A House Full

Sermon Acts 2:1-21 (1-14) May 31, 2020 Pentecost yr A in the time of Covid19

A House Full

It is Pentecost Sunday.

It is the day we all gather together as the church from near and far.

It is the last hurrah before summer. It is the time of year when we celebrate graduates, from PreK, Kindergarten, fifth grade, eighth grade, high school and college. It is a time we celebrate our youth through confirmation as they enter into the voting rights of the church and become full participating members taking on responsibilities and offering their gifts.

It is the time of year we plan to leave our homes and head off on vacation to distant states, across the globe, to the beach, the mountains, the lakes and the national parks.

It is the time of year when summer sports take over, the swim teams, the little leagues, the travel teams, all keep our lives bustling and full of energy. Our houses are usually so full this time of year with the business of busyness. In the church this time of year on this Pentecost day we are full of excitement to celebrate the power of God alive in us through the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

And this year, it feels like none of that.

We’re not even together.

None of what I’ve mentioned has been possible.

It’s as if the breath of life has been taken out of us.

It’s as if the energy and enthusiasm of this time of year has been drained away from us.

The violence of the virus to steal our breath and

the violence of one man to steal the breath of another

have left us empty, hopeless, and alone.

We cry out to the Lord and ask, “When Lord, when?”

Where is your church now?

Where is your gathered people?

Where is your power?

We can’t breathe and you have left us alone.

We have nothing left.

And perhaps this year in our state of being we can understand being in the room with the disciples as if for the first time.

They were gathered in one place,

lost,

alone,

waiting,

uncertain about any future,

uncertain about life itself,

uncertain if the promises

they were given would really happen.

Fifty days from the resurrection they had been without Jesus. Ten days since his ascension and they had  no idea of what’s next. Of course they’d been told.

But, Jesus told them about his death and resurrection and that still came as a surprise to them. And now Jesus has told them about the coming of the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, the Power of God within them to stir them and to equip them.

And even with all that information, it seemed impossible and it seemed unbelievable, and it seemed foolish.

Many of them in their house full of people sitting and waiting were just hoping to find a way to get their life back.

How could they find their old boats and start fishing again.

How could they get back to any of the things they did before?

And so on this Pentecost, just as promised, the Spirit shows up.

There was no mistaking the sound of the presence of the Spirit being poured out upon the people gathered there in Jerusalem.

There was the roar of the mighty wind, there was the rush of the breath of the Spirit.

All the noise and the force appearing to the crowd created an uprising of sound, a sound finally understood, a sound finally spoken and claimed and shared.

They were in one accord speaking of God and the presence with one another became the language they could all share and learn from.

All of a sudden through the breath of the Holy Spirit, the people of God moved into another mode of existence.

They became united in thought and united in purpose and united in action.

May we who are gathered together on this day, you in your rooms at home and we here (by the Spirit’s power we are all together) may we hear the rush of the mighty wind of Pentecost today!

May the Holy Spirit descend upon us as was done thousands of years ago and unite us through the language of understanding and the purpose of God’s love for all life.

May the Spirit fill our houses full of wonder and grace in every corner,

in every crack,

in every space,

may the power

of the presence

of the Holy Spirit with you all

be so incredibly noticed

that you too become full in your hearts,

your whole body be renewed

and refreshed

with new purpose and

new breath of life.

When I was a young mother living in our 10X50 trailer I remember reading about the Holy Spirit power to fill homes and hearts. So I walked through our home with a baby on my hip and started praying from one corner of the house to the other. “Enter our home, fill our lives, fill our spaces, fill all of every corner, every nook, with the power of your presence, so we may live and we may be guided by your love. Come Holy Spirit, come”

God gave us the Spirit to help us in our weakness, to release us from our timidity, and to give us the power to love, to be disciplined in the gifts poured out upon us for ministry. This is  not for personal gain but as the community of faith to further the truth of God’s love for all people. They are poured out upon us to guide us to refresh us to show us a new way of life that draws us all closer together. We may be shy, or introverts, but gives us the voice to speak.

As we read through the New Testament and the Book of the Acts of the Apostles we learn through their stories how the early church was open to so many new ways of being the church.

It was all brand new.

It was all something they had never done before.

It was all something they had to experiment with and be fluid in.

They almost seemed at ease in the way the Spirit guided them to new experiences.

