"Forbidden"

A boundary usually mean a partition or a separation between two entities.  So I am curious, are there boundaries that you have encounter in life that cause you difficulty or concern?   

April 29, 2018  Readings: Acts 10: 44-48, Psalm 98, 1John 5: 1-6, John 15: 9-17

Our world is full of boundaries line isn’t it?   No trespassing signs warn the uninvited to stay out.  In many sporting events if you slip out of bounds you are usually penalized.  Nations and land owners hold carefully to negotiated sometime invisible borders that make the boundary lines.   Railroads tracks often divide a community, there is always someone who lives on the other side of the tracks.  There are even boundaries when it comes to what small town you are from when growing up.  Now I don’t know about you but I grew up in the small mining town of Springhill in Nova Scotia and am proud of it.  But you didn’t boast about the fact that you were a Springhiller when attending a Saturday night dance in the neighboring town of Amherst.   Oh no, that could get you into big trouble, because there were invisible boundaries when it came to townies.  In fact Every Friday night in Springhill around 8:00 pm a group of us would go down town to the Gibbs snack bar on Main Street just to watch the action, the Friday night fights.  There would almost always be a car load of fellows from Amherst, Oxford or Pugwash show up looking to fight.  But folks it didn’t stop there either because if you were Anglican in my home town which I was, my Catholic friends call us the want-a-bees.  If you were United Church you weren’t saved.  If you couldn’t speak in tongues or you weren’t baptized you were going to straight to you know where.    Here is the most astonishing thing about religious boundaries, it really hasn’t changed much for many.   We are still divided and many are still proud of it.  If it’s not religion that divides us, it is culture and or color.

We do not have to look far to see that the religious communities are still separated or segregated by specific religious doctrine, dogma or by denominational barriers.   Boundaries whether visible or invisible segregate and separate us, and these boundaries often function to reinforce our identities.  Case in point:  We are identify by our culture, color, religion, or our denomination.   This helps to define who we are and who our people are.   Many find security and comfort in being able to identify themselves with their denomination, be it Methodist,  United, Anglicans, Catholics, Wesleyan, Baptist, Presbyterian, Pentecostal, Seven Day Adventist and so on. This is not necessarily a bad thing folks unless we feel that we have exclusive rights to the truth the way and life of the Christian religion, of Jesus, or the movement of the Holy Spirit.  The danger here is when it promotes exclusion and superiority towards others.   

The passage from Acts this morning brings to us a monumental event in the life of the earliest church and it takes place between a Jewish follower of Jesus, the Apostile Peter and an uncircumcised Roman centurion a confirmed Gentile, Cornelius. 

When the Christian church first started to be developed and take root, the Apostles including Peter believe that the Holy Spirit could come upon, not only the circumcised Jew but also to the uncircumcised outsider meaning the Gentiles.  In fact Jesus commanded them to take his message to the ends of the earth and to feed my sheep he tells Peter, John 21: 15.   In John 10: 16 Jesus says I have other sheep in other pens and they to know my voice and follow me.  The boundaries of religious rules and laws that had separated and segregated the Jews from the early Christians, or people of “The Way” and from those considered Gentile has now been broken.  That we too should no long to be separated or segregated by race, color, denomination, religion, or ritual.   Here was the proof that the anointing of the Holy Spirit was not then, nor is today subject to any  law secular or religious order but is free to come upon whomever or wherever the Spirit sees fit.   Is not this still a problem for us today in the church?  What does Ephesians 4:5 say:  There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism.  A question we might want to consider here is, where in the scriptures does it say there is one lord, one faith, on baptism, with many Christian denominations, folks it simply doesn’t say that.  Do you think we will ever get it?

May I suggest here that we need to take a serious look at man made Religion, Christianity, its denominations, rituals and rules that have developed along with the  evolution of what we know as the Christianity today, testing it against the love of God found in Christ.  For truly Love is the Way but it must be unconditional.  For that is truly the way of our God and we can find and see it visually in the life, death, and resurrection of Christ.   

   
   

"You may be The Only Bible Others Will Ever See"

April 22, 2018 Readings: Psalm 23,  John 10:11-18

Let us listen to this modern day parable.

