[Propertalk] Fwd: [propertalk.topic] Sermon for Easter 7A

[Joe Parrish]

Forwarded:



-----Original Message-----
From: Judy <judy_boli at ecunet.org>
To: propertalk.topic <propertalk.topic at ecunet.org>
Sent: Sat, May 31, 2014 7:54 pm
Subject: [propertalk.topic] Sermon for Easter 7A



Dear Friends,
 
This Sunday’s sermon is entitled “The Ascension- What’s It to Us?” anddeals with the Acts lesson (Acts 1: 1-11). Here it is:
 
Today is AscensionSunday.  If you look at our cross overthe altar, it’s an ascension Christ-figure. At first glance, it’s easy to think the Christ-figure is a crucifix, butthere is actually no cross.  We see Jesus,arms outstretched as if on a cross, ascending to heaven to take his place ofhonor and glory after his victorious triumph over death.  In the Acts Bible lesson (1:1-11), we heardthe account of what happened.  Thedisciples had been living roller coaster lives. They must have been extremely confused at the Last Supper.  From there, in rapid succession, they livedthrough the horror of the crucifixion; the empty tomb- with strange reportsfrom the women about a possible miracle; the fear of what Jesus would say tothem if, in fact, he were alive- considering the cowardly way they had behavedin his time of trial; and finally the relief of a new and renewed relationshipwith the risen Christ at Easter.  Inother words- they had him, they lost him, they had him again, and now herecomes the Ascension, and they were about to lose him permanently with a promisethat the Spirit would come and things would be even better.  To make matters worse, we hear how the Jesustells them (just before he ascends) to get busy doing his work- going into allthe world to teach, heal, preach, baptize, bring about Jubilee- i.e.- giveeveryone a fresh start in God’s kingdom. 
 
True, it was a confusing messfor them, but what a wonderful event for us. Why?  For two reasons.  While Jesus was on this planet, he was limited.  He could be in Jerusalem OR Nazareth.  Without the Ascension, bringing it to thepresent time, he could be in Saginaw OR Detroit- but not both.  Can you imagine the lines to see him?  Can you imagine the telephone difficulties-“If you would like to talk to Jesus, please press ‘1’ now?”  It had to happen, but what a frighteningchange for the disciples.  To beaccessible to all of us all the time, Jesus had to return to heaven- thank Godhe did!
 
There’s another reason the Ascension had to happen-so we could grow up spiritually.  As longas Jesus was physically present on this planet, the disciples would remain justthat- disciples- learners.  You know howfinally you’ve got to stop watching the expert and start doing for yourself?  If you want to learn to cook, you can watchan experienced cook for a long time, you can stay hooked on all the TV cookingchannels, you can even spend your time reading cookbooks- but finally you’vegot to get your hands in the flour or whatever and stop just watching andlistening- and start doing.  Before Iretired, I would frequently have student teachers in my classroom.  At the beginning of the semester, they werevery happy to watch me teach- in fact, some would probably have been happy tospend the entire semester that way; however- that’s not how you make goodteachers.  Pretty soon they had to stopwatching me and start teaching on their own. When Jesus left this planet, the disciples were forced to carry on hiswork themselves, which is what the Father intended all along.  Remember, St. Paul taught us that we- the church- arethe Body of Christ.
 
What are the implications of the Ascension for us,if we are going to be true to our Lord?  Now that Jesus is in heaven, WE ARE THE BODY OF CHRIST!  Our hands, feet, mouths, bodies, lives do theJesus ministry.  It is entrusted tous.  If we don’t do it, it simply won’tget done.
 
What are we to do? The letters in the holy name of Jesus remind us of some of the basics:
 
“J” reminds us we are to continue Jesus’ work ofestablishing Jubilee- in other words: justice, peace, and a second chance forall God’s people.
 
“E” reminds us to evangelize- spread the Word, baptize,and teach.  Remember, in Matthew 28 Jesusreminded us to go to all nations baptizing and teaching.
 
“S” is for “strength”- the power, courage, andendurance Jesus offers through daily reading of His Word, prayer, fellowship,and weekly Holy Communion.
 
“US” reminds us that God expects us to be in thistogether as a team.  The disciples knewJesus expected them to stick together, which is why they were all back in thatupper room at Pentecost.  One personcan’t be the “Body of Christ.”  Read 1stCorinthians 12, and you’ll see we’re all expected to be the “Body of Christ”together.  I’m going to close with astory illustrating why we must stick together. Did you hear the story about the mouse and the other animals?  Well- the mouse overheard the farmer tell hiswife that he was installing a brand new, foolproof mousetrap.  The mouse was so upset that he went runningto the barnyard to get help from the other animals.  When he told the hen, he got no sympathywhatsoever!  “Don’t bother me, mouse-that’s your problem; not mine” was the reply. So he told the pig and got the same reply- “Don’t bother me- not myproblem.”  He even told the cow; againwith the same reply- “Don’t bother me- not my problem.”  That night as the mouse was sleeping, heheard the mousetrap snap.  A poisonoussnake had gotten his tail caught in the trap. When the farmer’s wife went to see what had happened, the snake drewback and bit her.  Instantly, she startedto feel very sick, so she called her husband. Now the husband didn’t know anything about medicine, but he knew thatchicken soup cures anything; so he went to the barn, killed the chicken(remember- it wasn’t her problem), and made some chicken soup.  Problem- his wife got sicker.  He called the doctor who said he would comeif he could be paid in bacon, so he butchered the pig (remember- it wasn’t hisproblem) and paid the doctor in bacon. Finally, his wife died.  He neededfood for the many people who visited to comfort him, so he killed the cow(remember- it wasn’t her problem) and started up the grill so everyone couldhave steak.  The moral of this story-we’re all in this together.
 
If it’s going to get done for Jesus and God’sKingdom, we’re going to do it.  We arethe Body of Christ.  We’re all in thistogether.
 
For anyone who is interested, this sermon and updatedAfrican-American wisdom statements are posted on our parish’s NEW WEB SITEunder “Sermons & Stuff”. The address is: http://www.stpaulsepisag.org .
 
Blessed preaching,
Judy Boli
St. Paul's Episcopal Church
Saginaw, Michigan

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