There were so many variables in those days about the whats, wheres, hows, and whos of the day that the only thing they could do was to rely on the power of the Holy Spirit to direct them.

As the church today in the last twelve weeks we have been faced with the same need to go back to the days of the early church. We had to learn fast how to be ‘live’ in worship.

We have had to look more than ever to the power of the Holy Spirit to direct and guide us. We have had to learn to accept the rush of the breath of the Spirit to fill our lungs and to open our ears to hear.

We are reminded again when we look to the early church the magnitude and scope of the work of the Holy Spirit in the lives of the disciples.

We’ve discovered that our houses are full. 2000+ years and we’re still here!

Yes, the church as then, is now in more than one place.

Our houses are full because the church is there.

Our houses are full because the energy is there,

the enthusiasm to discover and do and learn new ways is there.

Life has been fluid at every turn new

and refreshing ways of being have

found us united in hope and united in faith.

It doesn’t feel anything like Pentecosts of the past.

It doesn’t feel anything like the beginning of summer of the past.

But, today unlike any Pentecost we have ever known

the Holy Spirit is descending

upon us like fire and wind

can you see it,

can you hear it?

Look, listen, it will change us,

it will ignite us,

it will stir us to action,

it will get our house full

in ways we can’t even imagine yet.

Be alert, be open.

Swim team, little league, vacations will happen, they will come, not in the way we imagined, but they will come again.

The sound of laughter united together, united in purpose, united in life are emerging…

just listen…

God is here…

just listen…

the breath of life is here…

just listen…

like a mighty wind…

we are filled.

Praise to the Lord. Amen.

Resources: NIB Acts, How to be Filled by the Holy Spirit by AW Tozer, Feasting on the Word year A David Gushee, My old sermons 2015,2017.

Whole Armor of God

Sermon Ephesians 6:10-20 May 24, 2020 Memorial Day Service.

Whole Armor of God

On this Memorial Day weekend we remember those who died for their service to this country. “Established in 1868 as a day to honor the fallen soldiers of the just concluded Civil War, Memorial Day has grown to become a solemn recognition of all of our nation's war dead and the high price of our freedoms. There is the sense in which the dead, though silent, still speak -- the quality and character of their lives lingering long after they have gone.” 

Anonymous quote.

It is more than appropriate for us to spend time in worship, in reflection, in silence, in meditation, in a church service remembering those who fought for justice, peace, reconciliation, and freedom. Because the struggle and conflict is real in this world and God is the God of all nations. God is the God of peace, righteousness, love, tenderness and compassion. God seeks for those who follow in faith to live their lives serving to fight against oppression, to break the chains of human trafficking, to release the captives, to bring about equality, to work so the whole world is fed and people live in places where the rulers provide a safe haven for all their people.

We remember the lives lost in the most recent conflicts of war in Afghanistan and Iraq; in conflicts forgotten, Kosovo, Bosnia, Somalia; in wars short in duration, Gulf War, Panama, Granada, Lebanon, Dominican Republic; in wars of controversy, Bay of Pigs, Vietnam, Korea; in the great wars, WWI & WWII; in wars of regret, the Indian wars, and the Civil war. People chose to go to war, were drafted into war, tried to flee from war, ran straight into war. All, no matter the reason, gave their lives and this one weekend, just this one weekend we remember them and their families. In November we remember & honor all who served, but this weekend we remember those who are gone.

Why does it matter some may ask?

Others may say this has no place in the church worship.

Some may have conflicted ideals with war and the military.

Others may have high and lofty ideals of sovereignty.

But, in the church, God helps us to recognize that life and love are most important.

How do we seek to serve to make sure that all life receives the love God has ordained?

How do we walk through war torn cities and nations without being impacted and moved to help, to renew, to provide?

These are the words of those who have gone to foreign lands. Soldiers and Chaplains have shared with me how their lives have been touched beyond measure. They speak of the unthinkable that happened.

Those who have served in the military in front lines have seen so much, have been changed by all they have witnessed for the hope to bring dignity back to the lives of those they have fought for. Perhaps, that’s what’s most important to share with our next generation. The importance of serving, the importance of integrity, the importance of a well lived life. They speak of how they have also fought here at home for the freedom of those held captive, those being tortured and maimed, those who had lost everything.

