Proper 17 Year A          Matt. 16:21-27, Romans 12:9-21            Rev. Benton Quest

St. Swithin's in the Swamp

I was looking at the readings for today; trying to figure out which one I wanted to preach on. Did I want to preach about old Jeremiah complaining to God because things were not going so well? Did I want to preach about Paul calling us to that higher call of loving our neighbors and enemies?  Or did I want to preach about Jesus calling Peter “Satan” and telling us all kinds of things about denying ourselves? 

Humm… This is a tough one!  With Hurricane Irene pummeling the East Coast, Politicians yelling and screaming at each other, and most of America feeling disenfranchised, I really don’t want to preach about how the world is falling apart.  And did I want to preach about Jesus calling Peter “Satan?”  We have people calling each other enough names.  So after weighing all the options, I decided I would rather preach on love. I like preaching about love.  So with that in mind, I decided to delve into the Romans reading.

Actually, the first thing that went through my mind as I studying the reading from Romans was, “This should be on a parchment scroll somewhere.” I guess I must have thought that because it reminded me of The Desiderata. Now, I don’t know if you know The Desiderata or not, but it is one of those “nice” poems that people tend to send to each other over the internet or we see it written out in calligraphy surrounded by dried flowers. It starts out, “Go placidly amid the noise and the haste…” And ends with: “With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.” The poem is full of all kinds of good things to remember. And usually, after reading it, most people will say, “Yes, that is good stuff to remember.” But then that is usually the end of it. The poem gets thrown into the drawer or gets deleted from the computer and we just go on with our lives.

Unfortunately, something very similar can happen to with our reading from Romans. We can read it and realize that there are some REALLY GOOD things being said, but then we close our Bible and go on with our daily lives, not letting the profundity of the message really sink in.

Today’s reading from Romans is really very simple; it is just a series of directives as to what we should and should not be doing as individuals and as a community of faith. There are various things that sound like they should be in a self-help book. And when we finish the reading, most of us would generally think, “Yes, that sounds reasonable.” But it is this kind of flip response that can get us into trouble. We often will just look at the reading with an “Uh Duh” kind of attitude and we don’t really think any more about it. But if we really were to take these directives to heart, they could, quite literally, change the world.

Let’s just look at the first line: “Let love be genuine” This one directive has the potential of being highly subversive. How many times do we use “love” as a means of manipulating people? How many times do we truly give out of total, unselfish love? How many times have we been AFRAID to accept someone’s kindness because we were unsure of the person’s intentions? How often are we worried about becoming indebted to someone who seems to be acting kind? Generally, in our world, love comes with some strings attached and these strings can become quite entangling. Paul is telling us to remove all of those strings, he is putting things quite simply, “Let love be genuine.”

Paul then goes on to flesh out what he means by “be genuine.” How simple is this? “…hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good.” With Paul’s definition, loving genuinely should not be difficult at all. It is right there, but we need to be reminded of this; we have to have Paul tell us once again. Although it sounds like it should be a no-brainer, often we do just the opposite. We hold onto the evil and cower from the good. It is just this kind of behavior that causes Jesus to ask in the gospel reading, “For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life?”  Gaining the whole world and forfeiting one’s own life is actually an example of what happens when we disregard the directive that Paul has given us.

When I hear the words, “Gain the whole world but forfeit their life,” I often think of the work-a-holic. Here is someone who spends hours making money so as to have all the pleasures of life. A big house, a nice car, a boat…you know what I mean. The person works hard to get the “things” of life. But, unfortunately, life itself has passed this person by. Suddenly the children are grown and the house is empty. Suddenly your spouse is just a person who shares the same house with you. The big house is just that, a house. It is not a home because the goodness of love is no longer there. We are told that all of these various things are going to bring us a good life; but in actuality, the good of family and friends goes flying out the window.

Well, there I did it:  I was trying to not preach on the gospel reading and it just popped right in! Did you see that!  The truth of Jesus’ words is difficult to avoid! And the fact that Paul had to reiterate what Jesus was saying is proof that Jesus’ words are not the most easy things to live out. And whether we like it or not, these are the ideals that, we, as Christians, are called to live. We are called to love our enemies, not seek revenge. We are called to give to the poor, not just hope someone else will do it. We are called to hate what is evil, not just rename it as something like “progress.”

Christ calls us to a higher life. When he says that those who lose their life for his sake will find it, what he means is those who are willing to lose their lower level of life for his sake, will find a higher level of life.

This reminds me of a story.

There once was a little girl who had a plastic string of pearls. The little girl would wear the pearls everywhere and every night, she would take them off and place them in the drawer of her nightstand.

Every night, the little girl’s father would tuck her in and ask her if she loved him. And every night the little girl would say, “Of course, Daddy, I love you more than anything!”

After that, the father would ask the little girl if she would give him her pearls. To which the little girl always responded, “Oh, please ask me for anything, but not my pearls!” After the little girl answered, the father would smile at her, give her a big hug and kiss, and go out of the room.

This continued for years until one night, something changed. The girl looked at her father and, with tears streaming down her eyes, responded, “Yes, I love my pearls, but I love and trust you more. So yes, I will give you my pearls.” And the girl took the pearls out of the drawer and handed them to her father.

Her father was overjoyed! He looked at her with tears streaming down his cheeks and pulled out a box and handed it to his daughter. It was a string of, not fake, but real pearls! He had wanted to give the real pearls to his daughter, but she had to be willing to give up the fake.

Christ is ready to give us true life, not something that is pretending to be life. Paul is showing us how to get the most out of the life we have here, now! But we are being asked to place our faith and our trust in Christ. All around us, we are being told to not reach out and just worry about ourselves; we are being told that we should revel in our “so called” self-made success while leaving others to suffer because “they” are lazy or somehow flawed.  But Jesus is asking us to look after our enemies. Paul is asking us to work toward the greater good of all people, not just those who we happen to like.

