If you
are visiting today, I apologize. You are
visiting church during the season of stewardship and on a day where our Gospel
reading, in particular, lends itself to encouraging a preacher to preach on
giving. One of the visitors at the
earlier service complained that every church he visits asks for money. I asked how often he visits churches and the
timing, pointing out that many Episcopal churches actively engage in budget
talks and support during the fall. That
got an elbow from his wife. But I can
assure you, I do try to work my way through the lectionary discerning which
lesson we need to hear, as a parish, and preaching faithfully on it. Truthfully, I had one of those weeks where I
wanted to shoe-horn in a good stewardship sermon at the beginning of the
week. Vicki, and the rest of the
stewardship committee, as you all know, have been working hard to make
Adventers aware of the mission and needs of the parish, and to get all of us
Adventers to support the burden of those needs, not just financial, but
expertise and time as well. Any
stewardship committee loves it when the preacher supports their work, so this
was my first chance since the fall campaign began.
Like you,
I have heard dozens of sermons that called us in the pews to be like the widow,
to give faithfully, even if we don’t necessarily trust the leadership making
the decisions. When I have preached on
the passage, I have really worked hard to avoid the guilting and shaming that
goes on in some sermons that points out the widow is far more faith than most
of us. My study this week pointed out
some great information. For example: did
you know that Mark has not used the word devour since his discussions of the
messianic temptations by Satan in the wilderness? Knowing Mark’s penchant for connecting words,
for whom do you think Mark is alleging that the Scribes and other enemies of
Jesus work? Or, how about this: this is
only the second time in his Gospel account that Mark speaks of widows. Why is that?
And what message does he wish to convey about them? Good tidbits of knowledge, no? Interesting questions to consider, are they
not? But they really don’t speak to
stewardship or to us.
But, a
curious thing happened during my studies and prayers and conversations with Adventers
during the week. I found myself in
Hebrews preaching a stewardship sermon.
Those familiar with the letter, and chapter 9 in particular, may find it
a weird place to begin a stewardship sermon.
In truth, I did, too. It makes me
hope that it is of God and not Brian, even though I may be forcing a sermon on
you about stewardship you may not need to hear.
The
reason the letter to the Hebrews is a great place to talk about the realities
of stewardship and budgeting and all those financial things about which we
concern ourselves this season is the simple fact that the letter often speaks
to the types and shadows and realities to which our work, our preaching and
teaching, our witness, if you will, points.
What do I mean by that?
About a
decade ago, I had a young girl enter my office in Iowa and ask me where she
needed to go to get her show. I’m
certain my face looked much like yours does now. So I asked her what she was talking
about. This girl, she was 16 I learned
in the conversation, has decided she wanted her own show. Actually, she just wanted to be the subject
of a show already on television. Those
of us of a certain age remember a channel called MTV that played music videos,
music videos like the one that was filmed at Advent this week. At some point, MTV gave up music for other
programming, some of those programs being “reality” television. Everybody here has some familiarity with the
genre of reality television. It is hard
to believe it has been around as long as it has. From time to time I get articles now
discussing the challenges that reality stars face as parents. Some former reality stars are discovering it
to be a challenge to raise children without the kids finding out how mom or dad
got their money or fifteen minutes of fame.
Go figure. As hard as it was for
us to grow up under our parents, remember it could be much worse. Most of us cannot watch our parents doing
drunk on a Jersey boardwalk or engaging in sex acts with men or women who are
not our other parent!
At the
time, MTV had a show called 16 and Pregnant.
I hear from the moans that you all know where this conversation
went. You are right. The girl was unhappy with her life. I cannot remember all the details. She was having to do without things that she
thought were important, and she was, like most teenagers are, chaffing at the
rules her mother tried to enforce. She
had decided that she wanted to get on MTV’s show. So, like any normal 16 year old girl who
understands how the world works in all its intricacies, she had gotten pregnant
and was trying to figure out how to get on the show. All her efforts to get on the show had failed,
so she had come into my office to get me to help her. She had friends who had told her I was a
pretty good guy, for a priest, so she had decided maybe I could help.
At the
time, I confess I had never heard of the show.
