King of Kings

I swear to tell the truth, the whole truth,

and nothing but the truth, so help me God.

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We have moved from Perry Mason, and Law and Order, to watching real people take real people before a judge in hopes to get a judgement against them and hopefully have restitution made for wrongs done. The world was fascinated by the O.J. Simpson Trail and the Scott Peterson trails - where both men were accused of murdering their wives - one got away with it and the other didn’t.

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Our Gospel takes us in to the court room today. Pontus Pilate is the supreme judge. He is the right hand man who collects taxes for the Emperor. He is a ruling authority figure of Rome. He alone decides if a person will live or die.

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As Pontius Pilate entered the headquarters again, he summoned Jesus, and asked him, "Are you the King of the Jews?" ) I hear Pilate asking this with a bit of a sneer, as Jesus is bound, beaten and bleeding as he stands before Pilate. - He certainly didn't look like a king.)

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Jesus answered, "Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?"

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Pilate reminds Jesus that he is not a Jew, but the authority of Rome. Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me. What have you done?"

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Jesus answered, "My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from here."

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Pilate asked him, "So you are a king?"

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Jesus answered, "You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice."

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As so we have the clash, the collision of two kingdoms. The Kingdom of Rome, where the Emperor often claimed the status of God, and this man Jesus, born in a place known as Garbage City, Nazareth, who also claimed to be God, and whose Kingdom was not of this world. Two kingdoms on a collision course.

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When one looks at the evidence, it is pretty damning against the man from Nazareth. First of all, it would appear, that the man who raised him was not his ‘real" father. There was more than a hint of scandal that surrounded his birth.

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When one looks at the evidence of this man from Nazareth, it would have been so easy on the one hand, give his background and scandal surrounding his birth to just dismiss him as a madman. However, there were those who believed him to the Messiah - sent by God - and how could one discount the miracles, healings and all the other things this man from Nazareth was said to have done.

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Pontus Pilate was not sure that Jesus was guilty of anything. He knew that the religious leaders were envious of Jesus and wanted Pontius Pilate to do their dirty work for them. But Pontus Pilate was smarter than that. He was in luck - because of his position of authority he could pass the buck and did so, by sending Jesus of to Herod. Pilate quickly washed his hands of the whole thing.

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There was some talk some thirty years before of a baby born in Bethlehem, and how some kings from far away countries had come to worship this baby born to be King of the Jews. The then ruling king of the day, King Herod, a suspicious man who had murdered his own sons, ordered the deaths of all male Jewish babies, under the age of two, in an demented attempt to eradicate the threat to his throne. However, it’is unlikely that this Herod knew about such events so long ago. This Herod too was concerned about any threat to his seat of power.
From what Herod had heard about Jesus, he was greatly pleased to meet Jesus, and was hoping that Jesus might perform some miracle. Herod plied him with many questions, but Jesus gave no answers in return.

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The chief priests and the other religious leaders where standing there vigorously accusing Jesus. Then Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked Jesus. They dressed him in an elegant robe, then after they had their little bit of fun, dehumanizing him, and mocking him, Herod sent him back to Pilate. Its not so easy passing the buck. And so Pilate, who began the dialogue by asking Jesus if he was a king, ended by wanting to please the crowd, and secure his hold on power, had Jesus flogged and then handed him over to be crucified.

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We often name the name of Christ and either do not accept or comprehend or believe what we are saying. For example: a recent Gallop Poll revealed that more than 86% of those asked and who considered themselves Christian, less than half knew who preached the Sermon on The Mount. when asked.

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The same Poll showed that 60% of those asked were in Church last Easter, but one out of four did not know what Easter celebrates. So when we name Jesus as King, when we call him Lord, do we know what we are doing? Do we accept it and believe it? And if we accept it and believe it, do we understand it?

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In the published diaries of Joseph Goebbels, the infamous Nazi Propagandist, there are two or three references to Mahatma Gandhi. Goebbels believed that Gandhi was a fool and a fanatic. If Gandhi had the sense to organize militarily, Goebbels thought, he might hope to win the freedom of India.

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He was certain that Gandhi couldn't succeed following a path of non-resistance and peaceful revolution. Yet as history played itself out, India peacefully won her independence while the Nazi military machine was destroyed. What Joseph Goebbels regarded as weakness actually turned out to be strength. What he thought of as strength turned out to be weakness.

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Who could blame Pontius Pilate or Herod for treating Jesus as they did. They had all the power, Jesus had no power, or so it seemed. They both held positions of great authority, but Jesus was a homeless nomad who moved from town to village to city. He had caused a stir while in Jerusalem, by first riding in on a donkey, as if claiming to be some sort of king, and then by causing a scene in the temple, when he overturned tables and chased people out of there by using a whip. He accused them of being robbers and theives.

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In today’s readings were are being asked to "look through eyes of faith" Pilate and Herod only saw a man, a very ordinary man at that. The only saw a man who should be crucified. Little did they know that the crown of thorns would be symbolic of the fact that Jesus is not only King of the Jews, He is King of Kings.

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How could they know that the cross, an instrument of torture would become a symbol of triumph? How could they know that the cross would become a throne?

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You see, all those involved, especially Pontius Pilate and Herod, all they could see was the end not only of this man’s ministry, but of his life. They thought they had silenced him for good.
Even the disciples thought it was all over. They were so afraid at this turn of events that they immediately went into hiding. They thought this was the end.

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Even the woman who followed Jesus, they thought this was the end. Did they not see his lifeless body, borken and bleeding, taken down from the cross and placed in the tomb? What else could they think, but think this was the end.

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Even his own mother, standing there at the cross, her tears and cries for all to hear. Her child, her son, now nailed to a cross. He was put to death as a common criminal. How could Mary think anything else that this was the end.

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But when we only see an ending, God sees a beginning.
When we think it is all over, God begins something new.
When we think all is hopeless - God offers us hope.
We now know, that the crucified Christ is the Risen Christ.
As yes, we know that Pilate got it right. Jesus is indeed a king.

Jumping to conclusions

It ought to be a time of joy and celebration. But a woman weeps. Each year, at this time of the year, she is filled with heaviness. Her heart is overflowing with sorrow. While everyone around her is enjoying the celebrations, she, Hannah, is depressed and full of sadness. While everyone around her celebrates, Hannah does not.

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On this day, we join Hannah as she prays. She is pouring her heart out to God. There are many things that have conspired to make Hannah not only deeply unhappy and sorrowful, she is also depressed to the point of no longer eating. A bitterness has filled her soul.

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Hannah finds herself unable to conceive a child. Her husband has another wife who bears children easily. ( Bigmany was common among this people - a people, the Bible reminds us were given to doing their own thing - even though it was against God's will for his people.)

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This "other" woman in Hannah's life made life miserable for her. This "other" woman ridiculed Hannah and would provoke her to tears - especially at this time of the year, when the whole family made it yearly pilgrimage to give thnaks to God for the blessings of freedom and peace. There was no peace in Hannah's life. To add insult to injury, the old priest, as he watched Hannah pray, though she was drunk and the proceeded to tell her to sober up as she was leaving the temple.

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Hannah does not fly off the handle or get angry with this old priest. The author of the story gives us a glimpse into Hannah's personality as she quietly explains that she was "pouring out her soul" to the Lord. Hannah's great pain is also her great shame - she is unable to bear a child.

Now the old priest could be forgiven for making such a pastoral blunder. However, we must remember that Hannah lived in a time when everyone did their own thing, neglecting Godly things. Why, even the old priest's two sons, both priests themselves will be involved in a scandal involving sexual impropriety at the temple itself.

