Category: News

Jeremiah 1:4-10
⁴ Now the word of the Lord came to me saying,

⁵ ‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
and before you were born I consecrated you;
I appointed you a prophet to the nations.’

⁶ Then I said, ‘Ah, Lord God! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy.’ ⁷ But the Lord said to me,

‘Do not say, “I am only a boy”;
for you shall go to all to whom I send you,
and you shall speak whatever I command you.
⁸ Do not be afraid of them,
for I am with you to deliver you,
says the Lord.’

⁹ Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth; and the Lord said to me,

‘Now I have put my words in your mouth.
¹⁰ See, today I appoint you over nations and over kingdoms,
to pluck up and to pull down,
to destroy and to overthrow,
to build and to plant.’

If you have a phone, whether it be a smartphone, or a flip phone, or even a house phone, someone has called you.  In the days of yore, we had party lines where several households shared one phone line and you had to pick up and see if someone else was on it, and your neighbor always seemed to be on when you needed to call someone.  We had answering machine with those annoying cassette tapes to make sure we never missed a call and to begin screening our calls from annoying credit card salespeople.  In today’s world the caller might be a spam risk or even a robocall, but we all have been called and we have become quite selective in who we answer.

But just as people and organizations have called us, so too has God called.  Just as a salesperson reaches out to us to talk about our car’s extended warranty, so too does God reach out to us.  In our text, God calls Jeremiah by reaching out to him, now the word of the Lord came to me saying.  Your friend takes the initiative to call and invite you over for tea, your family reaches out to invite you to a Sunday evening fried chicken dinner, your boss calls you to ask you to work overtime.  God always is the one to take the initiative to reach out, to move towards, and to begin the dialogue, the discussion, and the relationship.  God always calls us, like God called Jeremiah.

But the purpose of God calling is not to invite your over for tea, nor to gossip about the latest Marvel movie, but to summon us to the purpose and plan that God has prepared for us, ‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born, I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.’  Before we were created, God had a purpose for us and for Jeremiah it was to be a prophet to the nations.  For us we have been summoned to be disciples of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, and all this before we were created.  Before we were formed and before we took our first breath, God knew us and knew what he appointed and now summoned us to do for God’s sake.  God always appoints us, like God appointed Jeremiah.

But just as you can ignore your phone calls, or screen out your spam calls, or even swipe your calls when you do not want to talk to someone, so too can you do with God.  Jeremiah did so, when called he says, God I can’t, then I said, ‘Ah, Lord God! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy.’  Which of us when summoned to our callings has not answered with I can’t, if we even answer at all?  No sooner than God calls us, and we reply with excuses and avoidances.  I can’t be a minister I can’t speak.  I can’t be an elder I have no time.  I can’t be a deacon I don’t like people.  I can’t be a teacher I hate kids.  I can’t, I can’t, I can’t.  We quite often answer God’s call with refusal and disobedience, like Jeremiah refused God.

But even though we can refuse God, God never ceases to call, and God never accepts our excuses, But the Lord said to me, ‘Do not say, “I am only a boy”; for you shall go to all to whom I send you, and you shall speak whatever I command you.  Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord.’  Every excuse offered by us to God, is met with a correction from God to destroy that excuse.  I am only a boy how can I go; you can go because I am going with you.  I do not know how to speak; you can go and speak because I will tell you what to say.  I am afraid, how can I go; You can go because I am with you to deliver you.  Every “I can’t” offered to God, is met with God’s reply of “why can’t you?” 

The good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is that God doesn’t just call us to impossible and unfulfillable tasks, but God also equips us with everything needed to do so, then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth; and the Lord said to me, ‘Now I have put my words in your mouth. See, today I appoint you over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to pull down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.’  God not only summons us, but does and gives something to us, to empower us to success for God’s sake.  God empowered Jeremiah.  The challenge of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is in the power of God to obey as commanded.  Jeremiah still had to go. 

My friends, we all have a calling, and that calling is unique as you are.  That calling is to a specific task appointed by God, before your creation, to you and to you alone.  But while God may have called you, God also has equipped you with all the gifts necessary to fulfill it.  But we must answer that call from God with the total devotion of our embodied souls.  We must answer that call with the obedience of Jesus’ Christ as His disciples.  Never ignoring God’s call, never screening God’s call, never swiping God’s call, and never giving excuses why you can’t, but always answering that call, with all that you have and all that you are, to the Glory of God.  Amen. 

