Advent I Be Alert
Jesus always surprised people.
Jesus always did ordinary things in extraordinary ways. He also taught the fundamental facts of Moses and the Prophets in a very unique context. That context is truth. The truth is not a set of facts or speculations. The truth is a person. By his own personality Jesus defines truth.
By his personal presence Jesus challenges the misconceptions and distortions of what people believe about themselves, other people, the world, and God.
One of the greatest misconceptions we have about the world is that everything is all about me. It is all about asserting my will to get what I want when I want it. Jesus sets forth the correcting principle that everything is all about love. Jesus clarifies the distinction between the means and the end, the process and the goal.
Many people had come to believe Jesus was the Messiah. And that belief, at least in its outward form, was true. How they understood what the Messiah would do and who he would be was not true. From the place of self will people looked for a Messiah who would give them world conquest, wealth and power.
They missed the reality of what Moses and the prophets taught. They missed the reality of who Jesus is. They missed the reality because of their profound misconceptions about life. They missed the reality because of the fundamental distortions of reason, will and emotion. Those distortions are a consequence of original sin, the defining choice humanity made to separate from God.
The people of Israel in Jesus’ day looked forward to the final judgment with the certainty that God would punish the unrighteous and reward the righteous. With such a perspective, it became important to know who was righteous and who was not. All of the images Jesus uses in the passage were widely known to the people of Israel.
Signs in the sun, and moon and stars were expected. Wars and rumors of wars were common. Distress and fear were normal.
What was different in Jesus telling of the story was the conclusion.
For many if not most people the conclusion was: therefore obey the law and God will not allow these things to happen to you. If you do the right things you will escape God’s punishment. Those who fail to do the right things will suffer the calamities of God’s last judgment.
Jesus teaches something very different. He teaches that the wars and rumors of wars do not come from God. He teaches that earthquakes, floods and natural disasters are not divine punishment. For these things happen to everyone, the good and the bad, the just and the unjust, the righteous and the unrighteous.
Nevertheless, despite these terrible calamities, God is working his purpose out. His purpose is not to use the calamities as punishment. His purpose is not to favor one group of people over all others. God’s purpose is far more sweeping in its magnitude and all encompassing in it scope.
God’s purpose in Jesus Christ is to restore all people and all of creation to the fulness of unconditional love.
Many people in Jesus day looked forward to the final jusgment, the last days, with a mixture of fear and anticipation. They wrote books that speculated how it would all work out. They created charts and graphs to set the times when it would happen. Some even stored weapons and food so that they would remain safe and be able to conquer the survivors.
That isn’t the point. That isn’t the plan.
Jesus told the people that all of these things that they attributed to God’s wrath in the final judgment would take place in their generation. Every generation faces all of these catastrophes. The point of the stories about the final judgment and the last days is that every generation could easily be the last generation.
Every generation could easily be the last generation because every generation asserts the will to power that says "my will be done". Wars come from people not God. The effects of natural disasters are magnified when people ignore the obvious signs of natural law. In a world of abundance large numbers of people suffer starvation and privation because a smaller number of people desire to be rich and powerful.
The Plan, God’s Plan, is to restore a lost, lonely and broken humanity to the source of life. That source is a person: Jesus Christ. That person reveals himself as unconditional love.
Jesus teaches about the final judgment in the last days from the context of the Plan of Salvation. This teaching is not designed to frighten us. It is not designed to satisfy our curiosity about the future. It is not about who God will reward and who God will punish.
The teaching is for the liberation of our minds, hearts and wills from the deceits of self will, fear and pride. The teaching directs us to the personal relationship God has offered all people everywhere in Jesus Christ.
So, Jesus encourages in these words: be alert at all times. Pay attention. Stay conscious. Do not be led astray by false teachers. Do not be distracted by either the pleasures or pain that we will encounter in this world. Do not live you life by default, simply following the pattern set by the surrounding culture.
Wake up. Use you eye to see. Use your ears to hear. Observe the world as it is. Pay attention. Through prayer, immerse your soul in the eternal unconditional love of God.
Jesus’ teaching is designed to offer us the best possible way to live our lives here and now. The ability to live that best possible way starts at the baptismal font. It is nourished at the altar. It is made real to us as we hear the word of God, believe the word of God and then ask God for the strength and courage to live the word of God.
The word of God for us on this first Sunday of Advent is "be alert at all times". At all times, make a real choice to live in the divine presence of Jesus Christ. Be who God has created you to be. Be who Jesus has redeemed you to be. Be who the Holy Spirit empowers you to be. Be the love of God manifesting in this time and at this place in your soul.
Friday, November 27, 2009
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Thanksgiiving 2009
Thanksgiving 2009 Do not be anxious.
Anxiety is rooted in that part of the human soul that demands: my will be done.
The remedy for anxiety is giving thanks.
Anxiety focuses the mind on the principle known as Murphy’s Law. Whatever can go wrong will go wrong. Anxiety is different from planning. Planning involves a rational analysis of a situation followed by a plan of action to deal with the situation.
Anxiety paralyzes action by the use of a logic that concludes no matter what I do I cannot control all events. Therefore, I am helpless. Therefore I am hopeless.
Anxiety is preoccupied with future tragedy. It is locked in the dualism that asserts: if life is not 100% good then it must be 100% bad. Either I get what I want all of the time and God is good. Or, I don’t get what I want 100% of the time and God, if God exists at all, is not good.
Anxiety disrupts the mind, robs sleep, distorts the desires of our hearts- leaving us open to the temptations of the world, the flesh and the devil, paralyzes the will and finally stagnates the soul.
Moses and the prophets spoke of this great threat to human happiness. Jesus came to transform this threat back into its original blessing.
Anxiety is a distortion of grace.
Grace transforms anxiety back into its original blessing. That original blessing is the ability to enjoy life as it unfolds, as we chose to engage life, as we are fully present to life.
As a teen one of my teachers once joking said 90% of success in life is just showing up. It certainly worked for me in school. Even if I didn’t always complete the assigned reading for my classes I always showed up for class. I always paid attention. And, I always took notes.
