 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| SERMON 8th Sunday of Pentecost July 26, 2009 The Rev. Charles W. Messer |
| 667 Mount Road, Aston, PA 19014 610-459-2013 |
| Small Parish - Big Heart The little church you've been looking for! All are welcome! |
| Our Mission: To worship the Lord To serve the community To grow the church |
| 2 Samuel 11:1-15 Psalm 14 or 2 Kings 4:42-44 Psalm 145: 10-19 Ephesians 3:14-21 John 6:1-21 |
To contact us: Calvary Episcopal Church 667 Mount Road Aston, PA 19014 610-459-2013 OFFICE The Rev. Charles Messer, Rector Fr. Chuck: frmesser@calvaryepiscopalrockdale.org Website: mail@calvaryepiscopalrockdale.org Office: calvaryoffice1@verizon.net |
Jesus’ miracle of feeding the 5,000 is the only story that’s recorded in all four of
bread and 2 fish to feed half the seating capacity of the Spectrum. However, it’s in
John’s gospel that the miracle takes place at Passover: the highest of holy days
which celebrates God’s deliverance of Israel out of slavery in Egypt and their
experience of 40 years wandering in the desert. See, not only did God save the
children of Israel by parting the waters of the Red Sea but provided manna when
there wasn’t anything to eat and water from a rock when there wasn’t anything to
drink. John wants to drive home the connection of the Exodus experience and the
miracle of feeding the 5,000: It is God who saves. It is God who feeds, and a meal is
God’s sign of justice and mercy. In God’s economy all are welcome to the table to
buy food and drink without money or cost; that being rich or poor, white or black,
or Christian or Jewish or Muslim God provides for all. For Christians, the Eucharist
is the embodiment of God’s obscene just-ness as no respecter of persons.
I’ve experienced this truth for the last three Wednesdays at the 10AM Eucharist. For
the most part, it’s a normal rite II Eucharistic service where somewhere around 15
to 20 gather and stay for coffee afterwards. But what has made this such a unique
service are the 6 or so who come from Rose Hill – a group home for mentally
challenged adults. Ellie Evans plays the organ and we sing songs like Jesus Loves
Me. If anything, it’s worth coming to see Sally Burkham lead us in Rise and Shine
and Give God the glory glory. Any awkwardness and pretense on our part is
quickly evaporates into joy as we worship with our friends from Rose Hill.
The lectionary joins John’s miracle with Elisha’s miracle feeding. A "boy" plays an
important part, loaves of bread are served, and the same beginning question:
"How can we serve so many with so little?" There is also the same conclusion: All
ate to their fill and still there was food left over. In John’s Gospel Jesus begins with
the question, "Where are we to buy bread?" Philip answers: Half-a-year’s salary
wouldn’t be enough. A boy is found carrying five barley loaves and two fish. Jesus
gives thanks and asks God’s blessing over the little bit that’s there. Jesus has the
disciples distribute the food and, miraculously, all have plenty to eat.
“Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat?” Jesus asks Calvary the
question, "Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat? Do we believe God
will provide what we need?" …what we need, not what we want, what God wants,
and not necessarily the ministry we’ve planned. Another way to ask the question:
Do we operate according to a mind-set of abundance or of scarcity? Are we about
mission; reaching people right where they are just as they are; or are we about the
maintenance of the status quo. Abundance engenders generosity and hope;
scarcity brings anxiety and competition. Abundance is about community and
relationships where scarcity embodies isolation, ‘this is yours/that is mine.’
The miracle of feeding the 5,000 tells us that God wants hungry people fed. There is
no need that is of little concern to God. But the miracle (because it is also a "sign")
begins to teach us that God wants more than stomachs filled, that it’s about
relationships.
Which brings me back to the service on Wednesday and our friends from Rose Hill.
It’s so easy for me to sound pious and think t myself, “Ahh, this is such a nice thing
we’re doing; they are, as Jesus said, the least of these.’ But it doesn’t take long
before I realize, I’m the least of these, I’m the one who is being helped. I need those
6 people from Rose Hill just like I need food and water. A miracle happens here
each Wednesday.
