Reading: Luke 19:28-40 To understand the Palm Sunday reading, you have to read the Parable of the Ten Minas (Luke 19:11-27), which does not appear in the lectionary and is rarely preached, if at all. Yet, Luke wants us to read it alongside the Palm Sunday story. It is interesting to note that Luke did not write in chapters and verses nor put titles in front of each of the sections or pericopes, as we call them. The entrance into Jerusalem was not as triumphant as we would like to believe. In Luke, there are no palms and, interestingly, no soldiers. In such a high-charged festival with so many people chanting “Hosanna”, it seems inconceivable that there were no soldiers, yet the only people trying to quell the disturbance were the Pharisees. Luke 19:11-27 11 While they were listening to this, he went on to tell them a parable, because he was near Jerusalem and the people thought that the kingdom of God was going to appear at once. 12 He said: “A man of noble birth went to a distant country to have himself appointed king and then to return. 13 So he called ten of his servants and gave them ten minas. ‘Put this money to work,’ he said, ‘until I come back.’ 14 “But his subjects hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, ‘We don’t want this man to be our king.’ 15 “He was made king, however, and returned home. Then he sent for the servants to whom he had given the money, in order to find out what they had gained with it. 16 “The first one came and said, ‘Sir, your mina has earned ten more.’ 17 “‘Well done, my good servant!’ his master replied. ‘Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of ten cities.’ 18 “The second came and said, ‘Sir, your mina has earned five more.’ 19 “His master answered, ‘You take charge of five cities.’ 20 “Then another servant came and said, ‘Sir, here is your mina; I have kept it laid away in a piece of cloth. 21 I was afraid of you, because you are a hard man. You take out what you did not put in and reap what you did not sow.’ 22 “His master replied, ‘I will judge you by your own words, you wicked servant! You knew, did you, that I am a hard man, taking out what I did not put in, and reaping what I did not sow? 23 Why then didn’t you put my money on deposit, so that when I came back, I could have collected it with interest?’ 24 “Then he said to those standing by, ‘Take his mina away from him and give it to the one who has ten minas.’ 25 “‘Sir,’ they said, ‘he already has ten!’ 26 “He replied, ‘I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but as for the one who has nothing, even what they have will be taken away. 27 But those enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them—bring them here and kill them in front of me.’” The Parable of the Ten Minas seems harsh. Ten servants were each given a mina, the equivalent of three months' wages, and asked to increase their value. The crowd expected that very soon they were going to see the kingdom of God, but Jesus told this parable to lower their expectations. The nobleman in the parable is going away, during which time there will be opportunities for those who follow him, yet others will go by the wayside. The nobleman will come back, and when he does, there will be severe judgement. So, that is the setting or our Palm Sunday story. More background to help us with today’s reading comes from the prophet Zechariah, prophesying around 520 years before Christ was born. In Zechariah 9:9, he wrote, "Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey." Also, in the Apocrypha, 1 Maccabees 13:51, written around 100 years before Christ, gives an example of a celebration. The temple had been regained by Simon, and the Jews celebrate by entering Jerusalem “singing hymns of praise and thanksgiving, while carrying palm branches and playing harps, cymbals, and lyres.” If Luke wanted to convey a picture of rejoicing and celebration, he could have used these two reference points. The concept of cloaks being put on the ground comes from the second book of Kings 9:13 when Jehu receives homage from the crowd by taking cloaks off and laying them on the road. It was Jehu, a great warrior, who was set the task of killing Jezebel, but the dogs got there first. The final piece of information we need to help us understand this story is the role of the donkey. A colt is either an uncastrated donkey, horse, ass, or mule under the age of four. Donkeys have always been symbolic in the Bible, whether it be Abraham taking Isaac up a mountain, Moses from Midian to confront Pharaoh, King Solomon (1 Kings 1:32-37) riding to his coronation on a donkey, or Mary and Joseph on a donkey going to Bethlehem. There is also a donkey and the ox in our traditional Nativities, taken from Isaiah 1:2-3. Donkeys have a reputation for stubbornness but are also intelligent. I recently read that there are 40 million donkeys in the world, 96% of which are in poorer countries. Their strength is harnessed for pumping water or grinding grain. I also learnt that as well as being stubborn and intelligent, donkeys have a great sense of self-interest. This is why people trust donkeys to go down very narrow paths without tripping and why people feel safe on them. A donkey would not do anything to harm itself. Donkeys also belong in herds, in which the strongest becomes the leader and protects the others from predators, even to the extent of risking their own life. So, the donkey has this wonderful sense of self-sacrifice, which makes it a remarkably symbolic animal to use in the Bible. Luke 19:28-40 28 After Jesus had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. 29 As he approached Bethphage and Bethany at the hill called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples, saying to them, 30 “Go to the village ahead of you, and as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. 31 If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ say, ‘The Lord needs it.’” 32 Those who were sent ahead went and found it just as he had told them. 33 As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, “Why are you untying the colt?” 34 They replied, “The Lord needs it.” 35 They brought it to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. 