The Afterglow

April 24, 2022 Easter 2 Year C Afterglow Opening Song Welcome to the Easter season. Easter lasts for 50 days until Pentecost. But every Sunday is Easter. Call to Worship L: Happy Easter Season! Today is the first day of the week. P: The joy of Easter still sings in our hearts. L: Breathe the breath of new life in your spirits! P: We open our hearts to all the wondrous work God has for us to do. L: Welcome to worship this glorious day! P: Let our lives be testimony to God’s redeeming love! AMEN. (Nancy C. Townley – Ministry Matters) Song – Breathe on Me Breath of God - UMH 420 Prayer of Reflection and Growth Spirit of Serenity- You tell us “peace be with you,” but we set that peace aside to live with drama and chaos. We are drawn to highly emotional situations instead of the peace that only comes from you. How can we set aside turmoil to live within your realm of peace? When we cannot sense your holy tranquility surrounding us, open our souls to your warm and calming presence. May we embrace your peace and scatter serenity into our world. Amen. (Rev. Michelle Torigian – UCC Worship Ways) Assurance of Grace The God who walks with us scatters the seeds of grace behind us and before us, allowing us to understand the future with healing and hope. Amen! (Rev. Michelle Torigian – UCC Worship Ways) Scripture John 20:19-31 Sermon – afterglow It is Easter….again. Easter is not just a day- but it is a season. Easter is a way of life. Every Sunday is Easter. I look forward to the 50 days of Easter – because the scriptures this time of year challenge each of us sitting here with our faith. – Why are we even sitting here in the first place? All of the rest of the year- we follow the life of Jesus. Jesus is a nice person who teaches us how to live right. His advice is good for us, whether we actually believe that he is the son of God, whether we actually believe in miracles, we can go along with the story. But this time of year, people can really struggle with the whole Easter story. Did a man really die and then raise from the dead? And yet Easter is the crux of our faith. Easter, not Christmas is the beginning of our story. Easter is where the rubber meets the road. The lectionary scriptures help us to think for ourselves and to come up with our definitions of church, faith, Christianity, and resurrection. What is it that you actually believe about these words? And how do your definitions affect your life. Easter is something that should live in each of our hearts. I listened to a webcast this week featuring my favorite theologian – John Dominic Crossan. Crossan has done a lot of work on the history of the resurrection. He is my favorite theologian, because when I served in Aurora, the ministerial association paid for him to come and teach a weekend class for us. Theologians are good at defining faith, but don’t always have faith. Crossan says that for us Easter is a metaphor. He says the whole bible is a metaphor – a symbol for a deeper meaning which may or may not have happened in history. But before we decide that the resurrection did not happen – let me say that Crossan points out that everything in our life is a metaphor. A metaphor is the way that we define reality. The question is not if we believe in the resurrection, the question is do we live the resurrection. When we live in the resurrection, it becomes truth. It is not about the life and death of a man 2000 years ago, but how does that story affect our actions today? How did this story affect the people who heard it? Are we still willing to tell that story today? Does the resurrection story create a better world? Our Easter scriptures are all about how witnesses responded and felt called to create the church – a community of believers. You know that bible never does say what happened to the body that was laid in the tomb. But the New Testament is full of stories of how Christ appeared to the disciples after the resurrection. If there was one set of stories, that could be someone’s opinion. But these stories are widespread in all of the gospels. It is these appearances that convinced them to write down these stories for everyone else to hear. Luke tells the story of the walk to Emmaus. We don’t look at that story this year. This year, John will be the gospel all throughout Easter. Our story today, the story of doubting Thomas appears every year. Jesus comes into a locked upper room and talks with the disciples. Thomas was not there, and refuses to believe it until he sees it himself. Thomas forever has the reputation of being a doubter. And yet the resurrection stories are double stories – there is a part of the story that we can follow easily and have faith, and some parts of the story don’t make any sense. In life, faith and doubt go hand in hand. Ants in The Pants of Faith Whether your faith is that there is a God or that there is not a God, if you don’t have any doubts you are either kidding yourself or asleep. Doubts are the ants in the pants of faith. They keep it awake and moving. Frederick Buechner Doubt is like a front porch. All of us go through it before we get into the house of faith. William L. Self, The Prelude to Faith, ChristianGlobe Networks All of us have to decide if we really believe the resurrection story. Is it a convenient metaphor that we tolerate, or is it the reality that we live? Encountering the Crucified Risen Lord In a Lecture Series given by D. T. Niles, he finished by saying, "Let me conclude with a story told by a famous French bishop to his congregation. Three university students of Paris were walking along the road one Good Friday afternoon. They noticed crowds of people going to the churches to make their confession. The students began to discuss this custom of the ‘unenlightened,’ and talked in rather cynical terms about the survival of religion, which they described as superstition. Suddenly two of the students turned to the third, who was the leader among them, and said to him, ‘Will you go into this church and tell the priest there what we have been saying to each other?’ ‘Sure, I will,’ he said, and went in. He stood in the same queue of those who were going to their confession, and when his turn came, he looked at the priest and said, ‘Father, I have come here merely to tell you that Christianity is a dying institution and that religion is a superstition.’ The priest looked at the young man keenly and said, ‘Why did you come here, my son, to tell me this?’ And the student told him of his conversation with his friends. The priest listened carefully and then said: ‘All right, I want you to do one thing for me before you go. You accepted the challenge of your friends and came here; now accept my challenge to you. Walk up to the chancel and you will find there a large wooden cross and on it he figure of Jesus crucified. I want you to stand before that cross and say these words: ‘Jesus died for me and I don’t care a damn.’ The student looked defiant but, to save face, agreed. He went up and stood before that cross and said it: ‘Jesus died for me and I don’t care a damn.’ He came back to he priest and said, ‘I have done it.’ ‘Do it once more,’ said the priest; ‘after all, it means nothing to you.’ The student went back and looked at the cross for some time and the figure on it, and then he stammered it out: ‘Jesus died for me and I don’t care a damn.’ He returned to the priest and said, ‘I have done it; I am going now.’ The priest stopped him. ‘Once more,’ he said, just once more and you can go. The young man walked up to the chancel and looked at that cross again, and at the Crucified. He stood there for a long time. Then he came back to the priest and said, ‘Father, can I make my confession now?’ The bishop stunned the congregation when he concluded with these words: ‘My dear people, that young man was me.’" D. T. Niles, Preaching the Gospel of the Resurrection. ______________________ We all have a personal story of why we are sitting here right now. I am here because Christ has revealed himself to me time and time again. I can believe in this story and let it center my faith. Our stories are different, our faith is different. For some of us our faith is based in signs, some of us don’t need any signs, some of us are questioning, some of us are certain, some of us have a shallow faith, some have a deep faith, some of us are faltering in faith, some are seeking , some are growing. But it is the Easter story that draws us all together in one place, on one community. As a matter of fact, each of the disciples has a different story of how they were affected by Christ’ story. You notice in today’s scripture Jesus didn’t chastise Thomas for doubting, he understood. We don’t know a whole lot about Thomas situation. He is named in the other 3 gospels, but nothing is said. John only briefly mentions his twice. Some think he may have been John’s brother, or even Jesus brother. He becomes a missionary to India, and is reportedly killed by a Hindu priest who didn’t appreciate him converting people. December 21st the traditional day that he is remembered. There is a gospel of Thomas that is not included in our bible. John is the only disciple who was not killed while spreading the gospel. John’s message to us – Jesus was the messiah, we can believe his story and form our faith around it. Beleiving is not just about reading the bible, or praying a certain prayer, or a set of actions to do to guarantee going to heaven. Believing is a way of life that feeds your soul and gives you the strength to go forward. Believing is living a life that radiates and helps others to see God clearly. When Jesus tells Thomas that he is blessed, but those who believe without actually seeing the nails in Jesus hands are even more blessed – Jesus is inviting us to become a part of the Easter story. We today can live the Easter story and become witnesses to the resurrection. We can believe in a way that truly changes circumstances. You know, your can only believe in something that you belove. Easter in Us The Jesuit poet Gerard Manley Hopkins wrote an ambitious poem entitled 'The Wreck of the Deutschland.' It commemorates the death of five Franciscan nuns drowned on the German ship Deutschland at the mouth of the Thames in the winter of 1875. One half-line especially intrigues me: 'Let him Easter in us.' Let Christ 'Easter' in us. A rare verb indeed, but it suits this sacred season, ... How does Christ Easter in us? In three wondrous ways: (1) By a faith that rises above doubt. (2) By a hope that conquers despair. (3) By a love that does justice. Walter J. Burghardt, Let Christ Easter in Us, Dare to Be Christ: Homilies for the Nineties (Mahwah, NJ.: Paulist Press, 1991), 51. Amen. Let us pray…. Prayer Patient God, you know us better than we want. We like to think that we can fool you with our bravado and high-flung phrases of faith. We hear the story of doubting Thomas and think “What a fool he was!”