We gather together this week in what is often referred to as “Low Sunday.” This is a simple statement about what usually happens at this time of year; our Christmas and Easter friends have gone home and some of us are resting up from the Easter holiday with family. Everything is where it should be – people are back in their homes, the ordinary routine of life is back and the risen Christ has been celebrated. We’re done.
The trouble is, Jesus isn’t done yet. Jesus is walking with the two to Emmaus, he appears to the disciples to continue his teaching and we find Jesus commissioning all of us to go out into the world and make disciples to the ends of the earth. The work is not done. God’s calling is not over. This is not an ending but a beginning. The message Jesus is commanding is, “You know the story of my life. Now go tell it.” Are you ready? This Sunday we celebrate Easter, the greatest of all Christian holidays. On the first Easter Sunday, a new reality was revealed. Up to this time, suffering and death were the realities of life. Only the truly great people such as Elijah were taken up to live with God in eternity. God remained separated from the world, sitting somewhere outside, passing judgments and punishing transgressions.
All this changed on Easter morning. Everyone is offered the reality of eternal life with God. Even the most lowly of society were equal to the top in this new world. God was no longer distant, but a present source of comfort and unconditional love. Gone was the old reality, Easter was the new reality and all were welcome to this new reality by following Jesus. The world was forever changed. You and I now live in this new world and it is our call from Jesus himself to follow him, to understand that God is always with us and spread this message throughout the world. So often I see the old reality attempting to sneak its way back in, but with courage and faith in Christ I am emboldened to live in the new reality and to spread its word into a hopeless world. I pray that you will join me in living like Jesus, showing to the world that Easter is not just one morning, but every morning. We begin Easter week this Sunday and this represents the pinnacle of our Christian year. This week is like no other and as Disciples of Christ, we remember this week each and every time we meet on Sunday morning. During this week, Jesus institutes the Lord’s Supper and since that time, we have gathered together to share in the elements of bread and cup in remembrance of him.
The table is central to our faith. In every Disciples church, the communion table can be found up front and center. The symbol of our denomination is the communion chalice. Nothing is more important to us than communion. But why? Why not some other act of Jesus? Perhaps we could focus on baptism. (Can you imagine being baptized every week??) The answer can be found in this quote from one of our founders, Alexander Campbell: “As the first disciples, taught by the Apostles in person, came together into one place to eat the Lord’s Supper, and as they selected the first day of the week, in honor of his resurrection for this purpose; so we, having the same Lord, the same faith, the same hope with them, have vowed to do as they did. We owe as much to the Lord as they; and ought to love, honor, and obey him as much as they.” Last Sunday I was overwhelmed by the outpouring of cards, well wishes, cookies, and good natured ribbing about my birthday. It was certainly very moving to know how much this congregation cares for me. I would like to add that I really care for this congregation and I hope all of you know this. The bottom line at Countryside is what it should be at every church – we have fun together, we worship together, we sometimes cry together and we always care for one another. That IS church. God wouldn’t want it any other way.
As I look at our society today, there are multiple ways to connect with other people. Email, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Foursquare, LinkedIn, and on and on. But for me, nothing equals the face-to-face, personal connection. To be in the presence of someone else is just not available when there is a piece of technology in between two people. Sure; it’s nice and it’s convenient – and it’s fast. But as I see it, it’s shallow. The advantage of church is the one-to-many personal connections we offer. This is the largest selling point we have. So why aren’t we talking about it? Well, maybe it’s because we’re too busy texting… This Sunday we begin our Lenten journey in earnest. Jesus is in his final journey towards Jerusalem. This Sunday, we find him in Jericho which is northeast of the city. He stops to have dinner and to stay the night with Zacchaeus. The problem is Zacchaeus is the chief tax collector who is hated by all.
Tax collectors in Jesus' time were a lot more than our blessed civil servants of the Internal Revenue Service. Rome demanded tribute each year and it was the task of the tax collectors to get that tribute. Rome did not care how they got it or if they got more and pocketed the difference. All Rome demanded was its total. Of course, this system is prime for corruption and the tax collection system was full of abuse. The chief tax collector would have been over several other tax collectors and therefore even more primed for corruption. It was a bad system to say the least. Into all this, Jesus walks in and offers to stay with this man Zacchaeus. In response, Zacchaeus converts and confesses his sins, offers restitution and extends his offering by giving half his possessions to the poor. In looking at this story, I can't help but see the lesson for all of us. Even the most reviled people of our society should be offered the opportunity to see the Kingdom of God. There is always hope that the message of Jesus Christ will persuade - leading to conversion and a better world. There is power in this story. The power of the Word to touch each and every person. So all of us as Christians should be empowered to spread this gospel message by reaching out to those whom we revile - relying on the power of the Word. This is who we are called to be; the messengers of the Word. |
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This blog consists of reflections written by the minister each week for the Sunday bulletin. We hope that you enjoy the musings! Archives
January 2020
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