36 As he went along, people spread their cloaks on the road. 37 When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen: 38 “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” 39 Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!” 40 “I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.” The pericope begins with the phrase “After Jesus has said this,” and we have already looked into the importance of the nobleman’s ten servants and the warning he gave that he was going away and they should put this money to work. Some did, some did not. So, we have this lowering of expectations, telling the crowds that the Kingdom of God would not appear when Jesus rode into Jerusalem. While Jesus was at the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples to find a colt. If asked, they were to say, “The Lord needs it”. This suggests an amount of preplanning. Jesus must have arranged this with friends outside of His immediate circle of disciples. It indicates the network of Jesus’ followers, who we do not see or hear in the Gospels. It also suggests that this entry into Jerusalem on a colt is symbolic and is, in a way, playing down the expectations of the crowd. Following the example of Solomon in 1 Kings, the crowds joyfully sing from Psalm 118:26, “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” I read a commentary that suggests there were four types of people in this crowd and that we could potentially identify ourselves as one of these four groups. Are we the group that sees Jesus as a national liberator to free themselves of the oppressors, the Romans? Or are we part of the enthusiastic disciples that whip up the crowds, encouraging them to sing, yet have no idea of the implications of the events ahead? Or are we the Pharisees, who with good reason, do not like a fuss and do not like the status quo being disturbed, so are asking Jesus to calm it down? Or are we in the fourth group, which follows Jesus come what may, knowing the dangers but still continuing? Our reading finishes before Jesus enters Jerusalem, but if we read a few more verses, we note that he wept over Jerusalem. The word here for wept is likened to a baby crying, so Jesus was crying like a baby, weeping over Jerusalem. The verb used is far more intense than the famous “Jesus wept” in John 11:55. We never see Jesus’ grand entrance into Jerusalem in Luke’s account. Instead, the harshness of verse 44, “They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God’s coming to you,” echoes the ending of the Parable of the Ten Minas, where the enemies who did not want the nobleman ruling over them would be killed. There is a harshness to Luke’s story. There are no palms and no “Hosannas”. Whilst there is some rejoicing, Luke’s Palm Sunday is tempered and symbolic, asking us to choose who we follow. Some theologians said as Jesus entered Jerusalem with his entourage, so Pilate entered on his huge horse with noise and paraphernalia. They enter at the same time but through different gates, again giving us the choice of following the earthly king with all the trappings, or the heavenly Jesus, who willingly took this journey so that he could be sacrificed to give us a relationship with God, which will lead to eternal life and salvation. The choice is ours. This sermon was first preached at Gants Hill URC on 10th April 2022 by Rev'd Martin Wheadon
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Isaiah 53:4-12 Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. 5 But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. 6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. 7 He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. 8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away. Yet who of his generation protested? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was punished. 9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. 10 Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand. 11 After he has suffered, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities. 12 Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors. Isaiah was a prophet (740-681 BC) who lived during the fall of Israel in 722 BC. He and his contemporaries, Amos, Hosea and Micah gave warnings to the kings of Judah about the dangers of abandoning God and living a life that did not support the poorest and marginalised of the society. The Old Testament or Hebrew Bible, as we call it today, was the Bible of Jesus’s time, so Jesus would have read this reading, the last of four Servant Songs. Today, many sermons use this reading to support Jesus’ claim of being the Messiah. When the people of Israel first read or heard the word, they might not have interpreted it the same way. The people of Israel may have thought it referred to themselves. They were in exile and were thinking that they were the injured, that they were led like a lamb to the slaughter and that it was them who, like sheep, had gone astray and gone their own way. The people of Israel were trying to find meaning in their suffering, a suffering that had been instigated by God. They were lamenting and languishing in self-pity, but the beauty of this Isaiah reading is there is hope that through suffering will come redemption, joy and reward. Today, we look at our own sufferings. We may say, why me? Like the people of Israel, we need to reflect. Is God punishing us, or is our predicament down to our own life choices? Is suffering redemptive in any way? We too, just like the Israelites, have to make sense of our exile, for many will think that the suffering is because God has abandoned us. Yet, we know because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, there is always hope, and while the suffering may seem senseless, somehow God will bring good from it. God has the bigger picture, and whilst ego makes us feel that we should be the centre of God’s plan, perhaps our role is for others in years to come, maybe generations to come, to benefit through what we are suffering today. So, this reading allowed the people of Israel to reflect, as we should reflect. Through that reflection, know that there is hope. There will indeed be redemption, joy and reward, for God is a God of love as well as a God of Justice. This sermon was first preached at Gants Hill URC on 17th October 2021