Thanksgiving is about showing up for life. It is about paying attention. If is about asking yourself the question: where am I here and now? What am I experiencing here and now? What do I have here and now?
The past is gone. The future has not yet come. There is only here and now. In Jesus Christ, God manifests his presence to each of us, to every human being on this planet, here and now.
What is here now for you? How is God manifesting Himself to you in the circumstances of your life here and now?
Some of us may be thinking of all of the preparations for the coming Thanksgiving meal, the visiting family, the hustle and bustle of what the world calls the holidays. Some of us may be experiencing anxiety about the war, the economy, health, the choices our children are making.
Here and now in the real presence of Jesus Christ at the altar, God asks us to immerse ourselves in the infinite and eternal love of the Son. The sacrament is the antidote to anxiety.
As set our intent to be present to God in these few moments of worship, God immerses our souls in divine grace. He makes all things new. He sets our minds free from the logic of fear to the clarity of faith. He purifies the desires of our hearts so that we may enjoy the wonder of human relationships and human activity. He transforms our wills so we can make a real choice to give thanks for the many blessings of this life.
Jesus teaches: do not be anxious. Then, Jesus tells us how not to be anxious. Seek first God’s kingdom and God’s righteousness. Make your personal relationship with God in Jesus Christ the first priority in your life. Immerse you mind and heart and will in Jesus’ love. Then, you will experience the duality of life, its pleasures and its pains, with the confidence and courage that you are loved with an everlasting love. Then, your will live your life from the place of thanksgiving knowing that in Jesus Christ, God is with you always.
Anxiety is rooted in that part of the human soul that demands: my will be done.
The remedy for anxiety is giving thanks.
Anxiety focuses the mind on the principle known as Murphy’s Law. Whatever can go wrong will go wrong. Anxiety is different from planning. Planning involves a rational analysis of a situation followed by a plan of action to deal with the situation.
Anxiety paralyzes action by the use of a logic that concludes no matter what I do I cannot control all events. Therefore, I am helpless. Therefore I am hopeless.
Anxiety is preoccupied with future tragedy. It is locked in the dualism that asserts: if life is not 100% good then it must be 100% bad. Either I get what I want all of the time and God is good. Or, I don’t get what I want 100% of the time and God, if God exists at all, is not good.
Anxiety disrupts the mind, robs sleep, distorts the desires of our hearts- leaving us open to the temptations of the world, the flesh and the devil, paralyzes the will and finally stagnates the soul.
Moses and the prophets spoke of this great threat to human happiness. Jesus came to transform this threat back into its original blessing.
Anxiety is a distortion of grace.
Grace transforms anxiety back into its original blessing. That original blessing is the ability to enjoy life as it unfolds, as we chose to engage life, as we are fully present to life.
As a teen one of my teachers once joking said 90% of success in life is just showing up. It certainly worked for me in school. Even if I didn’t always complete the assigned reading for my classes I always showed up for class. I always paid attention. And, I always took notes.
Thanksgiving is about showing up for life. It is about paying attention. If is about asking yourself the question: where am I here and now? What am I experiencing here and now? What do I have here and now?
The past is gone. The future has not yet come. There is only here and now. In Jesus Christ, God manifests his presence to each of us, to every human being on this planet, here and now.
What is here now for you? How is God manifesting Himself to you in the circumstances of your life here and now?
Some of us may be thinking of all of the preparations for the coming Thanksgiving meal, the visiting family, the hustle and bustle of what the world calls the holidays. Some of us may be experiencing anxiety about the war, the economy, health, the choices our children are making.
Here and now in the real presence of Jesus Christ at the altar, God asks us to immerse ourselves in the infinite and eternal love of the Son. The sacrament is the antidote to anxiety.
As set our intent to be present to God in these few moments of worship, God immerses our souls in divine grace. He makes all things new. He sets our minds free from the logic of fear to the clarity of faith. He purifies the desires of our hearts so that we may enjoy the wonder of human relationships and human activity. He transforms our wills so we can make a real choice to give thanks for the many blessings of this life.
Jesus teaches: do not be anxious. Then, Jesus tells us how not to be anxious. Seek first God’s kingdom and God’s righteousness. Make your personal relationship with God in Jesus Christ the first priority in your life. Immerse you mind and heart and will in Jesus’ love. Then, you will experience the duality of life, its pleasures and its pains, with the confidence and courage that you are loved with an everlasting love. Then, your will live your life from the place of thanksgiving knowing that in Jesus Christ, God is with you always.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Christ the King
Christ the King Sunday
My kingdom is not of this world.
Jesus Christ is the rightful king of this planet.
All governments that currently exist are only temporary. God permits human formed governments to exist in this Church Age in order to restrain evil and preserve order. The time is coming when Jesus Christ will return to this planet. At that time, God will dissolve all human governments.
Queen Victoria of England, monarch of a vast world empire, once said that she hoped to live to see the day of Christ’s return. For, on that day it would be her greatest joy to surrender her crown to him and acclaim him king of kings and lord of lords.
When Jesus declared before Pontus Pilate, my kingdom is not of this world, he did not mean his kingdom was not of this planet.
God the Father created this planet according to the pattern of God the Son. This planet and all who live here are the the Father’s gift to the Son.
What Jesus meant, and what Pilate very shrewdly understood, is that his kingdom was not of this culture. The culture of the first century was not that different from the culture of the 21st century. It was a culture of prestige, position, pleasure and power. Those who ruled in that culture ruled from the place of the will to power.
The rulers of the ancient world used a combination of bribes and threats to dominate their subjects. The bribes Rome used were the classic bribes of bread and circuses. Rome provided grain subsidies to its citizens. Rome also provided free entertainment to divert and delight the masses. But, there is no such thing as a free lunch. The price Roman citizens paid was absolute obedience to the will of the emperor. Failure to obey meant death. Rome ruled through fear.