This is not a plan to just feel good. What we are being asked actually takes some work! We have to work to follow the example that Jesus set. When Jesus told Peter to “get behind,” it was not that Jesus was trying to get rid of Peter. Jesus was reminding Peter of his proper spot. You cannot follow the savior if you are running out in front of him! 

We are to follow in the path of Jesus and live as servant leaders.  We are called to come together as a community and we are called to gather around the table.  Now yes, this calling is to strengthen us, but this strength is not for us alone. We are strengthened to go out into the world and share the love of Christ that we ourselves have found. We are strengthened to love genuinely. We are strengthened to love our enemies. We are strengthened to live peaceably with all.  Yes, we are strengthened to love our families and friends, but we are also strengthened to love the stranger and the outcast.  We are strengthened to be a force in our neighborhoods and communities.  We are strengthened through Christ’s body, blood, forgiveness, and love to touch those people the world would claim are untouchable.

So I challenge you to go back and reread today’s passage from Romans. But don’t just read it as a nice poem sent to you on e-mail, read it as a guide to living a full life, sent to you by the one who loves you more than you can ever understand. Read it that way, because that is exactly what it is.

Follow-Up From Previous Post

Well, now that I am in a better mood, I will flesh out the situation:

As some of you know, I have been between calls since May.  We were in the process of moving out of the apartment as the rent was going to become too expensive.  We were then told informed of a church in the area that would be needing some interim work and so we stayed in the area.

I had met with the leaders of the congregation and it was decided that I would supply at various times during the summer and then we would discuss more in the fall.  The congregation was NOT to be informed that I was a potential fill for their open position.  It was also assumed that this was a done deal unless either the church of me had a reason to say no.  We would then revisit the situation in two years and see we want to continue or if we want to change the situation.

Last Sunday, during the announcements at this church, one of the board members decided to announce that the congregation was setting up a call committee and if anyone wanted to be on it.  And, by the way, Fr. Ben was in the running.

I was a bit (BIT?) surprised.  This was NOT to be discussed with the congregation.

I talked to the President of the congregation and he said that it was NOT to be stated to the congregation.

Then I discussed it with another member of the board and she said that there was discussion of setting up a call committee and I was in the running.

A call committee is at least a 3 month process.  This was not part of the original plan.  We cannot afford to have a three month process with no income.  I could have been looking for a call this summer but I was assured this was a 99% done deal.  (I had been dreading that 1%!)

I am really getting tired of living in the 'burbs, I miss the open, empty, non-peopled places.  I was hoping to be able to get away from the city and move into a more rural area.  I have acquired some medical bills (having a kidney stone removed will do that) and was looking forward to being able to pay them.  Now, it is appearing that I should have been looking for a call all summer.

So yes, I am pissed off, I am feeling betrayed, and I am having a crisis of faith.

I look at my friends and classmates and see them in churches, taking vacations to Italy, being able to get on with life.  It just seems that I encounter difficulties.

The thought of "am I the right person for this" has gone through my head.  When I keep running into walls, I have to wonder if I need to be going in a different direction.  The problem is:  I do not see another direction.

Hopefully we can get some clarity on this situation.

Thanks for your kind words.

RANTPISSEDBETRAYEDCRISISOFFAITHFEDUP

I have had it.  If you asked me if I would do the whole thing over again, the answer would be "NO!"  Maybe even, "HELL NO!"

Life in the church has been nothing but a complete frustration.  And when I look at things that seem so totally set in stone, I have to ask:  What is the common denominator here?  That would be me.  So I would appear that I am not fit to do this task.

I am getting sick of living in the city.  I am sick of fighting among people.  I am sick of what is presented to the world as Christianity.  I was so hoping for things to calm down and it looks as if things are just as messed up as before.

The "Sure Thing" for this fall appears to be crumbling.  The financial safety net that was supposed to be there is full of holes.  The bills are piling up and the money that was supposed to pay for them is not going to appear.  And if feels like the whole situation will be chalked up to "Oh well" by those in the higher echelons.  I am still paying for this stupid degree and now the thought of it makes me nauseous.

Sophomore Alert! (Sound NSFW, Visuals are questionable.)

Hate what is evil, Hold fast to what is good

Pentecost 17 Year A     Matt.16:21-27, Romans12:9-21        Rev. Benton Quest

I was looking at the readings for today; trying to figure out which one I wanted to preach on. Did I want to preach about old Jeremiah complaining to God because things were not going so well? Did I want to preach about Paul calling us to that higher call of loving our neighbors and enemies?  Or did I want to preach about Jesus calling Peter “Satan” and telling us all kinds of things about denying ourselves? 

Humm… This is a tough one!  With Hurricane Irene pummeling the East Coast, Politicians yelling and screaming at each other, and most of America feeling disenfranchised, I really don’t want to preach about how the world is falling apart.  And did I want to preach about Jesus calling Peter “Satan?”  We have people calling each other enough names.  So after weighing all the options, I decided I would rather preach on love. I like preaching about love.  So with that in mind, I decided to delve into the Romans reading.

Actually, the first thing that went through my mind as I studying the reading from Romans was, “This should be on a parchment scroll somewhere.” I guess I must have thought that because it reminded me of The Desiderata. Now, I don’t know if you know The Desiderata or not, but it is one of those “nice” poems that people tend to send to each other over the internet or we see it written out in calligraphy surrounded by dried flowers. It starts out, “Go placidly amid the noise and the haste…” And ends with: “With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.”  The poem is full of all kinds of good things to remember. And usually, after reading it, most people will say, “Yes, that is good stuff to remember.” But then that is usually the end of it. The poem gets thrown into the drawer or gets deleted from the computer and we just go on with our lives.

Unfortunately, something very similar can happen to with our reading from Romans. We can read it and realize that there are some REALLY GOOD things being said, but then we close our Bible and go on with our daily lives, not letting the profundity of the message really sink in.

