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Pastor Eric Fjeldal's January 2011 Sunday Sermons
Pastor Eric's sermons are presented here in reverse chronological order...in other words, the most recent sermons are at the top of the list, working backwards through time.
Jan. 23. "Blessed to be a Blessing."
Matthew 5: 1-12
I have always interpreted the Beatitudes as a call to live a certain way; a certain kind of faithful life if you will. I don’t mean the Beatitudes are a set of rules to be followed, nor do I mean to imply that if we live this way, God will bless us and if we don’t, God will not. The Beatitudes are not a formula for works righteousness. Rather I understand them as being interrelated, like stepping stones with each one building on the next. Together they guide us as we seek to live into the spirit of the Beatitudes by practicing the simplicity, hopefulness and compassion they embody. Here’s an example of what I mean.
(T)hose who are meek, meaning humble, are more likely to hunger and thirst for
righteousness, because they remain open to the continued knowledge of God.
(Charles James Cook, Feasting on the Word, Year A, Vol. 1, pg. 310)
This understanding leads to all kinds of angst and difficulty because the Beatitudes call us to live in a way that is contrary, or counter to our culture. They fall into the category of good in theory, hard to practice. Charles Cook says it this way.
We admire the instruction, but we fear the implications of putting the words into actual
practice. We live in a time when the blessings given are to those who succeed, often at
the expense of others. To be poor in spirit, peaceful, merciful and meek will get you
nowhere in a culture grounded in competition and fear. Perhaps this is why most
references to the Beatitudes imply that in giving this instruction, Jesus was literally
turning the values of the world upside down. Who can survive in attempting to live
into the spirit of the Beatitudes? (Charles Cook, pg. 308)
I still believe the Beatitudes are partly about turning the world’s values upside down. This means we will wrestle with the world seeing them as impractical as they call us to change our culture; to not settle for the status quo because God’s vision of what could be is so much more hope-filled, so much more redeeming, so much more healing than any vision our world or culture offers.
God’s vision makes it possible for us to receive more courage than fear; to be blessed as we place our hope in Christ. Who among us would deny that (Y)ou are blessed in this life whenever you demonstrate humility, bring a peaceful presence, open your heart to others and show mercy on those who cry for it. (Charles Cook, pg. 310) Our knowing and experiencing this blessing helps keep us faithful.
But make no mistake.
The Beatitudes are not entrance requirements for the kingdom but eschatological blessings.
Jesus is not asking the crowd to become poor in spirit, or mourners, or persecuted for
righteousness’ sake; instead he offers consolation for those who find themselves poor or
in mourning and persecuted. Here we get to hear what Jesus’ “proclaiming the good news
of the kingdom” (Matt. 4:23) exactly amounts to.
(Edwin Chr. Van Driel, Feasting on the Word,, Year A, Vol. 1., pg.309)
In many ways the Beatitudes parallel the promise of Isaiah 61, the passage quoted in Luke’s account of Jesus beginning his ministry. In this passage Jesus proclaims that God’s kingdom is at hand because the Spirit has anointed him, Jesus, to proclaim “good news to the poor, to comfort those who mourn and to heal the broken hearted.” (Luke 4: 18) For Jesus the coming of God’s reign is tied to his ministry, so to follow him is to experience God’s blessing. This means God’s blessings are both a future promise and a present possibility; one we can experience provided we remain open to God’s Spirit.
For this reason it is important to note that the Beatitudes are not about us. They are not about our personal trials and tribulations in the sense that “Blessed are those who mourn” is not about our personal sadness over the loss of a loved one. The meaning is much more global, corporate and communal. It is about grieving for the world; for both in Jesus day and today:
Matthew has in mind the mourning of the faithful who recognize that the present condition
of the world (then and today) is far from God’s purposes. They see idolatry, injustice, exploitation, and violence, and they mourn.
(Ronald Allen, Feasting on the Word, Year A, Vol. 1, pg.311)
This is an important distinction to make because it calls us out of ourselves. It reminds us that while much of what we do is done locally, we need to think globally as we seek to discover and also offer to the greater world God’s healing, hope and redemption.
The Beatitudes offer us a way to do just that. In these words we hear the good news of God’s promise of a blessing for the world and the call for us to be a blessing in God’s world. We do this by finding new ways of responding that help reveal and keep alive, God’s vision of what is and can be.
