Remnants and Salvation! (Christmas 2)

Jeremiah 31:7--14   Ephesians 1:3--6, 15--19    Mt 2:13--15, 19--23

Jeremiah reveals the glorious side of judgement today: deliverance. Sin causes suffering and death by cutting us off from God, salvation is the restoration of His people in new life. We will sing with joy and praise our God, for YHWH saves His people and preserves a remnant!

Remnant (Hebrew: She-a-rith) is a recurring pattern in the Bible. It begins in Genesis 45:7, where Joseph explains to his brothers how God redeemed their evil act. ''God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant," he says, "and keep alive for you many survivors." This is the first of many times that God preserves a remnant to save His people!

In Jeremiah today, we hear that the remnant includes the poor and weak: “gather and bring the blind, the lame, the mothers with young babies, even pregnant women in labor.” Those who weep will be consoled, for YHWH is a Father to Israel, and they are His firstborn. We are told to listen; God is a shepherd who will gather and keep His flock. God ransoms and delivers His family. The Lord promises food and drink, joy and dancing. We will live in a garden paradise.

The reading today ends in joy, but I want to look at the next verse which is also an omission from today’s Gospel reading. Jeremiah 31:15 says, “a voice heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping, Rachel weeping for her children.” Then a word of hope in v16, “keep your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears for there is reward for your work and they shall come back... your children shall come back to their own country.”

Matthew 2:16-18 is missing from our Gospel reading today, which focuses on Jesus’ escape to Egypt, rather than Herod killing the babies and Rachel weeping. Yet I hope you see that Jesus is the remnant. He survives when a new Joseph takes Him into Egypt. By preserving, God can save us. The Herodian pattern of evil is continually repeated, but always God preserves a remnant. The Heavenly Father redeems human evil and saves His people.

So, fear not. Whatever threat might worry you, do not be afraid. Our Father is faithful. At stories end, we will all dance and sing. Each of us be filled with joy and praise God. So let's start today! 

Christmas 2020

Luke 2:1-20

 

The birth of Jesus, Christmas, replaced the pagan celebration of the birth of the Sun god on the Winter solstice. It is the shortest, darkest day of the year. Monday, December 21, was the Winter solstice. On that dark day we were told all worship services will be limited to ten people. Dark news, we canceled our services. Yet that evening we also saw “the Christmas star” in all its glory. Light shines in the darkness.

 

Monday morning, I had a baptized an adorable baby girl. Last Saturday, I buried a friend from our parish. Tuesday, I administered last rites. Praying the baptism I was struck by the wording: Grant, O Lord, that all who are baptized into the death of Jesus Christ your Son may live in the power of His resurrection and look for Him to come in glory…”

 

Christianity is centered on death and new life. This Advent has felt particularly dark to me—our national unrest, the collapsing world economy, and now living in the recently declared “World’s Worst Place for Covid-19.” I anxiously looked forward to our Christmas services this year, instead, more darkness.

 

But Luke is clear that darkness is part of the Jesus story from the beginning. Emperor Augustus’ is mentioned, a reminder of Roman oppression. Jesus is born at night, laid in a feeding trough because there is no room for Him in this world. Only the lowest level of society, shepherds, are present. Remember that Jesus is born into a world where child morality rates could reach fifty percent or more. Most people were unbelievably poor.

 

So the angel message is important: do not be afraid. Good news. Great joy. To you is born a Savior. A Messiah. The Lord.

 

Whatever your pain, your frustration, your loss, or your worry…this baby shares in our existence. He shares our burdens. He is born to save and heal us all.

 

Jesus is the bright light who shines even in the darkness of the darkest night. Jesus is the love of God, sent to heal our broken hearts. He is the Savior, who leads us through our own death into resurrection life eternal. That is our hope.

 

So whatever you feel now, watching this video, will you pray in faith with me these words?

 

Glory to God in highest heaven

Peace upon all those whom God favors.

Amen

 

 

 

 

 

 

ADVENT 4

2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16

Romans 16:25-27

Luke 1:26-38

Luke begins his Gospel with parallel stories of  Zechariah and Mary. Zechariah was offering incense, a once in a lifetime opportunity for a priest, and the people prayed for God to send His Messiah and establish the Kingdom on earth. Suddenly an angel appears and tells him that this prayer was heard. He and his barren wife will have a son who is part of God's saving work. Luke echoes the Jewish Bible, most importantly Malachi 3:24 and the return of Elijah to herald Messiah.

The biblical salvation stories frequently recount miraculous birth stories: Isaac, Jacob, Samson and Samuel; and the pregnancy of Elizabeth is just the beginning. Six months later the angel visits Mary, declaring that she is favored of God. She is dietarasso--very distressed and troubled--by this word and she ponders what it could mean. 