Today’s reading from Romans is really very simple; it is just a series of directives as to what we should and should not be doing as individuals and as a community of faith. There are various things that sound like they should be in a self-help book. And when we finish the reading, most of us would generally think, “Yes, that sounds reasonable.” But it is this kind of flip response that can get us into trouble. We often will just look at the reading with an “Uh Duh” kind of attitude and we don’t really think any more about it. But if we really were to take these directives to heart, they could, quite literally, change the world.

Let’s just look at the first line: “Let love be genuine” This one directive has the potential of being highly subversive. How many times do we use “love” as a means of manipulating people? How many times do we truly give out of total, unselfish love? How many times have we been AFRAID to accept someone’s kindness because we were unsure of the person’s intentions? How often are we worried about becoming indebted to someone who seems to be acting kind? Generally, in our world, love comes with some strings attached and these strings can become quite entangling. Paul is telling us to remove all of those strings, he is putting things quite simply, “Let love be genuine.”

Paul then goes on to flesh out what he means by “be genuine.” How simple is this? “…hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good.” With Paul’s definition, loving genuinely should not be difficult at all. It is right there, but we need to be reminded of this; we have to have Paul tell us once again. Although it sounds like it should be a no-brainer, often we do just the opposite. We hold onto the evil and cower from the good. It is just this kind of behavior that causes Jesus to ask in the gospel reading, “For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life?”  Gaining the whole world and forfeiting one’s own life is actually an example of what happens when we disregard the directive that Paul has given us.

When I hear the words, “Gain the whole world but forfeit their life,” I often think of the work-a-holic. Here is someone who spends hours making money so as to have all the pleasures of life. A big house, a nice car, a boat…you know what I mean. The person works hard to get the “things” of life. But, unfortunately, life itself has passed this person by. Suddenly the children are grown and the house is empty. Suddenly your spouse is just a person who shares the same house with you. The big house is just that, a house. It is not a home because the goodness of love is no longer there. We are told that all of these various things are going to bring us a good life; but in actuality, the good of family and friends goes flying out the window.

Well, there I did it:  I was trying to not preach on the gospel reading and it just popped right in! Did you see that!  The truth of Jesus’ words is difficult to avoid! And the fact that Paul had to reiterate what Jesus was saying is proof that Jesus’ words are not the most easy things to live out. And whether we like it or not, these are the ideals that, we, as Christians, are called to live. We are called to love our enemies, not seek revenge. We are called to give to the poor, not just hope someone else will do it. We are called to hate what is evil, not just rename it as something like “progress.”

Christ calls us to a higher life. When he says that those who lose their life for his sake will find it, what he means is those who are willing to lose their lower level of life for his sake, will find a higher level of life.

This reminds me of a story.

There once was a little girl who had a plastic string of pearls. The little girl would wear the pearls everywhere and every night, she would take them off and place them in the drawer of her nightstand.

Every night, the little girl’s father would tuck her in and ask her if she loved him. And every night the little girl would say, “Of course, Daddy, I love you more than anything!”

After that, the father would ask the little girl if she would give him her pearls. To which the little girl always responded, “Oh, please ask me for anything, but not my pearls!” After the little girl answered, the father would smile at her, give her a big hug and kiss, and go out of the room.

This continued for years until one night, something changed. The girl looked at her father and, with tears streaming down her eyes, responded, “Yes, I love my pearls, but I love and trust you more. So yes, I will give you my pearls.” And the girl took the pearls out of the drawer and handed them to her father.

Her father was overjoyed! He looked at her with tears streaming down his cheeks and pulled out a box and handed it to his daughter. It was a string of, not fake, but real pearls! He had wanted to give the real pearls to his daughter, but she had to be willing to give up the fake.

Christ is ready to give us true life, not something that is pretending to be life. Paul is showing us how to get the most out of the life we have here, now! But we are being asked to place our faith and our trust in Christ. All around us, we are being told to not reach out and just worry about ourselves; we are being told that we should revel in our “so called” self-made success while leaving others to suffer because “they” are lazy or somehow flawed.  But Jesus is asking us to look after our enemies. Paul is asking us to work toward the greater good of all people, not just those who we happen to like.

This is not a plan to just feel good. What we are being asked actually takes some work! We have to work to follow the example that Jesus set. When Jesus told Peter to “get behind,” it was not that Jesus was trying to get rid of Peter. Jesus was reminding Peter of his proper spot. You cannot follow the savior if you are running out in front of him! 

We are to follow in the path of Jesus and live as servant leaders.  We are called to come together as a community and we are called to gather around the table.  Now yes, this calling is to strengthen us, but this strength is not for us alone. We are strengthened to go out into the world and share the love of Christ that we ourselves have found. We are strengthened to love genuinely. We are strengthened to love our enemies. We are strengthened to live peaceably with all.  Yes, we are strengthened to love our families and friends, but we are also strengthened to love the stranger and the outcast.  We are strengthened to be a force in our neighborhoods and communities.  We are strengthened through Christ’s body, blood, forgiveness, and love to touch those people the world would claim are untouchable.

So I challenge you to go back and reread today’s passage from Romans. But don’t just read it as a nice poem sent to you on e-mail, read it as a guide to living a full life, sent to you by the one who loves you more than you can ever understand. Read it that way, because that is exactly what it is.

Saw this and had to share it!

Four Months!

Think he will fatten up by Christmas?

Do we want him to?

Rant on Language

The state of English in the United States is horrible!

As someone who uses language as a major part of my chosen profession,and persuasive language at that, I notice so many things that just drive me crazy.

One that has been getting to me for years is the tack-on phrase, "if  you will..."  What is that supposed to mean? Any statement that has "if you will" tacked onto it would be equally valid without the annoying phrase.  The only thing I can figure is that it makes the speaker feel superior by reminding the listener that "I am dumbing this down so YOU can understand it."  And where did this phrase come from anyway?

