Seventh Sunday of Easter

Transcription

1 Seventh Sunday of Easter Seventh Sunday of Easter 13 May 2018 The Mission and Discipleship Council would like to thank Right Rev Dr Derek Browning, Moderator of the General Assembly, for his reflections on the seventh Sunday of Easter, highlighting some themes from his year as Moderator. Please note that the views expressed in these materials are those of the individual writer and not necessarily the official view of the Church of Scotland, which can be laid down only by the General Assembly. Introduction... 2 Acts 1:15-17, Psalm John 5: John 17: Sermon ideas... 6 Time with children... 6 Prayers... 6 Musical suggestions... 10

2 Introduction During my year as Moderator the theme of hospitality has guided much of my work. In particular, I have been able to host a number of Tables at the Moderator s Residence, around the idea that if one is in a position of privilege, it is better to build a longer table than a higher fence. The tables have brought people from different walks of life together, believers and non-believers, Christians, Muslims, Jews, agnostics and atheists. There have been leaders from the worlds of the arts, renewable energy, local and national politics, academia, the military, human trafficking and refugees, food justice, the health service and different charities. Hospitality, gathering around a table, sharing food and drink, is a fundamental in the expression of Christianity. It enables discussion and respectful dialogue. It encourages encounter and debate. It helps us think about doubt and faith. Inevitably, and rightly, the question of faith in the contemporary context has arisen at every Table. What does it mean to be a faithful follower of God? For those of us who follow Jesus, what are the dimensions of discipleship? What do we have to think, and say and do to demonstrate that we are committed, compassionate Christians? As an old saying goes, If they were to outlaw Christianity, and arrested you, would there be enough evidence to convict you? These readings give an idea of some of the issues facing women and men who wish their faith and their witness to be authentic to the generous spirit of Christ, and to put that witness to good use in Christ s world today. One of the fundamental things about being a disciple is bringing light or being light in a dark situation. As a small boy the C19th Edinburgh writer Robert Louis Stevenson would sit gazing out of the window in his parents home watching the evening shadows fade and give way to darkness. The old-fashioned lamplighter, who each night would walk down the street lighting the gas street lamps, fascinated him. Stevenson is reported to have been so excited about this on one occasion that he shouted to his Nanny Cummy, Look, there s a man coming down the street punching holes in the darkness! Being a disciple of Jesus of Nazareth involves us punching holes in the darkness of ignorance, fear, prejudice, inequality, loneliness and poverty, amongst other things. It is a high calling, but it is an achievable one, and it is open to all. It is a topic for discussion around all our tables, wherever they might be, and for whoever might be seated there.

3 Acts 1:15-17, This first chapter of Acts is one of those hinge chapters in Scripture. It is a time of transition from the days when Jesus was an earthly presence to the time when His presence became a spiritual one. It is also a time of transition when Jesus led His disciples in person, to a time when the early Christian Church was formed and the witness to Jesus, and who would lead that movement, began to emerge. It is clear that membership of the group entrusted to spread the good news was important to the early Christians. It is also clear that there is more to this time than Luke writes about. Justus and Matthias were potential replacements for Judas. Both men, never named before, have been around Jesus since His baptism at the River Jordan. One may also surmise that there were other men, and women, who had been with Jesus for the same period of time. Matthias is selected by prayer and by casting lots, and is enrolled with the eleven apostles and is never mentioned again. He fades into anonymity once more, along with Justus, and the women, and indeed most of the other disciples of Jesus. Scriptures sometimes leaves us with questions, particularly in this passage with those named and unnamed to whom we owe the transmission of faith. What of Matthias and his later role? What of Justus, the runner-up? What of all those others who accompanied Jesus and the rest from the beginning to this point in Jerusalem and beyond? Scripture is silent. But we may surmise that many of them retained their faith, those one hundred and twenty or so. And because of their discipleship and witness not only to the teaching of Christianity, but also to its practice, faith was transmitted. Without Matthias and Justus, and all those ordinary unnamed people, Peter and Paul would have remained lonely and ineffective. Not enough to bear witness until the Spirit of God through prayer provided others who shared the load, shared the message, and shared the lived-out love of Jesus Christ. Through the named and unnamed disciples and apostles and followers of Jesus, Christianity grew and spread. People listening to our sermons and talks today, along with us, join in this noble succession of witness. Perhaps this is the true meaning of apostolic succession, the priesthood of all believers, telling somebody about Jesus, and showing what faith in Jesus means and does today.