 

Art By Marsh Ryon

Paul is speaking to the people of Ephesus to give them courage. Paul wants them to remember first of all that they are a new creation in Christ Jesus.

Paul knew that these new Christians felt powerless.

They felt their lives were filled with instability.

He was worried they lacked resolve.

He was most concerned that they did not fully understand their identity in Christ. Paul assists the Ephesians in understanding their new identity by uniting them no longer as Jew and Gentile but as new creations in Jesus.

Paul emphasizes that their identity is in the risen Lord.

Unity is key.

And the fact that all authority and powers are subject to Christ.

It is important to let them know that God will free them from the powers of darkness. God will provide for them in times of fear and confusion,

in times of frustration,

and lack of understanding.

When ignorance and sin are at the forefront,

Paul guides the Ephesians in finding truth and peace.

In his final appeal to the Ephesians, he admonishes them to stand firm.

Just as any officer would do for his/her troops a firm grip of confidence is key just prior to entering dangerous territory.

It was not easy for the Ephesians living a faith that was as radical as Christianity.

It didn’t make sense.

It created turmoil.

People lost work, and even lost lives because of their faith.

The gospel message of love and peace has been dangerous for so many.

And Paul’s words to don the whole armor of God fit well for these early people of faith.

As it also fits well for us.

To know our bodies are clothed in the protection we need when we are facing the unknown, the things beyond our control, the powers of darkness and danger, gives us the inner strength to stand firm, to move forward, to engage in the rigors of life and not be afraid.

God is with us.

We are called upon to be active in our faith and active in our life.

Our military heroes have gone into battle in places where the assault was great. It required a firm confidence to get them through to do what had to be done.

There have been many times that the world has been grateful to the United States joining the allied forces. If it had not been for the decisions to enter into these global conflicts many more lives would have been lost and the tables of global power would have been very different. It is important that each generation remember this truth and choose to do the same.

Paul is advocating for a defensive armor to protect oneself in the conflict of the ages. We could all do with a little bit of armor in the conflict of life. Armor is not a bad thing. Protecting oneself from harm is not a bad thing. Using military language synonymously with our faith in the love of Christ is not a bad thing. Armor is a form of resilience. It is a testimony of being able to face the enemies of our life, whether they be real physical entities or the demons of our imagination, or the darkness that lies within our own hearts, or the reality of oppression, or the cruelty of language, or the pain of disease, or the sorrow of death, or the seriousness of loss.

Wearing things as real as a helmet of salvation,

a belt of truth,

a breastplate of righteousness,

a shield of faith,

shoes ready to proclaim the gospel of peace,

and the sword of Spirit, make us prepared for anything and ready to be bold in all things.

We need that language today.

We need our resilience if Christ to stand firm as we go forward. 

Hold on to hope. 

Hold on to love. 

Hold on to peace.

Every part of our body covered to face forward to whatever is coming our way.

Let us always remember our battle is to come to the fullness of our identity in the newness offered us in the risen Christ. The emptiness in our heart filled with floods of peace. The sorrow in our soul filled with the real presence of Jesus.   

Yes.

Today we remember the sacrifice of so many for us here today as the future generation of freedom and peace. We too will don the whole armor of God and stand together in the love of Christ for the future generations.

May we never forget.

Amen.

Resources: NIB Ephesians. 

A Walk to Emmaus

Sermon Luke 24:13-35 April 26, 2020 3^rd Sunday of Easter

A Walk to Emmaus

Gathering with you this morning in the intimacy of our safe sacred spaces, our sanctuaries beyond these walls, our sanctuaries at home is a real blessing. 

We have the opportunity to worship our God beyond all praising; to offer our voices to a love so amazing, to the gift of God sent to us and revealed to us, with whom we rise to bless. These are the words from the anthem we’ll sing soon. But, I think on this morning as we gather across the internet, its important to be mindful of this gift of praising God from wherever we are.

It wasn’t until we’ve had this shelter in place order that I began to look at this post resurrection story of Cleopas and his friend differently.

Here we are today all hunkered down in our homes waiting for a moment to allow us to get on with life.

We are all waiting for the word that this mess we’re in is all over.

We’re all waiting for the word that we’ve emerged healthy and unscathed.

