Lead Us to the Throne of Grace

In seminary I took a class at the Methodist Seminary in DC by this funny professor from Mississippi.  He had been a pastor for many years and he would tell these stories but they often used language that I was unfamiliar with as an Episcopalian.  One of the memorable phrases he would often use was about when he would visits churches and the other pastors would say, “Lovett, I want you to lead us to the throne of grace.” 

After we all laughed at his animated expressions and stories, he explained that this phrase just means to lead the congregation in prayer.  It was new to me.  And it is royal language.  And while it might not be a term we are accustomed to hearing, at some level it is what we all desire, to be led to the throne of grace.  We come to church not just to learn about God, but to encounter God, to be led to the throne of the great high priest, the King of kings, the Lord of lords, Jesus Christ incarnate.

Today is Christ the King Sunday, the day in the church where we proclaim the reign of Christ.  Our culture sure has a fascination with royalty and especially monarchies.  The cover of Time Magazine this past week was an emotionally captured shot of Prince Charles.  The article was about the legacy he will leave behind and the vision of his leadership. He has started countless charities and foundations and so the article addressed how he will be remembered as a king. I am sure several people in this room watched the royal wedding a few years ago or followed with great interested the baptism of the newest prince of England.  We care about kings and queens, because we are fascinated with royalty.

There are two images of kingship and royalty that I would like to focus on today.  The first one comes before our Gospel reading in Luke today.  We will come back to the account in the 23rd chapter of Luke, but first we need to move back four chapters to understand. 

While a king will be led to the throne, the procession is also very important and so I want to first look at the procession of Jesus into Jerusalem.   In the 19th chapter of Luke, Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a colt that has never been ridden.  It is the kingly procession that is to take place. Marcus Borg writes that there were actually two processions that were taking place at that time. At the same time of Jesus’ procession, Pilate would have also been entering Jerusalem.  As a Roman leader, there would have been a strong military escort, leaders of the community that benefited from the Pax Romani standing out in the streets to hail Pilate.  And arguable those Jewish leaders threatened by Jesus who knew exactly why Pilate was in town, would have been cheering the arrival of peace as they understood peace.  Pilate’s arrival would have been announced with trumpets blaring, and festive gatherings, a procession of magnificent glory. 

Jesus’ entry on the other hand would have been quite different.  Where we might easily imagine a procession similar to the beautiful and ornate handmade vestments of the clergy who processed at the baptism of the newest Prince George, suspect we are quite off base.   Jesus’ friends were tax collectors and fisherman.  He was a friend to the Samaritans, the harlots, and the blind man.  He was a friend of the demoniacs, and people who were disabled.  He loved the lepers.   People would not have placed expensive garments on the road.  They would have placed their smelly, shredded and weathered clothes.  It was the sweat stained and tattered rags that became the runway for Jesus.   The beauty of Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem is the stark irony of kingship. Luke is beginning to change our concept of what the triumphal procession of a king should really look like.

Which leads us to where we are today, being lead to the throne of our King.   There is no doubt that Pilate had a throne or a seat.  You can image Pilate sitting high above the people, looking out, and allowing the vocal crowd to decide the fate of Jesus.  And in our Gospel passage today, Jesus ends up on his own throne.  He is crucified between two common criminals, innocent and completely humiliated, left to die before God’s people.  And Pilate has the inscription placed over him – “This is the King of the Jews.” 

Triumphal entry into Jerusalem and the throne of power, both are juxtapositions of competing ways of life.  We can follow Pilate, marching with our armies, in search of power, or merely trying to maintain the control or power we already exhibit in life.  Pilate was merely trying to keep peace in the Roman Empire as he feared insurrection and violence.  Or we can follow Jesus, over the sweat stained and tattered rags of human existence. We can seek the throne of Pilate that rests high above the multitudes where we are commended to offer judgment on others.  Or we can seek the way of the cross that will surely cause us to be humiliated and humbled beyond measure. 

This Sunday is also Stewardship Sunday.  In a moment you will be invited to march forward and place your offering on the Altar.   As soon as the offering for today is brought forward, and lifted, the ushers will step aside and you will be invited to walk forward and place your offering on the plate on the altar.  While we make a procession forward each week to receive communion, we are making an especially important procession today.

 

In a way what we offer to God, what we offer to the church is a counter cultural offering.  We are choosing to not to make the procession to follow Pilate but instead to follow Jesus.  We say that life is not about what we can acquire, but about what we can give away.  No one will know what we give, we will not receive public recognition for our gifts, we will not receive acclimation from the congregation. Our pledge is between God and us.  It is a way of saying humility is greater than praise. 

