Live The Beatitudes, "IMPOSSIBLE"

When you hear the word simplicity what comes to mind?

When you hear the word hope what comes to mind? 

When you hear the word compassion what comes to mind?  

Feb 21 2016  Readings:1 Corinthians 1: 18-31 Psalm 15 Matthew 5: 1-12

I think most of us would agree that we live in a time when the blessings of life appear to be given to those who succeed materially.  But!! more often than not, it seems to be at the expense of the poor, the peace makers and meek of our world.  We may admire the teachings the Beatitudes offer but, underneath probably feel they are not very practical for the average Christian in today's world.     In reality if you are considered part of the poor in our society, well that usually means you must be a looser, and to be meek or weak as some would consider it, is to be a target for bulling.  Now come on Folks, tell me how there is any money to be made in peacemaking.  We all know that the real money in the world is made during war time.   All the characteristics displayed in the Beatitudes would seem to get you nowhere in our world today.   How could anyone possibly survive today while attempting to live out the call of the Beatitude, or the sermon on the mount, most would say they are just not realistic? 

I think many of us approach them as an impossible challenge for ordinary living.   Oh we may expect to see the great saints of our time up to the task.  Those like Martin Luther King, Mother Teresa, or Bishop Desmond Tutu but not ordinary folk like you or I.   Unfortunately for us, well it gets no better while retaining our fulfilling pale expressions of Christian discipleship.  The truth is folks, that Jesus meant the Beatitudes for everyone.   So then, what are we missing, how can such a task be accomplished in our times by ordinary folk like me or you?

Let us take the approach of examining them as a whole rather than as individual.  Each is related to the others and they build on one another.   For instance those who are meek, {meaning humble not weak}  are more likely to hunger and thirst for righteousness.  Being humble just might give you the smarts, makes you more open to receiving the nudges and wisdom from God.   Often times I hear meek people tell me that they felt the nudge to go visit someone, to make a call or write an email of encouragement to someone whom they sense could be lonely or hurting.

If we approach the Beatitudes this way, we see they invite us into a way of being in the world that leads one to practice spiritual disciplines.  If we look closely at their teachings we can see that there are three particular practices that we all truly long for in our own lives and therefore are very practical and not impossible to achieve.   Living simply, Living with hope, Living with compassion.   All three we discussed in our question time this morning.  Here they are again.  

1.     Living with simplicity:    The directors of a church board are presented with a problem.   A new family has moved into the community and it has been reported that the father does not have work and they do not have enough food.  One of the elders suggests the family approach the local food bank and the welfare office in town, problem solved!!    A Sunday school teacher presents the same problem to her class, “what should we do” she asks?  A child replies, “we have more than we can eat, we can share some of our excess with the family.    Jesus commands us to live simply with a child like attitude.    Living with simplicity 

2. Living with Hope:   There is little disagreement with the lack of hopefulness in our world today.  Cynicism is a major disease in many churches and in people’s lives.  Cynicism causes us to accept whatever is, regardless of the consequences, and offers us little hope that things will get better.   No matter how difficult things seem to get in your life there is always a situation or person who is less fortunate.  Hope is not about fixing our unfortunate circumstances, hope gives us the courage to recognize how well off you really are and leads you to expressions of gratitude.     A poor crippled man at the grave side of a friend said to his companion “you know, I’m so fortunate” his companion asks, “how so,” his reply  “I can thank God that I am still alive”  Living with Hope.

3. Living with Compassion:    The third principal of Beatitude living is compassion.  Often we think of compassion as be associated with pity or sympathy, but it goes deeper than feeling sorry for someone or offering them advice. True Compassion according to Henri Nouwen allows us to experience Jesus’ command to love thy neighbor as you love thy self.   True compassion cuts across all barriers of language, wealth, poverty, knowledge, or ignorance.  Compassion in this sense allows us to see that we are truly one, created from the dust of the earth subject to the same laws, destined for the same end.  We are distinct uniquely created but more importantly we share the gift of being created in God’s image, thus we belong to one another as family we are all sisters and brothers.  True Compassion requires not just to walk the same path as your neighbor but to try walking in his or her shoes. Living with Compassion

