Year B Proper 22 2024 Like A Child

 Year B Proper 22, 6 October 2024

St. James the Less, Ashland, VA on retreat at Shrine Mont

“Like a Child”

Collect: Almighty and everlasting God, you are always more ready to hear than we to pray, and to give more than we either desire or deserve: Pour upon us the abundance of your mercy, forgiving us those things of which our conscience is afraid, and giving us those good things for which we are not worthy to ask, except through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ our Savior; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Hebrews 1:1-4; 2:5-12

Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also created the worlds. He is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word. When he had made purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.

Now someone has testified somewhere,

“What are human beings that you are mindful of them,

or mortals, that you care for them?

You have made them for a little while lower than the angels;

you have crowned them with glory and honor,

subjecting all things under their feet.”

Now in subjecting all things to them, God left nothing outside their control. As it is, we do not yet see everything in subjection to them, but we do see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.

It was fitting that God, for whom and through whom all things exist, in bringing many children to glory, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For the one who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one Father. For this reason Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters, saying,

“I will proclaim your name to my brothers and sisters,

in the midst of the congregation I will praise you.”

Mark 10:2-16

Some Pharisees came, and to test Jesus they asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” He answered them, “What did Moses command you?” They said, “Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of dismissal and to divorce her.” But Jesus said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart he wrote this commandment for you. But from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female.’ ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”

Then in the house the disciples asked him again about this matter. He said to them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her; and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.”

People were bringing little children to him in order that he might touch them; and the disciples spoke sternly to them. But when Jesus saw this, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs. Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it.” And he took them up in his arms, laid his hands on them, and blessed them.

Good morning, friends! Isn’t it wonderful to be on God’s mountain! We have so much to be thankful for, and much of that is the luxury of being together with family and dear friends in a place we cherish.

This morning’s Gospel reading is mostly about divorce, which for those who have experienced it is heartbreaking and hard, and for those outside that experience it is easy to misunderstand or to judge. I do not think that was the point of what Jesus was trying to say, most of it the metaphysical nature of intimacy, and the outcome of a lack of love and compassion on our part.

But before we miss it, I do want to focus on the final section of what Jesus says in today’s readings, and look at the nature of faith.

People were bringing little children to him in order that he might touch them; and the disciples spoke sternly to them. But when Jesus saw this, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs. Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it.” And he took them up in his arms, laid his hands on them, and blessed them.

“Whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it.”

God’s Kingdom is a gift, a precious gift. A gift we may dismiss, or overlook, or take for granted. It is a gift because it is received. It is something which we are given. We do not earn it, nor do we deserve it. It is something beyond all that. 

It is given because we are loved.

So often, people see those of us who have a life of faith as being restricted or repressed. But the rule of God, the Lordship of Christ in our lives are the gifts of how we can live a life of best practices and full of joy and love.

We are not hindered, but we are delivered from heartbreaks and ramifications of bad choices by following God’s rule in our lives. The Kingdom, and all its implications, is a gift. A gift we can receive. And Jesus says the thing we have some say over to receive said gift.

“Whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it.”

So that begs the question, how does a little child receive?

We have all experienced or seen videos of a kid on Christmas morning tearing into her presents. Excited beyond belief. Ripping open the paper and then celebrating, maybe even dancing with the present before it is even out of the box. 

When was the last time you did a jig for the Rule of God in your life?

Sometimes a kid is speechless, in shock of disbelief that this is actually theirs. 

The child has to be encouraged to open it up, and that it is real and it is theirs. Disbelief is another acceptable childlike response to receiving a gift.

Sometimes, too, I have seen a child stop, set the gift aside, and go straight to the giver and hug them. A cuddle in direct response to the overwhelm of joy. The gift is so great the thanksgiving must be immediate and direct. This is another way a child can receive the immediacy of the gift.

Now the jig, the shock, or the affection may be the immediate responses. But what are the long-term childlike ways of receipt?

A child takes it literally and directly. There is no overthinking, or picking intentions apart. It is direct and assumed as real and good and true. A child receives without guile or worry. A child just takes it. And she is appreciative and happy about it.

