Monday, February 20, 2012

Jesus Comes Down


Transfiguration Sunday
February 19, 2012
Mark 9:2-9

Grace and peace to you in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Today is Transfiguration Sunday.We celebrate this Sunday every year at the end of Epiphany--the season of light, the season of the revealing of God’s goodness and hope through Jesus the Christ. This day signals one end and soon we begin the journey to the cross through the darkness and wilderness of Lent. It is the day when we hear the fanciful story of climbing a mountain and seeing the radiance, of Jesus all decked out in dazzling white. 
This Sunday, we also find ourselves in the middle of Black History Month. If you and I are facebook friends and I show up in your news feed, you will have noticed that I have been posting black history moments everyday.....poems, prayers and little snippets of African American life and culture. It has been fun, a reminder of who I am and where I come from.
I have also been reminded along with the rest of the world, of three giants of the African American community, celebrities of the music industry that we have lost already this year Etta James, Don Cornelus and Whitney Houston.

Etta James began as a gospel singer in the early 1940’s. We know her best for her soulful ballad “At Last.” She died on January 20, with complications of leukemia, dementia and hepatitis C.
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Don Cornelus, died on Feb. 1 from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. For those of you who don’t know, Cornelus was the creator and producer of "Soul Train," the African American equivalent to American Bandstand. Soul Train began in 1970. At that time the show gave a never-before-seen glimpse of black music, fashion and culture on television. It was broadcast nationally from 1971 to 2006 and became one of television's longest running syndicated shows.

It came on every Saturday morning. When I was a teenager, my sisters and I would finish our chores and get ready for the Soul Train line. We would watch and then try out all the dance moves. It was the show where we saw, the likes of Aretha Franklin, Barry White, James Brown and others. Don Cornelus with his smooth, soulful, baritone voice, would close each show with: "We wish you love, peace, and SOUL."
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And Whitney Houston who died last Saturday of undisclosed causes.
Don’t worry, my sermon is not about Whitney Houston, this morning but about Jesus who climbs a mountain......
We are not sure what mountain he climbs in our gospel text this morning  but the mountain is reminiscent of the mountain in Exodus, that mountain where God’s glory is revealed to Moses.
Anyway Jesus climbs this mountain with three of his followers Peter, James and John. They climb the mountain with Jesus perhaps they think that this will be a great time of rest and relaxation, a break in all their busyness.