. We think that we would never have doubted. And in our arrogance we preen and strut about. But you know us fully. You know that we all have our moments of doubts and fears. We all wonder where you are. We want to know that everything is going to turn out for the best. We are frightened. And in our fear we cannot even face our own doubts. Help us to understand your forgiving grace. Help us to know that you understand our weakness and confusion and that your love extends to us in spite of that weakness. Strengthen our faith and our commitment to you. As we have offered prayers for those near and dear to us; as we have lifted situations of darkness and fear before your throne of grace, help us to be people who truly believe that you hear our prayers and answer them. Where we have not seen, give us faith to believe in all you have said and done. In Jesus’ Name, we pray. AMEN. (Nancy C. Townley – Ministry Matters) Lord’s Prayer Stewardship Moment The risen Christ appeared to his disciples a week after his resurrection. John tells us Thomas was there (along with the others), and Christ gave them all new energy as he spoke simple words: “peace be with you.” Today, we have opportunity to follow the Christ, giving new energy and hope to those struggling with fear, despair, scarcity, hunger or loneliness. We share the peace of Christ with our neighbors, our sisters and brothers, through offering our time, our talents and our treasure. Your gifts today help provide (use specifics from your own congregation, as you can…or fill in with this general statement:) “hope, abundance, food, relationships and deep peace.” In the coming weeks, our offering will be translated into resources, sharing Christ’s peace with our own community and beyond. As you have been blessed, so now you are invited to become a blessing for others as we receive our morning offering. Offertory Doxology Prayer of Thanksgiving God of Life and Love, we rejoice in the new life the risen Christ continues to bring to a weary world. So receive these gifts, and allow them to be multiplied and translated into all that will become PEACE for our neighbors, near and far. Build us up, that we might grow in our capacity to give, and to live out Christ’s love for each and for all. AMEN (Center for Faith and Giving) Song I Love to Tell the Story - UMH 156 Announcements Closing Prayer for Facebook Peace to you from the One who is and was, and is to come. Grace and peace to you from the One who loves us and frees us, the One who gives us repentance and forgiveness. As God sent Jesus into the world, so the Spirit now sends us to continue God’s holy work. To God be glory and dominion forever and ever! Amen. (Bill Hopp – Ministry Matters) Community Time Benediction Christ is risen! Christ is risen, indeed! We are an Easter people! Live into the hope of Christ’s resurrection! May the grace, hope, peace and love of God our Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer be with you now and always. Amen. (Terri McDowell Ott – Presbyterian Outlook) Children’s Time John 20:19-23 describes Jesus' first postresurrection encounter with the disciples. His appearance tells us two things about his resurrected body. First, he appears inside a locked room; his "new" body is not like the physical body he had before death. Second, his body bears the wounds of crucifixion; his body is still the same. Children will be curious about this. During this encounter, Jesus reassured his disciples that he was indeed alive, and then he put them to work. The message to children is that Easter is not an ending; it is a new chapter in God's work. On Easter evening, Jesus is already looking ahead. He gives his disciples the gift of the Spirit and sends them out, saying, "As the Father sent me, so I send you." To help the children identify what the Father sent Jesus to do, explore key stories about Jesus' ministry. Their challenge is then to find ways to do that kind of work today. Just as Jesus fed the hungry crowd, children can work to help relieve hunger. Just as Jesus befriended the friendless, children can make friends with the lonely people they meet, and so forth. The story of Thomas reassures children that the Risen Lord is still the kind, understanding Jesus. Thomas, who was left out of the first encounter with Jesus, raises the kinds of questions any child might raise. Jesus is not offended by the questions, but honors them and offers to let Thomas touch the wounds, if that's what it takes to answer his questions. In so doing, Jesus blesses all our questions. No honest question is too silly, disrespectful, or unworthy to be asked and answered (or at least discussed). 1. These texts and those for the following Sundays suggest a sermon series about Easter People. Explore who the Easter People are, what they do, and what they are like. Challenge worshipers of all ages to see themselves as Easter People. Consider giving each worshiper a small token, perhaps a plastic or metal cross to carry in a pocket each day during the coming weeks, as a reminder that each of them is one of the Easter People. Ask the choir to sing Avery and Marsh's song, "Every Day Is Easter Day," today and several times during the series. From today's texts we learn that Easter People experience God's peace (John), praise God (Psalms), obey God first (Acts), and are sent to serve (Revelation and John). Additional Illustrations If I were to mention the names of certain disciples to you and ask you to write down the first word that comes into your mind, it is unlikely you would come up with the same words. If I were to mention the name of Judas many of you would write down the word "betray" but not all of you. If I were to mention Simon Peter, some of you would write down the word "faith," but not all of you. If I were to mention the names of James and John, some of you would write down the phrase "Sons of Thunder," but not all of you. But when I mention the word Thomas, there is little question about the word most everyone would write down. It would be the word doubt. Indeed, so closely have we associated Thomas with this word, that we have coined a phrase to describe him: “Doubting Thomas.” You may be interested to know that in the first three gospels we are told absolutely nothing at all about Thomas. It is in John’s Gospel that he emerges as a distinct personality, but even then there are only 155 words about him. There is not a lot about this disciple in the Bible but there is more than one description. When Jesus turned his face toward Jerusalem the disciples thought that it would be certain death for all of them. Surprisingly, it was Thomas who said: Then let us go so that we may die with him. It was a courageous statement, yet we don’t remember him for that. We also fail to point out that in this story of Thomas’ doubt we have the one place in the all the Gospels where the Divinity of Christ is bluntly and unequivocally stated. It is interesting, is it not, that the story that gives Thomas his infamous nickname, is the same story that has Thomas making an earth shattering confession of faith? Look at his confession, “My Lord, and my God.” Not teacher. Not Lord. Not Messiah. But God! It is the only place where Jesus is called God without qualification of any kind. It is uttered with conviction as if Thomas was simply recognizing a fact, just as 2 + 2 = 4, and the sun is in the sky. You are my Lord and my God! These are certainly not the words of a doubter. Unfortunately history has remembered him for this scene where the resurrected Christ made an appearance to the disciples in a home in Jerusalem… ________________________ We Know Where We Are Going The story is told about Albert Einstein, the brilliant physicist of Princeton University in the early 20th century. Einstein was traveling from Princeton on a train, and when the conductor came down the aisle to punch the passengers’ tickets, Einstein couldn’t find his. He looked in his vest pocket, he looked in his pants pocket, he looked in his briefcase, but there was no ticket. The conductor was gracious; “Not to worry, Dr. Einstein, I know who you are, we all know who you are, and I’m sure you bought a ticket.” As the conductor moved down the aisle, he looked back and noticed Einstein on his hands and knees, searching under the seat for his ticket. The conductor returned to Einstein; “Dr. Einstein, Dr. Einstein, don’t worry. I know who you are. You don’t need a ticket, I’m sure you bought one.” Einstein arose and said “Young man, I too know who I am; what I don’t know is where I am going.” And that is the good news of Easter; that we know where we are going. We have been told by the Savior that his life and death has promised us life eternal. And Low Sundays don’t change that promise. And unemployment doesn’t change that promise. Neither does divorce, or bankruptcy, or cancer, or depression, or felony, or failure. Through elation and deflation and every emotion in between, this truth remains; we know whose we are and we know where we are going, because the Son of God has promised. And this, my friends, is faith. Steven Molin, Elated....Deflated Peace Be With You...It Already Is! Theologian Karl Barth once remarked that to say the old line from the creed, "I believe in the Holy Catholic Church" does not mean that we believe in the church. It means rather to believe that God is present and at work in the church, that "in this assembly, the work of the Holy Spirit takes place. ... We do not believe in the Church: but we do believe that in this congregation the work of the Holy Spirit becomes an event." Barth's words rang true for me some years ago, when I was invited by a church in a nearby town to be the worship leader at a special evening communion service. The church staff had planned this service to be educational as well as worshipful. The idea was that, first, the congregation would gather in the sanctuary and I would give a brief talk about the meanings of the Lord's Supper. Then, we would go into the fellowship hall and be seated around tables for the service itself. At each table there would be the flour and other ingredients to form the dough for the communion loaves. The plan called for each table to prepare a loaf and, while the loaves baked in the ovens of the church kitchen, the people at each table were to engage in various exercises designed to get them talking about their experiences in the faith. It was a good idea, but like many well-planned events, things looked better on the drawing board than they turned out in reality. There were problems. Children at many tables began to play in the baking ingredients, and white clouds of flour floated around the room coating everybody and everything. There were delays in the kitchen, and the communion bread baked with agonizing slowness. Some of the tables ran out of things to say; children grew weary and fussy; the room was filled with commotion and restlessness. The planners had dreamed of an event of excitement, innovation, peak learning, and moving worship. What happened was noise, exhaustion, and people making the best of a difficult situation. In other words, despite the rosy plans, it was the real church worshipping down there in the church basement. Finally, the service ended, and, with no little relief, I was able to pronounce the benediction. "The peace of