Sermon - Ash Wednesday.

A few years ago on Shrove Tuesday, I was driving around the Parish visiting people in various hospitals. Listening to the car radio I heard all sorts of comments being made about Pancake Tuesday.  Some were phoning in to say how it got its name and why we have the day.  Others provided a range of recipes and some tried to explain the difference between crepes, pancakes and pikelets, and I still confused!   

I could not help thinking that pancakes were given a fair airing, but there was very little connection made with Lent, while I was listening.  

Shrove Tuesday is really a day of preparation.  The word “shrove” is the past tense of the verb “to shrive” which basically means to confess one’s sins.  Pancakes fit in because people were encouraged to use up their eggs and butter and the like, those pleasure giving foods, in preparation for their Lenten fast.  So the day really had a penitential nature to it.  It struck me yesterday I listened to the radio, how Shrove Tuesday or Pancake Tuesday had developed a “one – off” celebratory note.   

However, Lent is a season of preparation.  Excluding Sundays, Lent is forty days that the Church has set aside to prepare for Easter, the queen of the Christian festivals. Historically, Lent was a season to prepare people for baptism.  In some parts of the Anglican Communion it has also become a season to prepare people for confirmation and reception. Yet, each one of us faces Lent in our own context and everyone has the opportunity to use the Lenten season in their own way. However, there are some general principles that characterize Lent. 

Liturgically – the readings focus on the dialogue between God and humanity from creation to the resurrection.  Confession and other penitential rites have a greater prominence at this time.  The liturgical colour is purple.  The “alleluia” and the Gloria are omitted.  The custom has been not having flowers in Church, though I struggle with this one, with the anniversaries of death and other important milestones of life that we need to acknowledge.  I think it is sad we don’t recognize them because it is Lent.  However, the idea is that Lenten worship will be in sharp contrast to the celebratory nature of our Easter worship.  
  
Ash Wednesday is the commencement of Lent.  There is the option for the imposition of ashes which reminds us of our mortality and that we journey with Christ and share in his death and resurrection. 

Lent is a time where people take up a disciple or disciplines, such as reading a devotional book or fasting from a favorite food.  It is important though to ask ourselves how we view our disciplines.  Do we see them as something that we have to endure for forty days and then praise God when it is over and we can revert back to our old ways?  There is not a lot of point doing this for forty days and then returning to our old ways again.  One year I decide to write a hand written note to some-one each day.  My purpose was to build up communication and relationships.  It worked, but people then expected me to keep in touch.  I have decided to take this one up again this year, but this time I have thought about how I will maintain the contact better, so that Lenten discipline commences something that will be on going, and hopefully build up people and advance the cause of the Kingdom of God.  I have three other areas I am going to address and I am conscious of the responsibility of making sure they enhance my life, my whole life not just the so called “spiritual” aspects.  After all our whole life is a gift from God.   

Each one of us will address different aspects of our life.  The one thing we can all do though, is to reflect on the baptismal promises and ask ourselves how well we are living into them with the purpose of making Easter special and also equipping ourselves to live our lives in the light of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, when we renew our baptismal promises at Easter. 

Most congregations prepare well for worship, especially at Easter.  We will certainly note the contrast from the way the Church has been during Lent to the way it is on Easter morn.  There is often that sense of “wow” when the lights came on during the Easter Vigil worship.

So, Lent is a time to prepare ourselves for Easter.  It is my prayer that you will be so aware of God this Lent that your faith are deeply enriched and nourished and your Easter will be a glorious celebration.   

Each one of us will use Lent in a different way, but with the same purpose.  May each one of us have a holy, purposeful and good stock- take Lent so that we can truly enter into the joy and blessings of Easter and live fully in the resurrected life to which we are all called.

The Lord be with you. 

Sermon – Lent One:

This Lent each sermon will focus on a symbol.
There is the option of adding a symbol each week or you just focus on the one symbol for the week. 
This week it is raw clay and items of pottery. 

During Lent we do not have flowers in Church.  In some places Churches use various symbols to assist people in focusing an aspect of Lent. 

So, there will be a symbol each week and this week it is clay.  It is raw clay, from just outside.  Also, there are some items made from clay beside the raw clay.   Why clay you may well ask?  