They need to relax especially Jesus. He really has been busy. Thus far in Mark’s gospel --Jesus has called a cadre of followers, has traveled about the countryside....curing the sick, feeding 5000 and talking about the kingdom of God. Everywhere he went people were pushing in on him like he were a pop star.
And just when he thought his disciples understood who he was, Jesus has a sort of knock down, drag out, a very powerful argument with Peter. He is trying to explain his path to them. The path of suffering and death that he must walk. The argument is so fierce, he calls Peter Satan.
Perhaps they need a rest, so they climb the mountain and the glory of the Lord is revealed.
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For sure the three powerful celebrities we lost had intense mountaintop experiences. Etta James won Grammies. She received a Grammy for “Let’s Roll” best blues album in 2003, along with other awards.
Don Cornelus had a platform, a spotlight every Saturday morning for decades. They won fortune and acclaim. Whitney was known as The Voice; she was not only an incredible singer but a successful actress starring with Kevin Costner in the 1993 film “the Bodyguard.
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No, my sermon this morning is not about Whitney Houston who like Cornelus and James had moments of dazzling and dizzying heights in their lives. This sermon is about a Jesus who is on the mountaintop with each of them and each of us. This sermon is about a God who revels in our joys and successes, our accomplishments and good times. This God smiles when we smile, laughs when we laugh and delights in our delights. We all have mountaintop experiences and in the midst of them God through Jesus the Christ rejoices with us.
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And what a delight, what a sight they behold on that mountaintop with Jesus. His clothes are whiter than any bleach could bleach them and Moses and Elijah fathers of their faith appear.
When Peter, so in awe of what he is witnessing, says "man this is beautiful we should stay right here, build dwellings and hang out. Let’s forget about that walking around helping people stuff...."
Then a cloud overshadowed them and voice coming from the clouds is heard “this is my son the beloved listen to him” This voice is reminiscent of the voice at Jesus’ baptism. Then the voice says:“You are my son the beloved.....Then the voice was addressed to Jesus to encourage him to begin his ministry.
This time the voice is addressed to Peter, James and John as they stand in fear. This time the voice is addressed to us “Listen to him.”
Listen to Jesus because he knows the journey he will take; listen to him put away your doubt, put away your fear; do what he says and follow him.
After the voice, looking around, all the excitement is over, no more dazzling white, no more Moses and Elijah. I can imagine deflated Peter, James and John start down the mountain. Back into the fray.
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Down the mountain came Etta, Don and Whitney. Yes, they were celebrities; yes, they often held the spotlight; yes, their lives were full of dizzying heights, but they couldn’t stay there forever. 
Etta James struggled with drugs and there are rumors that Ms. James was jealous because Beyonce Knowles got to sing her song “At Last” at Obama’s Inauguration party.
Don Cornelus took his own life. We aren’t sure why, but we can speculate that he was no longer the strong, powerful man that he had been for years. His health was failing and he couldn’t stand the thought of growing old and being sick. 
And Whitney--well we all watched her life unravel right on the television screen.
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The bible says“As they were coming down the mountain. . .” As Peter, James and John move down the mountain we are reminded that the God we know through Jesus the Christ also knows that joys, delights, dizzying heights are not the only part of our lives. That our lives are full of fears. Yesterday during her funeral we heard Kevin Costner speak of the doubt and fear that plagued even superstar Whitney.
It is evidence that as good as the mountaintop experiences are the depth or our fear and sorrow can also be great. As part of the human family we experience pain and sickness; we are diagnosed with disease; Yet Jesus is not on the mountain looking down at us-----Jesus comes down the mountain.
One preacher writes: “Think of it: Jesus could have stayed there. Perhaps he should have stayed there. After all, this transfigured state, attended by Moses and Elijah, and his three disciples, was much closer to the state of glory that Jesus deserved than what’s coming.”*
Yet, Jesus comes down. Down into the chaos and confusion of ordinary life, down into a world of despair and disease, of misunderstandings and quarrels. Jesus comes down and stands with us, holds us up and comforts us, guides us and empowers us. Because he comes down, we don’t ever experience the highest highs or the deep downs of life alone.
Jesus comes down and continues on his path, of suffering, pain and death for us, because he loves us......all of us........Etta, Don and Whitney all of us no matter our addictions, our trouble our faults.
And because of this love we can all say…Alleluia one more time; we can all shout …..Alleluia.

Just Rambling!




*David Lose from his commentary on workingpreacher.org

Monday, February 6, 2012


Epiphany 5

1 Corinthians 9:16-23


Grace and peace to you from God who creates, redeems and sustains us.

Do you remember the first time you drove a car, the freedom you felt,
the ability to go places without your mother having to drive you around?
It’s a rite of passage in our cultural, but we thing it is a right. Most of us couldn’t wait for this kind of freedom.

I was a little late getting my driver’s license; I was a young mother newly married, living in the suburbs of Atlanta before I could drive a car. I tried driving before then; I even took driver’s education classes. But, for some reason, I didn’t get my driver’s license when I was sixteen.

 I was forced, however, to get my driver’s license because public transportation in East Point Georgia, in the late 70’s was a little better than non-existent. When you took the bus, from the south suburbs it took hours to get anywhere.

When I finally got my license, I remember the relief I felt when I no longer had to ask my son’s father to drive me for groceries, or to the mall or to go with me when I had to take my son to the doctors, or on every little errand.

I remember the intense freedom I felt when I bought my first car, a baby blue Mazda 323.The thrill of being able to go when and where I wanted
was intoxicating. I felt that in my little isolated blue metal capsule, I was totally free.
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We wonder, what in the world is Paul talking about this week? Last week we heard his conversation about food. The church in Corinth, I will remind you was experiencing conflict over whether or not it was alright to eat meat sacrificed to idols. Today we hear him talking about submitting oneself  to the needs of others for the sake of the gospel, and being all things to all people.

Sounds a little confusing to me, that is until we unpack it, until we realize that in the 9th chapter of 1 Corinthians as in the 8th Paul is talking about freedom.......

As Paul writes: “For though I am free with respect to all, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I might win more of them.” Again Paul brings to mind the statement by Luther “A Christian is a perfectly free lord of all, subject to none. A Christian is a perfectly dutiful servant of all, subject to all.”

Eugene Peterson, in The Message, translates the passage in a slightly different way: “Even though I am free of the demands and expectations of everyone, I have voluntarily become a servant to any and all in order to reach a wide range of people.”