How might we receive the Kingdom of God like a little child? What do we need to do? Or more importantly, how do we need to be?

Because that is why Jesus came. It is why Jesus needed to come. When Moses gave God’s Commandments to the people, it was about what to do. Do this, and don’t do that. And that only got us so far. It got as far enough to know that we needed something more. We didn’t need to change so much what we did or did not do, but we needed to change. The Us part. We needed to be different. We needed a way to change who we were.

And Jesus came to enable and encourage us to do that.

In our Hebrews reading it speaks to Jesus, and how he is apart and different from all the prophets who came before. He was singular in that instead of just speaking for God, he became a testimony to the nature of God, a very reflection of God in who he was and what he did. And Jesus did it all to bring us home. As our Hebrews reading closes:

It was fitting that God, for whom and through whom all things exist, in bringing many children to glory, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For the one who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one Father. For this reason Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters, saying,

“I will proclaim your name to my brothers and sisters,

in the midst of the congregation I will praise you.”

We moved from creatures, created by God, to be siblings with Christ, sisters and brothers of Jesus, welcomed home to our eternal home.

We have become new creations through Christ, and in Christ, and for Christ. Wow! Just wow! I could dance a jig, or fall down in holy awe, or run to Jesus and give him a huge hug. One of my favorite hymns…

I will arise and go to Jesus, he will embrace me in his arms.

In the arms of my dear savior, oh, there are ten thousand charms. 

Recently I was reminded of all of this. I have been back from my sabbatical for a week. My body may finally be back in this time zone. I walked across Spain on a pilgrimage that faithful people have been doing for a thousand years. St. Francis actually did it, blessed Francis whose feast day was Friday. For a thousand years people have been doing the Camino de Santiago, the Way of St. James. I started in France and walked over two mountain ranges over a month and a half. I got blisters and infections, and kept going. On doctor’s orders I stopped for a spell, but then continued on, and made it to the destination. 

As I was going I read through the Gospels, and early on I read Matthew’s Gospel. In Matthew Jesus quotes Hoseah, saying, “I require mercy not sacrifice.” In fact, he cites this quote twice (9:13 and 12:7). That really hit home. I had to remind myself that yes I was walking this ancient pilgrimage as an act of devotion, but the pilgrimage was not about walking. The pilgrimage was about getting in touch with Jesus. Jesus requires me to have mercy on me and not sacrifice my health for this walk. I reminded myself of that when I grabbed a bus, or a train, or a taxi some days. I still did 78% of it, and I still have all my fingers and toes, thanks be to God. But what it was all about was giving myself a time and space to be who I am in Jesus, and not worry about minutiae of rules, the Thou Shalts and the Thou Shalt Nots. When I am more worried about the doing I am putting the cart before the horse.

It is like when one is learning to dance. You have to look at your feet at times, and count out loud. But to really dance, you have to be a dancer. It has to become who you are, instead of something you do. To really swim you have to be a swimmer. To really be a Christian, you have to come to it like a child.

Ask a kindergarten class, who is a dancer, and most of the kids will raise their hands. Ask them which of them is an artist and most will raise their hands. Ask which of them is a good singer and again, most think they are. They have not become jaded and forgotten their original belovedness and the possibility of being anything that thrives in childlike optimism.

A story is told of a boy who would ride his bike up and down the top of his fence. Somehow, some way, he got his bike up there and rode up and down, back and forth, not thinking about it. And then one day someone came by and screamed, “Hey kid, don’t you know it is impossible to ride your bike on top of a fence?!?!?” And after that day, he never could again.

“Whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it.” 

Jesus came to give us a gift. A gift that we can only receive if we receive it like a child. We accept it however we are wired, but we take it for what it is, and for who we are. It changes everything for us if we will let it. We are new creations and we have the authority of being Children of God whose Father has all authority and power and glory and honor and dominion, our Dad is a Dad of Abundance and we have all we need. We just forget it at times.