First raw clay reminds us that that by itself it is not very appealing.  It is a blob as it were.  To get the clay into some shape it has to be worked.  I find potters fascinating people.  They will spend considerable time trying to get the raw clay into a shape. This involves work and effort and often they re-work their clay many times to come up with a shape that they desire.  Also the quality of the raw material and the amount of water are other factors that affect the final product.  The important point here is that clay has to be shaped.  Likewise, each one of us is shaped.  All sort of influences shape who we are.  What are some of the influences that have shaped you?  If I was to ask I am sure it would be people, experiences, and the beauty of creation to name a few areas.  

Isaiah 64:8 says, “Yet, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.”

We are clay.  I find this a fascinating image, because I am ever so conscious that God is the potter and God does re-shape me, re-mould me, re-form me, re-create me, providing I allow God to do so.  I have to say that sometimes this re-moulding, re-forming, re-shaping, re-creating can be painful, but it marvelous what God can do if we see ourselves as the clay and God as the potter.  

As we live out our faith in the world around us we are conscious of influences that strive to re-shape us and yet, not all of them are positive.  The Gospel reading reminds us that we are all tempted.  Jesus was tempted.  What can we learn from this passage?  

First we learn that the tempter appealed to Jesus in terms of who he was, as “the Son of God”.   One of the big temptations that surround us all is our ego and that is very appealing. The danger of our ego is that it can be a substitute for God.  There can be a big difference between God’s will and my will, sometimes which I like to call God’s will.  The other thing the tempter did was to appeals to Jesus in terms of what he could have done such as turning stones to bread and addressed the matter of control.    

How did Jesus respond to three temptations he faced?  It was by quoting Scriptures in each case – “One does not live by bread alone” – Deut 8:3; “Do not put the Lord your God to the test” – Deut 6:16 and “worship the Lord your God” – Deut 6:13.  In other word Jesus knew God and who God was for him.  We too need to make sure we are firmly rooted in God, and that we start with God and not ourselves.  

Another learning I want to pick up on is that Jesus was in the wilderness for forty days.  Forty is a figure that refers to a lengthy period.  At some stage of our Christian walk each one of us will go through barren times, times that we feel as if we are in the wilderness.  Jesus certainly had this experience. Throughout Christian history, we read of people who had desert experiences, barren times, dry times, or whatever name you want to apply to the experience.  What do we do?  We can panic and think we have to take control.  I have fallen into that trap.  I have come to the conclusion that is important to be alert to the situation and see where God is leading you, to see what God is saying to you. I have found sticking to my spiritual disciplines and waiting on God is important in such situations.  I have to be honest and say so often we want to force things to an early resolution.  It is often in these dry times that God reaches out to us and teaches us new things, and because of the experience we gain new insights.  

Yes temptation is all around us.  We see it daily in the media, but on this first Sunday in Lent we seek see ourselves as clay, and God as the potter and we offer to God this Lenten season as a time to re-shape us, re-create us, re-mould us and to re-from us, so that at Easter we will be more in tune with our God and be the shape our God, the chief potter, wants us to be. 

The Lord be with you. 

Lent Two:

Symbol: A Large Question Mark & Water.

The symbols for this week - the Second Sunday in Lent is a question mark.  

When I was in my early teens, I asked my Rector a question.  I am not sure he even answered my question, by the response of my maternal grandmother is what I do remember.  She said to me, “The Ray family does not show their ignorance in public”.  In other words, don’t ask questions.  I have heard many parishioners over the years say that they were brought up along these lines that they were to accept the faith and that they were not to question, seek and ask.  That attitude was also a part of that era, but life has changed.  Today people are encouraged to enquire, to research, to ask, to seek and to find out. 

Today’s Gospel reading captures for us a private conversation between Nicodemus and Jesus.  It is a theological conversation.  The text tells us that Nicodemus was a Pharisee, and leader of the Jews.  We are also told that Nicodemus came to Jesus “by night”.   The reason for this night visit is that Nicodemus did not want to run the risk of being seen by people. He did not want others to know about his further exploration of Jesus and his mission.  

This reality reminds us as a Church and as individual Christians that the context of our exploration of the faith is important.  One of the things that I have learnt over the years is that people feel more comfortable on “their turf” rather than on “Church soil”, running the risk of others seeing them. People ask more questions in their own homes or in the community.

