Sermon
Pastor Nathan Sager, Gospel and Sermon for May 26th 2019
Sermon 6th Sunday of Pentecost July 1, 2018
There is an American Indian story. An elder told his grandson that there were two wolves fighting inside of him. One of the wolves was mean, quick-tempered, angry and deceitful; the other wolf inside of him was caring, forgiving, and peaceful. The young boy beside him asked “which one wins?” The elder wisely answered, “The one I feed the most.” This causes us to pause and ask ourselves if we see the two wolves fighting within ourselves. Christian wisdom coming from the Apostle Paul has for hundreds of years recognized that every human is simultaneously both saint and sinner. “The good that I want to do, I do not. The evil I do not want to do is exactly the thing I do…Wretched man; what is to become of me?”
-Romans 7:19-24
The two wolves fight within and the one that wins is the one we feed the most. Again, St. Paul is helpful: In Philippians 4, he encourages them: “Finally, friends, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” It seems to me that Paul is telling us to “feed the good wolf within and it will win!” Your life will have peace and harmony.
But left only to our own powers and intentions, we will find ourselves coming up short. It is the powers of God that tend to us in our dilemma. From where is help to come? It comes from the Lord, creator of heaven and earth.
The woman with the continuing hemorrhage touched the robe of Jesus and finally she was healed. Jesus touched the young girl and she was brought from death or coma. Where we are at a loss and unable to do anything, God’s power becomes known. The bleeding woman had faith and contact with Jesus healed her. The girl could do nothing; but she too was healed.
Sometimes we are too weak or possessed to feed the good wolf and it looks as though the bad wolf within will win. But there is grace and God will not let us be overwhelmed. This grace works in spite of our weakness.
In Finland, I met a man who was a leader and a great asset to his congregation. Our pastor/interpreter shared the story about the man’s life-changing experience. He was not a good husband or father; he was abusive and drank too much. But one Sunday he went to church where he was baptized and confirmed. When he received the bread and wine of Holy Communion, he sensed the love and forgiveness of Jesus; his life was changed forever. He knew peace, joy and love. The body and blood of Jesus healed him and gave him a new life. Not only was he changed, but the lives of those around him at home and at work became more peaceful and joyous as well.
The nature of grace is truly amazing. It comes when we least deserve it; it comes even when we cannot feed the good wolf ourselves. Sometimes it comes even when it is not asked for or it is least expected.
Our nation needs a moment of grace that moves upon all of us. But what can we do. Recently, I heard a brief comment on radio; do not remember who first said it, but I found it to be in line with the American Indian wisdom of feeding the good wolf.
Lift up the good! It’s that simple. Wherever you are, lift up the good. Blaming others does no good, so lift up the good. Getting angry simply puts up a wall; lift up the good. Instead of talking about the sins of others; be healed and lift up the good. It is the Jesus of the cross who heals; alive and resurrected he gives you forgiveness and love.
There’s a lot of talk about refugees these days and we worry about children most of all. We know about the Statue of Liberty in the New York Harbor, but do we know what the inscription on the plaque at the base of the statue? The year was 1883 when Emma Lazarus, a young, high society New York poet and the descendant of Jewish immigrants, was asked for a favor.
Fundraising efforts were underway for a pedestal to hold the Statue of Liberty, an expensive gift from France that many Americans found especially uninspiring. The French had paid for construction of the monument, but its recipients were responsible for buying its base. But elite writers and authors in New York went to work anyway, soliciting help from people like the 34-year-old Lazarus to reach their monetary goal. Would she compose, they asked, a sonnet to be sold at auction, alongside the writings of Mark Twain and Walt Whitman?
Titled The New Colossus, it’s most well-known lines, familiar from choral arrangements, come at the end:
“Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
This day is the beginning of our celebrating our nationhood. I leave you with Emma Lazurus’ brief sonnet in its entirety.
The New Colossus
By Emma Lazarus
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame, With conquering limbs astride from land to land; Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand Glows worldwide welcome; her mild eyes command The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
“Keep ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
God will grant you grace and strength to “lift up the good.” It is the very light of liberty’s lamp.
AMEN
-Romans 7:19-24
The two wolves fight within and the one that wins is the one we feed the most. Again, St. Paul is helpful: In Philippians 4, he encourages them: “Finally, friends, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” It seems to me that Paul is telling us to “feed the good wolf within and it will win!” Your life will have peace and harmony.
