Topsy Turvy God - Sermon for the Fourth Sunday after Epiphany Year A

Topsy Turvy God

Epiphany 4A

January 29, 2023

Christ, Preston, MN

Matthew 5.1-12

James Michener’s historical and epic novel Space recounts events in the US space program. As a historical novel, it depicts factual events with fictional characters. It’s a fascinating read that will give you insight into the men, women, and events of space travel and exploration. In one section, Michener, through the eyes of an astronaut, describes what it’s like to pilot a spacecraft in orbit. Apparently, it is an especially tricky exercise as the pilot must flip the spacecraft upside down in order to dock with another entity. How it maneuvers is counterintuitive, especially as up becomes down and vice versa. It is completely disorienting to the astronaut.

I wonder if Jesus’ followers and the crowds that were overhearing experienced a similar feeling as they hear Jesus’ teaching. Today’s reading is a preamble of sorts to the Sermon on the Mount, the first of five large blocks of teaching discourses in Matthew’s Gospel, where Jesus is portrayed as teacher par excellence. Covering three full, long chapters, the Sermon on the Mount is considered Jesus’ magnum opus about what it means to follow the way of Jesus. In it, Jesus will both reinterpret the Mosaic law while offering a new. Later, we will hear him declare, “You have heard it said, … but I say to you ….”

The first and foremost important thing to recognize about the “Beatitudes,” or Blessings, is that Jesus declares the hearers are already blessed, no matter what circumstances they find themselves in. No matter what they do or don’t do, no matter what is happening to them, their identity is secure as belonging to God. Another way to say this is that God in general, and Jesus in particular, see them. They are seen and not ignored. Most of them may think they are of no consequence of importance, but not to God.

This leads to an important implication, that God’s kingdom Jesus inaugurates is a topsy turvy one. If we think that God primarily hangs out with the elite and beautiful, the Beatitudes tell us otherwise. Rather, God is present with those who are experiencing the worst this world has to offer them. Furthermore, if you really want to know where God is, look in the darkest, loneliest, and broken places. Chances are that’s where God shows up. In other words, the things that people think count in this world, wealth, power, status, possessions, don’t count at all.

This topsy turvy God likes to do the unexpected. For example, who else but a topsy turvy God would claim an infant as his own, telling her she is loved without her having to do a thing? Who else but a topsy turvy God would think of using not only a group of stumblers to accomplish his mission to love and bless the world, let alone an annual meeting as a vehicle for doing so? Blessed are you, my siblings in Christ, for God is with you for the sake of the world. Amen.

My sermons often preach a little differently than written and you can find the video here.

Following Jesus - Sermon for the Third Sunday after Epiphany Year A

Following Jesus

Epiphany 3A

January 22, 2023

Christ, Preston, MN

Matthew 4.12-23

“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near. … and follow me.”

With the arrest of John the Baptist it is now “Go time” for Jesus, the start of his public ministry. We’re done with the preparatory work, getting ready for Jesus’ birth, then celebrating his birth, hearing about his baptism, and getting John off the stage so that Jesus can take center place, albeit in a dramatic fashion. As we do so, Matthew wants us to know some significant things about Jesus. First, that his ministry will be primarily in Galilee, roughly the size of Fillmore County, in the northern area of Israel.

As is typical for Matthew, this move is in fulfillment of Scripture. As in Isaiah’s time when the people were under the dark thumb of the Assyrians to the North, the people are now under the darker thumb of Rome, looking for a light to save them. In mentioning Gentiles, Matthew hints at the expansiveness of Jesus’ ministry, which will find expression in the Great Commission in chapter 28, to make disciples of all nations. Matthew also wants us to know that Jesus will be a different kind of savior-Messiah. He will be not a warrior-king like David but a teacher, preacher, and healer who recruits not soldiers but rather fishermen, tax collectors and other ordinary folk.

When Peter, Andrew, James, and John drop everything to follow Jesus, we wonder if they had prior knowledge of Jesus or encounters with him. As intriguing as that question is, it’s irrelevant to Matthew. Rather, he wants to show that Jesus is an authoritative presence and that his mission is compelling. Just as significant, it’s important to know that in Jesus’ time rabbis didn’t select their disciples. Instead, people would decide which rabbi or teacher they wanted to follow, which was often a sign of popularity. By contrast, Jesus chooses the four (and other eight) for whatever gifts they will bring to ministry.