4 Psalm 1 When we belong to God and not to the world we find life, and are found by life. This challenging opening to the psalter tells us that the faithful follower of God will know happiness and blessedness (the first word in the psalm carries both meanings) when he or she has chosen the right places to walk, stand and sit. The psalm calls for followers of God to be discerning, which is an ongoing process. There is something of a paradox here. Followers need, by definition, to be on the move; but followers, as defined in Psalm 1, also need roots. That may be a good way of thinking about faithful following, holding the creative tension that requires us to take stock and draw nourishment, with the imperative to be on the move and active. The image of the tree (rooted) planted by the streams of water (literally fluid) captures this nicely. Such followers, nourished and nurtured, produce evidence of belief in the leaves and fruit they bear. It is worth bearing in mind that this is done in season. The seasons progress and fluctuate and are appropriate to different times of the year. So too is the follower of God. Our delight in the law or way of God constantly evolves and develops. Like the streams of water, God s revelation to us renews and challenges and does not stand still. It refreshes us as it moves around us, and in our faithful following us enables us to move onwards and grow too. Psalm 1 invites us to steep ourselves in God s many-layered Word and be blessed. 1 John 5:9-13 The powerful imagery of testimony and witness shape this reading. What is the message? What is the story? What is it that the follower of Jesus is called to say and to be? Anyone familiar with the detective novel or television programme will know of the challenge of sifting through the evidence and clues to come up with the solution to the crime or puzzle. It takes time and thoughtfulness, and sometimes following wrong leads or coming to wrong conclusions. Only faithful attention to the evidence will lead us to the correct conclusions. Reading the Bible and listening to the ways in which it is interpreted and applied resonates with Johannine theme of truth. What is true? What is false? How do we discern between the two? What is God s witness to God s Church today, and how is it heard, understood and applied?

5 The challenge for any follower of Jesus is to realise that the binary approach to understanding Scripture does God s Word an injustice. There is hardly ever a plain reading of Scripture; we need to work at it, as indeed that Scripture works at us. Some will want to divide the world into simplistic black or white scenarios of good and evil, them and us. The truth is often more nuanced, and the witness of Scripture reveals a Creation that is more complex. The ultimate testimony we have is the person and example of Jesus. Jesus remains the greatest witness to God and to us. Jesus was also sustained by the testimony of God to Him, it is what kept Jesus going, that constant communication between Father and Son facilitated by the presence of the Spirit. On this last Sunday in the season of Easter, the witness of the resurrection confronts us again. There will be those who argue that resurrection is the proof of God s love, and others that resurrection is the evidence of God s love. Resurrection is witness to God s love. The gift of Jesus life, ministry and new life is witness to what God intends for God s followers. It is the lively hope of God still at work in the world, the testimony of this reality being the response of everyday believers who, still sifting through evidence and clues, come to the conclusion that the promises of God remain the best option, and the clearest way ahead as we journey through life. John 17:6-19 Commentators call this the high priestly prayer of Jesus. It was this chapter that John Knox, on his deathbed in 1572, requested his wife to read to him. Go, read where I cast my first anchor. Jesus mission has been to communicate knowledge of God directly to those who would listen. That being said, there is something otherworldly about the prayer. Christian witness requires us to be fully active on earth, but fully ready for heaven. For some this creates an almost unbearable tension. How is it possible to be both at the same time, and not either one or the other? Is it the spiritual equivalent of having our feet in the mud but our eyes on the stars? How can we be in the world but not of the world? So fixed on heaven that we are of no earthly use? The followers of Jesus have a mission in the world, but are charged not to be shaped by the desires of the world. We find and serve community in the world, but our goal is to display to the world what the promise of community in heaven looks like. A vision of heaven would