So let us continue to struggle with how we will proclaim God’s good news, the counter culture message revealed in the Beatitudes. Let us do this, not because we believe God will reward us with a blessing; but rather that we may be among those who discover, celebrate and model the many ways God already offers comfort and blessings in our world. Amen.
Jan. 23. "Amid the Ordinary."
Matthew 4: 12-23
We are in the season of Epiphany which is also known as ordinary time. It is called that because it is not Advent leading up to the celebration of Christmas or Lent leading up to the celebration of Easter. During this season we go about the daily business of living our lives and striving to be faithful without a lot of fanfare or holy days to sustain us. As David Toole says:
There is a sense in which we are being reminded in these weeks between Christmas
and Easter that, for all their wonders, neither of these great celebrations is sufficient
to sustain us in the hard work of following Jesus during the daily ordinariness of our lives.
(Feasting on the Word, Year A, Vol. 1pg.286)
I believe this observation leads to a deeper appreciation for these words that I turn to every Epiphany.
“When the song of the angels is stilled;
when the star in the sky is gone;
when the kings and the princes are home;
when the shepherds are back with their flock
the work of Christmas begins:
to find the lost, to heal the broken,
to feed the hungry, to rebuild the nations
to bring peace among the brothers and sisters,
to make music in the heart.”
(Howard Thurman, “The Work of Christmas”)
In a very real sense, this is what it means to live in ordinary time. This is what it means to hear God’s call and follow; to affirm to the world through word and deed that God is among us, not just some of the time, but all the time. To do this, we need to hear the call to follow in a way that allows us to experience God’s reign, not as some future salvation, but rather as a present reality; one that calls us out of ourselves into action in the here and now.
Most of us are familiar with this morning’s story from Matthew known as the call of Peter, Andrew, James and John. Familiarity does not equate understanding because there is more going on in this story than we realize. What we hear is Jesus calling four fishermen who proceed to drop what they are doing and just follow after him. That is not the whole story. These four men do not simply abandon their current lives to follow Jesus. This story is an oral tradition that is eventually written down in a time and culture that is very different from ours. We do not have an accurate appreciation of all that is going on. Tucked in this story is this phrase, “He (Jesus) lived in Capernaum.” This phrase tells us that Jesus left his home and for a time lived with and preached to the people of Capernaum. During this time Jesus studied and worshipped with them in the synagogue. Peter, Andrew, James and John came to know Jesus. Their decision to follow him was not an impulsive reaction, it was one that evolved. They knew the day would come when they would leave their old life and follow Jesus and they had prepared for that day.
Putting it in modern terms, over the course of time they became aware of what was lacking in their lives, and also the difference between their agenda, that is their wants and needs and God’s call to proclaim the coming of God’s reign on earth. These future disciples made the decision to follow; not because they had all the answers, nor because they would always be faithful in doing it correctly. They followed because they had a sense of what God’s call meant for their personal lives and for the world in which they lived.
Quoting John Shea, these four men had some awareness that (F)ish can be caught against their will and violently pulled from the sea. People are caught up uncovering the deep desire of their hearts. (On Earth As It Is In Heaven, Liturgical Press, pgs. 64-65) Marcus Borg refers to this as the difference between “hatching hearts and saving souls.” Hatching hearts in part means offering others a glimpse of God’s reign and letting them decide what to do with the experience. The disciples could not do this if they were not first grounded in their faith. In the same way, we can’t do this if we ourselves are not grounded in our faith.
Grounding ourselves in faith means more than just hearing the call. It means following, being a disciple.
John Shea defines a disciple this way. A disciple is merely a fascinated person who desires to know and do what they see in another (John Shea, pg.65). Discipleship means teaching others what we have learned about Jesus. It means telling them in word and deed why we believe what we believe and how what we believe impacts the way we live.
Looking at this story in this way changes it a bit. While it is still a powerful story of commitment and faith it reminds us of the importance of being grounded before we act. We are to be grounded, not in what we think we know or understand, but in God’s vision for us and all people. A vision which is both head and heart as it transforms our worldview and calls us to live out our faith. To do the hard work of following Jesus, not just during the great celebrations of Christmas and Easter, but now, during the daily ordinariness of our lives. Amen.
