A Second Chance for Lazarus

Lent 5 April 6, 2025 John 12: 1-8 Year C A Second Chance for Lazarus “Connection” Lent Five Prelude Greeting Over the Threshold Leader: Persian mystic Rumi is one of the most often quoted mystics in our day, transcending religious lines. He said this: “Do not feel lonely, the entire universe is inside you. Stop acting so small. You are the universe in ecstatic motion. Set your life on fire. Seek those who fan your flames.” Sing Open the Eyes of My Heart - See insert Lent is often considered a solitary journey as we traditionally use it as a time to examine ourselves and engage in practices that bring us closer to God. While this is a part of the spiritual journey, we also know that human beings were made for relationship. This is why it is so vitally important that we experience collective awe. As we continue to explore what it means to be “purveyors of awe,” we learn of the powerful benefits of togetherness. In a time when we have been through one of the most isolating times in human history, we remember and are grateful for a renewed ability to seek connection. Sing Open the Eyes of My Heart – see insert Awe is a gateway to connection. As we have experiences that give us a sense of being part of something larger than “just us,” our penchant for self-preservation and obsession with the competitive default-self gives way to a renewed commitment to the greater whole. We need moments of “collective effervescence” that increase hope and joy at being part of the human family. Let us rise in body and/or spirit and pray: Awe-inspiring God, we come together this day because we need to be reminded to see through the lens of connection. It is too easy to have everything we need without seeking out relationship or connection to another human being. Open us to perceive anew. Inspire us to receive our surroundings with awe. Forgive us when we hold back unnecessarily from wholehearted participation and dedication to eradicating loneliness. Be with us on this journey as we seek again to marvel at your works. Sing Open the Eyes of My Heart - see insert God does not sever connection. Ever. God forgives us. Jesus embraces us. The Spirit enlivens us. We are whole. With awe, we accept this belovedness. And all God’s people say, “Amen.” Opening Hymn/Song When I Survey the Wondrous Cross UMH 299 In Awe of Children A husband is kidnapped and the kidnapper calls the wife and demands a ransom of 100,000. She tells the kidnapper that is much more than she is willing to pay to get him back. She will give him 30,000 and that is about it. When the husband returns, he asks why she was not willing to pay the full ransom for him. He felt that he was worth so much more. How much are you worth? It depends on who you ask. But to God we are all priceless. In this story, a friends spends a lot on a gift for Jesus. She too is criticiczed. People say that she could have used that money on better things. Giving a gift from the heart is always priceless. Jesus really appreciated the gift. More importantly, Jesus explained that a gift given to God is never too much. In church, we used to sing a song – you can’t beat God giving. Whatever you give – God gives so much more to you. And he is able to feed the poor and those in need. PRAYER OF CONFESSION Like Judas, God of new things, we like to complain about your generous ways, rather than living in your grace. The poor are always with us, we believe, which justifies our ignoring them. In our memories, we focus on a perceived golden past, and so we ignore the new things you do in our midst. We are so enamored with our achievements that we are not willing to throw them away in order to follow Jesus. Forgive us, Restoring God, and help us to notice the kingdom springing forth in our midst. By your grace, may our fears turn to faith, our seeds of grief produce a bumper crop of joy, and our tears turn into torrents of tenderness as we journey with Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, to Jerusalem. Silence is kept. Assurance of Pardon Making a way through all the foolishness and mistakes of our lives, God leads us into new life, where we are restored to grace, to hope, and to peace. Do we notice what God has done for us, what God is doing in us? This is good news for everyone. Thanks be to God, we are forgiven! Amen. Adapted from Thom Shuman, posted at https://pilgrimwr.unitingchurch.org.au/?p=2008. The Peace The peace of Christ be with you. And also with you. I invite you to share the peace of Christ with those around you, [remembering to greet those online with a wave to the camera]. Contemporary Reading Reader: Our first reading is a contemporary one–an excerpt from an article by researcher Brené Brown entitled, “Why Experiencing Joy and Pain in a Group Is So Powerful:" “Experiences [of collective effervescence] contribute to a life filled with less loneliness and greater meaning, positive emotions, and social connection… Collective assembly meets the primal human yearnings for shared social experiences. A collective assembly can start to heal the wounds of a traumatized community. When we come together to share authentic joy, hope, and pain, we melt the pervasive cynicism