It’s Not Too Late
Free to Fly
On to Macedonia
Not So Stupid Sheep
Sermon Notes: HOLY TRINITY 101 Copies of these sermons are available upon request. Email Pastor Slater
SECOND
SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
Galatians 1:11-24 Luke 7:11-17 Grace, mercy, and peace be
unto you from God, our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus
Christ. Amen. It’s Not Too Late
I’m
the kind of person who prefers to be on time.
In fact, it often drives my wife crazy that I actually prefer to
arrive at an appointment early. It
doesn’t matter if it’s a visit to someone’s home, or a regularly scheduled
meeting, or even just going to a movie; I like to get there before everything
starts. And then I get annoyed when we
have to wait for someone who is late. Studying
the lessons for today of how the prophet Elijah revived the widow’s son in
the Old Testament lesson and how Jesus raised the son of the widow of Nain in
the Gospel lesson, I immediately associated both of them with the story of
the raising of Lazarus in the Gospel of John.
If you remember, that story begins with Jesus deliberately delaying
his trip to visit Lazarus after hearing he was ill. After the delay came the news of the death
of Lazarus. Jesus had been too
late. When he finally arrives, Lazarus
has been dead four days. Both Mary and
Martha, the sisters of Lazarus challenge Jesus saying, “Lord, if you would
have been here, my brother would not have died.” Like Mary
and Martha, I too would have been disappointed in Jesus’ tardiness. Perhaps Jesus could have performed a
miracle; perhaps Jesus could have healed his disease. But Jesus dawdled, deliberately, and now
Lazarus was dead. An old song by Carly
Simon echoes in my mind, “Well, it’s too late, baby, now, it’s too late....” Jesus
arrived a little too late in the village of Nain as well in today’s Gospel
from Luke. The widow’s son is already
dead and lifeless body being carried out of town for burial. Elijah wasn’t physically late in arriving
but his miracle was. Having consumed
for himself the last of the oil and meal that would be used to make one final
supper for the widow and her son, Elijah is actually blamed for the boy’s
death. The woman exclaims, “What have
you against me, O man of God? You have
come to bring my sin to remembrance and to cause the death of my son.” But for
the son of the widow of Zarephath and for the son
of the widow of Nain, and even for Lazarus, it was not too late. The power and the authority of God was to be demonstrated even over death. I’m often
asked to preside at funeral services for people I have never known and of
whom relatives have volunteered very little except that he or she was not
much of a believer. That doesn’t give
me a whole lot to base a funeral sermon upon, except for one thing: With God,
it is never too late. A person may have doubted or denied God all his or her
life, but finally God is able to resurrect new life in any and every
individual. That, I
think, is why the personal biography of Paul is included as a lesson for
today. It’s not a deathbed confession,
nor is it a miraculous resurrection.
But it is a lesson that tells us that even for Saul, the zealous
persecution of Christians, it was not too late. Saul had thrived in the role of enforcer of
the Sanhedrin. Carrying with him
letters from Jerusalem giving him full authority to shut down the spread of
the followers of the Way, Saul was armed for persecution and, if necessary,
destruction of anyone who followed Jesus.
What he had been doing was atrocious and downright despicable! But even for Saul, it was not too late. Blinded
by the light on the road to Damascus, Saul had seen a vision of Jesus. Now with a new identity as Paul, he would
be resurrected from the chief of all sinners to the most powerful witness for
the faith the Christian church has ever known. What
about us? To pride oneself on always
being on time is an illusion because we all fall short. We’re all at least just a little late when
it comes to living out our faith in Jesus, especially when it comes to
sharing our faith in Jesus – slow to respond in word and in
deed. St. Paul
put it this way, “We have all sinned and have all fallen short of the glory
of God.” Some of us spend a lifetime
trying to catch up and some just give up and never try at all. But Jesus
reaches out his hand to us in the midst of our always busy, always too late
lives to remind us that it is never too late in God’s eyes. He even reaches beyond death with the
promise and hope of everlasting life. The widow
from Zarephath and her son; the widow of Nain and
her son; Saul the persecutor of the church; even Lazarus; were all rescued
from the clutches of sin and death, not that they would never die (for
there’s no such thing as arriving too late for that!) but that they might
serve the Lord for at least one more day.
