Day of Pentecost to Pentecost 7 - The Glory of God
NB We have updated Lawrie Hampton's notes from 2000 because a family death prevented the allocated writer doing the notes this year.
Pentecost 6 - God's glory in fallible mortal hands
As I've prepared these notes and prayers, I've been trying to imagine you as you look in them for something to help you in preparing to lead worship. I couldn't do it! You are an ordained minister; you are a reluctant lay preacher. You are full of the zeal of youth; you are ripe with the wisdom of experience. You have studied the scriptures keenly for decades; you are inexperienced and uncertain in exploring the Scriptures. You are working alone as you tussle with the readings for Sunday; you are one of a group preparing a service or joining in Bible study. You are working at your preparation in the quiet of your study; you are distracted by the noisy demands of a family around you. You have a library of books on your shelves to refer to; you have little by way of background material to call on.
These notes cannot be all things to all people! So here are a few words of explanation.
1. Now eight years into retirement, although still active, I represent my generation. I have tried over the years to keep reasonably well abreast of what has been going on in the fields of theology and biblical studies, but my approach and outlook have been shaped by the academic theological training my teachers gave us in the early fifties, and by four and a half decades of parish ministry. My standard Bible commentaries are mostly the older ones. I hope that you will not dismiss these scholars of an earlier generation as "dated" and that you will find some of their comments helpful.
2. The notes on the lectionary readings for each Sunday are brief. They are intended to provide for preachers without access to commentaries some small understanding of the context and background of each passage. Ministers with access to their own commentaries are likely to find little that is new to them here.
3. No two preachers are the same. Individual personalities with varying interest and disparate theological stances will speak and act in vastly different ways from the pulpit. I have my own ways of preparing and delivering sermons, you have yours. You can deduce from the preaching suggestions something of my style. It could not be otherwise. So I outline some ways that I might go about preaching a sermon based on what the lectionary sets down for each Sunday. This is intended to be no more than a stimulus to you as you work away in your preacher's workshop to produce your own thoughts and your own words . . . even if (as may well happen) you simply decide that you disagree strongly with my interpretation, that's OK with me - provided it helps you to sort out in your own mind what you should say on that text or topic.
4. The prayers are intended to relate, though not necessarily directly, to the texts or themes of the day. They come from a stock of prayers that I have built up in preparing worship services over recent years. Some of them I wrote myself; some have been adapted from sources, which I have long forgotten; a few you may recognise as having come with little alteration from a prayer anthology well known to you. I hope you will not use these prayers in your services exactly as they appear on these pages, but that you will work through them keeping your own congregation always in mind, so that the prayers you lead will be fitting for your own situation - and in accord with your own style of conducting worship.
I have enjoyed compiling these notes. The task has been my Lenten discipline! I hope and pray that you will find them useful in fulfilling your holy, demanding, and privileged called of leading other people in the worship of God - Creator, Redeemer, and Spirit of life. All glory is his eternally.
Lawrie Hampton Lent 2000
Pentecost is one of the great festivals of the Christian year. The tradition is that it falls 50 days after Easter (hence the name). This is convenient as a way of spacing out the time between Easter and Pentecost, but they really belong together. The resurrection of Jesus and Pentecost belong together as the giving of the Holy Spirit. With Jesus no longer a physical presence the Spirit, the Comforter, comes. This is described in one of the teachings from an earlier section in this series (April 27-John 20: 19-31; see especially v. 22).
Pentecost is an exciting time for worship. Good, lively hymns, prayers relating to the theme (there are plenty of good sources here) and some spirited preaching. The seasonal colour for Pentecost is red, signifying fire, which is one of the pentecostal symbols.
John 15:26-27/16:4b-15. The key verses for preaching would certainly include 15:26-27, 16:7 and 13. Taken together they link the rest of the passage. This is part of Jesus' discourse in the upper room. It begins at Ch. 13 and goes through to Ch. 17. It might be helpful to stress the nature of John's gospel if you have not already done so on a previous occasion. John, unlike the first three gospels, is not a narrative work; that is, it does not attempt to draw an historical account of Jesus' ministry. Instead it takes one or two historical events and builds around these a number of scenes taken from a source known only to John.
So we have an upper room episode, but one quite different from the other gospels. Instead of the details of the Last Supper the passage consists of reflections from John's understanding of Jesus' ministry, taken from the years between Easter/Pentecost and the writing of the gospel. The theme of this passage is comfort and assurance. Jesus will be taken from them, but his presence will remain in ways which will actually enhance the witness of the disciples. They will speak with more authority and the word will be carried out to all the world.
Ezekiel 37:1-14 This is one of the great passages of Scripture. It is possible that Ezekiel had seen a battlefield where his people had fought a foreign power and had suffered defeat. The scene is one of the many pathetic scenes where battles have been fought: the remains of dead soldiers lie scattered about. Dry bones picked clean by carrion and bleached by the sun. Some writers think this may have been the valley of Meggido, in northern Israel, a place where many battles were fought.
As the opening verse suggests, this is a visionary experience. The prophet is transported by the Lord's spirit. He does not go by his own volition, but is carried out in order to be a witness to the Lord's miracle - the calling back to life of a fallen army. They actually represent the fallen nation (v11). It is by the power of the Lord's spirit (v14) that the nation will be brought from death to life. This is an excellent passage when preaching about life through the spirit, because its vivid imagery is wholly memorable.
Psalm 104: 24-34/35b This fine psalm is a litany of praise to the God who has called the creation into being and who gives life and sustenance to every creature. The breadth of the Psalm is part of its appeal, reflecting as it does, the breadth of God's spirit. The particular passage describes how dependent all creatures are on the spirit of life. When it is withdrawn they die. Even the ground itself is renewed by the Spirit (vv29-30).
This theme was taken up by Jesus when he spoke of the God whose sun shines on good and bad alike, and whose rain falls on the just and the unjust.
Acts 2:1-21 One of the key texts for Pentecost. This describes the day itself, from Luke's perspective. Having compiled his gospel, which concludes with the account of Jesus' resurrection, he now writes the sequel: the coming of the promised Spirit. Notice the quote from the prophet Joel. Prophecy from the Hebrew scriptures was often quoted in support of the 'new covenant' in Jesus Christ. The quote from Joel is in the style of apocalyptic writing (apocalyptic means the revelation of God's plan for the earth and the destiny of its people. It was usually presented in times of crisis, peril or disaster). It is important to see this for what it is; a visionary writing emanating from the imagination of the writer, or the writer's community. Attempts to apply this in any literal manner are not helpful.
An Approach: The Ezekiel reading is the most arresting and so is the best one for introducing your sermon. You might begin by reminding the people of the rather grisly scenes from the Nazi death camps of W.W.2 or those from Pol Pot's regime of genocide in Cambodia: human skeletons, thousands of them, victims of the brutality of others and stark symbols of a nation's death. How, from such a ghastly scene can come life and hope?