Clearly these human encounter with the divine realm are terrifying and confusing. Even holy people are overwhelmed by the experience. 

The angel tells Mary (and us) that the Holy Spirit has filled the womb with God's own son. He name is Jesus (Yeshuah--God saves). He will receive the throne of David and reign as Messiah, the king of Israel, forever. 

Unfortunately, we are so familiar with the story that our hearts are not moved and our minds are not amazed. "Yes," we (almost) yawn, "I know this." We need an angelic presence to scare us out of our complacency. We believe in Jesus the King, but too often in some vague sense disconnected from our real lives--Christmas presents, meals and other distractions.

Today let us each become Mary!

We can meditate on God's word and ponder its meaning.

We can say, "Behold your servant, O Lord. Do with me as you desire"?

In this service we shall offer our own body and soul to the Father and receive Jesus in the eucharist. Each of us, like Mary's womb, is a dwelling place of the Lord.

We live in dark and troubling times. Let our response to toxic politics be  the proclamation that Jesus is the eternal King. Let us remember in the face of pandemics and social maladies that He redeems us from all calamity and saves us from every evil. Let us live, like that poor third world virgin, as one who believes the greeting--you are highly favored by God!

shepherd

Ezekiel 34: 11-16, 20-24

Ephesians 1:15-23

Mt 25:31-46

God declares that He will search out His sheep--they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. It is an image which resonates with the passing of Autumn into winter. The liturgical seasons connect the cycle of life in nature to a deeper theology: Christmas in the days after the darkness begins to recede, Easter in Spring and Pentecost in Summer.  

Ezekiel, a young priest, saw the cycle of life first hand. He heard Jeremiah preach, saw the destruction of Jerusalem and its holy Temple. His life's purpose and work is no more. He lives in exile, the recipient of divine messages and visions, a mouthpiece for God.

Ezekiel is one of the literary giants of the Jewish Scriptures, yet his writings are sadly neglected by most of us. His words are both judgement and consolation; something we see in chapter 34.

The Lord Jesus' parable of the lost sheep and declaration that He is the Good Shepherd in John come directly from this chapter. It is a basic primer on God's salvation and Jesus' identity.

Shepherd symbolism is very straight forward. The leaders of Israel are condemned for using their positions for personal benefits. In every age, it is the powerful who are most easily conquered by the sinful passions which afflict us all. The shepherds take advantage of the weak sheep because they can, and as a result the flock is dispersed throughout the land. This refers to the literal exile, but also peroneal chaos which happens whenever people follow their own hearts without benefit of guidance. The sheep are lost.

But the sheep are also under God's judgment, because they mistreat each other. In the economic battle of survival, the fittest trample the weak. God declares a pending reversal of fortune.

But if this judgment is also a reason for hope. The Lord Himself will be the shepherd, with a descendant of David sharing the task. We believe Jesus is that human divine shepherd who fulfills this promise. Hear what God will do:

I will seek them

I  will take them out of exile

I will bring them home

I will feed them

I will graze them

I will look for the lost

I will bandage their wounds

I will sustain the weak.

I will rescue (yasha-save, deliver, vindicate) them

So fear not little flock. You God is come to save. 

Advent 2 The Second letter of Peter

Isaiah 40:1-11

Ps 85

2 Peter 3:8-15

Mark 1:1-8

 

Isaiah declares "comfort" to the exiles—God is going to lead them back home through the desert lands as their shepherd. The way back will seem smooth and easy to travel! This is “Salvation” to return with God to the land of promise. We should note that Mark uses this verse to begin his Gospel, showing that Jesus is the shepherd of a new deliverance, freeing the people of God from the spiritual exile of worldly and demonic powers. In Jesus is the fullness of this pattern of exodus/salvation repeated in the Bible. We, too, are being led out of exile as the lambs which He holds close to His heart. 

 

If salvation is real, so too is exile. The pain of life often creates doubt and fear in disciples. 2 Peter was written to address those doubts and fears. The letter is a last testament of the apostle facing his own death.

 

A brief overview of the letter: Peter begins by declaring that God has given us the power and knowledge to escape the world’s corruption. We share in God’s life—participants in the DIVINE NATURE (called theosis)—so we must live virtuously as godly people. The Christian faith is not ancient myth. Peter is a witness of Jesus’ ministry. He declares, I was on the mountain when God spoke those words: "This is my Beloved Son with whom I am well pleased." This powerful memory inspires him to say, “Prophecy comes from the Holy Spirit, it is not man-made!” We can trust what we have heard.