Jesus was not that kind of king. Jesus miraculously fed people but never promised to provide free food. Instead, he taught his disciples that they should feed the poor. Jesus performed amazing miracles but not to divert and dazzle. His miracles were filled with meaning and directed by a single purpose.
That single purpose was God the Father’s Plan of Salvation.
As Jesus stood before Pilate he stood in a wider context. Jesus was the legal king of Israel. His followers had abandoned him once it became clear he was not going to use his divine power to conquer. His enemies arrested him for the same reason. They reasoned, if he is not going to use his power to conquer, then we can kill him without fear.
Caiaphas condemned Jesus to death for acknowledging the truth. It was an inconvenient truth. It was an unacceptable truth. For, if Jesus really was the Son of the Living God then everything the people believed about God was wrong. And, Caiaphas reasoned that to be wrong about God was to risk God’s wrath. In his pride. Caiaphas could not and would not accept the possibility that he and the entire religious establishment of his was could be so wrong. In order for Caiaphas to accept the truth Jesus spoke he, Caiaphas, would have to change in a very profound way. In the end, Caiaphas condemned Jesus to avoid the personal transformation of his own soul.
Caiaphas condemned Jesus for being who he was: the Son of God. In so doing, Caiaphas embodied not just the nation of Israel but the entire human race. The entire human race seeks to define God. Every person on this planet reserves the right to define God’s existence or non existence. The possibility that God might have an opinion is meaningless to humans. The possibility that God might actually visit this planet in person and reveal himself is offensive to humans.
Caiaphas knew that Pilate would be indifferent to religions matters. He knew that most Romans were at best cynics. The charge Caiaphas brought against Jesus to Pilate was not the charge for which the religious court condemned Jesus. The religious court condemned Jesus for saying he was the Son of God. It was the religious crime of blasphemy. The charge Caiaphas brought to Pilate was that Jesus declared himself a king and was therefore guilty of treason.
Jesus was and still is the rightful king of Israel but the people cried out: we will not have this man to rule over us. We reserve the right to define God and to worship God according to our will.
Pilate knew all of this. As an educated pagan he endorsed the Roman cynicism about religious matters. Educated Romans held the view: publically I worship all of the deities. Privately, I believe in none of them.
But, most Romans were not atheists. They believed that there was a transcendent organizing principle that gave form and substance to the universe. They pondered that reality and decided it was so lofty and remote it was incomprehensible.
They called this transcendent organizing principle the logos. It was both a philosophical and scientific concept.
Strangely enough, even modern scientists who describe themselves as atheists nevertheless work from the assumption that there is a unifying organizing principle to the universe. Science would be impossible unless there was order and unless that order could be rationally observed, categorized and summarized.
Pilate knew all this. He also knew that in Jesus’ presence he was experiencing someone who was indeed not of this world of fear, self will and pride. Jesus was a unique category of one. In fact, Jesus just might be the personal presence of the transcendent mystery the Romans and the Greeks speculated that held the rational pattern of the universe together.
Jesus’ response to Pilate’s question convinced Pilate that Jesus was no direct threat to Roman power. Jesus moved the discussion away from the political and the religious into the realm of truth. That is a lofty realm indeed. To Pilate’s mind it was the realm of science, philosophy and ultimate meaning to life’s deepest questions..
It is these things that form the substance of Jesus’ kingship.
They are by no means impractical or esoteric. Jesus’ kingship is fundamental to who we are as a species and as individuals. Jesus rules as king by his self offering to all people everywhere in love.
That love is perfect, personal, and immutable. Jesus rules as king because Jesus not only speaks the truth, Jesus is the truth.. Jesus is the truth because Jesus is the unifying organizing principle to the universe. Jesus is the logos, the plan and pattern of all things and all people.
Jesus doesn’t need to impose his will on the nations and peoples of the world. All people live and move and have their being through Jesus Christ. He is absolute truth in human form. And he reveals absolute truth in the Great Mystery of Universal Love.
Jesus fulfilled the ultimate duty of a king. That ultimate duty is not to impose his will on his people. That ultimate duty is to die for the welfare of his people. We are all his people. All humans belong to Jesus. He died for all of us. He lives for all of us. He loves all of us.
Jesus is the King of love who offers all people everywhere the real choice to receive his love.
Caiaphas ruled the religious realm of his day and made a choice to reject the kingship of Christ. He made that choice in order to preserve his power. He feared losing the ability of saying: my will be done.
Pilate represented the political power of his day and he, too, made a choice to reject the kingship of Christ. He also made that choice in order to preserve his power. He feared losing the ability of saying: my will be done.
Queen Victoria ruled a vast empire in the 19th century. Yet, she looked forward to the day when she would surrender her crown, her power and her empire to Jesus Christ. She longed to say to God in person: Thy will be done.
Each of us rules our own soul as though we were the god and king of our personal universe. Each of us has the same choice Caiaphas, Pilate, and Queen Victoria had.
The kingship of Christ presents the soul with an urgent choice. It is the one real choice all human beings have, whatever our circumstances. It is the choice to accept the divine love and compassion of Jesus Christ.
Jesus stood before Pilate and declared. My kingdom is not of this world. Jesus stands before us today with the same message. As Caiaphas and Pilate made choices to condemn and reject Jesus, so we have the responsibility to accept him at his word. His word is truth. His word is love.
St. Augustine wrote that there are two kingdoms on this planet. There is the Kingdom of Power and there is the Kingdom of love. Jesus clarifies this for us. Jesus crystalizes the truth inherent in the essential pattern of the universe for us.
Jesus will never impose his love. He will always invite us to make a real choice to receive his love. What is your choice? In which kingdom do you chose to live and move and have your being? Jesus offers us his kingdom of love in the words: my kingdom is not of this world system of power and dominance. My kingdom is the realm of real choice and unconditional love.
My kingdom is not of this world.
Jesus Christ is the rightful king of this planet.
All governments that currently exist are only temporary. God permits human formed governments to exist in this Church Age in order to restrain evil and preserve order. The time is coming when Jesus Christ will return to this planet. At that time, God will dissolve all human governments.