The context of this passage is important as well. This conversation between Nicodemus and Jesus follows the miracle of turning water into wine at the wedding of Canaan of Galilee and Jesus cleansing the temple.  Thus this private conversation begins with Nicodemus asking a question, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.” (John 3:2). Here we see Nicodemus being a curious, but cautious person, seeing faith as something that requires the weighing up the evidence and then drawing a conclusion. 

Nicodemus was living in a one dimensional world, the dimension of the “flesh”, the dimension of human experience lived in its own power and lacking the divine dimension or the dimension of the Spirit.  

Jesus then replies, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above” (John 3:3).  Jesus also makes a similar reference on two other occasions, but what does this mean?  The Spirit presents to us a different world, a new creation, a new way of being, and a totally different dimension.  Nicodemus learns in this conversation, that what is required is not more law, but the power of God to remake him completely.  If you liked it is radical rebirth. There are parallels here with the first reading. 

Abram was called by God to leave home, to leave his comfort zone. Jesus was challenging Nicodemus to do the same, to leave what he understood as the “comfort zone” in the security of the law.  Jesus was also saying that answers are not always “logical” with God, as he says in their private conversation, “The wind (or Spirit) blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes.  So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit” (John 3:8).

God invited Abram to an adventure of trust and faith. Likewise, Jesus invites Nicodemus to be open to the rush of God’s spirit, so that he is renewed. We too receive that same invitation.  I started with the symbol of the question mark and we have learnt in this private conversation that Nicodemus was prepared to ask questions. We also must ask questions to learn more about God and deepen our faith. 

Our second symbol water symbolizes our new birth at baptism.  The water reminds us that we are to live into our baptismal promises daily and in being open to the Spirit of God we will find ourselves out of our comfort zone and security, enjoying the new life with God.  The Bible, Prayer Book and the Hymn Book also remind us that there is food for this exciting journey of faith.  

Nicodemus had his conversation with Jesus.  Lent is a time for all of us if you like, “to have our conversation with Jesus”, so that as baptized people we remain open to the Spirit of God and are able to show the love of God in our lives, in all situations we find ourselves in.  

The Lord be with you. 

Lent Three

Symbol: Bible, Prayer Book and bowl of water. 

This morning’s gospel reading, even though it is long, it is one of the traditional Lenten Gospel readings.  It is also a finely crafted story with five scenes.  Even though this account is over two thousand years old years old it is still relevant and fresh today.  This morning I want to name each of the five scenes and make a comment about ministry in today’s age.  

First, it commences with Jesus and a nameless Samaritan woman at the well.  Both were at the well to obtain water, an essential ingredient to life.  The setting for what follows takes place in the ordinariness of life, in a sense, in the “hum drum” of life.  So much of our faith understanding arises out of the struggle with issues in terms of the ordinariness of life.  There is the real danger that we segment life and think that the faith issues are just with our “spiritual aspects”.  Our whole life is important to God and it is those “pots and pans” or “paper and pens” or “tools and instruments” situations of life, in which we are to explore and deepen our relationship with God.  Jesus at the well provides a wonderful and example for us to follow. Jesus shows us through his acceptance of the unnamed woman and his gentle challenges that lead her to explore and arrive at her own conclusions. 
 
The second scene is where Jesus tells this unnamed lady about her past life, particularly that she has had five husbands.  This leads her to ask is Jesus a prophet and to raise the matter of worship.  Jesus tells her that she worships what she does not know (v.22). He informs her about what worship is and then reveals himself as the Messiah. 

Each time I read this section I am reminded that God knows all things and that nothing is hidden from God.  We learn that Jesus reveals himself to us and to others.  Lent is the time to ask ourselves, “Are we open to receiving the will and grace of God?”  Also as Christians are we prepare to guide and lead other people to discover the Messiah. 
for themselves.

The third scene is the return of the disciples. They find Jesus talking to this woman and are astonished, but they say nothing. We only have their thoughts recorded.  

This raises an interesting point. We often think about things of the faith, but we do not express them.  There are times when we need to work with our thoughts and allow them to challenge us.  I often find my thoughts are useful pointers in terms of my relationship with God.   

The fourth scene is Jesus telling his disciples about the food that lasts.  Jesus says to his disciples that he has food that they do not know about.  Once gain the disciples were focused on the physical aspects of food, but Jesus move them to the eternal.  I don’t know about you, but I find that when I partake in the Eucharist I am strengthened in ways I have not thought about.  It is so easy to come to the altar of God with preconceived ideas and be somewhat closed, but when we come open hearted as well as open handed, God can feed us in such wonderful ways.  