 The story is told of a new minister who had been called to preach in small a suburban Church in Halifax.   Some weeks after he had arrived, he made the decision to ride the commuter bus from his home to the downtown area.  After getting on the bus and sitting down, he discovered that the bus driver had accidently given him a quarter to much in change.  As he considered what to do  he thought to himself, " I probably should give the quarter back.   It wouldn’t be right to keep it."   Then he thought, on the other hand, IT'S ONLY A QUARTER.  Should I be worried about a quarter?   Besides the bus company doesn’t need it.    I’ll consider it a gift from God!  But when it was time to get off the bus he stopped at the door, turned and handed the quarter back to the driver.  "Here he said, you gave me to much change sir"    The driver with a smile replied, “OH I recognize you, you’re the new preacher in town at Trinity aren’t you?  You know, I don’t belong to any CHURCH”, said the driver,   “ but I have been thinking about somewhere to worship I mean.”    You sir have just made my decision, Pastor I’ll see you on Sunday. 

As the Minister  stepped off the bus,  his heart sank low  for a moment as he realized how his thoughts could have tarnishing or lift HIS character, hurt or build his reputation, it could of gone either way,  a chill ran down his spine.  “I almost sold my soul for the sake of a quarter."  

You and I might not realize it, but by what we say and do might be the only bible some people ever read.   That’s right by observing what we say and do, others read our character.  As people who follow and represent Jesus our circumstances can put us to the test at any given moment.     Whether we are aware of it or not we who “CLAIM” to follow in the ways of Jesus, CARRY HIS NAME ON YOUR SHOULDERS.   Therefore we must try to remember that OUR THOUGHTS;   should BECOME his WORDS, His WORDS should BECOME OUR ACTIONS,  OUR ACTIONS then will develop good HABITS.   Then OUR HABITS will show HIS LOVE in all situation.

Everyone has love, some have a little at first, others more, and some have great love.  But when we add UNCONDITIONAL love to our love, it changes us, and WE ALL BECOME LIKE HIM.   We can never be perfect, but we should be striving to live the life Jesus envisions for us, a life that is filled with hope, joy peace and love.  Not only for ourselves but also for our neighbor.    

Psalm 23 is a cherished scripture because it expresses a lot about life in the real world.  It is often used as a comfort, or special scripture for the family members of the dearly departed.

It does not paint a picture of a perfect life in which days are always sunny and simple, where our relationships with others are always friendly and uncomplicated. This psalm tells us about and understands a life with shadows and valleys, especially in the face of death.  Although there are shadows in the great valley of death, we do not forget that a shadow cannot exist without there being a great light.  It gives us permission to acknowledge our enemies, neither denying their existence nor being consumed by their threats.  Whether those enemies are human beings or other imposing forces, the psalmist knows we must face them.   And that’s why it is odd that its opening words seem so unfamiliar to us: “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.” The psalmist may not have wants, but we sure feel like we do.   In fact, we allow our wants to drive us.   We tend to assess our lives not based on what we have but on what we haven’t yet acquired.   We compare our lives with those around us and listen to the messages of material desire from our culture.   We want to be more admired for our knowledge, we want more respected from our families, our colleagues or our piers, and we all want to be more appreciated.   Often our want is for the best house and the best car.  We want to wear clothes that won’t embarrass us and sport bodies that others will envy.   We are bombarded by ads and society to want to fill our needs.  We want to have the brightest children, the most accomplished career, and the most adorned trophy case.   But this psalm offers a contrary message:  God has already given us everything we need.   And the future tense of the verb suggests that we “shall not want,” no matter what happens next.   So while this psalm brings comfort to many usually in their last days or during our send off, it also challenges us, in a significant way: to find contentment peace, love and joy in the present day, to acknowledge God’s blessings in our lives, and to give alms of gratitude for them.  Did you know the greatest miracle drug in the world is gratitude and it free just express it. And the congregation sang Amen.

"And This To Will Pass"

Par·a·digm shift:  What is a paradigm shirt anyway?   It is described as a fundamental change in your approach to underlying assumptions. 

We all make assumptions and they are usually based on how we understand the circumstances surrendering our lives or the lives of others.  Realities are often programed in our minds by these assumptions.   Some we create and others are created by the stories we are told.   A Par·a·digm shift you see, is something we all need to consider.  Especially when it comes to the Government of countries or to Religions and their dogma or doctrine.  To race, culture and sexuality.  