A kid does not worry about the bill at a restaurant. If Dad took them there, they will get what they need. A kid takes it on faith. When will we learn that lesson?

Friends, as we enter into the life in the Kingdom, and we let God’s Rule take over all that we are and all that we do, we have nothing to Fear, and we can have the Audacity to have Hope in a dark and hurting world. We know how the Story ends. And they all lived happily ever after. It may sound like a Children’s Story, and maybe it is. But unless we receive it like that, can we ever enter the Kingdom of God? 

Think on that. And maybe just take it on faith. Amen

Year B Proper 19 2024 Come Round Right

Year B Proper 19, 29 September 2024 St. James the Less Episcopal, Ashland, VA “Come Round Right” Collect: O God, you declare your almighty power chiefly in showing mercy and pity: Grant

us the fullness of your grace, that we, running to obtain your promises, may become

partakers of your heavenly treasure; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns

with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. Mark 9:38-50 John said to Jesus, “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we

tried to stop him, because he was not following us.” But Jesus said, “Do not stop him; for

no one who does a deed of power in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of

me. Whoever is not against us is for us. For truly I tell you, whoever gives you a cup of

water to drink because you bear the name of Christ will by no means lose the reward. “If any of you put a stumbling block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it

would be better for you if a great millstone were hung around your neck and you were

thrown into the sea. If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to

enter life maimed than to have two hands and to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. And

if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame than to

have two feet and to be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out;

it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and to

be thrown into hell, where their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched. “For everyone will be salted with fire. Salt is good; but if salt has lost its saltiness, how can

you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.”

Grace and peace, dear friends. Grace and peace. I feel like I have been gone a lot longer than 7 weeks. So much longer. But this time I have

had away from you has refreshed, rejuvenated, and I do not think resurrected me is too

strong a sentiment. But we have the coming weeks and months for me to share about that.

This morning let’s look at the Scripture given to us in today’s lectionary. This morning our text speaks to an incident when the disciples were surprised to learn that

they were not the only game in town, but they were told that what they were a part of was

much bigger, more grand, and more beautiful than they had ever imagined and Jesus used it

to broaden their perspective. The last seven weeks have been the same for me, too. The disciples saw someone casting out demons in Jesus' name. But the guy doing this

amazing work of power was not a part of them, not in the Elite 12 disciples following Jesus.Jesus did not care about the status, but rather the outcome.

Jesus saw that good was being done, and that was the point. Good, for goodness sake. Friends, we so often, too often, get so caught up in the details. They say that the devil is in

the details, unless you are talking about liturgy, and I often find God in the minutia there.

But we too often major in the minors, and what we consider minors is the point after all. One of the great friends I made over the last seven weeks repeatedly mentioned how

wonderful it was to have everyone walking in the same direction. Amen to that. That is what

Jesus really wants for us, to be a peace and going together in the same direction. America with its vast spaces and relative isolation has spawned a number of sects of

Christianity peculiar to our nation, and one of those was a peculiar group that was trying to

make it on earth as it was in heaven. They were trying to incarnate “Be ye therefore perfect

as your Heavenly Father is perfect.” They tried to embody a simplicity and purity that most

of us would not even think to attempt. You know of them, probably, even if you do not know the details. A few weeks ago I saw

an article that let me know that there are only 2 of them left. 2, not churches. 2 people,

upholding a tradition that lasted since 1747. Over those 246 years, they grew to the

thousands and had several communities over the country. At their height there were 5,000

of them, but their strict doctrine prevented them from ever growing bigger and is the

reason they dwindled soon to non-existence.

[https://www.deseret.com/faith/2022/3/24/22989812/the-last-shakers-sabbathday-lake-maine-shaker-village/] Shakers is what this group was called, a charismatic movement we would call it today. They

got that derogatory name from the ecstatic shaking and rolling on the floor in their worship

when gripped by the Holy Spirit. Their official title is The United Society of Believers in

Christ's Second Appearing. In their practice, they lived communally. They did not evangelize, but encouraged those

attracted to their lifestyle to join with them. Men in one quarter, women in another. They

were strictly celibate, hence not kids and no following generation. The last convert came in

1978 when he was 21. Arnold is his name, and he holds everything in trust with Sister June.