Christ be with you all," I said, and just as I did, a child's voice from somewhere in the room called out strong and true, "It already is." Just that -- "It already is" -- but with those words the service was transformed into an event of joy and holy mystery. That small voice captured what the Gospel of John is trying to say. In the midst of a church that can claim nothing for itself, a church of noise, confusion, weariness, and even fear, the risen Christ comes to give peace. The peace of Christ be with you? Because the risen Christ comes to inhabit our empty places, then, as the child said, "It already is," and the church with nothing becomes the church with everything. Thomas G. Long, Whispering The Lyrics, CSS Publishing Watch and You'll See This story is about three accountants who doubted their three engineer friends. They were traveling by train to a conference. The accountants bought three tickets, but the engineers only bought one. "How are three people going to travel on only one ticket?" an accountant asked. "Watch and you'll see," said an engineer. They all boarded the train. The accountants took their seats, but the three engineers crammed into a restroom and closed the door behind them. The train departed the station and soon the conductor came through the car asking for tickets. He knocked on the restroom door and said, "Ticket, please." The door opened a crack and a single arm emerges with a ticket in hand. The conductor took it and moved on. The accountants agree that this is a rather clever idea so after the conference, they decide to duplicate the engineers' feat. They buy only one ticket, but are astonished when the engineers buy no ticket at all! "How are you going to travel without a ticket?" the accountants ask. Watch and you'll see, reply the engineers. When they boarded the train, the accountants crammed into a restroom with their ticket while the three engineers did the same in a nearby restroom. After the train departed the station, one of the engineers left the restroom and walked over to the restroom where the accountants were hiding. He knocked on the door and said, "Ticket, please." Author unknown Just Because We Can't See It A junior high school teacher was telling her class about evolution and how the way everything in the world was formed proved that God doesn’t exist. She said, “Look out the window. You can’t see God, can you?” The kids shook their heads. “Look around you in this room. You can’t see God, can you?” The kids shook their heads. “Then our logical conclusion is that God doesn’t exist, does He?” she asked at last, certain that she had won her audience over. But one girl from the back of the classroom said, “Miss Smith, just because we can’t see it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. We could do brain surgery and investigate the parts of your brain and we could do a CAT scan and see the brain patterns in your head. But we couldn’t prove that you’ve had a single thought today. Does that mean that you haven’t thought anything today? Just ‘cause you can’t see it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist.” Seeing is believing, right? But, “just ‘cause you can’t see it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist.” C. T. Powell, "Seeing Is Believing" What’s the Good Word? A student from Korea was complaining about how difficult it is to learn the English language. He felt that American idioms were particularly difficult to comprehend. He said that he had studied English for nine years in preparation for attending the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana. On his first day at the school, as he was walking across the campus, an American student casually greeted him with, "Hi, What's the good word?" The Korean boy stopped dead in his tracks. He thought to himself: "I don't know the good word! You would have thought that after nine years of studying English, someone would have told me what "˜the good word' was!" Later, trying to solve this puzzle, he decided to turn the tables and ask an American, "What's the good word?" and listen to his reply. So, approaching a fellow student, he repeated, "Hi! What's the good word?" The quick response was, "Oh, not much. How about you?" It was obvious that neither of these students knew what the good word was. It's a rather plastic greeting. But I can tell you the good word for today: Christ the Lord is risen. That's the Good Word. And because it is; it says a great deal about our lives. Brett Blair and King Duncan, Collected Sermons, www.Sermons.com I Just Have Questions Some of you are familiar with Jerry Kramer—he used to play professional football—now he writes. In one of his books he reflects on his own mortality. He says: "I think a lot about death these days, which is funny too, because I’ve never been healthier. I’ve had only one serious illness in the past ten years—only one near-death experience. I haven’t broken a bone, not even a finger, since I stopped playing football. And yet, now more than ever, I sense that I’m mortal." He confesses: "A year ago, I lost my father to cancer, and I don’t think I’ll ever get over his death. In some ways, I think it was more difficult for the family than it was for him. Dad was a very religious man and he was ready to go. Sometimes I wish I had that kind of faith—but I don’t. I just have questions." "Taking Their Word for It," by Dr. Leigh Bond Joy I recently saw a news report about an Army veteran named John Crabtree who had been receiving benefits from the government. Evidently he had been wounded in Vietnam and was now on permanent disability. One day, out of the blue, he received an official notification from the government of his own death. Needless to say, this was quite a shock! Mr. Crabtree wrote the government a letter stating that he was indeed very much alive and would like to continue receiving his benefits. The letter did no good. He then tried calling the government. (Have you ever tried to call the government? This required the patience of Job and the persistence of Noah!) The phone calls didn't change the situation either. Finally, as a last resort, the veteran contacted a local television station, which ran a human-interest story about his situation. During the interview, the reporter asked him, "How do you feel about this whole ordeal?" The veteran chuckled and said, "Well, I feel a little frustrated by it. After all, have you ever tried to prove that you're alive?" That's a pretty good question for all of us. Could you prove that you are alive? Really, genuinely, deep-down alive? When was the last time you had an alive moment? Not the last time you took a breath or had your heart beat inside your chest, but the last time you felt yourself alive to your living, alive to your loving, deeply present with the gift of life itself?" R. Scott Colglazier, Finding a Faith That Makes Sense, St. Louis: Chalice Press, 1996, 116-117. A Seeking Doubt Someone described Thomas' doubt as a "seeking doubt, a doubt that wants not to continue to doubt but to come to believe." Thomas makes it clear to us that there is more than one kind of doubt. There is the kind of doubt that does not want to believe, that reaches for arguments in order to deny the affirmations of the faith. But there is also that "seeking doubt." This is a person who earnestly wants to believe but honestly admits that he struggles to understand. This kind of doubt actually energizes and expands faith. Mickey Anders, A Doubt That Leads to Faith, ChristianGlobe Networks __________________________ Bereavement Visions vs. Resurrection Visions I was traumatized by a tragic death several years ago, so I am personally familiar with the phenomena that bereaved people experience. I can speak out of personal experience. Right off the bat I can see very significant differences between bereavement visions and the resurrection accounts. I was the only person who saw my bereavement visions, and I was very much aware at the time that they weren’t part of the reality I live in. I saw them out of the corner of my eye, in a flash, in a dream, or in the foggy moments while awakening from sleep. The vision went away as soon as I looked at it directly or became fully awake. The visions were momentary and fleeting, but they were comforting and helped me make peace with what I had witnessed. From what I have read, my experience was normal and typical for a person who had witnessed a tragic death. The resurrection accounts do not fit this pattern. There were multiple witnesses who were all wide awake at the time, the duration of the incidents was too long, and skeptics, such as Thomas, could see them. Thomas was not an exceptional case. All of the disciples were skeptical of the resurrection until they saw the Risen Jesus, only then were they convinced, and the resurrection appearances did not comfort them, they emboldened and energized them. Bereavement visions comfort the bereaved; they do not end the bereavement, as the resurrection appearances did. Bereavement visions certainly do not charge up a person to the degree that they can evangelize the world and march fearlessly into death! There is no doubt in my mind that the disciples must have experienced the same sort of bereavement phenomena as I did. However, the resurrection accounts in the gospels are something entirely different. Whatever the resurrection accounts are, they are not the phenomena that accompany bereavement. I have heard a lot of Thomas-bashing in sermons and in Sunday school, but notice it does not occur in this passage. No one criticizes or rebukes Thomas for his lack of faith or for his skepticism. The passage does not tell us about how they put Thomas in his place, rather it tells us how Thomas was surprised! Thomas says he won’t believe until he can see for himself that Jesus is alive. What happens next? Do they heard Jesus’ voice booming through the room, rebuking Thomas and imposing some penalty on him? No! Jesus immediately appears and meets his demands! Jesus did not criticize Thomas for wanting physical evidence, but rather blessed those who believe without it. So if Jesus didn’t penalize Thomas for doubting the resurrection, He certainly won’t penalize you if you have misgivings about it. You are not saved by your beliefs but by your faith; by your reliance on Jesus Christ. Ken Collins, A Surprise Appearance _____________________________ No Substitutes Sometime back a writer at the web site www.TheOnion.com published a fake press release. The press release was touting an imaginary snack food meant to ease what the writer called, the "hideously bleak emptiness of modern life." The writer described this snack like this: "We're proud to introduce T.C. McCrispee's as the antidote you've been reaching out for. Our tasty new snack cracker will, if only for a few lovely moments, significantly lessen the aching, gnawing angst that haunts your very soul." According to this press release, participants in taste tests testified that the "satisfying crunch distracted them from the parade of tears that is life." A fictitious spokesperson summed up the campaign by saying: "We're selling the salty, unctuous illusions of happiness." And, of course, it is an illusion. Peace is not found in a snack food. Or a chemical. What are drugs--or alcohol, for that matter--but an inferior way to chemically induce peace of mind? Jesus said, "Peace be with you." But how and where do we find that peace? King Duncan, Collected Sermons, www.Sermons.com ____________________________ Doubt is not the opposite of Faith, but a part of it. As the poet Tennyson put it: “There lives more faith in honest doubt, Believe me, than in half the creeds.” It is significant that the English word “belief” is related to the word “love”. Originally, the things that people “believed” were what they held “beloved”. For too long the dogmas and doctrines of the Church have effectively locked the doors to keep out the doubters. Thomas’s doubt is not non-belief in some credal statement or other, but a lack of confidence to trust in the present reality of the Love of God. Keith Whyte