Yet this is exactly what Ezekiel saw, and from this came a vision of resurrection, (v12). Note, however, that this is resurrection in the traditional Hebrew meaning, namely, a restoration of the people and a return to their own land.
The key to this is the Spirit which brings life out of death and hope out of despair (v14). This could be your text. The John and Acts readings, while related to this theme, are saying it in different ways. You may have difficulties in tying them in, so it would be better to use them as supporting texts. You may however, rather start with the passages from John or Acts.
"The winds of God are always blowing. All you have to do is hoist your sails". {Old Arab saying}
"Lord, Holy Spirit,
You blow like the wind in a thousand paddocks.
Inside and outside the fences,
You blow where you wish to blow.
Lord, Holy Spirit,
In the love of friends you are building a new house,
Heaven is with us when you are with us.
You are singing your song in the hearts of the poor.
Guide us, wound us, heal us. Bring us to God".
[James K. Baxter] Could be used as a Call to Worship.
I will light a light
In the name of God
Who lit the world
And breathed the breath of life into me.
I will light a light
In the name of the Son
Who saved the world
And stretched out his hand to me.
I will light a light
In the name of the Spirit
Who encompasses the world
And blesses my soul with yearning.
We will light three lights
For the trinity of love:
God above us,
God beside us,
God beneath us:
The beginning,
The end, The everlasting one. World Council of Churches
Isaiah 6:1-8 One of the best-known Old Testament passages. It is understood to be an account of Isaiah's call to be a prophet. The emphasis is on the holiness of God. The root meaning of holy is probably distance, separation, otherness. In Isaiah's vision the Lord is on a throne high and lifted up. The seraphim with covered eyes, the shaking of the threshold; the clouds of smoke are all evidence of the presence of the holy God. The threefold use of the word holy is followed by the whole earth is full of his glory. The sentence in Hebrew is emphatic in form. The holiness of God, the glory of God is not confined to Israel. And God's holiness implies moral purity, so that Isaiah's sin is made plain - and not his only, for evil is a corporate thing. I, a man of unclean lips, I who dwell among a people of unclean lips . . . (REB). Isaiah cannot bridge the gulf between himself and this holy God; it is God who offers the cleansing fire, and immediately calls the cleansed man into his service.
Psalm 29 Probably one of the oldest Psalms. A dramatic word-picture of the glory of God. God subdues the unruly creation, and in the end brings strength and peace to his people.
Romans 8:12-17 Those who are led by the Spirit are said to be children of God. In the prologue to John's Gospel it is written . . . to all who did accept him [i.e. the Word], to those who put their trust in him he gave the right to become children of God. John 1:12. There is a sombre consequence to sharing with Christ the privilege of being children of God and sharing his glory: we must share his sufferings if we are also to share his glory. See also Philippians 3:10: to share his sufferings in growing conformity to his death. The glory of God is not all sunshine and pleasure: among its elements is the darkness of self-denial, pain, and a cross. "It is not the suffering, but the glory that is the goal. But for the Christian, as for Christ himself, the way to glorification, to participation in God's doxa [glory] is through suffering. In the fact that the suffering is a suffering with Christ it has received its inescapable place in the Christian life." (Nygren)
John 3:1-17 One of the recurrent themes of the Fourth gospel is the conflict between darkness and light - see Jn 1:4-5. So it is appropriate the Nicodemus comes to Jesus by night. The closing verses of Ch. 2 mention that many put their trust in him when they saw the signs that he performed. "There is one of those believers who sincerely desires to learn more. He is a man of standing and authority. He has a big stake in the established order - the order which Jesus had so openly and drastically attacked by his actions and his words in the temple. Yet he believes enough to want to inquire further. He comes to Jesus 'by night'. It is a very understandable precaution, given his position as a public figure of the establishment. In the perspective of the evangelist he is a man who is drawn to the light but not yet able to leave the darkness." (Lesslie Newbigin: The Light Has Come).
Think back in your own memory: can you call to mind an early experience that made you aware of the glory of God? Some say that 'I' should be kept out of the pulpit, and there's a wise warning in that adage; but calling sometimes on the riches of your own memory can be a powerful tool of communication. You could speak briefly about your experience of God's glory. (I recall in my mid-teen years looking from my bed at the glimmering stars and thinking about what there are, the imponderable distances of space, the mind-boggling concept of an infinite universe . . . it led to thoughts about the glory of a Creator God and an awareness of my own transitory minuteness ...)
You may want to go on to speak of other experiences where you have been gripped by the wonder of God's glory - on a less cosmic scale. (When a few years ago I heard the thunderfilled choral Society in Handel's Messiah in the Royal Albert Hall and they reached that climax in the triumphant affirmation of the Hallelujah chorus, it was a marvellous experience of human music; it was also the glory of God breaking through to move me near to tears.)
You could lead on to speak from your experience of glimpsing the glory of God in the wonder of birth (holding in your arms the tiny, fragile bundle that is your own new-born child or grandchild) and death (most ministers can recall as I can deaths where the tragedy of parting in death was mingled with a triumphant awareness of God's sustaining and conquering love - I trace the rainbow through the rain . . .. I lay in dust life's glory dead . . .)
Then you could tell of a person in your experience - not someone recognisable by your listeners, please! - in whose changed life you saw God's glory breaking through. (I recall a man, a wonderfully loyal but proud and sometimes a difficult man, who believed he had been ill-used and belittled by others in his local church, withdrew into himself, became morose, silent, resentful, yet in time by the grace of God - as he happily acknowledged - was able to forgive, forget, and see the people who had opposed him as his brothers and sisters in Christ.)
We see the glory of God not only in the big and striking and powerful. Sometimes big crowds came to Jesus, and he welcomed them and spoke to them. Mostly it's one on one conversations we read about, or quiet conversations with small groups. At this point you could speak for a while about Nicodemus coming to Jesus with his questions, and how the conversation led to the great affirmation of John 3:16.
You could speak of how the glory of God is to be seen in people around us - gentle, self-effacing people, who don't hold grudges and who know how to forgive. People who without having to think about it or to work out the cost to themselves put self aside to bring love and practical help to others.
You might mention that Isaiah's vision began with him seeing the Lord high and lifted up, seraphim in attendance, the threshold shaking, and the building filled with the smoke of God's presence. But it ended with just one man assured that in the mercy of God he was cleaned, and called to God's service.
The sermon could end by showing Jesus as the one in whom we see clearly the glory of God - Jesus in whom we see compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forgiveness, love (see Colossians 3:12-14) focused in one human life. Jesus who sought no fame or glory or adulation, who made himself nothing (Philippians 2:7).
John 3:16 shows us God's glory at its most glorious.
We are here to worship our holy God.
Holy, holy, holy is God, Maker of everything.