Perhaps the point of the story is that like the old priest, we are quick to jump to conclusions and judge people. Perhaps the old priest saw only degrading behaviour everyday from among the people who came to worship at the temple during this great festival. Perhaps he only saw people feasting and drinking to the point of over-indulgence, and engaging in activities that they would not dream of if they wer "back home" and all of it done under the disguise of a religious celebration.

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How ever, the old priest was quick to jump to conclusions. When Hannah explained her pain, then nthe bold priest pronounced a blessing on Hannah and sent her on her way. The story has a happy ending. Hannah conceives and gives birth to a son. She names him Samuel, because she "asked the Lord for him". Samuel will be the one to anoint David as Israel's greatest king.

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Perhaps, the point of the story is not about jumping to conclusions, although it might serve an old priest better if he at least asked the woman who she was doing before jumping in with both feet. Perhaps the point of the story is that after many years of pain and desolation that had led to her depression, God would finally hear her prayers.

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For me though, the point of this story, like the story of Ruth before it, is that God is at work in and through our pain and suffering. God is at work even when we go off and do our own thing. God is always at work.

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Perhaps as a priest I need to remember not to jump to making quick conclusions.

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We all need to know that God hears our prayers.

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And that God is always at work in and through our lives.

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Unswerving, selfless devotion

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For nearly a decade, women in the eastern Congo have endured

unimaginable acts of sexual cruelty, leaving them shamed,

abandoned by their families, shunned by their villages,

and ignored by the world.

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Before the conflict, Seraphine Bulonza M’Mirindi, 42 sold fish.

Her husband went to the market three years ago and was

presumably captured by rebels; she hasn’t seen him since.

When the Interahamwe entered my room and raped me in January

of 2003, I was sleeping next to my 3-year-old boy. He tried to cover

me with his little body, but despite his size, they beat him.

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Four of them raped my oldest daughter until she was bleeding from

everywhere: the vagina, ears, nose, anus. She died two weeks later.

My son died the following day. After these events, I lost hope in life.

I’m living now with my surviving children in Bukavu.

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We spend some days without eating. The church gave me a small place

to stay, but they told me they must demolish it: I have nowhere else to go.

The kids are kicked out of school because I am unable to pay the fees.

I am trying to find a way to restart my life.

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It is the consummate story. Three women united by tragedy and grief. in the midst of their suffering, God is at work. It is a story told with the skill of master story teller. There are no jobs to be found. Food is scarce. There was a drought in the land for many years. It has been so long that the people cannot remember the wet feel of falling rain. And so a husband and father makes a difficult decision. He will take his wife and two sons and move to the land of promise.
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No sooner had they arrived in this new place, so full of promise and hope, the father died. No warning - his was a sudden death. Many years passed, and his widow, Naomi, was left with her two sons who had both married. Their wives were from a different background and culture. The wives were named Orpah and Ruth. After Naomi and her two sons and their wives had lived there some ten years, both sons died. There is some scant evidence that perhaps the husband of Ruth was not very healthy, probably both sons had inherited a heart condition that claimed the lives of all three, a father and both his sons.

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As you can imagine, Naomi was devastated. She had left her homeland full, a husband and two sons, but now life had taken a terrible turn, and Naomi was left feeling destitute, vulnerable, insecure and with out hope - Naomi, in her own words said, "she went away full, but the Lord had brought her back empty."

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As you might expect, in her grief and in the midst of terrible loss, Naomi, again using her words "was bitter’ for the Almighty had brought misfortune upon her.

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What is perhaps hard for us to grasp, is that in the midst of such terrible tragedy and human suffering, God is always at work. God’s plan and purpose is always the music that plays in the background of our lived. As the story unfolds, the author skillfully weaves a love story of unswerving devotion, loyalty and trust.

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These three women, brought together by life’s circumstances now share together, the mantle of widowhood. They are a support for one another.

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As we gather today, we remember those widows of the soldiers who laid down their lives in two great wars, in the Korean war, and today in Afghanistan.

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As these three women struggle with the loss of their husbands, and because of their culture and the time and place in which they live, they must each return "home" to their families, as they as women of their time and place have no visible means of support. For many women today who find themselves in such situations in the Congo, Afghanistan, the Sudan, Iran and in Iraq, they are often reduced to living as prostitutes or beggars unless their families take them back.

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Naomi knew that she must return home. She gave her daughter-in-laws permission to return to their homes again and perhaps even be married again. This is where Ruth comes to the fore. She simply refused to be separated from her mother-in-law. Ruth is totally devoted to Naomi and will not leave her.

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And so they both return to Naomi’s home village, a place called Bethlehem. Perhaps you have heard of it. It has a certain familiar ring to it. God is at work.

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When Naomi and Ruth both arrive in Bethlehem, the whole town is abuzz. and the women of the town ask, "Is this Naomi?" for as you might expect the events of the years have left their indelible mark on Naomi. Who among us could bear to lose both husband and sons? You can imagine the questions being asked.

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When the women of Bethlehem enquire what has happened, Naomi expresses her loss and grief in the words "Don’t call me Naomi, call me Mara, because the Lord has made my life very bitter. I went away full, but the Lord has brought me back empty." The loss of both her husband and then her two sons is a great loss perhaps too great for any to bear without bitterness. But lest you have missed it, even though Naomi is bitter, and who wouldn’t be given the magnitude of her loss, Naomi still acknowledges that the Lord is still working in her life.

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Naomi is too old to remarry, but by trusting in the Lord, even in her bitterness, and who among us could say she did not have the right, she returns to the land of her birth. by so doing Naomi, unwittingly sets in place a series of events that will lead both her and her unswervingly loyal daughter-in-law from emptiness to fullness, for destitution and despair to security, hope and fullness once again.

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ven when we do not understand why we must endure the pain and loss of tragedy - my thoughts go out to the children of the parents killed in a terrible accident earlier this week. We cannot for the life of us see how God might be working there as the magnitude of the tragedy is overwhelming to our minds.

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But Naomi in returning to her country and hometown of Bethlehem, affords an opportunity for Ruth to meet a male family member named Boaz. God’s at work.

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With masterly skill, the storyteller weaves his incredible story. Ruth and Boaz meet and they are married and together they have a child whose name is Obed.

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Now Obed is not a name perhaps all that well known. Yet, he is the father of Jesse, who in turn is the father of David, who will one day become Israel’s greatest king. Our Lord Jesus Christ is descended from the line of David.

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God is at work. To our eyes we often only see the tragedy of any situation. We only ever can see the pain and suffering and are frightened of the loss. However, through the eyes of faith, there is another picture God wants us to see.

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There was a great article in Tuesday’s Daily Gleaner about a modern day Naomi who, through the eyes of faith is able to give witness "that God doesn’t give us more than we can bear." Let me quickly add, only faith helps us to say that.

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It is how even when terrible things happen, and we all know that bad things often happen to good people, God wants us to know that through faith, God can take even the most awful of tragic event s and use them for his own purpose and plan

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God took Ruth, a foreigner, a person of another faith, an emigrant and used her selfless devotion to give us a glimpse into the mysteries of how God works. But then God does that, if you take a look at the genelogy of Jesus there are several people there who if they were on our family tree we might want to keep them a secret. Like Tamar, who posed like a prostitute, Rahab, who was a prostitute, Bethsheba who committed adultery while her husband was away fighting a war,
And then there is Ruth, a foreigner, but who unswerving loyalty and selfless devotion would model the selfless devotion of our Lord Jesus Christ. God does indeed work in mysterious ways his wonders to perform.