Matthew 8:5-13
⁵ When Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking for help.
⁶ “Lord,” he said, “my servant lies at home paralyzed, suffering terribly.” ⁷ Jesus said to him, “Shall I come and heal him?”  ⁸ The centurion replied, “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. ⁹ For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” ¹⁰ When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith. ¹¹ I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. ¹² But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”  ¹³ Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go! Let it be done just as you believed it would.” And his servant was healed at that moment.

As a boy of 16, my worst fear when learning to drive was merging onto the expressway.  I had a terrible fear that I would be driving onto the on-ramp and when I would go to merge over into the right lane of the interstate, a tractor-trailer would be in the place on the road I wanted to get to.  Obviously the two of us could not occupy the same spot on the road and if we did, my little car was going to lose that fight.  What my driving instructors taught me was that if that ever happened, I just needed to wait until the truck passed me and then I could merge in behind.  I just needed to yield to the bigger truck.

We need to yield to the bigger Lord.  When God and we come together, both of us can’t be in the same spot.  Both God and us when we are merged together, cannot be the same thing.  With God united with us through the Son and in the Spirit, we both cannot be in the same driving lane.  Both of us cannot be Lord, one needs to be Lord and one needs to be follower.  We need to yield to the bigger truck, we need to yield to God who is already Lord.

In the gospel of Luke, we have a centurion of great authority, great wealth and great respect yielding to a person of greater authority, Jesus of Nazareth.  The centurion built the Jewish people of his town a synagogue.  The centurion was so well respected by the Jewish elders that they testify to Jesus of how worthy he is. Obviously this centurion is a man with just about everything we Americans desire, power, money and respect.  But with all the authority this centurion possessed, he still lacked an authority over the power of sickness, that his most treasured servant lay dying. 

But his ears pick up the town gossip that a man whose name was Jesus had this greater authority, even an authority to speak and people are cured.  So this centurion who commands Roman soldiers, who can afford to build a synagogue, this centurion yields to the bigger truck. This lord over people, yields to the bigger Lord over all things.  The centurion says to Jesus, Only speak the word, and let my servant be healed.  For I also am a man set under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,” and he comes and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and the slave does it.  A centurion with authority over others yields to the one with God’s own authority set over him, Jesus the Christ and Lord.

How slow we are to recognize what the centurion recognized?  How slow we are to see what the centurion saw.  This is what John the Baptist foretold, God has come down to his people as the man Jesus of Nazareth.  If this Jesus is God with us, then how slow we self-proclaimed lords over others, yield to the one with the ultimate Lordship over us, the very Son of God!

But thanks be to God that Jesus is not only Lord over us, but also that Jesus is Brother inside us.  Not only does Jesus possess power over evil and death, but Jesus also possesses humility which yields to his Heavenly Father.  Not only does Jesus have authority over everything making him the Lord.  But Jesus also has compassion to help us yield to God, making him the Brother.  Who better I ask you to help us yield to almighty God, than the Son who yielded his entire life to the will of what his Father asked of him?

So, if Jesus is Lord and Brother to all who will have him as such, then let us so filled and held by the Son’s tender embrace, learn to be sons and daughters of the Father, yielding to God’s will.  I can think of no bigger truck we merge with, therefore let us yield to God and just simply fall in behind.  After all, when we yield to God, we just might find that is where Jesus already is, yielding to God. 

In Christ,
Rev. Mark

Luke 19:11-27

¹¹ As they were listening to this, he went on to tell a parable, because he was near Jerusalem, and because they supposed that the kingdom of God was to appear immediately. ¹² So he said, ‘A nobleman went to a distant country to get royal power for himself and then return. ¹³ He summoned ten of his slaves, and gave them ten pounds, and said to them, “Do business with these until I come back.” ¹⁴ But the citizens of his country hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, “We do not want this man to rule over us.” ¹⁵ When he returned, having received royal power, he ordered these slaves, to whom he had given the money, to be summoned so that he might find out what they had gained by trading. ¹⁶ The first came forward and said, “Lord, your pound has made ten more pounds.” ¹⁷ He said to him, “Well done, good slave! Because you have been trustworthy in a very small thing, take charge of ten cities.” ¹⁸ Then the second came, saying, “Lord, your pound has made five pounds.” ¹⁹ He said to him, “And you, rule over five cities.” ²⁰ Then the other came, saying, “Lord, here is your pound. I wrapped it up in a piece of cloth, ²¹ for I was afraid of you, because you are a harsh man; you take what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow.” ²² He said to him, “I will judge you by your own words, you wicked slave! You knew, did you, that I was a harsh man, taking what I did not deposit and reaping what I did not sow? ²³ Why then did you not put my money into the bank? Then when I returned, I could have collected it with interest.” ²⁴ He said to the bystanders, “Take the pound from him and give it to the one who has ten pounds.” ²⁵ (And they said to him, “Lord, he has ten pounds!”) ²⁶ “I tell you, to all those who have, more will be given; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. ²⁷ But as for these enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them—bring them here and slaughter them in my presence.”’