Queen Victoria of England, monarch of a vast world empire, once said that she hoped to live to see the day of Christ’s return. For, on that day it would be her greatest joy to surrender her crown to him and acclaim him king of kings and lord of lords.
When Jesus declared before Pontus Pilate, my kingdom is not of this world, he did not mean his kingdom was not of this planet.
God the Father created this planet according to the pattern of God the Son. This planet and all who live here are the the Father’s gift to the Son.
What Jesus meant, and what Pilate very shrewdly understood, is that his kingdom was not of this culture. The culture of the first century was not that different from the culture of the 21st century. It was a culture of prestige, position, pleasure and power. Those who ruled in that culture ruled from the place of the will to power.
The rulers of the ancient world used a combination of bribes and threats to dominate their subjects. The bribes Rome used were the classic bribes of bread and circuses. Rome provided grain subsidies to its citizens. Rome also provided free entertainment to divert and delight the masses. But, there is no such thing as a free lunch. The price Roman citizens paid was absolute obedience to the will of the emperor. Failure to obey meant death. Rome ruled through fear.
Jesus was not that kind of king. Jesus miraculously fed people but never promised to provide free food. Instead, he taught his disciples that they should feed the poor. Jesus performed amazing miracles but not to divert and dazzle. His miracles were filled with meaning and directed by a single purpose.
That single purpose was God the Father’s Plan of Salvation.
As Jesus stood before Pilate he stood in a wider context. Jesus was the legal king of Israel. His followers had abandoned him once it became clear he was not going to use his divine power to conquer. His enemies arrested him for the same reason. They reasoned, if he is not going to use his power to conquer, then we can kill him without fear.
Caiaphas condemned Jesus to death for acknowledging the truth. It was an inconvenient truth. It was an unacceptable truth. For, if Jesus really was the Son of the Living God then everything the people believed about God was wrong. And, Caiaphas reasoned that to be wrong about God was to risk God’s wrath. In his pride. Caiaphas could not and would not accept the possibility that he and the entire religious establishment of his was could be so wrong. In order for Caiaphas to accept the truth Jesus spoke he, Caiaphas, would have to change in a very profound way. In the end, Caiaphas condemned Jesus to avoid the personal transformation of his own soul.
Caiaphas condemned Jesus for being who he was: the Son of God. In so doing, Caiaphas embodied not just the nation of Israel but the entire human race. The entire human race seeks to define God. Every person on this planet reserves the right to define God’s existence or non existence. The possibility that God might have an opinion is meaningless to humans. The possibility that God might actually visit this planet in person and reveal himself is offensive to humans.
Caiaphas knew that Pilate would be indifferent to religions matters. He knew that most Romans were at best cynics. The charge Caiaphas brought against Jesus to Pilate was not the charge for which the religious court condemned Jesus. The religious court condemned Jesus for saying he was the Son of God. It was the religious crime of blasphemy. The charge Caiaphas brought to Pilate was that Jesus declared himself a king and was therefore guilty of treason.
Jesus was and still is the rightful king of Israel but the people cried out: we will not have this man to rule over us. We reserve the right to define God and to worship God according to our will.
Pilate knew all of this. As an educated pagan he endorsed the Roman cynicism about religious matters. Educated Romans held the view: publically I worship all of the deities. Privately, I believe in none of them.
But, most Romans were not atheists. They believed that there was a transcendent organizing principle that gave form and substance to the universe. They pondered that reality and decided it was so lofty and remote it was incomprehensible.
They called this transcendent organizing principle the logos. It was both a philosophical and scientific concept.
Strangely enough, even modern scientists who describe themselves as atheists nevertheless work from the assumption that there is a unifying organizing principle to the universe. Science would be impossible unless there was order and unless that order could be rationally observed, categorized and summarized.
Pilate knew all this. He also knew that in Jesus’ presence he was experiencing someone who was indeed not of this world of fear, self will and pride. Jesus was a unique category of one. In fact, Jesus just might be the personal presence of the transcendent mystery the Romans and the Greeks speculated that held the rational pattern of the universe together.
Jesus’ response to Pilate’s question convinced Pilate that Jesus was no direct threat to Roman power. Jesus moved the discussion away from the political and the religious into the realm of truth. That is a lofty realm indeed. To Pilate’s mind it was the realm of science, philosophy and ultimate meaning to life’s deepest questions..
It is these things that form the substance of Jesus’ kingship.
They are by no means impractical or esoteric. Jesus’ kingship is fundamental to who we are as a species and as individuals. Jesus rules as king by his self offering to all people everywhere in love.
That love is perfect, personal, and immutable. Jesus rules as king because Jesus not only speaks the truth, Jesus is the truth.. Jesus is the truth because Jesus is the unifying organizing principle to the universe. Jesus is the logos, the plan and pattern of all things and all people.
Jesus doesn’t need to impose his will on the nations and peoples of the world. All people live and move and have their being through Jesus Christ. He is absolute truth in human form. And he reveals absolute truth in the Great Mystery of Universal Love.
Jesus fulfilled the ultimate duty of a king. That ultimate duty is not to impose his will on his people. That ultimate duty is to die for the welfare of his people. We are all his people. All humans belong to Jesus. He died for all of us. He lives for all of us. He loves all of us.
Jesus is the King of love who offers all people everywhere the real choice to receive his love.
Caiaphas ruled the religious realm of his day and made a choice to reject the kingship of Christ. He made that choice in order to preserve his power. He feared losing the ability of saying: my will be done.
Pilate represented the political power of his day and he, too, made a choice to reject the kingship of Christ. He also made that choice in order to preserve his power. He feared losing the ability of saying: my will be done.
Queen Victoria ruled a vast empire in the 19th century. Yet, she looked forward to the day when she would surrender her crown, her power and her empire to Jesus Christ. She longed to say to God in person: Thy will be done.
Each of us rules our own soul as though we were the god and king of our personal universe. Each of us has the same choice Caiaphas, Pilate, and Queen Victoria had.