Back in those days, on-demand was not a thing, and I’m fairly certain it
was not on Netflix or Hulu, if those were even around—we are talking the dark
ages, after all! I had to find out when
the show was on next and make sure I was home to watch it. I might have made it through one commercial
break. I know I was furious at the
producers and MTV after a few minutes. I
am sure all the adults who decided to make money off these girls, and sometimes
the fathers of their babies, felt they were not glorifying difficult
situations. Those of us who have been
around teenagers know better. In a
culture that was glorifying, hear profiting, off reality stars, this was yet
another way. In the months and years
that followed, I was more aware of the stars of the program. From time to time I would see them on the
cover of magazines in the check-out line at Walmart with difficult
headlines. This girl saw the fame, the
money, and the opportunity to get out of an, in her mind, oppressive home. She did not understand that the vast majority
of those 16 and pregnant were NOT on the show, that babies came with dirty
diapers and a lack of sleep, and that young single moms inherited a certain
stigma in society, which made the raising of the baby that much more
difficult. And if, by chance, the new
moms really wanted to give their kids a better chance at life, they were
ill-equipped to do that. Many never
finish high school. Fewer finish
college. And have I mentioned the
stigma? The life presented on the
“reality” show was anything but real life.
16 year old girls who were pregnant had less of a chance of getting on
that show than high school athletes had making it to the NFL or NBA or
Hollywood as stars, and that’s saying something.
What
does that story have to do with the letter to the Hebrews and stewardship? As I shared last week in my sermon on
Hebrews, the author discusses how the things and people who came before were
types and shadows of the reality that is presented by and exhorted by
Christ. Last week, I focused more on the
four-letter word we call atonement and how Christ’s work related to, and, in
fact, surpassed that of the High Priest on the Day of Atonement. Let’s go back there again, but with a
different focus. And if you were not
here last week, don’t worry, I’ll catch you up.
The Day
of Atonement was a huge day in the life of Israel. Let’s be honest, it was a huge day in the
life of those in Israel who tried to be faithful to Yahweh. Like us today, there were varying levels of
faithfulness to God. It was the day when
they all were reminded that they had been forgiven their sins and that Yahweh
was keeping the Covenant. If you think
yourself a faithful servant of God, think of it as Christmas and Easter with a
bit of New Year’s and All Saints’ tossed in together. Just to remind you how it worked: the
faithful High Priest would discern his sins and make the appropriate sacrifices
for those sins. Then the high Priest
would make sacrifices for those sins that he could not remember or was unaware
he had committed. The High Priest would
then make sacrifices for the sins of the people and for the sins of which they
were unaware. Then, the High Priest
would take the blood of the sacrifice and enter the Holy of Holies, the off
limit part of the Temple where the Ark of the Covenant was kept. When the priest parted the curtain and entered
the Holy of Holies, there was an air of uncertainty in the crowds, and probably
more than one clergy. If one entered the
Holy of Holies unrighteous, God killed the trespasser. One could not enter the throne room of God in
an unrighteous state. The priests wore
bells and had a rope tied around them.
So long as the bells were tinkling, the priest was alive and working—more
significantly, God had accepted the sacrifice.
Were the sacrifice not accepted by God, the rope would be used to pull
the priest’s body out of the Holy of Holies.
I see the squirming. Yes, God
takes sin seriously. He takes it so
seriously that He sent His Son to die for our sins—that was the only way you
and I could ever hope to enter His eternal throne room!
Place
yourself in the crowds. Imagine the air
of angst, especially among the faithful.
What if the priest was not faithful?
What if he was a career clergy rather than true pastor? You and I, unfortunately, know clergy who
seem more focused on the privileges of serving God than the
responsibilities. The same was true back
then. The possibility existed that God would not forgive their sins or, even
worse, decide to withdraw His protection over the people. At various times in the history, much like
you and me, the people of Israel wondered if God had forgotten His people and
the promises He made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Think of their enslavement in Egypt, the
Exile, or the droughts. It was a real
worry. And once a year, they had an
opportunity to see, literally to see, into the Holy of Holies and the Mercy
Seat of God on the Ark of the Covenant!
If God accepted the High Priest’s sacrifices, the curtain would be
pulled back and the doors to the Temple flung open for just a few moments,
reminding the people they were God’s people and He was their God!
Back to
that expectant angst for a moment. Place
yourself in the crowds. What would worry
you? The sincerity of the High Priest? Certainly.