The definition of a sacrament is an outward and visible sign of an inward and
spiritual grace. In other words, water is just water, but somehow God gets involved
and it becomes the waters of baptism. Bread is bread and the wine is still wine; but
that’s just it, God takes the plain, ordinary, average, and often times insignificant
things of this world and makes them holy. In the incarnation, God took on all of our
suffering, our joy and pain, our laughter and tears and consecrated it to become
holy. In fact, we can safely say that through Jesus Christ, all of life is sacrament:
the carefree play of a child, laughing hysterically with a friend, holding the hand of
our spouse, having a vestry meeting (but don’t hold me to that). God has gotten
into the guts of human life and sanctified every wonderful awful part of it.
I want to show you an outward and visible sign of God’s inward and spiritual grace.
This is a rug that a man named Monty made. Monty lives at Rose Hill and comes to
the Wednesday service. He makes these rugs out of ordinary yarn and tries to sell
them to make some spending money. He brought this in 2 weeks ago. Monty was
beaming with pride and so excited to show me what he had made. As you can see,
there’s nothing very remarkable about it. As I complimented him about the rug, how
I thought it was so beautiful and well made; but I was really describing him, how
beautiful he was and his five loaves and two fish – if you will – would feed 5,000.
Last Wednesday we blessed his rug and we will now place it in front of the altar as
a sacrament: an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace.
Every Sunday we come to this table expecting a miracle. The Lord Jesus asks us
the same question, “Where will we find enough bread for so many?” Where will we
find the resources to accomplish the mission of the church with so little? How can
we, little old Calvary, change the world when there are so many of them and so few
of us? One of Jesus’ disciples said, “There is a woman who loves to garden, she’s
willing to grow fruit and vegetables to distribute them to the poor of our
community. There’s a retired school teacher who is willing to tutor kids after
school. There’s a girl who wants to collect recyclables in order to save the
environment. There’s a mom who wants to teach Sunday School, there’s a
business man who is willing to help out with the finances of the church, there’s a
woman who loves to sew has offered to make vestments…” Then Jesus took the
gifts of the people of Calvary, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them
throughout the world, and all were satisfied.
The justice of God is found here at the table. It is there that God provides the bread,
God himself. It is there that God provides drink, his own blood. The meal we share
each week is the shadow of death and the miracle of life, a heavenly banquet in the
middle of the desert, and above all, resurrection.
bread and 2 fish to feed half the seating capacity of the Spectrum. However, it’s in
John’s gospel that the miracle takes place at Passover: the highest of holy days
which celebrates God’s deliverance of Israel out of slavery in Egypt and their
experience of 40 years wandering in the desert. See, not only did God save the
children of Israel by parting the waters of the Red Sea but provided manna when
there wasn’t anything to eat and water from a rock when there wasn’t anything to
drink. John wants to drive home the connection of the Exodus experience and the
miracle of feeding the 5,000: It is God who saves. It is God who feeds, and a meal is
God’s sign of justice and mercy. In God’s economy all are welcome to the table to
buy food and drink without money or cost; that being rich or poor, white or black,
or Christian or Jewish or Muslim God provides for all. For Christians, the Eucharist
is the embodiment of God’s obscene just-ness as no respecter of persons.
I’ve experienced this truth for the last three Wednesdays at the 10AM Eucharist. For
the most part, it’s a normal rite II Eucharistic service where somewhere around 15
to 20 gather and stay for coffee afterwards. But what has made this such a unique
service are the 6 or so who come from Rose Hill – a group home for mentally
challenged adults. Ellie Evans plays the organ and we sing songs like Jesus Loves
Me. If anything, it’s worth coming to see Sally Burkham lead us in Rise and Shine
and Give God the glory glory. Any awkwardness and pretense on our part is
quickly evaporates into joy as we worship with our friends from Rose Hill.