that often cloaks our better human nature.” Ancient Reading John 12:1-8 In Awe of Music In Awe of the Word A Second Chance for Lazurus Human beings live most of our lives through sight. We depend on our vision for most things in life. But our sense of smell is connected to our memories and our feelings. Scents trigger something deep inside of us. Scents can transport us back in time to scenes long ago. One of my greatest memories – was driving to grandma’s house. We would get there late at night. She would put me to bed, and I would wake up in the morning to the smell of bacon and eggs and hot biscuits for breakfast. That smell was magical. They say that the best way to get people to join your church is to cook or bake something. When people come in the door and smell that fresh bread, or spaghetti sauce – they swear that they have found their church home. Smells can trigger happy memories. But smells can also trigger tragic memories. I was in high school standing at the bus stop, when all of a sudden a car barrelled around the corner and hit a little girl right in front of me. I remember that day as if it was yesterday, because the smell of burn rubber from the car slamming on the brakes is still in my nose. John the gospel writer was able to recall the day of Jesus crucifixion with such detail, because he remembers the smell of perfume. The smell of that perfume triggered some happy memories and some tragic memories – it lingered in his head for days. The Power of Fragrance Isn’t it amazing that John could remember this fragrance so many years after Christ’s ascension? That, when his mind drifted back to that last week of Christ’s life, it was the fragrance of Mary’s offering that framed his memory. What once was an oasis for Jesus, that helped comfort him so he could go forward, was now an oasis in John’s memory that helped him deal with the rigors of his trials. Still today, two thousand years later, Mary’s gift brings fragrance to our lives and while Mary was condemned by the apostle’s that day for her extravagance, she provided a gift that has been remembered for thousands of years. Her fragrance still fills our lives with the presence of Christ. Jerry Goebel, The House Was Filled With the Fragrance of the Perfume According to John 6, it was six days before the crucifixion. Jesus friend Lazarus invites Jesus and the disciples to a meal. You have heard of the last supper, well this was the supper before the last supper. The characters present: Lazarus, Jesus, his sister Martha, his sister Mary, Jesus, Judas and the other disciples. Lazarus is celebrating a second chance at life. He was brought back from the dead. Jesus is literally enjoying the last seconds before his death. Martha takes this chance to be of service to her Lord. Mary pours a heavy scented oil over Jesus feet. Not knowing that she is preparing him for death. Judas, the treasurer for Jesus ministry, always conscious of spending scolds Mary for wasting such an extravagant gift. That money could have been used for the poor. A friend used to tell me – things are not always how they look. In spite of being brought back to life, one day Lazarus will die just any other person. Jesus will dies – but will open the doors of eternal life for all of us. Mary will move from scolded one to the star of the story. She will become an example of discipleship and devotion to Christ. Whereas Judas doesn’t really care about the poor. He is just gaining confidence to betray Jesus. A Simple Answer Could that have been Judas' greatest downfall, the inability to see himself as a sinner and hence receive God's forgiveness? For without that sense of forgiveness, life holds little joy and the future is hopeless. Someone once said that the person who knows himself or herself to be a sinner and does not know God's forgiveness is like an overweight person who fears stepping on a scale. I once read about a very bitter man who was sick in soul, mind, and body. He was in the hospital in wretched condition, not because his body had been invaded by a virus or infected with some germ, but because his anger and contempt had poisoned his soul. One day, when he was at his lowest, he said to his nurse, "Won't you give me something to end it all?" Much to the man's surprise, the nurse said, "All right. I will." She went to the nightstand and pulled out the Gideon Bible and began to read, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have eternal life." When she finished she said, "There, if you will believe that, it will end it all. God loves you, forgives you and accepts you as his child." Such a simple answer. But it worked for that man. He realized after much soul-searching that she had spoken truly. And over a period of some time, he came to believe and accept God's love for him. There is a way to God. Jesus died to provide it. We may not be Mary or that "woman of the city," but there are sins that weigh upon our hearts. There are scars and cuts that we have inflicted on others. There is a darkness within each of us that no one knows of but God. But that same One, our loving God, sees all and forgives all and calls us to God. Remember, the one who is forgiven little loves little. But