Personally they own no possessions, but even at their height held everything in common.

[Acts 2] We know of their perfect chairs which will last a lifetime, and their brooms, too.

And you may have sung their Shaker Hymn, with so much good in it that will outlast June

and Arnold, and all of us. 'Tis the gift to be simple, 'tis the gift to be free, 'Tis the gift to come down where I ought to be; And when we find ourselves in the place just right, 'Twill be in the valley of love and delight. When true simplicity is gained, To bow and to bend we shan't be ashamed; to turn, turn, will be my delight. Till by turning, turning we come round right. They may seem so strange to us, but they are fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. Arnold

and June are the period on the end of a 246 year long sentence that will finally, and soon,

come to an end. The Shakers tried to live in heaven here on earth, which is admirable, and

lives into Jesus’ words “on earth as it is in heaven.” But their eyes were so fixed on heaven

they were no earthly good. They made it about perfecting the self, and not about turning

that grace received outward. They were blessed and they let it stop there. It is sad, but they are not the only Christians who have chosen that path. As a fellow pastor

here in town likes to say, too many Christians listen to WII-FM. An acronym for “What’s In

It For Me?” We are blessed to be a blessing. We are living in a time when those who scream the name of Jesus the loudest have no idea

what Jesus taught or understand the words he used. As the Shakers sang: True Simplicity.

Love your neighbor. Love your enemy. Welcome the stranger. Do good to those who do

you wrong. Forgive. Feed the hungry. Clothe the naked. Love. Just Love. Simple words. ‘Tis a gift to be simple, ‘tis a gift to be free. But somehow, like the Shakers,

some are making it about themselves. The loudest are calling out Jesus’ name, but are

worried about their guns, and the border, and who uses what bathroom more than the

“least of these.” The great irony of all of this is how many people who spout this

oppositional statements to Jesus’ teaching say they take the Bible literally. Except the words

we look at today. Right after the statement to leave the stranger alone and not to stop him using Jesus’ name

to cast out demons, Jesus goes into several verses intentionally exaggerated to make a huge

point. He uses hyperbole, exaggeration, as a rhetorical device. “If any of you put a stumbling block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it

would be better for you if a great millstone were hung around your neck and you were

thrown into the sea. If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off… And if your foot

causes you to stumble, cut it off… And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out; it is

better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and to be

thrown into hell, where their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched. Only a few times in the history of the Church have I ever heard of people taking Jesus

literally here. Poor Origen. But the things Jesus said literally (see the above mentioned loving,

giving, forgiving commands) are taken as suggestions, and the metaphorical (pluck out your

eye) are taken literally. But they are imposed on others, not ourselves. Friends, in walking the 400+ miles that I walked across Spain, I had lots of time for soul

searching and delving into those parts of myself I too readily ignore. And what I found

when I hit rock bottom of my soul searching was not how bad I was, or despicable, but that

I was loved beyond belief, I am loved beyond measure, and I have been invited to make the

world more like heaven in what I say and do and think and believe. I am a beloved Child of

God, and so are you and you and you. The isolated Shakers are as well, and the people

shouting Jesus and spewing hate are, too. God’s Grace is poured out, on the Just and the

Unjust. We are beloved. As Jesus closes today, so will I. He talks about being salty. When we use that term to describe someone else, it is never positive. He is a salty ol’ mug,

we might say. And what do we mean? Cantankerous. Mean. Isolated and taking it out on the

world. Rarely good. But Jesus’ way of being Salty is so different. He said… “For everyone will be salted with fire. Salt is good; but if salt has lost its saltiness, how can

you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.” Friends, when it comes to seasoning with salt, you have to do it just right. Too much is

horrible. Too little and it will not serve its purpose. Just wants us Salty, to his taste. Well preserved, enough to last the time we are needed. No more. No less. Just right. As I walked across Spain I saw something so different from what we are used to. In EVERY

supermarket, in many restaurants and bars, sitting out was a pig's leg. It was on a stand.