Luke 12:16-31 (NIRV) 16 Then Jesus told them a story. He said, “A certain rich man’s land produced a very large crop. 17 He thought to himself, ‘What should I do? I don’t have any place to store my crops.’ 18 “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones. I will store my extra grain in them. 19 I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain stored away for many years. Take life easy. Eat, drink and have a good time.” ’ 20 “But God said to him, ‘You foolish man! Tonight I will take your life away from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ 21 “That is how it will be for whoever stores things away for themselves but is not rich in the sight of God.” 22 Then Jesus spoke to his disciples. He said, “I tell you, do not worry. Don’t worry about your life and what you will eat. And don’t worry about your body and what you will wear. 23 There is more to life than eating. There are more important things for the body than clothes. 24 Think about the ravens. They don’t plant or gather crops. They don’t have any barns at all. But God feeds them. You are worth much more than birds! 25 Can you add even one hour to your life by worrying? 26 You can’t do that very little thing. So why worry about the rest? 27 “Think about how the wild flowers grow. They don’t work or make clothing. But here is what I tell you. Not even Solomon in his royal robes was dressed like one of those flowers. 28 If that is how God dresses the wild grass, how much better will he dress you! After all, the grass is here only today. Tomorrow it is thrown into the fire. Your faith is so small! 29 Don’t spend time thinking about what you will eat or drink. Don’t worry about it. 30 People who are ungodly run after all those things. Your Father knows that you need them. 31 But put God’s kingdom first. Then those other things will also be given to you. A certain rich man’s land produced a very large crop. There is nothing to suggest he was a nasty man. There is nothing to suggest that he got his wealth through sinful behaviour. There is no backstory and no reason for anyone to think he may have got his money from robbing the poor etc. There is nothing to make us think anything badly of this man unless we read things into it. What this story does tell us, is this: all that we do can have no worth unless God blesses the deed. This passage is asking, who do you prioritise? Some versions call the rich man a foolish man because he is not putting God at the centre or thanking God for all the extra crop he is growing. Psalm 53 starts off by saying “Foolish people say in their hearts, ‘There is no God.’” This rich man is foolish because he thinks his success is down to him. He does not thank or worship God. He does not have an attitude of gratitude. He has not put God first, and that is why he is foolish. There is nothing wrong with creating wealth, it is what you do with it that matters. You can go out and earn money; there is no question that God wants us to prosper. There is no doubt that God wishes us to enjoy the riches of God’s creation. But the foolishness of this story is that the man does not think of giving any of his surplus crops away to those suffering around him. The second part of the reading is in many ways more self-explanatory. It reminds us not to worry, and that is really hard. I admit I am a bit of a worrier. I went to the theatre yesterday, which you probably think would have been a pleasant experience. I went to see Les Miserables, which in itself is the most dreadful, horrible story in the world, but the music is very good. So, what did I worry about? I worried if I would get there on time and I worried that I did not have the right COVID-19 double vaccination proof, but that all went well. I then got to my seat and I worried about where my arms were going to go, are they going to get in the way of the lady sharing the armrest next to me? Then I worried about who is going to sit in front of me. What if it is a 6ft 8 giant? Luckily, God blessed me with a 4ft 8 lady instead, who needed a booster seat! I worried I would not be able to hear, I worried I would cry because I cry quite easily. In the interval, I worried about getting ice cream. Am I going to get the right number of ice creams? As it happens, I got in the queue and the card machine was not working, so I had to join another queue! After the show, I worried about how I would get home. It was getting late and it was raining, was I going to get soaking wet? So, trust me, when you are a worrier, life is very hard, but Jesus tells me, do not worry, do not be anxious. I know how hard it is to have anxiety but if we have faith in God then our worries should at least be alleviated. Of course, if you do worry, that does not mean you do not have faith in God. What this reading is saying is allow God to help you, allow God to be with you in that anxiety and let him help you get through the worry. This sermon was first preached at Gants Hill URC on 3rd October 2021
Psalm 65 (NIRV) Our God, we look forward to praising you in Zion. We will keep our promises to you. 2 All people will come to you, because you hear and answer prayer. 3 When our sins became too much for us, you forgave our lawless acts. 4 Blessed are those you choose and bring near to worship you. You bring us into the courtyards of your holy temple. There in your house we are filled with all kinds of good things. 5 God our Savior, you answer us with right and wonderful deeds. People all over the world and beyond the farthest oceans put their hope in you. 6 You formed the mountains by your power. You showed how strong you are. 7 You calmed the oceans and their roaring waves. You calmed the angry words and actions of the nations. 8 Everyone on earth is amazed at the wonderful things you have done. What you do makes people from one end of the earth to the other sing for joy. 9 You take care of the land and water it. You make it able to grow many crops. You fill your streams with water. You do that to provide the people with grain. That’s what you have decided to do for the land. 10 You water its rows. You smooth out its bumps. You soften it with showers. And you bless its crops. 11 You bring the year to a close with huge crops. You provide more than enough food. 12 The grass grows thick even in the desert. The hills are dressed with gladness. 