Maundy Thursday 2022

Rev. Harriette Cross First United Church of Wilmington April 14, 2022 Maundy Thursday Service Explanation of Maundy Thursday Good evening, welcome to our Maundy Thursday service. This marks the beginning of Jesus journey to the cross, and our journey to Easter morning. Actually, our journey started last week with palm Sunday. But we are not really sure of how Jesus would have spent his time early in the week. He was in town for the Passover. So on Thursday, he gathers with his disciples to enjoy the meal together. He is the host of the meal. So he leads his disciples in a Passover meal and prayer. But he knows that he will not be around for long. So he gives them words of advice to keep going strong. I am reminded of the words of Martin Luther King the day that he was assassinated. He encouraged those hoping for a better day to keep going forward when he tells them that he has been to the mountain top. He says that he may not get there with them, but the promisedland is just ahead. Did Jesus know that this was his last supper. – we can only speculate. Perhaps that is what caused him to want to pray afterward. As he is in the garden, he is arrested, immediately put on trial and crucified. That is a lot for us to take in. we will deal with the second half of the story tomorrow. Tonight, we look at the meal, the call to servanthood, and the prayer to God. There are many Maundy Thursday traditions – footwashing, reliving the last supper, serving communion, confessing our sins, stripping the altar, blow out the candles. In my 26 years of ministry, I think each year is different. I have done all of those things. My favorite thing is to gather for a meal. This year, because of covid restrictions – I thought it best to gather virtually. As we gather tonight, I will invite you to gather with something to drink and take a bite of for communion and a bowl of warm water and a towel – as we will do handwashing instead of foot washing. You may also want to have a tablet in order to write down some key thoughts to ponder as we journey with Jesus within the next few days. As we go through this service, I want you to imagine that you are one if his disciples. You have followed Jesus to Jerusalem against your better judgment. You have been uneasy all week, but somehow things seem to fall into place for Jesus. People have mysteriously provided everything that you need all week. And now the 12 of you are gathered together in a room – preparing for the Passover meal. There are tensions amongst the group, everybody seems to be going their own way. But you hope that this time together will change all of that. You turn your attention to the action in the room and what Jesus has to say…… Call to Worship The Israelites cried out to God in their oppression. Their voices still echo around the globe: in India, Sudan, Mexico, and in American cities. God hears the cries of the suffering, and delivers those who wait on God. All who suffer, who die, who are alienated are precious to God; Let us love the Lord who restores liberty, And gives us hope for peace. Today we remember the One who gave himself for us, Jesus the Christ. Let us worship God! Invocation Jesus, Lamb of God, we bless you today, remembering what you have done for us. You poured out your life to show us the love of God. Today we celebrate your gift of life as we somberly recall your death and exult in your resurrection. Amen. Hear these words of Exodus 12:1-14 as we recall the pasover First Passover 12 The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, 2 “This month will be the first month; it will be the first month of the year for you.[a] 3 Tell the whole Israelite community: On the tenth day of this month they must take a lamb for each household, a lamb per house. 4 If a household is too small for a lamb, it should share one with a neighbor nearby. You should divide the lamb in proportion to the number of people who will be eating it. 5 Your lamb should be a flawless year-old male. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats. 6 You should keep close watch over it until the fourteenth day of this month. At twilight on that day, the whole assembled Israelite community should slaughter their lambs. 7 They should take some of the blood and smear it on the two doorposts and on the beam over the door of the houses in which they are eating. 8 That same night they should eat the meat roasted over the fire. They should eat it along with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. 9 Don’t eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted over fire with its head, legs, and internal organs. 10 Don’t let any of it remain until morning, and burn any of it left over in the morning. 11 This is how you should eat it. You should be dressed, with your sandals on your feet and your walking stick in your hand. You should eat the meal in a hurry. It is the Passover of the LORD. 12 I’ll pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I’ll strike down every oldest child in the land of Egypt, both humans and animals. I’ll impose judgments on all the gods of Egypt. I am the LORD. 13 The blood will be your sign on the houses where you live. Whenever I see the blood, I’ll pass over[b] you. No plague will destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt. 14 “This day will be a day of remembering for you. You will observe it as a festival to the LORD. You will observe it in every generation as a regulation for all time Imagine yourself and your family in this text, among the Israelites who were enslaved and desperate. What thoughts might go through your mind as you follow these instructions and prepare this meal? How would you explain to children why you are eating “hurriedly”? Are you excited? Fearful? What images of oppression and liberation come to mind? Where do you experience the need for freedom in your life? in your community? in our world? What is the cost of freedom? Foot washing 13 Before the Festival of Passover, Jesus knew that his time had come to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them fully. 2 Jesus and his disciples were sharing the evening meal. The devil had already provoked Judas, Simon Iscariot’s son, to betray Jesus. 3 Jesus knew the Father had given everything into his hands and that he had come from God and was returning to God. 4 So he got up from the table and took off his robes. Picking up a linen towel, he tied it around his waist. 5 Then he poured water into a washbasin and began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel he was wearing. 6 When Jesus came to Simon Peter, Peter said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?” 7 Jesus replied, “You don’t understand what I’m doing now, but you will understand later.” 8 “No!” Peter said. “You will never wash my feet!” Jesus replied, “Unless I wash you, you won’t have a place with me.” 9 Simon Peter said, “Lord, not only my feet but also my hands and my head!” 10 Jesus responded, “Those who have bathed need only to have their feet washed, because they are completely clean. You disciples are clean, but not every one of you.” 11 He knew who would betray him. That’s why he said, “Not every one of you is clean.” 12 After he washed the disciples’ feet, he put on his robes and returned to his place at the table. He said to them, “Do you know what I’ve done for you? 13 You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and you speak correctly, because I am. 14 If I, your Lord and teacher, have washed your feet, you too must wash each other’s feet. 15 I have given you an example: Just as I have done, you also must do. 16 I assure you, servants aren’t greater than their master, nor are those who are sent greater than the one who sent them. 17 Since you know these things, you will be happy if you do them. Read full chapter John 13:31-35 Common English Bible Love commandment 31 When Judas was gone, Jesus said, “Now the Human One[a] has been glorified, and God has been glorified in him. 32 If God has been glorified in him, God will also glorify the Human One[b] in himself and will glorify him immediately. 33 Little children, I’m with you for a little while longer. You will look for me—but, just as I told the Jewish leaders, I also tell you now—‘Where I’m going, you can’t come.’ 34 “I give you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, so you also must love each other. 35 This is how everyone will know that you are my disciples, when you love each other.” Imagine yourself in this upper room with Jesus and his friends. With whom do you identify? How do you feel? Peter resists Jesus’ service of footwashing. Would you? Are you surprised that Jesus included Judas in the footwashing? What would it take to offer a service of love to someone who hurt or betrayed you? What manner of love does Jesus model and command of us? 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 Common English Bible 23 I received a tradition from the Lord, which I also handed on to you: on the night on which he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took bread. 