Starlight and darkness, earth and sunshine,
Love, birth, growth, all from God. Glory to God, to be honoured and enjoyed forever.
Jesus the Christ, our brother who sets us free.
Glory to Jesus, full of life, words of grace, deeds of love, crown of thorns, wine and bread,
Cross of suffering, tomb of death,
Glory to the Christ, risen Lord, life and love unending.
The spirit of God is within us, among us.
Strength from God to empower us,
Spirit who joins us to one another in a fellowship of love,
Producing in our lives God's harvest of joy and peace:
Glory to the Spirit, presence of God with us.
Glory to God, Creator, Redeemer, and Spirit of life, today and always.
God eternal, Creator of all, we are your people
When we use the gifts of your creation selfishly, greedily, brutally, destructively,
We are still your people, and your love never ends.
God, forgive!
Lord Christ, word made flesh, you are our Saviour and our Lord.
When your love and grace take no root in us,
When the springs of compassion in us dry up,
And we are indifferent to the needs of people, your people,
You are still our Saviour and our Lord.
Lord Christ, forgive!
Spirit divine, present in our prayers, guiding, healing spirit,
When we will have none of your guiding, when we say we need no help,
When in pride we turn away from you
You are still the Spirit within us and among us.
Holy spirit, forgive!
God eternal, Creator, Redeemer, Spirit of life,
Loves and forgives beyond our deserving, beyond all our measuring.
God forgives us now. Thanks be to God!
These prayers are likely to be of most help to people if they can join in those parts printed in italics.
I Samuel 17:32-49 This familiar story of the triumph of the victory of the godly underdog over the pagan bully needs little to be added. "The whole account is intended to demonstrate that the uncircumcised Philistines, indeed 'all the world', are to see that Israel has a God whose name alone is sufficient to strike the strongest man to the ground. David's remark that this God needs neither sword nor spear to aid him, and that he uses what is weak to put the strong to shame reveals a basic law of the kingdom of God."(H W Herztberg)
Psalm 9:9-20 Psalms 9 and 10 were originally one. The lectionary today gives us a short passage extracted from the whole. It affirms with thanksgiving God's justice in defeating and destroying the nations' enemies. "The Psalmist has watched the great conflict between good and evil being waged in two fields: in the world, between Israel and the heathen nations; in the nation of Israel between the godless oppressors of the weak and their innocent victims. He has seen the sovereignty of God decisively vindicated in the world by the defeat of Israel's enemies: but when he surveys the conflict within the nation, wrong seems to be triumphant. So he prays for an equally significant demonstration of God's sovereignty within the nation by a signal punishment of the wicked who deny his power or will to interpose." (Kirkpatrick)
2 Corinthians 6:1-13 Paul's relationship with the Christian Church in Corinth was complex and often strained. This letter, which may in fact comprise up to four letters, reflects the tensions that Paul was dealing with. His ministry and his apostleship were called in question, and one of the recurring themes here is the attempt to vindicate himself as a true apostle of Jesus Christ. His motive is not self-exaltation, but to make his passionate appeal: You have received the grace of God; do not let it come to nothing. (verse 1)
Mark 4:35-41 A familiar dramatic story. Told in Matthew and Luke, as well as Mark, it has about it the freshness of an eye-witness's account. Perhaps here John Mark is reporting what had been told him by Peter. Some other boats were with him (v 36) is the kind of irrelevant detail that an eyewitness might include. We are not told how these other boats fared in the storm. The disciples address Jesus as Teacher, their standard title for him prior to his resurrection. Thereafter he was Lord. The word Teacher is equivalent to the Hebrew Rabbi. To use the word Master is misleading. It is important when reading this story not to stop at the stilling of the storm. The significance of the story is in verse 41: the fact that the disciples were awe-struck, and the searching question. Who can this be? Even the wind and the sea obey him? Who indeed? The world has gone on asking that question ever since.
A sermon on Mark's story of the storm might begin by asking people what they think the meaning of this story is. Some might even tell you. Most listeners will have heard if often from childhood days on. They know what happened. Invite them to consider why Mark (and later Matthew and Luke) included it in their records. Why was it remembered by the early church and written down and preserved?
1. Jesus' rebuke of the storm demonstrated in an unanswerable way the supernatural power that Jesus possessed. Such a "nature miracle" causes great difficulties for people of our day. Does God interfere with the systems of nature? If not, is there any point in praying that natural disasters will be averted? Did this storm by a fortunate co-incidence happen to ease at the time of Jesus' words? Galilee's storms were well known for the suddenness with which they began and ended. Does the exercising of miraculous power produce faith in those who witness them or who hear about them? If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, they will pay no heed even if someone should rise from the dead (Luke 16:31). Indeed, Mark does not tell us that the stilling of the storm produced faith in the disciples; after the storm Jesus rebuked them for their lack of faith even now. They were awe-struck (verse 41).
2. Some see this story as an allegory: for Christian people as for all the world's people, life is beset with storms. "We have got further than the fishermen of Galilee in tracing out the laws of nature and exploiting them to our advantage. But we still have not mastered the world, and never shall. The science that has brought new blessings has brought also new dark and unspeakable dangers. And we Christians are exposed to the dangers as much as any - often more than any. But when the storms break, what we need first and foremost is not more courage and stronger nerves, not a better understanding of the world's ways, not the ability to withdraw into our own shells and let the rest go hang. What we need is the simple certainty that even in riskiest of situations, in the worst imaginable catastrophes, in the loneliest of struggles, the Lord is still in control. We need Paul's conviction that nothing in the whole created universe can ever separate us from him. That faith, and it alone can take the sting out of even the sorest trials and enable us to weather every storm." - J W Leitch
The Church has always been storm-tossed. One of the familiar symbols of the Christian Church has long been a small vessel riding the waves. You might picture some of the storms that the church in our own day is having to ride out - consult the week's newspapers for examples! Is this story told to assure us that Christ will over-rule the storms that buffet his church and bring it safely through?
3. The real question thrown at us by this story comes from the disciples' reaction: They were awe-struck, and said to one another, "Who can this be? Even the wind and the sea obey him." The story does not end with the disciples assured and happy to have been rescued from the storm. Their faith does not appear to have been strengthened by their experience on the lake. They were possessed by an awe-filled fear of this one whom they called their teacher. The calmer of the storm was somebody more than they had thought. A new truth was dawning on them, and they did not find it comfortable.
Who is this? It is a question that does not go away. The world is forever being confronted with it. The final answer is beyond us.
Perhaps in this story we have a foreshadowing of Holy Week: a different kind of storm was crashing around them and they were terrified. This time, when their Teacher slept, it was the sleep of death. "And again Christ rose to take control, to rescue them as before, and reproach them again for their lack of faith." (Leitch). Good Friday and Easter also confront us with this question: Who is he: who is he for me?
God eternal,
We come to this place of worship,
Yet we know that all the world is yours:
There is no place where you are not.