13 The meadows are covered with flocks and herds. The valleys are dressed with grain. They sing and shout for joy. Psalm 65 speaks of the abundance of God's love. Verse 7, about the calming of the oceans and the rolling of the waves, reminds us of Jesus in the boat with the storm, which He stilled after saying to the disciples, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” (Matthew 8:26) This showed the people of Israel that Jesus was God; He could still the storms, just as God does in this Psalm. This Psalm was written 1000 years before Jesus was born, traditionally by David. It reminds us in verse 3, “When our sins became too much for us, you forgave our lawless acts.” Some people find this hard to accept. It is sort of saying, no matter what you have done, no matter what evil you have done, as long as you repent and are sorry, then forgiveness can be yours. Yet, when it comes to forgiveness, some people are so entrenched in pain and wanting justice by way of revenge, that they cannot accept that God can forgive. It is vital you remember that you have to repent, you have to be sorry. In Theological College, we had to debate whether or not Jesus would have forgiven Judas. There were strong feelings either way, but in the end, it was decided that because Jesus was God - a God of love - even Judas would have been forgiven. So verse 3 reminds us, even though it is unpalatable, if there is the desire to repent, then they will be met by a God of forgiveness. Verses 6 - 13 are all about God’s abundance. “Everyone on earth is amazed at the wonderful things you have done.” Take a moment to think to yourself, how amazed are you about the wonderful things God has done? How has God developed you and made you the beautiful person that you are today? This sermon was first preached at Gants Hill URC on 3rd October 2021
Mark 8:27-38 Peter Declares That Jesus Is the Messiah 27 Jesus and his disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way he asked them, “Who do people say I am?” 28 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.” 29 “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Peter answered, “You are the Messiah.” 30 Jesus warned them not to tell anyone about him. Jesus Predicts His Death 31 He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again. 32 He spoke plainly about this, and Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33 But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter. “Get behind me, Satan!” he said. “You do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.” The Way of the Cross 34 Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 35 For whoever wants to save their life[a] will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it. 36 What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? 37 Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? 38 If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.” Last week, if you followed the lectionary, you would have heard the story of Jesus and the Syrophoenician woman who asked Jesus to heal her daughter. Jesus more or less says no, because He has come to help the Jews, not the Gentiles, which is very difficult for us to read and comprehend. This is not an all-loving Jesus; this is a rather harsh Jesus. He was rude to the woman, and He called her a dog. Jesus is fully human as well as fully divine. His human part is still developing, and He is still learning about and understanding his ministry. Jesus is only just realising that He is not just there for the Jews, He is there for everybody. Jesus only realised this after He had met the Syrophoenician woman and heard her response to His refusal to heal her daughter. So, He changed his mind and healed the girl. Jesus is being rude again in today’s reading. He is being rude to Peter, who has gone from hero to zero within two verses. The climax of Mark is Jesus asking, “Who do people say I am?” Who do we think Jesus is? Is He just a biblical figure and a great storyteller? Is He just a miracle worker, someone who can feed 5000 people with only a few loaves and fishes and raise people from the dead? How we respond to these questions changes our lives. If we only think that Jesus is a miracle worker, then so what? But if we believe Jesus is the Son of God, then that changes everything. In John 6:66, Jesus’s message was not liked, and many turned back and no longer followed him. In the next two verses, Jesus asks his disciples, “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Peter responds, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.” Peter is saying that Jesus is the Messiah, the person sent by God to save us. Jesus may not be who they expected, for instance, a warrior with a mighty army. Other people claiming to be the Messiah had appeared in this way, but they had failed. Jesus was pleased with Peter’s answer but, as we see in Mark, His attitude quickly changes. He tells Peter to shut up and “Get behind me, Satan!” Once again, Jesus is coming across as a bit rude. What Jesus was trying to tell Peter was, despite knowing Jesus was the Messiah, Peter was wrong to rebuke Jesus for talking about his upcoming death. Jesus is saying Peter’s thoughts did not come from God, but man. Peter was right about Jesus being the Messiah, and he was right to follow Jesus, but Jesus is making him aware of what will happen to his followers. They will lose their lives. Bartholomew, also known as Nathaniel, was skinned alive in Armenia. James the Less, the first Bishop of Jerusalem, had his head bashed in. Andrew was crucified in Greece. Judas Iscariot, as we know, hanged himself. Peter was crucified upside down by Emperor Nero. Thomas was stabbed by a spear in India. James the Great was beheaded by Herod Agrippa. Philip was tortured and hung up to die. Matthew was staked to the ground in Ethiopia. Jude, also known as Thaddeus, was crucified in Turkey. Simon was crucified and sawn in half. Even Matthias, who replaced Judas, was beheaded. The only disciple that we believe died from old age was John, the author of the Book of Revelation. The disciples went to horrible deaths, and that would not have happened if they did not know Jesus was the Messiah. Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote a famous book called The Cost of Discipleship (1937). He says the reason Christianity is suffering is because people go for cheap grace. People think by saying that Jesus is their Lord and Saviour, they will be alright. These same people never put their beliefs into action and speak up for Jesus. But as Bonhoeffer, James and Mark say, people should show their faith through their actions. If you want your faith to show, then it has to be full of good works. It is not a cheap grace; we have to suffer for our God. Jesus is telling His disciples that they will suffer, but your soul will also be saved. As always, it is our choice. God does not let people into heaven who do not want to be there. The only people who will get to heaven are the people that want to be there. To want to be there is to love God and to love God is to show it. This sermon was first preached at Gants Hill URC on 12th September 2021