Another is "Pre-Order."  Pre-order is walking to the phone, computer, representative to make your order.  Period.  Ok, pre-ordering may also be thinking of ordering.  However, when you are paying your money for something that you shall receive, you are ORDERING it.  Just because the book may not come out for another month doesn't matter.  You are ordering it.  You may be ordering it for future delivery, but you are ordering it!

And in the same vein, when you walk to the plane, you are pre-boarding.  When you are getting on the plane, you are BOARDING IT!  For some of us, pre-boarding involves sitting watching the First-Class people board, but the First-Class people are boarding, not pre-boarding.  Call it "early boarding;" call it "priority boarding;" just don't call it PRE-BOARDING.

We shall move on to "Prolly."  My nephew is notorious for this one.  Whenever I read it, I have to wonder if he really knows that the word is not "prolly" but "probably."  When I see things like this, I have to wonder if he has any aspirations to do anything in life that does not require a "Hi, My name is..." tag.

Next is "vacay."  Have we all become spoiled, blond, valley girls?  The word is "vacation."  Is that so hard?

From what I can tell, the only words that are one letter are "A" and "I."  "U" is an abbreviation for "University."

Is it really any harder to type "girl" as opposed to "gurl?"

"Unique" means "one of a kind."  It is not qualifyable.  If it is "very unique" or "sort of unique" then it is rare.  Unique is an "either/or" situation:  Either it is one of a kind or it is not.

Nao U prolly think I am nutz.  I will go nowwwww.

Who Do You Say I AM?

Proper 16 A      Matt. 16:13-20             August 21, 2008          Rev. Benton Quest

St. Swithin's in the Swamp

A while back, I was driving down the road. I didn’t think I was doing anything wrong. I was maybe driving a little over the speed limit but not that bad. Suddenly, this car comes up behind me and starts tailgating me and flashing its lights at me. I try to figure out if I am doing anything wrong. From what I could tell, I wasn’t doing anything worthy of this person’s anger. Still, the person was behind me, tailgating, flashing lights, and giving me the one finger salute. I was totally confused. I could not figure out what to do to make this person leave me alone. Eventually, the person passed me. While driving past, I was given another one finger salute.

Now what was interesting was that as the car drove past, I noticed a “Jesus Fish” on the back bumper. Wow! This person was publicly proclaiming to be a Christian through the fish on his car, but here he was acting in a way that was anything but Christ-like. He was telling the world that he was a follower of Christ, but his actions were totally disrespectful of Christ.

Jesus said to his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”

The televangelists are on TV proclaiming the love of Christ. They are proclaiming the forgiveness of sins and total salvation. The problem is; this salvation is only for the “good” people. This salvation is only for the people who give enough money. This salvation is only for the people who can help the cause. This salvation is only for the people who do all the “right” things. All you other people? Well, you are damned. You have no hope. The message of love the televangelists are proclaiming is good, but their demonstration of love and grace is disrespectful to Christ.

Jesus said to his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”

“Can you believe she would wear such a thing to church?” one lady says to another. “She looks like a bag lady in that outfit! You would think she could find something better to wear. And what about those kids? They look like thieves and act like animals. We can’t pray with them around.”

Jesus said to his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”

On Southpark we have Jesus with his own show on public-access television. Unfortunately, this Jesus is as totally wimpy and really does not stand up to anyone or for anything. This televised Jesus is someone more to be pitied than worshipped.

Jesus said to his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”

If we look at the world, we get a really twisted view of just who Jesus is. When we listen to the world, all we hear is Jesus being used as a means of attack, as a means of judgment, or as a means of escape. In the world, Jesus is often a convenient way to justify a person or group’s pinions. Unfortunately, in our world today, Jesus has become the clay and we have taken the role of the potter, forming Jesus into whatever shape is convenient.

The other unfortunate thing is that in our world, this may be the only view people ever get of Jesus. As people move away from studying the bible, as people move away from continuing faith education, they begin to create Jesus in their own image. They begin to put their thoughts, feelings, and prejudices into Jesus’ mouth. As people loose their perspective on the Jesus of the Bible, then the idea of Jesus as our rather wimpy pal becomes more and more prominent.

So, the world continues to cast Jesus as a wimpy pal. But just who is this so called “wimpy” pal of ours? Who does the Bible say Jesus is?

Well, Biblically, Jesus is the one who fed the multitudes! Jesus is the one who came for the sick and dying! Jesus is the one who healed the lame and brought good news to the poor! Jesus is the one who feeds us today with his body and his blood. Jesus is the one who dined with the sinners and lifted up the oppressed! Jesus is the one who died to forgive our sins and was raised so that we might have eternal life! Jesus stood up to the power structure of his time and sat down so the children could find comfort on his lap.

This Jesus, the Jesus of the Bible is no ineffectual pal. The Jesus of the Bible is not just a weakling who will go along with whatever the structures of the world have to say. The Jesus of the Bible is much more willing to forgive than to condemn. The Jesus of the Bible is much more willing to include than to exclude. The Jesus of the Bible is willing to look beyond the reality of those who surround him and see the magnificent potential that God has created in each. This is the Jesus we Christians proclaim as Lord.

So, if Jesus were to ask each of us, “Who do you say that I am?” What would we say? (Pause) Or better yet! If Jesus asked our friends, coworkers, acquaintances, or people we encounter at Meijer, “Who does this person say that I am?” What would the response be? If Jesus asked our calendar or check book “Who does this person say that I am” what would the response be? What about the next door neighbors, the people who live across the street, the people who live in Johnsonville; for these people, who does the congregation of St. Swithin's say Jesus is? Christ has given us the gift of forgiveness, have we extended that gift to others? Christ has given us the gift of acceptance, have we reached out in acceptance to others? (Small Pause) Have we given that gift of acceptance to ourselves? Christ loves us with an unselfish love: have we spread this love to an unbelieving world?