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I began this sermon by telling the horrific story of Seraphine Bulonza M’Mirindi. Perhaps you have forgotten already. Her husband was abducted, presumed murdered, she and her daughter both raped and her daughter later died as a result, as did her 3 year old son.
Sometimes we wonder out loud about sending our soldiers off to far away lands and to fight against an enemy and die for people they do not know. Already too many of our soldiers have died in Afghanistan. However, in these countries women are nothing. In some places cattle have more value than do the women.

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When we wonder out loud about soldiers dying, perhaps we need to remember that perhaps they are willing to fight and die so that others might enjoy the freedom and peace that we enjoy here in Canada. Our soldiers know better than anyone that the freedom and peace we enjoy was bought a terrible price.

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Well, perhaps the widows and mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters of those who have died in war know better than the soldiers - but all they know, like Naomi knew - somehow God’s at work. They need to know .... otherwise none of it makes sense.

A Downward Mobility?

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Power and politics in the Anglican Church. First, as we all know All Anglican priests are under the authority and care of a bishop. That is to say we, as priests, are asked by the Bishop, "And will you in accordance with the Canon of this Church, obey your bishop and other ministers who may have authority over you and your work?" ( BAS P.645). If one wishes to be ordained at that point, it is wise to answer in the affirmative. If you tend to be anti-authority ..... well?
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Now one might want to ask whether their Bishop is more into the authority thing than into the caring thing. Not me, at lest not here in a public forum that the bishop just might read. As a priest that’s a question best left for another day. .
Now Anglican Bishops were, once upon a time, priests who are elected by their priestly peers and also by "elected" lay people. Power and politics at work. Sometimes it seems to me, that the lay members elect a "caring" bishop while priests seem go after the ‘authority’ types. Just my humble opinion - you may want to disagree - and probably will - especially if you are from the priestly caste.
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Now usually Bishops are elected after an extensive campaign for the office in which no-one openly campaigns for and it is a long standing tradition in the election of an Anglican Bishop that those who find their names on the candidates short list not be caught campaigning. They must not appear to have sought the office in any way, and once elected, the new bishop must make a public declaration that "I didn’t seek this office and I really didn’t want it but once the Lord calls ...." Now this may well be true, but as someone else has observed, very few priests, once they have been elected bishop ever turn the job down.
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Priests for that matter, are often heard to say when moving to another parish
"I had no plans to leave this parish, and I’d rather stay here, but the Lord calls."
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Of course the parish the clergy are leaving behind are usually the last people on the planet to know their priest is leaving. All of the interviews, plans and preparations are carried out under the umbrella of secrecy until the big announcement is made public and the people the priest has had the care and cure of souls for are surprised and even shocked, especially if the exercise of keeping the secret has really been successful. Power and politics in the Church.
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Some skeptic cynic has observed that the Lord rarely calls a priest to leave one parish to go to another parish, unless that particular move is viewed as " an upward mobility move" . That usually means leaving a rural ( out in the middle of no where) parish to go to an urban ( city and near a university ) parish, and maybe more money too, if the city parish is wealthy. Now, I know what you are thinking. Didn’t he leave a rural parish to go to a city parish. Now I believe that such a move really was the Lord calling - but I’m perhaps the only person. Such a silly skeptic cynic to think such a silly thought. Power and politics.
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However, the same silly skeptic cynic has also observed that very few clergy actually ever go the other direction - that is - practice a "downward mobility" that that would be seen by their peers as a step downward rather than upward.
In our Gospel today, Mark is telling us something we all know - everybody wants to be a somebody. Even James and John. They were ambitious. They wanted to be Jesus’ left and right hand men. Now I am sure that if Jesus had granted their request, these two brothers would have had a further discussion as to which one of them would actually sit at Jesus’ right and left hand. We all know that being on the right hand side is the more important position. Right? Right.
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The story is told of how a court painter painted the portrait of Oliver Cromwell.
Now Cromwell was afflicted with warts growing on his face. Thinking to please him, the court painter painted Cromwell’s portrait without the warts. On seeing the finished work, Cromwell said "Take it away! Paint me with warts and all." .
As William Barclay observes "It is Mark’s aim to show us the disciples warts and all." The twelve disciples were not a company of perfect people. The twelve disciples were ordinary men, imperfect and ambitious and it was with people just like ourselves that Jesus set out to change the world - and change it he did.
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When this conversation between Jesus and James and John took place, It is just five days before Jesus' crucifixion. Four days before his betrayal and trial. One
day before the clearing of the temple. A few hours before the Triumphal Entry.
St. Luke has an interesting perspective on this ambition stuff. Jesus is preparing his disciples for his death, which is just hours away. He gathers the disciples in a room somewhere in Jerusalem and they share a last supper together.
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Jesus took the bread, and gave thanks, and broke it and gave it to the disciples, saying. "This is my body which is being given for you. Do this in remembrance of me." In the same way, after the supper, He took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you."
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As Jesus was preparing them for his death, he warned that one of them would betray him and they began to question among themselves which of them might do such a thing. So far, so good, but like Mark’s Gospel, Luke’s Gospel shows us the whole picture - warts and all - for a dispute broke out among them as to which one of them might be the greatest.
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It is tragic that while Jesus was preparing them for his death on the Cross, the disciples were arguing and quarreling over which one of them was the greatest.
Jesus told them bluntly that the standards of this world were not the standards of his kingdom. In Jesus’ Kingdom it is not the king, but the servant that counts.
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In just a few short weeks we will begin to see people in uniforms in shopping malls ringing bells collecting donations for the poor. They are doing the work of the Salvation Army. In 1878, when the Salvation Army was really beginning to make its mark, men and women from all over the world began to enlist.
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A man who had once dreamed of becoming a bishop in another denomination crossed the Atlantic from America to England to enlist in the Salvation Army instead. His name was Samuel Brengle and he left a fine pastorate to join William Booth's Army. At first General Booth accepted Brengle’s services reluctantly and grudgingly. One day Booth said to Brengle, "You've been your own boss too long." So in order to instill humility in Brengle, he made him work by cleaning the boots of other trainees.
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Discouraged, feeling perhaps demeaned, Samuel Brengle said to himself, "Have I followed my own fancy across the Atlantic in order to black boots?" Then, as in a vision, he saw Jesus bending over the feet of rough, uneducated fishermen. "Lord," he whispered, "you washed their feet; I will black their shoes." Samuel Brengle went on to establish the Salvation Army in America."
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What the world needs is service. The hilarious thing is that the business world, the consumer society preachers preach against, know this only too well. Muffler shops are "service centers" and they will crawl under your car and get themselves dirtier, and go that extra mile to fix that muffler just so they can stay ahead of their competitors. They will do it by serving you.
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The church knows this too. We speak of service and servanthood, but it too is hilarious, we then turn around and have more arguments about the importance of positions, power and rank, and more concern about "people’s places" in the church than anywhere else. Ah, good old power and politics.
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Samuel Brengle was reminded of how Jesus washed his disciples feet. Can you imagine a Church where people are more concerned for others than for themselves. A Church that seeks to wash the feet of the poor instead of shaking hands with the rich and powerful. A Church that founds its life in giving, not on what it can get, is a Church that understands what greatness is.
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It took the Cross for James and John to finally understand that Jesus’ Kingdom was not based on worldly standards of ambition or power, but on service.
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We have all kinds of positions in the Anglican Church, Primates, Archbishops, Bishops, Archdeacons, Canons, Priests, Deacons, Vocational Deacons, Layreaders, elected delegates to Synod, to name a few. All positions of power, all have the possibility of lending themselves to playing a part in Church politics
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Do I hear the silly skeptic cynic asking, "Are those downward or upward mobility positions?" I believe there is an archdeacon position open, mmm, isn’t that the bishop’s right and left handers? Oh, but then I would have to leave this parish that I’ve become very comfortable with, and I am most pleased with my own title of Warden of Layreaders, but, you know, if the Lord calls ....
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The other week we had a parishioner die in our Parish. As Rector, I made the announcement of this person’s death and of the time and day of the funeral. One parishioner was overheard to say that she must go home and bake something for the funeral. A servant. With such people Jesus can and did change the world.