At our stewardship gatherings we talked about giving as a spiritual discipline that shapes us.  Each time we give, we become more giving.  Each time we make an offering we are learning to become a more generous person. Each time we give of ourselves, we are taking the other path.   While it might not be the language we use, we can still say, led us to the throne of grace.  Luke however reminds us that the throne is not some fancy royal seat of gold, a place of prestige or power, a place where all can look at us and see how wonderful we are.  Instead it is the cross, a place of ultimate humility and sacrifice.  But it is there that we are promised paradise.  Amen.

Sermon Preached on November 24, 2013

Church of the Annunciation

Thinking Ahead: Not One Stone Upon Another

Luke 21:5-19

Who are the Blessed?

Luke 6:20-31

One of my favorite movies of all times is National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.  It is usually watched each year in my family, but an unspoken tradition at best.  There is this brilliant scene where the entire family is gathered around the dinner table and the father who is hosting, Clark, played by Chevy Chase taps his knife against the crystal glass, “Before we begin, since this Aunt Bethany’s 80^th Christmas, I think she should lead us in grace.” 

Aunt Bethany is kind of confused.  Her husband prods her.  Grace.  “Grace passed away 30 years ago” she yells.  Her husband is frustrated, points at his dentures and yells, “They want you to say the Blessing!”  Aunt Bethany nods and begins saying the Pledge of Allegiance.  All of the sudden the whole family led by crazy cousin Eddie (Dennis Quaid) and his full denim suit, chimes in and places their hands over their hearts, “And to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” 

Beautiful movie.  And Aunt Bethany has no idea what a blessing is.  And I think to some extent many of us struggle with this concept as well.  What does it mean to be blessed?  It is a term we use freely and probably just link Aunt Bethany, we fail to miss the mark.  We look at someone who is wealthy, they are blessed, or someone who is really smart, or really good looking, or has hair that is combable and say, they are blessed.  But are we missing something?  What is a blessing?

There is an uneasiness in our culture that has dominated the last two years of economic growth.  The Dow Jones Industrial Index has reached record heights climbing to nearly 16,000.   Stocks and mutual funds are valued at all-time highs, interest rates are still incredibly low and the housing market is starting to pick up.  Home values are increasing, houses are moving, and jobs are being created.  And I would wager that most people in this room do not entirely buy this notion of the good old days of economic growth such as the 90s has returned.  People are uneasy.  They are skeptical.  They are concerned.   What is being experienced on Wall Street is not mirrored in the inner rooms of our spiritual self.   While the world shows signs of stability, we as humans doubt that this stability is for the long haul. 

Today’s Gospel shares with us Luke’s Beatitudes from what is commonly referred to as Jesus’ “Sermon on the Plain.”   We hear about the Beatitudes often; popular scripture often spouted by Christians.  “Blessed are the poor in Spirit, blessed are the meek.  Blessed are the peacemakers.  Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake.”  But these are not the words of Luke, but Matthew whose comments seem to resonate with us so much more deeply. 

Luke on the other hand sets up parallels.  Blessed are you who are poor, hungry and weep.  Blessed are you when people hate you and exclude you.  But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.  Woe to you who are full now. Woe to you who are laughing now.  Woe to you when all speak well of you.  There is no sugar coating this passage.  There is no diminishing this lesson to allegory or parable.  It is Jesus’ sermon on the plain that reaches out, grabs our attention, and says wake up! 

As someone who preaches every week, I have a sort of rhythm I move with.  On Monday’s I read the lessons and do some research.  I then let the different readings become the backdrop for my week.  All of this played into our church outreach project yesterday.  About 10 of us headed down to Faxon Avenue to the Firehouse Ministry yesterday morning. The Firehouse is an interesting place.  It looks boarded up on the outside, yet on the inside is painted a majestic purple and gold.  Every Saturday, vans drive around the neighborhood picking the neighbors up.  On the outside, the yard is rundown, littered with some trash and broken appliances, yet inside people gather, this Saturday 95 from the community came for a meal, a warm shower. 

And yesterday, the Beatitudes were on my mind.  I chatted with my new friend John about the NFL, his favorite team the Detroit Lions, and our utter amazement at Calvin Johnson’s year.  We talked about the games that are scheduled to take place today and neither of us could remember who was playing.  I pulled out my Apple Iphone 4s, two years old, and there John looked.  “Oh you have a fancy phone… Alright.”  Me, rich.  Wealthy.  And not very hungry.  I could hear Jesus’ sermon on the plain, and I was uncomfortable. 