Hoof still on it. Hair still on it. Hoof to hip bone on full display. Iberian ham, an

unbelievably good treat. It is so perfectly preserved that there is no need for refrigeration,

maybe some Saran wrap to keep the flies off, but other than that they are perfectly prepared

for being out. And then with razor sharp knives, the ham is sliced so thin that you can see

the light come through. For breakfast I was repeatedly given two or three slices on my bread,

about the same area as a slice of our bacon, but the flavor explosion of these “wafer-thin”

[French accent] slices, that was all that was needed. That is the type of seasoning with fire I

am talking about, what I think Jesus is talking about. Seasoned so that I can go the distance. Iberian ham is so perfectly done that it can handle anything. And that is what Jesus wants

for and from us. The Shakers pulled away from the world to avoid sin. The loud shouters

want to chop off hands and legs and pluck out others' eyes to make the world less sinful.

But Jesus wants us to let him season us to be ready for whatever comes our way. In God’s

abundance, we have and will have what we need. For our needs and the tasks at hand. This way, we can fulfill the command that Jesus gave his surprised disciples and to us. “Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.” That’s it, brothers and sisters. Let Jesus season you, and show it by the peace you show each

other. Look for that these days, especially these divisive days. There are those who are with

us, working for the good of the world, doing amazing things we know nothing about. But

they are still on our team and doing good, great things. And there are those who claim to be

with us who by their actions show they are not. Love them, too. Care for them, too. Show

them an alternate way. And if they turn on you, turn the other cheek and walk the extra

mile. You are being seasoned for whatever may come. And that is why we can sing… When true simplicity is gained, To bow and to bend we shan't be ashamed; to turn, turn, will be my delight. Till by turning, turning we come round right. Amen.

Year B Proper 14 2024 Getting Fed

 Year B Proper 14, 11 August 2024

St. James the Less Episcopal, Ashland, VA

“Getting Fed”

Collect: Grant to us, Lord, we pray, the spirit to think and do always those things that are right, that we, who cannot exist without you, may by you be enabled to live according to your will; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

John 6:35, 41-51

Jesus said, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”

Then the Jews began to complain about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” They were saying, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” Jesus answered them, “Do not complain among yourselves. No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise that person up on the last day. It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. Very truly, I tell you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

We need to eat to live. Consumption is necessary. But people need to get fed by more than food.

I have had the good fortune to travel, and one of the great joys of wandering around on this wonderful world of ours is all the amazing and different foods I have encountered along the way.

Before we left Costa Rica I had a whole Red Snapper that had been caught that morning. That was a good meal.

Or the Wiener Schnitzel my German exchange family mom makes with the Jaeger mushroom gravy. So good.

It does not have to be fancy to stand out though. Sometimes the context and the company takes something so simple and makes it extraordinary. 

When the kids were small we went to a fantastic progressive Christian conference that still goes on called the Wild Goose Festival. Now the year we went it rained pretty much most of every day. And most of every night. By the 4th and final day we were drenched, sleep deprived from the puddles our sleeping bags tried to avoid, and we were, in a word, miserable. 

We had gone with another family from St. Thomas in Richmond’s Ginter Park neighborhood where I was serving at the time. And we were at our final meal on our final miserable day. It was pouring that night and we put the camp stove in the middle of our 10 by 10 pavilion and stood around it to avoid the cats and dogs of the rain coming down. 8 of us huddled, hungry, and waiting.

Because it was our last day I had planned on making something that took little to no refrigeration because our ice was all but gone in our cooler. So I had planned on quesadillas done on the griddle and a roasted red pepper soup. Tortillas and grated cheese would not go bad, and the soup was “heat and serve” from brick boxes we had gotten at Costco.  But I tell you, that meal was one of the best meals I have ever eaten. 

