called to do during this time of Advent as we prepare for the coming of Christmas.
Celestial music is being made.

Celestial songs are being sung.
 

You and I are called to sit like Nipper, with our heads cocked, listening for our master’s voice.

Listen.
The song is being sung.
 

Listen.
The music is there.
Listen.

The shepherds did.
And that night they encountered the holy.
That night their lives were changed forever.

Listen.
This Christmas you can and will encounter the holy.
Amen.

Clyde Griffith
 

Adapted from a sermon experienced by the congregation of Christ Presbyerian Church, Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania: December 18, 2005.

Christmas Is for Adults - About the Adult Jesus

The bottom line is this:
however touching they are to our heartstrings,
however much we love to hear them and to sing about them,
however much we enjoy the feelings prevalent this time of year,
the birth stories are not really about the baby Jesus.


The birth stories are told and remembered because of the adult Jesus –
and what people experienced with him during his earthly ministry,
and what people experienced because of him after his death –
and what people have experienced through him through the ages,
and what people continue to experience with him day and day out.


For me, at its essence, Christmas is really about Emmanuel.
That Hebrew word that means “God With Us”.


The Second Sunday of Advent

Isaiah 12:2-6
Matthew 1:17-25

For over 1500 years, the church has set aside this time before Christmas as a time of preparation –
a time for believers to engage in opportunities of study to better understand the enormity of what it is we celebrate at Christmas and its profound impact on the faith passed on to us from previous generations.

This year, in an attempt to help us focus on the real reason for the season –  what is so central to the faith we hold – I am trying to address what was important to those very earliest of Christians.

Last week we looked at the writings of some of the very earliest Christians and looked at what they had to say about the birth of Jesus.   
The very earliest writing we have in the New Testament is a letter from The Apostle Paul, written around the year of 35 AD.
The earliest Gospel we have is attributed to Mark.  The Gospel of Mark was most probably published around the year of 50 AD.
In the past 60 years, many other documents have been discovered that date back to the very first decades after Jesus’ death.
When we read these documents looking for what they say about the birth of Jesus, we discover one thing in common.
None of them have anything to say about the birth of Jesus.  Nothing.
It simply was not important to them.

Oh, for sure, they were all convinced that the experiences they recalled with this Jesus of Nazareth were extraordinary.
In fact, as the years went by, they were convinced that they had experienced nothing less than the in-dwelling of God Almighty.
That, for sure, they experienced the holy –
that, for sure, for a while, and even now, they experienced Emmanuel –
[a Hebrew word that means God With Us].

[As a side note: I related to the congregation an article that was published just the day before by Bayler University’s Center for Christian Ethics, wherein, the author spells out much of the same things I did in our sermon last week!
I just wanted them to know, and the reader to know, that really, I don’t make this stuff up!]

Now, the second oldest Gospel text is the Gospel of Matthew.
It was written about thirty years after Mark – around 80 AD.  

Matthew is somewhat different than Mark.
Matthew obviously knew about Mark’s Gospel.
Matthew includes the entire Gospel of Mark.
Yes, he edited freely and rearranged some of the scenes, but its all there.
Everything you read in Mark is in Matthew.
But, Matthew includes much more.
And, the editing and rearranging he does reflect his own emphasis, and are worthy of study and noting.

Matthew also includes writings and sayings from a second document that was circulating during those days –  
a document that Luke knew about and used also;
a document that Mark did not know about or didn’t care about.  
(Scholars call this the "quelle" document  – or “source” document.)
Matthew also knew and used material from a third source –
stories that were circulating among some circles that were becoming known as the infancy narratives – stories relating to the birth of Jesus.

I believe we are lucky to be living in these days, because we are discovering new source material all the time.
It seems that every month or so, something new crops us that provide new light on old documents, and old practices, and old beliefs.

One of the most exciting discoveries, to me, is that we are discovering that those earliest Christian believers were a pretty diverse bunch.
Contrary to what we may have taught, those early Christians, right from the beginning were not of one mind about their belief
or about their practices
or about their place in the world.

We know that after Jesus’ death, his followers scattered and hid.
But, shortly after, many came to the conviction that something extraordinary had happened – something that changed their perspective on who Jesus was and he would mean for the future of their movement.
It was their experience of the resurrection experience that led the disciples to come to think of Jesus as somehow more than just a prophet, but as the Messiah himself.   
And that’s when they began to organize around his memory.

But, we must remember, the earliest form of the movement was as a sect within Judaism.
Jesus was a Jew.
Jesus disciples were Jews.
Jesus was a Jewish Messiah.
They are followers of a Jewish apocalyptic tradition.
They are expecting the coming of the kingdom of God on earth.
It was a Jewish movement.

For sure, it was made up of small groups.
At least one of them was based in Jerusalem, but others were spread all over the countryside, including at least one or more in Galilee.
These were small, homebased groups, that met together weekly, studied together, ministered to one another, and prayed for and with one another.
But, when time came, they went to the temple for worship.

What we have discovered is that pretty much, each of these small groups developed their own take on what they experienced with Jesus of Nazareth and what had happened to him at the end of his public ministry.

Some groups seemed to be in competition with one another –
especially as they considered how closely they were to observe the Jewish laws of the Torah.

One historian writes, “Christianity, or one should rather say “Christianities,” of [the early years] were a highly variegated phenomenon.”
We can see from recent discoveries that there were very different views of Jesus in the various types of Christianity.
Another historian reminds us that it was “a time where there was no fixed formulation what the set of Christian beliefs should be.
What Christian rituals should be.
What they should think
or what they should tell about Jesus.”