James 3:1-12 Taming the Tongue 3 Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. 2 We all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check. 3 When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. 4 Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. 5 Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. 6 The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. 7 All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, 8 but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9 With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. 10 Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. 11 Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? 12 My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water. I have found some interesting facts about the tongue:
How do we use our tongue? It is important to remember that everything can be used for both good and bad. A knife, for example, can be used as a tool, but it can also be used as a weapon. Nuclear atomic energy is a clean form of energy, but it can also be used as a weapon of mass destruction. The same applies to the tongue; we too can cause enormous devastation. A man came up to me and said, “Martin, you remind me of a computer.” I thought, wow, is that because I am quick, can solve most things and retain information? He said, “No. As you get older, you lose your memory, you become outdated, you crash unexpectedly, and eventually have to have your parts replaced.” Rude! So, with our tongue, we can uplift, or we can vilify. At a football match, there is chanting from the spectators. This chanting can uplift, and players have said there is nothing better than hearing their names being sung. Yet, the chanting often becomes quite nasty against the opposing team. We can control the tongue. We can control what we say and what we do. The reading in James is reminding us that there will be a judgement day. What we say and how it is received is very important. James is warning us to be careful. There is a little mnemonic, which is quite useful: THINK. Before you speak, you have to think: Is it True? Is it Helpful? Is it Inspiring? Is it Necessary? Is it Kind? Before you speak, THINK, and if your words fit that criterion, then go ahead and speak. This Sermon was first preached at Gants Hill URC on 12th September 2021
Mark 7:24-37 Jesus Honours a Syrophoenician Woman’s Faith 24 Jesus left that place and went to the vicinity of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know it; yet he could not keep his presence secret. 25 In fact, as soon as she heard about him, a woman whose little daughter was possessed by an impure spirit came and fell at his feet. 26 The woman was a Greek, born in Syrian Phoenicia. She begged Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter. 27 “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 the dogs.” 28 “Lord,” she replied, “even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” 29 Then he told her, “For such a reply, you may go; the demon has left your daughter.” 30 She went home and found her child lying on the bed, and the demon gone. Jesus Heals a Deaf and Mute Man 31 Then Jesus left the vicinity of Tyre and went through Sidon, down to the Sea of Galilee and into the region of the Decapolis. 32 There some people brought to him a man who was deaf and could hardly talk, and they begged Jesus to place his hand on him. 33 After he took him aside, away from the crowd, Jesus put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then he spit and touched the man’s tongue. 34 He looked up to heaven and with a deep sigh said to him, “Ephphatha!” (which means “Be opened!”). 35 At this, the man’s ears were opened, his tongue was loosened and he began to speak plainly. 36 Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone. But the more he did so, the more they kept talking about it. 37 People were overwhelmed with amazement. “He has done everything well,” they said. “He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.” Jesus wants some peace and quiet and has been wanting it for ages. He is travelling to the land of the Gentiles and is desperate for some quiet so that he can gather his thoughts. Yet, he does not get it because he is approached by a woman whose daughter has an unclean spirit. Despite being a Gentile, the woman knows about Jesus and follows Him. Before I became a minister 20 years ago, another minister called Alwyn Knight preached on Mark 7, and I remember one of the things he said. Jesus said to the Gentile woman, who according to tradition is called Justa, whose daughter is called Berenice, “First let the children eat all they want, for it is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.” Many theologians and preachers have trouble with this verse. What Jesus said comes across as very harsh and horrible. He has called the woman a dog, which is not something you expect from the Son of God. But Alwyn Knight pointed out, this verse is not showing us the twinkle that Jesus had in his eye. He claimed this was a bit of banter between Jesus and the woman. Yet, most commentaries say that Jesus meant what He said. He was calling the woman a dog, and that is difficult for us to get our heads around. Why would Jesus call this woman a dog? But the woman gets the better of Him by saying, “even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.” Jesus appreciates this remark and