But left only to our own powers and intentions, we will find ourselves coming up short. It is the powers of God that tend to us in our dilemma. From where is help to come? It comes from the Lord, creator of heaven and earth.
The woman with the continuing hemorrhage touched the robe of Jesus and finally she was healed. Jesus touched the young girl and she was brought from death or coma. Where we are at a loss and unable to do anything, God’s power becomes known. The bleeding woman had faith and contact with Jesus healed her. The girl could do nothing; but she too was healed.
Sometimes we are too weak or possessed to feed the good wolf and it looks as though the bad wolf within will win. But there is grace and God will not let us be overwhelmed. This grace works in spite of our weakness.
In Finland, I met a man who was a leader and a great asset to his congregation. Our pastor/interpreter shared the story about the man’s life-changing experience. He was not a good husband or father; he was abusive and drank too much. But one Sunday he went to church where he was baptized and confirmed. When he received the bread and wine of Holy Communion, he sensed the love and forgiveness of Jesus; his life was changed forever. He knew peace, joy and love. The body and blood of Jesus healed him and gave him a new life. Not only was he changed, but the lives of those around him at home and at work became more peaceful and joyous as well.
The nature of grace is truly amazing. It comes when we least deserve it; it comes even when we cannot feed the good wolf ourselves. Sometimes it comes even when it is not asked for or it is least expected.
Our nation needs a moment of grace that moves upon all of us. But what can we do. Recently, I heard a brief comment on radio; do not remember who first said it, but I found it to be in line with the American Indian wisdom of feeding the good wolf.
Lift up the good! It’s that simple. Wherever you are, lift up the good. Blaming others does no good, so lift up the good. Getting angry simply puts up a wall; lift up the good. Instead of talking about the sins of others; be healed and lift up the good. It is the Jesus of the cross who heals; alive and resurrected he gives you forgiveness and love.
There’s a lot of talk about refugees these days and we worry about children most of all. We know about the Statue of Liberty in the New York Harbor, but do we know what the inscription on the plaque at the base of the statue? The year was 1883 when Emma Lazarus, a young, high society New York poet and the descendant of Jewish immigrants, was asked for a favor.
Fundraising efforts were underway for a pedestal to hold the Statue of Liberty, an expensive gift from France that many Americans found especially uninspiring. The French had paid for construction of the monument, but its recipients were responsible for buying its base. But elite writers and authors in New York went to work anyway, soliciting help from people like the 34-year-old Lazarus to reach their monetary goal. Would she compose, they asked, a sonnet to be sold at auction, alongside the writings of Mark Twain and Walt Whitman?
Titled The New Colossus, it’s most well-known lines, familiar from choral arrangements, come at the end:
“Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
This day is the beginning of our celebrating our nationhood. I leave you with Emma Lazurus’ brief sonnet in its entirety.
The New Colossus
By Emma Lazarus
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame, With conquering limbs astride from land to land; Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand Glows worldwide welcome; her mild eyes command The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
“Keep ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
God will grant you grace and strength to “lift up the good.” It is the very light of liberty’s lamp.
AMEN
Easter Sunday April 1, 2018
A young boy came home from Sunday school and showed his mother a picture. When she asked, "What is it?" he replied proudly, "It's Easter!" Pleased that her son was learning about the resurrection but having difficulty with the details of the drawing, she asked, "What did your teacher say about it?"
"Well," he slowly began, "after they nailed Jesus to the cross, he was hurt real bad, so when the Green Beret finally rescued him from the cross, they rushed him to the trauma center at St. Mary's. They worked on him for hours in the ER but couldn't get a heartbeat and gave up. They moved Jesus' body to another room, heavily guarded by soldiers with a Russian accent. Just then, when no one was around, there was a blip on the heart monitor and Jesus woke up. He radioed for help and his buddies came with plastic explosives, wiped out the soldiers, blew open the door, and carried their buddy, Jesus, firefighter style, across enemy lines to an awaiting helicopter where they would evac Jesus back to his dad."
The boy’s mother put her hands on her hips and said, "Is that really what your teacher taught you?" Sheepishly the boy confessed, "Well, no. But if I told you what she said, you'd never believe it."
This is a cute story, but I think it’s more than just cute because it raises a couple of very important questions. Did it really happen? Did Jesus really die? Did he really rise from the dead? And the response to these questions is “yes.” Jesus really was crucified. Jesus did die. Jesus has been raised from death. Although there are some differences in the way Matthew, Mark, Luke and John tell the story, these things happened.