Responding to Jesus instruction here is about hearing the words of Jesus for what they are.  They are not as impossible to achieve as you may have first presumed them to be.  In fact these three attributes are what help to makes up the character of a Saint.   Surprisingly they are common to many ordinary folk who would never consider themselves Saintly, yet are often admired by others because of them.   They are strong childlike characteristics that are not weak or childish in any way.  When Jesus tells his disciples you must become like this child, this is exactly what he is referring to.  Approaching life simplistically,hope and compassion rather than layering it with our analytical prejudices.  We are to maintain our hope when hope seems to allude us, and we are to trust as we walk humbly with our God.   
                                             "Simple Life"

"In What Do You Trust"

                                             In What Do you Trust 

Feb 14 2016   Deut 26: 1-11 Psalm 91 Romans 10: 8-13  Like 4: 1-13

The local sheriff was looking for a deputy, and one of the applicants - who was not known to be the brightest academically, was called in for an interview. "Okay," began the sheriff, "What is 1 and 1?" "Eleven," came the reply. The sheriff thought to himself, "That's not what I meant, but he's right."  Then the sheriff asked, "What two days of the week start with the letter 'T'?" "Today & tomorrow." Replied the applicant. The sheriff was again surprised over the answer, one that he had never thought of himself.   "Now, listen carefully, who killed Abraham Lincoln?", asked the sheriff. The job seeker seemed a little surprised, then thought really hard for a minute and finally admitted, "I don't know." The sheriff replied, "Well, why don't you go home and work on that one for a while?" OK said the applicant.  Upon meeting his pals who were waiting to hear, “well how’d it go”?  "The job is mine, first day on the job and I'm already working on a murder case!" 

In our Gospel reading this morning found in Luke 4: 1-13 it is Jesus' first day on the job. I always find the passages leading up to Ash Wednesday and Lent very intriguing.   Here the very Spirit that anoints Jesus with Ministry in the Jordan now leads him directly into the wilderness to be tempted in every way that we too are tempted.   Immediately he is confronted with three major temptations.  Would he take the crown without the cross?
These are the most basic temptations in life and they form the foundation for all other temptations...    The first temptation the Master is faced with is twofold?

1. First his personal identity is challenged.  "Who are You Anyway"

“If you are the Son of God” Prove it to me and satisfy not only me but yourself and your hunger by turning these stones into bread, come on Jesus you have the power and there is no need to starve yourself to death.    If Evil could get Jesus to respond to this test he would have scored two major blows in proving Jesus was just like any other ordinary man in past.  Adam couldn’t resist his temptations in the garden, nor could the peoples of Israel during their 40 years of exile in the wilderness while on their way to the Promised Land.  No human had ever resisted this test in the past folks.  Think how hard it is for us to resist pushing ahead on our own, with our own agenda without waiting on God to show us the way.  Say the words “bet you can’t do it, or can’t have it” and watch our curious, impatient mind try without though of the consequences.  Besides if you were physically starving I bet you would do anything to get a bite to eat.  I’m told the mental and physical stress of hunger on the body is overwhelming. That’s basically what evil was trying to get Jesus to do.  “If you are God’s Son you have the power to fix that, what are you waiting for Jesus, you don’t need God here, right now.”  

Dangle a carrot in front of us and just watch as we begin to reach for it.   When someone asks, who you are, what do you say?  How do you prove who you are?  And even if you can describe and image of who you are, just try living up to that image.  No human until now has ever resisted this temptation, to feed the starving EGO or to set God aside so as to complete their own agenda. Our human nature is always hiding something. 

2.  The Second temptation is to put God to the test.  Evil tempts Jesus to physically put himself in harm’s way in order to force the hand of God to respond.  Surely if you are the Son of God He will not let you fall and die, nothing will happen to you.   Folks think of how hard it is for us to refrain from participating in this temptation.  We more than not take life for granted until trouble befalls us.  Then many of us look to God more like the imagined santa clause than a wise Father figure.  We send up the request for help and instantly it should happen and it should never be a “NO”, not yet or not now.  Jesus didn’t fall for this because for him God is the only one who grants both life and death, is the only true source for a yes or a no.  One should never put God to the test and again until now no human has ever rejected the temptation to take God for granted.  Evil must have really been confused or just maybe this entity was beginning to think it was faced with someone who just might be more than human? 

3. Thirdly, Oh this is the BIG ONE folks, no human could surely resist this one.    This is where I win evil must have thought.  He offers Jesus the world with all its wealth, possession, glory and power.  It doesn’t get any better than this folks but there is a cost.  Turn your back to God and worship only me says evil.  But hear again until now no human had ever or has ever resisted some part of this temptation with evil.   Let me say again these three are the most basic temptations in life and they form the foundation for all other temptations.    