And that’s all that Jesus wants for us, for even right now, it’s not
too late to follow Jesus. Amen. May the peace of God which passes all understanding keep
our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus unto life everlasting. Amen. Rev. James H. Slater, Pastor Emanuel Lutheran Church – Stuyvesant Falls St. Luke’s Lutheran Church – Valatie June 10, 2007 SEVENTH SUNDAY OF
EASTER Revelation 22:12-14, 16-17, 20-21 John 17:20-26 Grace, mercy and peace be unto you from God,
our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen. Free to Fly
“Put
down your sword,” said Paul to the jail guard who was about to kill himself
for losing all his prisoners, “We’re still here.” What in the world was going on here? Paul and Silas had been thrown in jail for upsetting
the status quo. They had cast out a
spirit of divination from a slave-girl who was being taken advantage of by
her owners for their own financial gain.
While in chains they continued to pray and sing hymns. Then, as if by divine intervention, an
earthquake ripped through the foundation of the jail, breaking locks and
loosening chains. Paul and Silas were free to flee, but they chose to
stay. And by so doing they saved a
life. It is a mean time, this
in-between time: strange and
confusing, awful and wonderful. What I
mean by “in-between time” is that this particular Sunday of the church
calendar comes after the ascension of Jesus into heaven, but before
the promised gift of the Spirit at Pentecost.
It’s a Sunday of theological limbo.
It’s probably the most real and honest Sunday we have to compare to
our human existence of “already/not yet”; of already being recipients of
God’s promise of salvation through Jesus’ death and resurrection, but not yet
having that promise fulfilled. And so
we live in the mean time, in the in-between time. That is what makes this an appropriate Sunday for our
regular spring healing services. This
mean time still includes for us disease, destruction and death. How are we to live in faith with such
turmoil and confusion all around us?
By the end of the first century after Jesus, the church was already
begging, “come, Lord Jesus, come quickly.” But Jesus was there, too. He could have loosed the chains and popped the nails that bound him to a tree of crucifixion. He was free to flee. Yet he chose to stay that our lives might be spared from sin and the power of death. Instead, he prayed. In personal turmoil and anguish, he prayed that the entire kosmos, all of God’s creation, would live in faith, live in love, live in God. And Jesus not only prayed for us, but he fulfilled his
promise to send the power and the guidance of his Holy Spirit to be his
instruments of faith and love in a messed up world. He wasn’t free to fly to heaven until we
were free to fly on our own, like birds leaving the nest for the first time. So we live in faith and love, even in the midst of
persecution; even in the midst of sickness and disease; even in the midst of
disappointment and confusion; even in the midst of death and destruction. So how do you hold up when you have to endure the
earthquakes and the eye of the hurricanes in your life? Are you fleeing and screaming; are you
staying and praying; are you working and serving, loving and forgiving? Are you prepared to fly away and join Jesus
in promised peace? Today’s healing testimony comes from a book Christa
ordered that we just received in the mail:
911 From an Inside Line.
It’s a book of personal reflections and meditations by Denise
Stephenson, an eye-witness survivor of Hurricane Katrina and my daughter,
Becky’s, mother-in-law. Pg. 78: Rising
up to Rebuild Look
above the devastation Amidst
all the hurt and pain Along
with all our losses What
could we have possibly gained? A
deeper understanding A
greater love and respect For
all that came before us For
all that hasn’t come yet. As
we rise up from the ruins While
we rebuild our future land Let’s
keep generations to come in mind Give
them reasons to cherish and understand There
is a need to nurture And
rebuild some memories from our past To
look into their futures And
give them the best of what we had Our
visions for today Will
far outlast us all Make
sure we are thinking of others When
we make that final call Pg. 82 Nostalgia A
lifetime of treasures are gone with the wind The
memories remain nurtured deep within. I
browse the shelves of new items, each one shiny and bright I
long for the old, familiar ... those things that seemed to fit me just right. Open
my heart Lord, so that I might truly see All
that YOU have in store for me. I
will cherish the memories as I start all new Watching
and waiting for direction from you. When
I pass the old and familiar I will smile softly and whisper Thank You For
I know that with time and nurturing, all these new things will Become
old and familiar too. Pg. 83 Blessings My daughter and I were blessed with the support of
prayers and financial gifts from two church groups in upstate New York, as
well as many family members and friends.
Their concern and generosity helped us to be able to purchase the
basic necessities for setting up household again. I still to this day have not met many of
those who reached out to us personally, but I know them all in my heart. They are my brothers and sisters in Christ
and were my neighbors in our time of need.
They shared God’s love in the most tangible ways that helped to
restore my stability and my dignity.