The final scene highlights the fact that many Samaritans believed because of what the woman told them.  They also found out for themselves.  We often hear the expression “one person can make a difference”.  This gospel reading certainly highlights this reality.  It is also true for each one of us; we can make a difference for the sake of the Kingdom of God.  

What a story, what a journey for this woman.  When the woman was at the well to obtain water for daily use and to drink, I am sure that she had no idea that shortly she would be saying to people that she encountered a Jewish person, who she came to know as the Messiah, this person Jesus.   I am sure this woman would have been surprised, in fact very surprised.  The question for each one of us this Lent is how open are we to allowing God to surprise and motivate us in our mission and ministry both as a parish and as individuals using two foundations of our Anglican tradition, the Scriptures and the Prayer Book to nourish and sustain us? 

The Lord be with you. 

Lent 4

Symbols:  clay again with some water; a lit candle, map and a photograph of a family. 

Today I plan to make a brief comment of each of the four readings.  Each reading is a sermon in itself, but I want to explore each reading in the light of four words – called, comfort, commitment and courage.

Called - The first reading from 1 Samuel is a hard reading in that God clearly states that he has rejected Saul as King. Yet, it is also one of call, the call of David.  

It is a fascinating account.  Samuel, the prophet and judge is sent by God to find the one to be anointed.  We are told Samuel did as the Lord had commanded.  Samuel instructed by God, was told not to be persuaded by what we would call human attributes such as height, appearance and stature.  The text states, “For the Lord does not see as mortals see, they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”

After the seven sons of Jesse had passed before Samuel, Samuel asked was there yet another.  He didn’t give up, he persisted. Jesse finally said there was another.  When David appeared before Samuel, Samuel anointed him as king.

There are three aspects of call here.  First it is important to honour God’s standards and not our own.  Second, we need to listen to God as Samuel did and third we need to persevere.  It is not always easy to “hang in” there and family situations can one of the biggest challenges – thus the family portrait. 

The second “C” – comfort.  The Twenty Third Psalm, celebrates the mercy and benevolence of God and reminds us that God the shepherd is a faithful shepherd and does not fail us. The symbol of the map prompts us to be open to be guided by God. 

The third “C” – commitment.  The epistle reading from Ephesians reminds us that we are people who are committed to being people of the light – the light of Christ.  As people of the light we are challenged to face the unfruitful works of darkness.  In living as people of the light we are called to show, to live, to be the light of Christ in places of darkness.  

We are all created equal in the sight of God.  The life God has blessed us with is good.   Sadly though there are many areas of injustice and darkness.  2007 was the 200th anniversary of the abolition of slavery in the U.K.  Sadly there is still child and female slavery in many parts of the world.  Human life is being degraded.  There is darkness in many places across the globe because medical supplies are not available; there is hunger because we do not share the resources of the world equitably and people are left as refugees because of the political situations. If I am going to address the matter of being an effective light I certainly need to be better informed.  I need to seek ways to support agencies that assist and reach out to be a    I need to make my prayer life more informed.  

Yes we are called to be lights for Christ in the many places of darkness both within our own nation and abroad.  

The fourth and final “C” – courage.  What a challenging and fascinating Gospel reading we have today, the sixth of seven signs found in the Gospel of John.  This passage contains some disturbing lines to say the least. In fact this chapter in John is a work of art. I remember when I was at Teachers’ College we were told to read this chapter because the use of questions is brilliant. Like last week’s reading it is a drama, but this time in seven parts.

While there are many facets one could focus on I just want to briefly explore two of them.  The first is the nature of the ministry of Jesus.  Jesus enabled the man born blind to see.  His sight was restored on the Sabbath day.  This certainly did not make the Pharisees happy.  The Sabbath rule was broken.  The man acknowledged the power of Jesus in the synagogue and was moved on as it were!

What do we learn about the nature of the ministry of Jesus?  There is no stereotypical approach to the ministry of Jesus.  Jesus deals with each person according to their need and their situation.  This calls us to pray that our ministry will focus on need and not on routine. I trust that I have the courage to step out into the unknown and seek the guidance of God and not rely on my human situation alone.  