We come at this specail time of worship
Yet we know
That the whole of time and eternity
A are yours,
And your love and mercy
Have no beginning, and no end.
We come with our words,
With our thoughts, with our songs
To honour you,
Yet we know that no words,
No music of ours
Can mirror your glory
Or give full voice to your worship.
God eternal, here we are before you:
At this time and in this place,
With these words of ours,
With the music we make,
And the thoughts within us:
With it all may we honour you,
And bring glory to you
Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
If these present days are for us filled with peace and joy,
with satisfaction and delight and eager hope,
with contentment and laughter,
Then we thenk you our God.
And here before you we remember that there are people
battered by life's storms: people who have little peace,
for whom joy rarely lights up life,
people who long ago gave up hoping...
We remember that there are people who today are stunned
by the death of someone dear,
people shattered by the breaking of a relationship
that once was precious,
experiences that test their faith, numb their minds,
chill their hearts, destroy the hope that was in them,
and in distress they do not know where to turn,
or who turn to...
We remember that there are people giving themselves
to care for others who are sick.
People who try to help the distressed,
people who sit with the sying,
people who try to bring reassurance and strength and hope
to others who are bereaved...
Whether they do such things as the work of their profession
Or for the love of a dear one, of a neighbour, of a friend,
We pray that as they care for your people Lord God,
they will know that you are near,
and be blessed with your peace.
Eternal god, with you are all the deep mysteries of our living;
In you are healinga nd peace.
If there are times and places
Where your grace can be known through our words, or our lives,
then in us, and by us and through us,
May your kingdom come
And your will be done. Amen.
2 Samuel 1:1, 17-27 Verses 17 and 18 form a title, a short foreword to the lament that follows from verse 19 on. The Book of Joshua is referred to also in Joshua 10:13 - translated The Book of the Upright it is thought to have been a book of songs sacred and secular that commemorated great events in the history of the nation. "There is no reason for doubting David's authorship [of this lament on the death of Saul and Jonathan]. According to tradition he was a particularly skilled musician, and that certainly means that he was able not only to play, but also to sing. [See 1 Sam 16:18, 23] We need add no praise to what has been called the most beautiful heroic lament of all time." (H W Hertzberg)
Psalm 130 One of the seven 'penitential psalms' (6, 32, 38, 51, 102, 130, 143). The favourite Psalm of Luther. "The Psalm is a confession of a God-fearing man who was able to rise from the uttermost depth of anguish engendered by sin to the assurance of divine grace and forgiveness. According to verse 8 it can be assumed that the psalm was recited by the poet in the community's worship. The worshipper sees his personal assurance of forgiveness in connection with the presence of God (verse 4) and the general assurance of forgiveness given to his people (verse 7-8)" (Artur Weiser)
2 Corinthians 8:7-15 This passage needs to be set in its context. Chapters 8 and 9 belong together as a distinct section of this letter. Paul writes about "the fund which he was raising in all the Gentile-Christian communities on behalf of the poor belonging to the church at Jerusalem. . . It is probably that a large majority of the members and adherents of the Jerusalem Church would naturally spring from the poorer classes." (R H Strachan) Perhaps Paul also saw this collection as helpful in bridging the gap between the Gentile Churches and the Jewish-Christian community. This is a practical fund-raising project that Paul is promoting. But he is careful to ground it in the grace of God in Jesus Christ (verse 9)
Mark 5:21-43 Jairus was one of the rulers of the synagogue. "Each synagogue had its college of elders who supervised the synagogue worship. The nearest modern equivalent is a Presbyterian Kirk Session". (A M Hunter) The president "was the lay official responsible for the supervision of the synagogue building and the arrangements for the services, but the designation was sometimes used as an honorary title for distinguished members of the synagogue." (Cranfield). Whichever, it is clear that Jairus was a person of some note in the community.
The woman with the haemorrhage, on the other hand, would be a nobody. Her flow of blood would mean that she had been ceremonially unclean and a social outcast for twelve years. Hence her surreptitious and nervous approach to Jesus. Even when she knew she had been healed, she responded to Jesus' question trembling with fear, knowing that in touching Jesus she would have been understood to make him unclean too. She told him the whole truth. That could have been quite a lengthy conversation.
The contrast between this poor woman and the noble Jairus and his daughter is striking. Jesus treats both even-handedly. Jesus addresses the outcast woman as daughter (the only time any woman is so called by Jesus); the twelve-year old daughter of Jairus he calls, my child.
Your sermon might begin by briefly retelling the two stories, filling in some of the details - such as the status of Jairus and the reasons for the evident embarrassment for the woman. You might like to picture Jairus, anxious about his daughter while Jesus speaks with this obscure woman. I can see him standing first on one foot and then the other, a poor distracted father beside himself with anxiety at the long delay while his daughter's life slips away . . .
You could then contrast the two characters: Jairus, looked up to and respected, in the public eye, one of the upper crust, and likely to be well off. The woman, "unclean", ostracised, all around her the cruel superstition that often attaches to menstrual blood. She was as much a part of the lowest stratum of society as Jairus was of the top group - and she would be as poor as he was comfortably off.
For all these differences, the two of them were alike in this, that they were both near the end of their tether. Despair has no respect for wealth or fame, and can grip any human heart. The woman, sick in body and by now probably in mind too; Jairus distraught and ready to grasp anything that offered hope for his child.
There will be people among those who listen to you who have been brought to the depths of utter despair, when nothing made sense to them any more and the future offered nothing. You might say that such people will know that in the valley of human desolation pretensions fall away. You are simply a human being in great need.
There's something else that unites these two.
Daughter, your faith has healed you. (to the woman) Do not be afraid, simply have faith. (to Jairus) The word used for "have faith" does not imply that Jairus should start to have faith; it means "Go on having faith." "Don't let your faith dry up now that you've heard your daughter has died".
So these two stories, woven together, of two different people, tell how they each in their distress and despair came to Jesus with their faith. And through that faith they found life. Neither of them appears to have had anything wonderful by way of faith. Certainly not faith in the full Christ sense of commitment. "If I touch even his clothes I shall be healed," may be little more than a belief in hocus-pocus. Notice that it was only after the woman had poured out her heart to him that he told her to go in peace.
It would be easy to dismiss Jairus' faith as a matter of emergency religion - when all else fails, and the chips are down, call on help from beyond. . . the "faith" these two people had was a world away from what Paul meant when he used that word. But Jesus didn't dismiss their faith as worthless. This can be reassuring to those of us whose faith is often rickety, incomplete, and shallow. It demonstrates that receiving from Christ the gift of life doesn't depend on having mature, polished, gleaming and perfect faith.
Jesus said to another father who brought his child to be healed, "Everything is possible to one who believes." At once the boys' father replied, "I believe; help my unbelief." (Mark 9:23-24) Or, in the fine translation of the NEV, alas discarded by the REB: I have faith, help me where faith falls short.