To be so in need, and yet to have nothing to give in return for their
gifts, surely taught me the true meaning of loving one another. They loved us enough to share in our time
of need, and I was taught how to love others enough to simply be willing and
grateful in accepting what God had called them to do. The joy they expressed in their giving
caused my own heart to overflow with their kindness and love. God will provide in our lives whatever we need if we
are just humble enough to receive it.
Hurricane Katrina tore down my fortress of independence and humbled
me. I thank God for the lesson from
the blessings in the midst of the storm. Pg. 91 Everything
we need A
Nomad ....A Gypsy A
Roustabout....A Rolling Stone Wherever
I wander I
will always be home Carrying
no baggage And
free to drift around Discovering
and uncovering Treasures
to be found When
I long for the comforts Of
home and hearth I
will be still and be quiet And
I will find it all in my heart Everything
we need Is
buried deep inside For
it’s only when you lose it all That
you are truly free to fly ************ When waves of destruction approach like a 20’ storm
surge, we are free to flee for safety.
Even Jesus escaped the crowds for a quiet place to pray. When enormous responsibility shakes the foundations
beneath us we are free to stay like Paul and Silas and serve the greater
good. We might even save someone’s
life in the process. Jesus endured
suffering and death that we would be raised with him to new life. And when disease and death have their mortal way, we
are free to fly with Jesus to the right hand of God the Father Almighty. When I die, Hallelujah! by
and by, I’ll fly away. AMEN. May the peace of God which
passes all understanding keep our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus unto life everlasting. Amen. Rev.
James H. Slater, Pastor Emanuel
Lutheran Church – Stuyvesant Falls St.
Luke’s Lutheran Church – Valatie May
20, 2007 SIXTH SUNDAY OF EASTER
Acts 16:9-15 Revelation 21:10, 22—22:5 John 14:23-29 Grace, mercy, and peace be unto
you from God, our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen. On to Macedonia
Alison
DuBois is a psychic who works for the Phoenix
District Attorney’s office and helps solve murders through her visions and
dreams in the television series, “Medium.”
The show is based upon a real life situation and person who really is
used for that purpose. However, I
think the television show takes some extreme liberties in making an exact
science out of that which is at least questionable and at best more general
and inexact in nature. Not that I don’t believe in dreams and visions! The truth for me is that I find them so
hard to discern and to interpret, yet I am totally astounded when they are
fulfilled. I’m sure that takes some
explaining. “Built upon the foundation of Jesus Christ, united and
empowered by the Holy Spirit, the St. Luke’s and Emanuel Lutheran Parish seeks to provide a light of hope in an uncertain
world. We strive to support and
challenge all to grow in faith through Scripture, prayer and the
sacraments. We are committed to reach
out in humility and love to our communities, sharing the good news of God’s
free grace with all.” I hope that sounds familiar to you. That is our mission statement as a parish,
our vision statement. Experts in the
field claim it is too long. But I have
seen so many congregational mission statements that are so short they are
almost meaningless. Ours grew out of
deep prayer, discernment of the future, and conversation in Bible study and
faith sharing. As such, it does a
rather remarkable job of condensing a vision that can be so difficult to put
into words. The hard
part is that it doesn’t tell us what to do.
It lays a solid foundation for our faith and action in the good news
of Jesus Christ in a confidence in the guidance and power of the Holy Spirit,
and in a commitment to worship and study in God’s Word, and outreach to the
world around us. I think it’s
powerful! But it gives us no clear
picture, no analyzed dream, no exact vision of what we are supposed to do. Don’t you
sometimes wish God would just tell us what we’re supposed to do, what
decision is best, what road to take, what choice to make? I envy St. Paul who in a vision saw a man
of Macedonia and heard his plea, “come over to Macedonia and help us.” There was Paul’s direction – as exact as it
could be. I envy John of Patmos who in
a revelation from God is able to not only to see into the future of God’s
promise of eternal life, but also provide comfort and hope for persecuted
Christians of his own time and place.
I envy the disciples who lived and breathed in the very presence of
Jesus himself, yet I realize that they were often just as confused in the
presence of a Jesus of whom they could ask questions as I am in the presence
of the promised Holy Spirit in whom I can only trust. We are
more like the disciples whom Jesus then left behind with only the promise of
an Advocate of peace, comfort, and understanding. We have the vision and the witness of the
Holy Spirit in our lives. So, much
like St. Paul, we each have our own Macedonia. There is someone, something, some place
calling to each of us to come over to Macedonia. I don’t know what that means for you any
more that I know what it means for me.
