FROM SLAVERY TO FREEDOM

SERMON - FOR ST PETER’S DAY

Ezekiel 3:22-26   Romans 6:12-end    Matthew 16:13-19

I wonder what you are addicted to? We all have addictions. I’m addicted to cats, chocolate & cricket - and that’s just for starters! But we all are addicted to sin ( the dark angels of our nature) – we are SLAVES to sin, St Paul writes. Sin has power over you, me, all of us.

Now usually, an addiction can be cured – or at least controlled – by therapy or medication. But the only remedy for addiction to sin is the grace & love of God.

And for me the ‘great & mighty wonder’ is that God became man - taking the form of a slave, in solidarity with our sinful selves to liberate us from slavery to sin. Jesus Christ. It’s all there in Philippians 2:5-9. The Greek word is ‘doulos’, which means slave, or servant. So we read in John 13:2-10 of Jesus washing the disciples’ feet. That was the duty of a slave.  Jesus did this to show that God is totally there FOR people – and remains so today, for us, for everyone.

Slavery is a terrible thing. It has been a poison infecting humanity since as far back as we can remember. It was taken for granted in the Persian & Roman Empires. It was assumed by the Constitution of the USA – that stirring manifesto of liberty & equality! Our British Empire & ‘civilization’ was built on it. As also was the ancient empire of Egypt….

Which is where it all starts to get exciting! Because we now come to a remarkable event about 3 and a half thousand years ago, the turning-point at the heart of our Jewish-Christian faith – th LIBERATION by Moses of the Hebrew/Jewish people from slavery in Egypt. The EXODUS, the ‘going out from’ Egypt. Now the Hebrews not only came to see the hand of God in this. They saw this freedom as God’s GIFT – the gift of freedom:  but they saw also that this gift entails RESPONSIBILITY. God makes it clear beyond doubt: “As I have done this for you, so I now call you to liberate the poorest of this land” ---> of this earth – those suffering injustice under the heel of the overlord, the dispossessed, the stranger & the refugee whom we are to welcome into our community. God repeats this obligation time and again through the prophets, right through to Jesus, and so to us today. Here in Settle are refugees and those who seek welcome, and a home. Here in Britain there are still slaves.

So it is that this important journey – literally one of life & death – brings us to our CHRISTIAN FAITH - and nearer to St Peter. We arrive at the Second Exodus. We see that by way of God’s work in Jesus Christ, we have become liberated from slavery to sin, we are freed from all that deals the cards of death rather than life. God is at-one with us (and indeed all creation) in the  life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The requirement to act on this – to make it real in today’s world – does not come cheap. It calls for commitment and risk. But this liberation is also the gift and promise of new community life in all its fullness!

Today I mark the 50^th anniversary to the day – Sunday 28 June 1970, St Peter’s Day – of my ordination as deacon in Worcester Cathedral by Bishop Mervyn Charles-Edwards. ‘Deacon’ is another word meaning servant – All of us in the church, lay people, priests, bishops…the Pope…remain servants, always for other people and their needs. Unlike slavery, service – ministry – is truly reciprocal, a mutual 2-way thing .

So – PETER. Jesus calls a fisherman, Simon son of Jonah, to spearhead his motley mixed-bag group of disciples – a very ordinary, vulnerable, down-to-earth bunch of sinners – it could be you and I … well, it is, now!. Peter was a nick-name which Jesus – slightly tongue-in-cheek but with great intent - gave to Peter. ‘You are my ‘petros’, my rock, on whom I will build my church’, my new community’ says Jesus. The Greek N.T. word translated as ‘church’ actually means ‘people called out’, together in community. COMMUNITY, YOU SEE, IS AT THE HEART OF IT. As the socially crammed, not distanced, Bournemouth beach sadly showed 3 days ago, our collective behaviour can be very different from our individual behaviour, for better and worse. But God calls us, the Christian community, to set a clear example as a responsible, merciful community open to all. So Pentecost, the beginning of the church, was the public demonstration of a new movement of the will in face of a Jewish religion stale and tired under the heel of oppression.

Was Peter promising material to be the leader of a world-changing new movement? Well no, not really. Fickle, unreliable, impulsive, hot-headed…doesn’t think before he speaks.. repeatedly gets it wrong! And yet…. Jesus sees deep-down into Simon – spies the potential – takes a huge risk – just as God does with you and me….

Indeed, as the ministry of Jesus pans out, things don’t look at all promising in Simon Peter’s case… At the Transfiguration he just doesn’t get it. He tries to walk on the water, and fails embarrassingly! And here in today’s Gospel he acclaims Jesus as Christ/Messiah oh so full-heartedly……But then what happens? After Jesus’ arrest, when all seems lost, Peter denies Jesus 3 times, most emphatically!

JESUS, THOUGH, KEEPS FAITH WITH PETER, through torture, crucifixion and beyond – God’s huge risk will be justified! So at the very end of John’s Gospel, we see Jesus affirming Peter 3 times as he confirms Peter’s calling, and ours, to practical service – the requirement that we serve one another with utmost care and compassion – that we be deacons. “FEED MY SHEEP”.