 

This story is about a wealthy and powerful King who could not find the peace and contentment in his life he so long for.   All his wealth and power did not seem to satisfy him so he sort the wisdom of a Spiritual Master who live in a nearby monastery.  I want you to tech me the peace and contentment you and your monks has been able to master said the King.  I am very wealthy and can pay you whatever the price.   I 'm sorry said the Master but there is not enough wealth in your kingdom to buy what you seek, nor is it something that can be taught.   I’m sorry but I cannot help you.  Sadly as the King turn to leave the Master said: “just a moment, return tomorrow and I will have something for you.

The next day the king arrived and this Spiritual Master gave him a small wooden box.  When the King opened the box it was a ring.  I don’t understand this gift Master.  Wear the ring for the rest of your life and when you feel your needs, wants or your emotions taking over, take the ring off your finger and read the inscription.  He look at the ring and the inscription read, “AND THIS TO WILL PASS”  Take the story's wisdom and use it at will.     

"Does Doubt Turn Into Bondage?"

April 8, 2018 Reading:  Acts 5: 27-32 and John 20: 19-31

Everyone regardless of how well you know or don't know your bible would be able to answer this question in some way or other.  So let’s have a little fun this morning.  I will mention a biblical name and I want you in your mind to think of the first thing that you associate with the name.   I will then proceed to ask someone, to tell us what word came to mind for them.  The next question will be: did anybody have a different word in their mind.  Lets give it a try: 

Eve:   Moses:    Abraham:   Job:   Jesus:    Judas    Peter:  As we noticed, not everyone has the same word or image come to mind for each of the names. All these characters have many faces don’t they.   The last name that I will mention is from our reading today, Thomas, what comes to mind here?   Most likely when I mention the word Thomas, there is little question about the word most everyone would think of first, it would be the word “doubting.”   He was so closely associated with this word, that we have coined a syndrome phrase to describe him haven’t we: "The Doubting Thomas." 

You may be interested to know that in the first three gospels we are told absolutely nothing at all about the disciple Thomas. It is in John's Gospel that he emerges as a distinct personality, but even then there are only 155 words about him.  Yet Thomas is recorded as being the first person to write or scribe many Jesus’ quoted.    It wasn’t until 1945 In Egypt where some hidden documents call the Nag Hammadi Library were discovered, along with other writings were the writings of Thomas. Later labeled “The Gospel of Thomas.   Because these documents were considered to be influenced by a religious group knows and the Gnostics, they were not included in the collection that would make up the bible we know today.  Therefore is not a lot about this disciple in the Bible but there is more than one description.
When Jesus turned his face toward Jerusalem the disciples thought that it would be certain death for all of them if they were to go. They assumed aggression that would produce a fight to the death if necessary.  Surprisingly, it was Thomas who said: John 11: 15 “Then let us go so that we may die with him.” It was a courageous statement, yet we don't remember him for his courage, but God never forgets and does see Thomas with all the gifts He has given him.   Here is where we can take a moment folks to reflect upon yourselves.  How do you see those around you, do you see their negative parts and emphasize them or do you see the whole person, with all the goodness and gifts they have been given.  Even closer to home how do you see yourself when you look in the mirror?    We also fail to point out that in this story of Thomas’ doubting we have the one place in the all the Gospels where the Divinity of Christ is bluntly and unequivocally stated.  I find it interesting that the very story that gives Thomas his infamous nickname, THE DOUBTER, is the same story that has Thomas making an earth shattering confession of faith? Look at his confession, he said: "My Lord, and my God." Not teacher. Not just Lord, not just Messiah, but he uses the word God, in his moment of revelation.  It is the only place where Jesus is called God without qualification of any kind and our Lord does not rebuke Thomas for saying it.   It is the only instance in all of the gospels where you will hear someone state he believes Jesus to his God.   It is uttered with conviction as if Thomas was simply recognizing a fact, just as 2 + 2 = 4. You are my Lord, you are my God! These are certainly not the words of an imprisoned doubter, for Thomas is not held in bondage by his doubt.  The question here is “ARE YOU”   held in bondage by your doubts.
Unfortunately history has remembered Thomas for this scene and it’s very negative view of him.  But I caution you here folks, for doubt should not be a prison from which you cannot emerge.    In fact, if we honest about it, doubt and curiosity is what brought many of us to the doorway of our faith journey.   It was at the doorstep of doubt that we began to experience the things of faith which is one of the building blocks of a firm foundation.  Spending time with the risen Christ, the one who can be found within you and seen within others is the one who brings new life and the one who bring to you the truth, this will erase your doubt and secure your foundation for eternity.   Thomas finally sees the truth.   We on the other hand who have not seen but have believed, we are blessed.   The idea that you have to see to believe wouldn’t go down well with Edison, Bell, or Beethoven.  They didn’t have to see the light bulb, the phone, or musical score before it came into to being.  NO, NO they believe it was all there before seeing, as they sot after, these things just began to show up.  If you believe in Jesus’ resurrection you will not have to see him physically either, keep on seeking for Him and He will just show up in your life.  You will manifest His behavior, others will see Him too in the reflection of your compassion, your good deeds, your forgiveness, your love, as we share what He has done for us.   That’s how it works, you believe and He just shows up.  He works with you and for you and for others.  Isn’t that amazing.  Isn’t that GREAT!!!  and all we have to do is believe.  Want Jesus in your life, just believe on Him and He will just show up and you, well you’ll never be the same again.      