The question Paul is answering is what he does with this freedom, which in turns helps us ponder what we do with the freedom we have as Christians.
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And we ask the question: Why in the world would we ever give up our freedom in order to be servants to anyone? One preacher says: “To ask an American to give up some of her or his freedom would be as ridiculous as asking her to give up her car!”**
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I gave up my car when I went to seminary in Chicago and did without a car while in New York for internship. It was hard getting used to taking public transportation again, but it was easier in Hyde Park and the Bronx to get around without a car. As a matter of fact it was fun. I walked more; I got more exercise. I was even able to interact with all kinds of people and travel through parts of both cities I might not have seen traveling on freeways. I learned to enjoy the sights, sounds, smells and diversity of big cities. I gave up my freedom to come and go on my own schedule, for new experiences. Although it was difficult at first --- my life was enriched.
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Paul continues: “. . .religious, nonreligious, meticulous moralists, loose-living moralists, the defeated, the demoralized---whoever. I didn’t take on their way of life. I kept my bearings in Christ—but I entered their world and tried to experience things from their point of view”

“I have become all things to all people that I might by all means save some.”

Sounds strange to me-- all things to all people--how is that even possible?
But it isn’t so strange, it isn’t impossible if we see what Paul is doing.

Paul is saying that he takes the good news of God through Jesus the Christ so absolutely serious that he will give up his self, his identity, his freedom to spread this good news. And through the telling of this autobiographical story Paul is inviting the church in Corinth to also take this good news seriously --to give up a little of their freedom; to be for others what they need in order to see and experience this good news.

To use the analogy, Paul is asking us to get out of our cars and walk with others, to be with others, in their joys and especially in their sorrows, to help in hard times and trouble, to move from charity to justice in poverty and hunger.
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This is what the ELCA calls accompaniment. It is what we are trying to do as we go back to New Orleans for the National Youth Gathering.

The definition-- “Accompaniment is walking together in solidarity, practicing interdependence and mutuality. Gifts, resources, and experiences are shared with mutual advice and admonition to deepen and expand all efforts within the mission of God.”*

In 2009, tens of thousands of young people and their adult leaders traveled to New Orleans to help with recovery efforts. Hurricane Katrina had such a devastating impact on that city that four years later, the city was still in need of help. What we learned in 2009, was that the people of New Orleans welcomed those young people who walked the streets of the city, who painted and hammered, who planted and taught, who spent money and got to know the people they were helping through conversation on street corners and over lunch counters. We all learned through active listening that it wasn’t just the storm that plagued New Orleans, but a long history of racism and injustice. And we are going back because the relationship has grown and we want to be present with them, to experience things from their point of view, to encourage the citizens of New Orleans as systems change.
Accompaniment is the model that Habitat for Humanity always uses volunteers working alongside new home owners.

Accompaniment is exactly what our young people, with adults in the congregation, do when they travel to the hills of Tennessee or West Virginia for the Appalachia Service Project. Yet, it is not simply about going and helping those people out. It is about learning who they are, what is important to them the, history, culture, music.  A group of young people and adults got together on Friday to watch a documentary titled “The Appalachians.” They heard the music of those hills; they heard stories from the people of Appalachia; they learned about the food they eat; the heritage of those who settled in those hills. Scotts Irish, Native American, German, and African American many different peoples settled there. They also learned the way they worship and why. Our young people are learning about a culture that is different, foreign and may seem strange to them.f

This learning enriches and broadens their lives, helps them understand that everyone doesn’t have what they have, live as they live or even think the way they think. But everyone is a gift of God and has something to offer

All of this learning will help them walk with the people that they travel to serve. To be examples of the goodness of God through Jesus the Christ
in their deeds and to see that same example in those they serve
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To accompany, walk with others it is what we as Christians are invited to do. Because that is what Jesus did for us. “In Christ Jesus God stopped the car, got out, and walked with us, touching us with grace, compassion, mercy and love.” ** Jesus healed the sick, feed the hungry and touched even the most untouchable.

Sometimes it is hard to be without a car; I know; I have experienced it. But,

Paul is asking us to give up our freedom, some of our isolated comfort, to step out of our cars and walk with others. Paul wants us to give ourselves for the sake of the gospel, knowing that at first it might be hard, but giving up a little of our freedom, serving others will not be the end of us, but the beginning of a broadened, a full and enriched life.

So, get out of the car. Walk with others. Spread the gospel.

Amen


*Definition from elca.org
** This sermon was inspired and a few quotes used from Rev. Allen V. Harris' sermon "Get Out of the Car Please."
Scripture comes from the NSRV or The Message