By the grace of God, even the merest scrap of faith can grow, develop, mature . . .
Holy God, we worship you.
When beauty lights up our life,
We remember that it comes from you.
When truth shines into our minds and hearts
We know that you are its source.
When love warms our heart
And directs what we do
We remember that you are love,
And love begins in you
When we see goodness and grace
In the lives of your people,
Then may your grace awaken life in us
So that our worship and our living
Honour you our eternal God.
Creator God
We depend on you for life itself
And for everything that gives depth and colour
To our living,
And gives hope for the future.
We thank you for the people and the experiences
That have enriched life for us in recent days
And all through our life.
With our gratitude, we bring these gifts,
Money and food,
With the prayer that as the days pass
we will more truly love you
with heart and mind and soul and strength,
and more fully love our neighbour
as we love ourselves,
fulfilling the command of our Lord Jesus Christ.
So much to be thankful for!
Joy in our living,
Delight in our friends,
their company and their support.
The assurance of your goodness and mercy
with us all the days of our life.
In your presence we think of people
who find little delight in life,
with no one to call a friend,
longing for congenial company
and for strong support,
people who know nothing of you
Or your goodness and mercy.
We pray for people who look at life
with pessimistic eyes, unable to lift themselves beyond despondency
and despair.
People who look out at the world
and at people around them
only to criticise, to condemn,
alienating other people,
Cramping and souring their own nature
May we have serenity of spirit enough
to mirror for others
a little of the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.
In the life of this church community
may others be glad to find
the fellowship of the Holy Spirit.
And in the way we live day by day
enable us in all our dealings with people
to be gemuinely humble, actively compassionate,
gentle peacemakers
who bring with us wherever we go
the joy of our Lord Jesus Christ.
2 Samuel 5:1-5, 9-10 Since David was anointed by Samuel (I Sam 16) there has been a long period of conflict, jealousy, treachery and bloodshed. Now at last, disputes and bloody battle following the death of Saul behind him, David is the acknowledged King over all the people. These verses omitted by the lectionary from today's reading appear to be a belated and brief account of the taking of Jerusalem by David and his men. The scene is now set for the remarkable reign of the man to whom Israel would always look back as its ideal of kingship - and as a model for the expected Messiah.
Psalm 48:2-10 Artur Weiser points out that this psalm is often described as a Psalm in praise of Zion, a song to be sung in procession; however, he says, it is "only with some reservations that these interpretations can be accepted as correct. Only v 12 speaks of a procession; and the part which Zion plays in the Psalm cannot be separated from the glorification of God which is the psalm's primary object. Consequently the psalm is to be regarded as a hymn to the glory of Yahweh."
In Titles for the Psalms, F Cowell Lloyd sums up the psalm extravagantly, and perhaps a little too neatly, thus:
What a city! How graphic the description -
Its name - "The mountain of holiness"; Its position - "Beautiful for situation": Its fame - "The joy of the whole earth"; Its mission - "A City of Refuge"; Its strength - "The despair of all enemies"; Its buildings - "Impregnable bulwarks, a glorious temple and gorgeous palaces. Its destiny - "Eternal days".
What a King! How reassuring the delineation of his character and sovereignty! Loving kindness, universal favour, abounding righteousness, true judgements, a great name, a never-ending reign and unfailing leadership.
What glorious privileges await its citizens! - Honour, security, confidence, gladness, satisfaction, civic pride, and justice.
"Walk about Zion; tell the towers thereof; mark ye well her bulwarks; consider her palaces."
2 Corinthians 12:1-13 Paul begins by apologising for his boasting, but says he must go on with it in bearing testimony to his credentials as an apostle. He tells now of his visions and revelations granted by the Lord. He tells of these in the third person as a Christian man (literally a man in Christ). Paul wants to affirm his personal weakness by comparison with the power of Christ that will rest upon me. So: When I am weak, then I am strong. Conjecture about Paul's thorn in my flesh has ranged widely: glaucoma, epilepsy, malaria, neuralgia . . . there is no certainty.
Mark 6:1-6 "A major section of [Mark's] gospel begins here. As R H Lightfoot pointed out . . . the rejection of Jesus by his childhood associates immediately follows the restoration of life to [Jairus's daughter], and is part of the chain of events leading to his death. This is exactly the pattern in the Fourth Gospel, where the raising of Lazarus is the direct cause of the plot against Jesus (Jn 11:45-50). (Sherman E Johnson)
Is he not the carpenter . . .? (verse 3) The Greek word translated carpenter is used in the New Testament only here and in Matthew 13:55 - in Matthew's account of this same incident - where the question people ask is, Is not this the carpenter's son? It is more likely that the word is used of a maker of such items as ploughs and yokes rather than of a builder, who in Galilee and Judea would be more of a worker in stone. Only in this place in the New Testament is Jesus called a carpenter.
My sermon on Mark 6:1-6 begins with a reference to a television play from more than thirty years ago, Son of Man by the late Dennis Potter. As I remember it, it depicted Jesus as a wild-eyed and dynamic revolutionary, a radical nonconformist, often angry, sometimes torn by inner conflict, always refusing to be what people thought he ought to be. The play was written in the hey-day of the hippie movement, and some people complained that they would never believe that Jesus was some kind of hippie, as they thought the film was depicting him.
There were a lot of complaints about the film - "blasphemous", "offensive", "slanderous". It was upsetting to people who thought of Jesus as a saintly figure who fitted nicely into a stained glass window, and moved through Galilee with a benign glow, and caused no disturbance. I remember feeling uncomfortable as I watched the film, indignant about the Jesus Potter was portraying. But the more I thought about money-changers in the temple, our Lord's radical rejection of long-established traditions and widely-accepted rules and regulations, I began thinking that maybe Potter had done his research well. Scandalous words to esteemed religious leaders, and a promise that tax men and prostitutes would go into the kingdom of God ahead of them. And our reading today from Mark 6 and the reception Jesus eventually got from the people of his own home town.
Whatever the merits of Potters' film, it made viewers take a new look at the picture of Jesus they carry in their minds. We all need to do that from time to time. Years of familiarity with the stories of Jesus can make us think we know about this Jesus, and we hear selectively only what confirms what we already believe about him.
At first the people of Nazareth were surprised by Jesus' wisdom, but it soon changed to the expressed opinion that he was really only one of them, and, says Mark, they turned against him, or they fell foul of him. Matthew and Luke say they tried to stone him. The good people of Nazareth knew how a proper rabbi should act. The scribes and Pharisees and elders of the people knew what a man of God should teach. Jesus failed to meet expectations in both cases. Jesus never was - and still is not - in the business of conforming to what we humans expect of him.