Now my interpretation may be wrong here, I have not found any of the scholars stating this, but I tend to think at the end of the reading, Jesus ordered the disciples not to tell people that Jesus was the messiah because he wanted the disciples to SHOW the world that Jesus was the messiah.

We know that words are one thing, but actions are another. I may say I love my brother, but if I continually punch him in the eye, you would probably begin to wonder just how deep that love is. Jesus wants his disciples, his followers (that means you and me!) to live in the promises that we have been given and to show the world what it means to have the love of the Messiah! Jesus wants his followers doing more than saying they love him, he wants them out there showing it! 

I worked as a hospital chaplain.  I once got called to the room of a woman who was beaten and raped.  I expected to find a lot of anger, what I found was totally different.  In fact, when asked what the woman wanted to pray for, her request was not for herself but for the man who raped her.  She prayed that he could get help so he would never have to do this to another.  Jesus said to his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”

When I worked at camp, we used to have a saying, “YOU may be the only Bible some people read.” It is this calling, the calling to be out in the world, which Jesus sets before his followers. Jesus tells his followers that they are to be out attacking the gates of Hades. Jesus wants his followers to know that the gates of Hades cannot withstand us when we embrace the strength of Christ.

Now, this is not some passive thing like locking the doors against Hades, this is an active thing. The gates of Hades cannot move so therefore we must be the ones that move. We need to be out there spreading the word and showing the world!

What are the gates that Christ has shown us? What strongholds are out there that prevent us, God’s people, from truly living? What battles does Christ have in store for you personally and for you all as a congregation? We may not want to engage in these battles because they may appear to be just too much, but even if these battles appear futile, Christ is asking us to trust in him and go out and spread his love.

Jesus is standing here, before each and every one of us and before us all as Christians. He is looking into our eyes. He breathes in and asks each one of us with hope and love in his voice, “And you, who do you say that I am?”

How will we answer?

High point of going to Knoxville

One of the nice things about going to Knoxville is a certain lawyer.

Now, you may be wondering why I would make a whole post about a lawyer, well, this guy is a nice change from the usual fare.  Usually, the lawyers we see on TV and billboards are rather pedestrian if not downright ugly.  But this guy is a treat to see along the side of the road and plastered on buses.

Around this part of the world, we are treated to:

Then there is this guy:

But when I got to Knoxville, I was surrounded by billboards with Stephen looking fondly down upon me!

Almost worth getting in an accident for, isn't it?

Nick, Beartoast, and Me!

Nick and I are back in Knoxville to see how Nick's daughter is doing.  I am so happy to say that she is home and although she gets tired easily, she looks really good!

Between visits with his daughter, Nick and I made a run to what has become one of my favorite kitschy places in America, Gatlinburg, TN.  While we were there, we ran planned to meet up with Beartoast Joe.  We had a great time!

Thanks for driving all those miles Joe, it was great to see you again!

Pentecost Proper 15A

Proper 15 A       Matthew 15:10-28        August 14, 2011            The Rev. Benton Quest

St. Swithin's in the Swamp

There are some readings in the lectionary cycle that just make most clergy want to run in terror and hide in the mountains somewhere.  Well, guess what? Today is one of those days!  Today’s gospel is one of those readings that people have argued about for years and no one seems to have the definitive answer.  Many people have tried to come up with an explanation for it, but most seem to fail.  So, in honor of today’s reading, I think we are going to have a hymn sing!  No?  Oh… Okay.

What seems to be happening in today’s gospel reading is that Jesus appears to be acting in a really uncharacteristically rude manner.  The manner in which Jesus speaks is really what we would not expect.   We usually expect Jesus to be kind, caring and loving; we don’t expect Jesus to be cold and aloof.  But in our gospel reading, the good news of the gospel seems to be missing.

Let’s take a look at the situation: A woman has come to Jesus to ask for help. He daughter is ill and she wants Jesus to help her.  The first thing that Jesus does is ignores her. Then, if ignoring this woman is not rude enough, he calls her a dog and tells her that she is not worthy of his help!  What Gospel truth are we supposed to learn from this?

I have found this interaction to be very troubling. Haven’t we always been taught that Jesus is loving and caring?  So loving, in fact that he gave his life for us, right?  And here, now, we have a situation where Jesus seems to be disregarding the pain this suffering woman, this just doesn’t seem right.

Hearing this story makes me wonder:  If Jesus could so easily disregard this woman’s pain, would Jesus disregard my pain? Would Jesus consider me a dog, unworthy of the divine food if I were to bring my troubles to him? I know that I have not lived up to the standard set by Christ’s life. I have not loved others as I have been loved. I have not freely given. I have placed myself before others. I know that I have fallen short. But I have relied on Jesus’ love and grace to be with me even though I am undeserving. 

Now here we have this story which seems to be showing Jesus being unloving and ungrace-filled; we have this story that seems to show Christ being, well, very Un-Christlike. Now we are presented with a Jesus who is reluctant to even hear the plea of a mother in pain. With what we have in our gospel reading for today, it would seem that the loving and grace-filled Jesus was just a show. As I have said, I find this to be very troubling.

It is interesting to read what various scholars HAVE said about this passage. Some have suggested that Jesus didn’t really mean “dog” as in a stray, mongrel kind of dog but “dog” as in cuddly pet dog. This seems to clear everything up, doesn’t it?  Well, no.  If I were pleading for the life of my child, it wouldn’t matter if you called me a German Shepherd of a Yorkie or even a Peek-a-poo; whatever you call me, your still calling me a dog!  If my child’s life were in jeopardy and you called me a dog, I would be totally offended.