Cleopas and his friend are scared, disillusioned, and bewildered of the events of their past few days. They only want to go home, to get away from the turmoil and agony of the cross. This story is about the walk to Emmaus. That seven mile journey from Jerusalem.

But, these days all the familiar things we do that offer us solace, we are unable to do. It’s hard to identify with this story.

We can’t participate in all the familiar things they mention.

We can’t journey far,

we can’t gather at table with friends,

we can’t engage with strangers.

These elements in our lives are the things we miss. This story has the potential to create an even deeper sadness.

And yet, we are here holding God’s Word in our hand wondering, hoping, trusting, how Jesus will be revealed for us, to us today.

Cleopas and his friend were at their home and they had invited Jesus to join them. And in their home at table together, they recognized him in the familiar acts of their life.

Perhaps, this is all we need to remember today.

You see all the stuff that happened on the road to their home was important. That’s how they wondered and recapped the events and did their best to process out loud with each other what had just happened in history, what had just happened to Jesus, what had just happened to them. It was more than they could bare. They didn’t have enough within them to go on. They didn’t have what they needed-they didn’t have Jesus anymore.

Jesus was the one who they followed and who all the disciples loved. Jesus was the one who provided for them in a way they had never experienced before. It wasn’t the miracles. It wasn’t the preaching. It wasn’t, well, they couldn’t put their finger on exactly what it was that caused their hearts to be moved when they were with him.

And now he was gone and they missed him and all that had become familiar to them seemed to be gone too.

Through their connection with Jesus they experienced the joy of family and community with the other disciples. They experienced their lives transformed into a new identity with Jesus. They experienced the power of God within them to sustain them from day to day. And the cross took all that away from them…so they thought.

We too have important connections with one another.

Coming to church gives us the joy of family and community.

Coming to church reminds us we are a transformed people with our identity in Christ.

Coming to church we experience the power of God at work within us to sustain us from day to day.

And this covid crisis has taken all that away from us…so we think.

Mike and I learned a lot when we took our trip sailing across the Atlantic. Every time I look around at my life in these last four months since our return, I see a connection of our trip with our life as it is right now. And that’s just it. It’s connections. When we joined the World Cruising Club Atlantic Rally Crossing we had no idea how important the connections we made were for us before we sailed. We discovered how the relationships we built with the crews of the different boats prior to our departure created what we needed. We discovered the connections of the church and our family prior to our departure became an important part of our daily routine. We knew we were far apart from each other while we were by ourselves on our little boat out in the middle of the Atlantic. But, our faith in our connections with one another allowed us to know we were never alone out there. Whether by radio, or email, or looking at the same night sky, we knew we were present with those beyond our reach.

On this Sunday we are all beyond the reach of one another.

And yet, through the connections of radio, email, letters, computers, the night sky and the sun, we can know we are fully present with one another.

The one thing that seals this connection is the invitation to Jesus.

Cleopas and his friend invite Jesus into their home.

And there they are together at the table enjoying a meal.

And then they remember!

And then they recognize him!

And they are lifted up in the joy of his presence.

We do not have to pretend that we have it all together.

We do not have to pretend that life is dandy.

We do not have to pretend that ‘we’ve got this’ staying at home gig figured out or are even coping.

We can be truthful.

We can speak the truth of where we are and how we are.

 And then we can do one thing.

Just one thing is all we need. And that is to invite Jesus in.

We can invite him into our home to be with us.

To sit with us.

To cry with us.

To laugh with us.

To sustain us.

Wherever we are Jesus shows up at our invitation.

It is a gift.

The greatest gift of amazing love.

As one podcaster said (KCBowler) when there is more than enough for us to bear, the math of self care is not enough. Kate C Bowler says, when we no longer have enough for ourselves the prayer for the Holy Spirit to show up for us, to carry us is real. God shows up, she says, to put us in our hamster bubble and push around for awhile when we just can’t do it ourselves any longer.

Cleopas and his friend couldn’t do life the way it was any longer. At their home they invite Jesus in. and in that moment of returning to the familiar, a meal together, they recognize the gift of the fullness of his presence with them.

And so on this Sunday, you out there, and we in here.

Trust the promise.

Trust the invitation.

Jesus has us connected with one another.

We are not alone.

In life and in death, in all our circumstances, we belong to God and to each other-and these are our blessed connections.