the one who is forgiven much loves with all the heart! May that be true of us. In Jesus' name. Amen. Lee Griess, Taking the Risk out of Dying, CSS Publishing Company. _______________________________________________ Meanwhile Mary teaches us the greatest lesson of the story – how to give from the heart. Gratitude Pastor Victor Shepherd tells the story of a missionary surgeon he met who was rather gruff and to the point. On one occasion the surgeon was speaking to a small group of university students about his work in the Gaza Strip. He was telling us that we North American "fat cats" knew nothing about gratitude. Nothing! On one occasion he had stopped a peasant hovel to see a woman on whom he had performed surgery. She and her husband were dirt poor. Their livestock supply consisted of one Angora rabbit and two chickens. For income the woman combed the hair out of the rabbit, spun the hair into yarn and sold it. For food she and her husband ate the eggs from the chickens. The woman insisted that the missionary surgeon stay for lunch. He accepted the invitation and said he would be back for lunch after he had gone down the road to see another postoperative patient. An hour and a half later he was back. He peeked into the cooking pot to see what he was going to eat. He saw one rabbit and two chickens. The woman had given up her entire livestock supply--her income, her food, everything. He concluded his story by reminding us that we knew nothing of gratitude. He wept unashamedly. The incident will stay with me forever. There is another incident concerning gratitude that will never be forgotten. It's about a woman who poured costly perfume over our Lord as she wiped his feet with her hair. Make no mistake--the perfume was expensive, three hundred denarii, a year's income for a laborer in Palestine. Enough to keep a family alive for twelve months. Victor Shepherd, Preacher's Annual 1992, Nashville: Abingdon p. 122. Intentional Acts of True Devotion IATDs - that's what this passage is all about. People were becoming more and more devoted to Jesus and they were expressing it openly in ever increasing ways. They even started doing IATDs - Intentional Acts of True Devotion. Jesus called Lazarus out of the grave and he came out struggling in the bondage of his grave clothing. But he came out, he had new life! Jesus had power even over death! The result was IATDs! People started following Jesus. Not only did they start following him, they become devoted to him, and their devotion was radical! Those who saw this resurrection put their faith in Jesus. The sense of the Greek in verse 45 is that people without reservation, without growing into it, at this one miracle put all their faith in him. And it showed in IATDs. At one time the Jews had been devoted to the Pharisees and the law. Now in wholesale crowds they were turning to Jesus, becoming devoted to him, radically devoted to him with the kind of devotion that is dangerous: "He'll upset the applecart! We can't have that around here! We'll lose our place and our power!" That was the thinking of the Pharisees, so they plotted to take Jesus life. We often think it was Jesus who got himself in trouble with the Pharisees, but the Pharisees wouldn't have cared a bit if he didn't have these followers with their IATDs. Their IATDs got him in trouble, too. Intentional Acts of True Devotion - they're powerful, they're dangerous, and they mark the lives of those who put their faith in Jesus. Bill Versteeg, Intentional Acts of True Devotion ______________________ As Mary anointed Jesus for the tragic events coming ahead. Mary was preparing her heart to become a disciple and to carry on in Jesus footsteps. She was preparing to step up and to be in ministry. In 7 days from today – we celebrate the triumphant entry of Jesus. In 12 days we remember Good Friday. In 14 days we experience new life of resurrection. Acts of kindness humility and forgiveness prepare our hearts for the days to come. Let us Pray….. Song O How I Love Jesus UMH 170 Approaching an Awesome God [Prayers] Holy and Living God, we approach this time of prayer with a desire to connect with your world. With all our senses, we open to you. Give us lenses of awe with which to perceive and love others as you perceive and love us. We imagine in our mind’s eye now the people in our lives, the people of our communities, and the people of our world. Each of them is beloved by you, and this alone creates awe in us. We especially lift up those who need our prayers in this moment… [continue with prayers of thanksgiving and care for people]. For all these people and those we name in our hearts, Hear our prayer, Awesome God. Give us lenses of awe with which to perceive and love your creation as you perceive and love it. Each thawing path under the warmth of the sun reminds us that all things are interconnected. You are making all things new all around us. Help us to care for the nature around us. This week, we name… [continue with prayers about specific entities of nature in your area]. For all these places, creatures, and lifeforms, and those we name in our hearts, Hear our prayer, Awesome God. Give us lenses of awe with which to perceive