In my high school economics class, we learned about the stock market and investing resources.  Our teacher gave us an assignment over the course of several weeks to teach us the basic lessons of playing the stock market.  We were given a fictional ten thousand dollars to invest in any stocks of our choosing and several weeks later we were to see how much we gained or lost over that period.  We learned about how volatile the stocks were and we learned the most important lesson, investing in the market is not for the cautious but for the risk-taker.

Just as our teacher gave us resources to invest in a fictional stock market, so too does Jesus give us resources for us to invest in.  The slaves in the parable from Luke are Jesus’ disciples and the Kings’ going away is Jesus’ departure to heaven.  The King gives his slaves ten pounds or about 3 months’ worth of wages; Jesus gives his Word and Spirit to his disciples to use in the interim period from when he leaves or ascends until he returns at his second coming.  We have been given the Divine resources from Jesus to use and invest for Jesus’ mission until Jesus’ return.  What has Jesus given to you?

In the parable, the King returns to judge or hold the slaves accountable for what they did and did not do.  The two slaves were faithful with their pounds and have returned interest along with the principal.  What do we have to return to Christ as “interest” along with the principal?  We have Jesus’ Word; will we have brought that Word to people and people to that Word?  We have Jesus’ Spirit; will we have brought that Spirit to people and people to that Spirit?  Will we have been responsible investors and brought more than we were given back to Jesus?  Or will we be like the one slave who was afraid to lose the pounds and failed to do anything good with it?  The one slave was cautious and fearful, more afraid of falling short and losing the pounds, than having the risk or nerve to invest even in a basic savings account and earning basic interest.  Fear so overrides the slave that he was even unwilling to take a minimum risk to earn even a minimum reward.  When the King judges him, he has the original principal but nothing to add to it; and he is judged as faithless.

No greater barrier exists to responsibility than fear, because to be responsible implies a modest amount of nerve.  In the eyes of God, being afraid of loss and doing nothing is judged as being faithless compared with a bold and brave community suffering total loss from taking risks.  A community simply cannot gain anything for Christ if it is afraid of losing what it already has.  The Church simply turns inward upon itself, turning away from the source of its life and blessing, Christ her head.  Resources are used not to invest in the neighborhood but instead to pander to its members.  The congregation’s time, people and treasures are spent on personal agendas of staving off scarcity rather than investing in the Gospel and maybe or gaining everything.  Fear and anxiety rule instead of the Power and Love of God’s Messiah.

Perhaps no greater lesson is needed for Churches today, struggling with dwindling resources, than this.  To have a new result, a new growth, or a new life, one must have the nerve to invest everything you do have for the sake of Christ.  You cannot gain “interest” for Christ, if you are clinging in fear to the “principal.”  What today’s Churches might just need to re-claim is the Spirit of Adventure.  Whether it be the nerve to be different, or the courage to witness to the Kingdom of God, or the boldness to sacrifice everything, to gain everything for Christ; this is the Spirit Jesus left for us, not a Spirit of fear to fall back into anxiety, but the Spirit of Adoption which drives us ever forward to risk it all for the Christ and Christ’s Gospel.  But it requires us to let go of what we are desperately clinging to in fear of loss and to invest everything we have and are in order that God might gain the world.

My friends, true faith means nerve.  To truly be responsible stewards of what Jesus has left us means courage and risk-taking not worry and anxiety.  To truly be faithful disciples might just mean we are willing to risk everything, so that Christ might gain something.  But if we are clinging to our somethings for fear of losing what we do have, we will never have the possibility of having anything new: new growth, new success, new energy, and new most importantly new life.  Let us take the risk of investing everything, that Christ might gain everything; and Christ might just judge us good and faithful servants.  Amen.