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Life's Choices

A young man stands in front of Jesus and asks Jesus what must he do to inherit eternal life. Jesus asks him if he knows the commandments and the young man responds that he not only knows them, he has done his best to keep the commandments since he was a young boy.
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Jesus responded by saying there was one thing lacking in the yong man’s life. He then invited the young man to sell everything he had and give the money to the poor, and then he would have treasure in heaven. Then Jesus invited the young man to become a disciple. It was a direct divine invation.
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The story relates how the young man’s face fell and he went away very sad because he had great wealth. The disciples were shocked when Jesus told them it was hard for the rich to enter the kingdom of God. It would be easier for a camel to go through the eye of an needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.

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The young man’s face fell. He wanted eternal life but he didn’t want to give up anything in the process. Life is full of decisions. Life is full of difficult choices.
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This past month or so I have been watching the resident squirrel here at the Rectory. He is busy eating acorns from the oak tree that adorns the yard.

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However, if the squirrel is to survive the winter he must make some choices.

First of all, the squirrel needs to know the difference between red oak trees and white oak trees. The difference is possibly Life and Death. The acorns of the white oak do not keep over the winter, but the red oak acorns do - and the squirrel needs to know the difference if he is to survive during the winter months.
Researchers have discovered that given the choice between red acorns and white acorns, the squirrel will chose to eat the white acorns 80% of the time, while choosing to bury or store away the red acorns 60% of the time.
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Also, if the squirrel chooses to eats too many red oak acorns, which produce the best energy, but also have higher levels of toxins, the squirrel may be poisoned.

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If the squirrel chooses to store away the white oak acorns they usually sprout almost right away, so that when the squirrel went to dig them up he would find nothing there as the energy of the acorn has long gone into the root system.

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And so when you see the busy squirrel racing around the yard, and scurrying to the tops of the trees, remember, even the squirrel must make good decisions.

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We all make decisions. You made a decision to come to Church. You made that decision before you went to bed last night. You made a decision what you would have for breakfast, toast or cereal, tea or coffee. You made a decision what you would wear and you will make a decision as to whether or not you will participate in today’ s sermon or whether you will listen or not to the sermon.

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The rich young man in our Gospel Reading was faced with a decision, he must choose his wealth or he must choose to follow Jesus and inherit eternal life. The young man was more committed to his wealth than to having eternal life.

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It needs to be pointed out that Jesus offered an invitation to the young man. It is called the divine invitation. It is a call to become a disciple of Jesus. it is an invitation, not a threat, or a demand, but an invitation to follow Jesus Christ.

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his morning Kristin Byrn Landry is to be baptized into the household of faith. Kristin, according to the Bible, is God’s work of art. God knows everything there is to know about Kristin Byrn Landry. God knowns more about Kristin that even Kristin’s parents. Kristin’s name is engraved on God’s Almighty Hands. The very hairs on Krisins head are number. God knows every thought that this child will have, God knows every word she will speak before those words are even on her lips. God has a plan and a purpose for Kristin - it begins in baptism.

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Through her baptism Kristin Byrn Landry Kristin Byrn Landry will become a member of the Body of Christ - the Church, she will become a child of God, and an inheritor of the Kingdom of God.

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Kristin Byrn Landry’s parents have responded to God’s invitation to have their beautiful daughter baptized this morning and will promise to bring her to Church, teach her the commandments, pray for her and teach her to pray, and to take her place in the life and community of the Church.

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For Kristin Byrn Landry’s baptism to have any meaning, it calls for commitment on the part of Kristin’s parents, God-parents and Grand-parents to see that Kristin is raised in the Church and prepared to become a follower of Jesus.
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Unless we respond to the invitation by way of commitment, we are pretty much the same as the rich young man who was more committed to wealth than he was to his faith or to God
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It is interesting to note that this young man not only knew the commandments, but he perceived that he kept the commandments since he was a boy. Obviously he had been taught them by his parents. Apparently he was a person of faith, at least he was asking the right questions regarding eternal life.
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When Jesus challenged his faith, the young man was no more committed to his faith than the man on the moon. The young man was more committed to wealth.

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As a priest a good many people have sttod at the front of this church and made all kinds of promises on behalf of their children, and many have exchanged vows to each other before God.

No doubt they were sincere when making such promises and vows, however I could count on one hand the number of parents who return to bring their child to God's house as they promised they would and also I can only name two couples who exchanged vows before God in Holy matrimony who still attend church. Life gets busy I guess and we have choices to make God usually gets lost in the shuffle ...... until something goes wrong and life takes a turn for the worst - then God gets a lot of air time. Life, eh?
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We all have choices to make. This morning Kristin’s mum and dad are making a choice on behalf of their daughter. They are making the choice of raising this child in the ways of the Church. Through the commitments of her parents, God-parents and grand-parents Kristin will be an inheritor of the Kingdom of God, a member of the body of Christ, and a child of the living God. Amen and Amen.

Job and Justice

God's Justice & Human Suffering

A READING FROM THE BOOK OF JOB 1:1, 2:1-10
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There was once a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job.

That man was blameless and upright, one who feared God

and turned away from evil. One day the heavenly beings

came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan

also came among them to present himself before the Lord.
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The Lord said to Satan, "Where have you come from?"
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Satan answered the Lord, "From going to and fro
on the earth, and from walking up and down on it."
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The Lord said to Satan, "Have you considered my servant Job? There
is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man who fears
God and turns away from evil. He still persists in his integrity, although
you incited me against him, to destroy him for no reason."
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Then Satan answered the Lord, "Skin for skin! All that people have

they will give to save their lives. But stretch out your hand now

and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse you to your face."
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The Lord said to Satan, "Very well, he is in your power;

only spare his life."
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So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord, and inflicted loathsome

sores on Job from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head.
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Job took a potsherd with which to scrape himself,

and sat among the ashes.
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Then his wife said to him, "Do you still persist in your integrity?

Curse God, and die."

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But he said to her, "You speak as any foolish woman would
speak. Shall we receive the good at the hand of God, and not
receive the bad?" In all this Job did not sin with his lips.