The Christianity of Rome was different that Christianity of North Africa
and that was different from what we find in Egypt,
and that was different from what find in Syria
or back in Palestine.
So, we see each form of Christianity beginning to tell the story of Jesus in different ways.

And, so we see different “Gospels” emerging from these different groups.
You have heard about the Gospel of Thomas that has been translated and published with the last few years.
There is also the Gospel of Philip,
the Gospel of Truth,
The Gospel to the Egyptians,
the Apocryphon of John,
Secret Book of James,
Apocalypse of Paul,
the Letter of Peter to Philip,
the Apocalypse of Peter,
the Acts of Thomas, the Acts of Paul,
and the list goes on and on and on.
So far, some 52 different Gospels have been discovered – besides the four found in our Bible.

And within our Bible, we see how this gets played to a small degree.
We noted that Mark just wasn’t concerned about Jesus’ birth.

Matthew was.
Matthew was very concerned about showing Jesus as being the embodiment of Hebrew prophecy –
the presence of the long-awaited-for Jewish Messiah.

This was important to Matthew because at that time, another man, Simon bar Kochba, was leading a Jewish rebellion against the Roman Empire.  bar Kochba was imploring his kinsmen to take up arms: “Come join us to fight against the Romans.
You believe God is going to restore the kingdom to Israel, don’t you?  Join us.”  

bar Kochba was leading the revolt as the Jewish Messiah.

And, this set some of the Jewish Christians back a bit.
“Bar Kochba can’t be the Messiah – we already have one.”

And so, Matthew takes a clue from the Romans who gave all of their gods some sort of divine birth story.

Others were circulating birth stories of Jesus to show that Jesus was second to no Roman god.

So, Matthew includes some of the stories that were circulating at the time.
But, Matthew wanted to make clear that not only did Jesus have a special birth like the Roman gods,
but that Jesus was clearly a Jew.

The religious community that produced the Gospel of Matthew took pains to place their understanding squarely within its Jewish heritage
and portrays Jesus as one whose Jewish identity is beyond doubt.
After copying Marks first verse, Matthew begins by tracing Jesus’ genealogy.

Now, everyone knew, he only needed to show that Jesus was a descendent of King David.
But, Matthew takes no chances.
He traces Jesus’ lineage all the way back to Abraham.
It was that important to Matthew.

He wanted to show Jesus as even greater than Moses.
And, he edits his narrative to have Jesus constantly reinterpreting what was commonly known as Jewish law.
“You’ve heard it said . . . But, I say to you . . .”

The bottom line is this:
however touching they are to our heartstrings,
however much we love to hear them and to sing about them,
however much we enjoy the feelings prevalent this time of year,
the birth stories are not really about the baby Jesus.

The birth stories are told and remembered because of the adult Jesus –
and what people experienced with him during his earthly ministry,
and what people experienced because of him after his death –
and what people have experienced through him through the ages,
and what people continue to experience with him day and day out.

For me, at its essence, Christmas is really about Emmanuel.
That Hebrew word that means “God With Us”.  

For all those early Christians,
for all those writers of faith documents for their communities,
this word reflects what they affirmed had happened in this man from Nazareth –
what they continued to experience long after he had gone –
that Jehovah –
the Great I Am –
God Almighty –
Creator of the Universe and all the worlds that are –
the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob –
the One God of the faith of our fathers and mothers –
deigned to enter our world and become as we are
to let us know there is no separation now from holy and mundane,
from sacred and profane,
from work and ritual.
No.
In this man from Nazareth, we see Emmanuel!
Through this man of Nazareth, we know Emmanuel.
With this man of Nazareth, we experience Emmanuel.
God is With Us.
That’s what we hear.
God is with us.
That’s what we sing.
God is with us.
That’s what we believe.
God is with us.
That’s what we celebrate.
Each and every year at Christmas.
Each and every week in worship.
Each and every morning when we get up.

Emmanuel!  This Christmas.
Emmanuel!  All year long!
Emmanuel!  Every minute of every hour of every day of your life!

Amen.

 

The congregation of Christ Presbyterian Church of Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, USA, experienced this sermon as a part of their worship service Sunday, December 4, 2011 - the Second Sunday of Advent.

Christmas is About Emmanuel

The Christmas we celebrate-- and the world around us celebrates -- really has little to do with the Christmas that is so much a part of our faith history.

It may surprise you to know that for over 300 years nobody celebrated the birthday of Jesus.

The stories and pictures that you and I value about the birth of Jesus and all the events around that — simply were not important to the early Christians.
 
For 300 years they did not worship a baby.
They worshiped an adult "Emmanuel" —
through which they kept having encounters with the holy.
These encounters were important to them.
It was the basis of their new faith.

First Sunday in Advent

Isaiah 40:3-,9
Luke 3:1-11

Today is the  First Sunday of Advent —
a time the church has set aside for us to prepare for the coming of Christmas.
Christmas is the most universally loved holiday of all the church holidays.
It's hard not to get caught up in the "Christmas Spirit", [isn't it?] as the markers go up that announce to everyone that the holiday is approaching:

The Thanksgiving Day parade,
the shopping frenzy known as Black Friday,
carols on the muzak,
decorations on the street poles
lights in the yard,
lights on the house,
lights on the roof,
lights on the chimney,
lights in the trees,
Santa at the mall,
Santa at MacDonalds,
TV specials,
TV commercials, and, of course,
catalogs galore!

Everywhere you look you are reminded that Christmas will soon be here.
And the unannounced task is that "you'd better get ready."

For the most part, we like the feeling that comes with this season, don't we?
We like to see the smiles on children's faces.
We like to receive cards from people we haven't seen in ages.
We like to give gifts to special people in our lives.
We like to share time and meals with people we just don't seem to have time for at other times of the year.
For the most part, Christmas is a happy time.