When my oldest was commissioned before his year at Liverpool Cathedral at the diocesan offices last summer, the preacher (who happened to be in the other family that went) invoked that meal as one of the best she has ever eaten, too. 

Was it the food? I was the cook and I can tell you, no, probably not. But it was the attitude. We were so thankful, and so grateful, and we knew that once we ate this and slept we could go home and get dry after the 8 hour drive. But it was also the company, our co-commiserators who were suffering, and laughing, and eating till it was all gone together.

Food is about the attitude. Food is about the company. Food is about the love and care taken to make and serve it. And it is about the food, too. It is the same for life. It is the same for church. It is like how we take a little bread and a little wine, and make it the Great Thanksgiving. The best meals and the best food is greater than the sum of its parts. Jesus was like that, too, in today’s Gospel reading. 

But we need to start long before Jesus said what he said to fully get what he said. We need to go back to the Exodus, and God’s people wandering through the wilderness. We need to be reminded how the people of God had to rely on him in the arid and rocky places for a whole generation. God provided for them, day in and out with manna from heaven. That idea of God feeding us is the foundation of our reading today.

At the Feeding of the 5,000, Jesus had to run because they wanted him to be king so he could feed them, their bodies and they could escape their mortal worries of providing for themselves. But God did not send Jesus to make us babies that have to have their needs met, but for us to be fully grown and mature in our lives and in our faith. God sent Jesus to make us sisters and brothers of him, not infants or sycophants. While our physical selves need to be fed, so do our spiritual selves. And our souls need to be fed with spiritual food. Or should I say Soul Food? Anyway, and that is why Jesus came. To show us how to live, but even more, how to thrive. He told us, “I have come that you might have life, and have it abundantly!” (John 10:10b) What we do here today and every day of our lives echoes through eternity. We are preparing for our eternal home, but that is not the focus. We are preparing, but while here our focus needs to be here. We need to be fed so that we can do what God would have us do to care and nurture our sisters and brothers, and point them heavenward.

When Jesus went home to Nazareth, they asked him to read from the Scriptures. He chose the scroll of the Nevi’im, the Prophets. He read from the prophet Isaiah, Jesus said clearly what he was, and I believe we are, to be about.

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,

    because he has anointed me

        to bring good news to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives

    and recovery of sight to the blind,

        to set free those who are oppressed,

to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” (Luke 4:16-19)

Jesus came to feed us with the food we need. To the poor, good news. To the captives, release. To the blind, sight. To the oppressed, freedom. And to all of us, the time has come for God’s Way to rule. 

This idea of bread is universal. It comes in so many forms, rolls, slices, tortillas, and pitas. Flatbreads, cornbreads, buns, steamed and cinnamon, and shortbread. Whatever your culture, whatever your bread, Jesus is the Bread of Life. 

I have spoken of this before.  Manna means “What is it?” Whatzit would be an apt translation. Jesus is much the same way. Who do you say that I am? Jesus is a Whatzit until you name him for what he is, or is not, to you.

Today I begin a journey, and I am pretty excited about it. I have wanted to start this journey for over 10 years now, and I never thought that I would ever really get a chance to do it. And then God said, “Ha!” Here you go.

I have always been a planner and schemer. I try not to go into meetings without knowing the probable outcome. But the lesson of the first part of sabbatical was about letting go. And letting go took me months. One of the biggest things that I am trying to do with my walk across Spain is to be ready and open to what God has in store. I, for once, have no expected outcome.

I hope to be like the paralyzed man lowered through the ceiling by his friends. They wanted Jesus to heal him. He wanted Jesus to heal him. But before that, Jesus gave him what he really needed. “Friend, your sins are forgiven.” That is not what he wanted but what he needed. Some churchy types got upset, “Who is he to forgive sins?!?! Only God can forgive sins!” Jesus heard them, or knew what they were thinking. And said, “‘Why do you raise such questions in your hearts? Which is easier, to say, “Your sins are forgiven you”, or to say, “Stand up and walk”? But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins’—he said to the one who was paralyzed—‘I say to you, stand up and take your bed and go to your home.” (from Luke 5:17-39)

That is what I am seeking on my journey. I want to meet Jesus in his authority. I want him to give me what I need. And maybe I might get those things I want, too. I trust Jesus to do what is right and good and true.

