St. Mark’s Lutheran

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Text: Luke 7:18-28

The middle two weeks of advent are the weeks of John the Baptist. He’s a forgotten figure in modern Christianity. He doesn’t seem to have much meaning or purpose. We continue to read the stories of the patriarchs. We will talk about the OT prophets. We will give due to the apotles. The later church fathers will also be discusses. John the Baptist, who Jesus declares to be the greatest born of woman, gets left out.

One really good reason is that he more or less gets subsumed under Christ. The life and mission of Jesus overwhelm John who doesn’t leave any writings outside of the voice captured in the gospels. But that doesn’t account for it alone. I think it has more to do with the baptist’s message. It is a sparse and clear proclamation -repent, be baptized and bring forth the fruits of repentance. It is a message that Jesus picks up (Mark 1:14-15).

So much of life is spent finding the middle way. And that is usually the course of wisdom. Stay away from the extremes. Find the middle path through the mess. Just that in regards to truth, finding the middle way leaves you with nothing. God’s grace is not found by splitting the difference with the Baptist. I’ll admit I sin, but living the life or repentance seems extreme. Why this thing called baptism? Isn’t there something grander or more meaningful? The middle way would seem to ask for more than baptism as a sign and seal. In Luke even John seems to have questions. John has not followed the middle way, but things aren’t looking like he expected. He asks Jesus, “are you the one?”

And Jesus doesn’t apologize for the form of grace or the proclamation one bit. In fact he turns to the crowds and asks what did they come to see? They all came to see a prophet. They recognized a truth in John (and in Jesus) that was not just natural wisdom. And that recognition requires more than a middle way response. If you came to see a prophet, and the prophet says God’s grace is here, in water and word, in a crucified peasant, then we should align ourselves with that grace.

It is a great question to many people who come to churches. What did you come to see? If you came to see anything other than the presant grace of God, you’ve got the wrong purpose. Ask youself, what did you come to see? Does the answer require you to make changes?

Tags: Advent, Luke, Repentance, Sermons by Parson Brown
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Underware. That is the term for too much sermon prep work actually making it into the sermon. That was what this one was. There is a really good 700 word meditation at the end, preceeded by 700 words that should not have made it into the final draft.

It is not that the first 700 words are bad. They helped the preacher in understanding and picking that one thread to tug on, but the hearers did not have to hear that.

This was the Sunday of the children’s Christmas service. The older tradition was that the Christmas Eve was the Children’s pageant. In our hurried world we cancel Christmas Day, mvoe the kids to Advent 4 and Christmas Eve becomes the Christmas worship. So, the kids – who are like the old Hollywood saying about being in a movie with kids or animals – don’t – they do two things. 1) They are so cute that anything after them is wasted breath. 2) Congregations are either packed or empty for the kids program. I’ll leave you to think why that is so. What used to be done over three hours or three services (Advent 4, Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day) with the time to actually think about the day and its events is done in one day.

I can’t help but think that might be a problem. It says something about a lack of communion in the body of Christ – especially if your congregation falls on the empty side. When 51 of 52 weeks the kids are banished to the nursery so the adults have their worship and then the adult stays away on the 52 sunday for the kids. Is there a connection between not making time for the Christ child and the fact that most of the children have drifted away from the faith and if not the faith the church?

Tags: Advent, Sermons by Parson Brown
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This was the last mid-week sermon.  We had been roughly following a chain of OT promises of the messiah.  The first grouping was about a savior/prophet.  The second group were kingly predictions.  The last group was priestly predictions.  I didn’t start out with prophet, priest and king, but that was always latent and it became more obvious.  It also made sense to work from prophet, a more or less completely fulfilled role, to the king, which is fulfilled but hidden, and end with the priest, which sacrificial respect is fulfilled but the presense of God sense remains.

Like when Paul talks about Faith, Hope and Love with the greatest being love becuase while faith and hope give way to knowing love will remain, two of the roles of prophet, priest and king will disappear.  We will not need a prophet as all will be known.  We will not need a priest as God will be with His people and they will have been remade.  We will still have a King.