The kingship of Christ presents the soul with an urgent choice. It is the one real choice all human beings have, whatever our circumstances. It is the choice to accept the divine love and compassion of Jesus Christ.
Jesus stood before Pilate and declared. My kingdom is not of this world. Jesus stands before us today with the same message. As Caiaphas and Pilate made choices to condemn and reject Jesus, so we have the responsibility to accept him at his word. His word is truth. His word is love.
St. Augustine wrote that there are two kingdoms on this planet. There is the Kingdom of Power and there is the Kingdom of love. Jesus clarifies this for us. Jesus crystalizes the truth inherent in the essential pattern of the universe for us.
Jesus will never impose his love. He will always invite us to make a real choice to receive his love. What is your choice? In which kingdom do you chose to live and move and have your being? Jesus offers us his kingdom of love in the words: my kingdom is not of this world system of power and dominance. My kingdom is the realm of real choice and unconditional love.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Pentecost 24
Pentecost 24 Proper 28
Beware that no one leads you astray.
There are three things that can lead us astray. The three things are the distortions of our own individual desires, the distractions of our culture, and the deceits of Satan.
As Jesus approached the time of his arrest and execution he warned his students about the dangers of being led astray. The immediate occasion for this warning was their reaction to the impressive edifice and religious power of the Temple in Jerusalem.
The Temple was indeed impressive. It was one of the wonders of the ancient world. It had been under construction some 18 years before Jesus was born and its construction continued for some thirty years following his death and resurrection.
It was the third Temple built in Jerusalem. Solomon had built the first around 1,000 B.C. . The Babylonians destroyed that Temple. Nehemiah and Ezra built the second Temple in 516 B.C. It had fallen into decay over the centuries. King Herod began a massive reconstruction of the Temple in 18 B.C.
Herod’s Temple was massive and beautiful. But, it was less a place of worship than a place of nationalistic pride and aspiration to power. This aspect of the Temple is what impressed the disciples. They were captivated by the outward and visible form of the massive stones, the gold and precious gems, the large numbers of people who came from all over the world to worship in that place. They missed the inward and spiritual grace. The missed God’s plan and purpose for the Temple. They missed the invitation to reunification with the love of God through worship.
Only forty years after the resurrection of Jesus, zealots would seize control of Jerusalem, slaughter the Temple priests and lead the people into a disastrous war against Rome that would end in the total destruction of the Temple. It has never been rebuilt.
As the disciples exited the Temple that day, they felt the temptation of the lie. The temptation was not in the impressive edifice of the Temple. The temptation was in the lie that God is power. The lie also tells us: you can have that power.
God certainly is powerful. But, God is not power. God is love.
With virtually all other people of their generation, the disciples believed God was power. They wanted to share that power. They wanted Jesus to manifest that power.
For the disciples, power meant the immediate and miraculous fulfillment of their desires. It meant the exaltation of the nationalistic aspirations of Israel. And, it meant the triumph of Satan’s fundamental lie that through separation from divine love people can find fulfillment through the will to power.
Jesus warned his disciples of the impending destruction of the Temple. All of the signs were there. It didn’t require prophetic revelation to see how the religious politics of Jerusalem would impel the people into direct military conflict with Rome. But, no one saw it coming except Jesus. No one saw it coming because no one wanted to believe that the problem they faced was not in the political realm but in the spiritual realm. No one saw the final consequence because every one wanted the war and everyone believed that God would intervene to give them victory in the war.
As Jesus very accurately discerned the social and political climate of the day, so he looked into the souls of men and saw the rise of deceivers. The apostle John would later name these deceivers "antichrist’.
The antichrist is one who claims to speak for God but who also rejects the incarnation of God in Jesus Christ.
The antichrist is both deceived and is a deceiver. In his self deceit he is convinced he and he alone speaks for God. His message is formed and empowered by distortions, distractions and deceits.
Jesus warns his disciples and us: be wary of people who claim to speak for God. Be wary of teachers who tell you what you want to hear. Be wary of religious leaders who hold the outward forms of religion but deny the inward and spiritual grace. Above all, be wary of the lie that Satan brings forth to obscure the Truth.
The truth is a person: Jesus Christ.
It is important to ask questions. All questions are helpful. The pre eminent question is: what is the truth? How does this teacher bring forth the essential truth revealed in Jesus Christ that God is real, God is personal, God is Love, God is Jesus Christ?
What does this teacher say about Jesus Christ?
It does matter what we believe. It matters so much that Jesus warns us to be wary. Question. Read the scriptures. Pray. Above all else, immerse your soul in the love and holiness of God at the altar in worship.
There are three lies that lead us astray. Three deceptions that lead us away from Truth. Those three lies are the disordered desires of our own hearts, the distractions of our surrounding culture, the deceit of Satan that if God is real then God is power.
The disciples desired victory for Israel, wealth and power for themselves. Their desire for God’s blessing was good. But, they had allowed their own fear, self will and pride to distort that desire. They had embraced the culture of death that sought dominance over other people, the world, and God himself. They had allowed Satan to seduce them with the most potent and subtle of all seductions: the will to power.
Jesus warned his disciples as they were caught up in the rush of power they felt as they walked through the impressive magnificent wonder of the Temple. Be wary. Be wary of those who would tell you what you want to hear. Be wary of the way of power. Many will come with that message. Many who have been deceived by that message will also seek to deceive you.
Hold fast to the truth. The truth is a person. The person is Jesus Christ. The truth is that God is real, God is personal, God is love, God is Jesus Christ. Hold fast to Him and He will immerse your soul in the eternal love of His Real Presence in the Holy Sacrament of the altar. It is there you will know clarity of thought, purity of heart, humility of will.
Be wary that no one leads you astray. It does matter what you believe. It does matter how you believe. Draw close to the diving love and compassion of Jesus Christ. In His love you will find the healing of all of your desires. In His love, you will find the fulfillment of all of your dreams.
Accept no substitutes. It is Jesus and Jesus alone who is the fulness of Divine Love offering himself to all people everywhere, offering Himself to you here and now.