While I have the luxury of getting to get away and take my pilgrimage, we all can meet Jesus where we are and how we are. He wants it. I trust you want it, or why are you here?

As the Rolling Stones have been singing to us for 6 decades:

You can't always get what you want

But if you try sometimes, well, you might find

You get what you need

We have a God of Abundance. We have Jesus who came so we could live in that abundance. Recognize that today! Really believe today! Live into it today, and forever! Amen

Year B Proper 11 2024 Charisma

 Year B Proper 11, 21 July 2024

St. James the Less Episcopal, Ashland, VA

“Charisma”

Collect: Almighty God, the fountain of all wisdom, you know our necessities before we ask and our ignorance in asking: Have compassion on our weakness, and mercifully give us those things which for our unworthiness we dare not, and for our blindness we cannot ask; through the worthiness of your Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Mark 6:30-34, 53-56

The apostles gathered around Jesus, and told him all that they had done and taught. He said to them, “Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. And they went away in the boat to a deserted place by themselves. Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they hurried there on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them. As he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.

When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret and moored the boat. When they got out of the boat, people at once recognized him, and rushed about that whole region and began to bring the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was. And wherever he went, into villages or cities or farms, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged him that they might touch even the fringe of his cloak; and all who touched it were healed.

Jesus had something that people wanted. And I would argue, he had something that they desperately needed. They just did not know it yet.

Most of us don’t. Things have not changed. He drew throngs of folks, some not even knowing why. Some came with an intent and purpose. Healing of friends or family, stretching them along his path just for the chance of touching the hem of his garment. As they said of Ferris Bueller, he was a “righteous dude.”

No matter what our felt needs are, no matter what gets us out of our complacency and drives us to reach out and connect with Jesus, he gets to the real point very quickly. That’s what he does.

In the opening of today’s passage, we see him trying to give his disciples a much deserved and even more needed break. It says that they could not even get a chance to finish their meals, they were being pulled in so many directions. So Jesus got them in a boat and headed for a place apart, separated from their daily business, or should that be their “busy-ness.”

But even then, people saw where they were headed and ran ahead to meet them when they landed. They could not catch a break! But Jesus did not yell. He did not plead for them to give him and his disciples a breather. I love how the reading puts it:

As he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.

As tired as they were, his love for the people came first.

You may have noticed, our reading skips several verses, so today’s lectionary could focus on Jesus’ ministry to the people. What was skipped was two miracles in Mark 6, the Feeding of the 5,000 and Jesus’ walking on the water. Two big miracles which are next Sunday’s reading, just John’s version.

As we come to Jesus’ interactions with the people, never forget how charismatic he was. Never forget how people were drawn to him.

We don’t talk about that aspect of Jesus much, how he drew people in. One of my favorite descriptions of that indescribable quality of attraction some are gifted with, comes from the opening lines of Primary Colors by Anonymous, which was about Bill Clinton, sort of.

He was a big fellow, looking seriously pale on the streets of Harlem in deep summer. I am small and not so dark, not very threatening to Caucasians; I do not strut my stuff.

We shook hands. My inability to recall that particular moment more precisely is disappointing: the handshake is the threshold act, the beginning of politics. I've seen him do it two million times now, but I couldn't tell you how he does it, the right-handed part of it--the strength, quality, duration of it, the rudiments of pressing the flesh. I can, however, tell you a whole lot about what he does with his other hand. He is a genius with it. He might put it on your elbow, or up by your biceps: these are basic, reflexive moves. He is interested in you. He is honored to meet you. If he gets any higher up your shoulder--if he, say, drapes his left arm over your back, it is somehow less intimate, more casual. He'll share a laugh or a secret then--a light secret, not a real one– flattering you with the illusion of conspiracy. If he doesn't know you all that well and you've just told him something "important," something earnest or emotional, he will lock in and honor you with a two-hander, his left hand overwhelming your wrist and forearm. He'll flash that famous misty look of his. And he will mean it.