We read this story of the call and can feel overwhelmed or inadequate. It is natural to wonder if we would do that. Would we drop everything and follow Jesus, leaving everything behind? Is that what the story is telling us? And frankly, the idea of “fishing for people” sounds manipulative, that we need to “hook” them for the kingdom or gather them unwillingly, wiggling and gasping for air. But it’s important to note that Jesus calls them as they are with their particular gifts and skills. Even more importantly, Jesus says that he will make them disciples much as a potter molds clay. As always, it is Jesus who will do the heavy lifting even as the disciples learn what it means to follow him.

Early on in my business career I’d been promoted to store manager and transferred to the suburban Chicago area. I’d also recently rejoined the church, having left after Confirmation due to a crisis of faith. I still had many questions but figured the church was the place to find the answers. Marty, one of my salesclerks, took pity on a guy who was in a strange town with no friends and invited me to dinner where I met her husband, Floyd, and two-year-old daughter. A friend from Michigan, Mark, was visiting and Marty thought we’d get along. We did and we had a great conversation. Somehow, as we were relaxing over coffee and dessert, I found myself talking about my faith (unfaith?) journey and recent return to church. I wasn’t fishing for converts but simply telling of my experience. Mark, a lapsed Catholic, would energetically reengage with his faith. Marty would begin to explore her spirituality and I’m not sure about Floyd.

Now, at that time I had no idea what following Jesus meant, let alone doing evangelism. Frankly, I’m still figuring the whole “following Jesus thing” out. That brings us to one more significant aspect of today’s reading: it leads into the Sermon on the Mount. It’s the first and largest of Jesus’ five blocks of teaching in Matthew and is a primer in following the kingdom way. We’ll explore this kingdom-way in the next few Sundays, how Jesus invites us to true life. Meanwhile, my Siblings in Christ, Jesus calls you to turn away from those things that draw you from God and to bring your whole selves while following him. Amen.

My sermons often preach a little differently than written and you can find the video here.

What Are You Looking For? - Sermon for the Second Sunday after Epiphany Year A

What Are You Looking For?

Epiphany 2A

January 15, 2023

Christ, Preston, MN

John 1.29-42

Soo Lee came to worship one Sunday and quietly sat in the back. Over the next few weeks she returned a number of times. Then one Sunday she started coming up for Communion, responding I assumed to the “all are welcome” invitation spoken every week. Later, when she told me she’d like to be baptized, I learned some of her story. She emigrated with her parents from China at a young age, settled in New York City, and attended a Catholic school, even though her parents weren’t Christians. She didn’t know much about Christianity, but her life had hit a rough patch recently and she didn’t know what to do. She knew something was missing, that she was looking for something, and so she tried a church. I don’t know what brought her to our church specifically, but I was glad she came.

“What are you looking for?” Jesus asks the two disciples of John the Baptist in today’s gospel reading. They have heard John twice declare that Jesus was the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, and so they go to check him out. It’s important to note that John’s Gospel goes to great lengths to stress that John the Baptist is not the Messiah; Jesus is. Here, in a story that is a natural follow-up to last week’s (though in John, not Matthew), and in a rather odd exchange, we hear John’s version of the call of Jesus’ first disciples.

When Jesus asks them what they are looking for, he is not only saying, “What do you want?” He wants to know what they truly desire and particularly, what they want from him. The two respond with an odd question: “Where are you staying?” The Greek word for “staying” is an important one in John's Gospel. It can also mean “resting,” “remaining,” or “abiding.” It’s “abiding” that gives us the depth of meaning to this concept. Though they may not know why, the two disciples have a deep desire to abide with Jesus.

It’s like when you are hungry and want something to eat but you don’t know what. You scrounge the kitchen hoping you’ll come across what it is you are looking for. Or you are restless and want to do something, but you don’t know what will satisfy the desire to be active. Perhaps, like Soo Lee, something is missing in your life or things aren’t going well, so you’re looking for whatever it is that will satisfy that deep itch. So, when Jesus says to them, “Come and see,” he is inviting them into a space of abiding with him. In doing such, Jesus indicates that their deepest desires and needs will be met with him.

Now, there’s a caveat that needs to be made regarding Jesus’ question, “What are you looking for?” It is dangerous to think that a relationship with Jesus is all about giving us what we want. In fact, sometimes we get pouty because we “didn’t get to sing my kind of music” today or that I “didn’t get anything out of the sermon.” Most churches including this one work hard to have meaningful worship that gives glory to God, inviting people into this relationship. But it’s not about satisfying personal tastes.

Soo Lee didn’t get baptized and join the church because we were welcoming, though we were and that was probably part of it. She did so because she met Jesus, the one who met her in her deepest needs and loved her deeply. You see, evangelism isn’t hard. We create a space where people can encounter the living, loving God and Jesus does the heavy lifting. For our part we simply say “Come and see,” letting Jesus do the hard work. So, my siblings in Christ, what are you looking for? Even if you don’t know what that is, it’s okay, because Jesus does and provides what you need. Thanks be to God. Amen.