Peter, then, comes to lead this new Spirit-filled community – the Church. He finishes up in Rome. At the end, he is bound hand & foot and taken where he does not want to go (cf Ezekiel 3) – to crucifixion.

That could be it – except for one final, tantalising but maybe very significant question…. Were there women apostles too? Perhaps Mary of Magdala?  Later on, in Romans 16, v.7, Paul greets Andronicus and Junias ‘numbered among the apostles’. But according to the Greek original, Junias is more likely to be JUNIA. This would mean that, as well as quite possibly Mary Magdalene, here is another lady we should number among the apostles! Quite a thought…..

AMEN

Rev Paul Fisher

Sermon for Trinity Sunday

Matthew 28:16-20, 2 Corinthians 13:11-end

In my professional life, before I was ordained, I was a technical trainer. I worked for a telecommunications company and I worked on projects. It was my job to get to grips with a new product or service, learn all the intricate technical small print and then put it into laymen’s terms and train it out. So, here we are today…Trinity Sunday and I imagine that you are all here, expecting to grasp, once and for all, a theological explanation of the Trinity…but in laymen’s terms.

Well…it’s moments like these that I wonder what on earth God was thinking when he called me to ordained ministry! The thing is that there is no white paper that we are issued with when it comes to explanations of our Trinitarian God. No step-by-step instructions. No ‘Getting Started Guide. Not even an illustration to help the visual learners amongst us.

Trinity Sunday is the only Sunday in the Christian Calendar that is devoted to a doctrine – that is… the beliefs of the Church. Luckily for us, way back in the 4^th Century it was all thrashed out and put into words that the Church has been reciting ever since as part of their liturgy. And today, straight after my sermon, we will be saying together the words of the Creed. A Creed is a statement of belief and the Creed that we use the most in our churches is the Nicene Creed. It was first compiled by the first Council of Nicaea back in the year 325. It was a hot debate and continued to be controversial. It was amended in the year 381 to include a further statement about the Holy Spirit.

There are other Christian Creeds…The Apostle’s Creed, The Athanasian Creed, the Chalcedonian Creed…all of which are not without controversy. The all speak about the nature of God. But the thing is that I don’t think we are meant to have a good understanding about God. The Creed of Saint Athanasius, (which is in the Book of Common Prayer) includes

“The Father incomprehensible, the Son incomprehensible; 

and the Holy Ghost incomprehensible.”

So, basically Father, Son and Holy Spirit are all one and the same …all three are incomprehensibles…but one incomprehensible…” Confused? I think that we are supposed to be.

Just a thought…when you say your prayers, who do you pray to? Do you always start with Dear Jesus or Dear God? I wonder how many of you start with ‘Dear Holy Spirit…?’

Does it matter, if they are all one and the same?

At this time when the world is living in fear of the Covid pandemic, to focus on a complex doctrine might not be at the top of our list of priorities. But searching God out in times of crisis is often the way that people respond in uncertain times. If there’s a time to focus on God’s nature, it could be argued that now is the time!

At our Chapter meeting this week, we were told that statistics are showing that 10 times more people are worshipping online than they did in a church building each week…10 times as many!

And we’ve all seen in the past, that when there has been a national disaster, people gravitate to a place of worship, perhaps leave flowers, light a candle, say a prayer or write something in a book of condolence. That connection with God is important. It brings hope and comfort that they are not alone in their pain. And it is a great sadness that our buildings are locked at this time.

Everything that we know about God, we have learnt through the Bible. All the clues are there and we should read it and take from it what we can.

Throughout the Easter season we have followed Jesus as he was betrayed, crucified and rose from the dead. We heard about his last days on earth and his ascension into heaven. And just last week at Pentecost, we listened to that amazing story of the Disciples being equipped with the Holy Spirit.

A great story, you might be thinking but what has all that got to do with you and me in this day and age? Remember I said that the clues are in the Bible? In our Gospel reading, we hear once again that Great Commission from Jesus. We hear it in our readings a lot …because it is means a lot. It is what we are told to do as followers of Christ. Jesus said “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” 

Jesus said “remember, I am with you always…”

Just six little words…“remember, I am with you always…” Who are we that God himself tells us that he is with us always. That’s every bit of the day. That includes those mornings when we really don’t want to get out of bed or even get dressed. You know those days when you just can’t be bothered. Well… we’re not alone. Or those times when we’re not well, we’re in pain and feeling a bit neglected …well, guess what? God is in it with us, sharing that pain. And what about when we’re feeling depressed or lonely and totally misunderstood? Yep, you’ve got it…God is there as well.

God can relate to every part of our humanity because he’s been here before us. He’s been through it… from the growing pains of childhood, experienced the highs and lows of everyday life…to the death as a criminal.

God has promised through Jesus that we are not and can never be alone and that nothing…absolutely nothing can separate us from his love. So, let’s have a think about this…if God the Father is in heaven, God the Son came to earth and then ascended into heaven, then that leaves God the Holy Spirit to be here on earth with us at all times and in all places.