“A Prayer of Affirmation”
God, we do not ask to be delivered from the tensions that wind us tight,
but we do ask for a sense of direction in which to move when wound,
a sense of humor about our disappointments,
a sense of gladness for your kingdom
which comes in spite of our fretful pulling and tugging.
God, nurture in us the questions of a child, the boldness of a prophet,
the vision of a poet, the courage of a disciple.
May we continue to trust in your promise of a time
when swords will be beaten into plowshares,
when you will wipe away every tear from your children’s eyes,
when pain and death will be no more.
May we give our lives in service to that vision,
living with and for others
as if the promise were already fulfilled.
We pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Jan. 9, 2011. "The Gifts Come Second."
Matthew 2: 1-12 - Epiphany Sunday
“They offered their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.” We all know all about these gifts and what they traditionally represent; gold, which is precious and worthy of a king, frankincense, incense worthy of divinity, and myrrh, a spice used in burials. These gifts could also symbolize our response to the Christ child; gold, symbolizing virtue or good deeds, incense, worthy of worship and prayer, myrrh, symbolizing suffering and sacrifice. This knowledge brings a comfort and familiarity with the story, which in some ways is good, but in other ways, is not.
I say this because by focusing on the gifts we can miss a key phrase in the story; an action and message that I think is crucial to the story. It is also crucial to our understanding why the gifts are given, first by the Wise men and then by us, as we seek ways of being more faithful and responsive to God.
The key word or phrase appears in the beginning, middle and end of the story. The NIV translation is “worship.” The NRSV is “pay him homage”. As Thomas Troeger reminds us:
The phrase is a leitmotif (recurring theme) in the story, far more important than whether
there were three magi bearing three gifts. Paying homage to Christ gives the story its purpose,
its direction and its culmination.
(Thomas Troeger, Feasting On The Word, Year A, Vol. 1 pg. 213)
This phrase tells us first and foremost that this story is about worshipping the Christ child. They went to give themselves utterly and completely to the only one who is worthy of worship. (Thomas Troeger, pg. 215) What a statement, a true affirmation of faith; to pay homage, to worship, including the custom of prostrating oneself at the foot of the king. The gifts are given in response to their faith and worship as a way of showing their devotion to the true King.
Matthew’s use of the word “King” in describing the Christ child is intentional. The message is clear, Herod is not king; Jesus is. When Herod hears that the three Wise men want to pay their homage to the child, he is frightened. So too is all of Jerusalem with him. Again, the message is clear, only the Christ child and not the chief priests and teachers of the law, is worthy of being worshipped; worthy of being paid homage. There is a growing awareness, by Herod and the others, that those who worship Christ will not worship them; so the established powers are at risk of being challenged. This compels Herod to lie to the Wise men as he requests they report where the child is so that he too may go and pay homage.
However, Herod’s claim that he wants to pay homage to the child is more than a ruse.
It is a piece of irony that communicates the earthshaking character of Matthew’s story.
The irony is that Herod unknowingly states what in truth he needs to do. The despot
who rules by violence and fear needs to prostrate himself before the power of compassion
and justice, needs to give himself entirely to the grace that is incarnate in the child whom
the magi are seeking. (Thomas Troeger, Feasting On The Word, Year A, Vol. 1, pg. 215)
This is a powerful message for us; we who have grown accustomed to defining ourselves, not first as a Christian, but rather by where we live, whether we are Republican or Democrat, liberal or conservative. This doesn’t even begin to raise the other categories we use, as we choose to talk about whether we are pro or anti any number of social issues that confront us today.
This leads to a number of questions:
What or who do we worship?
To whom do we pay our homage?
What does who or what we worship say about how serious we are at seeking to build God’s
Kingdom which is defined by God’s definition of justice and equity?
What criteria do we use as we seek to address the issues of our day?
How does this criteria influence the way we offer our gifts to God, our neighbor, ourselves?