Ms. Vicky asked the gentleman sitting next to me to stand and tell about the event that many witnessed a few days earlier.  Apparently, Jermaine was fatally stabbed by James over a bowl of soup.   I realized that I have never eaten a meal in fear or worried about my safety in a way that nearly every person in the room knew every waking moment.  And I could hear Jesus’ words, blessed are you who are hungry.  Blessed are you when people hate you.  And woe to you who are rich.  Woe to you when all speak well of you.

 

Ms. Vicky was pretty upset.  She was mad at the group for arguing over soup.  Most of the people in the room were at the soup kitchen a few days ago when this event went down.  She was mad at the girls for seeking protection from the wrong guys.  She was upset with the guys for taking advantage of the girls.  She was upset, and so she yelled and cried.  Ms. Vicky was getting her preaching voice going, volume was increasing and she had the whole room’s attention.  “Don’t you understand… You are blessed.  Each one of you is blessed!”  

I could hear the words of Jesus in a new tone, with new emphasis, in new away.  And she was talking about the others.  Not me.  I didn't feel blessed.  I was hearing the woes so much more clearly and loudly. 

The Gospel according to Luke, points to a world which is turned upside down.  Roles are reversed.  People’s situations are changed.  Maybe the uneasiness of our culture is experienced because we know that fiscal security, a well respected reputation, and even a full stomach are only temporary.   Maybe Luke is pointing not only to the temporary nature of these, but to how, wealth is also deceptive and can keep us from seeing true blessing. 

Today is All Saints Day.   It is the day that we remember all the people, both the saints in our own lives and those who the church remembers who tell the story of faith.  It is also a day where we do not recite the Nicene Creed, but instead renew our Baptismal vows.  We say the same prayer we said when we were baptized, or the prayers that were said on our behalf, because today especially we remember that it is through our baptism that we are united together.  The prayer for today that we said says, “Almighty God, you have knit together your elect in one communion and fellowship in the mystical body of your Son Christ our Lord: Give us grace so to follow your blessed saints in all virtuous and godly living, that we may come to those ineffable joys that you have prepared for those who truly love you; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, in glory everlasting.”

Today we remember that God has bestowed a blessing on us through baptism.  This is not, wealth, it is not fortune, security, food, reputation, or looks.  It is a bond with God.  Maybe those who Jesus encounters who are hungry, who are poor, are able to see more clearly their bond with God so much more clearly because it is not covered up by the temporary things we call blessings in life.  Maybe they can understand a dependency on God that we ignore.  And maybe those who Jesus’ reaches out to know a little bit more than we do what it means to be blessed.

This means those who are poor, those who are hungry, and those who are hated by others, have something to teach us.  They can understand more than we can imagine when it comes to being blessed.  I think so often we approach ministry with the idea that we are there to help someone or to offer them something that they don’t have.  This is a true component to caring for one another, but we can fail to recognize that those whom we minister to have something even greater to offer each of us, and that is an understanding of blessing that our prosperity limits us in seeing.   

Sermon preached on November 3, 2013

Church of the Annunciation

The Loss of Our Self-Identity

Luke 18:9-14

I heard a funny story the other day about the Pope on his last visit to the United States.  On his last day of the visit, he was delayed due to meetings and was unable to break away to catch a flight.

Since he couldn't depend on his Pope Mobile, he phoned for a limousine. When the limousine arrived, the driver was joyfully surprised that it was the Pope who called for him. The driver became nervous and was beside himself and proceeded to drive very slowly. The Pope became nervous and told him to hurry up but it did not make a bit of difference. The driver went slower; he wanted to keep the Pope in his limousine as long as he could. The Pope could not be delayed any longer so he asked to drive the limo himself. He sped off and reached the speed of 85 miles an hour. The policeman who stopped him was shocked when he discovered the famous personality behind the wheel. He frantically phoned his police chief and said, “Chief, I have stopped a very important figure for speeding. I don’t know what to do?”
--“What do you mean? Give him a speeding ticket!” 
--“Sir, in all honesty, I can’t.”
--“Why can’t you? The law is the law. Who is it anyway that you stopped? Is it the mayor?”
--“No, sir.”
--“Is it the governor?”
--“No, sir.”
--“Is it a congressman?”
--“Is it the president?”
--“No, sir.”
--“Well, then, who is it?!”
--“I don’t know sir! All I know is that the Pope is driving him to the airport.”

I would have substituted Archbishop of Canterbury for the Pope, but I don’t think it would have worked as well.  But in all seriousness, the pope continues to teach us about humility.  This week he censured a bishop in the German church.  The Bishop was spending a ridiculous amount on his residence including $34,000 for a conference table and $20,000 for a bathtub.  In a public statement the Pope drew attention to the humility of not only the calling of the ordained, but what it means to be a Christian. 