tells her that for saying that, the demon has left her daughter. She went home, found her child lying on the bed and the demon gone. What does this passage mean? I would like to share the first joke I used when I began preaching as a lay preacher about 23 years ago. A man wishes to go to a nightclub, but the bouncer stops him and tells the man he cannot come in. “Why’s that?” asks the man. The bouncer informs him that only people wearing ties can enter the club. The man asks what constitutes a tie, and the bouncer tells him it is something long and thin tied around the neck. So, the man goes away and finds a set of jump leads, which he ties around his neck. When he returns to the club, the bouncer says, “You cannot come in because you do not have a tie.” But the man says he has and indicates the leads tied around his neck. The bouncer sighs and says, “Okay, you can come in, but don’t you start anything!” Now, how does this joke relate to the Gospel reading? I think what Jesus is doing is showing humanity. We have this idea that Jesus is fully human and fully divine. If He is fully human, then Jesus has to have some human foibles. In this passage in Mark, Jesus is showing his human side and that, perhaps, He did not recognise the full extent of his ministry. Has this woman, this Gentile woman, made Jesus realise that He has also been sent as a Saviour to the Gentiles? I believe this passage shows us Jesus’s human side. He was rude, and somehow we need to process that, but it did prompt Jesus to rethink. Had His ears been opened to the wider ministry of the Gentiles, rather than sticking to the Jews? We believe the second miracle in Mark 3 also involved a Gentile. Does the passage make Jesus realise He is not just serving the people of Israel but that His mission is worldwide? Did this Gentile woman make Jesus change His mind about helping the Gentiles? There was only one time before this where Jesus changed His mind; that was about changing water into wine at a wedding in Cana (John 2). Should theologians, preachers and all Christians consider Mark 7 as the moment when Jesus realised that His ministry is worldwide, and that there are no boundaries about hearing the word of God, that His ministry is for all people? So, think about it. Was this the beginning of Jesus’s wider ministry? This Sermon was first preached at Wanstead URC on 5th September 2021
JAMES 2:1-17 Favoritism Forbidden 2 My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism. 2 Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in. 3 If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here’s a good seat for you,” but say to the poor man, “You stand there” or “Sit on the floor by my feet,” 4 have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? 5 Listen, my dear brothers and sisters: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? 6 But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court? 7 Are they not the ones who are blaspheming the noble name of him to whom you belong? 8 If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,”[a] you are doing right. 9 But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. 10 For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. 11 For he who said, “You shall not commit adultery,”[b] also said, “You shall not murder.”[c] If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker. 12 Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, 13 because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment. Faith and Deeds 14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? 15 Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. 16 If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? 17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. The Book of James was written in AD 49, 16 years after the death of Jesus, but we do not know who wrote this particular book. Tradition says it is James, the brother of Jesus. He was later known as James the Just, and he led the council in Jerusalem. For the sake of this reading, we are going to assume the author was Jesus’ half-brother. His half-brother Jude also wrote a book in the New Testament, and the interesting thing is neither James nor Jude were followers of Jesus while he was alive. We can assume the brothers converted after the resurrection when they realised their half-brother was the son of God. There are 59 imperatives in the Book of James: 59 things you should do. These are instructions on how to live your life, which is why James is considered a book of Wisdom rather than an epistle. It tells us we should not have favourites and not assume things because of someone’s appearance. Faith is not like that. Faith is a commitment and about doing what is right. Faith is making sure your actions are selfless rather than selfish. Martin Luther and other religious speakers liked the Book of James because it is a reminder that salvation comes from knowing Jesus Christ. We do not get into Heaven by doing good things. God is not looking down on us, giving us points for our actions. It is not a case of getting 100 points before being allowed into Heaven; we are allowed in because we believe Jesus Christ is our Saviour. It is because we believe in Jesus Christ that we do good things. This Sermon was first preached at Wanstead URC on 5th September 2021
This continues on from the Plumb Lines sermon. Reading: Mark 6:14-29 New International Version 14 King Herod heard about this, for Jesus’ name had become well known. Some were saying, “John the Baptist has been raised from the dead, and that is why miraculous powers are at work in him.” 15 Others said, “He is Elijah.” And still others claimed, “He is a prophet, like one of the prophets of long ago.” 16 But when Herod heard this, he said, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised from the dead!” 17 For Herod himself had given orders to have John arrested, and he had him bound and put in prison. He did this because of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, whom he had married. 18 For John had been saying to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” 19 So Herodias nursed a grudge against John and wanted to kill him. But she was not able to, 20 because Herod feared John and protected him, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man. When Herod heard John, he was greatly puzzled; yet he liked to listen to him. 21 Finally the opportune time came. On his birthday Herod gave a banquet for his high officials and military commanders and the leading men of Galilee. 