But the Christmas we celebrate -- and the world around us celebrates -- really has little to do with the Christmas that is so much a part of our faith history.

We say, Christmas is for children, and so it has become in our American culture.
It may surprise you to know that in most cultures in the world, Christmas is NOT primarily a day for children.

In fact, throughout our faith history Christmas was and is for adults.

It may surprise you to know that for over 300 years nobody celebrated the birthday of Jesus.

But, there is ample evidence that Christians have always recognized and celebrated the specialness of Jesus — universally called the Christ — and identified in Matthew as Emmanuel — God With Us.

Each Sunday, from now until Christmas, I intend to look at how those earliest Christians celebrated Emmanuel —
and look for clues as how you and I can have the very best Christmas ever this year,
celebrating the Presence of Christ, God With Us, Emmanuel.
 
When we sing one of the most ancient of all our songs, 0 Come, 0 Come, Emmanuel,  we place ourselves squarely alongside Christians through the ages who approach this season with a profound faith.

Of course, we all know (intellectually, if not out front)
that none of our New Testament was written at the time of Jesus.
No one was going along taking it down in Gregg Shorthand – or what ever they had in those days.
No one was observing events all day and writing in a diary at night.

All of the writings we have about Jesus were written some years after Jesus was killed.

The very earliest writings we see in our New Testament are the letters of Paul.
The very earliest of these letters – I and 2 Thessalonians –
were written around 25 years after Jesus was killed.

The very earliest Gospel we have is Mark -- which can be dated to around 50 years after Jesus was killed.

All the other writings were later than that. Since the Bible was codified, we have discovered a whole slew of other writings of the time – you have heard about some of these found among “The Dead Sea Scrolls” or other places in the desert within the last 40-50 years.
The earliest non-cannonical gospel that has been found has been recently published as “The Gospel of Thomas.”

So, curiously, when we ask the question: what do these very earliest writings say about the birth of Jesus?
The answer is: Nothing. Zilch. Nada. Zero.  Nothing at all.

It was of no importance to them.


The fact that is was important to three of the Gospel writers is what we will be looking at in the weeks to come.

But, today, these very earliest writings — say nothing about the birth of Jesus.

They say nothing about the birth of Jesus, but they all write about the specialness of Jesus —
that through their experience with the adult Jesus, they were sure they were experiencing the holy — Emmanuel — God With Us.

No one celebrated Christmas at all for over 300 years after Jesus died!
It just wasn't done.

This was the time of the Roman Empire.
And Israel was part of the Roman Empire.

You know the Romans had a whole slew of gods
that were important to their life —
and each of the conquered territories usually came
with a whole slew of gods the indigenous people worshiped.
There were pagan gods everywhere.

To the Jews, and we need to remember, these early Christians were Jews,
these pagan gods were not even close to the One they knew and
experienced through a thousand year history.

And so, we have discovered writings from around 200 years after Jesus was killed, that deal with the fact that because the pagans celebrated the birthdays of their gods, it would be wrong for Christians to celebrate the birthday of Jesus.
Jesus was special.
Jesus was God with Us.
Jesus was Emmanuel.
But, Jesus wasn't like the pagan Gods.
And shouldn't be treated as such.
No birthdays for Jesus. (Out of principle.)

Of course, another issue was that nobody knew when Jesus was born.
Again, there were no records kept.
No one was around filling out forms to be filed.
We have no mention of the Disciples ever celebrating Jesus' birthday,
so we assume that it was not of great importance to Jesus.
Apparently, he didn't tell anyone when his birthday
was — and apparently no one asked.

But, as you can guess, that didn't keep folks from speculating.

After some 150 to 200 years passed, people starting trying to figure it out.
One popular writer wrote that Jesus must have been born on May 20.
Others presented convincing arguments that Jesus' birthday must be April 18,
others favored April 19,
others thought it more likely was May 28.

Within a few years it became a popular pastime to speculate on the date of Jesus birth.
The well-known Hippolytus thought, for sure, that Jesus was born on January 2.
But others carefully figured it must be November 17, or November 20, or perhaps March 25.
In  243 it was promoted that Jesus' birth should be celebrated on March 21, because that was believed to be the date on which God created the sun.
The debate went on for over a hundred years.
There was no agreed on date of Jesus' birth.
There was no celebration of Jesus birth.

In fact, it was the year 336, when the Christian church first celebrated Christmas –
and it was on December 25.

This was one of Constantine's first acts to make Christianity the religion of the empire.

So many other pagan religions already had some sort of celebration at this time, that it was natural to tell the people, "you are to stop these other celebrations to these other gods, and make this one common celebration of the birth of Jesus."

As one theologian wrote in 320 about December 25: "We hold this day holy, not like the pagans because of the birth of the sun, but because of him who made the sun."

And, so for nearly 1700 years now most Christians celebrate the birthday of Jesus on December 25. [Except for the Armenian Church and some Orthodox Churches —
the birth of Jesus is important to them, but it is celebrated on January 6 along with his baptism and Pentecost.]

As we look at these earliest writings reflecting the faith of the very earliest Christians, we find some common threads that speak to us and give us clues as to the kind of celebration that is appropriate for us.

First of all, it is clear that people had extraordinary encounters with this Jesus of Nazareth.
Jesus "connected" the people who encountered him with a life other than they knew --
where downtrodden were lifted up,
where the lame walked,
where the blind could see,
the lonely befriended,
transgressions forgiven.
Through encounters with this Jesus, people experienced "the Holy".

(Was it encounters of a third kind?]

Was it encounters with Yahweh — Jehovah — the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob — the Great I Am?

And, these encounters with Jesus - this experience of the Holy - didn't stop with Jesus' death.