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A away up there beyond the clouds, where no human eye can see, an extraordinary conversation took place. It was a conversation between the spirit of all things evil and the Spirit of all things good. It was a conversation troubling to the human mind. It was a conversation that would take everything a man had. When one thinks of the story of Job, the first thing that comes to mind is that no human could ever have eavesdropped on such a conversation - so therefore the story is meant perhaps as a play - a play about God's justice and the problem of human suffering. That is not to say that Job did not exist as a person - the Bible acknowledges that he did indeed exist and perhaps it was his story that inspired the author of the Book of Job,to document this problem of how good people, blameless and upright, often suffer greatly.
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AND SO THE PLAY UNFOLDS. ACT ONE: When called by God to give account for his doings, the evil one, Satan, boasted that he had gone to and fro through the earth, insinuating that he had met no resistance or hindrance to his will and found no one to stand up to oppose his ability to move freely and to act out on his own pleasures and purposes.
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He boasted that he had gone everywhere unhindered and unchallenged, like a king marching through his own dominions, acting out his pleasures and purpose.
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ACT TWO: It was then that the great and Almighty God reminded the evil one that there was at least one place on earth and among people where he would not gain entry.
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It was then that the great and Almighty God reminded the evil one that there was one place on earth and among people where he would find no foothold or entry.
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It was then that the great and Almighty God reminded the evil one that there was one place on earth and among people where his power was totally ineffective.
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It was then that the Great and Almighty God held up to the evil one His servant Job. It was this man, the man named Job, the one we remember wrongly for his patience in the face of suffering, when in fact he is to be remembered for his endurance in the face of suffering - a suffering that most of us cannot imagine.
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ACT THREE: "Have you considered my servant Job? Asked the great and Almighty God. There is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man who fears God and turns away from evil. He still persists in his integrity, although you incited me against him, to destroy him for no reason."
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Job. A blameless and upright and Godly man who shuns evil in all its insidious forms. The heart of Job was like an unassailable castle, perfectly loyal to Almighty God, the King of Heaven. "Have you considered my servant Job?"
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ACGT FIVE: It was here, at this point, the question now asked that the evil one defied God, which ought not to surprise as defiance and rebelliousness is his trademark.
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The evil one defied God and told the great and Almighty One that his servant Job was only upright and blameless because of his prosperity. The evil one in his act of defiance insinuated that God’s servant Job was only loyal to God because his prosperity made it profitable to be so. Take it all away and then see if your servant Job will remain blameless, upright and loyal.
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The great and Almighty God, in what give great cause for concern, took up the challenge of the evil one and gave Satan permission to take away all that Job had and owned which Satan insinuated were the props by which Job was held up by. Job only had faith in God because he prospered and was wealthy.

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Do you hear that, the great and Almighty God was willing to gamble with his servant Job’s integrity and loyalty and gave divine permission for the evil one, the accuser, to pull the rug of wealth and prosperity from under Job’s feet.

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The great and Almighty God was willing to put his servant Job to the test. Well, that is perhaps not quite true. The great and Almighty God was willing to put Job through the ringer and allow Satan to kick him then when he was down. The only thing the evil one was not permitted to do was to take Job’s life from him.
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ACT SIX: In consequence of this, all Job's wealth went in one black day, and not even a child was left to whisper comfort. He was left penniless and childless, but Job did not sin by charging God with any wrong doing.
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Next, now poor, penniless, in great grief, mourning the destruction of his family, and loss of fortune, the evil one next assailed Job by destroying his health.

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Satan, with the great and Almighty God’s permission afflicts Job from head to toe with great weeping sores. Even here, the evil one, the tempter, the accuser, uses Job’s wife to encourage Job to curse God that God might inflict the final stroke due to all who dare curse him. Then Job would die, his suffering ended.
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ACT SEVEN: Job, his integrity intact and his loyalty to God unmoveable, unshakable, only steadfast, tells his wife to not be so foolish. Job’s great statement stands the test of time as he replies: "Shall we accept good from God and not trouble?"
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Saint Paul tells us to give thanks in all circumstances. That doesn’t mean giving thanks "for" all circumstances. We don’t thank God when a child is murdered execution style while at school. We don’t thank God when an earthquake happens and thousands upon thousands of people are swept away in angry waters. No, we give thanks "in" such circumstances for the strength to endure and for the hope for the future, or else we may all just curse God and die.
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There is so much more to the story of Job. Satan not only uses Job’s wife to undermine his faith in God, the evil one uses Job’s three friends who conclude after much discussion and deliberation that Job must have done some terrible thing to displease God and thus deserve such harsh judgement and punishment.
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To fully understand the Book of Job, one must understand how uniquely it reflects Israelite thinking. To put it succinctly and perhaps too simply, if one prospered such as the wealthy Job certainly did, then God was clearly with him. If one suffered as Job now suffered this was a sign that God had turned against him. The Book of Job sets out to turn this abstract thinking upside down and on its head. A person can suffer terribly but that does not mean that God has forsaken them.
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ACT EIGHT: Milk truck driver Charles Robert had more than murder on his mind when he entered the one room Amish schoolhouse. Police have revealed that Roberts also had implements of sex and torture with him and apparently his twisted plans went way beyond murder. Also in a suicide note Roberts wrote to his wife, he indicated that he was filled with so much hate against himself, towards God and was filled with an unimaginable emptiness since the death of his daughter, who only lived for twenty minutes after being born in 1997.
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Along side Charles Robert's destructive anger and violent hatred - we find only humble faith and forgiveness from the Amish community. It was reported that the Amish community has plans to help Roberts widow and three children and have asked people not to think evil of Charles Roberts but to offer forgiveness to him and his family. NBC News reported an Amish midwife saying that the Amish community was planning to take food over to the widow and family of Charles Roberts.

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She said, "This is only possible if you have Christ in your heart."

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Like Job, they Amish, in their pain and suffering trusted that God knows best.

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A staggering thought: somehow in the midst of human suffering, our pain and hurt is a part of that great cosmic battle between the powers of good and evil that is beyond our comprehension.

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In the midst of the battle, whether it be battling cancer, fighting other diseases, even in the midst of war and terorrism, our willingness to trust in God shows our hope for tomorrow.

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Christ defeated the powers of sin, evil and death on the Cross.

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We need only speak the name "Jesus" and Satan is silenced.

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Salt you say?

Servants - Ambassadors - Leaders - Teachers

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Servants - Ambassadors - Leaders - Teachers
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"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."

