EASTER 2011
Alleluia, Christ is Risen!
This year it’s been a long wait until Easter as it comes at about the latest it can—if not the latest. Now we have the wonderful story of a new dawn, not just on one day in history, but the dawning of a new era.
During this year we’ve been looking a lot at Matthew’s Gospel, and learned that the writer was concerned to emphasise the way in which Jesus’ life, death and resurrection fulfils the Jewish scripture, revealing the glory of God. However, he’s also concerned to show that this revelation isn’t limited to the Jewish people. At the start we hear of the Magi, astrologers from the east. At the end we hear of the commission to preach the Gospel to all nations.
Today, we hear about the burial of Jesus, the discovery by the women of the empty tomb, and that call to mission. (Matt 27:55– 28:20). All the Gospels tell us that women were the first witnesses, so we can be in no doubt that it’s true. The numbers and names of the women concerned varies in each account, though the one always present is Mary Magdalene.
Three thoughts as we compare the women with groups of men in Matthew’s Gospel:
Both the women and the Magi were seeking Jesus, though the women thought they would only find his body. In both cases, when they find him, they fall down and worship, but there is perhaps a greater intimacy in the resurrection story, when the women grasp Jesus’ feet. They had a relationship with the Lord that the Magi could not have had. Now the Messiah isn’t a concept or an idea, but a person they had touched and known.
During the Gospel the women were mostly in the shadows behind the disciples. Now the roles are reversed. There is humour and playfulness in the fact that the women carry a promise for the disciples that they seem not to be included in, and yet before they deliver the message they themselves have seen Jesus. The disciples eventually see Him. They worship ‘but some doubted’. This is an example of the way in which those who are expected to respond in faith are hesitant, whilst those on whom there were no expectations seem to be spontaneous and whole-hearted
The women and the guards experience the earthquake and iridescent angel, both symbolic of the presence of God. For the women the whole experience brings life, while the guards fall down as though dead and then flee. The presence of God does that—it brings joy to those who are open and ready, but fear to those who are not.
Meeting the risen Christ still transforms lives.
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June 26th 2011
Readings from Jeremiah 28: 5-9 and Matthew 10:40-42
The readings today raise a lot of very contemporary issues about hospitality and trust. How can we know if someone is telling the truth or is trying to deceive? Who can we let in, and who should we close the door on? It isn’t always easy to tell—there are wolves in sheep’s clothing out there.
In Jeremiah we hear part of a debate between Jeremiah and another prophet, Hananiah, who in contrast to Jeremiah’s harshly challenging message, speaks words of peace and hope. Jeremiah suggests Hananiah’s message should be set against the messages of prophets of old to check out what is consistent with the character of God. As Christians we are to look to the words and actions of Jesus as our baseline.
The Gospel reading in Matthew is the last few verses of a very challenging ‘pep-talk’ for the disciples before they go out on their own to continue the work of God’s kingdom as modelled by Jesus himself. A lot of what has gone before is very uncomfortable to hear, for example he says he comes not to bring peace but a sword. There are some words of encouragement too. In these last verses of the chapter, Jesus says that whoever welcomes the disciples, welcomes Jesus himself, and welcomes God. Anyone who offers even a cup of water, the absolute minimum requirement according to Middle Eastern hospitality, would receive a blessing from God.
What kind of God do we believe in? A sugar-Daddy God, who tells us what we want to hear (like Hananiah) or a challenging God, who tells us where we’re going wrong, and who is able to work in us through the hardships that come upon us (like the God of Jeremiah’s message).
No, it’s not always easy to know who are the true and false prophets, but these readings suggest to me that one thing to look for is the nature of the God the message or the messenger displays. God always demands righteousness, but never ceases to love his people. The disciples were to go out as Jesus did, with the standards of the Kingdom of heaven as their baseline and that would be both a challenge to change and a comfort for any who were open to it.
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July 10th 2011 Action for Children Sunday
This year Action for Children have focussed on the Parable of the Sower, with the theme of ‘Seeds of Hope’. This parable, also sometimes called the Parable of the Seeds or of the Soils, is the first to be recounted in Matthew’s Gospel. Did Matthew look at the early church and reflect on the ‘harvest’ so far?
Parables are stories that are often both attractive and puzzling. They leave us thinking, and as we enter into the story it takes a grip of us.
A few pointers to help you reflect on this parable:
Literally it’s about ‘the’ farmer, not just ‘a’ farmer. So this is God at work, scattering the seeds of the Kingdom.
There was no guarantee of a harvest in the Middle East then—or now! A normal yield would only be between 2 and 8%, just enough to break even and have a bit of seed to plant the next year. 25% yield would give enough to buy a new field and/or build a new barn. 60% would move the farmer towards a monopoly, and would be totally unexpected. In fact Jesus’ hearers would think such a yield quite ridiculous. An example of the art of exaggeration for effect!
In the Middle East, seed was broadcast along strip fields with paths between, so the reality was that birds would get some, and some would fall by the wayside. Isn’t that a sign of the abundant grace of God and God’s care for the birds and creepy crawlies as well as the farmer and his family! That’s a reminder to us in our profit mad age!
Seeds of Hope? The hope is based not on what we see as ‘reality’ around us, but on God’s grace—on what God can do with and for us. Hope lies in the fact that whatever happens this year, seed will be sown again next year. Hope is in the possibility that children lacking in opportunity can be ‘planted’ into better conditions through work like that of Action for Children.
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Advent service, Dec. 4th 2011
In the wilderness prepare the way for the Lord……
What comes to mind when think you of wilderness? Empty, dry, nothing happening?
Yet nature programmes show that actually a lot is happening under the surface in the desert places of the world.
The wilderness that John went to, near to Jericho and the Jordan, was a significant point of contact between people of Judah and other tribes. It’s still an important route for Palestinians to get to Jordan, the only way for them to fly to the rest of the world, because they’re not allowed to go to Tel Aviv airport. This wilderness is a place where Bedouin people manage to live, so it’s not empty!
Wilderness places in the Bible were often places where character and identity were formed and demons faced and conquered.
We may have a sense of being in a wilderness today as the church, but there’s a lot happening under the surface! And into the midst of that process God speaks to us through Isaiah, offering:
Words of tenderness, comfort, and intimacy – Comfort, comfort MY people…….
The reassurance of those words ‘Fear not’, words that echo with the Christmas story.
The image of the shepherd and flock, reassuring us of protection even in danger.
In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord….
The prophetic messages come repeatedly to prepare the way for God to do new things. As we listen to the prophets at Christmas, let them be to us a sign of God doing a new thing— not just THE new thing of Incarnation, but a new thing for this ‘flock’ in this place and time.