Other scholars have suggested that Jesus and the lady were engaging in some lighthearted banter. I don’t really buy this either.  That would be like going to a cardiologist and having her tell me that she wouldn’t waste her time or education operating on a fat, lazy, slob like me. Ha ha ha.  She would rather save her talent for someone who is in better shape and more deserving. I can tell you, I would start laughing and respond with my best Groucho Marx imitation. “Aw Doc, that is the craziest thing I ever hoird!”  Yeah, sure...   No, again I would be totally offended. No, I just don’t buy the lighthearted banter approach either.

However, up until this point, we have not looked at this incident in context of the other events that were occurring. Most people just focus on the dog part and forget that other things have just happened. Jesus is with the disciples discussing ritual purity and defilement. Now, you need to remember, if a person was ritually pure, then that person could go into the temple. But if a person were ritually impure, it would be blasphemous for that person to step foot into the temple. Also, people were not to touch someone who was ritually impure; to touch an impure person would be to become impure themselves.  So, even if you kept all the ritual purity laws, if you touched an impure person, then all that work to be pure was trashed; that was it, one touch and you were impure.

What Jesus was explaining to the disciples was that it was not the purity laws that make a person clean or defiled, but what comes out of a person’s heart.  If a person is evil, all of the ritually clean food in the world will not make that person good. In the same manner, just eating a pork chop or shrimp cocktail does not necessarily make a person evil. Jesus was saying that a person’s character is more than just adherence to the law.

Then the part that happens next, the part with the woman coming up to plead with Jesus, is a testing of the proclamation:  A gentile woman comes to Jesus and begs for help. According to the law, this woman is unclean, impure, defiled. If Jesus were to touch her, he, then, would become defiled. If the disciples were to touch her, they would become defiled too.

Now we come to the dilemma: Jesus has just talked about what defiles and what does not. Will the disciples risk being socially impure in order to help this gentile woman or will they keep their hands clean? 

The answer that Jesus gets from his disciples is a resounding, “NO WAY!” The disciples would not even approach the woman and requested that Jesus send her away.

Then Jesus gives the response that is so troubling. Jesus responds that he was sent to the lost sheep of Israel and that the children’s food should not be thrown to the dogs.

Now if these comments are directed toward the woman, then they are truly cruel. But it has been suggested that the comments were intended for the disciples to hear. Jesus was following the exact letter of the law to show how a strict, unthinking, adherence to the law can be just as defiling as a total abandonment of the law. Jesus was showing the disciples, and us, that we need to respond to our world with one eye turned to the law, and the other turned to our neighbor.

The first question I have from this reading is, “Who are the people I would like to have Jesus send away?” Who are the people I do not want to touch for fear of becoming defiled in the sight of the world? Who would I rather have Jesus take out of my sight so that I don’t have to think about them? Are there people like this in your life? Messy people? Annoying people? Needy people? Instead of turning them away, how is Christ asking you to reach out? How is Christ asking you to be a blessing to these people?

The second question I think is even more important than the first. How are we like the woman in the story? How have we been loved and lifted by Christ’s love? If we cannot see how Christ has blessed us, then we cannot be a blessing to others. If we cannot see how, even though we were undeserving of forgiveness, Christ has forgiven us, then we are lost. Christ did not ask that we become clean and undefiled before he gave his life for us, he gave his life while we were still outcasts. Christ did not demand restitution from us before he bestowed his forgiveness. It is this love, this grace, this forgiveness that Christ wishes us to bestow upon those we encounter in our lives.

Now although we may not understand Jesus’ actions in the gospel, we do know that he extended love and help to that very person that the law said should be turned away. He helped the woman even though the Pharisees would have cried that she was “unclean.” Although society may have said the woman was unworthy of help, Christ helped her anyway. 

Christ calls us to reach out because even though we may be unclean, we are still loved and forgiven. Even when society looks down upon us, Christ calls us all to the table. Even those whom the world would have us send away, Christ would have us call in. 

So even though at first glance, the gospel lesson looks like Jesus being rude, we can see that Jesus is teaching us to reach out and to love those who would come into our lives. Loving the people who are different can be difficult, but this is the kind of love we are called to give. This is the kind of love we ourselves have received through Jesus. This is the love we are given and this is the love we are asked to follow. Giving this love may be difficult, but through Christ, we can achieve it.

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 Sometimes you go to the antique mall and don't find much of anything.  Then you go and see something that makes you laugh for hours on end.  Well, today, Nick and I were walking through a local antique mall and saw the
poodle platter that you see here.  We started laughing and decided that it was just about the ugliest things either of us have ever seen in our lives.

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As fate would have it, we went walking on through the mall and fund the lamp that you see here.  And "yes" he does have a posing strap on.  Of course, when we saw it we decided we needed to have it.

Now, granted, we are a bit strapped for money, but there are some things you see and you know that you will never see anything like this again.  To find two in one day ranks in the "Jackpot!" category.

Some things are ugly, and some are so ugly they transcend and become something more.  These have transcended and are now part of the decor of Chez Nick-Benton!

I like this sermon, if I do say so myself! Pentecost 14 A

Proper 14 Year A        Matthew 14:22-33 

In today’s gospel, we have a story that is probably pretty familiar to most of us; it is the story of Jesus walking on the water. The disciples are out in a boat.  We are told that it has taken them all night to cross the sea of Galilee.  Now, the sea is only seven miles wide going from east to west.  There is no way is should have taken them all night to get across the thing unless the weather was really bad!  Storms on the lake are notorious, so they had been getting buffeted by waves all nigh and not seeming to get anywhere.  Then they saw something, something they at first thought was a ghost.  When they saw this they were afraid, then Jesus spoke to them and told them to not be afraid.  Peter recognizes Jesus and, in a great display of faith, says that if Jesus calls him, he, too, could walk out on the water to Jesus. So Jesus calls him and Peter begins to walk. But once Peter starts walking, he begins to doubt, his faith begins to waver; and as he doubts, he begins to sink.