Mark 9:50

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At one time Toronto was known as "Toronto the good". In those days (roughly from the 1880s until 1950) the buildings that towered over the city were alike churches. St. James Cathedral, Anglican; St. Michael's Cathedral, Roman Catholic; Metropolitan Church, Methodist. Huge structures all, they rose up above everything else in the city and dominated it. Not only did church buildings dominate the city, so did church leaders. No city politician dared defy church leaders. No public servant or board of education official would say or do anything that simply flew in the face of the church's convictions. Back in the days of "Toronto the good" a clergyman (Rev. Maurice Cody) was even president of the University of Toronto, Canada’s most prestigious educational institution.
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What buildings dominate Toronto's skyline now? What buildings tower over the city now? BANKS! They are all banks! Toronto Dominion was the first superstructure, followed by the Bank of Montreal, the Commerce Bank, The Royal Bank, the Bank of Nova Scotia, and Canada Trust.
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Clearly, it's the pursuit of money and the handling of money and the magnification of money that characterises the city now. Compared to the bank buildings the cathedral churches look like tinker-toys, the playthings of children. And compared to the pursuit of money and the handling of money and the magnification of money (what the banks are about), what the churches are about looks like – does anyone know or care what the churches are about?
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William Howland was salt. He possessed a bubbly enthusiasm and phenomenal capacity for hard work. By the age he was 25, William Howland was president, vice-president, or a director of more than a dozen companies in the fields of insurance and finance, electrical services, and paint manufacturing. When he became president of the Queen City Fire Insurance Company in 1871, he was the youngest insurance company president in Canada. As well, Howland was President of three influential organizations: the Toronto Board of Trade, the Dominion Board of Trade, and the Manufacturer’s Association of Ontario. Out of his love for his country, he served as Chairman of the Canada First movement, personally financing its weekly newspaper "The Nation".
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At age 32, William Howland was led to Christ by his priest, Dr. W.S. Rainsford of St. James Anglican Cathedral. His life-changing experience gave him a new passion for helping the poor. He became involved helping with the Hillcrest Convalescent Hospital, the YMCA, the Haven Home for Unwed Mothers, the Prisoner’s Aid Association, the Central Prison Mission School, and the Toronto General Hospital. Night after night, Howland visited the slums, going from house-to-house, and reaching out to the poor, the sick, and the alcoholic. He also purchased 50 acres to start an Industrial School in order to steer youth away from the life of crime.
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Other initiatives were his building an alternative school for drop-outs, and a Home for the Aged and Homeless Poor. When he began to teach an interdenominational bible study for 100 young men, his new priest J.P. Lewis objected to Howland’s involvement with non-Anglicans. Out of this rejection, he began the interdenominational Toronto Mission Union, which operated seniors’ homes, convalescent homes, and Toronto’s first-ever home nursing service.
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Because of his great compassion for the poor, he was elected as Mayor of Toronto in 1885, with a strong mandate to clean up the city. Howland signaled his arrival in the mayor’s office by installing a twelve-foot banner on the wall, reading, "Except the Lord Build the City, the Watchman Wakes but in Vain".
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Despite fierce opposition, Howland was so successful, that Toronto became nicknamed "Toronto the Good". As champion of the poor, Howland and his Alliance friend, Rev. John Salmon, would tramp the lanes and alleys, feeding the poor, praying over the sick, and comforting the sad. With a population of just 104,000, Toronto had over 800 licensed and unlicensed saloons. Over half of all criminal offenses recorded in 1885 were related to drunkenness.
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Howland is described in Desmond Morton’s book "Mayor Howland: the Citizen’s Candidate" as the first reform mayor in Toronto’s history. Due to bureaucratic corruption, municipal garbage collection was all but non-existent. Even City Hall’s own garbage was rarely picked up. Rotting garbage fouled the alleyways, yards, and streets, giving Toronto a reputation for flies, stench, and disease. With no general sewage system, Toronto lived on the verge of a typhoid epidemic. Children swam in the same Toronto harbour area into which raw sewage was flowing from the ditches. Toronto’s fresh water supply was sucked through leaking and rotting wooden pipes, half buried in the sewage and sludge of the Toronto harbour.
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Howland believed that we didn’t usually need more laws; we just needed to enforce the ones that already existed. He shocked the city bureaucrats by enforcing the already existing bylaw which forbid the depositing of garbage within the city limits. After he threatened to send the city commissioner to jail for breaking this bylaw, garbage miraculously began to be collected!
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William Howland died unexpectedly at age 49. With more than a thousand mourners on foot from all social classes, it was the largest funeral procession that had ever been held in Toronto.
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A poem published in the Toronto Globe said of Howland:
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"And not Toronto mourns alone;
All Canada his fame had heard;
His name is dear, a household word,
And far and wide, his worth was known".
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May William H. Howland continue to be a living symbol of the difference that just one Canadian can make. He understood what Jesus meant when He said that we are to be salt. Salt preserves food and brings out the flavour within food.
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We are to be the flavour of God - no matter where we may find ourselves.
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Our Words, our actions, can flavour conversations and events,
we are to be salt - in a world full of vinegar.
Servants - Ambassadors, Leaders and Teachers of and for Jesus Christ.

The Power of Interceding Action

There was no getting away at all. Having just spent time debating with the religious leaders who had travelled down from Jerusalem to see what this man called Jesus was actually up to. They were on a fact finding tour to monitor Jesus’ activity in and around the Sea of Galilee. As people brought their sick and dying to him to be healed word about him had spread both far and wide.
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Jesus left that place and travelled to the vicinity of Tyre, some thirty miles away. He entered a house there and did not want anyone to know he was there. He wanted to keep his presence a secret, but that would prove to be impossible.
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There was a woman there, a mother whose daughter was very ill. She was possessed by an evil spirit. The woman was not Jewish, she was Greek. The whole vicinity of Tyre was Gentile and one would have thought that Jesus could have rested here as he would have been, or should’ve been relatively unknown.
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As soon as this mother heard that Jesus was there she came and fell at Jesus’ feet. There are so many people in the Gospel who have done the same. They see or hear Jesus and they come and fall at his feet. The man with leprosy came to Jesus and fell on his knees and said "If you are willing, you can make me clean." Because of his leprosy, he was a social outcast. Jesus broke with the religious custom of his day, and reached out his hand and touched the man and simply said, "I am willing, you are clean.
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Then there is the elderly woman who had been sick for twelve years. She too was a social outcast. Because of her illness she too was considered unclean.
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She believed that all she needed to do was to touch the hem of Jesus’ robe and she knew, she just knew she would be healed. She did and she was. When Jesus turned around and asked who touched him, the disciples were amazed as there were so many people pushing and shoving and the woman trembling with fear, fell on her knees and owned up to being the one who had touch his robe. Jesus said to her, "Daughter, your faith has healed you, go in peace."
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Just moments earlier, a synagogue ruler by the name of Jarius had also got down on his knees and begged Jesus to come with him and lay his hands on his little daughter who was deathly ill. Jesus set off with Jairus to go to his home.
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There is the account of the rich young man, who ran up to Jesus and fell on his knees and asked Jesus "What must I do to have eternal life?"
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When Jesus told the young man to go and sell everything that he had and give the money to the poor, the rich young man went away sad, because he had great wealth. Jesus said "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of an needle that for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven."
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Now what these three people had in common was the fact that they were all Jewish. Each had come to Jesus for a different reason - but they were Jews.
The woman in our story today was not Jewish, and I said earlier, she was Greek, born in Syrian Phoenicia, and when she encountered Jesus he made that very clear. In fact one might be forgiven for thinking that Jesus actually insulted her with his reply to her request to drive the demon out of her daughter.
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"First let the children eat all they want," he told her, "for it is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to their dogs."
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Was Jesus calling this woman a dog? In those days dogs were not the nice domestic pets we have today, but rather were viewed as scavengers. Jesus was speaking of the children of Israel, which might seem to suggest that he was in fact calling this woman "a dog" or a scavenger. The equivalent in English would be to call a woman "a bitch" which we know it a female dog, but when applied to a woman has a totally different meaning entirely. In those days, there were no knives or forks, people ate with their hands, and they would use bread to wipe their hands on, and then throw the bread down on the floor for the dogs.
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However, this woman did not hear derogatory or belittling remarks or insults. For Jesus to not be compassionate, kind and caring would have been so far out character, and we know from other encounters that the only people Jesus insulted were those among the religious and political elite.
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And so the woman replies, ‘Yes, Lord, but the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs." She was not to be so easily discouraged or put off. She didn’t want the meat or the bread that belonged to the children of Israel, she only wanted the crumbs. She would settle for the crumbs. For such a reply Jesus told her that she may go for the demon had left her daughter. She went home and found her child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.
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Now I am sure you recognize this story or at least recognize some of the wording associated with this story. Each Sunday when we celebrate Holy Communion, we recite the words of the Prayer of Humble Access and say, "we are not worthy so much as to gather up the crumbs under thy table ..."
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Reflecting on this particular story, what stands out is the woman’s persistence and courage. She would do anything she had to - even lower herself to the status of dogs who scavenged around the tables looking for crumbs. However, what Jesus is saying to this woman, and through this woman, that the children of Israel would have first refusal to the Gospel of good-news. They would have first opportunity, but if they refused to listen, then the bread of life wold be offered to people like this woman, whose faith was perhaps greater than that of the Jewish people - and particularly the Jewish religious leaders whose only purpose and aim was to find fault with Jesus and have him arrested as well.
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The Jewish people were guilty of not listening. They shut their ears to Jesus.
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The second story from the Gospel this morning concerns a man who was deaf and not able to speak very well. Some people brought this man to meet Jesus.