and love life as you perceive and love the life you have given us. Open us to the awe of sharing our joy and our pain with others. Slow us down in this season of Lent so that we might savor anew the gift of life. We pause in this silence, setting intentions of awe for the week ahead. [pause in silence] For all these intentions, Hear our prayer, Awesome God. Let us pray the prayer Jesus taught us… [Lord’s Prayer]. Responding with Awe Stewardship Moment In John’s Gospel we hear how Martha served, Lazarus kept Jesus company at the table, and Mary poured out a pound of costly nard on Jesus’ feet, in an act of compassion and care. Each of these siblings offered a fine gift to their dinner guest, Jesus. I wonder what I would offer, if Jesus were to come to my home for dinner? Would I cook a fabulous meal? Would I provide a calm atmosphere and listen to what Jesus said? Would I express my love in some extravagant way, seeking to help Jesus relax and find refreshment after a long day of teaching and healing? What about you? If Jesus were to come to your home, what would you give? What about if Jesus were to show up here? Week by week we have an opportunity to share our gifts with this part of the Body of Christ which we know as _______________ Church. May the gifts we bring demonstrate our desire to share our finest and best with the One who understood his life was coming to a close. Let us share our gifts, our tithes and our offerings now. Offering/Offertory [as is your custom] Doxology [Tune: Old 100th] Prayer of Thanksgiving Ever-giving God, You created our world–filled it with air, water, food, and all we need for life. You sent Jesus to show us your ways of love and compassion, teaching us we are all sisters and brothers of every living being. So receive these gifts which we offer as a portion of what you’ve first given us. Help us use each gift (money, time, talent) to help share the Good News we have been given in Jesus, the Christ. AMEN (Disciples of Christ Center for Faith and Giving) [Communion] We Go Forth with Awe Closing Prayer for Facebook Benedictions are blessings. And blessings are all around us. So for this season, instead of bowing your head as I offer a Benediction blessing, I invite you to open your palms in a position of receiving, and hold your head high, imagining a radiant stream of light from above shining upon you and everything else around you. And this week when you need to be reminded of the gift of community all around you, take this stance again. Open your palms to receive, look around to perceive, and notice one small thing that can light up your heart for a moment. And now may you go forth remembering Rumi’s words: “Set your life on fire. Seek those who fan your flames.” Be a purveyor of awe this week. Seek out connection with others whose life and love can be multiplied because you are together to help light up the world. Invite renewed connections to live and breathe new life in you. Be a “purveyor of awe,” curating a life of spiritual depth that inspires others to join you on the journey. May the Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer of Awe, the Holy One-in-Three, be with you now and throughout these days, Amen. Community Time (Joys and Concerns) Benediction May you go out from this place in the blessing of God, who turns your weeping into laughter and your laughter into joy that plants seeds of restoration, justice, and abundance for all of God’s creation. Amen. Written by Dr. Lisa Hancock, Discipleship Ministries, September 2024. Postlude Worship Notes Contemporary reading excerpted from the following source: Brown, B. (2019, January 6). Why experiencing joy and pain in a group is so powerful. Greater Good Magazine. https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/why_experiencing_joy_and_pain_in_a_group_is_so_powerful ______________________ I Love Mankind The musical Hair has within it a most provocative song called "Easy to Be Hard." The gist of the song is that it is easy to "care about the bleeding crowd" while yet totally ignoring "a needy friend." A little joke you may have heard makes the same point: "I love mankind ... it is people I can't stand!" Jesus does not set himself apart from the poor. He simply points out that he himself, as one of the specific poor, has needs - and that Mary has been sensitive to those needs. By contrast, Judas pretends to be concerned for the poor (in general) but is actually only concerned about himself. Carl L. Jech, Channeling Grace, CSS Publishing Company _______________________________________________________ How Much to Spend on The Poor? What happened at Jesus’ anointing in Bethany has plagued the followers of Jesus from then until now. How much do we spend on ourselves and how much do we give to missions? Couldn't we do more good by giving all this money to the poor instead of spending it on, say, a new building? In partial response to this question, my mind goes back to an experience of William Willimon, chaplain at Duke University. Willimon tells of the time the faculty of Duke was discussing a proposal to renovate the seminary chapel. They had received a modest proposal from the architect. But, would the chapel