24 After giving thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this to remember me.” 25 He did the same thing with the cup, after they had eaten, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Every time you drink it, do this to remember me.” 26 Every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you broadcast the death of the Lord until he comes. Somehow Jesus must have known what was next. As he sat and ate, he knew what was going to happen, who was going to betray him. How everyone was caught in their own concerns. They were not with him, they were not even together themselves. Judas would betray him. Peter would deny him. And yet somehow he knows us all, our fears, our concerns, or needs. And he prayed for us all that night at the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus at Gethsemene Night has fallen and I am surrounded by darkness; I am fearful of this dark where evil thoughts lurk, pain is intensified, and I cannot see the way ahead. I feel my light is burning low. Will the darkness overcome it? Terrified I lay here in the dark and call out to my father. And my father is with me; he is in the dark with me. His loving arms surround me and I feel his tears upon my neck. He loves me to the uttermost but he cannot take the darkness away. With him, I must get through this night and the darkness of the next days before the morning comes when the sun rises, in splendour with light for all the world. ©Christine Odell (Sheasby) Prayer of Confession Giver of Life, from time immemorial you call us to yourself. In ways too numerous to mention, we fail to respond. Forgive us, we pray. Our limited understanding of culture gets in the way of fellowship with those different from ourselves. Our limited vision of community gets in the way of your call to accept the cost and joy of discipleship, to seek justice and peace for all. Replace our arrogance, Merciful One, with the humility and caring service Jesus modeled, for truly we are not greater than our Teacher and Savior. Amen. Words of Assurance God gives us grace and more grace. Be assured of this truth, that in Christ you are forgiven! Listening for God in the Stories of our Tradition Prayer Prayers of the people My prayer for you is that on this Maundy Thursday is that you have a chance to truly think about what it means to be a disciple of Christ. When we follow Christ, it not only makes a difference in our lives, but in our relationships. It gives us the power to change the world – just in our willingness to be human, to suffer, to serve, to care, to love. We have come to the end of our service today. There won’t be a benediction, or a call to go out into the world and change things now. For now, the church is gone, because we have to see what happens tomorrow. Last Sunday we stripped the altar of anything representing Christ. we come back tomorrow at 7 – we will have a live service, or you can join us on facebook. But it is a dark service of realizing the cost of our sin. Sunday will be a whole new day – you can join us at 9:30 to see what happens. For now, don’t go in peace, but go in sorrow and concern for our world today. What would life be like if we lost Jesus. I leave you with the words of the first verse of the song – Go dark Gethsemane…….peace out Instruction for what’s next (Parts of teh service taken from Maundy Thursday service from UCC Justice and local Church Ministries, Faith INFO Ministry Team 2021)

Life with Passion

April 5, 2022 Palm/Passion Sunday Luke 22-23 Life with Passion Year C Opening Song Welcome Blessing of the Palms (Do not PRINT) Bless these parade palms, O God of Celebration. May they remind us of the simple joys of living. May we remember the excitement that comes with following Christ. Bless these protest palms, O God of Justice. May they remind us that Empire is not a thing of the past. May they make us bold and brave to stand up against injustice. Bless these funeral palms, O God of Comfort. May they remind us of the road that lies ahead. May they encourage us in times of grief and pain. We give you thanks for the parade, the protest, the processional. Guide our steps through this holiest of weeks as we cry out together "Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna!" Amen. ~ written by Rev. Caela Simmons Wood, Pastor, First Congregational United Church of Christ in Manhattan, Kansas. Call to Worship The story of Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem, tells us that after his celebrated arrival. He went into the Temple and looked around at everything. As we gather here for worship today may it be with a sense that Jesus has walked in too and is looking around. May our eyes be open to see Him, may our hearts be ready to be seen by Him, may our worship be worthy of His presence, and may we be transformed so that we see the world through His eyes. Amen. (Ann Sidell) Responsive Reading Psalm 118:1-2,19-29 UMH 839 Song of Praise God of Grace and God of Glory UMH 577 Prayer of Confession (Luke 19) Lord Jesus, we are a fickle people, quick to turn away. We are quick to flock to you when all is well, but we are prone to scatter when there is opposition or criticism. Too often we have kept silent before you, afraid to proclaim your praise. It is easy to join the crowd as you ride triumphantly into Jerusalem— singing our joys and expectations, dancing our hopes and dreams. It is far more difficult to stand by you as the crowd cries for your crucifixion. Forgive our weakness when we turn away. Strengthen us for the journey ahead as we relive your suffering and death, that we might stay beside you to the end. Give us the courage to shout our hosannas, not only today, but each and every day. Amen. (Bryan Schneider-Thomas) Words of Assurance (Psalm 118) The Lord is our strength and might. Jesus is our salvation. In Jesus our sins are forgiven. In Jesus our cries are answered, our salvation is at hand. Blessed be the name of the Lord. (Bryan Schneider-Thomas) Scripture Luke 23:1-9 Sermon Life with Passion 1. If you look in the dictionary- there are 2 definitions to the word passion. strong and barely controllable emotion. "a man of impetuous passion" 2. the suffering and death of Jesus. "meditations on the Passion of Christ" From Oxford Languages Today is Palm Passion Sunday. In the 50’s and 60’s (way before my time) these used to be two different Sundays. In the 70’s the catholic church changed it, and so did other churches that follow the liturgical calendar of seasons. Rarely, do I do a palm Sunday sermon, because usually, I want everyone to relive the passion story in preparation for Easter. This year I felt that I had to preach this sermon. I know that some of your have heard of Rob Bell. Our Sunday School class has at least talked about looking at some of Rob Bell’s videos. He is a now former pastor who filmed a series about 20 years ago now, where he would explain Christianity in everyday terms. His series NOOMA is very popular. He continues to write and record audio books. His latest, which came out about a month ago is called “Handling your Fire – Passion, burnout, routines and resilience. This is a series of six sessions that talk about clergy and other Christians being burned out in their calling. After listening to the second session on passion – I knew that I had to share it with you, I don’t know if he meant it for palm Sunday – but it fits perfectly. His message shutters our traditional understanding of thinking about passion and prepares us for Easter new life. According to Bell, Jesus has a passion for the conditions of the people that he encountered along the countryside in the year long travel to Jerusalem. As he witnessed the poor conditions for himself, he knew that he had to go to the capital Jerusalem and to address the political powers that be. He knew that it would kill him. Power does all that it can to eliminate threats. They executed him as a enemy of the state – the status quo. But it was a death that made all of the difference in the world. Bell calls Jesus’ act his good gift to the world. Eucharist literally means good character, good act, or good gift. Jesus didn’t fight power with guns, threats, or even with power. He fought with love, his good character. He gave himself not just for a better more caring government, but for a better spirit in the world – a spirit of giving and generosity. I will have to talk more fully about Rob Bells audio book at some other time. But basically, he uses the term eucharist – not just to talk about Jesus, but to also talk about his followers, including us – the body of Christ. We are all called to give ourselves to make the world a better place. We are all people of passion in the first definition. There is something inside of each of us – that we love to do. That something brings us joy. It may be something that we do so much or so passionately that we are worn out sometimes. We get tired, but it is a good tired. When we are down, this is the thing that makes us feel better. It is the thing that brings us true joy. It is the thing that bubbles up from our deep center. Our deep center is where God lives inside of us. But you know life does not always does not always encourage us to live in our deep center, or to even spend too much time there. As we get older, we are told there are more important things in life. Life is not about us. If we live in our truth for too long, we will be crucified. Jesus followed his passion, knowing that he would suffer, and yet he seemed to know it was for a greater good for himself and others. Our common understanding of the passion story is that Jesus suffered for our sins. So during holy week we are supposed to feel guilt, shame and sorrow. We are supposed to wallow in our sins all in the name of reliving the passion. Bell points out that as Jesus followed his passion for the healing of the world – he was well aware that there were evil heartless people in the world. And yet fear of suffering was not enough to stop him. Good Friday was just one story in a year long ministry. He knew there would be pain, but it would not be the final word. Suffering was not the price of sin. It was not a necessary evil to experience the good. For Bell, suffering is a part of the life that we live on this earth. Whether we are in touch with the God in our center, or we never open a bible in our life – our lives are full of problems. No matter who we are, something is going to happen in life. For some of us, suffering is all that there is. It stops us from acting. All we can see is darkness in the world beyond. For others, we get up, we live, we trust the unknown, we move forward on spite of our suffering. Suffering is a condition, not a life sentence. The difference is passion – a determination to move through to our destiny. Jesus passion was healing a broken world. That passion was his gift to the world. That gift, the eucharist, was he whole life. He knew that his joy was beyond the cross. As Bell talks about his own fall from grace, he talks about eucharist living, eucharist giving, eucharist gauge and eucharistic rhythm. Eucharistic living is listening to that deep inner voice that tells us what brings us true joy. Eucharistic giving is giving out of our deep inner joy and not out of our suffering. Eucharistic gauge – is the ability to realize when we are empty and depleted inside. It is not just giving, but also receiving. We as Christians are always encouraged to give, but we are reluctant to receive. We forget that we have two different hands, and giving and receiving are not one act, it is two. We get to the point that we don’t realize that we don’t have anything to give. Burnout is feeling guilty to receive. Eucharistic rhythm is knowing when you are empty inside. Acknowleging that you are tired, knowing what fills your spirit. Working and resting in rhythm, giving and receiving in joy. Bell says that Jesus knew eucharistic rhythm very well. He poured out his life, emptying himself in order to restore the system and others. But it was not an obligation. I thought this was an important message for passion Sunday. I think we are all suffering in some way. We watch others around us suffer. We watch suffering on tv