Evil gets a little piece of us every time we turn our backs to the teachings of our Gospels.  There is one teaching that encompasses all the others.  Love the Lord your God will all your heart, mind and strength, and love your neighbor as you love yourself.  It contains all thee love’s.  Keep it close and you will keep God close.  

                                   "The Market Blues"

"IsThis Really How Love Wins?"

                                 

                                     How can this be "LOVE"

The Lenten season will begin next Sunday.  It is a season of preparation, reflection and repentance.  A time once again when all Christians take time out to reflect on our teachings and what needs to take place in our lives to be more faithful to our God.  To be transformed by the power of LOVE  is the most satisfying and glorious feeling you will ever know. 

Let us take a look at “The Parable of the Good Samaritan” Luke 10: 25-37”     

The lessons we are to learn from the parable of the Good Samaritan seem quite clear at first glance.  Compassion and love of neighbor seems to be the focus and this is of course the great commandment.  But is that where we are to focus our attention in this parable or does Jesus want us to go deeper into the lives of the other characters involved in the story.  In fact, the bigger question we might want to ask ourselves here is, whom do I relate to in the story most?  The expert in the law, the robber, the religious man, the inn keeper, or the Good Samaritan.

1. To the expert in the law, the wounded man was just a subject to discuss.  
We talk about the Syrian crisis, the refugees, the war on terror and now once again because of the drought, starvation in Africa.  We know about the abducted and missing native women in our country.  We know the terrible living conditions of our aboriginal peoples, and the homeless who wonder the streets of our cities, knowing full well the moral obligation and action our religion and our biblical teachings place upon us.  The reflective question after the discussions might be, what am I
doing as an individual about it?  

2.  To the robbers, the wounded man was someone to use and exploit.       
It is very common in our society today for persons to be exploited.  Our Human nature can be vicious at time as we use one another either consciously or unconsciously.  This includes people of all ages.  Here, I may need to closely examine my own personal approach to others.  How do I treat other members of my family, a neighbor, the poor or a minority?  Often volunteers within many organizations today are not always treated fairly, ethically or with integrity.  The reflective question here might be, am I part of the problem or the solution.

3.  To the religious man, the wounded man was a problem to be avoided.  
How do I react to or think of the person who is on social welfare, has a physical or mental condition, the youth of today.  The elderly person who is no longer capable of living on their own. What is my opinion or reaction to the unemployed, the homeless, the addicted, assisted suicide or the runaway misbehaving pregnant teenager?  Do I see any of them as a problem to be avoided?  Some reflection here might be again: am I part of the problem or part of the solution?    

4.  To the innkeeper, the wounded man was a customer to serve for a fee. 
We live in a world run by numbers.  Corporations tend to think of people as numbers, customer, patrons, paying a fee for services offered.  We too can make the same mistake in our churches, thinking only of numbers, attendance, membership, our financial position, or what we need to do to increase those numbers.  Are we getting enough for the services we offer?  We sometimes put more emphasis on the numbers attending or the size of the offering, than on whom is in need and whom we might service.  Here is an area for reflection: who am I serving?

5.  To the Samaritan, the wounded man was a human being worth being cared for and loved. 

From the parable we learn three principals about loving one another.  
1.  Lack of love is often easy to justify, even though it is never right.  
2. Our neighbor is anyone of any race, color, creed, or social background who is in need:  
3. To Love means, taking action, acting to meet the wounded persons need.  
Wherever you live, there are needy people close by.  There is not good reason to refuse using your gifts and or your resources to help.   You may have thought that all the characters were included here but may I suggest that you may have missed the most important one of all, who was the wounded man to story teller.  Jesus tells this story knowing they were all wounded, as we too are all wounded in some way.  And we are all in need of His loving care.   Now here comes the clincher folks, wounded as we are, we are all still worthy of the love offering Jesus makes from the cross on Good Friday.   Jesus died because he LOVED, not because of sin.  He loves us so much that He willingly offered His life on a cross, to show us how God’s love can transform and change us from doing what is wrong, to doing what is right and good.   Want to be changed by His love, take Him up on His offer and literally take Him into your heart.  His love, the love of God will transform you and you will never be the same again.   As we come to the communion table today.  Let us remember what He has done for us.     
                                           LOVE WINS FOLKS