be renovated? No. "With all the poverty and hunger in the world," said one faculty member, "how can we as Christians justify spending $50,000 to pretty-up our chapel?" Of course, this person failed to offer similar objections when faculty salaries were raised each year, (a figure that collectively exceeds $50,000) nor does he question the morality of the luxurious faculty lounge. Obviously the man was posturing, just as Judas was posturing. Even so, the problem is tough. How much should we give to others and how much should we reserve for ourselves? Richard Meyer, Break a Vase ____________________ Acts of Humility and Love Patricia Long, pastor at First United Church of Christ, Berkley, California said it best. "Performing acts like the one Mary did are acts of extravagant caring that remind us we are called to be in equal partnership with each other, and that we all ought to be humbled as we come together before God." She says "acts of humility and love are empowering! They remind us that though power, control and domination are the ways of the world, there are some places where simple gestures of kindness and caring still count, still make a difference." Rev. Long says that Mary’s act of anointing Jesus was not unlike Rosa Park’s act of moving from the back of the bus to the front. Whenever a person stands up for love, the world notices. It can also be changed for the better as the oppressed are liberated or the presence of God becomes more visible. Keith Wagner, The Supremacy of Love _____________________ Aroma: Bringing Back an Emotion Taste is 95 percent smell. What happens when you get a cold? Can't taste anything? In talking with others about their smells, what I have discovered is that there are regional differences to our favorite smells that often depend either on our food habits or on our outdoor customs. East Coast people prefer floral scents and Northerners the smell of the seasons. Southerners seem to prefer hearty snorts of pine. Midwesterners like the whiff of hay and farm animals. Westerners like the aroma of barbecuing meat. Whatever our pet smell, huge histories of time are relived within the microseconds of a sniff. Nothing can bring back a time, a place, or an emotion better than an aroma. Leonard Sweet, Collected Sermons, www.Sermons.com A Sense of Gratitude On a recent religious talk show the hostess was interviewing a young woman who had just recently come to know Christ and had been received into the church. Until her recent conversion, she had lived on the wrong side of the tracks, lived in the fast lane, and teetered on the brink of destruction. So overwhelming was the sense of forgiveness that this young woman practically gushed with joy as she spoke. "I can't express," she said, "the sense of gratitude that I feel that God has changed my life." The talk show hostess knew where she was coming from -- for she, too, had walked on life's wild side before coming to Jesus. She said, "I know what you mean. Every day I thank God for saving me!" And then she added a very profound statement: "You know what I've noticed though? People who have always been in the church, people who always do what they ought, who have never really gotten into trouble, always been prim and proper, don't have the same sense of gratitude that I do. In fact, I've noticed that for most church people, it's not so much what God had done for them, but what they still want God to do!" If you can identify with that statement, perhaps we can appreciate the story in today's Gospel reading from John 12. It's an unusual story -- this story of the anointing of Jesus' feet with oil. Lee Griess, Taking The Risk Out Of Dying, CSS Publishing Company __________________________________________ The Women Become the Model If perhaps not its original setting, now the story belongs in the last days of Jesus. The woman’s response stands in contrast to that of Judas, but also of Peter and the disciples. Both in Mark and in John, as in the common tradition which feeds them directly and indirectly, Jesus is pictured as abandoned by his inner circle of disciples. In the end it will be a few women who are left standing near Golgotha and who will venture to the tomb. The unlikely ones in Mark and John’s world, the women, become the models. This is deliberately subversive and reflects so much of the experience of Jesus’ ministry. Others were so good, so devout, and so busy being so, that they missed the point. This is grindingly obvious, when a woman like this inarticulately breaks the perfume container open and spreads the contents over Jesus’ feet. Mark even suggests that Jesus predicted how memorable her act would be. Let the memory live! William Loader, First Thoughts on Year C Gospel Passages from the Lectionary ____________________

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

From Self Confidence to God Confidence - (repreach)