How mind-blowing is that?

So my blessing for you all this morning is the same as the one that St Paul left with the people of Corinth in his second letter to them. It is what we know of the Grace…”The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all”.

Amen.

Sermon for Pentecost 2020

Whit Sunday

Numbers 11: 24-30; Acts 2:1-21, John 20:19-23

          

Many sermons begin by looking at last week’s events to try and connect the readings with “the real world” that we may venture out in tomorrow. We look back because we’ve no idea what the coming week will bring, or even if it is a Monday due to lockdown brain fog!

We are in good company because the Gospel reading jumps back - to the evening of the first Easter Day. Bishop Helen-Ann often quotes from Nick King’s freshly translated New Testament – Nick is a Jesuit priest but also an expert in Greek, hence he’s translated his own Bible. I’ve bought a copy for lockdown and Nick’s comments run alongside the text.

Our reading began at verse 19 but in verse 18 Mary Magdalene announced to the disciples that she has seen the Lord. Verse 19 begins with the disciples locking all the doors so they do not seem to have believed her.

They are described as in fear of “the Judaeans”, a much more accurate phrase than “the Jews” of the King James and the New Revised Standard Version Bibles, translations which reflect centuries of misunderstandings and antisemitism with “our older brothers.”

On Easter Day here in our time much was made by bishops and priests about the locked doors because, just like the disciples, we were in lockdown, afraid to go out for fear of our very lives. Little did we think that we would still be in lockdown 7 Sundays later. The press conference on Bank Holiday Monday was unusual because it was the first ever by a “Chief Adviser” rather than an elected politician, but with all the presidential trappings of a rose garden. Was he right to leave lockdown? If it was lawful was it moral?

The scene in John is chosen by the Church today because it’s John’s Pentecost - Jesus came and stood among his friends, breathed the Holy Spirit towards them, 2 metres apart hopefully, and commissioned them to go and forgive sins. The disciples now had work to do, though Thomas was commissioned later. If we were going to have 3 points, then the first would surely be that the Holy Spirit comes in to send us out.

Our 2^nd reading from Acts is Luke’s Pentecost. For Luke the Spirit in action can be felt and seen – there are dramatic winds and flames. We are meant to recall the sights and sounds of Jesus’s baptism in Luke 3. One of Luke’s emphases is that there will be opposition. Like many ancient historians, Luke uses speeches to interpret to his readers what he thinks is going on. We could think of the Queen’s Speech when she opens Parliament. The Queen reads it to tell us what is going on but a few 100 people contribute to the writing of it.

So in verse 13 Luke speaks of rejection and mockery as the speakers are accused of being drunk, a theme that will reappear frequently in Acts. The Spirit’s sheer energy drives the good news around the known world -

– if we put a pin on a map for all those difficult place names that were read out they would make a circle round what we used to call the Near East. The Spirit went even further, eventually, as we are sat in western Europe listening today. However, the

 Spirit brings opposition because of its message of judgement - think of Peter’s phrase in verse 21 – “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved”.

Today, in these strange times, we have gathered behind closed doors. No one from outside our household may come nearer than the garden wall, unless it’s the cleaner and we leave the room 20 minutes before her – or him. It may be easier to crave the safety of closed doors and minds as we find comfort in the familiar routine of home. The risk assessment for churches when they are opened says that gates, outer doors and inner doors must be left ajar, so that no-one touches them and the priest has to use the south or “priest’s door.”

We continue moving back in time like Dr Who for our last point that came in our first reading from the Book of Numbers. In the Ribblesdale parishes we always have the Old Testament reading apart from today, because the reading from Acts is just so long! Still, in lockdown we can read it during the week. It’s that wonderful story of someone snitching on their neighbour.

We used to react in horror when East Germans shopped their neighbours, school children informed on classmates and students passed information about other students. We now know from the archives of the Stasi – the secret police - that eavesdropping was widespread. Now the Coronavirus has brought that same plague here and, unlike the East Germans, we aren’t even rewarded with a new apartment or Trabant car – though the Daily Mirror will pay you for a tipoff about celebrities.

The story in Numbers relates how God shared his Spirit with Moses and 70 chosen elders in the holy tent. The 70 elders were only given the Spirit for that one ceremony. Joshua, Moses’s right hand man, snitched on the wonderfully-named Eldad and Medad. They hadn’t even been in the service, and yet, there they were, running around, full of God’s spirit. “Stop them!” said Joshua.

To his surprise, Moses wished that the Lord would put his Spirit on all the Israelites.

The last point then is that Pentecost is for all God’s people. We too can offer the simple prayer or plea that the people of God have whispered and sung down the centuries: “Come Holy Spirit” – that we may be sent out through doors that are left ajar, vulnerable to opposition and ridicule, but willing to be challenged so that we can seek - and find - Jesus in the ones we serve.

The Holy Spirit is not just for Peter, Thomas and the elders, but for Eldad and Medad, you and me.

Rev Stephen Dawson