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| SERMON 17th Sunday of Pentecost September 27, 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 |
| Esther 7:1-6, 9-10; 9:20-22 Psalm 124 or Numbers 11:4-6, 10-16, 24-29 Psalm 19:7-14 James 5:13-20 Mark 9:38-50 |
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 |
How many of us have heard someone say their reason for not attending church is
because it’s full of hypocrites? Non-church types say that there is nothing to the
religion business except business. And, for the most part, I would have to agree;
but not completely. Just as Riddle Hospital collects sick people under one roof and
labels them as such, the church collects sinners: hypocrites, liars, gossips, aren’t
at Riddle but are every bit as sick as the ones inside, but their illnesses are either
undiagnosed or hidden really well. It is the exact same with sinners outside these
walls. So churches are not, as such, model communities of good behavior. They
are, rather, places where hypocrites, liars, gossips, and complainers are welcomed,
loved, confronted, and dealt with.
Pastors are no different than their parishioners. Like the people he or she serves,
pastors are also hypocrites, liars, gossips and complainers. We’ve seen countless
examples of bad behavior from pastors, priests, and television evangelists. Thus
pastors, priests, and tele-evangelists aren’t, as such, good examples of godly living
either. With all these bad examples to the rest of the world, who in their right mind
would ever want to be a Christian?
“Any among you who are suffering? They should pray. Are any cheerful? They
should sing songs of praise. Are any of you sick? They should call for the elders of
the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of
the Lord. Anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven. Confess your sins to
one another. Pray for one another, so that you yourself may be healed.”
Confession. Intercession. Healing.
The letter of James shows one of the church’s early pastors going about caring for
his flock. Confronting and dealing with difficult situations, this pastor seeks to
bring peace to his congregation – a congregation full of broken and restless
people. It helps to look closely at the scripture for today and begin by asking: Why
was this written? Some within this congregation weren’t all that honest. There’re
some who were really suffering. There were some who had hit bottom full of
despair. Some had been hurt by others within the congregation. And there were
some who were in big trouble. Sin. Trouble. Sickness. You don't need confession,
intercession and healing unless there is sin, trouble, sickness.
What we have at Calvary is an ideal Christian community. It’s true, that whenever
two or three of us gather together in Jesus’ name that he is indeed among us.
However, we can also say that whenever two or three or more of us come together
there is also there will be sin and trouble and sickness. There will be gossip and
pride. There will be someone that’s gotten themselves in trouble. There will be
things that won’t be done with honesty and integrity. There will be disease.
James writes to his congregation and to us at Calvary to see our sin and trouble
and sickness in a new way, as occasions for God's gifts, and these gifts are
confession, intercession, and healing.
"Confess your sins to one another." We are sinners. This is our human condition.
Sometimes we sin against someone else by what we say or what we think or what
we do. You and I share this in common. We are all sinners. There is only one way
beyond our sin, and that is confession. I John says, "If we confess our sins, the
Lord is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all
unrighteousness." Confession is naming what we’ve done wrong, before
someone else, then claiming forgiveness as a reality.
Intercession is praying for others. If you have ever known that others are praying
for you, you will know how powerful this is. Intercession is thinking of something
or someone in the presence of God. Interceding for others is taking the worry,
heartbreak, and fear into the presence of God on behalf of someone else.
I remember visiting a woman living in a nursing home from my previous parish.
Each time I would visit her, as I prepared to leave, she would say, "I want you to
know that I pray for you and that I pray for the church, every day. Is there someone
else I can pray for?" She could no longer be physically active or even present in
the church. There were many things she could no longer do. But she could pray
for others.
I understand the bad reputation healing has acquired in our time. The hucksters
who prey on the weak...the gimmicks of those who want to profit at the expense of
the desperate...the healing, in front of television cameras that seems to be so
foreign from the Jesus we read in the gospels who’d say, "Go in peace...your faith
has made you well...don't tell anyone about this!"
In my reading of the gospels something has become clear: Jesus came among us
to do three things--to teach, to preach, to heal. In my first year of ordained ministry
I was always more comfortable with teaching...I liked seminary, I liked intellectual
questions. The preaching part was ok and I needed to work at it. The healing, I
didn’t have a clue. However, over time I’ve learned that it’s not possible to take the
teaching and preaching portions of the Gospels and dispose of the stories of
healing. They are woven together: Jesus said that he was the light of the world
because he had healed the man who had been born blind. Jesus said that he was
the resurrection and the life because he had raised Lazarus from the dead.
And so Jesus instructed his disciples to be teachers, preachers, healers. And he
calls us in his name to be "wounded healers,” broken and restless people teaching
and preaching and healing other broken and restless people. Healing isn’t magic...
It doesn’t replace medicine...It isn’t the same as curing...That is a mystery. It’s
about relationships: Our relationship to each other. Our relationship with God.
Yes, we’re all hypocrites. And of course, we’re just as rotten, as broken, and as
restless as everyone else. But, we’re called by Jesus to live in acknowledgement of
just how broken and restless we are and that God loves us despite us.