From Self confidence to God Confidence Psalm 126 Philippians 3:4-14 Fifth Sunday of Lent Year C (repreached from 3/21/10 Max Lucado is a pastor and has written many many books on the Christian faith and what it means to believe. He tells the story of taking his daughter Jenna to the park when she was a little girl of about two years old. While she was playing with the other children, and there were other parents around – he decides to go across the street to the dairy queen and get her an ice cream cone. He returns to the park to give her the cone, only to discover that not only has she been playing in the sand – she has decided to eat the sand. He can’t very well give her an ice cream cone – when she has sand in her mouth. In telling the story – Lucado asks himself – did I love her any less with dirt in her mouth? Was she any less my daughter because she had dirt in her mouth? No – was I going to let her continue to play with dirt in her mouth(especially while holding an ice cream cone) no. He took her to the water fountain and washed her mouth out. Lucado compaired this to the way God thinks about us sometimes. He catches us all of the time with dirt in our mouths, God loves us, god cares for us, and yet God feels the need to clean out the dirt in our lives – because there is something much better in store for us. Most of the time if left alone to our own devices, we want to play in the sand and eat it- and yet god wants us to see that there is a bigger life, a greater relationship that we can have with ourselves and with God – if we stop depending on our own devices and seek to learn the ways of God. I tell you that story because Paul can relate to it very well. It proves the point that he is trying to make in Philippians when he says that his life is dirt. All of the things that used to matter in the world, no longer matter because his whole perspective in life has changed. Now that is really strange – because Paul was not a bad person. And he did not have a bad life. And there was nothing in his life that he had any real reason to be ashamed of. He came from a good family. When many other jewish families were giving up their faith for new beliefs. Pauls family were true Hebrews among Hebrews. He grew up to be a teacher and defender of the faith. He fervently persecuted Christians who were trying to ruin his faith. He was very well respected. And when others may have been thrown in jail because there were not citizens, even though he was jewish, he was still a roman citizen, he had all of the rights and priveledges that would have been given to the best of people. There were people who were trying to put Paul down and say that he was not a true leader, and yet Paul wanted them to know that there were at least 7 things in his life that he could point to and say that he was indeed a good and respected person. Good and respected if his life were about him. The thing is – he realized that his life was not about him. His life was about jesus Christ. And even though those things mattered in the eyes of humanity – they were nothing in the eyes of God. Whatever gains I had, these have come to regard as loss because of Christ. More than that I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and regard them as rubbish in order that I may gain Christ. Rubbish – how do you come to call everything that you have accomplished in life a rubbish? As I pondered that question I remembered a time in my own life – when I was living with my boyfriend. And on this night our argument was not any more significant than they were on other day. We fought all of the time about any thing. But for some reason, on this night I remember he made a fist, and I remember in the moment between his fist hitting my face and my head hitting the wall – I remember taking everything inside of myself that valued, all of my self esteem, all of my pride, all of the things that I loved about myself – and hiding them onto the white wall. So that when he hit me – he wouldn’t hurt anything. In the days to come, there were many people who asked why I had a black eye – and I always responded the same – I walked into a wall – I am just clumsy that way. It is nothing serious. Until one day – my manager at work asked me how long I intended to lie to myself. And I had to face the fact that I needed to make up a tale, so that I did not have to deal with the seriousness of what was really going on. But it was that tale that kept my life in place- and allowed me to continuing to live in the midst of a bad situation. Dirt in the mouth, while God was trying to show me that there was a better way. Sometimes it is easier for us to hold onto the tales – then it is for us to let the truth in and deal with it. But I don’t want to get caught up in the intensity of the story – that is not my point in telling it. That was a long time ago, and my life has gone on since then, and I have had many experiences in life that supercede that one. That wasn’t the incident that finally got me to leave the relationship, it was the incident that turned my life around to listen more intently to God. But it is an illustration of the intensity of what Paul is saying when he is using the word rubbish in regards to his old life. I few days after that incident I remember saying – I wonder how I am going to get all of that junk off of the wall – all of the things that I admired about myself – now that they were totally worthless. They didn’t mean anything to me anymore – because now I had a new reality, on