His, for lack of a better word, liturgical training? What if he said the wrong prayer or
sacrificed the wrong animal or the animal struggled at an inopportune
time? How about your personal
devotion? Would you have examined
that? Have I made all my necessary sacrifices? Did God accept them? And what if the High Priest was killed? Some would not be surprised to find that the
High Priest was judged unrighteous by God, but others would think they had a
role in the death of that priest. I forgot I called Nancy the b-word 6 months
ago. I forgot to give my tithe 4 months
ago. There would be lots of
self-blame, rightfully so, because at that time of the year everyone was
supposed to be focused on those acts, those sins, which separated them from
God.
Look at
us, though. Do we have that same
anxiety? Should we have any
anxiety? The author of the letter to the
Hebrews would say “of course, not!” Into
what sanctuary did the High Priest enter?
The copy of the one in heaven.
Into what sanctuary did Christ enter?
The real one, where He appears in the presence of God on our
behalf! Assuming the High Priest stayed
faithful and made the appropriate sacrifices, how often would he have to do
that? Right, each and every year on the Day
of Atonement. Jesus, by contrast, only
had to do it once. Why? Because He was without sin. Because He was killed and sinless, His blood
makes Him, and all those who claim Him as Lord, righteous in God’s eyes. He is the new Adam who trusted fully in the
mercy and grace and power of God! You
and I have sinned and will continue in the hours and days ahead. As such, our blood has no power to redeem
ourselves or any others. But Christ’s
blood? Ah, His blood sanctifies us and
makes it possible for us to enter the eternal embrace of our Lord God!
In short,
Christ perfected in His Passion and death that obedient faith to which all
humanity is called. And better still, as
the author notes, sin has been dealt with once and for all. Sitting here today, each of us has the freedom
to accept or reject Christ’s offering on our behalf. Some will, in misguided efforts, place their
faith in what we call works’ righteousness.
Others, rejecters of the Gospel, will reject the offering. Our assent or rejection has an eternal
consequence, as the author notes. When
Christ finally returns, it will not be to deal with sin, as sin has already be
dealt with completely. Instead, He will
come to save those who eagerly wait for Him.
The party, the Wedding Feast, will be on!
In part,
what the author of the letter to the Hebrews is noting is that the cycle of sin
and guilt or sin and shame has been finally broken. Part of the angst that surrounded the Day of
Atonement for the faithful was the worry that they or someone else had not done
what they were supposed to have done. As
a nation, we Americans like to pretend that we are God’s favored nation. Israel had no such pretensions. They really were. But it was an uneasy relationship because
they kept failing to live as God instructed them. And when God’s punishment of their sins happened,
there was always worry that THIS was the last straw for Him, that He had
finally given up on them just as they had given up on Him.
We share
this attitude with our forebears of Israel.
How many of you came to visit me during the sermons on Job to explain to
me why your sin made you irredeemable? I
have been here nearly four years now preaching God’s grace and love and still
more than a few argued with me that their sins made them particularly unlovable
in the eyes of God. Oh, Father, if you only knew.
Oh, Father, your sermon sounds nice, but I know it’s not that easy. It’s not easy. Next time you think God forgiving you for
your sin was easy, contemplate Jesus’ suffering for you in His passion,
Crucifixion, and death! It was hard,
hard work atoning for all our sins and for each of us! Just ask Him!
And, I
share this now because many of us will experience it and it relates to the why
of what we do. I do not care who you
are, if you die a lingering death rather than a quick one, you will experience
a Gethsemane moment. Every person whom I
have had the privilege to sit with, pray with, cry with, laugh with, as they
died faced that moment whether they wondered about the truth of the Gospel, and
its simplicity. I have buried saints who
I know, absolutely know, I will be lucky to be close enough to the throne to
see the backs of their heads, who struggled with their faith at the end. It’s why Last Rites are so powerful. It’s why pastoral visits at the time of death
are so meaningful and a privilege. We
get to remind people of His promise! We
get to remind them of the certainty they had in life!
Because
He completed the work He was sent to do, because He was obedient even unto
undeserved death, that cycle of “did I do enough” and shame and guilt has been
broken. Is blood offered on that altar
when we gather to give thanks to God week in and week out, or service in and
service out? No! We make an offering of what? Thanksgiving and praise! All we can offer Him for this redeemed
relationship is thanksgiving and praise.