Humility not only keeps us from lavishly living but it also keeps us from drawing attention to ourselves.  So today, I want to draw attention to our liturgy in particular.  We began with a collect that brought us all together.  It asked God to cleanse our thoughts so that we may love God.  We heard together Holy Scripture and now we are hearing together a sermon.  In a moment we will make a statement of faith.  At each turn, we proclaim what We believe.   What follows are our prayers of the people, a chance for us as a group to pray on behalf of the world, the church, those in need, and those who are in our own community.  We do this together.  We read the names of our congregation together.  We do not offer what we as individuals pray for and this is important.

And then we confess our sin.  While there is silence and space to acknowledge our own personal sin, we offer a prayer that acknowledges our sin together.  We confess that as a group we have failed in so many ways.  We confess that we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves, that we have not always walked the way God has called us to walk. 

And finally, we gather together to make Holy Eucharist.  This is an action that we cannot do alone.  In our tradition, not even a priest can make Holy Eucharist by his or herself.  Jesus tells us that whenever two or three are gathered in his name, God is there.  As Christians we give we take on a corporate identity. 

In all of these actions, what is evident is the loss of a need for an individual identity.  There is even a loss of individual theology or the need for individual prayer.  Instead, what emerges is a corporate identity.  By giving up of ourselves, we become the body of Christ.

A friend of mine from seminary’s daughter was just born three weeks ago. Her name is Audrey Grace.  She is a fighter and not like most others.  Her heart was born with only two chambers.  Immediately after being born, she was flown in a helicopter to another children’s hospital to have her first of several heart surgeries.  There are other complications too.  Over the past few weeks, a trend has emerged.  People who know Grey and his wife Monica, and their family have sent pictures wearing “rally” caps or hats.  Pictures have been sent of entire sports teams, families, and the entire student body of our seminary all wearing “rally” caps.  Thousands of people have sent pictures which essentially say, “We are rallying with you Audrey Grace.”  Word has even traveled from the Presiding Bishop’s office.  Audrey is not even a month old, but their family is learning that they do not fight alone.  Their entire community and more stand in solidarity with Audrey Grace.  This is what community is about.  It means we are not alone.  We give of ourselves to be something greater. 

This Sunday, we encounter two people in the parable from Luke’s Gospel.  We encounter the tax collector and the Pharisee.  We know where this going.  If you heard a story about these two, you would know exactly who is the good guy and who is the bad guy.  The Pharisee is the punk who thinks he is better than everyone else.  The tax collector says, “Have mercy on me, a sinner.” 

One of the challenges of a parable, is to do precisely what we are told not to do – identify ourselves as one of the characters.  The Pharisee has compared himself to others, being grateful that he is not like those others who he believes live inferior moral lives.  He uses comparison as the means to understand himself.  The tax collector, on the other hand, avoids this game of comparison altogether.  The temptation of the parable is to say that we should behave like the tax collector.  Yet in that very acknowledgement is an unspoken claim – to not be like the Pharisee.  The parable lures us into a trap.  It lures us to play the game of comparison, to believe that we are better than the Pharisee because we are not like the Pharisee.  It is a tempting invitation as well, because we want to be the best people we can be.  Being the best, though means better than others.  And this means we view the thrust of our identity as individuals.  Yet when we see ourselves as a collective group, as a body of Christ, there is no need for this comparison.  We accept ourselves for being exactly who we are – beloved children of God.

Look around the room.  As a collective body of Christ, there is no need to evaluate ourselves to one another.  Yes, we all have our flaws.   Big ones.  Bad ones.  Stinky ones.  And it doesn't matter in the slightest.  Because we care and love one another.  We desire the best for another.  And we desire to grow through our love for each other.  This is all possible because we give up our self-identity.  We are no longer John Burruss, or Doug Gordon, Debbie Allen, or Lana Marler.  This is a chance to think back to our Baptism.  In Baptism, We lose our surnames take a new one – Christians.  Our identity is together as the body of Christ. 

Humility is not just about our ego, or trying to keep from evaluating ourselves by comparing who we are to our fellow brothers and sisters.  Humility is about checking our individuality at the door to be a part of a community.   It is about letting go of what we need to have, what we need to know, or what we need to believe. And we can do that right now by turning and proclaiming not what you or I think, but what We all believe.  Let us stand together and proclaim our faith in the words of the Nicene Creed….

Sermon Preach October 27, 2013

Church of the Annunciation