Still, I know it’s true. And I am astounded when God
is able to move the spirit through our choices and decisions, even through
our misunderstanding and imperfections, to fulfill the divine call in our
lives and in our ministry. I have so
many examples in my personal life, from the family into which I was born and
raised, to my educational choices and experiences, to my marriage and children,
to my call to serve God and you as Pastor.
How God worked that all out amazes me because I had no idea what was
going on! But let’s
consider examples from our ministries as a parish. I mentioned at our congregational meetings
in January that I had no idea where the Spirit would lead us this year
because who could have predicted that we would have been able to offer free
dinners to the community and wind up feeding sixty by the end of last year
and over one hundred by the end of this year and between generous donations
and personal sacrifices raise money in the process. And more, that those of us who worked and
contributed felt our souls fed in a way we could have never envisioned. Who would
have through that we would plan and execute a Revival on Lutheran property
and experience such a sense of our own renewal and re-energizing of
faith! And more than that, that we
would become an example copied throughout our synod in revivals planned for
this coming summer in North Greenbush and Buffalo. Upon the
successful completion of another CROP Walk Sunday, who could have dreamed
that we would be so instrumental in raising over
$50,000 in four years to help alleviate hunger around the world and in our
own communities! Each of these took place
because we were willing to open our eyes to a vision of ministry and open our
ears to a call of ministry and trust in God to accomplish it through us. All the while we remain grounded in our
mission statement of faithful worship, being nurtured and fed in God’s Word
and in the sacraments of Baptism into new life and communion with the
presence of Jesus Christ. Do you
see what I mean? In ways not at all
psychic, but so very spiritual and inspired, we do have visions and we do
dream dreams of what life in Christ can be all about. So what
about you? Where is your
Macedonia? What are you being called
to do? What is your vision of ministry
and service? I’m not trying to be
dramatic here. I’m only trying to help
you open your eyes and ears to your calling. Today we
celebrate those who have answered the call to bring new life into the
world. Their Macedonia is
motherhood. The St. Luke’s hall has
recently been very busy hosting baby showers.
Being a mother is truly answering a call to ministry and service. Your family life, your business career, your educational process, your commitment to service in
the community: these are all part of
the call of God in your life. We do
need to raise up good pastors in the church – maybe
that’s your Macedonia – but Martin Luther emphasized the fact that we are all
ministers in our daily lives in everything we say and do. We may
not be able to see dead people and solve murder cases, but are able to see
and hear a living Lord Jesus Christ and be open to the call of his spirit in
our lives. And in that way, we are
just like St. Paul and John of Patmos before us, seeing visions, dreaming
dreams, and “sharing the good news of God’s grace with all.” May the
peace of God which passes all understanding keep our hearts and minds in
Christ Jesus unto life everlasting. Amen. Rev.
James H. Slater, Pastor Emanuel
Lutheran Church – Stuyvesant Falls St.
Luke’s Lutheran Church – Valatie May
13, 2007 The Fourth Sunday of EasterActs
9:36-43 Revelation
7:9-17 John
10:22-30 Grace, mercy and peace be unto you from God, our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen. Not So Stupid Sheep
Duane Keeler reminded me that I once had a coffee cup that on one side said, “I am the Good Shepherd,” and on the other side read, “Stupid Sheep!” It refers to a story from the Living Nativity many years ago. He particularly noted that when I drank from it, it was the “stupid sheep” side that was visible to everyone else. He thought that could be taken to be quite offensive. But, in a time of violence and destruction such as our own and given the meaning of our lessons for this Good Shepherd Sunday, I’d be mighty grateful to be counted among the dumb sheep belonging to the flock of Jesus. Each one of our lessons for today addresses the issue of how we, as the people of God, are to live in an ever threatening and sinful world. Let’s start with the Gospel lesson and the words of the Good Shepherd himself. Jesus is speaking and teaching at the temple during the festival of Dedication of Hanukkah. The assigned lessons for the festival include the 34th chapter of Ezekiel where the prophet speaks out against the corrupt and faithless shepherds of Israel. He was referring to both the political and religious leaders of the time, to king and priests alike. They had betrayed and forsaken the flock of their responsibility and had led them astray. Using this imagery, Jesus identifies himself as the Good Shepherd who loves and cares for his sheep and who will lay down his life for the flock. But the people really didn’t understand his parabolic teaching. Their time was just as bad if not worse than the time of Ezekiel. Their political leaders were Romans and vassal