which none of that stuff applied. The greek word that Paul uses for rubbish is skybala. Skybala means junk, trash – but it also means human waste or excrement. That is a pretty strong word when you are talking about your life’s accomplishments. And yet his new life in Christ – was so much more important than the person that he used to be. He was able to taste the ice cream cone that God was offering. And was glad that he did. Are we able to do the same? Lent is our reminder to put old ways behind and to study more intently to see God’s new ways for us. And there are always new ways. There are always thought patterns and beliefs that no longer serve their purpose, there are resentment and fears that is time to give up, there are ways that we have been coping that need to be put away. There are allegiances to people that are no longer helpful. There is an old understanding of our relationship with god that we are being called to give up – in order to be open to what is happening in our lives today – which is leading us to a new understanding and a new relationship. There is dirt, a lot of dirt that we can stop eating. The good news for us is that junk can be recycled. Even excrement is used are fertilizer. The old ways of thinking make us who we are today- they are the pathway for the new. They inform our lives and give us a chance to truly understand Christ salvation for us. The story of our salvation is always part of the bigger story of salvation of the world. Our story is important because it is a part of God’s story. It shows us that God is always working to make us better people. There is always room for us to grown to mature, to make sense of why things happen to us. And to know that in the end – it always a story of God’s love. When we are able to put aside our own accomplishments and our own self confidence – we are free to take on God confidence. We don’t know what god’s final vision of the world will be – most of the time we have no idea of what God’s final vision for our own lives is. But we can give up the past in order to prepare ourselves for the future. Paul ends his pep talk by saying – beloved I do not consider that I have made it my own. But this one thing I do, forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead- I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus. It is time for us all to leave the past behind and press on to the destiny of Christ – let us pray…..

From Self Confidence to God Confidence

From Self confidence to God Confidence Psalm 126 Philippians 3:4-14 Fifth Sunday of Lent Year C March 22, 2010 Max Lucado is a pastor and has written many many books on the Christian faith and what it means to believe. He tells the story of taking his daughter Jenna to the park when she was a little girl of about two years old. While she was playing with the other children, and there were other parents around – he decides to go across the street to the dairy queen and get her an ice cream cone. He returns to the park to give her the cone, only to discover that not only has she been playing in the sand – she has decided to eat the sand. He can’t very well give her an ice cream cone – when she has sand in her mouth. In telling the story – Lucado asks himself – did I love her any less with dirt in her mouth? Was she any less my daughter because she had dirt in her mouth? No – was I going to let her continue to play with dirt in her mouth(especially while holding an ice cream cone) no. He took her to the water fountain and washed her mouth out. Lucado compaired this to the way God thinks about us sometimes. He catches us all of the time with dirt in our mouths, God loves us, god cares for us, and yet God feels the need to clean out the dirt in our lives – because there is something much better in store for us. Most of the time if left alone to our own devices, we want to play in the sand and eat it- and yet god wants us to see that there is a bigger life, a greater relationship that we can have with ourselves and with God – if we stop depending on our own devices and seek to learn the ways of God. I tell you that story because Paul can relate to it very well. It proves the point that he is trying to make in Philippians when he says that his life is dirt. All of the things that used to matter in the world, no longer matter because his whole perspective in life has changed. Now that is really strange – because Paul was not a bad person. And he did not have a bad life. And there was nothing in his life that he had any real reason to be ashamed of. He came from a good family. When many other jewish families were giving up their faith for new beliefs. Pauls family were true Hebrews among Hebrews. He grew up to be a teacher and defender of the faith. He fervently persecuted Christians who were trying to ruin his faith. He was very well respected. And when others may have been thrown in jail because there were not citizens, even though he was jewish, he was still a roman citizen, he had all of the rights and priveledges that would have been given to the best of people. There were people who were trying to put Paul down and say that he was not a true leader, and yet Paul wanted them to know that there