We are gathered this morning in the intimacy of our safe sacred spaces, our sanctuaries beyond these walls, our sanctuaries at home with Jesus at our tables, and we are blessed. Let us lift up our sacrifice of praise. Amen.

Resources: Podcast Working Preacher podcast for April 26, 2020  Rolf Jacobson, Karoline Lewis, Joy J. Moore, and Matt Skinner; Podcast Kate C Bowler; NIB Luke

The Earth Breathed

Sermon: Revelation 22:1-5 April 19, 2020 Earth Day

The Earth Breathed

People have said this is the most beautiful spring they have ever experienced. I hear them tell me about the flowers, the buds, the colors, the enormous blooms, the extended period of flowering. They speak about how glorious the neighborhoods look in the light and the glow of spring. They tell me about all these things discovered just outside their doorstep.

And I have to wonder if we are noticing because our lives are not focused elsewhere. If we were running through the regular schedule of our day, would we have noticed the nest right outside our door? Would we have taken a neighborhood walk after working a twelve hour shift? Would we have sat in the yard staring through the trees into the sky if we had been at school or at work? 

Would we have considered looking out the window beyond the walls of our space at all? Perhaps, the knowledge of confinement, the shelter in place causes us to need a purpose beyond ourselves, beyond our walls.

For some of us, these may be the hardest times of our lives. Stuck in an endless ‘groundhog day’ movie with Bill Murray. Wondering when will this ever end?!

All we want to do is get back to a normal we are familiar with. It might not have been the best way of living but it certainly was what we knew and how to plan our lives.

The words written in the final chapter of the book of Revelation speak of a new heaven and a new earth. It talks about what life will be like in the age of the coming of Christ. It talks about how nothing will be the same. And yet, everything will be wonderful. These are words of hope we hear at funerals that seek to give us peace for our loved ones and for ourselves.

I believe these are words of hope for any age. These are words of hope for the church. There will be rivers of life and a tree of life full of fruit producing more than anyone would ever need. And this tree would be the power to heal and unite all the nations together.

Isn’t that our dream?

That all nations can come together, be at peace and provide for all humanity in a way that gives dignity to all. Here in this last chapter of the Revelation there is no church building. There is no Temple. There is no cathedral. Just as we are today operating without church buildings. We are the church beyond the walls now. In Revelation there is worship before God in the city, in the street, in the middle of the day with no more night because the Lord is their light.

This is such a powerful an image for us for the end of time and for this very time we are in now. There we read and can acknowledge that the earth breathes. 

The earth and all of creation are made whole. 

God’s focus is not just on people and their egotistical personalities, but on the whole earth! For some crazy reason we Christians think salvation is only about people. We think God is going to restore the earth just for people. We think God is going to make rivers flow, and grass green, and abundance exist just for people.

But, listen carefully about how God loves the whole of creation. All creation rises and praises God. The whales, the birds, the creatures of the deep all rise up to praise God. And then there are the animals of the forest, the fox, the deer, the eagle all lift us up to bring us to our place before God in our times of trouble.

Those who hunt and fish for pleasure know the rules for preservation. 

You understand and adore the earth and respect the gift of food from the earth. 

Those who make their living with the sea and soil know how to work to protect land and sea for future generations.

When our lives become entwined in the work of the earth it moves us deeply with it. When we are with the earth it causes us great pause. Allowing our hands to dig deep into the dirt, to stir it, to run it through our fingers, somehow, let’s us let go of so many worries. We rest with the dirt as it breathes.

This is the fiftieth anniversary of the celebration of Earth Day. The actual date is April 22^nd each year. This year many are taking the time to plant. There are more flower gardens than ever before and vegetable gardens are popping up at many households.

We have the opportunity to consider this pandemic, this shelter in place, this confinement, this stay at home, this lock down-whatever name we have given this time of covid19 disruption to our globe-we have the opportunity to call it the ‘great pause’, ‘the day earth breathed’.

In this time we are learning the beautiful and painful truths of how we live. 

We are learning about the beauty and the ugly of our relationships. 

We are learning about joy and the deep sadness of our life’s work and dreams. 

We are learning about triumph and tragedy. 

We are discovering how lift up and tear down, 

how to love and hate. 

How to encourage and blame. 

We want to take away how horribly uncomfortable it feels where we are right now and so many will do anything, spend anything, believe anything to make that happen.