Jewish kings and their religious leaders hid behind the screen of the Law to protect themselves from being contaminated by the reality of the world. So they wanted a clear message as to who Jesus claimed to be. If he were the Messiah, for whom they waited so long, he’d better get to work. But Jesus made no claim to political upheaval; he would not be a king. He would be a shepherd who would care for and cure each lamb; feed and lead each sheep. They wanted it plain and simple and he gave it to them plain and simple, “I and Father are one.” He claimed to be God. But that only led to accusations of blasphemy. Stupid sheep! In the lesson from the Acts of the Apostles we meet up with Peter and the other disciples who are trying to make sense of Jesus’ death and resurrection for their lives. Their proclamation is that Jesus Christ is risen from the dead, and new people are being added to the believers every day. We even have the first and only time in the entire New Testament when a woman, Tabitha or Dorcas, is referred to as a disciple. But then she became ill and died. Were the believers still going to die? That thought was actually shocking to them. They thought that they, like Jesus, would never die. Stupid Sheep! And finally we have that mysterious and cryptic book of Revelation. What we do know about the book of Revelation is that it reflected a time of impending persecution of Christians so that words of encouragement, comfort and hope had to be framed in symbols only recognizable to those well-versed in Old Testament Scripture and familiar with the teachings of Jesus. John of Patmos addresses the persecuted faithful with words encouraging them to continually offer praise to God, for in these times and indeed at any time, God alone is the source of our salvation. So John talks about the Lamb who was slain who sits on the throne. So how can a dead, slaughtered sheep sit on a throne of glory? If that makes sense to you, it’s because you know it’s talking about Jesus, crucified on the cross of death, yet risen from the dead to sit on the right hand of the throne of God. But how can a lamb become a shepherd? If that makes sense to you it’s because you know Jesus said, “I am the Good Shepherd.” You know what it means because you are one of his sheep. You have heard the voice of Jesus and you have followed him. That’s a group of dumb sheep worth being part of! But what about today? Our world is little different from Ezekiel’s or the disciples’. It’s just as confusing and maybe even more violent. We lack trust in our national leaders and in our religious leaders. We still settle our differences with war and killing. A crazed gunman can open fire on a college campus or a lone fugitive can shoot and kill a police officer. Our garage can catch on fire and throw our lives into total upheaval. We find cures to the threatening diseases of the world but we haven’t been able to conquer death. We cry out, “What’s the world coming to?” We wonder what we’re supposed to do. We seek for clear answers. We cry out, “Help!” like dumb sheep. And then we hear the voice of the Good Shepherd. He calls us to live in faith: “I give my sheep eternal life and they will never perish.” He calls us to live in service: “Tabitha, get up!” said Peter and she was restored to life. Not that she nor Peter would never die, but they had work to do in expanding the message and the mission of the church to all the ends of the earth. He calls us to live in praise: “Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever.” That’s not the song of those who have never known persecution or war or death. That’s the song of those who have come through the ordeal. They have survived not because they were spared but because the Good Shepherd carried them through the tough and challenging times. That’s the song of sheep who know who their shepherd is. And if they know who Jesus is, they can’t be that stupid! Amen. May the peace of God which passes all understanding keep our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus unto life everlasting. Amen. Rev. James H. Slater Emanuel Lutheran Church – Stuyvesant Falls St. Luke’s Lutheran Church – Valatie April 29, 2007 Sermon Notes: HOLY TRINITY 101 |
I.
Illustrations
- triangle - clover - H2O - 3 in 1 oil - Trinity Methodist
- e pluribus unum = Out of
many, one
II.
Old Testament
Witness
Deuteronomy 6: 4-5 (Shema)
“Hear, O Israel, the Lord your God, the Lord is
one. And you shall love the Lord your
God with all your heart, and might, and strength.”
- creating - restoring - empowering
III.
New Testament Witness
- First Christian creed: Jesus
is Lord
IV.
Old Roman Symbol
vs. dualism (trioism): One
God
vs. Gnosticism:
Physical creation / Physical
human / Physical body –the Church
V.
Creeds
- Credo (Latin): I believe
- Apostles for catechetical purposes (Baptism)
- Nicene for corporate purposes (Communion)
- Athanasian
VI.
Today’s Lessons
- chart on other side
VII.
God is God
TODAY’S
LESSONS
_________Creator ____________
_________Wisdom/Sophia_____ _______Father_________________
_________Logos______________
_______Human/Divine_________
______Suffering/Death_________
_______Son____________________ __________GOD____________
_____Resurrection/Hope_______
_____Revelation_______________
_____Truth____________________
______Holy
Spirit_______________
_____Glory____________________