The "People of the Way" still had "holy" encounters with and through this man they knew as Jesus.
They could explain it as "Emmanuel".
For them, Jesus was "God With Us".
For those that encountered him, Jesus was Emmanuel.
The heart of Jesus teaching was that anyone could -
and would - encounter Emmanuel when certain things were done.

For me, a crucial part of what we celebrate here at Christmas is Emmanuel

That our celebrations are just not complete until we go looking for Emmanuel.

It's kind of like those children's books, Looking for Waldo.  
 You and I are called to go looking for Emmanuel.

As we do, we need to put a few things aside:
first of all, forget what you think Jesus looks like.
Forget the pictures of Jesus.

Again, we don't know what Jesus looked like.
No one was there to take video of his birth or ministry.
No one was there to take a photograph.
No one was there to sketch a portrait.
Again, it wasn't important to them.

But, not only are we called to look for him, we are called to minister to him.
And we are given some very specific instructions.
This is what Matthew 25 is about.

Christmas can be truly special if we are purposeful about our decorations
purposeful about our trappings
purposeful about the stories we tell and read
purposeful about the movies and videos we see.

Christmas is really about encountering the holy.
But the truth of the matter is, that most of what we do —
most of what we will do between now and Christmas Day —
has nothing to do with encountering the holy at all!

My favorite Christmas Stories are ones in which the hidden Christ is revealed:
stories about encounters with ordinary people that turn out to be encounters with the holy —

So, stories and pictures that you and I value about the
birth of Jesus and all the events around that —
simply were not important to the early Christians.

For 300 years they did not worship a baby.
They worshiped an adult "Emmanuel" —
through which they kept having encounters with the holy.
These encounters were important to them.
It was the basis of their new faith.

And, as they found out,  anyone could have these encounters
by feeding the hungry,
clothing the naked,
tending the sick.

That's how they found Emmanuel.
That's how they knew Emmanuel.

And, today, that's where — that's how — you and I will know Emmanuel.

May this Christmas be your best ever.

Amen.

The congregation of Christ Presbyterian Church in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, USA, heard these words during a worship service on the First Sunday of Advent, November 27, 2011.

Letting ThanksGiving Become ThanksLiving

Be thankful in all circumstances.
This is what God wants from you.

Leviticus 19: 16-18
I Thessalonians 5:15-18

Our holiday will be somewhat different this year.  Most of us will not be gathering with families to stuff ourselves, “enjoy” family stories and an afternoon of merriment and familiar foods.  
True, in recent years our celebrations have less and less to do with our traditional understanding about our reasons for Thanksgiving in the first place.  We have long ago given up reading the annual Presidential Proclamation as we have realized the Pilgrims were giving thanks for something completely out of sync with the scenario we learned in school.    

In recent years, I have capitalized on the cultural celebrations of this season by introducing congregations to theological reasons for celebrating this holiday that have nothing to do with the images we have imprinted in our collective minds.

For me Thanksgiving is not just for one day out of the year,
but Thanksgiving is very basic to how we see and understand our faith.

Indeed, the most basic part of our faith, the Ten Commandments given to Moses on Mt. Sinai, begins with a thanksgiving for the faith that our forefathers and mothers gave witness to.

Paul could write to the believers in Thessalonia,
“Be thankful in all circumstances.
This is what God wants from you.”
And, it is a message you and I need to hear:
“Be thankful in all circumstances.
This is what God wants from you.”

Now, we can say that thanks giving is a good thing, and perhaps we can buy into the scripture study that tells us that God wants no sacrifice without thanks giving,
but, these days social scientists are collecting mounds of evidence that promotes positive affects of giving thanks at all times for all things.

The evidence mounts:
People who make simple exercises of thanksgiving as a way of life,
people who make thanks giving into thanks living,
people who have an "attitude of gratitude"
are in better physical health,
sleep better,
have lower levels of stress hormones in their blood,
and are happier than those who don’t.

One contemporary writer declares:
“The most psychologically correct holiday of the year is upon us.”

Thanksgiving may be the holiday from hell for nutritionists, and it produces plenty of war stories for psychiatrists dealing with drunken family meltdowns.
But it has recently become the favorite feast of psychologists studying the consequences of giving thanks.
Cultivating an “attitude of gratitude” has been linked to better health,
sounder sleep,
less anxiety and depression,
higher long-term satisfaction with life
and kinder behavior toward others, including romantic partners.

A new study shows that feeling grateful makes people less likely to turn aggressive when provoked.

“Be thankful in all circumstances.
This is what God wants from you.”

Of course, it is difficult for us to be thankful at all times, isn’t it?
But, time and time again, evidence piles up with personal testimony to what can happen when folks purposely change their behavior and look for things to be thankful for – even when times are tough, and it seems there is nothing to be thankful for.

But, today, there is good news to be heard.
There are many research projects today that have developed techniques and tools we can use to help us in our task to
Be thankful in all circumstances.

Work at the University of California and at the University of Miami
teaches what can happen when a person does something as simple as taking an inventory and writing down five things for which you are particularly grateful - simple things, little things, big things - like a friend’s generosity, perhaps;
or something you may have learned,
or a sunset you enjoyed.

The gratitude journal they suggest is brief —
just one sentence for each of the five things —
and as they teach it, it is done only once a week,
but after two months there are significant effects.  
Time and time again, people keeping the gratitude journal are more optimistic
and feel happier.
They report fewer physical problems
and spend more time physical exercising in some fashion.

A study of polio survivors and other people with neuromuscular problems showed that folks who kept a gratitude journal reported feeling happier and more optimistic than those in a control group,
and these reports were corroborated by observations from their spouses.
These grateful people also fell asleep more quickly at night,
slept longer
and woke up feeling more refreshed.