I don’t think Peter’s experience is too far away from our own experiences in life. We see where Jesus is calling us and it may cause us to be initially frightened. But then we reach out and say, “Just call me Jesus and I will follow you anywhere. “We then venture out in faith, and to our shock and amazement,  we realize that we, in fact, can walk on the water! We continue to walk in faith, but then it dawns on us, WE ARE NOW IN THE MIDDLE OF STORMY WATERS!   And as we look around, we realize something else; our boat is WAY behind us!

Oh no! We are out in the middle of the water. Our boat is out of reach behind us. Jesus is somewhere in front of us. (Have you ever felt this way?)  We look for a way to save ourselves. Suddenly, we feel the water beneath our feet go from being solid enough to hold us to being, well, water!  We feel ourselves starting to sink and we feel the water wash over us. Now we start to panic.  And as we panic, we feel the water cover us even more! We are going to drown!

We step out into life with the best of intentions. We have every intention of volunteering our time to help take care of the church building and grounds. We intend to help with the nursery and Sunday school. And we are going to jump right in and tithe. And we truly have faith that Jesus will see us through on these intentions. But then the strong winds of life begin to buffet us. We begin to notice that we are moving in uncharted territory.  We notice that the water around us is mighty choppy.  We notice that the water around us is just that, WATER!  We notice that our usual sources of support are gone.  And then we realize the boat is out of reach.

What we forget about in this story, however, is that Peter does NOT drown. When Peter faltered, Jesus didn’t just abandon him to the depths. Jesus reaches out and catches Peter. Jesus does NOT let Peter drown.

And we are also told that Jesus speaks to Peter. Now, how we interpret these words of Jesus have a lot of bearing on what we take away from the story. If we hear Jesus speaking to Peter as a punitive parent, then we would rightly have fear of stepping out of the boat and out into the chaos of the world in faith. If we hear Jesus say in some booming, angry voice, “OH YOU OF LITTLE FAITH!!” we may assume that we should only try something so audacious as walking on water, only if we are some kind of faith superstar.

But there is another way of interpreting what Jesus said.

Imagine yourself as a parent. Now, imagine your child in the process of learning how to walk. Your child is at one end of the room and you are on the other. Your child is reaching out to you and you are encouraging her to take her first tentative steps toward you. She looks into your eyes with total faith and then lets go of the bookcase. Keeping her eyes on you, she toddles into the middle of the room. When she reaches the middle of the room, she begins to look around. THERE IS NOTHING TO HANG ON TO! The bookcase is behind her and you are in front of her. And the only thing between you and her is the wide expanse of floor. Suddenly in a panic, your child starts crying and drops to the floor.

Now, do you go to her and begin to scold her because she got frightened? Well, of course not. You scoop her up in your arms and you laugh. She was doing so well and then she began to doubt. And when she doubted, it was than that she lost her footing.

I guess I see Jesus in just such a parental role in today’s reading. I don’t see Jesus as scolding Peter. I see Jesus as having one of those, “Oh so close but not quite yet” moments. Peter seems to get it; Peter seems to get that Jesus can be trusted in even the most bizarre of situations. But then the world gets the better of Peter and Peter flounders.  (I guess we should have expected that, Peter does mean “Rock” after all!)

Jesus knows we will flounder too. But still, Jesus calls us.  Jesus calls us to get out of the boat and enter into the chaos that surrounds us.  Jesus calls us to get out and trust in him. Jesus doesn’t tell the disciples to row the boat faster or try harder. He just tells them to take heart and not be afraid. And what does Jesus do when Peter begins to sink? He reaches out and grabs him and carries him to the boat. Even when Peter’s faith falters, Jesus does not leave him behind to sink into the chaos; Jesus scoops Peter up and carries him to safety.

Jesus is asking us all to step out of the boat, or let go of the bookcase, or release our grip on our time or our paycheck.  Jesus is asking us to let go of those things we think are giving us support and to look into his eyes and trust. Jesus is asking us to believe and then move. Jesus is asking us to just step out in faith.  Jesus is not expecting us to be faith superstars, he is just expecting us to take one small step, and then another, and then another. And you know, in no time at all, not only are we walking on the water, but we are running laps around the lake!

But if we should lose faith and become caught up in the winds of life, we are not lost, we are not left to sink to the bottom and perish. If we get caught up in the chaos of life, Christ is there for us, ready to hold us up and support us. Ready to carry us back to the boat ready to calm our fears, and if need be, ready to calm the winds that surround us.  Even if WE get caught up in the troubles of life, Jesus doesn’t just leave us.

I can pretty much guarantee that we will get caught in the troubles of life.  We will lose faith and falter.  But that does not mean we are punished.  Christ comes to us, scoops us up in his strong arms, looks into our eyes and smiles. He gives us a little shake of the head and then, trying, but not quite succeeding, to suppress a knowing chuckle, says, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?”

Why do we doubt? Why do we doubt the one who died and was raised? Why do we doubt the one who calls us and feeds us with his own body and blood? Why do we doubt the one who promises to be with us until the end of time?

But the fact is: we do doubt. The fact is: our faith will flounder.  And although sometimes we will be out there like faith superstars, the fact is, most of the time we will get caught up in the winds of the world. But the fact that we need to remember is that no matter what we do, Christ is there, urging us on to step out of the boat in faith; and also ready to scoop us up if we should falter.

Pentecost Proper 13A Our Gifts Can Do Great Things!

(ed:  The cat barfed on a copy of this sermon.  I guess she didn't like it!)

Matthew 14: 13-21

I think one of my least favorite things in the world we live in today is advertising. I know, it runs our world, but it is everywhere. And I also know that it pays for most of the things we watch, we read, or we see on line. But what is the cost of all of this advertising? Have we ever thought about this?  What have we, personally, paid for advertising? What in our lives have we given to advertising? That may sound like an odd question to be coming from the pulpit, but I think it is a valid question. What has become of our lives due to advertising?