Remember the words of the co-eternal Beloved of the Father: be wary that no one leads you astray from love.
Beware that no one leads you astray.
There are three things that can lead us astray. The three things are the distortions of our own individual desires, the distractions of our culture, and the deceits of Satan.
As Jesus approached the time of his arrest and execution he warned his students about the dangers of being led astray. The immediate occasion for this warning was their reaction to the impressive edifice and religious power of the Temple in Jerusalem.
The Temple was indeed impressive. It was one of the wonders of the ancient world. It had been under construction some 18 years before Jesus was born and its construction continued for some thirty years following his death and resurrection.
It was the third Temple built in Jerusalem. Solomon had built the first around 1,000 B.C. . The Babylonians destroyed that Temple. Nehemiah and Ezra built the second Temple in 516 B.C. It had fallen into decay over the centuries. King Herod began a massive reconstruction of the Temple in 18 B.C.
Herod’s Temple was massive and beautiful. But, it was less a place of worship than a place of nationalistic pride and aspiration to power. This aspect of the Temple is what impressed the disciples. They were captivated by the outward and visible form of the massive stones, the gold and precious gems, the large numbers of people who came from all over the world to worship in that place. They missed the inward and spiritual grace. The missed God’s plan and purpose for the Temple. They missed the invitation to reunification with the love of God through worship.
Only forty years after the resurrection of Jesus, zealots would seize control of Jerusalem, slaughter the Temple priests and lead the people into a disastrous war against Rome that would end in the total destruction of the Temple. It has never been rebuilt.
As the disciples exited the Temple that day, they felt the temptation of the lie. The temptation was not in the impressive edifice of the Temple. The temptation was in the lie that God is power. The lie also tells us: you can have that power.
God certainly is powerful. But, God is not power. God is love.
With virtually all other people of their generation, the disciples believed God was power. They wanted to share that power. They wanted Jesus to manifest that power.
For the disciples, power meant the immediate and miraculous fulfillment of their desires. It meant the exaltation of the nationalistic aspirations of Israel. And, it meant the triumph of Satan’s fundamental lie that through separation from divine love people can find fulfillment through the will to power.
Jesus warned his disciples of the impending destruction of the Temple. All of the signs were there. It didn’t require prophetic revelation to see how the religious politics of Jerusalem would impel the people into direct military conflict with Rome. But, no one saw it coming except Jesus. No one saw it coming because no one wanted to believe that the problem they faced was not in the political realm but in the spiritual realm. No one saw the final consequence because every one wanted the war and everyone believed that God would intervene to give them victory in the war.
As Jesus very accurately discerned the social and political climate of the day, so he looked into the souls of men and saw the rise of deceivers. The apostle John would later name these deceivers "antichrist’.
The antichrist is one who claims to speak for God but who also rejects the incarnation of God in Jesus Christ.
The antichrist is both deceived and is a deceiver. In his self deceit he is convinced he and he alone speaks for God. His message is formed and empowered by distortions, distractions and deceits.
Jesus warns his disciples and us: be wary of people who claim to speak for God. Be wary of teachers who tell you what you want to hear. Be wary of religious leaders who hold the outward forms of religion but deny the inward and spiritual grace. Above all, be wary of the lie that Satan brings forth to obscure the Truth.
The truth is a person: Jesus Christ.
It is important to ask questions. All questions are helpful. The pre eminent question is: what is the truth? How does this teacher bring forth the essential truth revealed in Jesus Christ that God is real, God is personal, God is Love, God is Jesus Christ?
What does this teacher say about Jesus Christ?
It does matter what we believe. It matters so much that Jesus warns us to be wary. Question. Read the scriptures. Pray. Above all else, immerse your soul in the love and holiness of God at the altar in worship.
There are three lies that lead us astray. Three deceptions that lead us away from Truth. Those three lies are the disordered desires of our own hearts, the distractions of our surrounding culture, the deceit of Satan that if God is real then God is power.
The disciples desired victory for Israel, wealth and power for themselves. Their desire for God’s blessing was good. But, they had allowed their own fear, self will and pride to distort that desire. They had embraced the culture of death that sought dominance over other people, the world, and God himself. They had allowed Satan to seduce them with the most potent and subtle of all seductions: the will to power.
Jesus warned his disciples as they were caught up in the rush of power they felt as they walked through the impressive magnificent wonder of the Temple. Be wary. Be wary of those who would tell you what you want to hear. Be wary of the way of power. Many will come with that message. Many who have been deceived by that message will also seek to deceive you.
Hold fast to the truth. The truth is a person. The person is Jesus Christ. The truth is that God is real, God is personal, God is love, God is Jesus Christ. Hold fast to Him and He will immerse your soul in the eternal love of His Real Presence in the Holy Sacrament of the altar. It is there you will know clarity of thought, purity of heart, humility of will.
Be wary that no one leads you astray. It does matter what you believe. It does matter how you believe. Draw close to the diving love and compassion of Jesus Christ. In His love you will find the healing of all of your desires. In His love, you will find the fulfillment of all of your dreams.
Accept no substitutes. It is Jesus and Jesus alone who is the fulness of Divine Love offering himself to all people everywhere, offering Himself to you here and now.
Remember the words of the co-eternal Beloved of the Father: be wary that no one leads you astray from love.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Pentecost 23
Pentecost 23 Proper 27 "She put in all that she had."
The offering we place at the altar is an act of worship.
There are two aspects of life where most people resist advice, particularly religious based advice. They are also the two areas that couples tend to argue about the most.
One of these is finances, money.
The song, "Money makes the world go round" sums up humanity’s understanding of money. It is the means, the end and the goal in life for large numbers of people.
Since money has always been of great importance to people it should be no surprise that God has something to say about it. The first thing God says about money is that money is frozen energy. Money is the frozen energy of our time, talents and labors.
God did not create money. People created money. The small green pieces of paper in our wallets and purses have no objective value. They are just paper. Their worth derives from the value we place in them. That value is in part based on trust, in part based on anxiety, and in part based in the amount of energy we devote to acquiring them.