“If you want to sleep more soundly, count blessings, not sheep,” the researcher advises in his book on gratitude research.

“Be thankful in all circumstances.
This is what God wants from you.”
And it is also has great benefits for us.

In an experiment at Northeastern University, researches sabotaged each participant’s computer and arranged for another student to fix it.
That was the test.
Afterward, the students who had been helped were likelier to volunteer to help someone else —
a complete stranger — with an unrelated task. Gratitude promoted good karma.
And if it works with strangers ....

Now, the thing is, we can try it out.
You don’t have to take my word for it.
You don’t have to sit there and think, “well, that sounds nice, Preacher, but it’s not very realistic."

Well, I’m here to tell you it works!
No matter how dysfunctional your family, gratitude can still work, says a researcher at the University of California, Riverside.
Just try it out, she says.
On one day
“Do one small and unobtrusive thoughtful or generous thing for each [person you meet]
“Say thank you for every thoughtful or kind gesture. Express your admiration for someone’s skills or talents — wielding that kitchen knife so masterfully, for example.
And truly listen, even when your [uncle Bob] is boring you again with [that same story he tells over and over again].”

Don’t counterattack.
If you brace yourself for insults, consider a recent experiment at the University of Kentucky.
After turning in a piece of writing, some students received praise for it while others got a scathing evaluation: “This is one of the worst essays I’ve ever read!”

Then each student played a computer game against the person who’d done the evaluation.
The winner of the game could administer a blast of white noise to the loser.
Not surprisingly, the insulted essayists retaliated against their critics by subjecting them to especially loud blasts — much louder than the noise administered by the students who’d gotten positive evaluations.

But there was an exception to this trend among a subgroup of the students:
the ones who had been instructed to write essays about things for which they were grateful.
After that exercise in counting their blessings, they weren’t bothered by the nasty criticism —
or at least they didn’t feel compelled to amp up the noise against their critics.

“Gratitude is more than just feeling good,” says Nathan DeWall, who led the study at Kentucky.
“It [actually] helps people become less aggressive by enhancing their empathy.
“It’s an equal-opportunity emotion.
Anyone can experience it and benefit from it,
even the most crotchety uncle at the Thanksgiving dinner table.”

Why does gratitude do so much good?

“More than other emotion, gratitude is the emotion of friendship,” one researcher says.
“It is part of a psychological system that causes people to raise their estimates of how much value they hold in the eyes of another person.
Gratitude is what happens when someone does something that causes you to realize that you matter more to that person than you thought you did.”

Another exercise you can try is called a gratitude visit.
This exercise, devised by folks at the University of Pennsylvania, begins with writing a 300-word letter to someone who changed your life for the better.
Be specific about what the person did and how it affected you.
Deliver it in person, (but safely) preferably without telling the person in advance what the visit is about.
When you get there, read the whole thing slowly to your benefactor.
“You will be happier and less depressed one month from now,” Dr. Seligman guarantees in his book “Flourish.”

Be thankful in all circumstances, our Book says.
This is what God wants from us . . .

Worshiping in a local church on a regular basis
can cause people to feel and act more gratefully, as demonstrated in experiments at Baylor University.
Other research shows that praying can increase gratitude.

One person speaks about how keeping a gratitude journal has affected her life.
She has been suffering from fibromyalgia and had become quite overwhelmed by the constant pain in her life.
And, she took the challenge of using a gratitude journal on a regular basis.
Every night as part of her bedtime routine, she would try to list five things she was particularly thankful for.

She writes:
“Sometimes I struggled to find 5 things for which I was grateful;
occasionally, one of those was, ‘I'm grateful this day has ended.’
But I stuck with it.

Gratitude is not about "looking at the bright side" or denying the realities of life.
Gratitude goes much deeper than that.
It's about learning from a situation,
taking the good to help deal with other challenges in the future.
It's about finding out that you have more power over your life than you previously imagined.
You can stop being a victim of your circumstances and reach out to the joy in living.
If you open your heart to the good in your life, gratitude becomes as much a part of your life as breathing.

I have found joy at every turn, from appreciating the beauty of nature to improved relationships with family and friends.

I still have muscle pain and fatigue.
Those symptom levels remain fairly constant.
But that journal opened the door to unconditional happiness with the hand I was dealt.
I can look beyond the pain and fatigue and look forward to each day and the joy it will bring.”

“Be thankful in all circumstances,” our Book says.
This is what God wants from us . . .

When we live with an attitude gratitude
things change for us.
Things actually change for us.
And it is real.
You can feel it when it happens.

And, when you do, nothing short of a miracle happens.
“Be thankful in all circumstances,” our Book says.
This is what God wants from us . . .

Amen.

The congregation of Christ Presbyterian Church, Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, heard a version of this sermon on November 22, 2011.

Good Friday for the Rest of Us

Philadelphians went for Good Friday observances big time when we first moved there in 1976.  Following long established tradition, employers large and small throughout “the tri-state area” gave folks of all persuasions the afternoon of Good Friday off so they might attend a service at their church.  Good Friday services were full.  Choirs sang. Processions processed.  Preachers preached.

Alas, chinks in the tradition started appearing shortly thereafter. One after the other, employees were required to bring proof of their attendance of a Good Friday service. It began to be more and more difficult for employees to get off work Good Friday afternoon.   By 1999, Attendance at Good Friday services dwindled to nearly nothing and most churches stopped holding them all together.

Today, all across the country, many churches struggle to hold a Good Friday observance without a single person in the church building.  Why?

Because it has been an important service for hundreds of years.
Because there is an important story to be told - somehow.
Because we just feel we should.