Jesus was full of surprises for those who met him. He has not changed. If we can get beyond our settled and set-in-concrete images of the one we call our Lord, and meet him again as he comes to us in the scriptures and in the power of the Holy Spirit we are in for some major surprises. Perhaps in the church we are far too tied to our structures, too intent on telling people what they should believe, how they should behave, too ready to tie God down with our rigid doctrines. If, like me, you appreciate the novels of the late Morris West, you may recall how he touches time and again on the conflict "between the promptings of the Spirit and the demands of the System" - especially in The Clowns of God, his last novel Eminence, and in a View from the Ridge, his "testimony". All of them might provide you with useful illustrations at this point - but you need to have read the books!
You could refer back to Refugee Sunday, and suggest that Jesus might choose to be in a refugee camp among people with a nightmare past, a miserable present, and most of them with no hope for the future. Perhaps Jesus might prefer to be in such a camp rather than imprisoned in perpetuity in a doctrine, no matter how sound, or enshrined in a stained glass window, no matter how beautiful. If you want to say something along these lines, you will need to relate it to whatever is going on in the world in July - these notes are written in April 2000.
"We have very efficiently pared the claws of the Lion of Judah, certified him "meek and mild", and recommended him as a fitting household pet for pale curates and pious old ladies . . . . True, he was tender to the unfortunate, patient with honest enquirers, and humble before heaven; but he insulted respectable clergymen by calling them hypocrites . . .went to parties in disreputable company and was looked upon as a "gluttonous man and a wine-bibber, a friend of publicans and sinners, drove a coach-and-horses through a number of sacrosanct and hoary regulations" . . . ." Dorothy Sayers in an essay entitled The Greatest Drama Ever Staged.
A big, bustling world around us. So much to do
So many things happening.
Not enough time, not enough energy for life's big things . . .
Many sounds around us. Traffic. Machines.
Radio and television.
Voices speaking. People demanding to be heard.
Not enough silence. God's word not heard.
The good news of Jesus Christ not known, not understood . .
Much to occupy our minds. Making a living.
Planning a future. Sport, culture, hobbies, school,
Community activities, political agendas.
So easy to be pre-occupied with this world alone.
God forgotten . . . neglected. . .
So now in this place we turn to you, eternal God.
If we have neglected you, forgotten you,
Turned against you. Distrusted you, disobeyed you,
Forgive us, in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.
(a silence . . . )
Remember the promise of the gospel.
Jesus came to the world to rescue sinners.
God forgives us when we fail.
God accepts us as we are.
God frees us from evil's power
And makes us what we were meant to be.
Thanks be to God!
Lord God, you give yourself to us in Jesus the Christ.
By your Holy Spirit
Keep us always close to the Christ along our life's road,
Until we come to the end of our pilgrimage here,
And share eternally in your strong love.
God of Justice, God of love,
As we quiet here in your presence today
we call to mind some of the reports we have heard
In these recent days -
Events that have appalled and depressed us,
Reported in newspapers and on radio, shown on television:
Violence in far distant countries and on our streets,
in the homes of our land and our city/town/district.
In your presence we try to imagine
some of the people involved:
The victims, physically battered, mentally abused,
Sexually exploited;
and the victims of social policies and social systems
That generate poverty, anger,
Fear, resentment, and a craving for revenge.
We remember them before you today, eternal God,
And ask that you will give them wisdom, grace,
a moderate spirit, a healthy mind and self-discipline.
We pray that more difficult prayer
That will teach us and give us the will
to live and work to bring to the world around us
the fruits of your Spirit in us:
love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity,
faithfulness, gentleness and self control,
For the good of all your people,
For your glory,
And in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.
2 Samuel 6:1-5, 12b-19 It is difficult for us to understand the special mystique attached to the Ark of the Covenant. It was a rectangular chest about 1200mm x 750mm x750mm, with two poles for carrying it, two cherubim with outstretched wings, a lid called "the mercy seat", and a protective curtain. Inside were the two tables of the law. It was understood to be the appointed place where the God of the covenant was present; it was the instrument by which God displayed his power. At some undetermined time (not later than the reign of Josiah) and in unknown circumstances, the ark disappeared. In this passage in 2 Sam, the ark "is there to show the establishment of the throne
of David, and the fact that he is really, by the grace of God, the King of Israel." The lectionary has us omit the difficult and disturbing account of Uzzah's fate (verses 6-9), and the prosperity that came to Obed-Edom when the ark was sequestered on him for three months (verse 10-11), but both reflect the awe with which the ark was regarded.
Psalm 24 A Psalm that has been associated with David bringing the ark to Jerusalem in the 2 Sam passage above, but it is unlikely that it was written for this occasion. The psalm is in three parts: verses 1-2 (a hymn of creation celebrating God's dominion over the earth), 3 - 6 (a liturgy of instruction used at the entry of those who visit the Temple) and 7-10 ( a song in the form of question and answer, accompanying the opening of the Temple to the pilgrims, the place where God's glory dwells.)
Ephesians 1:3-14 For the most part, Ephesians is not easy reading. There is "a heaping up of abstractions, exalted and difficult words, heaped up expression and complicated sentences, which, after all, are only meant to describe the simplest Christianity." (Dibelius) In the Greek, verses 3-14 are one sentence! Yet there are important truths about the faith embedded in this letter: eg about grace (ch 2 vs 6-10) and about Christian unity. (ch 2 vs 13-22); and treasures of devotion (ch 3 verses 14-21) Writing of today's reading, Principal John Allan (of blessed memory!) wrote: "verse after verse in this section drives home the basic truth that all Christianity has to offer depends on God's actions. Christianity is a Gospel because it tells of what God has done, is doing, and is going to do . . . Notice the number of words in this section that point to God's loving action: has blessed us, has chosen us, having predestined us, . . . [and others] . . . indicate the action of God." (Ephesians, Torch Bible Commentaries.)
Mark 6:14-29 A sad and sordid story. Mark tells the story of John the Baptist's death here as a flashback. A literary device which fills the interval between the sending out of the disciples (6:6b-13) and their return (6:30). Perhaps Mark gives this grisly story as a vignette of the ghastly evil of the world to which Jesus came, and to which he sends his followers. "The story is told with a curious objectivity. It has no religious character, and gives no judgement, favourable or otherwise, on any of the actors. It is such a tale as might have been current in the bazaars of Palestine. . . Josephus [the historian] gives a divergent account of the Baptist's death. He says nothing about the denunciation of Herod for his marriage; Herod feared, according to Josephus, that John's great influence over the people might lead him to raise a rebellion." (Sherman E Johnson)
"The thing is, I'm afraid," says a 1980s young woman to her father in Morris West's The Clowns of God. "Afraid of getting married and having children and trying to make a home, while the whole world could tumble round our ears in a day." She tries to explain her fears to him: "You older ones don't understand. You've survived a war. You've left us! All along the borders there are rocket launchers and missile silos. . . You've given us everything except tomorrow! I don't want my baby to be born in a bomb shelter and die of radiation sickness. All we've got is today . . ."