Tags: Advent, Sermons by Parson Brown
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After preaching in what is called a lectio continua (a continuous reading) for most of the summer, fall and early winter, the advent texts are herky jerky.  One moment you are in Mark and the Next you are in John or Isaiah or Paul.  Since I used the Markan text for John the baptist last week (and Mark is the primary Gospel this year), I didn’t jump on the Baptist from John.  The Paul text just jumped out at me on second reading.  I broke a rule about choosing a text and sticking with it as I changed texts last Tuesday after going not the Baptist again.

I am glad I did.  There are many things I like about this sermon.  I still wish I was better at merging interesting life stories into sermons, or maybe that is just I wish I was a better storyteller.  I’m afraid my sermons too often may come off like lectures.  The story I feel best prepared to tell is the biblical story, the story behind the readings.  And I am getting more confident in talking about intersections of that story and our modern existence.   I think this sermon did that as well as I am able to right now.

Too much of religion is just our own version of oral tradition.  We make up laws or only look for laws from religion.  Christianity gets reduced to ethics.  The resurrection of the Son of God morphs into the Judeo-Christian tradition.  That is not what we are waiting for – more tradition or laws.  We are waiting for resurrection, the revealing of glory, the kingdom come.  Our temporary problems with sin and the old order of things passing away are inconsequential to what the Spirit is working in us and the salvation given through Jesus Christ.   Religion is about hope and joy and prayer and thanksgiving.  Not about do’s and don’ts.

Tags: 1 Thessalonians, Advent, Sermons by Parson Brown
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Text: Luke 22:14-30

I’d like you to really read that text.  Anything strike you as odd?  See anything strange?  Read it again.

Christmas is coming up.  That is a time full of tradition.  Families gather around tables and fireplaces and tell stories.  Grandpa tells the kids about what mom did when she was your age.  Mom tells the kids that grandpa is going senile and doesn’t remember it right.  Dad tiptoes out of the room because the pie smells good and he doesn’t have a dog in this one.  Which version is right?  The likelihood is that both are correct, but we remember what was most important to us at that time. 

Did you read that account of the Last Supper?  Did you catch the 2nd cup or should I say first cup?  What is that doing there?  Why don’t we have two cup?  Does this make the entire tradition wrong?

I obviously don’t think it makes the tradition wrong, but it is an example where knowing a little about Tradition helps.  The Passover meal (which this was) has 3 or 4 cups in it.  The one that is important to Christians is the one that contains the New Covenant.  That cup is the one Jesus blesses for all of us.  That first cup that Luke records is something different.  Jesus gave thanks for that particular meal and shared something just with those disciples in that upper room.  Take this and divide it among yourselves.  I won’t drink anymore until the Kingdom of God comes.  This is a private cup, a private thankgiving with his companions for the last three years.  Think that might have been important to those disciples?  Think a good historian interviewing those disciples years later might have picked up on that? 

Just a thought.  It is speculation.  But Luke is a good historian and obviously a good listener.  He cared about his audience, but he also wanted to get the story right.  So we get a 2nd cup, a fondly remembered private blessing.  Be sure in your family traditions to share those private blessings.

Tags: Advent, Luke, Meditation by Parson Brown
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In the modern world Christians who are looking forward to a coming King have a problem. Christopher Hitchens goes right at that problem. The idea of a King is oppressive in a world of democracies.

Somewhat surprisingly the answer is part affirmation of what Hitchens says – a Holy King is a scary dictator. We are sinful beings. Being judged by the Holy is not what we want. But God has demonstrated his Love for us while we were still cowering in fear. He gave up all the opulence of the best kingdom and tool the lowest rung to show his love. That is love we can trust.

I liked this sermon. If you’ve got 5 mins or have read Hitchens before, give it a click and scan it.

Tags: Advent, Isaiah, Sermons by Parson Brown
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This link takes you to a blogger who helpd at one of the larger gathering places for Operation Christmas Child. If I remember my count we sent along about 20 shoeboxes. Nancy relayed on the moving van full of boxes as the church that was the drop off point. This picture comes from even further down the line.