We cannot offer God anything else, and He does not ask for anything
else. All that was required to restore
us to Him was completed by Jesus!
It is
with that understanding that you and I come to that altar every time we gather,
or it is with that understanding you and I should come to that altar. It is that understanding which informs all
our sacraments and rites in the church.
There is no shame in God’s love for us; there is no guilt in His redemption
of us. All the shame of our secret sins
and all the guilts of our sins, both individually and collectively, were buried
in that Tomb with Christ’s broken Body!
And were that the end of the story, we would be right to be miserable;
we would be right to worry; we would be right to feel shame and guilt. But that we might know, absolutely know, that
we are forgiven by His work, God raised Jesus from the dead—breaking that cycle
of sin and shame and atonement once and for all!
How does
this relate to stewardship? A few
minutes ago, I reminded each of us that everything that goes on here should
point to that love and mercy and grace of God.
That is the reality we are called to proclaim, in both word and deed, in
those wildernesses where we live and work and play. All that goes on here, as far as I and the
Vestry and the bishop have any say, prepares us to be heralds of the reality
that God’s grace and God’s love are freely offered. We have only to grasp what He offers. But that reality is so counter-cultural to
the world’s teaching. That voice that
convinces Adventers that their sins were too bad or too shameful to be forgiven
is not God’s voice. That voice that
convinces a young 16 year old girl that the only way she can realize her dreams
is to pimp herself out to producers or that she can know love is to have a baby
is not God’s voice. The voice that
convinces us that members of the other political party are enemies, sub-human,
or whatever other descriptor we might like to use, is not God’s voice. That voice that says the evils of the world
are too big, too strong and that we are too weak, too feeble, and too stupid to
do anything about them is not God’s. And
we need to be reminded of THAT reality so that we are more effective heralds in
the world around us. That’s why we do
what we do! And that’s why stewardship is
important.
Over the
last couple years, I have had this conversation with some of you in softer
words. Those of you who have come into
my office to complain that paying to mow the acreage or salaries or upkeep of
the facilities is not sexy can speak to your fellow Adventers about those
conversations. All of it is
important. If the buildings are
crumbling or the heat or air does not work as needed, who comes? Right now, this sanctuary space provides a
place for Armenians, Southeast Asians, and missionaries to worship. It provides a place for women to find support
and healing in a 12-step group, a program that was developed by Episcopalian in
New York. It allows fiddlers and banjo
players to share their love of what they call music with one another, and,
because they play here, me to make a bad musical joke! It allows amateur geologists to show others
“what they’ve found” and to marvel at God’s creation. It has provided a space for Adventers to study
God’s word and to wrestle with what God has to say on any number of
subjects. It has allowed various
fellowship groups to meet and explore common interests, some religious and
others maybe less so. It has allowed us
to invite others in, our neighbors, to share in fellowship and good food and
god drinks and even hikes. It has
allowed us to care for those less fortunate than ourselves in His name! It may not seem sexy, by the world’s
standards, but it is important to God and should be important to us.
The same
is true of salaries. I serve in and you
attend a denominational expression that values educated clergy. We duke it out with the Lutherans to have the
best educated, best trained clergy, or so we claim. There’s a value to that expertise and ability
attached—there’s certainly a cost to that training. Usually the minimum value is set by a diocese,
but other parishes influence it, too.
You may think Tina’s salary unsexy, but how much communication and
coordination would be lost were she not here?
What value do we place on that work?
You may think Waldemar’s salary unsexy, but how much joy do we derive
from worship sans music? If we were
transported in time and space by liturgy without music, more of us would be at
8am service!
All of
this is to say that everything we do around here, whether worship or committee
work or hospitality or private rite or whatever, should be done for the purpose
of proclaiming the reality that God loves us, that God has redeemed us, and
that God has called us to be His heralds, His ambassadors, of that great news,
that Gospel news, in this world. That is
the reality He has given us to proclaim; that is the reality that He has
promised; and that is the reality He has made possible in the obedient work of
His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord! It is
that reality to which the author of Hebrews points us today. That is the reality He has opened to us; that
is the reality for which He makes intercessions on our behalf; and that is the
reality which we will all one day experience, when He returns to call those
eagerly waiting for Him home!
In Christ’s Peace,
Brian†
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