The lectionary joins John’s miracle with Elisha’s miracle feeding. A "boy" plays an
important part, loaves of bread are served, and the same beginning question:
"How can we serve so many with so little?" There is also the same conclusion: All
ate to their fill and still there was food left over. In John’s Gospel Jesus begins with
the question, "Where are we to buy bread?" Philip answers: Half-a-year’s salary
wouldn’t be enough. A boy is found carrying five barley loaves and two fish. Jesus
gives thanks and asks God’s blessing over the little bit that’s there. Jesus has the
disciples distribute the food and, miraculously, all have plenty to eat.
“Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat?” Jesus asks Calvary the
question, "Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat? Do we believe God
will provide what we need?" …what we need, not what we want, what God wants,
and not necessarily the ministry we’ve planned. Another way to ask the question:
Do we operate according to a mind-set of abundance or of scarcity? Are we about
mission; reaching people right where they are just as they are; or are we about the
maintenance of the status quo. Abundance engenders generosity and hope;
scarcity brings anxiety and competition. Abundance is about community and
relationships where scarcity embodies isolation, ‘this is yours/that is mine.’
The miracle of feeding the 5,000 tells us that God wants hungry people fed. There is
no need that is of little concern to God. But the miracle (because it is also a "sign")
begins to teach us that God wants more than stomachs filled, that it’s about
relationships.
Which brings me back to the service on Wednesday and our friends from Rose Hill.
It’s so easy for me to sound pious and think t myself, “Ahh, this is such a nice thing
we’re doing; they are, as Jesus said, the least of these.’ But it doesn’t take long
before I realize, I’m the least of these, I’m the one who is being helped. I need those
6 people from Rose Hill just like I need food and water. A miracle happens here
each Wednesday.
The definition of a sacrament is an outward and visible sign of an inward and
spiritual grace. In other words, water is just water, but somehow God gets involved
and it becomes the waters of baptism. Bread is bread and the wine is still wine; but
that’s just it, God takes the plain, ordinary, average, and often times insignificant
things of this world and makes them holy. In the incarnation, God took on all of our
suffering, our joy and pain, our laughter and tears and consecrated it to become
holy. In fact, we can safely say that through Jesus Christ, all of life is sacrament:
the carefree play of a child, laughing hysterically with a friend, holding the hand of
our spouse, having a vestry meeting (but don’t hold me to that). God has gotten
into the guts of human life and sanctified every wonderful awful part of it.
I want to show you an outward and visible sign of God’s inward and spiritual grace.
This is a rug that a man named Monty made. Monty lives at Rose Hill and comes to
the Wednesday service. He makes these rugs out of ordinary yarn and tries to sell
them to make some spending money. He brought this in 2 weeks ago. Monty was
beaming with pride and so excited to show me what he had made. As you can see,
there’s nothing very remarkable about it. As I complimented him about the rug, how
I thought it was so beautiful and well made; but I was really describing him, how
beautiful he was and his five loaves and two fish – if you will – would feed 5,000.
Last Wednesday we blessed his rug and we will now place it in front of the altar as
a sacrament: an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace.
Every Sunday we come to this table expecting a miracle. The Lord Jesus asks us
the same question, “Where will we find enough bread for so many?” Where will we
find the resources to accomplish the mission of the church with so little? How can
we, little old Calvary, change the world when there are so many of them and so few
of us? One of Jesus’ disciples said, “There is a woman who loves to garden, she’s
willing to grow fruit and vegetables to distribute them to the poor of our
community. There’s a retired school teacher who is willing to tutor kids after
school. There’s a girl who wants to collect recyclables in order to save the
environment. There’s a mom who wants to teach Sunday School, there’s a
business man who is willing to help out with the finances of the church, there’s a
woman who loves to sew has offered to make vestments…” Then Jesus took the
gifts of the people of Calvary, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them
throughout the world, and all were satisfied.
The justice of God is found here at the table. It is there that God provides the bread,
God himself. It is there that God provides drink, his own blood. The meal we share
each week is the shadow of death and the miracle of life, a heavenly banquet in the
middle of the desert, and above all, resurrection.