In this moment of ‘great pause’ let us consider the power of God at work within us all to reveal what new thing he is doing to emerge from this time.

There have been many times in human history when there was a need for a great pause. And in that time what emerged was a discovery of a few things first and foremost. 

1. We care about each other. 

2. Physical contact is a crucial human need. 

3. Our connections are our lifeline for survival.

As ministers across this community we are able to feel connected to each other through a joint message shared on the radio. We listen to each other’s worship services are fed by one another. We can go to more church in one day sitting on our back porch enjoying nature than we ever have before. We can talk to family and friends through so many more apps and visual experiences. We have been more creative about how we connect because we realize how important it is.

And SO, what I love most about this end of time revelation is that nothing will be the same and somehow that gives us a hopeful promise.

How about we look at this time we are in where nothing is the same as a hopeful promise. Jesus loves us, loves creation, and somehow we will all get through this together with an outcome of joy.

So, on this earth day,

let’s examine our great pause as we allow the earth to breathe.

Let’s examine what’s working for us in this time.

Let’s pay attention to the good.

Pay attention to the good.

Where are there moments of happy?

What moments are you able to be proud of?

What activities are giving you purpose?

We have the opportunity as followers of Jesus to make this time in our lives more than a ‘stop gap’ measure, more than a ‘hold your breath til its over’ moment.

Let us trust God to be doing a ‘new thing’ within us all.

As the church we will emerge stronger and with our eyes opened. We will know our neighbors more than we knew them before. 

We will work together now and realize our faith in Christ is what builds us rather than divides us.

Step outside.

Dig in the dirt.

Witness the time it takes for the flowers to grow.

Take a deep breath.

Know that the day is coming when earth and heaven will be one.

The day is here with Christ Jesus and earth and heaven ARE one.

Trust this truth.

Amen.

Resources: NIB Revelation; Revelation by Brian Blount

Touch Me Not

Sermon John 20:1-18 (KJV) April 12, 2020 Easter in COVID19 Naomi Makemie & Francis Makemie Presbyterian Churches

Touch Me Not

There you are out there somewhere.

I cannot see you.

I cannot touch you.

But there you are out there.

I know its true.

You are beyond my ability to see, to hear, to touch and yet I know you are there watching and I am comforted by this truth.

This reality of your presence even in the emptiness of this space is what we believe week after week.

Yes, I’m talking about our resurrected Lord.

You thought I was talking about you?

Well, that’s true too.

I miss you. I miss our face to face time. It's not easy to be at virtual church. 

But, I’m grateful you are here with me today, with each other today.

Today of all days we are in awe of the truth Jesus spoke to Mary at the tomb-‘touch me not’ (KJV translation) ; for I have not yet ascended to the Father, but go tell that I am ascending to my Father, your Father, my God, your God.’ In this moment we witness the reality of our entrance into the kingdom of God. Jesus is including all who hear the invitation that his Father is also our Father, his God is our God.

I don’t think we’ve ever been aware of the power of touch in our lives until we’ve been told we cannot touch. We’ve been aware of our noses itching, our eyes burning, and our ears tickling. We’ve been trying to deal with them without using our fingers to scratch, rub, or wipe our facial parts.

We are told not to touch our loved ones.

Do not hug them.

Do not kiss them.

Do not come near them.

Stay six feet away from everyone.

How hard this has been for us all. The ones we love most are protected best by our absence. It is contrary to our understanding of love. It is a paradox. It is impossible to comprehend.

Perhaps that’s why John’s gospel account of the resurrection is so poignant this year. Mary arrives alone in the morning. She discovers the stone rolled away. And without even researching further she runs away to tell Peter and John. She reaches the conclusion by the evidence of the stone rolled away that the body of Jesus has been stolen.

She had witnessed his death at the crucifixion.

She witnessed his burial in the tomb as she wrapped his body and anointed it with spices.

She witnessed the stone rolled in place.

The only conclusion when she witnessed it moved was that someone had moved the body of Jesus. Her grief of his death was now deepened even further with this loss of his body.

She cannot be contained in her despair.

Sometimes we witness just one thing. And with that one piece of evidence make all kinds of conclusions without even a moments hesitation. We run to tell everyone what we think and we all get spun up. We begin to tell a story that’s not quite the truth. We end up creating a narrative that suits our account without ever finding out more.