Money is the frozen energy of our lives. We dedicate a certain amount of time and effort to acquire it. We trade life force for green certificates. By common agreement, we have set a value on human labor and activities and frozen that value in money.
God never created money but he understands its origins and functions better than we do. One of the most misquoted verses in the Bible is" money is the root of all evil." Money itself is completely indifferent to good and evil.
The Bible teaches that the love of money is the root of all manner of evils. As money is frozen life energy, evil is a distortion of love. The two go hand in hand.
The Bible does not endorse any one particular economic system. It does identify the place money can have in our lives. That place is summarized for us by Jesus when he says love God with all of your heart, mind and strength. Love your neighbor as yourself.
God reminds us that we were designed to love. Our first love is God. God must be first or God will become last.
God must be first since God is the source of love. There can be no love apart from God. Love apart from God always suffers distortion. The greatest distortions of love are what people call evil.
The pre eminent way by which we reconnect to Divine Love and find transformation in Divine love is worship.
Some one once commented to me that they thought God was very selfish in demanding our worship. They asked: what is the point of telling God He is so great? For a moment I was horrified then the Holy Spirit reminded me that as long as people are still asking questions they are open to the Plan of Salvation.
Worship is not for God’s benefit. Worship is for our benefit.
Most religions people tend to forget this. Certainly, most religious people in Jesus’ day had adopted two basic distortions in their understanding of worship. Both can be summarized in the word "bribe".
One of the distortions looked at God, perceived God’s power and reacted with fear. For this approach, the bribe in worship is to placate a very powerful being. The further assumption is that God is unpredictable and potentially vindictive. If we do the wrong thing God will punish us. So, to placate this powerful being we build altars and offer sacrifices.
For much of human history the sacrifice of choice to placate God was a child, usually the first born male.
The concept was that when people killed the first born male infants on the altar of sacrifice that would prove to God that we respected him and feared him. In that proof God would be satisfied and would not bring natural disasters to punish people.
The second distortion in worship is the pay off. The concept is that if I bring something of value to the altar of sacrifice and offer it to God, then God will owe me something of value in return. This is religion as the expression of self will. We worship God so God will give us what we really want, usually more money.
There is a third distortion that emerges from these two. We see the third distortion in the gospel reading this morning. That distortion is pride. The concept is that the act of worship is like tipping a waiter for good service. It says: I am so rich and powerful and important I can afford to give a large gift at the altar.
The wealthy religious leaders in Jesus’ day made an ostentatious display of presenting their gifts before the altar of sacrifice in the Temple. Now, the standard God had set for the offering was the tithe, ten percent. And we read in other parts of scripture how the wealthy religious leaders had devised very clever interpretations of this very clear and simple standard in order to evade it.
The wealthy who contributed large sums of money to the Temple generally were not offering the Biblical tithe. They offered far less proportionately than the working poor.
Compared to the large numbers of working poor they offered significant sums of money. But, they did not bring the tithe. They were not interested in worshiping God as much as they wanted to gain respect and admiration from the people. For them, the money they brought to the Temple was an investment in their pride and prestige and power.
This is not worship. Worship is not a bribe to placate divine wrath or to obtain divine favor. It is not an expression of pride. Worship is the total immersion of the soul in Divine Love and Holiness.
God knows our weakness. He knows our need. He knows that despite the amazing abundance of resources he placed in this world for our benefit, we still live with the fear of scarcity. He also knows that when we created money we made a choice to freeze our life’s energy into stagnate forms.
The command God gave Moses for humans to offer the tithe at the altar is not for God’s benefit. It is not even primarily for the benefit of the Temple or the priests who serve in the Temple. It is for our benefit. It is the first step in helping us move from the distortion of self will, fear and pride, from the experience of life as scarcity, into a new experience of abundance. That abundance is eternal love.
The tithe is preeminently designed as an act of worship by which we take the frozen energy of our lives, place it on the altar of sacrifice, and release it into God’s hand by faith. As we do that God invites us to release our attachment to the experience of life as scarcity. In this act of worship God invites us to experience the new life of abundance in infinite and eternal and ever renewing love.
God tells us we can keep 90 % of our income to spend as we choose. He asks for a tithe, 10%, of our frozen energy to be placed on the altar of sacrifice. It is there that frozen energy will be transformed and released back into our souls as living dynamic and creative life force.
The religious people of Jesus day did not believe this. They believed the money was a bribe to avoid punishment or to get a reward. They gave just enough to impress other people, but never what God had commanded.
The widow did not just give 10%, or 30%, or 50%, or 75%, she gave 100%. She far exceeded what God commanded. The amount was small but it was all she had. It was so small no one noticed, except God.
Jesus declared that those two copper coins that together were worth a single penny were in fact priceless. They far exceeded the value of the silver and gold the wealthy brought out of their abundance. Those two coins were priceless because they represented 100% of the frozen energy the woman held in her hands. Those two coins were priceless because they were a genuine and sincere offering of love and worship.
The widow is enshrined in holy scripture. There are no memorials to her, no churches built in her honor, no hymns or poems or plays. We don’t even know her name. But she shines in the brightness of eternity with a radiance of divine love that reaches out across all cultures and all times.
She put in everything she had. She gave her all to God. She released her meager resources to God and God has blessed those two copper coins in an amazing and ongoing outpouring of grace that will continue until Christ returns to all people every where.
That is love. That is worship. That is what the tithe God invites us to bring to the altar of sacrifice can accomplish when it is presented with the extravagance of steadfast holy love. Out of her poverty, the widow gave her all. God has transformed that gift through eternal love into infinite grace.
For, she out of her poverty gave God everything.
The offering we place at the altar is an act of worship.
There are two aspects of life where most people resist advice, particularly religious based advice. They are also the two areas that couples tend to argue about the most.
One of these is finances, money.
The song, "Money makes the world go round" sums up humanity’s understanding of money. It is the means, the end and the goal in life for large numbers of people.