every day. So I don’t think that palm Sunday should be a time to relive more suffering and focusing on negativity. Negativity is already here, we don’t need to create it. Living in this world for the last two and a half years has been exhausting. I started reading Bell’s book because I am exhausted, not quite at burnout, but just exhausted. Some of that exhaustion was there way before the pandemic started. I have talked to so many of my colleagues who are saying, I don’t want to be a Christian anymore – I think I need an easier life. And yet we forgot the meaning of eucharist – the good gift. We are in the habit of giving, but have forgotten how to receive. We lost sight of the meaning of the passion of Christ. Christ knew his joy was beyond suffering, he trust God with his prayers, he gave out of his generosity, not obligation. What if he mission on the cross was not a sacrifice – where he loses so everybody wins. Would that stop us as Christians from sacrificing ourselves on behalf of everybody else. What if Christ was not a living sacrifice, but a living eucharist – good gift? How would that effect our faith? Would we really think of Easter as new life? Christ actions should remind us that we are the eucharist – the body of Christ. We are God’s good gift to heal the world. We find that gift by listening to the joy within ourselves. Giving that gift away in order to receive more joy. We give ourselves permission to rest, we develop a language for being tired. We give out of what we have and not what we lack. Finally, don’t get me wrong I do think that there is a place in our lives for sacrifice, for suffering, for guilt, for shame. And even in our faith. It just shouldn’t stop us from following Christ to the cross and to the resurrection. May Christ’s actions bring us peace, justice and wellbeing in the days to come. Let us pray…… Prayer Wonderful God, we bow before you in gratitude for the life you have given us in Jesus Christ. In him, you have shown us that your love has no boundary. There is no place you will not go to be with us and for us. As you came into Jerusalem long ago, come into our hearts this day. Hear our cries and heal our hurts and hold us close. We pray for our world, your world. We pray for all that is happening in Ukraine, for refugee and soldiers, for leaders and aid workers, for citizens struggling amidst terror and violence. We pray that your spirit would bring forth peace and righteousness, comfort and strength. We pray for those who are sick, for those on the long road of recovery, for those struggling with uncertain diagnoses and seemingly never-ending treatments. We pray for those who mourn, for those bearing the burden of grief day by day. We pray for those who wait and watch and pray as loved ones suffer. We pray for those who are alone, those who are hungry, those without hope. We pray for the discouraged and the downtrodden, for those unable to look beyond the troubles of this day. We pray for those facing difficult choices, those weighing many options, those dealing with unclear directions on life’s journey. We pray for those beginning new ventures, trying new things, opening themselves up to fresh possibilities. O God, as this holiest of weeks unfolds before us and we retrace the suffering and the death of Jesus and claim once again the promise of resurrection, we pray that you would seal in our hearts the message of these holy days — that in Jesus you are with us and for us in all things, even suffering, even death and that in Jesus you have overcome every power that would hurt or destroy. AMEN (John Wurster) Lord’s Prayer UMH 895 Stewardship Moment Moment for Stewardship Luke’s description of that long-ago procession includes so many gifts! The owners of the colt, willing to let the disciples take it for Jesus. The people spreading their cloaks on the road. Those singing out their praise, “Blessed in the king who comes…” In this time of worship, what gifts have you brought to offer? Something you treasure? Something personal? Something from deep within? When we recognize how God continues to abundantly provide for us, and what amazing grace it is for Jesus to have shared his very life blood, let us offer the best of our lives! Prayer of Thanksgiving Good and giving God, we offer these gifts to you as fuel for the fire of your on-going creation. May all we offer be received, used, and taken in to expand the power of YOU in this world. (Center for Faith and Giving) Song of Dedication Were You There UMH 288 Announcements Closing Prayer Passing from joy into sorrow and on to elation, we come to Christ this holy week. Today is only a part of the story. Jesus’ triumph leads to his death, his death to his resurrection. May the journey of this week lead you into the fullness of Christ’s love. (Bryan Schneider-Thomas) Community Time Stripping the Sanctuary First Verse of Psalm 22 with Response 1 Leave in Silence and darkness Children’s Sermon 1. Prominently display two crowns: a golden crown (perhaps from the Christmas pageant props) and a crown of thorns. In the sermon, explore two kinds of kings. The first lives in a palace, is strong enough to scare off enemies, and make rules for the country. Paint a picture—not of an evil king, but of one who is authoritarian. Then describe the king that Jesus became by spending his life taking care of his people and finally dying for them. 2. After describing how we treat kings (we do whatever they say, we try to please them, we give them the best of everything, we bow or defer to them), explore who and what we tend to treat as "king of our life." Children often let a special adult, such as a teacher or professional sports figure/hero, become their king. In some neighborhoods, a child may become king of the block and totally run the show (this king may be an overtly evil gang leader or a benevolent natural leader to whom the other children always defer). The scriptural challenge is not to let anyone but Jesus be King in our lives. Jesus and his ways are to be more important than any other child or adult leader. (Carolyn C. Brown) Additional Illustrations There Is Still Hope The reality is that, if we figure to survive in this world, we had better have hope. The ancients knew that. Do you remember Pandora? Mythology has her as a lady endowed with every charm...the gift of all the gods. She was sent to earth with a little box which she had been forbidden to open, but curiosity finally got the better of her...she lifted the lid and out from that box escaped every conceivable kind of terror. Pandora made haste to close the box up again, but it was too late. There was only one thing left...HOPE. That was the ancients' way of saying how important hope is. Even when all else is lost, there is still hope. This was what had sustained the Israelite faithful from generation to generation. This was what energized the crowd along Jesus' parade route that day. David E. Leininger, Sunday's Coming! The Tomb Is Easier than the Cross In just a matter of days Holy Week takes us from the mountain of festive palms to the mountain of Golgatha’s despair. And that is why we resist it so. I mean, do we really need the emotional rollercoaster of Holy Week? What’s so wrong with just jumping from one parade to the next and skipping all the sacrifice and death stuff? What’s wrong with simply moving on to the joy of Easter, with its white bonnets, Easter eggs, family, friends, big ham dinner, and of course the empty tomb. Well, I think we know the answer to that. For starters, an empty tomb, at face value, is a lot easier to deal with than a dying, bleeding Savior on a cross. Add to that all the pain and suffering that comes with Holy Week, is it any wonder that the human tendency is to try and ignore the events of the week and simply move on to the Easter celebration? But as much as we’d like to skip Holy Week we know that the only way to Easter is through the cross. We know where the parade of Palm Sunday leads and we also know that we’re part of that parade. That is to say, we know this intellectually. Our hearts are another story. Our hearts may be more in sync with the disciples and the fear and disbelief that led them to run away. It would seem that 2000 years later Jesus’ disciples are still running away. Jeffrey K. London, And When You Think It's All Over The Triumph and the Tragedy Go with me now to the year 1942. The first American troops are marching into London. We are entering the conflict known as World War II. The people of London are cheering the American soldiers. The friendly reception exhilarates the young soldiers. They sing as they march. Suddenly the troops turn into a main street and a strange hush falls over the scene. The happy songs die on their lips. They are looking for the first time upon an area in London that has been blown to bits. They see the great wounds on the city inflicted by falling bombs. They suddenly realize the city has suffered terribly. In these young soldiers’ hearts, one moment celebration; the next, great sadness. The triumph and the tragedy. Palm Sunday. Good Friday. Life happens. King Duncan, Collected Works, www.Sermons.com Save Us When we wave our palms and boldly cry out, "Hosanna," do we dare imagine what we really want God to save us from? Save me from anger. Save me from cancer. Save me from depression. Save me from debt. Save me from the strife in my family. Save me from boredom. Save me from getting sent back to Iraq. Save me from the endless cycle of violence. Save me from humiliation. Save me from staring at the ceiling at three a.m. wondering why I exist. Save me from bitterness. Save me from arrogance. Save me from loneliness. Save me, God, save me from my fears. In viewing Palm Sunday from that angle, we can begin to see the potential for some real depth in this celebration, for embedded in our quaint pageantry is an appeal to God that originates in the most vulnerable places inside of us; and it bubbles, almost beyond our control, to the surface. "Hosanna." "Save us." Please God take the broken places that will tear us apart and make them whole. We beseech you, God, jump into the water and drag our almost-drowned selves to shore. "Save us." "Hosanna." Scott Black Johnston, Save Us What Is Good For Us Is Hidden Martin Luther often spoke of this aspect of the theology of the cross, concerning how God works in a hidden way through contrasts. In a series of lectures that Luther gave in 1515 and 1516 on the Book of Romans, he wrote: "For what is good for us is hidden, and that so deeply that it is hidden under its opposite. Thus our life is hidden under death, love for ourselves under hate for ourselves ... salvation under damnation, heaven under hell ... And universally our every assertion of anything good is hidden under the denial of it, so that faith may have its place in God, who is a negative essence and goodness and wisdom and righteousness, who cannot be touched except by the negation of all our affirmations." Martin Luther had one more observation about why God operates this way - under contrasts and opposites. In another of his sermons, he put it this way: "He