Our deepest longings, our greatest desires are what turn us back.

They are what cause us to enter into spaces and places we might not have dared before.

Peter and the beloved disciple run straight into the tomb and discover the grave clothes and the veil of Jesus. They remembered what Jesus had said in that moment. Their hearts were stirred by the memory.

We have all entered the Easter story somewhere along the way.

The Easter story started at the beginning.

In the beginning was the Word.

The Word was with God.

The Word was God.

Our beginnings were with God at our birth,

at our baptism,

at our growing,

our awakening to the world.

Where in our story do we encounter the resurrected Jesus?

Where does the Easter story become our story?

At the beginning of the gospel (John 1:38) Jesus asks the disciples, ‘Who are you looking for?’ ‘Who are we looking for?’

Mary is so filled with grief as she looks in the tomb that she isn’t even awestruck by angels.

She is on the hunt for the body of her Lord.

She turns around and Jesus is standing there right in front her.

Jesus is there for her.

Jesus is fully present with her.

Jesus is alive and well and in her space.

And she doesn’t recognize him.

She is blinded by her despair; she cannot see the one she longs for.

Are we filled with grief and despair?

Are we unable to see Jesus standing there with us, in front of us, in our space?

Are we blinded by our grief, by our pain, by our expectation, by our longings that we cannot recognize our Lord fully present with us?

Friends, he is there.

He is here.

He’s asking us the same question he ask Mary? Who are you looking for?

And then in the same moment he calls Mary by name. He calls us by our name.

In that moment through the mist of our tears, we hear his voice.

We hear the familiar sound of love.

We hear the truth, the reality of being raised up,

lifted up from death to new life.

We can all jump for joy with her as she discovers the truth that her Lord is alive! He is risen indeed! And in her excitement she, like any of us would do, wants to go running and give him the biggest embrace, the hug larger than life-squish the stuffings out of him kind of hug.

I think that’s the hug we are all imaging that we can give each other when this isolation is over.

But, Jesus tells her, ‘touch me not’. Which the Greek word Hapto means don’t hold on to me. Don’t hang on, cling, or squish. It has the larger meaning of ‘do not manipulate, manage, or own, possess, or control.’ She cannot hold on to the Jesus of her making.

We too, can no longer hold on to the Jesus of our making.

He is here for us. He is right in front of us. He is with us. He is calling our name.

Let us let go of our hold on him and the way things ought to be and open up to the glory of the Resurrection. The joy is here friends let’s believe.

Because he lives. Let’s go announcing, “We have seen the Lord!” Amen!

Sermon by Reverend Monica Gould
Resources: Encounters with Jesus, Frances Taylor Gench

Our King is Coming!

Sermon Matthew 21:1-11 April 5, 2020 Palm Sunday year A  

  Worship during covid19 

Our King is Coming!

Our King is coming! He’s riding on a donkey and heading to Jerusalem. He’s certain where he’s going. He knows what’s ahead of him. He has no doubt of who he is or how his story will end.

Our King is coming! He’s riding on a donkey and heading to Jerusalem. We’re certain where he’s going. We know what’s ahead of him. We have no doubt how his story will end.

We are the people in the crowd.

We have decided he is the one who will save us.

We are the woman in need of food on the table for her five children. We know that Jesus is coming into Jerusalem to turn over the tables of injustice and make sure there is always food for the poor.

We are the people in the crowd. We have decided that our government is corrupt and Jesus is coming to be the new King and will remove the Romans, the dishonest, cruel politicians from the nation.

We are the crowd. We have decided Jesus has come to save us. We are the crippled, the blind, the homeless, the jobless, the disenfranchised and Jesus is coming to create a world of equality.

Our King is coming!

He’s riding on a donkey and heading to Jerusalem.

We are among the very crowds that sing Hosanna, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord

and betray him the very next day.

We know Jesus is coming for us in our way and only our way. If he doesn’t do what we want, how we want it, when we want it, and where we want it, we’ll quit. We’ll walk away. We’ll say he was never for us anyway.

They needed, wanted a savior. They needed the promised messiah to come.