6 be incomplete without a table around which the children of God, all of them, can gather and share in the hospitality of heaven. Jesus is crystal clear that there is no escape from the reality of the world. It is here that we are meant to work and to witness. Our mission is to live here, be salt and light here, and be grace and truth here, without succumbing to the values and pressures here. Christians are woven into the fabric of the world, but not to become indistinguishable from it. Our thread is divine, and it is this that gives texture and colour to the world where God weaves us into the patterns of life. God sent Jesus into the world, it comes as no surprise that Christ sends us into the world. In one very clear verse of Scripture, Jesus encapsulates His purpose and ours, to go into the world, and not to get out of the world. The pattern of Christ s life, and therefore the life of Christ s Church is not to escape the world, but to engage with it. This is what the faithful followers of Jesus do. This is what disciples of the Lord today are shaped to be. Sermon ideas As this is additional material, there are no specific stand-alone sermon ideas. Time with children As this is additional material, there are no specific stand-alone ideas for Time with children. Prayers Approach (From Common Order) Risen Christ, glorious You now ascend into heaven, there to take Your seat and be acclaimed by angels. In vain we seek to imagine the heights to which You aspire. Higher than high, further than our most perceptive thoughts, closer to God than our best imagining, Your reign, celestial, and supreme.

7 Yet here on earth, Your footprints are still seen and Your words are still warm. Hallowed be Your Name in heaven and followed be Your way on earth. Thanksgiving Lord Christ, into the emptiness of our lives You pour Your fullness; into the confusion of our lives, You pour Your order. We thank You, living Christ, Lord of plenty and precision, giving our lives shape and purpose. So accept our grateful thanks for prayers answered, for lives turned around, for hopes realised, for fears allayed, for confidence restored, for peace granted. Confession Merciful God, our lives are broken, You bring wholeness; our lives are fragile, You bring resilience; our lives are hurting, You bring healing. Lord, hear our cries of shame and embarrassment, of anger and fear, of resentment and judgement. Soothe us with the balm of Your presence. And when we are ready, lay Your parent hands upon our shoulders and turn us around.

8 Lift up our heads with Your gentle word, so that even through tear-filled eyes, we might see beyond any judgement to forgiveness and mercy, which is what You purpose for us all. Oh Lord, have mercy on us. Oh Lord, grant us Your peace. Intercession God of majesty and might, giver of gifts beyond our imagination, source of generosity and inclusion, hear our prayers today for the needs of our world and all Your children. We long for that heavenly table where all might come and sit and feast, regardless of race or creed or gender. Blessed by Your generous presence and renewed into Your wide Creation, help us find confidence to ask from You the things that we need. Help us ask not from greed or envy, but from the desire we have for others and for ourselves that all might be heard, and all might receive. For those whose need is for shelter and food, For those whose need is for hope and reassurance, For those whose need is for forgiveness and a new beginning, For those who live in fear or violence, For those who live with doubt and uncertainty, For those who live with pain and despair,

9 Gracious God, let all come to Your table of mercy and plenty, and find their ease, and find Your welcome. God save our Queen, and bless the Governments of Westminster and Holyrood, that leaders of integrity and kindliness may work for the people of our land. Bless our world with women and men in positions of authority, who work for justice, tolerance, healthiness and the end of prejudice and persecution. God bless Your Church, whose Table is set not only with bread and wine for remembrance, but with Your Word of faith, and hope, and love, spoken in the hearing of all God s children, to touch their hearts, and transform their lives Risen Christ, ascend within our hearts, lift up our eyes, that we may see a world in need, but a world where needs might yet be met. Send Your Spirit to us now. Keep us safe, keep us strong, and keep us close to You. In Your Name we pray. Amen.

10 Musical suggestions CH4 1 How blest are those who do not stray CH4 436 Christ triumphant, ever reigning CH4 438 The Head that once was crowned with thorns CH4 439 Look, ye saints, the sight is glorious! CH4 441 Blessing and honour and glory and power CH4 443 He is Lord, He is Lord CH4 445 Alleluia, sing to Jesus! CH4 446 Lift up your hearts, believers! CH4 448 Lord, the light of Your love is shining CH4 511 Your hand, O God, has guided CH4 513 Courage, brother! Do not stumble CH4 515 Soldiers of Christ, arise CH4 518 Lift up your hearts! We lift them, Lord, to Thee CH4 519 Love Divine, all loves excelling CH4 535 Who would true valour see CH4 543 Longing for light, we wait in darkness