thrusts us into death and permits the devil to pounce on us. But it is not his purpose to devour us; he wants to test us, to purify us, and to manifest himself ever more to us, that we may recognize his love. Such trials and strife are to let us experience something that preaching alone is not able to do, namely, how powerful Christ is and how sincerely the Father loves us. So our trust in God and our knowledge of God will increase more and more, together with our praise and thanks for his mercy and blessing. Otherwise we would bumble along with our early, incipient faith. We would become indolent, unfruitful and inexperienced Christians, and would soon grow rusty." Mark Ellingsen, Preparation and Manifestation, CSS Publishing Palm/Passion Sunday In the newer church calendars, today is called Palm/Passion Sunday. I must admit I have a hard time remembering that. For me, last Sunday will always be Passion Sunday and this Sunday is Palm Sunday. However, the liturgical experts in the church are trying to remind us that the two Sundays belong together because you cannot divorce the two; the significance of Jesus' entry into Jerusalem is that it was all a misunderstanding of His life and mission which eventually led to His death upon the cross. Jesus committed the unpardonable sin of not being the kind of Messiah everybody was expecting. The word "Passion" may give us pause. We're used to the kind of "passion" that Hollywood puts out. But the first meaning of the word given in Webster's Unabridged is "originally, suffering or agony, as of a martyr," and the second meaning: "the agony and sufferings of Jesus..." How about that? "When he drew near and saw the city he wept over it, saying, "Would that even today you knew the things that make for peace...." (Luke 19:41-42a) Donald B. Strobe Closed for Good Friday The bank meltdowns in 2008 reminded me of a true story that I ran across somewhere about a man who was standing in line at a bank last spring when there was a commotion at the counter. A woman was distressed, exclaiming, “Where will I put my money? I have all my money and my mortgage here!! What will happen to my mortgage?!” It turned out that she had misunderstood a small sign on the counter. The sign read, "WE WILL BE CLOSED FOR GOOD FRIDAY.” I guess she wasn’t familiar with the events of Holy Week, because she thought that the bank was going to be closed “for good” that coming Friday. “WE WILL BE CLOSED FOR GOOD . . . FRIDAY.” King Duncan, Collected Sermons, www.Sermons.com Eight Days Eight days changed the world. These eight days have been the topic of a million of publications, countless debates, and thousands of films. These eight days have inspired the greatest painters, the most skilled architects, and the most gifted musicians. To try and calculate the cultural impact of these eight days is impossible. But harder still would be an attempt to account for the lives of men and women who have been transformed by them. And yet these eight days as they played out in Jerusalem were of little significance to anyone but a few people involved. What happened on those eight days? During the next eight Sundays of Lent and Easter we will look at these eight days in depth but for now let’s summarize: 1. On Sunday the first of the eight days, Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey to the shouts of Hosanna, fulfilling an old prophecy in Zechariah 9:9. 2. On Monday he walked into the Jerusalem Temple overturning tables where money exchange occurred, Roman drachmas were being exchanged for Jewish shekels. Roman coins were not allowed. The image of Caesar was a violation of the second commandment. But the Temple authorities were using the Commandment as means to cheat the people and making the Temple a place of profit rather than a place of prayer. 3. On Tuesday Jesus taught in parables, warned the people against the Pharisees, and predicted the destruction of the Temple. 4. On Wednesday, the fourth day, we know nothing. The Gospel writers are silent. Perhaps it was a day of rest for him and his weary and worried disciples. 5. On Thursday, in an upper room, Jesus celebrated the Passover meal with his disciples. But he gave it a new meaning. No longer would his followers remember the Exodus from Egypt in the breaking of bread. They would remember his broken body and shed blood. Later that evening in the Garden of Gethsemane he agonized in prayer at what lay ahead for him. 6. On Friday, the fifth day, following betrayal, arrest, imprisonment, desertion, false trials, denial, condemnation, beatings and sentencing, Jesus carried his own cross to “The Place of the Skull,” where he was crucified with two other prisoners. 7. On Saturday, Jesus lay dead in a tomb bought by a rich man named Joseph. 8. On Sunday, his Passion was over, the stone had been rolled away. Jesus was alive. He appeared to Mary, to Peter, to two disciples on the road to Emmaus, and to the 11 disciples gathered in a locked room. His resurrection was established as a fact. Brett Blair and Staff, www.Sermons.com

New Day, New Heart, New Way

April 3, 2022 Isaiah 43:16-21 5th Sunday of Lent Year C New Day, New Heart, New Way Opening Song Welcome Sign Attendance Pads Call to Worship #2 L: Spring is about to break forth! P: In all the land, new life is happening! L: Feel the wonder and power of God’s creative energy P: Feel the awe and joy of God’s love for us. L: Let us worship God with a full sense of joy and expectation. P: Let us open our hearts, our spirits, our souls, to God’s lavish love. AMEN. (Nancy Townley) Responsive Reading Psalm 126 UMH 847 Song When I Survey the Wondrous Cross UMH 298 Prayer for Transformation and Restoration Righteous God, you made us in your divine image and yet we often turn to the gazes of others to see ourselves. We yield to the temptation of comparison and measure ourselves according to standards not made for us. You declared us good, and we question your judgment. We turn from your truth and receive the lies of the enemy of our souls that devalue and condemn even though your grace is sufficient for us. Mend the brokenness within us. Fortify us with your love, hope, and vision. Shield us from stagnation and despair. Amen. ( Rev. Dr. Cheryl Lindsay) Assurance of Grace The God of grace sees us fully, knows us fully, and loves us fully. May our eyes be ever open to see ourselves as God sees us and restore our souls. (Rev. Dr. Cheryl Lindsay) Passing of the Peace As we resolve to follow the path that Jesus walked, let us offer one another the sustaining power of Christ’s peace. The peace of Christ be with you, always. And also with you. (Kate Cudlipp) Scripture Isaiah 43:16-21 Common English Bible 16 The LORD says—who makes a way in the sea and a path in the mighty waters, 17 who brings out chariot and horse, army and battalion; they will lie down together and will not rise; they will be extinguished, extinguished like a wick. 18 Don’t remember the prior things; don’t ponder ancient history. 19 Look! I’m doing a new thing; now it sprouts up; don’t you recognize it? I’m making a way in the desert, paths[a] in the wilderness. 20 The beasts of the field, the jackals and ostriches, will honor me, because I have put water in the desert and streams in the wilderness to give water to my people, my chosen ones, 21 this people whom I formed for myself, who will recount my praise. Sermon New Day, New Heart, New Way As we watch the Ukrainian crisis unfold everyday, I watch the post of a United Methodist women living in a bomb shelter in the capitol of Kyiv. Every day, actually twice daily she sends a post about the events in her family, her neighborhood and her church. Every Sunday she sends a post about the church service. Today she says…… As we keep the people of Ukraine in our prayers, let us also be aware of the fact that depending on who you ask are 27 active conflicts going on in the world. But war is not the only thing to force people to flee their homeland. There are other countries who are experiencing famine, drought, unsafe conditions. There are major crisis occurring in every part of the world. One of the things that go hand and hand with crisis is people who are fleeing that crisis. Within the last month of the Ukranian crisis, there have been 2.5 million to 3 million people who have fled to neighboring countries. According to the International Organization on Migration – there are over 6 million people displaced in Ukraine but are still living in the country. According to the United Nations Refugee agency there are about 84 million people in the world who have fled their countries. About half of that number is under the age of 18. Many of those people who flee the conditions in their homeland never return. They become a part of the diaspora – which is so many people in the world that no one keeps records. A diaspora are a group of people living together in one place, yet the homeland that they identify with is somewhere else. Crisis, refugees, diaspora – I start out with these words – because these are the words that are a part of our scripture for today. We know that words very well – because these words are all a part of the story of the Hebrew people. They are the theme of the Hebrew bible, you can’t tell their story without these words. But you most definitely can’t read the book of Isaiah without understanding these words. The book actually covers several crisis, their ensuing exile, and the return of some of the people to rebuild their homeland – most of the people chose to stay in diaspora – away from home. Our scripture this morning comes from the beginning of second Isaiah. We don’t know who this prophet is, and we don’t even know what crisis of many that he is even talking about. Yet we do know that his message is to the refugees. Basically he is telling them that as they are in crisis not to despair. God has been with them in the past. It is important to recount the past, remember the past, but don’t hold onto the past. God was present in the past, but God is also present in the present. God is with us on the journey – wherever we are today, wherever we are on the future. Isaiah actually tells the refugees not to hold onto to things past. Because the God of the future is greater than anything that we have ever seen. Nothing that we have seen in the past, will prepare us for the future God. As a matter of fact, God’s name – Yahweh, does not mean I was at one time. It really does not mean I am in the present. Yahweh means I will be who I will be. God is on the past, God is in the present – but the glory of God is always in the future. Every year I try to attend the Do it Yourself Messiah in Chicago. Ironically, our conductor/director is Jewish. They fly him in from Israel every year. After rehearsal he reminded us – that once the train leaves the station it is headed in one direction, and one direction only- that is forward. It doesnt backtrack to past stations – it just keeps going to its destination. That is how God is. And it is also how life goes. Which is why many people live in the diaspora and never go back home. I'm telling you it's just not possible