Anyway, as I recall it, he gave me a left-hand-just-above-the-elbow plus a vaguely curious "ah,

so you're the guy I've been hearing about" look, and a follow-me nod. I didn't have the time, or presence of mind, to send any message back at him. Slow emotional reflexes, I guess. His were lightning. He was six meaningful handshakes down the row before I caught up. And then I fell in, a step or two behind, classic staff position, as if I'd been doing it all my life. (I had, but not for anyone so good.)

And Jesus was 1,000 times better than that. Jesus actually had power, he was not seeking it. He actually had authority, it was not imposter syndrome.

Think of Zaccheus up in the tree, scared of his own shadow, but he could not let Jesus pass by without a glimpse. Or the Triumphal Entry on what we call Palm Sunday. 

Now as he was approaching the path down from the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to praise God joyfully with a loud voice for all the deeds of power that they had seen, saying,

“Blessed is the king

    who comes in the name of the Lord!

Peace in heaven,

    and glory in the highest heaven!”

Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, order your disciples to stop.” He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out.”

Or the good Jewish folks on this side of the lake, or the Gentile folks across the way in Gennesaret. No matter your stripe, people were just attracted to this one. He preached with authority. He healed the sick. He raised the dead. He had a quality that drew people to him.

Charisma is the word we use for that strange attraction. Jesus had it. You might not know this, but from the Greek, charisma is from the word for “gift.” A good gift is a eu-charist. The same word we use for communion. And Charis by itself in the Greek is Grace, the greatest gift we can receive.

We are showered with charisms, gifts, and Jesus exhibited it repeatedly. God is a god of Abundance. God is a gift giver. A few of you say I love you with gifts. It is one of the Love Languages. I was overwhelmed when I got back because a few of you ran to give me “welcome home” gifts.

And Jesus came to give his good gifts to those around him and down to us as well. Healing in his touch. The blessing and breaking of the bread. Love and Grace. A way to live a life of peace and sanity in the midst of a chaotic and insane world.

Jesus is the gift that keeps on giving. And he is even better when we give him away. We do not lose anything when we do that. We actually gain everything.

Think on that at the altar today. Think on that as we share fellowship in his name. Think on that when you are hurting and in need of healing. Think on that as we face death. Jesus is a gift to us. He is and was and always will be.

He is the quintessential human. The second Adam (see Romans 5:12-21), who gives us all a second chance. He is indescribable and unbelievable. My poor kids, I have made them watch World War II movies most of their life. If all I did was watch old and new World War II movies, it would be potentially never ending. New ones come about all the time. But Jesus is bigger than that. Every day I can learn something new, and I would never be done. As John finishes his Gospel:

This is the disciple who is testifying to these things and has written them, and we know that his testimony is true. But there are also many other things that Jesus did; if every one of them were written down, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.

He is the author of creation and the judge of the universe. The Alpha and Omega. The standard by which we all fail and the door by which we all enter. Friends, take some time today to merely contemplate who Jesus is to you.

Is he who you say he is, or is he who he says he is. If you do not know the difference I invite you to explore that. Read the Gospels, get a red letter edition, and look at what he said. Read them again and make it a green letter edition, maybe underline what he did. And then you have the Hebrew Scriptures where you can look for what he would be like. And then we have the Christian Scriptures describing what it is like living fully into this new reality of Jesus in our lives.

Friends, Jesus was in the flesh. A man who was born, who lived a full and complete life, a man who died. Do not be tempted into making him an abstract idea. Do not allow yourself to put him on a pedestal separate from the hardships of the life you live. He was fully one of us, and yet more, full and completely one with the Father. As Paul says in Colossians 2:9-10: 

For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have come to fullness in him…

We can be who we are, or better yet, who we are meant to be, because of who he was. We find our fullness in him.

If that does not draw you to him I do not know what would. 

Seek him. Embrace him. Celebrate him. Amen