Here is a twist for you! "Flesh and Spirit"

Flesh and Spirit

Friday, April 6, 2018

 

The Apostle Paul tends to use dialectics in his writing, jockeying two seemingly opposite ideas to lead us to a deeper and third understanding. One of his most familiar dialectics is the way he speaks of flesh and spirit. Paul uses the word sarx, typically and unfortunately translated as “flesh” in most contemporary languages with a negative connotation in opposition to spirit. John’s Gospel uses this same word, sarx, in a wonderfully positive way: “The Word became flesh” (John 1:14). So flesh must be good too! But Paul’s usage had the larger impact.

If you read Galatians or Romans, you’ll probably understand these two terms in the usual dualistic way, which has done great damage: “Well, I’ve got to get out of my flesh in order to get into the spirit.” This was even true of many canonized saints, at least in their early stages—as it was with the Buddha. But I want to say as strongly as I can: you really can’t get out of the flesh! That’s not what Paul is talking about.

The closest meaning to Paul’s sarx is today’s familiar word “ego”—which often is a problem if we are trapped inside of it. So what Paul means by “flesh” is the trapped self, the small self, the partial self, or what Thomas Merton called the false self. Basically, spirit is the whole self, the Christ Self, the True Self “hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3) that we fall into by grace. The problem is not between body and spirit; it’s between part and whole. 

Sarx or ego is the self that tries to define itself autonomously, apart from spirit, apart from the Big Self in God. It’s the tiny self that you think you are, who takes yourself far too seriously, and who is always needy and wanting something else. It’s the self that is characterized by scarcity and fragility—and well it should be, because it’s finally an illusion and passing away. It changes month by month. This small self doesn’t really exist in God’s eyes as anything substantial or real. It’s nothing but a construct of your own mind. It is exactly what will die when you die. Flesh is not bad, it is just inadequate to the final and full task, while posing as the real thing. Don’t hate your training wheels once you take them off your bicycle. You should thank them for getting you started on your cycling journey!

To easily get beyond this confusion, just substitute the word ego every time you hear Paul use the word flesh. It will get you out of this dead-end, false, and dualistic ping-pong game between body and spirit. The problem is not that you have a body; the problem is that you think you are separate from others—and from God. And you are not!

Reproduced from morning devotions by Richard Rohr 

"Doubt and Faith are Companions?"

April 1, 2018 Easter Sunday:

Readings:  1 Corinthians 15:1-11 Mark 16:1-8

Good Morning!  Happy Easter everyone!!   I would like to begin with a couple of questions for you to consider this morning?  Why did you come to church today?  Did you come looking for something new, or did you come merely to hear the Old Old story once again.     Karl Barth a popular theologian has been quoted to say “ What brings people out to worship, not just at Easter, but any day, is the unspoken question that cling to their hearts and minds, and the question is simply this:   “Is it really true?   People ask me this question often but in different ways.    Is God really real Sim, does God live with us now and is it really God who gives us life?   Is it true that God not only established an order for creation with birth, life and then death, something we call the laws of nature, but then one day God broke these laws by raising someone from the dead to live forever more?   Is it true, that something so extraordinary happened on Easter morning, that we can only rebuild our lives on its foundation, that there is no other foundation?    Is it true?