In a world where gift giving is often used to balance the scales, or control another by making him/her indebted to us, we are reminded of a different understanding of gift giving exhibited by the Magi. This understanding affirms that
gift-giving is the way the invisible becomes visible, the way the hidden heart is made
known, the way spirit risks itself in substantiation. The gift-giving associated with the
birth of Christ is a spiritual activity of the highest order. More precisely, it is an embodied attempt to communicate our spirit to someone we care about in such a way that our spirit
flows into them and they are built up by our presence. When the gift symbolizes a flow of
love, it becomes the perfect gift, no matter what the material objects are. In the Christian tradition, the gifts of the Wise men are taken to be perfect gifts. They have the ability to
bear and communicate spirit.
(John Shea, Following Love In To Mystery, pg.59)
The message is clear; it’s the thought, the intent, the motivation and not the gift that counts. On some level we know this. I wonder though, “How often do we model this?” I believe we would model this more often if like the Magi we remembered; first homage; first worship, first give yourself utterly and completely to God in Christ. When we do this, then offering gifts becomes an act of love; one which comes out of our gratitude, awe, wonder and devotion to God. Amen.
Jan. 2, 2011. "What Would Happen, if...?"
Colossians 3: 12-17
Can you imagine what life would be like if we strove to:
clothe ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, patience, love and thankfulness?
forgive each other’s complaints?
believe that love binds everything together?
let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts?
in gratitude sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs to God?
Before we just dismiss this as an ideal dream, saying it will never happen because of other people’s behavior, or because life and the world really don’t work that way; we need to ask ourselves,
Could we work that way? Could we behave differently?
Why don’t we? What is stopping us?
Chances are what is stopping us are our experiences and the resulting emotions, resentments and hurts which lead to a lack of trust and a lack of faith in other’s abilities. All of this reinforces our inability, “to do whatever we do in word and deed in the name of Jesus, giving thanks to God.” I say this knowing how true this is for me; how my good intentions don’t always translate into actions. I know how much I let people hook me, frustrate me, manipulate me. I also know how much I set them up expecting them to meet impossible expectations; expectations that I don’t share with them, expectations they are not capable of meeting. All of this leads to my knowing how the “word of Christ does not dwell richly in me” often enough. Like you, I come off the high and hope of Christmas and fall right back into those old familiar patterns; as I pack away the hope of Christmas with the decorations.
I don’t mean to imply that we don’t do anything hopeful or healing; nor do I mean to imply that we don’t strive to live God’s love. In my eighteen months with you I have witnessed countless examples of your living God’s love. I also know we could live this love more fully and often. For as kind, compassionate, patient and forgiving as we may be, we can all remember when and where we have not been. We all know when and where we could have and wished we had responded differently.
We also know something about the peace of Christ and how it makes us feel, as well as what it means to be thankful and grateful when things are going well. I wonder though, are we as faithful at singing our gratitude when things are not going as well. While we do sing our gratitude to God; we also know we could sing our gratitude more often. In the same way, we could be better at allowing peace and gratitude impact the way we look at people, situations and events.
The New Year is an opportune time for reflection, promises and resolutions. What would happen if “growing in faith” became more than just one of the many New Year resolutions we make?
Suppose we:
really turned our hearts over to God?
admitted when and where we were the problem?
were a little more honest about our motivations?
took a little more time for reflective prayer?
talked honestly about things that hurt and bother us with those who are most important to us?
stopped worrying about whether or not others were doing the same?
What would happen if we started making real changes and tried:
to be a little more grateful for our blessings?
a little more humble in our actions?
to be a little more patient, trusting, tolerant, loving, forgiving, accepting and caring?
Do you think it would make a difference? Would we begin to change? Would our outlook on life be different? Do you think others would notice? Do you think they might try as well? Would it bother you as much if they didn’t?
My friends, I believe there are two ways we get ourselves in trouble. The first is to believe we must do it all. We think in terms of making grandiose changes, as we strive to go from being who we are to super Christians. The second, is to think all we need to do is make some minor changes; do a couple of things to look better than most believing that then God would be satisfied with who we are and how we live. Both approaches cause us to miss the point. It is not about pleasing God, it is about gratitude as we seek to serve God. We serve God by embracing a faithful life despite the circumstances. We need to remember that being faithful is a journey, an on-going process. The answer is found in the little steps we take, not in the empty grandiose promises that we cannot keep.
What would happen if we started and kept taking those little steps? I have to believe our approach to life would be more in keeping with what Colossians describes. Don’t you agree? As we enter another new year, I invite you to ask, “what would happen, if…?