The followers of Jesus on the way to Jerusalem expected a Savior to end the madness of Roman occupation. They were going crazy with rules always changing and never knowing if they were doing the right thing. They could not trust that life would ever have any normalcy because of the fickle changes of leadership from one season to the next. Governors and Jewish leaders were thrown in prison or relieved of duty frequently. The Jews had a tyrant for a king. The people were fearful. They were anxious. The crowds saw no end in sight.

Today, we need a savior too. We need a Savior, a rescuer like any other person in any other time of deepest darkest difficulty.

We are facing a war of the worst kind. It is an invisible beast, insidious, destroying nations, communities and families. It has no sympathy for any race, economy, or person. What’s worse is there is no end in sight. Ten more weeks the Virginia governor tells us. We’ve barely endured the last three weeks. How will we get through this isolation? We really want to be in a crowd. We want and need our ability to worship in this sanctuary.

We want our chance to be filled with joy

bursting from our seams

as we watch the little children

carry banners and wave palms.

We want and we need to laugh with one another

as we rejoice and rub shoulders with each other.

We love Palm Sunday!

It is the fun church holiday.

It is the one Sunday where everything, absolutely everything is all about happiness.

And this year we have to make the happiness happen in our homes.

Three years ago we couldn’t celebrate in this sanctuary because for six months it was being cleaned from smoke damage. Then we asked, ‘How are we going to do this?’ And here we are this year asking the same question.  We think-We really need someone to rescue us from this insanity.

The followers of Jesus had been through a lot.

The followers of Jesus continue to go through a lot.

Jesus was the one they trusted.

The ones who had followed him through the years.

They witnessed his miracles.

They experienced his touch.

They were nourished.

Their bursting hearts rang out in boisterous sounds of praise!

They could not be contained.

It seemed as if all those years of following him built up the anticipation and expectation of who he needed to be for them in that moment.

Hosanna-save us.

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.

Be our rescuer now!

It’s time the climax of the movie is here and we need you more than ever.

Division and fear is everywhere and the people are clinging to the newness of Jesus. They are hanging on to his words of love and his listening ears and compassionate ways.

We are going through a great deal of anxiety now with no end in sight.

Our emotions are running high.

Instead of following distancing rules we are now acting in avoidance of one another.

We used to say hi to everyone.

Now we look at each other in suspicion.

We can safe distance and still maintain social etiquette.

We do not have to fear one another.

We need each other.

We don’t need to shame each other, or judge, or condescend, or ignore.

More than ever we need to practice hospitality.

We need to greet, to engage, to raise a hand and wave a palm, high and low, raise our voices in confidence and support.

We can imagine why people were flocking to Jesus. He gave them stability, comfort and hope in a world that had none of that for them then.

Perhaps, that’s why we are still seeking a savior.

We still seem to be lost in hope when we face tragedy, turmoil, and disaster.

The moment we feel we have grip on the world

and the way life is around us-we shout for joy

and we sing hosanna-we got this.

And then in the next breath we are

blindsided by a circumstance that betrays

our very feelings and knocks us on our tushies.

We come this year and every year to be reminded that we are always the people in the crowd crying out to Jesus Hosanna-save us!

We may not be in a physical crowd but we are in a virtual one. We are all flocking to the computer screens looking for the worship service that gives us Jesus the savior to speak to our needs. And if the preacher isn’t selling the Jesus we want, we’ll switch the channel, we’ll walk away. We’ll quit.

That’s what happens the day after the parade.

Holy Week we call it now.

The week we are entering as we enter with Jesus into Jerusalem.

We make this journey every year because we need Jesus.

We need to follow his ways and as the years roll by we begin to recognize the power of Jesus within us.

We sense his presence stronger.

We feel our bodies bursting with joy as we go.

And this year more than ever we’ll raise our palms and banners together.

We’ll march together in the parade there in our living rooms excited about the Savior. Excited about our love for him who taught love for each other.

We believe!

We will raise our voices, we will work together.

We will show that distance does not change our ability to be in mission. Distance is what strengthens our resolve to reach out further than ever. We raise our palms and we shout through the roof that our Savior is with us. We will not walk away. We are connected by the power of the Holy Spirit that makes us the body of Christ. We can praise today and we can sing!

Our King is coming! He’s riding on a donkey and heading to Jerusalem. He’s certain where he’s going. He knows what’s ahead of him. He has no doubt of who he is or how his story will end. Hosanna in the highest! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!

Amen.

Resources: Feasting on the Word Year A