Since money has always been of great importance to people it should be no surprise that God has something to say about it. The first thing God says about money is that money is frozen energy. Money is the frozen energy of our time, talents and labors.
God did not create money. People created money. The small green pieces of paper in our wallets and purses have no objective value. They are just paper. Their worth derives from the value we place in them. That value is in part based on trust, in part based on anxiety, and in part based in the amount of energy we devote to acquiring them.
Money is the frozen energy of our lives. We dedicate a certain amount of time and effort to acquire it. We trade life force for green certificates. By common agreement, we have set a value on human labor and activities and frozen that value in money.
God never created money but he understands its origins and functions better than we do. One of the most misquoted verses in the Bible is" money is the root of all evil." Money itself is completely indifferent to good and evil.
The Bible teaches that the love of money is the root of all manner of evils. As money is frozen life energy, evil is a distortion of love. The two go hand in hand.
The Bible does not endorse any one particular economic system. It does identify the place money can have in our lives. That place is summarized for us by Jesus when he says love God with all of your heart, mind and strength. Love your neighbor as yourself.
God reminds us that we were designed to love. Our first love is God. God must be first or God will become last.
God must be first since God is the source of love. There can be no love apart from God. Love apart from God always suffers distortion. The greatest distortions of love are what people call evil.
The pre eminent way by which we reconnect to Divine Love and find transformation in Divine love is worship.
Some one once commented to me that they thought God was very selfish in demanding our worship. They asked: what is the point of telling God He is so great? For a moment I was horrified then the Holy Spirit reminded me that as long as people are still asking questions they are open to the Plan of Salvation.
Worship is not for God’s benefit. Worship is for our benefit.
Most religions people tend to forget this. Certainly, most religious people in Jesus’ day had adopted two basic distortions in their understanding of worship. Both can be summarized in the word "bribe".
One of the distortions looked at God, perceived God’s power and reacted with fear. For this approach, the bribe in worship is to placate a very powerful being. The further assumption is that God is unpredictable and potentially vindictive. If we do the wrong thing God will punish us. So, to placate this powerful being we build altars and offer sacrifices.
For much of human history the sacrifice of choice to placate God was a child, usually the first born male.
The concept was that when people killed the first born male infants on the altar of sacrifice that would prove to God that we respected him and feared him. In that proof God would be satisfied and would not bring natural disasters to punish people.
The second distortion in worship is the pay off. The concept is that if I bring something of value to the altar of sacrifice and offer it to God, then God will owe me something of value in return. This is religion as the expression of self will. We worship God so God will give us what we really want, usually more money.
There is a third distortion that emerges from these two. We see the third distortion in the gospel reading this morning. That distortion is pride. The concept is that the act of worship is like tipping a waiter for good service. It says: I am so rich and powerful and important I can afford to give a large gift at the altar.
The wealthy religious leaders in Jesus’ day made an ostentatious display of presenting their gifts before the altar of sacrifice in the Temple. Now, the standard God had set for the offering was the tithe, ten percent. And we read in other parts of scripture how the wealthy religious leaders had devised very clever interpretations of this very clear and simple standard in order to evade it.
The wealthy who contributed large sums of money to the Temple generally were not offering the Biblical tithe. They offered far less proportionately than the working poor.
Compared to the large numbers of working poor they offered significant sums of money. But, they did not bring the tithe. They were not interested in worshiping God as much as they wanted to gain respect and admiration from the people. For them, the money they brought to the Temple was an investment in their pride and prestige and power.
This is not worship. Worship is not a bribe to placate divine wrath or to obtain divine favor. It is not an expression of pride. Worship is the total immersion of the soul in Divine Love and Holiness.
God knows our weakness. He knows our need. He knows that despite the amazing abundance of resources he placed in this world for our benefit, we still live with the fear of scarcity. He also knows that when we created money we made a choice to freeze our life’s energy into stagnate forms.
The command God gave Moses for humans to offer the tithe at the altar is not for God’s benefit. It is not even primarily for the benefit of the Temple or the priests who serve in the Temple. It is for our benefit. It is the first step in helping us move from the distortion of self will, fear and pride, from the experience of life as scarcity, into a new experience of abundance. That abundance is eternal love.
The tithe is preeminently designed as an act of worship by which we take the frozen energy of our lives, place it on the altar of sacrifice, and release it into God’s hand by faith. As we do that God invites us to release our attachment to the experience of life as scarcity. In this act of worship God invites us to experience the new life of abundance in infinite and eternal and ever renewing love.
God tells us we can keep 90 % of our income to spend as we choose. He asks for a tithe, 10%, of our frozen energy to be placed on the altar of sacrifice. It is there that frozen energy will be transformed and released back into our souls as living dynamic and creative life force.
The religious people of Jesus day did not believe this. They believed the money was a bribe to avoid punishment or to get a reward. They gave just enough to impress other people, but never what God had commanded.
The widow did not just give 10%, or 30%, or 50%, or 75%, she gave 100%. She far exceeded what God commanded. The amount was small but it was all she had. It was so small no one noticed, except God.
Jesus declared that those two copper coins that together were worth a single penny were in fact priceless. They far exceeded the value of the silver and gold the wealthy brought out of their abundance. Those two coins were priceless because they represented 100% of the frozen energy the woman held in her hands. Those two coins were priceless because they were a genuine and sincere offering of love and worship.
The widow is enshrined in holy scripture. There are no memorials to her, no churches built in her honor, no hymns or poems or plays. We don’t even know her name. But she shines in the brightness of eternity with a radiance of divine love that reaches out across all cultures and all times.
She put in everything she had. She gave her all to God. She released her meager resources to God and God has blessed those two copper coins in an amazing and ongoing outpouring of grace that will continue until Christ returns to all people every where.
That is love. That is worship. That is what the tithe God invites us to bring to the altar of sacrifice can accomplish when it is presented with the extravagance of steadfast holy love. Out of her poverty, the widow gave her all. God has transformed that gift through eternal love into infinite grace.
For, she out of her poverty gave God everything.
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