We may already have half forgotten those days when the doomsday clock was said to be ticking away at only a few minutes before midnight, and we shivered at the thought of the fingers poised over the red buttons that would unleash nuclear destruction. Chaos, it seemed was closing in on us.
A bloodless revolution in the early nineties relieved the immediate pressure. But there is little to comfort us as we survey the world around us. Powerful destructive forces bode ill for human civilisation. Lloyd Geering's millennium book the World to Come: From Christian Past to Global Future gives a bleak, cheerless and indeed a chilling prognosis for the future of humanity.
A sermon for this Sunday might begin with something like the above. Our civilisation, the whole structure of human life on earth is precarious. This is pictured graphically for us in the first section of Psalm 24 - a poem that echoes the creation story in Genesis 1. To the Lord belong the earth and everything in it . . . for it was he who founded it on the seas and planted it firm on the waters beneath. The Psalm celebrates God's creating power, but it does not forget the dark swirling waters of chaos which, according to the cosmology of the time, lay not far beneath them as they lived on the solid ground of the earth. Neither the world they lived in, nor they themselves could exist without the power of God that prevented the dark waters of chaos from rising and engulfing them.
In section two the psalm, as the pilgrims approach the Temple gates, the question is asked as to who is worthy to go in those gates. The answer is a brief sketch of the character of a godly person, fit to be a part of the psalm-singing procession going up to enter the temple, the holy place. Pure in heart and action, honest in desire and in word, the person pictured here seems to us civilised, polished and mature. (See also Psalm 15: 2-5)
Yet time and again it has been shown that the shell of civilisation, culture and maturity is brittle. How could the German race, with its long history of learning, the race the produced Beethoven and Brahms and Boethe, also generate the third Reich, the Gestapo, concentration camps, and the holocaust? Preachers will know of other examples from recent history where the structures of civilisation, even "Christian" civilisation have crumbled under the pressure of the forces of chaos. And in this favoured country, how deep do the roots of our civilisation go, and how far away are the swirling dark waters of chaos?
Our passage from Mark 6 gives us a glimpse of evil at work in the man whom our Lord referred to as that fox (Luke 13:32). Herod was a master at the sly intrigues needed to keep favour with Rome and with his subjects. To keep a promise made at a party, perhaps when more than a little drunk (what king promises to give away half his kingdom except in his cups?), and to please a young woman whose dancing had delighted him, and to fulfill the vengeful desires and demands of Herodias, this man - in the presence of his dinner guests - orders a revolting act to be carried out. As part of the background of the ministry of Jesus with his compassion and grace and self-denial, we see this ghastly glimpse of how nasty human nature can be.
But the focus of the Psalm is not on the chaos. Nor should the focus of this sermon! The final section is the climax of the procession. The questions and ringing responses affirm that it is the Lord of hosts, the King of glory, whose authority and power extend over the whole creation. This is where God's people can stand firm even when the waters of chaos threaten to engulf them - as often happened to Israel.
Today's reading from chapter one of Ephesians takes us further than the Psalmist could go. In Christ our release is secured and our sins are forgiven through the shedding of his blood. In the richness of his grace God has lavished on us all wisdom and insight. (vs 7-8). Verse 10 affirms that everything is under God's control - past, present future; and God's purpose is that the whole universe, however shattered and chaotic it may be, is to be brought into unity in Christ. On some such triumphant note of hope and confidence the sermon should end.
We pray to you, eternal God,
For the people of your church around the world
Keep them from fear of the unknown,
From anxious concern about the future,
And from being afraid to go where you beckon them.
By your Holy Spirit alert your people to hear you,
And strengthen them to obey you resolutely.
For you are the Lord of creation, and the God of all
In your presence here we contemplate
Our world - divided, chaotic, fearful:
Lack of understanding, suspicion, enmity
Between races and nations, between religions,
Between people who are part of your one church.
The barriers of ignorance, greed, and envy
That divide rich from poor, privileged from deprived.
Well-fed from hungry, learned from illiterate . . .
Especially today we remember . . .
(here specify current world trouble-spots)
Eternal God, put into the lives of people everywhere
A spirit of reverence for you,
Respect for other people, and for your creation,
And make us willing to be led into your ways
Of understanding, unselfishness and peace
Through our Lord Jesus Christ.
We ask for help, eternal God.
For those who cannot meet life's demands -
Over-worked, tired . . . struggling to make ends meet;
Beset by illness or disability,
Drained by the advancing years.
Of their powers of body and mind.
May they find friends to support them,
Your strength to sustain them, your love close to them
In the deep places, bringing hope and tranquillity
God of blue skies and storm clouds
present with us in our despair and in our delights,
moving in our laughter as well as our tears,
we thank you for every gift of yours
That makes this world a good place:
beauty in the world of nature and in humanity,
Beauty we see in grace and truth
that comes to us in Jesus the Christ
We stand before you now with these offerings
We declare before you that we have brought
alike belong to you
use us, and use these offerings
according to your good purposes,
and in the light of your perfect wisdom.
Holy God, Eternal Creator, loving father,
in you we live, in you we move, in you we exist:
together we honour you.
Holy God, you come among us in human flesh in Jesus Christ,
living, loving, teaching, suffering, dying, risen, alive forever.
we bless you for Jesus the Christ, our Saviour and Lord.
Holy God, Holy Spirit, God with us forever,
We depend on you at every step of our life.
Holy living god, Lord of all, your glory fills the universe,
we honour you, our one eternal God,
and we offer you our worship.
The lines in italic print are intended to be spoken by the people.
2 Samuel 7:1-14a This chapter introduces a new phase in the story of King David. The stormy times of his succession to the throne are past, the battles are said to be over (but see 8:13-14, and 11:1), Much of David's life to this point had been nomadic. Now he is living in a house of cedar, indicative of a new era of stability for the king, and for Israel. "The considerations which lead David to think of building a temple are laudable, and worthy of a godly king. A house of cedar is the supreme example of a well-constructed and distinguished building; tents, on the other hand, are a feature of the lodging of nomads, . . . a lodging which is easily destructible and can be broken up at any moment. What an insult to the Lord and to his ark, to have to endure this manifest indignity! No wonder the prophet Nathan immediately agrees." (Hertzberg) But The Lord gives Nathan a contrary message for David.
Note in the passage the emphasis on the two types of house: a material house for God to dwell in, and a God's promise to build up your (ie David's) royal house (v 11). It is more important that the Lord will make a house of the king, rather than the king make a house for the Lord. It is a later member of the house of David who is to build the house of God. See 1 Chronicles 22:6-10 for that writer's explanation for this.