were at least 7 things in his life that he could point to and say that he was indeed a good and respected person. Good and respected if his life were about him. The thing is – he realized that his life was not about him. His life was about jesus Christ. And even though those things mattered in the eyes of humanity – they were nothing in the eyes of God. Whatever gains I had, these have come to regard as loss because of Christ. More than that I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and regard them as rubbish in order that I may gain Christ. Rubbish – how do you come to call everything that you have accomplished in life a rubbish? As I pondered that question I remembered a time in my own life – when I was living with my boyfriend. And on this night our argument was not any more significant than they were on other day. We fought all of the time about any thing. But for some reason, on this night I remember he made a fist, and I remember in the moment between his fist hitting my face and my head hitting the wall – I remember taking everything inside of myself that valued, all of my self esteem, all of my pride, all of the things that I loved about myself – and hiding them onto the white wall. So that when he hit me – he wouldn’t hurt anything. In the days to come, there were many people who asked why I had a black eye – and I always responded the same – I walked into a wall – I am just clumsy that way. It is nothing serious. Until one day – my manager at work asked me how long I intended to lie to myself. And I had to face the fact that I needed to make up a tale, so that I did not have to deal with the seriousness of what was really going on. But it was that tale that kept my life in place- and allowed me to continuing to live in the midst of a bad situation. Dirt in the mouth, while God was trying to show me that there was a better way. Sometimes it is easier for us to hold onto the tales – then it is for us to let the truth in and deal with it. But I don’t want to get caught up in the intensity of the story – that is not my point in telling it. That was a long time ago, and my life has gone on since then, and I have had many experiences in life that supercede that one. That wasn’t the incident that finally got me to leave the relationship, it was the incident that turned my life around to listen more intently to God. But it is an illustration of the intensity of what Paul is saying when he is using the word rubbish in regards to his old life. I few days after that incident I remember saying – I wonder how I am going to get all of that junk off of the wall – all of the things that I admired about myself – now that they were totally worthless. They didn’t mean anything to me anymore – because now I had a new reality, on which none of that stuff applied. The greek word that Paul uses for rubbish is skybala. Skybala means junk, trash – but it also means human waste or excrement. That is a pretty strong word when you are talking about your life’s accomplishments. And yet his new life in Christ – was so much more important than the person that he used to be. He was able to taste the ice cream cone that God was offering. And was glad that he did. Are we able to do the same? Lent is our reminder to put old ways behind and to study more intently to see God’s new ways for us. And there are always new ways. There are always thought patterns and beliefs that no longer serve their purpose, there are resentment and fears that is time to give up, there are ways that we have been coping that need to be put away. There are allegiances to people that are no longer helpful. There is an old understanding of our relationship with god that we are being called to give up – in order to be open to what is happening in our lives today – which is leading us to a new understanding and a new relationship. There is dirt, a lot of dirt that we can stop eating. The good news for us is that junk can be recycled. Even excrement is used are fertilizer. The old ways of thinking make us who we are today- they are the pathway for the new. They inform our lives and give us a chance to truly understand Christ salvation for us. The story of our salvation is always part of the bigger story of salvation of the world. Our story is important because it is a part of God’s story. It shows us that God is always working to make us better people. There is always room for us to grown to mature, to make sense of why things happen to us. And to know that in the end – it always a story of God’s love. When we are able to put aside our own accomplishments and our own self confidence – we are free to take on God confidence. We don’t know what god’s final vision of the world will be – most of the time we have no idea of what God’s final vision for our own lives is. But we can give up the past in order to prepare ourselves for the future. Paul ends his pep talk by saying – beloved I do not consider that I have made it my own. But this one thing I do, forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead- I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus. It is time for us all to leave the past behind and press on to the destiny of Christ – let us pray…..