22 When the daughter of Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his dinner guests. The king said to the girl, “Ask me for anything you want, and I’ll give it to you.” 23 And he promised her with an oath, “Whatever you ask I will give you, up to half my kingdom.” 24 She went out and said to her mother, “What shall I ask for?” “The head of John the Baptist,” she answered. 25 At once the girl hurried in to the king with the request: “I want you to give me right now the head of John the Baptist on a platter.” 26 The king was greatly distressed, but because of his oaths and his dinner guests, he did not want to refuse her. 27 So he immediately sent an executioner with orders to bring John’s head. The man went, beheaded John in the prison, 28 and brought back his head on a platter. He presented it to the girl, and she gave it to her mother. 29 On hearing of this, John’s disciples came and took his body and laid it in a tomb. There are three Herods in the Bible, and they all get confused with one another. The first Herod was Herod the Great. He is the Herod who was around at the Nativity of Christ. Herod the Great got his power from Emperor Augustus. He was a builder and built many great things, but he was evil. He had, we believe, nine wives and many concubines, but then when someone has as much power as Herod the Great, they can do anything. Israel was ruled by the Romans, so Herod had to be friends with Augustus, who gave him the kingship. Herod Antipas was never king but he is the Herod in this story from Mark. He was full of ambition, paranoia and took after his father, Herod the Great. His father killed three of his sons, one of his wives, and his brother. He was just ruthless because he believed they were taking power from him. Interestingly enough, Herodias, the wife of Antipas, was the granddaughter of Herod the Great, who had killed her mother. Herodias was used to living in a situation where family members were killed and I wonder whether or not that in some way influences her behaviour. The third Herod, who we hear about in Acts, is Herod Agrippa who kills James. There are stacks of things that we can learn by reading this passage in Mark 6. All the time, the Bible is teaching us and trying to make us better people. When we read this passage, remember that Herod was not a real King. He never actually had the title King. This passage is the longest passage within the Gospel that does not have Jesus as its central point. So, why does Mark include it? Instead of Jesus, it relates to John the Baptist, but it must have been very important for Mark. A lot of history confirms much of what Mark says. The main author is Josephus (Joseph Ben Mathias), a Jewish historian who records these events outside of the Bible. Josephus tells us that Herod murdered John the Baptist. There is no mention of Herodias or Salome, who the Bible does not name but Josephus does, actually having anything to do with the murder of John the Baptist. But Mark is of a different opinion and Herod, whilst a bad man does not come out of it too badly. Mark has put the total blame onto the women. Mark is not anti-women, and we have had two powerful women in Mark 5 and 7 to prove this, but in this story, whilst Herod’s pride destroys things, he does not come over as being a very, very bad person. And this is where the plumb line in Amos 7 comes in. God's plumb line probably says Herod is bad, whereas other people may disagree. John is imprisoned in the same place as Herod’s banquet. At the banquet, the women are on one side and the men are on the other. This is a bit like the 18th and 19th century where the men withdraw to drink port and the girls and the women talk about knitting patterns or whatever affairs they are interested in. So, we have this separation at this banquet. Herod sat with the people he wanted to impress, and how Herod impressed people was by having risque parties while the women were somewhere else. To impress his court, Herod asked a young woman, who Josephus names Salome, to do a dance. She danced to seduce the men, and she was probably only 12 or 13 years old. So pleased was Herod with her performance, he offered the girl anything she wanted. He even offered half his kingdom, which was not his to give as he was not actually a king. The girl, who was Herodias’ daughter, asked her mother what she should request. Herodias really hated John the Baptist, because he told everybody that her relationship with Herod was wrong. Not only was she Herod’s niece, she was also married to his brother, Philip I. As far as the Jewish were concerned, this was incest and adultery, which John told her. Although this was the truth, Herodias was very upset. What do people do with the truth? Remember the reading in Amos? Do we ignore the truth or do we get rid of the messenger? Herodias did the latter, saying to her daughter, ask for John's head on a platter. So, the daughter went to Herod, and said she wanted John the Baptist’s head on a platter. According to Mark, but not necessarily in history, Herod is crestfallen. The word Mark uses is the same word Jesus used when praying in Gethseme. His soul was heartbroken. Pride stopped Herod from going back on his word, so he delivered. John was an innocent victim of a power game. I want to conclude by asking, if we were part of this gathering, who are we? Are we Herod, full of pride, not wanting to go back on our word for fear of losing face. Are we Herodias, a victim of their upbringing and of murderous intent? Are we like the girl, being manipulated? Or are we the other party-goers, who see this happening, but do nothing to stop it. I think we would be like the party-goers, not doing anything to stop it but still thinking it is wrong. This passage is challenging us today in a similar way. Whenever we see something that is not right, are we going to be like the party-goers, and not do anything about it, or are we going to stand up for what is true? But standing up for what is true got Amos condemned, got John the Baptist