These are all fair questions, but I think that the most important for Christians is, “how does Jesus lives in you?”
How does the message of his love for the unlovable live in you? How does his forgiving of sinners work in you? How does his healing of the sick work in you? On this Sunday the question is “How does his death and resurrection work in you?” How does the resurrection work in you on a day to day basis?
Before you answer that question, let’s take a look at the last few verses of the Gospel of Mark. Let me read these last few verses: 5 As they (Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome) entered the tomb, they saw a young man, dressed in a white robe, sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed. 6 But he said to them, "Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look, there is the place they laid him. 7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you." 8 So they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.
The best translations and scholars agree that the Gospel of Mark actually ends with the words “for they were afraid.” There were some Christian writers long ago who were very uncomfortable and thought Mark should have a better ending; thus, some Bibles will have extra verses. But today, the best Bible experts agree, the gospel of Mark ends with these unusual words, “for they were afraid.”
Why were they afraid? Jesus is out there; he’s on the loose. What will happen now? What’s he going to do? And the women wondered how it would affect them. Will the authorities get all upset and send soldiers after them? He is raised from death and now nothing can stop him. What will he do?
These questions are important and on this day we celebrate the risen Jesus. He is alive and his story will live in us. It is a story of healing and renewal; it is a story of forgiveness and new life. Jesus lives in us as we hear the old, old story of his love. It lives in us as we show love and give help to those around us. Jesus lives in us as we come to our end with the promise of eternal life. It is through daily prayer and weekly worship that the awareness of Jesus being in us comes to life again and again as we celebrate the Resurrection each Sunday. Each Sunday you discover that Jesus is in you. Now here’s the best part: He is there to stay, always! AMEN
"Well," he slowly began, "after they nailed Jesus to the cross, he was hurt real bad, so when the Green Beret finally rescued him from the cross, they rushed him to the trauma center at St. Mary's. They worked on him for hours in the ER but couldn't get a heartbeat and gave up. They moved Jesus' body to another room, heavily guarded by soldiers with a Russian accent. Just then, when no one was around, there was a blip on the heart monitor and Jesus woke up. He radioed for help and his buddies came with plastic explosives, wiped out the soldiers, blew open the door, and carried their buddy, Jesus, firefighter style, across enemy lines to an awaiting helicopter where they would evac Jesus back to his dad."
The boy’s mother put her hands on her hips and said, "Is that really what your teacher taught you?" Sheepishly the boy confessed, "Well, no. But if I told you what she said, you'd never believe it."
This is a cute story, but I think it’s more than just cute because it raises a couple of very important questions. Did it really happen? Did Jesus really die? Did he really rise from the dead? And the response to these questions is “yes.” Jesus really was crucified. Jesus did die. Jesus has been raised from death. Although there are some differences in the way Matthew, Mark, Luke and John tell the story, these things happened.
These are all fair questions, but I think that the most important for Christians is, “how does Jesus lives in you?”
How does the message of his love for the unlovable live in you? How does his forgiving of sinners work in you? How does his healing of the sick work in you? On this Sunday the question is “How does his death and resurrection work in you?” How does the resurrection work in you on a day to day basis?
Before you answer that question, let’s take a look at the last few verses of the Gospel of Mark. Let me read these last few verses: 5 As they (Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome) entered the tomb, they saw a young man, dressed in a white robe, sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed. 6 But he said to them, "Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look, there is the place they laid him. 7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you." 8 So they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.
The best translations and scholars agree that the Gospel of Mark actually ends with the words “for they were afraid.” There were some Christian writers long ago who were very uncomfortable and thought Mark should have a better ending; thus, some Bibles will have extra verses. But today, the best Bible experts agree, the gospel of Mark ends with these unusual words, “for they were afraid.”
Why were they afraid? Jesus is out there; he’s on the loose. What will happen now? What’s he going to do? And the women wondered how it would affect them. Will the authorities get all upset and send soldiers after them? He is raised from death and now nothing can stop him. What will he do?
These questions are important and on this day we celebrate the risen Jesus. He is alive and his story will live in us. It is a story of healing and renewal; it is a story of forgiveness and new life. Jesus lives in us as we hear the old, old story of his love. It lives in us as we show love and give help to those around us. Jesus lives in us as we come to our end with the promise of eternal life. It is through daily prayer and weekly worship that the awareness of Jesus being in us comes to life again and again as we celebrate the Resurrection each Sunday. Each Sunday you discover that Jesus is in you. Now here’s the best part: He is there to stay, always! AMEN