Alas, the story that gets remembered and gets told on this day is lengthy and detailed, so that by the time we get to the end we tend to overlook the point of the story and thereby miss, and misunderstand, it’s point and why it was so significant to the very earliest Christians.

All four Gospels contain a version of the same story. When confronted with different accounts of the same story, we believers seem to have a need to treat each as incomplete and so we attempt to combine the separate elements to try to make different stories one story.  
Tradition has it there are 12 stages of this story - 12 Stages of the Cross.  
A traditional Good Friday Service consists of some sort of meditation on each of these 12 stages.  Most often by the time we get to the end of the story - the climax, if you will - most of us are so thankful to have completed the exercise that the climax, the point, is missed.

Interestingly, (and of particular significance to me) all four Gospels are clear and explicit about the climax and point and purpose of remembering and retelling of the story.

After relaying these profound stories of Jesus encounters on his way to and while he is hanging on the cross, all four Gospels relay what happens when Jesus finally gives up the ghost.  (I mean, that’s what happens. isn’t it?)  Finally, Jesus lets out his last gasp.  All of his breath, all of God’s life-force, the very breath of God according to the Creation story, leaves his body.  His body hangs life-less.

And as that happens, the curtain in the temple is torn in two!  The Temple Curtain, the curtain that separates “The Holy of Holies” (the residence of The Lord Almighty) from the faith adherents IS TORN IN TWO from the top to the bottom.  This profoundly states that God is no longer there!  God escapes the box.  God can no longer be kept away from the people.
The word is clear for all to hear.  
God is no longer in the house.  
God is no longer in this dead man on the cross.

So, what does this story have to do about the price of beans?
This story was to have profound affect on how worship was to be done and what one was to believe.
The story tells us that if we are not to find the Holy in the dead man on the cross; 
and if we are not find the Holy in the Temple; 
how can we to experience the Holy?  
Where do we go and what are to do to experience the Holy?
And, we told very clearly, “Go back to where you came from.  Go home.  Look around you.  Value the lives of others.  Meet their needs.  Help them out. Give of yourself.  It is when you do these things that you meet the Holy.”

Fred Rogers’ mother told him to “Look for the helpers.”  She got the message.
To me, this is the message of Good Friday.  And how I observe it.

Thanks for reading.

Clyde Griffith
Tulsa, Oklahoma
April 10, 2020

Observing Lent the Lord's Way: Fast

I am convinced that if we did observe Lent the Lord’s way,
it could change our perception of reality
and leave us in a much better position to know what happened on that first Easter morning so long ago.


Well, I have mentioned before:
When I graduated from the university, some of my friends  graduated "Cum Laude," it means "With Honors."
And, a few of my friends graduated "Magna Cum Laude" it means "With High Honors."
And I even had a close friend who graduated "Summa Cum Laude" it means "With Supreme Honors."

When they called my name, I believe the phrase they used was "Magna Cum Pellidentium." 
I looked it up.  It means, "By the skin of your teeth."

That is so like so many of us when it comes to knowing about and practicing our faith, isn’t it?
We practice our faith Magna Cum Pellidentium – don’t we?

For hundreds of years, the church has set aside a season of 40 days before Easter as a time for believers to think about their faith and how it impacts how we live our lives.

Jesus actually left some pretty specific instruction what we should be doing – but, we tend to skip over these instructions, because . . .

But, I am convinced that if we did observe Lent the Lord’s way,
it could change our perception of reality
and leave us in a much better position to know what happened on that first Easter morning so long ago.

The first week of Lent we observed the Jesus took a time out before he began his earthly ministry.
And, very early on, believers saw the benefits of doing that as well.
We are told that Jesus took 40 days to off, fast, and confront his demons.
The early believers thought we should take 40 days as well to prepare for our ministries.
In fact, they saw wisdom in taking 40 days each year just before Easter to prepare ourselves to receive and understand and properly celebrate what Easter reveals to us.
So, the first week, we were reminded to take time to take a time out each day between now and Easter.
 
Last week, we looked at how our Lenten observance should be totally incognito – off the radar – out of the public eye.
In fact, Jesus said, to be sure to wash your face and comb your hair – so no one will know what you are up to.

And, so today, I am looking at tackle the notion of Fasting.
We know what fasting is, don’t we?
We have heard about people who fast,
we have read about people who fast,
perhaps even a few in this room have fasted in the past.
While we know what it is,
fasting is certainly not main stream for us,
or for anyone we know, is it?

But, we know what fasting is. 
The dictionary definition is going without food and/or drink for a period of time. 
We are told that Jesus fasted for 40 days and 40 nights in the wilderness before he began his ministry.

Gandhi fasted.
Martin Luther King, Jr. Fasted.
Peace demonstrators fasted.
Some prisoners at the Guantanamo Bay Detention Center fasted.

In fact, fasting seems to be something some people do in an attempt to attract attention to their cause.

Personally, I have never understood this on at least two counts:
I am sure that I could fast for a week – or even 40 days and 40 nights – and no one would care. 
No one would notice.
Nothing would change.

And, secondly, I know you will find this hard to believe, but when I go without food, I get cranky.
I know, it is so against the image you have of me, but I do get cranky when I go without food for too long.  
I am unbearable. 
I know, it is hard to believe, but ask Suzanne.
When I was discussing this with my daughter, she asked, well how long have you ever gone without eating.
I responded: “Oh, eight or nine hours.”

We know what fasting is:
Going without food and/or drink for a period of time.  
People of the Jewish faith knew what fasting was.
In fact, it had become a sacred act – something a person did regularly in order to gain favor with God. 
Fasting and offering animal sacrifice were part and parcel of how they expressed their faith. 