Who among you are suffering? Then pray. Who among you feel great
and have the world on a string? Give God thanks and praise. Who
among you are sick? Then together, we’ll call for the elders of the
church and we’ll pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of
Jesus. The prayer of faith will save and the Lord will raise you up. Who
among you have hurt your sister or brother? If anyone has done wrong,
they will be forgiven. Confess your sins to one another. Pray for each
other. Pray for one another so that you yourself may know peace and be
healed.
because it’s full of hypocrites? Non-church types say that there is nothing to the
religion business except business. And, for the most part, I would have to agree;
but not completely. Just as Riddle Hospital collects sick people under one roof and
labels them as such, the church collects sinners: hypocrites, liars, gossips, aren’t
at Riddle but are every bit as sick as the ones inside, but their illnesses are either
undiagnosed or hidden really well. It is the exact same with sinners outside these
walls. So churches are not, as such, model communities of good behavior. They
are, rather, places where hypocrites, liars, gossips, and complainers are welcomed,
loved, confronted, and dealt with.
Pastors are no different than their parishioners. Like the people he or she serves,
pastors are also hypocrites, liars, gossips and complainers. We’ve seen countless
examples of bad behavior from pastors, priests, and television evangelists. Thus
pastors, priests, and tele-evangelists aren’t, as such, good examples of godly living
either. With all these bad examples to the rest of the world, who in their right mind
would ever want to be a Christian?
“Any among you who are suffering? They should pray. Are any cheerful? They
should sing songs of praise. Are any of you sick? They should call for the elders of
the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of
the Lord. Anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven. Confess your sins to
one another. Pray for one another, so that you yourself may be healed.”
Confession. Intercession. Healing.
The letter of James shows one of the church’s early pastors going about caring for
his flock. Confronting and dealing with difficult situations, this pastor seeks to
bring peace to his congregation – a congregation full of broken and restless
people. It helps to look closely at the scripture for today and begin by asking: Why
was this written? Some within this congregation weren’t all that honest. There’re
some who were really suffering. There were some who had hit bottom full of
despair. Some had been hurt by others within the congregation. And there were
some who were in big trouble. Sin. Trouble. Sickness. You don't need confession,
intercession and healing unless there is sin, trouble, sickness.
What we have at Calvary is an ideal Christian community. It’s true, that whenever
two or three of us gather together in Jesus’ name that he is indeed among us.
However, we can also say that whenever two or three or more of us come together
there is also there will be sin and trouble and sickness. There will be gossip and
pride. There will be someone that’s gotten themselves in trouble. There will be
things that won’t be done with honesty and integrity. There will be disease.
James writes to his congregation and to us at Calvary to see our sin and trouble
and sickness in a new way, as occasions for God's gifts, and these gifts are
confession, intercession, and healing.
"Confess your sins to one another." We are sinners. This is our human condition.
Sometimes we sin against someone else by what we say or what we think or what
we do. You and I share this in common. We are all sinners. There is only one way
beyond our sin, and that is confession. I John says, "If we confess our sins, the
Lord is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all
unrighteousness." Confession is naming what we’ve done wrong, before
someone else, then claiming forgiveness as a reality.
Intercession is praying for others. If you have ever known that others are praying
for you, you will know how powerful this is. Intercession is thinking of something
or someone in the presence of God. Interceding for others is taking the worry,
heartbreak, and fear into the presence of God on behalf of someone else.
I remember visiting a woman living in a nursing home from my previous parish.
Each time I would visit her, as I prepared to leave, she would say, "I want you to
know that I pray for you and that I pray for the church, every day. Is there someone
else I can pray for?" She could no longer be physically active or even present in
the church. There were many things she could no longer do. But she could pray
for others.
I understand the bad reputation healing has acquired in our time. The hucksters
who prey on the weak...the gimmicks of those who want to profit at the expense of
the desperate...the healing, in front of television cameras that seems to be so
foreign from the Jesus we read in the gospels who’d say, "Go in peace...your faith
has made you well...don't tell anyone about this!"
In my reading of the gospels something has become clear: Jesus came among us
to do three things--to teach, to preach, to heal. In my first year of ordained ministry
I was always more comfortable with teaching...I liked seminary, I liked intellectual
questions. The preaching part was ok and I needed to work at it. The healing, I
didn’t have a clue. However, over time I’ve learned that it’s not possible to take the
teaching and preaching portions of the Gospels and dispose of the stories of
healing. They are woven together: Jesus said that he was the light of the world
because he had healed the man who had been born blind. Jesus said that he was
the resurrection and the life because he had raised Lazarus from the dead.
And so Jesus instructed his disciples to be teachers, preachers, healers. And he
calls us in his name to be "wounded healers,” broken and restless people teaching
and preaching and healing other broken and restless people. Healing isn’t magic...
It doesn’t replace medicine...It isn’t the same as curing...That is a mystery. It’s
about relationships: Our relationship to each other. Our relationship with God.
Yes, we’re all hypocrites. And of course, we’re just as rotten, as broken, and as
restless as everyone else. But, we’re called by Jesus to live in acknowledgement of
just how broken and restless we are and that God loves us despite us.
Who among you are suffering? Then pray. Who among you feel great
and have the world on a string? Give God thanks and praise. Who
among you are sick? Then together, we’ll call for the elders of the
church and we’ll pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of
Jesus. The prayer of faith will save and the Lord will raise you up. Who
among you have hurt your sister or brother? If anyone has done wrong,
they will be forgiven. Confess your sins to one another. Pray for each
other. Pray for one another so that you yourself may know peace and be
healed.