Psalm 89:20-37 The whole of this psalm celebrates the covenant God make with David. The reference to the 2 Samuel reading is plain. David and his house are promised unending greatness and glory. I shall establish his line forever and his throne as long as the heavens endure . . . his posterity will continue forever, his throne before me like the sun; like the moon it will endure forever. . . In fact, few of the successors of David on the throne fulfilled the hopes expressed. Zedekiah was the last of the line. Nebuchadnezzar, in retaliation for Zedekiah's treachery, had Jerusalem taken and looted, and the palace and temple were destroyed. "What then of the divine promise on oath that David's dynasty should never cease? The answer is that the fulfilment passed on to David's greater Son, the messianic King in whose veins would still run the blood of David." (Cowell Lloyd). We read this psalm as Christian people as a song of praise to Jesus Christ, in whom the promises made to David are fulfilled. But note George Knight's warning: "We should not think that this psalm 'foretells' Christ, for many of the details of it (eg vs 22-23) do not fit him at all. On the other hand we can confidently conclude that in Christ the essence of this passage is fulfilled or "enfleshed" forever. Not David, not his successors, not Israel, but only he can match its visionary sweep." (Psalms Vol II in the Daily Study Bible)
Ephesians 2:11-22 An exposition of the unifying power of Christ as evidence in the way he has broken down the barrier of enmity which separated them [Gentile and Jew]. The writer gives us a picture of the ideal church rather than the reality of his day, for there were deep divisions in the church as he wrote, and it was by his time largely a Gentile fellowship. As in our own day the ideal unity of the Body of Christ, his church, is belied by the divisions and parties in its life. The references in verses 20-22 to building, corner-stone, holy temple are of course to be taken figuratively. This is made clear in v. 19: you are . . . members of God's household. The New Testament shows little interest in buildings, except in this figurative sense. Even the word temple is used mainly with reference to Christ himself, and/or his people - see John 2:19-22, 4:20-24, Acts 7:46-50, Acts 17:24, I Peter 2:5-8.
Mark 6:30-34, 53-56 The lectionary omits the center-piece of this section of Mark's Gospel, the feeding of the multitude, which we read next week from John's Gospel. We are left today with a curiously disembowelled Gospel reading. The key phrase in the first section of the reading is his heart went out to them because they were like sheep without a shepherd. The Greek word used for his heart went out (REB) is one that translators seem to have trouble with. Had compassion for them (NRSV); Had compassion on them (NIV); Was filled with pity for them (GNB); He took pity on them (JB). I prefer compassion with its root meaning "to suffer with" - a stronger conception than pity or his heart went out to, both of which may denote no more than passing emotion. "In the New Testament splagchnizomai [the underlying Greek word] is only used of Jesus apart from three occasions on which it occurs on his lips with reference to figures in parables that have a close connection with himself. It denotes not merely sentiment, but a pity which expresses itself in active assistance" (Cranfield). Verses 53-56 show Jesus' compassion in action among the sick at Gennesaret.
When the three disciples were with Jesus on the mountain of transfiguration, Peter's first reaction to the mind-numbing spectacle was to say, "Shall we make three shelters. . . ?" The Christian church after its earliest era has felt the need everywhere to put up buildings to God's glory. At least according to foundation stones and commemorative tablets they are for God's glory. We may wonder how often they are more for the glory of a particular congregation - and, these days, for its comfort. And sometimes to be a status symbol?
I cannot imagine the value of land and buildings owned by the Presbyterian Church in my own city. Add the other branches of the Christian Church here, and then project that throughout New Zealand, and the figure must be frighteningly immense. Then think about the time, thought, energy, money, initiative and hard work that is channelled throughout the country into maintenance, improvements and extensions to church buildings . . . Is this the best the Christian Church can do with the resources available to it?
Of course, it's easier to muster support for a project to maintain/improve/erect a church building that it is to initiate and sustain a project to bring compassion and practical help to the sheep without a shepherd in our communities.
Special buildings for worship get little support in the Scriptures. David is bluntly told he is not to consider putting up a building in honour of God's name. The various temples built in Jerusalem far from enduring for centuries were razed by enemies. Our Lord was little impressed by the disciples' admiration of the temple (Mark 13:1-2). I cannot think of any suggestion in the New Testament that Christian people should erect fine buildings for worship. I understand that it was some centuries before Christian churches began to build houses for worship. The standard gathering-place for worship in the early church seems to have been the church that is at their house (Romans 16:5; see also 1 Cor 16:19, Col 4:15).
The real estate "owned" by the church is like a great weight that oppresses it and holds it back from its God-appointed tasks in the world. Ask any bishop of the Church of England in that country about the burden of trying to maintain or restore the fabric of old churches which may be of glorious architectural beauty and historical significance, but there are no people to worship in them any more. Enquire what proportion of your own congregation's income has been applied to buildings and grounds over the last five years, and compare it with the proportion allocated to being actively the body of Christ in your community . . .
This is not to say that buildings are totally unnecessary and the church should get rid of them. Our Lord was in the custom of being in the synagogue on the Sabbath day (Luke 4:16). Many people have good reason to be glad of precious experiences of God's nearness in church buildings; we probably have between ten and twenty times as many of them as we could justify if challenged - a knotty problem for the church.
David was encouraged to collaborate with God in building up his royal "house" - that is, his line; the writer to the Ephesians encourages his readers in Christ to be built with all the others into a spiritual building for God. Our Lord "went about doing good" out of the compassion within him. He calls his people together to the Body of Christ to continue the same work that he gave himself to. People are what matter. When buildings obscure the place of people, they have become idols, and we need to be freed from their tyranny.
Let us worship God.
We are glad of this time of worship together.
We are different from each other in many ways,
With our own joys, sorrows, hopes, anxieties;
Yet here we unite our voices in song and prayer
To honour God
And to pledge ourselves anew to God
In the grace and the power of our Lord Jesus Christ
. . . and an opening prayer
Eternal God,
We celebrate your glory here.
United with each other,
United with people of faith around the world today,
United with people of past generations,
We honour you for the glory of your love
In Jesus the Christ.
To you, the eternal God,
We offer our worship.
In these prayers, the words in italic print may be said by all the people.
The love of God never ends.
our faith depends on it.
Our church is built on it.
Our Christian life and hope are not possible without it.
Your love, Lord God is reflected too little in our lives.
So much of our thinking and acting focusses on ourselves.
Comfort security, possessions and pleasure -
such things absorb us and pre-occupy us.
Our compassion is too shallow and too fleeting.
Rancour and resentment blight our lives.
You judge us, Lord God
You now what we are, but still you love us
Let the love that was in Jesus Christ
In his living and dying,
be also in us, forgiving us, filling us, changing us
Shining in our thoughts and our words and our deeds.
Help us Lord God,
To hear your word of love and truth
in the scriptures,
in the love of Jesus,
and in his dying and rising,
in the fellowship of the church, its worship and service.
May we live more and more
According to the teaching and example of Jesus our Lord,
And in him find fullness and perfection of life eternally.