The early Christians knew what fasting was. 
After all, they were Jews at first,
and fasting was still practiced as a way of humbling oneself in order to get your priorities in life straight. 
So, we are told, Jesus fasted before he began his ministry – for 40 days and 40 nights, we are told.
[By then, I would be soooo cranky.]

Because it was so widely practiced, we are told that Jesus felt like he had to address the issue right there during his sermon on the mount. 

When you fast, he says.
Not if you fast, but when you fast.
You do it, you know you do, so listen,
when you do it, don’t do like the hypocrites do by putting on a sad face and making a show of it,
but make sure you wash your face and comb your hair so others won’t know what you are doing.

Wash your face and comb your hair is good advice.
When the practice of our religion is done in public for all to see – for people to see how holy you must be, it is wrong, Jesus said.
Good advice. 

But, there is a problem with our understanding of this fasting concept. 

Long before Jesus, 3-400 hundred years before Jesus, this prophet appeared in Judea and began spouting the weirdest things. 
This prophet spoke for the Lord God. 
He spoke with authority to the priests and to all the people. 

Everyone knew him and recognized his authority. 
They listened to him and even came to him for advice.

The people of faith came to him with their complaints.
Look, they said. 
What’s happening here?
What’s going on?
It seems as if the Lord has abandoned us. 
We have been left to cope all alone. 
We hear nothing from the Lord. 
Bad things happen to good people – and we don’t know why.
We pray and nothing happens.
We fast and nothing happens.
What give?
Why should we fast if the Lord never notices?
Why should we starve ourselves if the Lord pays no attention?

And, the 58th chapter of Isaiah tells us that in response to those complaints the Lord said:
The truth is that at the same time you fast, you pursue your own interests and oppress your workers.
Your fasting makes you violent, and you quarrel and fight.   [You get cranky, the Lord says.]
Do you think this kind of fasting will make me listen to your prayers?
When you fast, you make yourselves suffer;
you bow your heads low like a blade of grass and spread out sackcloth and ashes to lie on.
Is that what you call fasting?
Do you think I will be pleased with that?

And, then to everyone’s surprise, the whole concept of fasting gets completely redefined.
Do you think I will be pleased with that?
Do you think that going without food and or drink for a period of time is going to get my attention?
Do you think that going without food and or drink for a period of time is going to get my favor?
Do you think that going without food and or drink for a period of time is going to influence what happens to  you?
Do you think this kind of fasting will make me listen to your prayers?

If you fast to have influence with the Lord God the Creator of the Universe and all there is,
your faith is on the wrong track.
If you think ANY of your faith rituals is going to influence me, you have another think coming. 

And, then, Isaiah drops the hammer:
The Lord says words they did not want to hear –
Words WE do not want to hear today.
"This is the kind of fasting I'm after:
to break the chains of injustice,
get rid of exploitation in the workplace,
free the oppressed,
cancel debts.
What I'm interested in seeing you do is:
sharing your food with the hungry,
inviting the homeless poor into your homes,
putting clothes on the shivering ill-clad,
being available to your own families.
This is what it really means to worship the LORD.
Remove the chains of prisoners who are chained unjustly.
Free those who are abused!
Share your food with everyone who is hungry; share your home with the poor and homeless.
Give clothes to those in need;
don't  [ever] turn away your relatives.
Get rid of unfair practices,
quit blaming victims,
quit gossiping about other people's sins,
[Be]  generous with the hungry
and start giving yourselves to the down-and-out,

This is what this religion is all about.
This is what I notice.
This is what gets my attention.
This is the Lord’s work.
 
Later on, Jesus picks up this theme when he says this is what is going to be on the final exam –
this is what you will be asked about during your orals –
this is what you will be judged on.
Because this is our calling.
This is what we are to be doing.
This is what we are about.
Our faith is about living for others. 
When we give of ourselves for another, we make the ultimate call.
Jesus would say, when you do these things for these people, you doing these things for me –
you are doing these things to me. 

For sure, this requires radical reorientation.
This goes so against what we were taught –
and what we learned so well –
and what we all bought in to.

Its not about me.
When it is about me, it is a distorted reality.

For the promise is made –
and has been so many times throughout history – and there are some people in this very room –
who can vouch for veracity of the promise:
when you work toward these ends,
when you do this ministry for others,
when you live your life so others may live better,
you will have great rewards.

"Then my favor will shine on you like the morning sun,
and your wounds will be quickly healed.
I will always be with you to save you;
my presence will protect you on every side.
When you pray, I will answer you.
When you call to me, I will respond.

That’s the promise.
That’s the bargain.

"If you put an end to oppression,
to every gesture of contempt,
and to every evil word; 
if you give food to the hungry
and satisfy those who are in need,
then the darkness around you will turn to the brightness of noon.

Your lives will begin to glow in the darkness,
your shadowed lives will be bathed in sunlight.

This is the kind of fasting the Lord wants.
This is the kind of fasting the Lord responds to.
This is the kind of fasting that is part and parcel of our faith. 
This is the kind of fasting that is an integral part of how we might observe Lent the Lord’s way. 
This kind of fasting is an important component to an appropriate Lenten observance. 

It’s the Lord’s work.
And it is what we are to do.
Amen.

The congregation of Christ Presbyterian Church in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, USA, heard this sermon during a worship service  on the third Sunday of Lent, March 3, 2013.

Remember To Take A Time Out

For me, when we get beyond the familiar outward trappings, the main purpose of Lent is to encourage us to take a time out. 

Biblically, there are some specific things we can do with this time,
but what we do is of less importance than to commit to taking the time –
to get closer with our God.
 

We are told that before Jesus began his ministry he took a time out.