The second aspect is power of God in our lives and proclaiming that joy in our lives.
Here we have a person who moved from darkness to light.  One who was bound with an affliction, in this case blindness, to a person proclaiming the power of God in his life.  Yes it was a “tentative” courage at first with such expression as “it was the man called Jesus” to “Lord I believe”.  This person, who was blind, rejoiced in his moving from darkness to light, from the bondage of blindness life in all its fullness.  Because of this life changing experience, this man became more courageous in the power of God. 

Yes we are all called.  We have responded to that call through our baptism and confirmation.  We are called to provide comfort for others.  Also we know that because of our commitment to serve the light of the world, Jesus Christ, we can be courageous and we can be adventurous in reaching out in faith in serving both God and others, whoever they may be in our lives. 

The Lord be with you. 
Lent 5

Symbols: 	Wine and bread – food to celebrate.

Life is exciting, isn’t it?  Life for any person has several dimensions.  For most of us there is the individual dimension, as well as various community dimensions such as our work, our recreational, our social, and our community of faith dimension. It would also be fair to say that life for each of us has it ups and downs, its highs and lows etc. at both the individual and community level.

The first reading from the prophet Ezekiel is based on the Old Testament understanding of community.  Here we have the graphic image of the valley of dry bones.  We are told in the text that the bones are “very dry”.  In other words the bones have been there for a long time. The image is one of destruction and desolation. This reading was recorded when the Israelites were in exile in Babylon.  The people of Israel had given up hope. Yet this particular passage is a message of hope. Note that God in this reading makes a series of self announcements; a powerful promise which is cast in a series of first person statements with powerful verbs.

I will cause a breath to enter you.
I will lay sinews
I will cause flesh
I will put breath in you, and
I will place a new spirit within you and you shall live.  

From this image of destruction and desolation we have the vision of new life and of hope. 
Here we encounter God as a one who transforms and enables. 

I read a quote that went something like, “The Anglican Church in Australia at the moment must feel like the valley of dry bones”.  I understand where the person was coming from and what motivated their comment, as I am sure you do.  As Anglicans do we feel like this?  Do you feel that the Church is like the valley of dry bones?

Yes, it is a personal comment, but I do not see our Church like the valley of dry bones.  I see transforming life within our Church.  I see commitment and faithfulness.  I see the sick being cared for, those in prison being visited, those with needs being assisted, and the Church reaching out with the Gospel both within and outside our nation.  I see it happening in so many places.  

However, this passage is also about new life being breath into that “valley”.  That same spirit that was able to bring transformation is also able to bring transformation to us as individuals and as a community of faith and to us as a Church.  That same Spirit that breathed upon the waters at creation; is the same Spirit we hear about in Ezekiel.  It is the same Spirit with us now. To use the New Testament concept of a “new creation” it is the same Spirit that can and will enlivens us today, that can transform us in new ways, providing that we are open to the Spirit of the living God as Ezekiel prophesied. 

The Gospel reading, while it contains many facets, is primarily about the spiritual life.  
This reading is the seventh of the seven signs recorded by John.  It also contains one of the seven “I am” statements, “I am the resurrection and the life.  Those who believe in me, even though they die will love, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die”  (John 11:25).  We hear these words at each funeral and at other times.  What we don’t hear so often is the question which Jesus asks after he has made this great “I am” statement, the following four words: “Do you believe this?”

While the question was asked of Martha, it also applies to us.  It is just as relevant to me and to you today. Yes, I do believe it.  I believe that all life is a gift from God, whether it is in this world or the next. 

As mentioned this Gospel passage is complicated.  It would be fair to say neither Mary nor Martha or the disciples fully comprehended Jesus’ actions at the time, but their faith and trust in Christ was renewed.  They knew that the Gospel message brought freedom from death and the joy of eternal life in all its glory and fullness. 

The Prayer of the Day in part states:

“breathe on us with the power of your Spirit,
that we may be raised to new life in Christ”,
Why?
“to serve you in holiness and righteousness all our days.”

Just as the Spirit transformed the valley of dry bones and the life of Mary, Martha and the disciples in the raising of Lazarus, may our lives, both as individuals and as a community of faith, be so transformed and renewed.  Why, because as individuals and as a community we are open to the Spirit of the Living God.  

And during this Lent, as the hymn/song states, “May the spirit of the living God fall afresh on me” and I add “on us”.

The Lord be with you.