condemned, and got Jesus condemned. Eleven of the Twelve Disciples, or twelve of the thirteen if you include Matthias, died horrible deaths because they spoke the truth. The cost of discipleship is high, but Mark challenges us to take our place in the party and think about what role we play. Are we going to be perpetrators of violence or observers of violence? There are lots of good people out there, but they have not stopped many of the world’s atrocities. There were lots of good Germans, but they never stopped Hitler. There were lots of good Chinese people out there but they never stopped Mao Zedong. There are lots of wonderful Russians, but they never stopped Stalin. There are lots of good people out there today, but they do not stop the violence by speaking out. A question I always ask myself is what scars have I got to show because of my Christian faith? Have I spoken out when I have seen an injustice? Is my moral plumbline askew from God’s? Perhaps we should all ask those questions. This sermon was first preached at Wanstead URC by Reverend Martin Wheadon on 11th July 2021
Reading: Amos 7:7-15 New International Version 7 This is what he showed me: The Lord was standing by a wall that had been built true to plumb, with a plumb line in his hand. 8 And the Lord asked me, “What do you see, Amos?” “A plumb line,” I replied. Then the Lord said, “Look, I am setting a plumb line among my people Israel; I will spare them no longer. 9 “The high places of Isaac will be destroyed and the sanctuaries of Israel will be ruined; with my sword I will rise against the house of Jeroboam.” 10 Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent a message to Jeroboam king of Israel: “Amos is raising a conspiracy against you in the very heart of Israel. The land cannot bear all his words. 11 For this is what Amos is saying: “‘Jeroboam will die by the sword, and Israel will surely go into exile, away from their native land.’” 12 Then Amaziah said to Amos, “Get out, you seer! Go back to the land of Judah. Earn your bread there and do your prophesying there. 13 Don’t prophesy anymore at Bethel, because this is the king’s sanctuary and the temple of the kingdom.” 14 Amos answered Amaziah, “I was neither a prophet nor the son of a prophet, but I was a shepherd, and I also took care of sycamore-fig trees. 15 But the Lord took me from tending the flock and said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel.’ There are various questions that strike us during this reading. We have to remember Amos was actually a poor shepherd. He had not been trained, he had not gone to Northern College or Westminster College or anything like that. He was just obedient. That is one of the key things about God; God does not necessarily use the most intelligent people, he uses those who are most obedient. It is availability, not ability, that God looks for. Amos was very much in that camp. He was obedient and he was available. Amos gives some very unpopular messages. The Lord tells Amos that he must set a plumb line. As we all know, a plumb line is a weight on the end of a rope or piece of string, which gives you a perfectly straight line. God is comparing the plumb line with God’s moral values - the things that God believes and to which people must adhere. This plumb line gives us a measure of what God believes in, as does the Bible. Now, if I made a plumb line, how skewed would my plumb line be in comparison to Gods? My moral values have been forged by friends, family, society, television, and social media. My plumb line resembles what I think is true, but how true is it compared to Gods? Luckily, God has given us his plumb line in the Bible, which tells us what to measure as the truth. God is very clear in the Bible that God does not like poverty, does not like people being oppressed, and is not happy when people manipulate and take advantage. When we think about how good our actions have been, we need to compare them to how good God thinks we have been. There is God's plumb line, there is a society's plumb line and there is our plumb line, but sometimes, they are not all the same measurements. In this reading, we have Amaziah, the chief priest of Bethel, and King Jeroboam, who ruled over the northern kingdom. King Jeroboam stopped people from the northern kingdom from going to the southern kingdom where Jerusalem was, yet everyone was expected to go to Jerusalem to fulfil their sacrifices and so forth. So, what King Jeroboam did was provide two other temples for his people to worship God. Amaziah was a priest assigned to one of these temples, which was Bethel. The other one was in a place called Dan. Amos has been asked to give Amaziah some bad news. The northern kingdom was not behaving as it should, so they would be annihilated. It is important to remember this book was written around 760 BC, because in 721 BC, Assyria invaded the northern kingdom and wiped it out. What we are reading is a prophecy from Amos, 40 years before the event. What happens when you hear the truth? Amaziah had two options. The first is to ignore Amos and believe the message does not relate to him or means something else. Secondly, he could get rid of the messenger, and that is what Amaziah did. He did not like what he was hearing and thought Amos was bad for morale, so asked Amos to go away. But Amos said, I can go away, but the truth remains the same. Unless they change their ways, they will be destroyed. The message we can take from this passage is, where do we set our plumb line? What is the cost of our discipleship? If we have to say something, which we know others will not like to hear, what should we do? The Cost of Discipleship is a book written by Dietrich Bonhoeffer. It is a lightweight book but it has heavyweight content. Bonhoeffer says that the cost of discipleship is, if you go to heaven, what scars will you be proud to show that you have sustained because of God. So, this passage examines us. It asks, what is the cost of our discipleship? Then we have to ask ourselves, what comes between us and obeying God? What obstacles do we put in the way to prevent us from obeying the word of God? This sermon was first preached at Wanstead URC by Reverend Martin Wheadon on 18th July 2021
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