The comments are interesting. Something I’m not always the best at. A mentor of mine said, “talk life and you eventually get around to theology.” The link does that very well.

Tags: Advent, Events, Youth by Parson Brown
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Reading: Isaiah 3

Reading the OT can be very tricky, and this passage might be one of the trickiest of all. In the OT Isreal – the nation and the church – were the same thing. The people of Israel represented by the monarchy and the priests were the people of God. After Jesus, the people of God continue to be his church, but that church does not have temporal authority as well. (My kingdom is not of this world. – John 18:36) That has never stopped the church from trying to take temporal authority. Even Luther and the Reformers used the power of the state to effect religious change. (They did this by declaring the Princes to be emergency bishops and that emergency never really subsided – I know, big surprise.) Why this makes reading the OT tricky is it is very easy to read Isaiah and see many of the symptoms in society at large, but the message was for the people of God. Society at large, i.e. the United States, is not the people of God. That is a mistake many Evangelical churches make.

That separation does not mean God’s judgement does not impact modern nation states – it does. But when you are reading something directed at Israel it really needs to be interpreted as applying to the church. Has all skilled leadership been removed from the church? Does the church go begging people saying here you be our leader – and those people say no way? Does the church loudly and openly display sin – not even trying to hide it? Maybe just as importantly has or does the leadership of the church lead it down the wrong road – does that leadership destroy the vineyard and take from the poor?

Some of those might resonate. Arguably getting good men to take leadership positions in the church has become very hard. In certain church bodies basic morality has been superceded. Many congregations sit and squabble for years over a declining people and everything that those people depend upon – the bread and water of verse 1 – gets removed as the squabbles decimate. If you find youself in such a church body though it is not clear that the answer is to jump ship. God says in Isaiah 3:10 – tell the godly that all will be well for them. They will enjoy the rich reward they have earned! God doesn’t say flee. He doesn’t say leave in cursing. A remnant returns from exile. God does not abandon His people.

So, you may find yourself in a church ripe for exile. The answer from Isaiah 3 might be to stop looking for others to heal it, but take the leadership role. Maybe your church is great, but is looking for leaders. Maybe your role is to go along with it to exile to prepare for return. Prayer helps. And so does that promise. Stay faithful. In Jesus’ words – Watch! You will enjoy the rich reward when the King returns.

Tags: Advent, Culture, Isaiah, Meditation by Parson Brown
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It is a very busy week, so I am cheating.

For the congregation I prepared an Advent devotional book:
Advent Devotion Book

The daily devotions, probably for this week will come from that printed source. Those who have the printed source, sorry for the duplication.

Genesis 49:10 – The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from his descendants, until the coming of the one to whom it belongs, the one whom all nations will honor.

Deuteronomy 18:15 – Moses continued, “The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him.”

Judah, before receiving the scepter, had the promise of an eternal throne with honor for all nations. Moses in his final words to the nation he had led out of Egypt and through the desert promises a great prophet. The people of Israel gathered at the base of Mt. Sinai were fearful of their lives. The fire and clouds and lightening and the great voice of God they heard spoke to them of death. At that mount of the covenant, they knew that those words meant death. Israel knew they could not keep them. And the Lord agreed. Encounters with the hidden God always mean death. The great why questions are rarely answered. Why? Who am I to talk back to the potter? Or the Lord’s answers to Job from a whirlwind – Why? Where were you when I laid the foundation of the world? Direct encounters with God mean death. But the Lord agreed and promised to raise up a prophet from among Israel – a human prophet. Also a divine prophet as this promised one would have the very words of God.

Jesus came to us as the revealed God. In Jesus we see the Father. We see his love for his daughters and sons on the cross. We see his salvation in the resurrection. We await His final revelation. The Hidden God in that cloud and fire kills. The revealed God in Jesus saves. Jesus’ prophetic message – I am the way the truth and the life – is what we must hear.

Tags: Advent by Parson Brown
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