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Jesus had left the vicinity of Tyre and gone into the region of Decapolis. You will remember that Jesus had been there once before when he cast out demons from a man called Legion - because the demons were many - and caused the demons to go into a herd of pigs - and the people pleaded with Jesus to leave.
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However the healing of this man called Legion was so dramatic that the people could not help but be amazed. And now when word had leaked out that Jesus is once again in the area, some people brought to Jesus this man who was deaf and could hardly talk. They begged Jesus to place his hand on the man.
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What happens next shows the beauty of our Lord’s compassion. Jesus took the man aside, away from the glaring eyes of the crowd that had gathered. He afforded the man privacy, permitting him to keep his dignity. Next Jesus put his fingers in the man’s ears perhaps to let the man who could not hear understand each step that Jesus took in this man’s healing. Then Jesus spit and touched the man’s lips. Perhaps Jesus was using a form of sign language to guide this man who could not hear so that he fully understood what Jesus was up to.
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Then Jesus looked up to heaven, to perhaps show where his power came from, then with a great sigh said to the deaf man "Ephphatha!" which means ‘Be Opened!" At this the man’s ears were opened, his tongue was loosened and he began to speak plainly.
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Now Jesus commanded the people not to tell anyone, but the more he did so, the more they kept talking about it and telling anyone who would lend an ear and listen. The people were overwhelmed with amazement at the power of Jesus.
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As we come to worship we risk being touched by this Jesus. If we hear his message and feel his touch - then our lives will be changed for ever and ever.
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When we encounter Jesus - his touch opens us up, first to Him, then to each other, and finally to those outside of the Church. Like the nameless people in our Gospel, they brought their friend to Jesus. Do you think for one moment this man who could not hear and could not speak properly would be able to keep silent about what Jesus had done for him. Surely he‘d tell everyone he met?

Soul Food?

The mouth can betray the Heart.

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Did you know that in the United States of America, the second-largest food consumption day of the year is Super-Bowl Sunday? Statistics tell us that in that single day—actually in one 4-hour period that night—among other things, while watching the Super Bowl football final on television, Americans eat:
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· 4 million pounds of popcorn
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· 9 million pounds of tortilla chips
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· 12 million pounds of potato chips
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· 13 million pounds of guacamole dip!
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Now there are two consequences that come from eating all this junk food: First, it leads to thousands of upset tummies. We know this because statistics also show that on this day when stomachs bulge, sales of antacids also bulge by 20%. And the second effect of consuming all these millions of pounds of salt-filled food is that it makes people thirsty! I don’t have the stats on this but I’m sure people drink millions of gallons of beverages to slake their thirst after eating all those chips and popcorn. However, we do tend to eat all the wrong things.
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I recall as a child that when it was supper time, first of all you came as soon as mum called. If someone prepared a meal for you, you were expected to show up and eat it. Next you hand to wash your hands before eating, and we were not allowed to watch tv or read at the table - this was a time for talking - or more importantly - it was a time of listening. Parents to children and children tp parents. It was a time of sharing family stories and family histories.
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Last week while doing sermon research, I came across a piece of information that was striking in its simplicity. The latest buzz today is about obesity in children. The culprits in all of this are said to be fast food chains and pop manufactors. We have not only super-sized pop drinks and super-sized food portions, but we have super-sized a whole generation of children who will have terrible health problems as they grow older, such as diabetes, heart disease, kidney disease and bone density problems on a scale never before seen in previous generations as many today eat the wrong thing full of empty calories
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One of the reflections I read on this upsurge of obesity was that many children live in very stressful situations today and use food and pop to ease their stress just as adults might use drugs and alcohol to reduce their stress - all the while increasing their stress levels through associated health problems.
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But what fascinated me was what one person saw as the answer to all this - it was so simple that at first I laughed out loud. The answer was a programme aimed at teaching parents how to cook and eat properly and in doing so, have their children eat their meals seated around the family table instead of at some fast food restaurant where there are all kinds of distractions - never mind the calories eaten through fat food and sugary drinks. This way, the food nutritionist suggested, that not only could parents monitor what was going into their children’s mouths but also was was coming out of their children’s mouths.

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In today’s Gospel, Jesus is being taken to task because his disciples have not observed the traditions and customs around hand washing. When observant Jews came into contact with Gentiles, or other Jews who were not observant, and thus hand-washing was necessary to be rid of the defilement of everyday contact with those considered unclean. The water that Jesus turned into wine, wasn’t for drinking, but rather it would have been used for this cermonial washing of hands, where the Jew would be cleansed of their defilement by pouring the water of their hands. They saw Jesus and his disciples as unclean.
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The very fact that Jesus ate and drank with outcasts and sinners, and allowed unclean people like lepers and prostitutes touch him, and his disciples did not observe the religious laws regarding hand-washing, in the eyes of the religious leaders made Jesus and his disciples unclean.
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Jesus’ disciples did not observe the religious laws regarding this hand washing, and when the religious leaders challenge Jesus regarding this, Jesus responds by first calling them ‘hypocrites" because even though they said all the right things, the right words rolled of their lips, their hearts were far from God. They were very good at keeping their own man-made rules, but when it came to keeping the Biblical commandments, well that was a whole different thing.
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Jesus actually slams the religious leaders by telling them and the crowd that has gathered to listen that there is nothing a person can eat that will make them unclean. In fact, it is not what goes into a person’s mouth that makes a person unclean, but rather what comes out of a person’s mouth that makes them unclean. Jesus goes on to say that it is what is in a person’s heart, the evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance, and folly, these are the things that come from inside a person that indicates an impure heart.
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If you listen hard enough it doesn’t take too long before the words of our lips will betray the secret thoughts of our hearts. The words of our lips often betray the envy, greed, malice, or deceit that we entertain in or the dark recesses of our hearts. The thoughts of our hearts will spill out of our mouths when we are angry or upset or frustrated. From the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.
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There are so many examples from Scripture that one might use to illustrate how from the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks, however, one of my frustrations in ministry is that I spend time preparing a service and a sermon in the hopes of spiritually feeding God’s people, but only a few ever show up to partake of it.
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But, be that as it may, the call to me is to be faithful in the preparation and wit that I reflect on the Parable of the Prodigal Son which is misnamed, because the story of the prodigal son, who asks for his inheritance early than promptly goes off and wastes in on wild living, then returns to be welcomed home by his father, who does not condemn this wayward son as one might expect, but instead orders that the fatted calf be cooked and let there be a great celebration, for the son who was lost has been found. But the story does not end there, my friend.