My sermons often preach a little differently than written and you can find the video here.

You Are My Beloved - Sermon for Baptism of Our Lord Sunday Year A

You Are My Beloved

Baptism of Our Lord A

January 8, 2023

Christ, Preston, & Union Prairie, Lanesboro, MN

Matthew 3.13-17

My father loved bowling and he passed on that love to me. He also taught me how to bowl, the right way. One week when we must have been off school, he took me with him to his league, which typically ran past my bedtime. When we arrived, he introduced me to a friend who immediately  said, “Oh Carl, I know he’s your son; he walks just like you.” I think my chest puffed out in pride and I stood up a bit taller as I thought, “I’m Carl’s son because I walk just like him!” I also became hyper-aware of how I walked. There weren’t always such wonderful moments with my dad, but this is one I especially remember.

I wonder what was going through Jesus’ mind as he came up out of the water at his baptism and  heard, “This is my Son, the Beloved, in whom I am well pleased.” Did he stand up a little taller? Did his chest puff out just a bit? Did he think, “I’m my Father’s Son!?” For such a short story, there are several questions that come to mind. First, if John’s baptism was for repentance and forgiveness (as we heard on the Second Sunday of Advent ), how does that apply to Jesus who was allegedly sinless? Similarly, how is it that this baptism is to “fulfill all righteousness” as Jesus tells John? Isn’t Jesus already righteous? Third, for those of you who are theologically inquisitive, is this Matthew’s proof of the doctrine of the Trinity?

Let’s briefly consider these In reverse order. Regarding the trinitarian question, conversations about the nature of God came much later than Matthew’s Gospel was written, probably 300-400 years later. This wasn’t even on Matthew’s mind. And for Jesus fulfilling all righteousness, in this Gospel righteousness is important, but has a different sense than what we think. Usually we think of righteousness as being made right with God, but how would that apply to Jesus? In chapter 2, as Joseph is trying to decide what to do about his pregnant fiance, we learned that he is deemed a righteous man. As this concept is played out in the rest of Matthew's Gospel, we realize righteousness is more relational than doing the right thing or being made right with God. The meaning of righteousness is more in line with faithfulness or trust. When Abraham is “reckoned as righteous” it’s not because he has behaved well; it’s because he trusts God’s promise. Finally, though it is nowhere near a settled issue, Jesus’ baptism has more to do with Jesus standing in solidarity with the humanity whom he saves than repentance. Jesus, while being fully divine, is also fully God and through his baptism he stands with all humanity.

That brings us to the heart of the text: God’s declaration of Jesus as his beloved defines unequivocally who he is. Before he has done anything, Jesus is claimed by God as his beloved; it’s the core of his identity. Though not couched in trinitarian language, God’s claim of Jesus as his Son connotes an intimate relationship between God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Just as importantly, because we have been baptized into Christ Jesus, our identity is also as Beloved Children of God.

There’s more. As God’s Beloved, Jesus is also set apart to fulfill God’s mission to love and bless the world. This is a mission he will officially begin after undergoing temptation in the wilderness (a story we’ll read on the First Sunday in Lent). Notice something subtle, but critical: God doesn’t say to Jesus, “If you do want I call you to do, then I will love you.” Not even close. God is a “because/therefore” kind of God, not “if/then.” Instead, because Jesus is first God’s beloved, therefore he is able to respond to God’s call. Similarly, because we are God’s beloved, therefore we are able to be agents of God’s love. When we are baptized into Christ Jesus, we put on Christ and become Christ to others.

My dad died in 1989 at the age of 68. At his funeral several people told me how proud Dad was of me. That was good and important for me to hear, especially in the midst of grief. Even so, part of me was saddened that my dad never told me those things, though I knew them to be true. Many men of that generation didn’t know how to express themselves. Even so, I was determined to tell my daughters that I love them and I’m proud of them. I hope that if you hear nothing else today you hear that you are God’s beloved, no matter what you do or don’t do, no matter how much you are loved or not, that God loves you.

It’s generally accepted that John’s baptisms are not the same as the sacrament we know today. Even so, with the text and Ella’s baptism we can’t help but make connections to our own baptisms Because in our baptisms God declared us as his Beloved, worthy of love and belonging. Like Ella, we are engaged in a life-long unfolding of understanding how we live out that identity in the world. My siblings in Christ, you are God’s Beloved, called and sent to share God’s love to a broken and hurting world that needs to hear that. Amen.

My sermons often preach a little differently than written and you can find the video here.