 

Yet, in every age false prophets and false teachers emerge. They deny God’s judgment and try to justify their sinful passions, especially lust and greed. Peter says that they mocked the faith in the past, they mock it in his time, so we should not be distressed when they mock it in our own time. One particular issue is, "Why does Jesus delay in His return?" Peter quotes Psalm 90:4, time is relative—for a thousand years are like a day to the eternal God. It’s like Jesus ascended to heaven the day before yesterday.

 

God desires to save us. Mercy and love motivate His patience, but the Day of the Lord secretly approaches. Peter exhorts us to not lose heart. Be godly and holy, he warns us, and stay prepared. Disregard the false teachers and stay alert. Keep your heart set on the ways of God.

 

Let us earnestly pray for the day to come and let us each live faithfully in preparation for the return of our Savior. Let us hasten that return (as Peter tells us)

Maranatha! Come Lord Jesus!

All SAints 2020

Revelation 7:9--17

Ps 34:1-10, 22

1 John 3:1-3

Mt 5:1-12

Revelation 7 begins with a vision of the chrch on earth; symbolized by 144,000 servants of God from the twelve tribes. Each one bears the seal of the living God, God protects them during the time of turmoil and suffering. Each of us must decide: the seal of God or mark of the Beast?

 

In our reading from the Apocalypse, we see the church in eternity, too large to count! The faithful are dressed in white--we will be made pure and holy--holding a palm branch to greet our victorious King. We will cry out with megas phone (a great voice) "soteria" (healing, deliverance, safety, salvation) belongs to God and the Lamb! Soteria is healing, deliverance, safety and salvation.

 

All Saints celebrates the holy ones who belong to God. We remember the faithful in every age, marked with the seal of God. We want to be like them—to bear God's image before the Beast who rules this earth, but not forever. The Apocalypse is not easy to understand, but the central revelation is quite simple. In Jesus, the Lamb, God has saved and healed the world. Someday it will be complete.

 

Politics, the human quest for power, often reduces us to beasts. It feeds on fear and anger. It seeks to dehumanize the other, to see the worst in them and ignore it in ourselves. The Beast inflicts pain and suffering, but God offers healing and deliverance. The Lamb will save us from the satan, from each other and from ourselves. The Beast will not prevail, even if for a while the saints appear to have chosen the wrong king.

 

The Beatitudes declare the victory of the Lamb. Blessed are the poor and heartbroken, blessed are the humble and merciful, the ones who long for a better day, blessed are those who suffer for Jesus—some day you will dress in white and hold a palm branch! 

 

But it is not just in the distant future. “See, what love the Father has given us? We are God's children now. Someday we will be transformed and become like Jesus, but already we can live as the divine offspring through faith.

 

Stay focused, holy ones! Live as a saint. Do not be distracted by the Beast or his threats. Do not be discouraged by the hostility of the world. Do not fear the daily struggles. You are a child of God, a holy one set apart. Rejoice in His faithful love and live like a saint.

apocalyptic Hope and Joy

Isaiah 25:1-9        Psalm 23       Philippians 4:1-9           Matthew 22:1-14

 

Isaiah 24&25 read like the Apocalypse, foretelling the day of the Lord when He “strips the world bare” and purifies the land of the arrogant who reject Him. God brings judgement on human kings and those hidden spiritual powers which rebel against Him. Isaiah 25 contrasts the fate of the city of chaos and the city of God. The Lord will be a refuge for the poor and needy, while fierce and cruel tyrants (who are compared to blistering heat or a raging thunderstorm) will be subdued. In the new age, the Lord will provide for all people who seek Him. YHWH will dwell among us, defeating death and wiping away every tear. This judgement imagery lies behind Jesus’ parable today.

 

To refuse the wedding invitation was to shame the King. Killing the servants was an act of treachery. The parable is an illustration of the human response to Jesus. Our decision to respond has eternal repercussions.

Too often, we fill our lives with nonsense, allowing the temporal to overshadow the Eternal God. We cling to passing things and unknowingly embrace death—for in this world all is tainted by sin and death. Isaiah and Jesus provide the terrifying alternative to a faithful response.

 

Yet, the message is one of salvation and a promise of abundance—a mountain banquet of rich food and wine, a wedding banquet. We celebrate the mercy and love of God. This is what motivates Paul, who is locked in a prison awaiting death, to write the most uplifting letter in the New Testament. He cheers us on to a spirituality of praise. "Rejoice in the Lord always, again, I say, rejoice!" The Lord is near. Stop worrying...

 

The Christian mind is peaceful and joyful--it generates praise and thanks. It is the worldly mind which centers on fear, doubt, darkness and gloom. It is easy to be swept away by bad news. It is easy to forget that "the Lord is near." He comes to judge the powerful who reject Him. He comes to feed the poor and defeat death. He calls us to the banquet. So rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I say, rejoice.