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There is another older brother who refuses to join in the great celebration. and even with his father pleading with him to celebrate, the older son simply refuses.
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With anger in his heart, the words of his lips betray his jealousy and envy, and even the deep resentment not only against his brother, but against his father -:
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"Look! Even his first word that he chooses betrays him. "Look! All these years I have been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours ( he could not even bring himself to call him his brother) When this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him." The words of his lips betray not only his anger and frustration regarding his brother, but also reveal what he thinks about his own father for who he has slaved "all these years." Was his father really only a slave -driver in his sons eyes. Such resentment and envy.
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Then I think of Mary and Martha, two sisters who were close friends of Jesus.
On this occasion Jesus was invited to relax in their home and a special dinner was prepared in his honour. However Martha was distracted by all the preparation that had to be made for this special dinner, while her sister Mary sat at the feet of Jesus listening to what he said. Martha came to Jesus and asked him ‘Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself. Tell her to help me!" Can you hear the jealousy and envy in her request?
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It is so easy to get discouraged. It is so easy to get distracted. It is so easy to think that no-one else cares. It is so easy to be envious of the success of others, while we are left to do all the hard work and get little or no recognition.
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In times of discouragement, in times of distraction, in times of disillusionment,
I try to remember that everything I do, I do for Jesus. I try to remember that imperfect as I am, and unworthy as I am, God has called me to this time and place. Even though there are times when I feel all alone in ministry, I try to remember that I am not alone, for he has promised to be with me at all times.
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In such times, I try to remember that it is the word of God that sustains me,
and that Satan will attack me when ever and where ever possible,
but Jesus alays walks with we where ever he asks me to go.
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And so, as you leave here today, remember he has promised to be with you.
And as you go, take with you his promise that he will never leave or forsake you.
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Remember that every good and perfect gift is from above,
and may the name of Jesus be for ever on your lips.
Amen.

Easily Led

EASILY LED ......

I would like to tell you a story of a woman who was dying of AIDS. She summoned a Christian friend to comfort her, but it seemed hopeless.
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"I'm lost," she said. "I've ruined my life and every life around me. I have made so many mistakes. I'm headed for Hell. There's no hope for me. Pray for me"
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Her friend saw a framed picture of a pretty girl on the dresser. "Who is that?" he asked.
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The woman brightened. "She's my daughter, the one beautiful thing in my life."
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"Would you help her if she was in trouble, no matter how many mistakes she'd made? Would you forgive her if she asked you too? Would you still love her, no matter what?"
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"Of course I would!" the woman exclaimed. "Why would you even ask a question like that?"
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"Because I want you to understand," explained her friend, "that God has a picture of you on His dresser, too."
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That is what faith is all about. God knows our name. We are God’s work of art. God made us and knows us better than we know ourselves. God knows even the number of hairs we have on our head. Each hair is numbered. God knew us even before we were formed in our mother’s womb. No matter how far we might wander away from God, no matter how many mistakes we make,
God is always waiting with open arms to welcome us home.
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One can of coke contains nearly 10 teaspoons of sugar or the entire daily recommended amount of calories from sugar;
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One of five American children is now considered obese. Americans consume nearly 53 teaspoons of sugar daily;
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Sugar in soda makes blood acidic robbing the body of calcium and which can lead to osteoporosis;
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The "quick energy" from soda is followed by "lows", ask any teacher who has to deal with students loaded with sugar;
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The sugar in soda helps to whither crucial bacteria in our intestines, reducing vitamin B which inhibits thinking, making children sleepy;
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Studies have shown that girls who play sports and consumed soda daily experienced 3x the risk of bone fractures.
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Clean a toilet with Coke it remove stains from vitreous china. Use Coke and a ball of aluminum foil for rust on chrome. Clean corrosion from car battery terminals. Use a Coke-soaked cloth to loosen a rusted bolt. Use a can of Coke in a load of greasy laundry.
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Big movie stars were happy to endorse smokes on TV as well, and the number one celebrity of the era was the Duke. John Wayne appeared for Camel in 1952, speaking highly of the product: "Mild and good tasting pack after pack. And I know, I've been smokin' em for twenty years." This commercial was filmed in conjunction with Wayne's movie Big Jim McLain. Coincidentally (or not), John Wayne died of lung cancer twenty-seven years after that spot aired; some of the last commercials he filmed were to ask people to stop smoking.
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Remember when the government made a big stink about Joe Camel in the nineties? They were outraged that more kids recognized Camel's cartoon carton-pusher Cool Joe Camel than could ID Mickey Mouse. Camels were flying off the shelves and (presumably) into the tiny fingers of young children.
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This was nothing new, cartoon characters had been selling cigarettes for decades, particularly on television.
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In 1988, Camel cigarettes were in trouble. They were perceived as an "old man's" cigarette, and sales were slipping. The R. J. Reynolds people knew that most people who start smoking start early, certainly before they're mature, and usually even before high school. Every year, a million kids under the age of 18 start smoking. According to a study by the University of Michigan, the peak periods for kids to start smoking is in the sixth and seventh grade.
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So they created a cartoon character (Joe Camel) to sell their cigarettes to young people. They gave him a face that's a clear example of the subliminal power of building a character around human genitalia. They dressed him up in cool clothes and put sunglasses on him. And they pumped millions and millions of dollars into the ad campaign (last year they spent 40 million bucks on Joe, up 63% from the year before). Sad to say, their strategy has worked. Sales of Camels are up (get this!) 8000% among teenagers! That's not a typographical error -- it's eight thousand percent. One out four kids aged 12 - 17 say that they smoke Camels.
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In a recent brand recognition study, 67% of adults knew who Joe Camel was and what he was selling. Among 6-year-olds, that recognition factor increased to 91%, bringing Joe Camel equal to Mickey Mouse in being recognizable to children.
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in a survey taken by Kids Peace these startling concerns of children were uncovered. Children today live with life stresses that a generation ago did not exist. The survey was taken of 1023 American children. Consider the finding:
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* 54 percent fear they may contract AIDS;
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* Four in ten children as young as ten believe they may fall into the
traps of early pregnancy, unwed parenthood, drugs, or alcohol;
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* 45 percent fear they will be physically or sexually abused;
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* 51 percent are worried about their own deaths;
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* In a country where happiness and its pursuit are virtual birthrights written into our founding documents and cultural DNA, nearly half (47 percent) say they are afraid they might be unhappy in life.
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Reflecting on what many experts in the field believe is an epidemic - that is the problem of ‘obesity among children", It appears that one of the strategies employed in the battle against this ever growing problem is to teach parents preparing and eating home cooked meals at home so that they can monitor not only what goes into their kids mouths, but also what comes out of it as well!
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We live in an age when we worship slimness yet, have to deal with the modern phenomena of the super-sized meal. Christianity Today carried an article entitled "Fit or Fat" that stated that 16 % of American children are obese, while another 11% have an eating disorder such as either anorexia or bulimia.
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Today we have witnessed the baptism of two children, Haley Samantha Anne and MacKendrick. As we welcome these children into the household of faith, we perhaps need to remember that we are not making little Angicans here.
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One wonders what kinds of challenges and changes these two children will face. In just one generation the world has undergone tremendous change and is facing tremendous challenges. Terrorism, wars and rumours of war abound. Drugs, pornography, sexual abuse, eating disorders, mlutrition, AIDS and a million other things are there to be faced, challenged and overcome.
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What a privilege it is to hold a new born baby and to feel the pride and joy he or she gives. But greater still, is the calm assurance of faith, that these children can face uncertain days, because of Jesus Christ, who came into our world as a tiny, helpless baby and would die on the Cross so that those who believe in him may live for ever.
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What has happened here today is in direct response to the words of Jesus, that those who eat his flesh and drink his blood will live for ever.
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Sometimes the Church gets into denominational arguments regarding baptism - whether it ought to be infant baptism or adult baptism. That’s the wrong question - the real issue in whether these children are surrounded by people of faith - and whether they will be raised in the faith - so that they may grow into the knowledge of Jesus Christ and be inheritors of the kingdom of God.

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Haley Elizabeth Anne and MacKendrick have come home today. They have become through their baptism the newest members of the household of faith, the family of God and inheritors of the Kingdom of God. Their names are engraved on the Almighty Hands of God.

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It is important to note that both children are surrounded by three generations of faith, both Haley Elizabeth Anne and MacKendrick represent the fourth generation of faith in their respective families. May they grow in their faith.

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