The object of most advertising is to make us want to buy things. And the best way to make us want to buy someting is to make us feel like we are somehow lacking if we do not have that specific something. And what is even more, better than just having that specific something, in many cases we are lead to believe that we need to be the FIRST person to have that specific something. So the whole aim of advertising is to make us feel like we are in some manner inadequate if we do not have a specific item, or what we may already have is just not good enough.

Now if we really stopped to think about this, it is kind of silly. Are we any more special because we have Nike shoes over Adidas shoes? Are we any more important because we have an iPhone 4G as opposed to the Android phone? Are we more special because we have a smart phone as opposed to those who may only have a plain flip phone?  Are we just so much more special because we have clothes that say “Pink” on them or “Hollister” of “Levi”? And one of my biggest questions of all: Why would anyone need to spend $300, $400, $500 or more for a purse? It just baffles me.

During my life, I have seen many trends come and go. For a while, we all needed designer jeans. Then we all needed Member’s Only jackets. At one time people were literally fighting over Cabbage Patch Kids dolls. And how many people thought they were going to be able to retire on the profits they would make when they sold their Princess Bear Beanie Baby?

Stuff. Our society wants us to believe we are only as good as our stuff. But having the stuff is never good enough. The bar HAS to move. At one point, driving a Cadillac was the epitome of luxury. Then we all had to drive Leuxuses or is that Lexusi? I don’t know.  For a while it was Hummers and now it seems to be anything that is a Hybrid. To keep the economy moving, new things have to be placed out there as the “it” thing to have. To keep the economy moving, we need to be convinced that if we do not have that “it” thing, then we are not good enough.

But what does this whole lesson in economy and psychology have to do with us here a church? Actually, quite a lot. The disciples in our reading exactly exemplify the type of thought that we see here in America.

The disciples present Jesus with a monumental problem; how to feed over 5000 people. But instead of Jesus either sending the people away or doing some kind of miracle that would feed all the people, he tosses the request back to the disciples and tell them to feed the people. At which point I am sure the disciples must have though Jesus was totally insane. All they had were five loaves and two fish. Jesus was asking them to feed well over 5000 people with that food. 

If we think about it, five loaves and two fish is not very much. If you have ever given a party, you know that people can eat a lot! The disciples were faced with thousands of hungry people and a very small amount of food. If I were them, I would be afraid of a riot or something breaking out as they all fought to get the limited amount of food.

Unfortunately, I think our world teaches us that what we have is inadequate. No matter WHAT we have, if we look, we can always find something that is bigger, better, more stylish, or more impressive. We may feel that whatever we can offer is not going to be good enough. But if we believe this, we are not believing the teaching of Jesus.  This is not a teaching of Jesus, this is a teaching of the world.

I cannot think of one place in the Bible where someone offers their gifts up for Jesus and Jesus says, “Well, I guess that will do. I really wanted Long John Silver’s fish and fries, but I guess your fish and loaves will have to do.

We may laugh at this because we see the absurdity of it. But still, as a kid, I remember feeling like I was not as good as the other kids because my family could not afford the Nike shoes that everyone else was wearing. It is not that my shoes were not good enough, they we just fine, it was that they were not the status symbol shoes that were being proclaimed on the commercials. The absurdity of being judged by one’s shoes should be obvious, but it and similar kinds of judgments that happen everyday.

So, since we are daily being bombarded with messages that tell us that what we have or what we are is not good enough, is it any wonder that so many of us go through life feeling like we are victims?  But Jesus is showing us a different way to go through life. What we have, no matter how small it may seem, is very important and of great worth. We each have been given a multitude of gifts and these are what Jesus asks us to bring to him. 

The disciples assumed that their loaves and fish are not enough. They assumed that they needed something that was more or better or both. They did not think that their meager offering could be enough for this impossible task that was set before them. But they found out that they are wrong! In the hands of Jesus, the gifts of the disciples became more than they could have ever comprehend.

There have been many arguments over the whether the fish and the loaves miraculously multiplies or whether sitting with someone who is hungry, while you have food, brought out the altruism in the members of the crowd. Personally, I think don’t think it profits us to follow this argument. The writer of the gospel did not give us the details. All we know is that these five loaves and two fish were enough to feed the multitudes.

But what we CAN learn is that when we bring our gifts to Jesus, Jesus will lift our gifts up to heaven and bless them. When we trust what we have been given and, in faith, give it to Christ, we will find that our efforts will NOT be in vein.

Our world tells us that we are not good enough and the gifts we have are not adequate. But those are the lies of our world. The wheels of commerce are not kept greased by people who are joyful and content with the gifts God gave them. Commerce keeps going through our discontent with our lives. The more discontented the world can keep us, the more we will spend.

But Jesus has a different message for us. We all have been given wonderful gifts and we can freely give of these gifts. When we give in faith, our gifts are multiplied and the results are greater than we could ever imagine. Even those who would appear to have nothing to give can still be part of Christ’s plan. In one of my former congregations, there was a wonderful woman who was unable to come to church and was not able to get out of her house except for dr. appts. But she still gave her gifts to Christ who blessed them and used them. This woman would send birthday cards to everyone in the congregation. Not a huge task, but one that touched many lives. Through her faith and willingness to give, her gift was multiplied throughout the community.

It is Jesus himself who gives us the ultimate example: He gave himself as a gift for us all. We are all called to the table and receive the gift of Christ’s own body and blood. Although he may seem like one small person, through faith and blessing, love and forgiveness is brought to the whole world! And as Christ’s followers, we are called to present our gifts, our lives, our selves, in the certain faith that Christ will use our gifts and multiply our gifts.

The world tells us that we are continuously in need; but in the economy of God, we are greatly blessed. Unfortunately, so often the words of the world are so loud that the words of Christ, “Bring them here to me,” are drowned out. But Christ continues to call us, continues to ask us to reach out in faith. And when we do, the results are unimaginable!