that he is the Messiah. If anything he's an imposter. No one should be saying and doing the kinds of things he says and does. It's blasphemy. The man should be killed." Those were Eliezer's heartfelt convictions. Eliezer and his friend, Amos, were teachers of the law in the days that Jesus walked this earth. They were terribly puzzled by the appearance of this Jesus. Eliezer would have none of Jesus' ministry or of his teaching. He was convinced that whatever else Jesus was, the verdict was in and he most certainly was not the promised Messiah. Amos, on the other hand, wasn't so sure. He didn't know just what to think of this carpenter's son from Nazareth. "Oh, come on, Amos," Eliezer said to him one day. "You were there when we caught him going through the grainfields on the sabbath to feed himself and his disciples. Do you actually believe that the Messiah would break our religious laws? Be serious. He's an imposter I tell you." "And that's not all." Eliezer was warming to his topic now. His voice raised. "He also healed that man with the withered hand on the sabbath day," he bellowed at Amos. "That's work on the sabbath day. That's also against our laws. I don't know what we're going to do with this man but we've got to put a stop to him pretty quickly or he is going to mislead our people. The man has got to be stopped. He violates traditions that have been passed on to us for generations. He is not true to our past. Such a one simply cannot be the Messiah." Amos didn't respond to Eliezer's charge. He honestly didn't know just what to say. It was surely true that Jesus was shattering old religious traditions. But what did that mean? 53 Eliezer never let up in seeking to persuade his friend Amos of the danger of this man who brought so much novelty to their land. "Did you hear what he did at Joab's house?" he demanded of Amos one day. "A prostitute got into the house somehow and washed his feet with her tears and anointed them with ointment. As Joab said, 'If Jesus was really the Messiah he would have known what kind of woman this was and cast her out of the house.' Whoever heard of a Messiah who lets himself be cleansed by sinners? The very idea violates everything we hold dear." Amos kept quiet. He knew Eliezer's words were true. Jesus certainly was upsetting their religious fruitbasket. Still, Amos couldn't simply condemn Jesus. Eliezer kept the pressure on. "Look at who he associates with," Eliezer screamed at him one day. "He receives sinners and eats with them. Table fellowship is sacred, Amos. You only eat with those with whom you have the deepest ties of friendship. I say, 'If he eats with sinners, he is a sinner.' I challenge you to find one word in scripture that suggests that our long-awaited Messiah is to be in fellowship with sinners. The truth is that the Messiah comes for the faithful, comes for the law abiding, comes for those who have held fast the traditions of the past." And Amos finally spoke. He said one word, "Isaiah." "What do you mean, Isaiah?" Eliezer shot back. "Maybe it's as Isaiah wrote," Amos said. " 'Do not remember the former things, or consider the things of old. I am about to do a new thing ...' " " CSS Publishing, Lima, Ohio, Lectionary Tales For The, by Richard A. Jensen I wonder what new thing God has in store for us this year? Not so much on a global level, but on a personal level. In our lives that we can see. As we move forward , will we still look for God along the way? Where will we seek God? In what lies ahead? Is the future beyond our expectations? This lent as we pray for the conditions of the world – let us pray for ourselves and our spirit. Let us pray…… Prayer Holy God, in this season of Lent, ready us for Easter, for the hope of restoration and new life in Christ. Called to pray for the needs of the church, the whole human family and all the world, hear us as we lift these prayers to you. That those in our community know health and safety and meaningful work, that neighbors support neighbors no matter the fences we build. That the oppressed and marginalized be empowered and encouraged, that the powerful and privileged understand their own need for liberation, Merciful God, as a potter fashions a vessel from humble clay, you form us into a new creation. Shape us, day by day, through this spiritual season of Lent and Christ’s companionship, until all our acts are loving and just. Hear us now as we pray. Amen (Terri McDowell Ott) Lord’s Prayer Hymn of Dedication America the Beautiful UMH 696 Stewardship Moment Moment for Stewardship (adapted from https://united-church.ca/sites/default/files/called_to_be_the_church_five_sundays_of_lent.pdf, pp. 52-53) The Way of Lent is a path that we travel each year, as a time for us to remember Jesus’ journey. On that journey he met many people. On that journey, he meets us: in our times of prayer, in our times of blessing, in our times of worship, in our times of sharing. So, come, siblings in Christ! Come, share all that we have, all that we are, for the love of our neighbours, for the healing of creation, for the hope of the world. (From the Center for Faith and Giving) Prayer of Thanksgiving (From the United Church of Christ Canada) What we have, we freely share, loving God. Blessed by your love, may we be a blessing in your world. May what we offer always be used in service of your grace, your peace, and your love. Amen! Communion Invitation to Communion (inspired by John 12:1-8) In all 4 Gospels we read of times Jesus gathered with friends to share a meal. Today we’ve heard how Jesus came to Bethany to enjoy dinner at the home of Mary, Martha and Lazarus. It was Mary who extravagantly welcomed Jesus by anointing his feet with costly perfume, a gift received with gratitude by Jesus, even as he rebuked Judas Iscariot. At this table, it’s Jesus who offers a costly gift to each of us. We’re each invited to this meal – Marys, Marthas, all who have been raised up, all who have been rebuked. All are invited to share in this meal of remembrance and anticipation, with Jesus offering bread and cup, emblems of his very body and blood. Come! You are welcome here. (if you have someone who can play and sing, consider “All Are Welcome” from Chalice Praise, #159 (words & music: Hans Peterson and Larry Olson) (chorus) All are welcome, friend and stranger, at the banquet of the Savior. All are welcome. All are welcome here. (verses) From the woman who comes crying, leaving tears at Jesus’ feet, to the man who knows the right way but cannot see. From the ones who feel forgotten, those who sense their place is gone, to the ones who live in hunger, here you belong. Go into the streets and cities, to the farms and families, tell about the splendid table, God’s mercy. Communion – UMH page 13 Announcements Closing Prayer for Facebook We leave this gathering, knowing that Christ Jesus has made us his own. Take the fruits of our worship into the world, bringing joy to those who weep, welcome to the outcast, and comfort to those who grieve. God is doing a new thing. Thanks be to God. ( Kate Cudlipp) Community Time Benediction As you go into the world, may the aroma of your faith fill the air around you. May your hope perfume your encounters. May your touch mend broken walls. And may the God of hope and peace, guide you, envelope you, and sustain you on the journey and in the work. (Rev. Dr. Cheryl Lindsay) Children’s Sermon Dollar Store sermon on something new Additional Illustrations I know a minister who went through a difficult time last year. His w.ife had an extended stay at a hospital that was thirty miles away from their home. It was difficult for him to take care of his three young children, drive to the hospital to be with his wife each day, and also carry out his responsibilities as a pastor. He sat alone in a rocking chair late one night. He was beginning to feel as if his difficulties were becoming insurmountable. About that time his little girl awakened. She was only two years old at the time. She wandered out to where he was sitting. She wanted to be rocked. He held her and they rocked together. In no time at all she was fast asleep. He continued to hold her that night for some time and, as he did so, healing took place. Why? Because he was reminded that he was not alone. He became acutely aware that in spite of the difficulties he faced, he was still surrounded by love and warmth. In so many ways, that can be the experience of the Church, if we will trust in God and God's providential care of us. Whatever pain we carry, whatever disappointment we have experienced, God can do a new thing in our lives. God alone can provide the healing and the renewal that will sustain our spirits. The well-known Snoopy, from Peanuts, was perched atop his dog house in the dark of the night. His thoughts and fears almost did him in: "Everything seems so hopeless at night. What am I doing here? What’s the purpose of it all? ... What if I get sick? I don’t want to get sick ... What if I get hit by a car someday and end up in a body cast? Or maybe they’d just shoot me like an old farm horse!" By daybreak Snoopy falls asleep. In the later morning sunlight, Lucy and Linus walk by and Lucy comments on the apparently sleeping dog: "It must be nice to be a dog. They don’t ever have any worries." And Snoopy the hound thinks happily, "Not as long as the sun is up." Reminded that God once shone a brilliant light into the night sky and then turned a Friday’s darkness into Easter’s sunlight, we can have the feeling of confidence that God will turn the darkness of our exile to sunlight once again. CSS Publishing Co., Inc., His Hands, by Jon L. Joyce Somewhere I read about the origin of the word "firemen." Today's firemen, or firefighters as we now call them, put out fires. Originally, though, firemen were men who started fires. The original firemen worked in coal mines, and it was their hazardous job to be the first to enter a mine each morning. They would wrap themselves in wet rags to make themselves as `fireproof' as possible and then, grabbing a long, flaming stick, they would go in and ignite any explosive methane gas that had seeped into the mine overnight. Burning off the dangerous gas thus made the workplace safe for others. (3) Perhaps if the writer of Hebrews had known about this tradition, he would have called Jesus `our fireman. n a Peanuts cartoon strip Lucy is livid at her mother. "You promised me a birthday party," she wails, "and now you say I can't have one. It's not fair!" Linus tries to intervene. "You're not using the right strategy," he counsels. "Why not go up to Mom and say to her, `I'm sorry, Dear Mother...I admit I've been bad, and you were right to cancel my party, but from now on I shall try to be good!'" Lucy has a grimace on her face as she thinks this through. Finally, in the last panel, she cries out, "I'd rather die!" Unfortunately, that is the response of many of us. God has done a new thing. He has done a new thing for the world. He has done a new thing for each of us. What is our response? Shall we continue in our same self-destructive ways? Shall we continue to hurt those who love us mo