One might think that this is not the day for beginners to come to church, that you would have had to become fascinated with Jesus’ life and teachings, or at least studied the bible to some degree to grasp what this day really means.  But Folks!!  This is the day that is probably the hardest and most difficult to understand let alone believe for even the most seasoned follower.  Doubt should not make you feel out of place here because, Jesus closest friends, his disciples and even his mom had doubts about the resurrection, let alone to understand it.  This is the day when God brakes one of the three laws of nature by showing us that neither law, nature nor human logic have any authority or power when it comes to death or the ways of our God.   God and Jesus would change history and humankind forever on EASTER morning.   Nothing would ever be the same again.  If we look at all the sermons that were delivered by the Apostles to the early churches, beginning with the book of Acts, we would see that the preaching and testimonies they delivered were not about Jesus life and his teachings.  No! It was about living with the resurrected Christ.  In fact, I believe that they understood that what Jesus had taught by word and action, was not original, but had been said and done before.  Jesus wasn’t trying to surpass the religious teachings of the earlier prophets or their miracles.   The parting of the red sea, my goodness who could top that!   Great wisdom, acts of healing and compassion even raising someone from the dead can be found within the earlier books of the Old Testament.   In fact Jesus even predicted that greater mysteries and miracles would be uncovered, discovered and presented by modern day teachers, those who would come after him, theologians, philosophers, sages, monks, Zen Master, scientists, and developers of technology and medicine.   We need not look any farther than just some of the medical and technological advances of our century to prove Jesus right.   Can you imagine a computer, the internet, a smart phone or an iPad book reader in the hands of Mary, Thomas, Peter, Matthew or John.   What would they make of it, unbelievable mind boggling miracles?   This is why the Gospels are considered the forerunner for the main event, for the greatest mystery and miracle there ever was or ever will be:  THE RESURRECTION of the dead to an eternal life. This mystery shatters the illusion of death, we don’t die.    God has made a way for us to defeat death and to live forever eternally?   Now Top that one humankind if you can!   

You see for the early followers this day, Easter as we call it, was and still is the beginning point to finding faith.   After the resurrection it took about 60 years to lay the foundations for what would become Christianity, the resurrection is what makes Jesus, and his followers today unique from all the other religions of the world and their miracles.   We must remember here that there was no such thing as the Christian Church during Jesus’ time.  The word Christian therefore would have been foreign and meaningless, to him.  The early followers of Jesus were only known as people of the way.  It was after Easter that the Christian Church began to take it root, Easter is where it all begins:  Easter is for the beginner.  This is where we start, it is precisely where the church started.    For centuries Christians all over the world have begun their journey of faith by turning to and reflecting upon the empty tomb.   Without the resurrection, Jesus would have remained just another prophet of his time.   As sophisticated and technological as we have become in our time we can not  forget that God raising someone from the dead would be just as difficult to believe by those in Jesus’ time as it is for many of us today.   All the disciples Peter, Thomas, James, Andrew, his mom they all had their doubts.   In fact if you have doubts about it, it's OK.  Why, because there is something in this story that produces doubt.  Would it surprise you if I told you, that at the very foundation of faith is doubt.   The Thomas we know from scripture the Doubting Thomas as he was labeled would tell you that it was precisely because of his doubt that he eventually found his faith, and discovered who Jesus was for him.     John 20:27-29  Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here. See my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe."  Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!"  Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed.   Blessed are those who have not seen me but still have believed."   Did you notice that when Thomas called Jesus GOD, Jesus doesn’t rebuke him.  In the past Jesus was famous for rebuking his disciples especially Peter.   No rebuke here, he simply says “Because you have seen me you have believed”.  There is something in this story that reached the deepest regions of our hearts and minds, where both doubt exists and faith can be found.   The resurrection gives us such a miracle of love and forgiveness that it is worthy of doubt and thus opens the door to faith.  So then, the place to begin is not with those things we know for certain, things we never doubt.   Consider this: realities that leave no room for doubt, may not be large enough or open enough, to reveal God to us.   So let me say without hesitation: what we Christians proclaim at Easter is too profound to be contained by human certainty, to wonderful to be found only within the boarders of our logical minds.   I cannot explain to you with certainty, or logic just what has happened here for me, nor could Thomas or any of those who have found their faith in Christ.     Your Faith is personal and it begins right here, at the resurrection.   You must begin to seek and find faith for yourself.  Easter is a day for beginners, and for the committed alike, why!!! because faith needs to grow and a healthy faith will continue to grow through your life.   Do you have a longing to know more!!!    I have a suggestion for you, do not start your search with the first Gospel in the New Testament The Gospel of Matthew, but start with the fourth Gospel the Gospel of John.    For it is John the mystic, who places Jesus with God in the beginning.  Let us hear verses 1 &14 of John 1:      1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.