He went off by himself – for 40 days – and 40 nights.

Jesus must of thought that this was completely necessary for him to do.

He did this to get his head right,
to get more completely in tune with God’s will and purpose for his life.     

For centuries the church has said it was important to remember what Jesus did here,
and it is important for us to take a time out as well.

Jesus took 40 days for his time out,
the church said we should take 40 days each year before Easter for our time out –
a time out from the routine of our regular normal life to consciously focus on getting our heads on right,
to get more in tune with what God is concerned about and wants for us to do with the rest of the days of our lives.

Lent is a fascinating time in the church year that Presbyterians are only beginning to appreciate.
Used to be, as you know, we never observed Lent in Presbyterian churches. 
But, today we see this time as an opportunity to attend to the parts of our lives that we often neglect.
During this time before Easter we are challenged to open ourselves in new ways to the Spirit’s transforming power –
not unlike Jesus did at the beginning of his ministry.

From the very earliest times, Christians took time out before Easter to reflect on their faith, cultivate it, and prepare for a most joyous celebration of Easter.

Remembering that Jesus took 40 days off to prepare for the beginning of his ministry, the church sets aside these 40 days prior to Easter for us to get ready.
This is a time for us to explore the mysteries of the universe,
looking beneath the surface –
within ourselves –
examining our own motives and desires,
and ascertaining exactly what our commitment is:
to what,
to whom,
and what it means.

Lent is meant to remind us that the days are getting longer now –
Spring is right around the corner.

Actually, the word Lent comes from an ancient word that meant "springtime," – 
that period of the calendar during which the days lengthen.
Because the church season always fell at that time of year, the name came to apply there as well.

All around us new life is preparing to break out as the weather turns. 
Signs of life are preparing to bud right before our eyes.
And, our task during this season is to prepare ourselves to see these signs when they occur.

Like I have said before, I believe we need Lent!

Lent encourages us to look within ourselves to see how we have confused popular cultural values with Christian faith.
Through sustained focus on the life and ministry of Jesus, Lent can help us resist the pressures of this culture.
Lent can remind us that we are called to continue his ministry:
“As the Father has sent me, so I send you.”

Consequently, Lent prepares us for an Easter that is more than bunnies and eggs –
an Easter that begins a whole new reality –
a whole new world.

As you know, 40 days is almost a sacred number with strong Old Testament associations. 
40 days seems to be a long time when you think about it.
[It is more than the 30 days we get to accept the special offer of the day that is in our daily mail.] 
It seems that God is saying:
“take up to forty days to decide – 
40 days to make up your mind – 
which side are you going to be on.” 

The Gospels say Jesus was given 40 days to decide  whose side his life would be spent on. 
40 days to come to a decision to align with God or accept the worldly enticements of the Devil.   

40 days seems to be God's time for allowing
significant decisions to be made. 
Moses was on Mount Sinai for 40 days getting the 10 commandments. 
Elijah spent 40 days in the wilderness encountering God. 
An extended time was given people of Noah's time to make up their mind before it rained for 40 days and 40 nights. 
The 40 days of Lent gives us sufficient time to make up our minds again: 
to decide for life – or death,
to decide for God – or the ways of the world around us.

For me, when we get beyond the familiar outward trappings, the main purpose of Lent is to encourage us to take a time out.

For us with our total dependence upon clocks and schedules and appointments and meetings and deadlines, taking time for a time out is probably the most difficult thing any of us could be called upon to do.
And yet, here it is.
The call goes out each year during this time before Easter,
and our response is usually no more than an acknowledgment of a quaint – if not somewhat ancient, antiquated tradition – that we may give a passing nod to in church,
but having very little to do with anything in our home, or at work, or how we spend our time.

Most of the days of our lives we are pretty much self absorbed in our lives and our obligations and our health and perhaps in the caring for another or two or three or four or . . .
We live in response to stimuli from outside of ourselves.

Lent calls us to take time for a time out from all of that.
Take time now – just commit to only 40 days – this time leading up to Easter –
take time each day to focus on something other than on what we usually spend our time on.

It is important to take the time.
Jesus did it.
Moses did it.
Isaiah did it.
Many many others did it.
And, today many many others are doing it.
You can do it as well.

Traditionally, Biblically, there are some specific things we can do with this time,
but what we do is of less importance than to commit to taking the time –
to get closer with our God.
The pattern is,
the experience is,
the promise is,
that when we do,
we become more aware of God’s presence
and more aware of God’s purpose
and more aware of what we are to do with the rest of the days of our lives.

And, of course, that’s the scarey part, isn’t it?
Because we’re not sure we want to discover that we should be doing something we aren’t doing, right?
For years I have been compiling a file of stories of people who after a time out,
changed the direction of their lives because it became clearer to them that this is what God would be having them do.
It’s a thick file containing many many stories.
Someday it would be worth sharing in some way just to see the stories one after the other after an other after an other.

Taking time for a time out can have a powerful affect on a person.
Norman Vincent Peale – and many other preachers – was convinced that by taking time out to concentrate on certain scripture lessons, folks could experience a power and wholeness and wellness that they never knew possible.

Of course, I think that, too.
Each Sunday between now and Easter, I will be focusing on specific practices that have proven to put us more in tune with the ultimate power and purpose of the universe.

Aligning our lives with the moral direction of the universe is probably the most primal of all our activities –
and that is something we cannot do with a compass or a clock.
It is something we can only do in a community like this one.

For your sake, each day during this time before Easter, take time for a time out.

And be here next week as we explore certain practices proven to lead us in the right direction.
Amen.

The congregation of Christ Presbyterian Church in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, USA, experienced this sermon during a worship service, the First Sunday in Lent, February 17, 2013.